In which Seanan pleads forebearance, and bullet-points the week.: seanan

In which Seanan pleads forebearance, and bullet-points the week.

1. I have been blazingly ill since Sunday afternoon, and spent most of yesterday and Monday in a cold medication haze. I am thus behind on LJ comments, email, snail mail, passenger pigeon mail, Facebook mail (well, I'm always behind on Facebook mail), sending out the mail, opening the mail, and anything else that required actual effort on my part. If you're waiting for a response from me, please, be patient. If your request is urgent, please, mail again. If I do not consider your request to be actually urgent, like you're asking for kitten pictures or something, I reserve the right to delete your email and scowl in your general direction.

2. Despite being blazingly ill, I managed to make my word counts on Blackout both days, and am on track to hit 100,000 words on April 23rd. This is good, since it means I may actually finish the book, you know, on time. I love finishing things on time. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy and slightly less completely deranged.

3. Saturday night was GP's birthday party! I did not come home that night, as it was late and we were all exhausted and sort of drunk (and yes, this may have dealt my immune system the fatal blow). Thomas showed his disapproval by climbing onto my computer desk, gently nudging aside the dolls on the second shelf, pulling down the jar in which I store my earplugs, opening the jar, dumping out the earplugs, and eating half of them. I do not know why he is so obsessed with eating the damn things, but he's why I bought that jar in the first place. Now he shits little pink bullets, and looks smug.

4. My vet has confirmed that this won't hurt him, but is also sub-optimal. I have moved my earplugs.

5. The first draft of "Crystal Halloway, Girl Wonder, and the Terror of the Truth Fairy" is finished and being hacked at by the Machete Squad. This is seriously the most depressing, nihilistic story I think I've ever written. Which makes it appropriate that I wrote it while I was sick even unto death. This thing reads like the prologue to a Vertigo comic series.

6. I am not writing a Vertigo comic series. Unless, of course, DC asks me to.

7. I also got started on the first draft of "Rat-Catcher," a Tobyverse story set in London, in 1662 (yes, only a few years before the Great Fire, and the Great Plague). In it, a young Prince of Cats named Rand must stop playing theater cat at the Duke's Theater long enough to find a way to deal with his father, keep his sister from doing something monumentally stupid, and oh, right, maybe save the Cait Sidhe of London from a fate worse than death. Is this Tybalt's origin story? Why yes. Yes, it is.

8. Things already pulled from my research shelf in service of "Rat-Catcher": The Writer's Digest Guide to Character Naming (second edition), London: A Biography, Sex and Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, and The Wordsworth Dictionary of Shakespeare. Make of this what you will.

9. Being sick did allow me to catch up on some of my cache of SyFy Original Movies, including the second half of Meteor with Marla Sokoloff. This was a disturbingly good, surprisingly high-budget feature, especially for a SyFy Saturday. Also, not only were women competent and realistic characters, they didn't all die. Well done, SyFy. Keep up the good work.

10. Zombies are still love.

What's up with you?

vixyish

April 13 2011, 15:16:46 UTC 6 years ago

New comment

I have the aigh-my-nose-won't-stop-running that seemed to be the main feature of GP's cold. I'm attacking it with zinc and C and other things, as I need to be able to sing this Saturday. (For which rehearsal went *great*!)

seanan_mcguire

April 13 2011, 16:50:42 UTC 6 years ago

Yay rehearsal!

starmalachite

April 13 2011, 15:18:35 UTC 6 years ago

Wishing you a complete recovery ASAP.

Re Thomas eating your pink earplugs: If they're the same ones I use, he may have been trying to get you to go shop for replacements, & thus discover that they also come in orange. See, he did it for you!

Regarding the new story, I admit it gave me a nice warm glow to see you used my rather uncommon first name. Then I remembered that, according to my grandmother, my English ancestors were named either Hallowell or... Halloway.

Exactly when did your minions kidnap & brain scan me?

April 13 2011, 16:51:03 UTC 6 years ago

I do not know. But if what happens to my Crystal happened to you, I'm sorry.

biomekanic

6 years ago

Deleted comment

April 13 2011, 16:51:10 UTC 6 years ago

Thank you.

loki_dip

April 13 2011, 15:20:53 UTC 6 years ago

I think the cold thing has stormed the planet, or at least the internet right now. *sighs* Feel better soon! I have so much work to do but have to nap every afternoon to feel in vaguely human right now.

Can't imagine the earplugs are particularly tasty. Has he not discovered chocolate yet?

Currently I'm trying not to get my hopes up about yet another job. But this one I have a shot at and it's part of the bioresponse team that researches (and in case of an emergency acts) against bioterrorism. Hopefully I have all the right microbiology experience because it sounds fascinating. Though the sheer volume of security checks is a little nerve wracking!

