S. Evan Townsend's Blog, page 77

Huskies are 2-0

The University of Washington Husky football program is 2-0 so far to start the season. In a game much like last week's rout of Rutgers, the Huskies decimated the University of Idaho Vandals by a lopsided score of 59-14. And Idaho's 14 points were scored in the second half of the game when Husky coach Chris Petersen started rotating second and third string players into the game. Idaho played their starters the entire four quarters.

UW starting quarterback Jake Browning was amazing, escaping possible sacks and still getting the ball downfield to a receiver. The UW ground game tends to have amazing long-play bursts, but sometimes gets ground to a halt at the line of scrimmage. That's something Petersen will have to work on before the Huskies start playing Pac-12 teams in two weeks (starting at Arizona on the 24th).

I'm hoping before facing #7 Stanford, the #8 Huskies will remain undefeated (rankings from this morning's AP poll).

This is, so far, looking like it's going to be a great season. Go Dawgs!

The Speculative Fiction Cantina with Dudley Mecum and Robin Leigh Anderson

Today on the Speculative Fiction Cantina we are please to welcome writers Dudley Mecum and Robin Leigh Anderson.
Dudley MecumDudley Mecum

 Dudley Mecum, a trained commercial pilot, earned an MBA in Finance, later working at a defense manufacturer. He currently lives in Fort Worth, Texas, where he enjoys fine art, swimming, and virtual flying.

Dudley's Book:

A Sojourn Among the Avatars of Wisdom

Dudley's Links:

Website
Blog
Facebook
Twitter

Robin Leigh Anderson

Robin Leigh AndersonRobin Leigh Anderson was born in the Montana Rockies and escaped to California in the early 1970s.  She attended school in Montana, Washington State, and California, eventually settling in beautiful Santa Barbara with child and cats where she lived for 38 years before escaping sans grown child and late cats to Northern California.  An advocate of reinventing oneself, Ms. Anderson dabbled in many of the major disciplines of life, providing fodder for the writing she pursued since she was eight.  She has won numerous awards at writing conferences over the years, and was staff of the prestigious Santa Barbara Writer Conference for ten years.  She has published numerous articles and short stories in her lifetime.  She taught “crash-and-burn” intensive writing seminars in Santa Barbara and was the moderator of a writers' critique group.  She still conducts occasional seminars and enjoys editing others’ works, words being her all-consuming passion, as she writes in several genres.

Robin's Book:

Suncatcher

Robin's Links

Website
Twiiter

From today's show: Ceres May Have a Warm Heart

Listen to today's show at 6:00 PM ET / 3:00 PM PT, or in archive here.

Butterflies of Wisdom Podcast Interview

Listen to my interview on the Butterflies of Wisdom Podcast here. We talked about books, writing, and Starbucks. It was fun.

Four Weird Traits I Have

Back to the 30-day blogging challenge that I'm doing in (approximately) 30 weeks.

The next prompt is "Four weird traits you have." I've had to think about this a lot.

One: I have red hair and blue eyes. This is supposed to be very rare (less than 2% of the world population). It's actually rather common in my extended family. And, my hair (what's left of it) is getting less red all the time. This also means I have very fair skin and I sunburn without protection on a sunny day in 15 minutes. I can sunburn on cloudy days quickly, too. If I'm going to be outside for any length of time, I have to wear a hat and sunscreen.

Two: I'm fairly good at mathematics but I'll pick up a calculator to discover 2 + 2 = 4. I almost can't do math in my head. And I've study math through differential equations (although doing one now would be a challenge).

Three: I'm a strange combination of ADD and OCD. That's "Attention Deficit Disorder" and "Obsessive Compulsive Disorder." I am easily distracted and my mind can take off on a tangent with the slightest provocation. I'm actually on a prescription drug to help this (and it does, some). But when I'm writing a novel I go to huge effort to make sure I know the exact number of words, excluding chapter headings and scene break marks. And when I'm doing that, little can distract me. The same with the writing itself.

