Amy H. Sturgis's Blog, page 159

Halloween Countdown, Day 4

Listening to the Halloween Haunt podcast is a great way to celebrate the season. Check it out!


Now, a public service announcement, to help make your Halloween season safe:




One of my goals for this Halloween countdown is to provide a wide variety in the spooky readings. To that end, here's something completely different from yesterday's text. Let's conjure up the atmosphere of those great 1950s "B horror" flicks...

Text of the Day: Today's text is a short story: "The Leech" by Phillips Barbee, originally published in the December 1952 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction.

Excerpt:
The leech was waiting for food. For millennia it had been drifting across the vast emptiness of space. Without consciousness, it had spent the countless centuries in the void between the stars. It was unaware when it finally reached a sun. Life-giving radiation flared around the hard, dry spore. Gravitation tugged at it.

A planet claimed it, with other stellar debris, and the leech fell, still dead-seeming within its tough spore case.

One speck of dust among many, the winds blew it around the Earth, played with it, and let it fall.

On the ground, it began to stir. Nourishment soaked in, permeating the spore case. It grew—and fed.

Read the complete story.

Download an unabridged narration from Librivox.org.

Halloween Countdown, Day 3

Today's stunning picture is by the fabulous lizziebelle .




How fascinating is this? According to the new November 2011 issue of Sky & Telescope, Dr. Don Olson, an astrophysicist at Texas State University-San Marcos, claims to have used textual clues to pinpoint the precise moment, down to date and hour, when Mary Shelley conceived of Frankenstein. Read more here.

Text of the Day: This gives me an excuse to highlight another work by Mary Shelley (one of my favorite authors!), the chilling 1831 story "Transformation."

Excerpt:
I have heard it said, that, when any strange, supernatural, and necromantic adventure has occurred to a human being, that being, however desirous he may be to conceal the same, feels at certain periods torn up as it were by an intellectual earthquake, and is forced to bare the inner depths of his spirit to another. I am a witness of the truth of this. I have dearly sworn to myself never to reveal to human ears the horrors to which I once, in excess of fiendly pride, delivered myself over. The holy man who heard my confession, and reconciled me to the church, is dead. None knows that once —

Why should it not be thus? Why tell a tale of impious tempting of Providence, and soul-subduing humiliation? Why? answer me, ye who are wise in the secrets of human nature! I only know that so it is; and in spite of strong resolve — of a pride that too much masters me—of shame, and even of fear, so to render myself odious to my species — I must speak.

Read the complete story here.

Download an unabridged narration from Librivox.org.

Halloween Countdown, Day 2

The PotterWatch 2011 scholarly conference was fantastic! Cheers to everyone involved. It was especially great to see gods_lil_rocker again and meet amedia in person at last.


Don't miss book blogger Book Chick City's annual All Hallow's Eve event, which runs for the entire month of October and celebrates all things that go bump in the night! Check it out here (or on Livejournal, bookchickcity ).




What's the most Halloween-friendly television show currently on the air? For my money, it's Fringe .

Here's the trailer for the new fourth season of Fringe:



View the famous/infamous "Friday Night Re-animation" trailer for Fringe.

Text of the Day: For a limited time (that is, until Thursday, 6 October), my essay "In Search of Fringe's Literary Ancestors" (from Fringe Science: Parallel Universes, White Tulips, and Mad Scientists , 2011) is available online in its entirety from Smart Pop Books. Whether or not you like/know Fringe, I invite you to check it out, as it covers Shelley, Poe, Lovecraft, and other Halloween-friendly topics. If you read it, I hope you enjoy it.

So, if you'll kindly excuse my self-indulgence, let's delve into the spooky ancestors of a spooky series...

