Lynn Flewelling's Blog, page 104

Today's Buddhist Thought

A big burly samurai comes to a Zen master and says, "Teach me the nature of heaven and hell."

The Zen master looks him in the face and says, "Why should I tell a scruffy, disgusting, miserable slob like you? A worm like you, do you think I should tell you anything?"

Consumed by rage, the samurai draws his sword and raises it to cut of the master's head.

The Zen master says, "That's hell."

Instantly, the samurai understands that he has just created his own hell—black and hot, filled with hatred, ...

Teaview

Tea: My latest Teaview review: Boston Tea Company's Organic Peony White: http://www.teaviews.com/2009/11/09/review-boston-tea-company-organic-peony-loose-white-tea/

Veteran's Day

11/11/09 I take a moment to acknowledge and honor the sacrifices of the veterans who have served this country, living and dead. I hope for a world in which such sacrifice is no longer necessary, so that all people can live in peace and safety.

Guest Blogging

I'm guest blogging over at Trisha Wooldridge's LJ on Staying in Love With Your Characters. :-)
http://novelfriend.livejournal.com/96978.html

Hiking in the Smog

We took the dogs on a short test hike up in the hill behind the Loma Linda dog park today. I've acquired several books that list dog friendly hiking trails in SoCal, and they emphasise canine good manners, so we wanted to see how they'd do on trails, as opposed to wide open beach. We started out up the dirt road with the Gentle Leaders on, then let them off the leash and they stayed with us pretty well, stopping to chase the occasional lizard into a bush. But they came when they were called,...

Shadows Return from Audible.com

I'm happy to report that Shadows Return will be available from Audible.com on November 24th! The narrator is a gentleman named Adam Danoff.

She Speaks!

Recorded the intro for the Audible.com Shadows Return audio book today. Sound guy comes to my house and we're done in 20 minutes! Got it in two takes I am that good. :D

The Tyranny of the Majority

It is tempting to say that I am ashamed to be a Mainer today, but that's not true. That would be a slap in the face to the thousands of good people from all walks of life, like Phil Spooner, whose speech I shared with you yesterday, who worked so hard to preserve the equality and dignity of ALL Maine's citizens. To those people I say, "Good job. You'll get it next time. Or the time after that. But this will happen." Because it will. It has to.

But sitting here in California in the wake of Pr...

The Gay Marriage Vote In Maine Is Happening NOW

I just wanted to share a clip of an 86-yr old Maine gentleman, Phillip Spooner, a WWII vet from the same neck of the woods I grew up in, and the father of a gay son, speaking out about the kind of America he fought for. It will bring tears to your eyes.

Cabin Fever and Hedonism

Doug's distemper seems to be a bad cold rather than H1N1. I have a touch of it, but not as sick as I feared I was going to be. Both of us were going stir crazy yesterday, so we packed up and went to LA for the afternoon. My mission was to find the Flax Pen to Paper shop, and visit the American Tea Room/Le Palais Gourmet, whose teas I sometimes review.

Flax Pen to Paper This is a nice shop near Wilshire Blvd in LA. Prices are list, but at least you get to handle and test drive the wide select...