Four: I think I have an exceptional scene of smell. For instance, I was at Starbucks today (big surprise to those who know me) and I could smell someone's coffee. But not just the coffee smell, I was picking out smells of peat and marijuana. I'll complain about a smell that no one else will pick up. I think this is why I can't eat foods some people can, such as liver or squash. They smell awful to me (liver makes my nauseated) so I can't eat them.

And that's it, four weird traits I have.

Huskies are #8!

For the first time in I have no idea how long, the University of Washington Huskies football team is ranked in the top ten of the AP poll! Top ten!

Last week they were #14 but after their blow out of Rutgers, apparently the voters in the poll saw something they liked.

After USC and UCLA lost their opening games, they dropped out of the top 25. There are currently three Pac-12 teams in the top 25: #7 Stanford, #8 Washington, and #24 Nike, err, I mean Oregon (the same spot they were last week).

This is shaping up to be a great year to be a Husky. Go Dawgs!
UPDATE: That is the Huskies highest ranking since 2001.

Yesterday was a Pretty Good Day

Over all, yesterday was a good day in the world of sports. What happened? Well, first of all, the Washington State Cougars lost to the Eastern Washington Eagles. And the Eagles are an FCS team (i.e., not FBS because the school is too small to be FBS, which is the top college football division). The score was 45 - 42 with the Cougars making a touchdown in the final seconds but it was too little, too late.

One of my least favorite teams, USC, lost big time to Alabama. Of course, Alabama is ranked #1 in the AP poll and USC #20. UCLA also lost.

And the Mariners lost to the Anaheim Angels, a team that has a .444 record (after that win). The Mariners have pretty much been eliminated from any chance for a while card slot. Their 4-game losses to Texas show they aren't playoff contenders.

The only downside to the day was that the Nike Ducks won their football game. But they were playing a FCS team and didn't "Coug" it.

But the best part of the day was that the University of Washington Huskies (Go Dawgs!) won their season opener against Rutgers, a FBS team (admittedly, not a very good one). The Husky defense held Rutgers to 3 points in the first half of the game. But the fourth quarter the Huskies were playing second and third string players, which allowed Rutgers to score some points.  The final score was 13-48.

The Huskies looked really good. Sophomore quarterback Jake Browning is improved even over the end of last season. And John Ross III is back and showed his strengths by making touchdowns from long passes. The first half was a thing of beauty. When the Huskies started playing second string players in the second half, it sort of turned into a boring preseason-like game in the NFL.

Next week the Huskies take on the Idaho Vandals, another not-very-good FBS team. In fact, the Vandals are going to switch to the FCS in 2018. I'll have to watch that on DVR probably on Sunday or late Saturday because I have a family function all day Saturday. And we'll have to see if the Huskies move up in the AP Poll and how far down USC and UCLA drop.

The difference between FBS and FCS is explained here.

Red Hot Summer Giveaway Almost Over!

It's your last chance to participate in the Red Hot Summer Giveaway with lots of prizes including a grand prize of $150 in PayPal cash. Plus lots of books both paperback and ebooks. So hurry up and enter, or you can't win a thing. Giveaway ends tomorrow!

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The Speculative Fiction Cantina with Leon Margie and Margy Millet

Today and the Speculative Fiction Cantina we are pleased to welcome writers Leon Margie and Margy Millet.
Leon MargieLeon Margie

Born in Perth Western Australia, Leon comes from a family rich in mining history. With having worked in the resource sector for the last 15 years as a manager in all the major industry sectors, from gold to oil, Leon has developed a very good knowledge of how the industry functions.

Leon's Book:

Profit of Death

Leon's Link:

Facebook


Margy Millet

I was born Margarita L. Millet in Arecibo, Puerto Rico in 1958, the second child of Antonio and Blanca.  My family moved to Worcester Massachusetts in 1973.  In 1980 I married David Perez. Together we have raised three children, Leticia, Sofia and David.  I’m the proud grandmother of five grandsons Ricardo, Evan, Alejandro, Fernando and Emmitt.  My passions include writing, Latin music, dancing, reading and sports.  I’m an avid Boston Red Sox fan.