Excerpt:
In this segment, Abrams explains that the original vision for the series entailed revisiting "the Frankenstein idea, but told as legitimately as possible." Telling the story "legitimately" included updating a central character by turning the aristocratic Genevan medical student Victor Frankenstein into the eccentric U.S. scientist Dr. Walter Bishop. Like Victor, Walter shuns the scientific consensus of the day, following his own genius into unorthodox, even illegal experimentation.

It's easy to see parallels between the two characters.... To reach their desired goals, both use unethical methods. Victor plunders fresh graves to find human body parts for his laboratory and refuses to provide even the most basic of necessities to the life he creates. Walter escalates experiments with nootropic drugs on innocent children, leaving them with after-effects that continue into adulthood, and wholly ignores warnings that acting on his untested theories could, as his assistant Carla Warren tells him, "rupture the fundamental constants of nature" ("Peter," 2-16). Furthermore, each genius single-handedly makes decisions that determine the fate of many. Victor's neglected creation slays his friends and family members. Walter's recklessness costs the life of his assistant, drives his wife to suicide, and plunges an alternate world into chaos.

Perhaps most importantly, both Victor and Walter are haunted by their past scientific endeavors, pursued by the evidence of their own mistakes. Everywhere Victor looks, he finds the creature. Everywhere Walter looks, he finds evidence of an upcoming violent collision between our Universe and the other one Over There, a cataclysm that he set in motion when he opened the door between worlds and took the alternate Peter as his own son. Neither Victor nor Walter can escape the consequences of science pursued with intellectual arrogance, personal selfishness, and moral unaccountability. It's all too appropriate that Peter asks Olivia in that first episode: "You're telling me what? My father was Dr. Frankenstein?"

Read the complete essay.


Tomorrow, back to classic texts!

Bonus quote:
Dr. Walter Bishop: When the Victoria, the last surviving ship, returned to its harbor of departure after the first circumnavigation of the earth, only 18 of the original 237 men were on board.
Small Child: What happened to them?
Dr. Walter Bishop: They all died, young lady. Horrible and most likely painful deaths. You see, when you open new doors, there is a price to pay. Now imagine... tonight, you look under your bed, and, lo and behold, you find a monster! And you're immediately eaten. Now, if you hadn't looked for the monster, you wouldn't have found it and you'd still be happy in your bed, instead of being slowly digested in the stomach sack of the creature. But, with any luck, your sister or your brothers might have heard your screams, and your endeavor will serve as a valuable lesson to them.
- from "What Lies Below," Fringe

Halloween Countdown, Day 1

I'm off today to speak at the PotterWatch 2011 scholarly conference. I look forward to seeing gods_lil_rocker , amedia , and lots of other fantastic people there. But first: the countdown!

And we're off! Welcome to the 2011 Countdown to Halloween. I hope you'll join me every day. If you have friends who might be interested in this countdown, please invite them to join us!

Be sure to check out other blogs that likewise are celebrating Halloween all October long. The wonderful Countdown to Halloween 2011 is a clearinghouse site that links to this and other blogs with similar month-long posts.



Today I'd like to point out some great links about one of the scariest "real life" monsters who continues to fascinate the popular imagination: Jack the Ripper.
A new update from The Los Angeles Times of 20 September, 2011: "The Cold, Cold Case of Jack the Ripper." A retired homicide detective is trying to force Scotland Yard to release uncensored versions of files that might offer fresh leads on the identity of Britain's most notorious serial killer. Casebook: Jack the Ripper is the world's largest repository of Ripper-related information. It's the best single website on the topic. Watch the Jack the Ripper video tour part 1 and part 2.Listen to a fascinating podcast on the latest historical research on Jack the Ripper, RipperCast: The Whitechapel Murders Podcast.



Why all of this talk of Jack the Ripper? Our text of the day, of course!

Text of the Day: Today's text is The Lodger, a hugely influential 1913 horror novel by Marie Adelaide Belloc Lowndes, which was directly inspired by the Jack the Ripper murders.

