Eleanor Arnason's Blog, page 102

Today is Bright and Clear

And I am spending it indoors. My fiction writing group met yesterday evening, and I am feeling a bit worn out.

The astronomy photo of the day is awesome. Unfortunately, it is copyrighted. So I am not going to post it. But I am posting the link.

Another Gray Day

But I'm in a far better mood. I went to the library and then to a coffee shop to read. This involved walking in a light rain, which I enjoyed. It was also enjoyable to sit in a big, comfy chair in the coffee shop and read a Diana Wynne Jones book.

One of my friends does a "Tuesday Tips" email of quotes and thoughts. Today's quote was from Leonard Cohen:

If I can do just one thing, I can write this story.

I saw that after I got back from the coffee shop and thought this is a message. So I worke...

On the Plus Side

There is this from the London Times Online:

Being serving police officers, they would no doubt leave their sun worshipping, mead drinking and naked dancing for their days off, not to mention the annual practice of leaving food out for the wandering dead.

As of today, however, pagan police have the right to take their festivals as official holiday after their support group won formal recognition from the Home Office.

The Pagan Police Association was announced by co-founder PC Andy Pardy, who...

Writing

The writing I am struggling with is two YA novels, plus the sequel to Ring of Swords which is taking forever to revise. All these are set in a world after a collapse. The science fiction YA and the sequel to Ring are set in our future. The fantasy is set in an imaginary world long after the collapse of a Magical Republic, which was once powerful, but destroyed itself. The Republic's ruins are mined for magical objects, some of which still work.

In the SF YA most of Earth is uninhabitable; and...

Gray Day

It's a gray day, and I am struggling with writing that is not going well. The Gulf oil spill sounds worse and worse. The news from Washington is not pleasant. I used to say that every president made the previous president look better. I don't think Obama makes Bush look better, but I don't like Obama at all. He is a smart version of Bush.

My current theory is the rich in the US and Europe expect to be able to retreat into armed and armored enclaves when the environment collapses, and the world...

Note

My chapbook Mammoths of the Great Plains is out. I have held copies in my hands. It can be ordered from Amazon.

And Here Are Two More Examples

Notice the graffitti on the 18th century house and cart.

Exit Through the Gift Shop

Patrick and I saw an awesome movie today: Exit Through the Gift Shop. It's hard to describe, except to say it's apparently a true story -- a documentary -- and is described as "The First Street Art Disaster Movie." It's about street art and is both funny and horrible.

The guy responsible for the movie (along with other people) is the English street artist Banksy. If you don't know his work, here is one example.



He does a lot of rats, as does the French street artist Blek le Rat. I want to do...

Another Picture from Greece

Maybe It's Time To Visit Greece

The photo is from The Guardian today, as is this:

Passing in front of Athens' imposing Greek parliament, demonstrators shouted: "Let the rich pay for the crisis."

What a radical idea!