Laura Anne Gilman's Blog, page 50
December 2, 2014
#willwrite2feedothers on Giving Tuesday....
Want to be part of #willwrite2Feedothers? (you still have 8 days to chime in!)
Want to make sure your $10 donation goes twice as far?
Today's Giving Tuesday, and I know that at least one food bank is getting all donations made today MATCHED, up to $125,000.
Donate, either there or at your local food bank, and send me proof-of-donation, and that's THREE mitzvahs with one click...
And yeah, you'll get a story out of it. Or not - maybe doing something generous and kind is enough for you, and you don't need a reward beyond that. In which case, the story will be my gift to you....
Want to make sure your $10 donation goes twice as far?
Today's Giving Tuesday, and I know that at least one food bank is getting all donations made today MATCHED, up to $125,000.
Donate, either there or at your local food bank, and send me proof-of-donation, and that's THREE mitzvahs with one click...
And yeah, you'll get a story out of it. Or not - maybe doing something generous and kind is enough for you, and you don't need a reward beyond that. In which case, the story will be my gift to you....
December 1, 2014
#willwrite2feedothers is a go!
15 verified donations to food banks/food kitchens! #willwrite2feedothers is a go!
Which means, basically, that anyone who wants to read the story and didn't make their $10 donation to help feed people in need owes those 15 people a note of thanks. Or, y'know, you can still make a donation (the offer runs until 10 December) and maybe we can hit the 30 donor mark for a BONUS to the story....
http://www.lauraannegilman.net/will-write-2-feed-others-thing-v-2015/
Which means, basically, that anyone who wants to read the story and didn't make their $10 donation to help feed people in need owes those 15 people a note of thanks. Or, y'know, you can still make a donation (the offer runs until 10 December) and maybe we can hit the 30 donor mark for a BONUS to the story....
http://www.lauraannegilman.net/will-write-2-feed-others-thing-v-2015/
November 30, 2014
Three More Sleeps...
The last day of November. The last day of my official tenancy at this address (at least until 2016). I feel like I should have one more "last" to put there, but I don't leave the city itself until Wednesday....
Three more sleeps until we go.
I've been - slowly, cautiously - saying goodbye to NYC this week. Every sidewalk and neon sign, every sweep of the rivers along the shores, every bridge and intersection, steel, brick, and concrete.
I admit: I love this city more than the sum of individual people in it, with the full knowledge that people are part of what makes this city. Place of my heart. Leaving it, at least for a while, is the right thing to do - and I maintain my residence here, so the ties are not completely cut - but there's already an aching space in my soul....
The plan is to be liveblogging the next year at Book View Cafe. starting on Wednesday, continuing once a month. I hope you'll follow along on the adventure....
Three more sleeps until we go.
I've been - slowly, cautiously - saying goodbye to NYC this week. Every sidewalk and neon sign, every sweep of the rivers along the shores, every bridge and intersection, steel, brick, and concrete.
I admit: I love this city more than the sum of individual people in it, with the full knowledge that people are part of what makes this city. Place of my heart. Leaving it, at least for a while, is the right thing to do - and I maintain my residence here, so the ties are not completely cut - but there's already an aching space in my soul....
The plan is to be liveblogging the next year at Book View Cafe. starting on Wednesday, continuing once a month. I hope you'll follow along on the adventure....
November 29, 2014
Forbes thinks morning people are better than you....
No, not really. But kind of.
I would disagree with their #6 (I prefer to exercise early afternoon, when my energy levels begin to sink) but otherwise.... yeah, occasionally I do agree with Forbes. Or at least some of their columnists.
And now, let the War of the Early Birds and Night Owls recommence!
"Research has shown, not only are early risers more optimistic and conscientious, they also anticipate problems and minimize them more efficiently."
I would disagree with their #6 (I prefer to exercise early afternoon, when my energy levels begin to sink) but otherwise.... yeah, occasionally I do agree with Forbes. Or at least some of their columnists.
And now, let the War of the Early Birds and Night Owls recommence!
"Research has shown, not only are early risers more optimistic and conscientious, they also anticipate problems and minimize them more efficiently."
November 27, 2014
What I am thankful for, in 1000 words....
or one picture.