Thus far the novel has inspired a number of different works, including, among others, the following:
The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927 film) directed by Alfred Hitchcock The Lodger (1932 film) The Lodger (1944 film) Man in the Attic (1953 film) The Lodger (1960 opera) The Lodger (2009 film)
Since our countdown starts on a weekend, I thought it fitting to begin with a text that's a little longer… and extra spooky! Is the new lodger renting the room upstairs, that mysterious and secretive man, really a mass murderer who stalks the streets at night in search of human prey?



Excerpt from The Lodger (1913) by Marie Adelaide Belloc Lowndes:

Of course, the lodger was eccentric, otherwise he wouldn't be their lodger at all —- he would be living in quite a different sort of way with some of his relations, or with a friend in his own class.

While these thoughts galloped disconnectedly through her mind, Mrs. Bunting went on with her cooking, preparing the cheese, cutting it up into little shreds, carefully measuring out the butter, doing everything, as was always her way, with a certain delicate and cleanly precision.

And then, while in the middle of toasting the bread on which was to be poured the melted cheese, she suddenly heard sounds which startled her, made her feel uncomfortable.

Shuffling, hesitating steps were creaking down the house.

She looked up and listened.

Surely the lodger was not going out again into the cold and foggy night—going out, as he had done the other evening, for a second time?

Read the complete text.

A Ghost Tour to Whet Your Appetite for October

First, two quick notes:

* The second half of my interview with Darkcargo is now available here. We discuss science fiction, Sherlock Holmes, upcoming publications, and more. And there's a fantastic book giveaway related to the interview, with my picks (Mary Shelley! Sherlock Holmes!), so please check it out!

* Happy early birthday wishes to fenice_fu , saladinahmed , coalitiongirl , fory_san , seren_ccd , boojumlol , grisemalkin , shadowkittykat_ , and marill_chan . May all of you enjoy many happy returns of the day!


Now, because this isn't exactly new content, I wanted to post this the day before my proper Halloween Countdown begins. I do hope it helps get you into the mood!

I created the following virtual campus ghost tour for my countdown in 2008. Many of my readers are new, and I hope you will find this to be fun; for those of you who read my post previously, I hope you will enjoy revisiting the spooky haunts of Lenoir-Rhyne University.

Ghost Tour: There is a Halloween tradition at my husband's school, Lenoir-Rhyne University, of a "campus ghost tour" during which the guides share local folklore, campus legends, and creepy stories. Thanks to the generosity of the good people at Lenoir-Rhyne, I now have all of those spooky tales to share with you. I have taken pictures around the campus to illustrate the stories, so that I may lead you through the tour virtually.

Without further ado, I would like to invite you to join me for a virtual "campus ghost tour" of Lenoir-Rhyne.

Ghost Tour Introduction: Most of the buildings on the Lenoir-Rhyne campus have acquired a ghost, gremlin, spirit, or legend that has lingered from year to year. Some of the legends have been exaggerated or miscommunicated through the years. The ghosts and spirits that you'll learn about now are as official, as documented, as close to recollection as possible. Most of the ghosts that you'll read about have been witnessed either by security officers, students, alumni, or others who visit the university. The older spirits, say from 1979 or before, have been included in the oral history of Lenoir-Rhyne College, Traces, which is available by special permission from the archives in the university library. Throughout the years, several articles in the college paper have accounted for the ghosts in our buildings, and the local newspapers have even run stories about them.



(Click on any picture to see a larger version.)

Morgan Hall



1. Morgan Hall- This is a ghost that is perhaps the closest to the student body. It is the spirit of David Moose. David, captain of the L-R football team, class officer, and one of the most popular members of the student body was tragically murdered at an off-campus function on March 20, 1985. David loved L-R and his family was - and still is - very involved in the life of the university. David was from Albermarle, N.C., but his love of the university keeps his spirit on campus. From time to time, a student may notice a cold chill on 3rd Long, or hear the door to the showers open a shower start, and look to find no one there. In the early 1990s, one of David's notebooks appeared on 3rd Long, placed just outside his old room: room 325. It also seems that his spirit is with us more during the fall, during football season, than the rest of the year. Recently, a young visitor to the Shuford Gym complex told of coming out into the hallway and seeing a person in a football uniform standing at the other end. although the visitor did not remember the number on the uniform. The player disappeared through the locked door of the football dressing room. Could it have been David?

