S.L. Viehl's Blog, page 61
April 12, 2015
Lost City Treasures
My new glasses have (finally!) arrived, and I can see stuff that isn't six feet away (hooray!) So I'm trying to get out on the weekends and put my camera back to work. Here's a slideshow of my latest pics from a visit to the flea market:
April 11, 2015
Spring Signage
Whenever spring arrives here the air changes, a certain type of shrub blooms for a couple of weeks, and of course the spiders come back to set up house:
I like the spiders. I know most people find them creepy, but their webs are beautiful and I think of them as Nature's exterminators. They also eat most of the mosquitos that will be arriving between now and summer, never a bad thing.
Every spring I also haul out a UFO (unfinished object) quilt project and try to finish it, and sometimes when I dig through my sewing stuff I find something that I forgot I didn't finish. I have to wait for my new glasses to come in, but when they do I've decided I'm going to finally finish Snow here, who has been waiting for a couple years now for me to get on with it:
Spring also often brings some weird new critter trying to invade our property. Most of the time it's a bug (one memorable year we discovered the porch was infested with black widows) but 2015 appears to be the year of the tussock moth catepillar:
I've never seen these around here before this year, and some quick research revealed that contact with this catepillar's hairs can cause allergic skin reactions. Our kid is particularly sensitive to any kind of insect venom, so we are removing them from close proximity to the house. We've also spotted several buck moth catepillars, with whom any contact inflicts a horrible welt that hurts for days (and I can personally attest to it being worse than a burn from a hot iron) so we're disposing of them without any regrets whatsoever.
What surprises has spring brought to your corner of the planet? Let us know in comments.
I like the spiders. I know most people find them creepy, but their webs are beautiful and I think of them as Nature's exterminators. They also eat most of the mosquitos that will be arriving between now and summer, never a bad thing.
Every spring I also haul out a UFO (unfinished object) quilt project and try to finish it, and sometimes when I dig through my sewing stuff I find something that I forgot I didn't finish. I have to wait for my new glasses to come in, but when they do I've decided I'm going to finally finish Snow here, who has been waiting for a couple years now for me to get on with it:
Spring also often brings some weird new critter trying to invade our property. Most of the time it's a bug (one memorable year we discovered the porch was infested with black widows) but 2015 appears to be the year of the tussock moth catepillar:
I've never seen these around here before this year, and some quick research revealed that contact with this catepillar's hairs can cause allergic skin reactions. Our kid is particularly sensitive to any kind of insect venom, so we are removing them from close proximity to the house. We've also spotted several buck moth catepillars, with whom any contact inflicts a horrible welt that hurts for days (and I can personally attest to it being worse than a burn from a hot iron) so we're disposing of them without any regrets whatsoever.
What surprises has spring brought to your corner of the planet? Let us know in comments.
April 10, 2015
Necessary Weapons
Why Raul rules (with narration and background music, for those of you at work):
Weapons of Mass Instruction: A 1979 Ford Falcon Converted in a Tank Armored with 900 Free Books from Colossal on Vimeo.
April 9, 2015
Just Write
Today I'm off to write something new and post it online before midnight. Everyone inclined to do the same is invited to join me.
My link: More on Club Denizen , with new material beginning on page 54 (and yes, this week we finally get to meet the real Densworth.)
For more details on Just Write Thursdays, click here to go to the original post.
Image credit: windujedi
April 8, 2015
Free Trees
Visual Family Tree Maker is a freeware that "simplifies this process of building your family tree. Just fill in the blanks for name, birth, death and other vital information. Individuals are automatically linked with family members. Add an unlimited number of photographs, maps, census forms, birth certificates and other documents. Associate each with only one or with multiple individuals. Make Wall charts, shows the root person and his descendants or ancestors." [PBW notes: this could prove valuable for series writers with complicated dynasties or who are writing historical or family sagas; I'd use it to tree your cast of characters] (OS: Windows XP/Vista/7/8 [32-Bit/64-Bit])
April 7, 2015
Minister Me
Which job should you have in the wizarding world of Harry Potter? Take this online quiz to find out.
My results:
Well, I like the hat, but I think I'll pass on the importance. Where will you be sending your magical resume? Let us know in comments.
My results:
Well, I like the hat, but I think I'll pass on the importance. Where will you be sending your magical resume? Let us know in comments.