April 13 2011, 16:51:43 UTC 6 years ago

Thankfully, no chocolate. Chocolate is bad for kittens.

Dude, get a job in counter-bioterrorism, please! I want to pick your brain.

deakat

April 13 2011, 15:39:04 UTC 6 years ago

Life is pretty good, unemployment notwithstanding. Had a fun evening with friends watching the first three episodes of Wonderfalls. I had forgotten that it was a Tim Minear production, and how very much I loved it.

April 13 2011, 16:52:04 UTC 6 years ago

It's a good, good show.

jenrose1

April 13 2011, 15:42:23 UTC 6 years ago

It's somewhat terrifying that I can tell an almost identical earplug story.

Only it stars my younger daughter, rather than a cat. Crazy kid. *looks askance* I guess they're like really disgusting gum?

I've still got tears in my eyes from laughing so hard at Now he shits little pink bullets, and looks smug.

April 13 2011, 16:52:13 UTC 6 years ago

...I guess.

bercilakslady

April 13 2011, 15:46:53 UTC 6 years ago

I hope you feel better soon.

I'm knitting a Dalek, which is entertaining, but involves way too many bobbles.

April 13 2011, 16:52:19 UTC 6 years ago

Hee!

vincentursus

textileowl

April 13 2011, 15:50:27 UTC 6 years ago

Feel better, though your productivity while sick amazes me. The Toby- verse story sounds brilliant and just the sort of tidbit I needed while waiting for Jeff to get out of a successful sinus surgery.

April 13 2011, 16:52:30 UTC 6 years ago

Glad the surgery went well!

wyldlingspirit

April 13 2011, 15:52:13 UTC 6 years ago

#1 gives me a sad. I hope you get better soon! <3

#3 made me laugh ruefully. Serena eats earphone cords and cardboard boxes. And, when she's vexed at me, paperback books.

#7 made me bounce in my chair and squee!

April 13 2011, 16:52:44 UTC 6 years ago

It's going to be awesome! I hope.

ceitfianna

April 13 2011, 16:12:04 UTC 6 years ago

The Tybalt story sounds amazing and Vertigo clearly needs to hire you. I'm almost done with my semester and after a summer class will have an MLIS.

April 13 2011, 16:52:51 UTC 6 years ago

Yay!

antinomic

April 13 2011, 16:21:45 UTC 6 years ago

I'm looking forward to the Puddy Tats in London. I had a cat there when I was a child, actually named it Puddy Tat. My wife is allergic to cats, so I've been a dog guy for 38 years. I had to make a choice, picked the wife. So far, it was a good choice. I'll render a final judgement in another 38 years. Symmetry!

April 13 2011, 16:53:28 UTC 6 years ago

Good call. :)

mariadkins

April 13 2011, 16:34:41 UTC 6 years ago

Now he shits little pink bullets, and looks smug.

:snicker:

April 13 2011, 16:53:36 UTC 6 years ago

It's awful.

maya_a

April 13 2011, 17:04:33 UTC 6 years ago

Regarding No. 7 (and 8): *squeeeeeeeee*
I do love a writer who does her research (and I know several for whom research is a risky endeavor for fear of never returning to their tale).

April 13 2011, 19:22:51 UTC 6 years ago

I love doing research, so everybody wins!

jslinder

April 13 2011, 17:08:08 UTC 6 years ago

Scretop Earplug jar? If the cats have mastered the whole opposeable thumb thing, we're screwed.

April 13 2011, 19:23:13 UTC 6 years ago

But do we want to encourage them to work at it?

April 13 2011, 17:18:22 UTC 6 years ago

I have started an exercise program, today was a Take a Walk Day. The next one shall be be Friday, which will be Take a Walk and Wear Your Hat Because the Rain Will Likely Ambush you at the Halfway Point Again.

Tomorrow is Wii boxing, with the weighted exercise gloves. Exercise, and I get to pretend I'm 'talking to' the douche I had to call twice about his issue. I consider this a win.

Also, apparently I ate to much of the lasagna I made, or Trader Joe's Vodka Sauce has cross contamination issues for people with Celiac. : (
I consider it my bad for feeling lazy and not making my own sauce. I should know better by now.

Also, also, I'm a bit more than 1/2 through Perdito Street Station.

April 13 2011, 19:23:30 UTC 6 years ago

Awesome! Well, not the cross-contamination, but the rest of it.

charlietinpants

April 13 2011, 17:27:42 UTC 6 years ago

a vertigo graphic novel with you as writer would be an epic read. THIS. REALITY. PERFECT. SQUEEE. until then, daydreams will have to do. tybalt origins story sounds divine. get well soon!