Shuford Memorial Gymnasium



2. The Mystery Of The Stadium Banner – For the 1983 football season, a 20' X 20' banner was hung from the highest part of Shuford Gym, some fifty or more feet above the ground. The banner was made of the heaviest canvas, which made it impossible for one person to secure or remove it. When it was hung from the top of the building, more than eight large men had to assist. It was hung just before the first home football game of the season and remained in place for three home games. The banner ropes were checked weekly, and the access to the roof involved a series of unmarked doors and the use of two separate outside ladders. On the Friday before the fourth home game the banner was checked by college staff, and readied for the next afternoon's game. It was still in place at the close of the second shift of security, or 11:15 pm. Between 11:16 pm and 6:45am the banner and all of its ropes disappeared. The ladders were locked away in a room that was not accessible to anyone but a certain few staff persons and those certain few did not have access to the door that led to the first roof. The ropes were not cut - they were untied - and even the buckles that were used in the securing process were gone, as if they had never been there. There was a search of all campus areas, fraternity houses, and even a few off-campus apartments. Nothing ever showed up.

The Cromer Center



3. The Cromer Center – Jerry Shaw, Residence Director and Director Of Student Activities, died after a long battle with cancer in December 1989. Jerry was a very popular and charismatic member of the campus community and the first black member of the L-R football team. When Jerry passed away, there was a large memorial service on the campus in December 1989. More than 1,000 members of the L-R community, alumni, and family came to be a part of the service. That afternoon, as Jerry's secretary returned to the office for the first time after the memorial, she noticed the usual messages that every administrator gets on his/her door when he/she is away from their office. As she sorted through these messages, she came across one that stopped her in her work. It was a message from the switchboard operator about a phone call that came in that morning. It was addressed to the Student Activities Office. The message was "Arrived safe, everything is fine. Jerry." None of the L-R switchboard operators remember taking such a call.

Schaeffer Hall



4. Schaeffer Hall – For many years Mauney and Schaeffer Hall housed women. Since these are the oldest residence areas on campus, there are still many alumni who remember the old days. Some of the residents of Mauney and Schaeffer stayed at the college and worked on for several years. Others, like Mrs. Ona Peery, returned to the campus as Head Residents, the house mothers of old. Mrs. Peery, the Head Resident of the brand new Price Village complex in 1973, passed away of natural causes in 1975 in her apartment at Price. This was the same year that the decision to house men in Mauney Hall was made, something Mrs. Peery and most of the Head Residents at that time opposed because of tradition. Starting in 1976, reports of a rocking chair rocking, humming in the hall – especially second floor Schaeffer – and that room 206 Schaeffer was extremely cold all the time started to come to the staff's attention. In 1978, a student walking in from the breezeway encountered a matronly, transparent spirit checking the doors of the second floor. When the spirit turned and noticed the student, the student reported that she gave a stern look, placed her hands on her hips, and vanished. When the student described the spirit to the staff, the description most certainly fit that of Mrs. Peery, who lived in room 206 when she was a student at the College, and whose favorite piece of furniture while she was a Head Resident was a rocking chair. Reports of sounds and drastic temperature changes on second floor continue to this day.

The Pine Tree on the Quad



5. The Vision At The Tree – On the main quad of the campus, you can see a pine tree that was planted as a gift by the students of 1916. For years it has grown and flourished. Several alumni and students have given an account of a garden party that appears early on spring mornings just below the tree. The party usually contains 8-10 young ladies in dress reflective of the early twentieth century. They are talking, and sipping small cups, apparently enjoying the surroundings. As the sun rises, or if one were to get close to the tree, the vision disappears.