And, of course, the family-not-legal, including but not limited to Barb, Lewis, Snark and the Diva, my brother-of-another-mother Keith and his Wrenn, Christine, April, and my extended family-of-another-insanity, Team Inevitable Innuendo.... (and yes, the Kitten of Thursday and Cat of Size)
And, of course, the family-not-legal, including but not limited to Barb, Lewis, Snark and the Diva, my brother-of-another-mother Keith and his Wrenn, Christine, April, and my extended family-of-another-insanity, Team Inevitable Innuendo.... (and yes, the Kitten of Thursday and Cat of Size)
November 26, 2014
T-6 days and counting.... (minus one day for Thanksgiving)
I just ate an entire Ghiradelli "sea salt soiree" bar. Okay, it took me all day to eat it, but I still feel like I've been run over by the stressmobile.
Oh wait. I have been.
*contemplates licking the wrapper for any crumbs I missed*
Oh wait. I have been.
*contemplates licking the wrapper for any crumbs I missed*
#Willwrite2feedothers update
I hate hammering away at this but at the same time, it's a cause I really believe in, so I'm gonna remind you (again) that the #willwrite2feedothers campaign is still going on, and you still have time to make a $10 or more donation to a local food bank (or volunteer an hour or more of time to same) and earn everyone a new short story from me for New Year's....
(we're still 5 donations away from that story, and 20 away from the Bonus)
And if - like me - you're wondering what practical thing you can do to help out the people in Ferguson....you can make a donation to the St. Louis area food bank, where with school being canceled and movement restricted by the authorities, some kids aren't getting their lunches....
(reminder: you have to email me some sort of proof-of-donation for it to count! lag(at)lauraannegilman(dot)net)
(we're still 5 donations away from that story, and 20 away from the Bonus)
And if - like me - you're wondering what practical thing you can do to help out the people in Ferguson....you can make a donation to the St. Louis area food bank, where with school being canceled and movement restricted by the authorities, some kids aren't getting their lunches....
(reminder: you have to email me some sort of proof-of-donation for it to count! lag(at)lauraannegilman(dot)net)
November 25, 2014
in the wan light of morning....
Last night's decision in Ferguson didn't surprise me. I'm pretty sure it didn't surprise anyone. But lack of surprise doesn't mean we think it's acceptable, or okay.
Woke up this morning exhausted and still angry, and aware that I - a white woman - don't even know a fraction of it, and that makes me even more angry, because it shouldn't be like this. It shouldn't matter our skin color, as to how safe we feel when the people tasked with protecting us walk by.
But from the comments made on Facebook and Twitter last night - some of them clueless or hurtful, some of them truly racist - there's a percentage of people out there who default to "they're rioting and tearing up their own neighborhood, so clearly rhe cops were right."
The difference between a riot and revolt, goods-driven looting versus the manifestation of rage and unbearable pain - seems lost in the distance-viewing. Maybe that's how some people hold onto their belief that it won't ever happen to them, that they're safe, because they haven't done anything wrong.
I was raised to think of the cops as allies, guardians. I haven't felt that way in years, not when as a female I was at risk, not when any non-white companions I might be with were at risk. They have the weapons, the power, and - it's been made very clear - the run of the system. I know I'm not alone in this hesitation-to-trust.. And it's not our fault we feel this way, it's not something we-the-citizens have done wrong. It's the system, and it's the people in uniform who have let this fester and grow within their ranks, who have used the system to protect themselves, rather than those in true need.
"41 Shots"
This can't be fixed from only the outside-in. It has to be fixed from within, too.
Or it has to be dismantled and rebuilt, better.
And, because it's never good to go into the day bitter, sad, or despondent, I also give you this: ...and they told us to tell you hello.
Woke up this morning exhausted and still angry, and aware that I - a white woman - don't even know a fraction of it, and that makes me even more angry, because it shouldn't be like this. It shouldn't matter our skin color, as to how safe we feel when the people tasked with protecting us walk by.
But from the comments made on Facebook and Twitter last night - some of them clueless or hurtful, some of them truly racist - there's a percentage of people out there who default to "they're rioting and tearing up their own neighborhood, so clearly rhe cops were right."
The difference between a riot and revolt, goods-driven looting versus the manifestation of rage and unbearable pain - seems lost in the distance-viewing. Maybe that's how some people hold onto their belief that it won't ever happen to them, that they're safe, because they haven't done anything wrong.
