Matthew Dicks's Blog, page 731

Because you CAN have too many

Unfriend is the OED's Word of the Year for 2009.

I like this a lot. Nothing warm and fuzzy this year.

Sneak attack averted

As you may know, I am allergic to bees. 

Dangerously allergic. 

As such, I often view bees, wasps and hornets as my own personal enemies. 

And I often think that they feel the same about me.  

Yesterday the leaves fell off the small tree just a few feet from my front stoop.  Nestled inside the tree, under the cover of the leaves all summer long, was this:

Sneaky little buggers… setting up shop right outside my house. 

Better luck next year, suckers! 

Out of the mouths of babes (Psalm 8: 1-2)

The Catholic Archdiocese of Washington said Wednesday that it will be unable to continue the social service programs it runs for the District if the city doesn't change a proposed same-sex marriage law, a threat that could affect tens of thousands of people the church helps with adoption, homelessness and health care.

Does this strike anyone else as a little tone deaf and not entirely in the spirit of goodness and angels and Christmas miracles and all of that?

The Church's complaint...

Perhaps they are not quite dead just yet

Cormac McCarthy was recently quoted as saying:

"…the indulgent, 800-page books that were written a hundred years ago are just not going to be written anymore and people need to get used to that. If you think you're going to write something like "The Brothers Karamazov" or "Moby-Dick," go ahead. Nobody will read it. I don't care how good it is, or how smart the readers are. Their intentions, their brains are different."

Might be a bit of bad timing on his part, considering Stephen King's...

To each his own. Right? I hope?

Next Friday my wife and I will be watching the time-shifted finale of Project Runway with our friend, Kim, and her daughter.

Yes, it's true.  Despite my loathing for the fashion industry, I find Project Runway to be fascinating.  The creativity required from the designers and the time limits imposed  upon them appeal to me a great deal, even if the final product is a gown or a pair of pants.

Meanwhile, Kim's husband and their son will be at home, watching the latest episode of Cartoon...

To each his own. Right?

Next Friday my wife and I will be watching the time-shifted finale of Project Runway with our friend, Kim, and her daughter.

Yes, it's true.  Despite my loathing for the fashion industry, I find Project Runway to be fascinating.  The creativity required from the designers and the time limits imposed  upon them appeal to me a great deal, even if the final product is a gown or a pair of pants.

Meanwhile, Kim's husband and their son will be at home, watching the latest episode of Cartoon...

Dedication decision

Though I still adore the idea of dedicating UNEXPECTEDLY, MILO to myself, I have decided to abide by my wife's wishes and do something different, though I reserve the right to dedicate a book to myself at some point in the future.  It's rare that my wife doesn't support one of my choices, as crazy as many seem to be, so when she advises me against a course of action, I try to listen. 

If she doesn't like it, it must be bad. 

The reaction to the idea of a self-dedication was mixed. ...

Great literary opportunities tomorrow!

I will be appearing at the Barnes and Noble bookstore in Blueback Square in West Hartford, CT on Saturday at 4:00 for anyone interested in attending. 

My wife, the amateur publicist, actually set up this event without even telling me, and she also managed to get it mentioned in the Hartford Courant.

It's good to have people working for you.  

Unfortunately, the appearance was mentioned in a section of the paper which also noted the University of Connecticut's 18th Annual Connecticut...

Strange things afoot at the Circle K

Photographer and artist Paho Mann has photographed almost two dozen re-inhabited Circle K convenience stores in the Phoenix, New Mexico area.  As the company began moving its stores to more profitable locations in the 1990s, "the shells left by this migration were filled by small businesses, each inhabiting an architecturally identical structure. The new occupants painted, put up a new signs, and modified windows and doors."

The result is a fascinating look at the creativity and...

Death #2

The author bio in SOMETHING MISSING states that I died twice before the age of eighteen and was brought back to life by paramedics both times. I get asked about this a lot, through email communications with readers as well as at bookstore and library appearances.

In response to popular demand, here is an account of my second, and hopefully last, near-death experience.

____________________

On December 23, 1988, I was driving home from a day of Christmas shopping in order to pick up my...