April 6, 2015
Sub Op
Broken Eye Books has an open call for their upcoming Ghost in the Cogs steampunk antho:
"Ghosts. Gaslight. Gears. In the wondrous age of steam, pirates, rust, and syphilis aren’t all you need to worry about. Ghosts abound! In this hissing and clanking steampunk world, there are moments that science just can’t explain. All the mechanical geniuses scratch their heads and whisper words of ghosts and powers, of spirits and demons. Possessed automatons take on lives of their own. Superstitious pilots take all necessary precautions. Avant-garde machinists harness the spirits to power their creations. Revenge-minded ghosts stalk haunted gasworks. This is a mechanized playground for the souls of the dead. These are the tales we’re looking for: where the spirit world proves itself at times inspiring and dangerous, useful and annoying. In a rich steampunk world, chock full of gizmos and gadgets aplenty, tell us the stories that go bump, clatter, boom in the night. What if Jules Verne wrote Ghostbusters? What if Scooby and the gang rode around in a steam-powered airship? What if Tesla talked to the dead?
Broken Eye Books wants your alternate history steampunk ghost stories. So send us your mechanized masterwork of less than 4,000 words. If you would like to submit a story for one of them, we are having an open reading period for original fiction submissions from March 1, 2015 to April 1, 2015. We are paying six (6) cents per word for up to 4,000 words. Publication requires first rights for the print and digital versions of the anthology. No reprints. You may submit one submission per anthology. Please, no simultaneous submissions. Send your manuscript as an attachment (.doc, .docx, or .rtf only) in standard manuscript format. Diversity welcome. Burn your story in a graveyard under the full moon, or just send it to submissions@brokeneyebooks.com (with “GITC Submission: [YOUR TITLE]” in the subject line). We can keep the aether gates open through the 4/1/2015 deadline, but not after. Try to spook us…"
"Ghosts. Gaslight. Gears. In the wondrous age of steam, pirates, rust, and syphilis aren’t all you need to worry about. Ghosts abound! In this hissing and clanking steampunk world, there are moments that science just can’t explain. All the mechanical geniuses scratch their heads and whisper words of ghosts and powers, of spirits and demons. Possessed automatons take on lives of their own. Superstitious pilots take all necessary precautions. Avant-garde machinists harness the spirits to power their creations. Revenge-minded ghosts stalk haunted gasworks. This is a mechanized playground for the souls of the dead. These are the tales we’re looking for: where the spirit world proves itself at times inspiring and dangerous, useful and annoying. In a rich steampunk world, chock full of gizmos and gadgets aplenty, tell us the stories that go bump, clatter, boom in the night. What if Jules Verne wrote Ghostbusters? What if Scooby and the gang rode around in a steam-powered airship? What if Tesla talked to the dead?
Broken Eye Books wants your alternate history steampunk ghost stories. So send us your mechanized masterwork of less than 4,000 words. If you would like to submit a story for one of them, we are having an open reading period for original fiction submissions from March 1, 2015 to April 1, 2015. We are paying six (6) cents per word for up to 4,000 words. Publication requires first rights for the print and digital versions of the anthology. No reprints. You may submit one submission per anthology. Please, no simultaneous submissions. Send your manuscript as an attachment (.doc, .docx, or .rtf only) in standard manuscript format. Diversity welcome. Burn your story in a graveyard under the full moon, or just send it to submissions@brokeneyebooks.com (with “GITC Submission: [YOUR TITLE]” in the subject line). We can keep the aether gates open through the 4/1/2015 deadline, but not after. Try to spook us…"
April 5, 2015
April 4, 2015
Cook the Books
Have you ever wanted to turn your favorite read into something everyone can nosh on? Library Thing's Edible Books Contest will give you a chance:
Every spring, LibraryThing members across the globe cook up some truly amazing literary treats. Our Edible Books Contest is now in its fourth year, and I can't wait to see what everyone is going to make this year!
Create a dish inspired by your favorite book, author, character, or even the LT logo, and you could win some awesome LT swag. One grand prize winner will win $50 worth of books from Sherman's Books and Stationery here in Portland, ME.
The deadline to submit your creation is 6pm Eastern on Sunday, April 19th. At that point, LT Staff will meet to choose the winners.
The above pic is of the Jabberwocky cake my kid, her friends and I made some years ago for her English class project (and while definitely not professional it was really fun.) If you want some extra inspiration you can check out last year's entries here. More details and the rules can be found at the contest blog post here.
April 3, 2015
The Reinventor
Artist Dominic Wilcox perpetually reinvents normal in this delightful video about his work (narrated by the artist and with background music, for those of you at work):
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