I was raised to think of the cops as allies, guardians. I haven't felt that way in years, not when as a female I was at risk, not when any non-white companions I might be with were at risk. They have the weapons, the power, and - it's been made very clear - the run of the system. I know I'm not alone in this hesitation-to-trust.. And it's not our fault we feel this way, it's not something we-the-citizens have done wrong. It's the system, and it's the people in uniform who have let this fester and grow within their ranks, who have used the system to protect themselves, rather than those in true need.
"41 Shots"
This can't be fixed from only the outside-in. It has to be fixed from within, too.
Or it has to be dismantled and rebuilt, better.
And, because it's never good to go into the day bitter, sad, or despondent, I also give you this: ...and they told us to tell you hello.
November 24, 2014
State of the Meerkat: Preparing to Fly
Spent the weekend split between sorting and storing, and revising the novella. And poking my brain at the short story that due next month. Semi-productive, in small ways that don't really have impressive-to-report markers. :-(
But we're at 9 donations confirmed, and 2 more promised for #willwrite2feedothers! Four more people stepping forward to do something kind, and you all get a new story! (19 more to get An Extra Bonus!) And yes, I've decided that hours-volunteered counts. If you can document 1+ hour spent working for/with a food bank or other feed-in-need organization, that counts as your $10 donation.
And CatofSize fell ill - he is discovering a tendency to *ahem* become blocked. Much like old men everywhere, I'm told. So there was some unpleasant medical stuff for him, and some unpleasant financial stuff for me. *sighs* If anyone feels the impulse to buy some books of mine, either from Book View Cafe or elsewhere, my next month's credit card bills will thank you (and remember, now's the time to start buying for the holidays! Books make great gifts - and you don't even have to wrap ebooks!)
I wil say, tho, that I am left in awe at the trust and affection our animals place in us, that the pain-strike-flee brain is calmed by our presence...
In a sharing-and-caring mode, this weekend Chuck Wendig had a few words to say on the ugly side of self-awareness: "I am a racist and I am a sexist and probably some other ists, too." I'll cop to having shit come out of my mouth, unexamined, that should rightfully earn me a side-eye, at the very least. Being unthinkingly "-ist" doesn't mean you're a terrible person: it means you have to dig into WHY, and root out whatever took seed while you weren't paying attention. Perfection's impossible. Mindfulness is the goal.
Meanwhile, Subtenant has moved self and stuff into the apartment, prior to the 'official' 1 December hand-off. We - the two of us and the two cats - are getting along well, although there have been times when I've felt the intense need for SOLITUDE. Introvert, me? Yep. :-)
9 days until departure.
But we're at 9 donations confirmed, and 2 more promised for #willwrite2feedothers! Four more people stepping forward to do something kind, and you all get a new story! (19 more to get An Extra Bonus!) And yes, I've decided that hours-volunteered counts. If you can document 1+ hour spent working for/with a food bank or other feed-in-need organization, that counts as your $10 donation.
And CatofSize fell ill - he is discovering a tendency to *ahem* become blocked. Much like old men everywhere, I'm told. So there was some unpleasant medical stuff for him, and some unpleasant financial stuff for me. *sighs* If anyone feels the impulse to buy some books of mine, either from Book View Cafe or elsewhere, my next month's credit card bills will thank you (and remember, now's the time to start buying for the holidays! Books make great gifts - and you don't even have to wrap ebooks!)
I wil say, tho, that I am left in awe at the trust and affection our animals place in us, that the pain-strike-flee brain is calmed by our presence...
In a sharing-and-caring mode, this weekend Chuck Wendig had a few words to say on the ugly side of self-awareness: "I am a racist and I am a sexist and probably some other ists, too." I'll cop to having shit come out of my mouth, unexamined, that should rightfully earn me a side-eye, at the very least. Being unthinkingly "-ist" doesn't mean you're a terrible person: it means you have to dig into WHY, and root out whatever took seed while you weren't paying attention. Perfection's impossible. Mindfulness is the goal.
Meanwhile, Subtenant has moved self and stuff into the apartment, prior to the 'official' 1 December hand-off. We - the two of us and the two cats - are getting along well, although there have been times when I've felt the intense need for SOLITUDE. Introvert, me? Yep. :-)
9 days until departure.