I studied Business Management at Quinsigamond Community College where I earned an Associates Degree.  I began my career as a Premium Collection Specialist at Paul Revere Companies in 1981 and have held several positions in the company, my last was an Underwriting Specialist in IDI Business Operations that ended in July 2013.  I began writing seriously on a part time basis in 2008 and then as of July 2013 I began writing full time.

Margy's Books:

Daughter’s Revenge 

My Vampire, My King 

Way to a Stranger’s Heart

Margy's Links:

Website/Blog
Faceebook
Twitter
Instagram
LinkedIn
Pinterest
Goodreads

From today's Show: Jupiter's Moon Io has a Collapsible Atmosphere.
Tune in to today's show at 6:00 PM ET / 3:00 PM PT or in archive here.

My Brain

Back to the 30-day blogging challenge that I'm doing in 30 or so weeks.

Today's prompt is: "Something you miss."

As you get older, you end up missing a lot of things. I mostly miss my young brain. My brain used to be able to hold facts and figures like a steel trap. I rarely had to study in school because I remembered everything. Or I'd simply read through my notes again and that would refresh my memory enough to ace the test (this assumes the test wasn't one of those awful engineering tests with lots of calculations).

Even in my early 30s, when I took engineering classes in college, my brain worked pretty well. Not as well as in the my 20s, but a lot better than it does now. I was always amazed at people who had to write down test dates and due dates as I could just carry all that in my head with perfect accuracy. As I got into my 40s, I still tried to do that but I would forget things or forget dates. I started using a calendar, first on paper, then on the computer.

Now in my mid-50s, my brain still works pretty well. But I'm not nearly as able to remember things as I could in my 20s and 30s.

When I lived in Seattle in my 20s, and I would drive the busy freeways, I would have a mental picture in my mind of where ever car around me was. And I'd update it ever few seconds by checking my mirrors, So I'd know if I car had sneaked into my blind spots. I can still do that, but only in low-traffic situations. And it annoys me.

So I miss my young brain.

The Speculative Fiction Cantina with Kristan Cannon and Andi Katsina

Today on the Speculative Fiction Cantina we are pleased to welcome Kristan Cannon and Andi Katsina.
Kristan CannonKristan Cannon

Kristan Cannon was born in Kirkland Lake, Ontario and educated in North Bay and Toronto.  She is a staunch supporter of literacy, reading, and young writer's programs. She also holds a current membership with The Indie Writer's Network and is a member of the NaNoWriMo Ambassador's program.  When not researching or writing, Kristan exists for sailing with friends and family... or for video games and books when snow and ice have the boat locked in its slip and she can't get away.

Kristan's Books:

After Oil (Kingdom of Walden Book One)

The Last Iron Horse (Kingdom of Walden Book Two)

Kristan's Links:

Website
Blog
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Google+
YouTube
Goodreads

Andi Katsina

Hello my friends. My name is Andi Katsina. I'm English, of rich Irish, African descent. Born in London, as an orphan I grew up in Manchester, England.

I‘m a vegetarian and an environmentalist.

Throughout my school years I was a champion athlete and swimmer, going on to become an athletics coach, swimming teacher and youth leader. After which time I was trained as a Chartered Accountant. Interrupting my training, I branched out, working freelance as a trouble shooter in the field of accountancy. Six years of adding and subtracting, was followed by two years of trading as an international commodities broker. This led me to the sedentary position of ‘trader in antique, oriental carpets’.

It was at this juncture that I became completely inspired to become an Indie Author.

As a ‘school kid’ I very much enjoyed writing plays in English, Latin and French. Fortunately, for me, writing came naturally. I so enjoy writing stories that give people, especially young people and people young at heart, the chance to exercise their own imagination.

I love taking my readers on fantastic journeys. The enjoyment and taste of adventure my stories give to my readers, warms me greatly.

Andi's Books:

Mr. Fire

The Equinox Sequence; Fur

Phat Girl & The Sankara Parasite

Andi's Links:

Website
Facebook
Twitter
Fundraising

From Today's Show: Private Company Given Permission for Moon Landing

Listen to today's program at 6:00 PM ET / 3:00 PM PT or in archive here.