April 13 2011, 19:23:40 UTC 6 years ago

Thank you!

lysythe

April 13 2011, 17:45:07 UTC 6 years ago

Get well soon! Or fall and Rise, whichever's better. But I'm leaning towards the former.

April 13 2011, 19:23:47 UTC 6 years ago

Me, too.

ladymondegreen

April 13 2011, 17:57:49 UTC 6 years ago

Blue cats = way too cunning for their own good

*makes you more soup*

April 13 2011, 19:23:54 UTC 6 years ago

The blue cats are evil.

archangelbeth

April 13 2011, 18:37:42 UTC 6 years ago

1: I just got antibiotics for a cold that turned into sinusitis. Wheee! I hope you get well soon, too.

2: Wow!

3&4: Happy birthday to GP, and at least earplugs are less worrisome than those plastic ribbon things that people tie onto balloons. Which is what my Siamese-mix will eat. (The Maine Coon/Maine Coon Mix (we aren't sure which) only licks the heck out of my hand. I haz a flavr.)

5: Heh! Congrats!

6: I'd read it! And I don't read hardly any DC stuff.

7: EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

8: What, no CDs of the _Cats_ musical? O:>

9: Good to hear about those...

10: Nothing says love like Braaaaaaaaaaaains!

What's new with me? Antibiotics! The lunch of champions! Unless one develops a penicillin allergy, of course. >_>

April 13 2011, 19:24:13 UTC 6 years ago

Yay, antibiotics!

Enjoy them while they still work.

manynames

April 13 2011, 19:08:18 UTC 6 years ago

This afternoon, my child (who is not even three yet) asked me a question about a shoggoth.

I hope you feel better soon!

April 13 2011, 19:24:22 UTC 6 years ago

...I love your child.

catsittingstill

April 13 2011, 19:18:07 UTC 6 years ago

The Tybalt story sounds fun.

I finished the taxes and put them in the mail. I did not figure out how to e-file this year--if they want them e-filed, why the hell don't they just set up an e-mail address for those downloadable fill-outable pdf forms? Sheesh. But I probably need to figure it out eventually, since apparently they're going to stop taking paper forms one of these years.

It's a beautiful day and I am giving serious thought to going canoeing as my well-deserved reward, though that might mean I don't make my canoe-building deadline for the week. We'll see.

And I have about 1.7 new songs done (several songs, none completely done) including an idea for a Sparrow Hill Road song. We'll see on that too.

April 13 2011, 19:26:40 UTC 6 years ago

I think they don't want e-filing to be easy, because they want us to be late. But I'm cynical right now.

Hooray on new songs!

groblek

smoooom

April 13 2011, 19:42:04 UTC 6 years ago

Sorry you were feeling so unwell, hope you're all the way back to full wellness. Thomas and the ear plugs. I thought I used to have a cat who was unique that way. She would steal my used ones. Only used ones mind. She didn't want them new. At first I thought I was forgetting to put them in the garbage, but then I saw her wit hone. she was hiding some of them and others she would leave in random places all over the apartment. She would rip through bags to get them, tip over the bathroom garbage pail. Eventually I tapped them up and put each pair down the garbage chute on the way to work. After we moved she seemed to have lost interest, once in a while I'd find some gone out of the garbage. Now that Wayne has a CPAP machine I don't need ear plugs.

April 14 2011, 15:39:40 UTC 6 years ago

I'm such a light sleeper, I need ear plugs unless I'm sleeping in an actual vacuum.

alicetheowl

April 13 2011, 20:29:39 UTC 6 years ago

Ear plugs? And I thought Risu ate weird things. We have yet to put a bouquet of flowers within her reach that has survived 2 hours without teeth marks. She also really, really likes bananas. We also have another cat (a fluffy blue one, at that) who licks plastic like it's going out of style.

I am excited to read "Rat-Catcher," and will buy it in whatever form it may appear.

April 14 2011, 15:39:53 UTC 6 years ago

Cats are weird.

judifilksign

April 13 2011, 20:42:47 UTC 6 years ago

#7 SQUEE!

April 14 2011, 15:40:02 UTC 6 years ago

mlerules

April 13 2011, 22:29:39 UTC 6 years ago

Big YAY re: 7.!

I'm off to SoCal for a long weekend (Th - Tu) where, amongst other things, I'll get to see Re-Animator the Musical. Hoping to sit in the very front "splatter zone"...

April 14 2011, 15:40:14 UTC 6 years ago

I am deeply jealous of your weekend.

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In which Seanan pleads forebearance, and bullet-points the week.

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