The Rhyne Building, Former Site of Old Main



6. The Rhyne Building And The Bell – Old Main was the central campus building for many of the early years of Lenoir-Rhyne College. It housed classrooms and offices, a dining hall, library, and most of the other necessary operations of the school. Old Main had a large tower at its center in which there was a school bell almost three feet in diameter. In 1920, the bell mysteriously disappeared from the tower. The President of the college stopped classes and conducted a full-scale investigation of the disappearance. For more than two weeks the campus was shrouded in the mysterious event. Then six seniors confessed to the President that they had taken the bell from the tower and buried it as a prank. The President, not seeing any humor in this prank, summarily expelled all six. When Old Main was destroyed by fire in 1927, the bell was one of the few salvaged items. When the new Rhyne Building was constructed, a plan was made to incorporate the bell in the design, so that it would never be subject to another prank. After much discussion, the bell was reshaped and coated in copper and brass and placed at the left corner of the main entrance.

Rudisill Library



7. The Library – Rudisill Library offers perhaps the most real ghost experience ever at L-R. There are two phenomena that have occurred in and around the library. The first occurred in July 1976, as security was making rounds on the campus. At about 9:00pm, security made the usually rounds through the library, checking doors and turning off all the lights. This was more difficult a process than it appeared, as the light switches were scattered throughout the building, not on one main panel. After checking all the doors, windows and turning off all the lights - something that had been done every night for many nights - security left by the front doors, and drove the security vehicle up the front of the Cromer Center, the next stop of rounds. Parking directly in front of the center, the officer had a good view of most of the central campus; he got out of the vehicle, locked the doors, and began to walk to the Center. Then a strange feeling came over him and he turned around and looked across campus. There was the library, a building that was secured and dark just 3-4 minutes before, with every light on! The officer stood there watching for a long time, and in a few minutes the relief officer came on duty. He came up to the front of the Center and asked what the lights were doing on in the library. The first officer told him that if he wanted to find out, could go on and go in, but he was not going back inside. On the report the next day, the relief officer stated that all lights were turned on: closets, hall, stairs, room lights. All of the lights were on, which meant than many individual switches had to have been turned on, not just one switchboard.

Rudisill Library (Just Ahead and to the Right of the Drive)



8. The Little Child – In 1980, while walking around the campus, strolling his one-year-old daughter, an employee of L-R came to the library. As he came down the sidewalk behind the library, he noticed some people looking over at the library as they walked. Turning the corner at the college sign, he caught a glimpse of a small child running and crying close to the library, just skirting the bushes. Continuing to walk the sidewalk, he turned up toward the library. The child, looking back occasionally, was visibly crying as it ran. He also noticed the child's clothes, which were torn and shredded. Walking faster, approaching the main doors of the library's old entrance, he saw the child run around the corner of the library and out of sight. He now walked as fast as he could with his daughter in arms and rounded the corner. He stopped. There was the child, 25 feet away with the saddest look ever seen on a human being, one that cuts right through him. Taking a few steps, he asked what was wrong. The child just ran around the corner, as he followed. As he turned the corner, the child was gone!

Students and members of the community who use the library have reported a child's cries coming from various parts of the library. Also, students report books being knocked from shelves when no one is near them. Lights flicker and doors open with no one around. The library was destroyed by fire in 1927, but there was no record of anybody perishing in the fire. No one knows who or what the vision is.

Belk Centrum, Former Site of The Yoder Building



9. The Yoder Building – The Yoder Building stood where the Belk Centrum building now stands. It was an imposing structure, three stories tall, with a sharp angled roof. There were no bathrooms in the Yoder Building, just classes. For years it had housed the Business Department classrooms and other work areas, including the Art Department studios. One night as a security officer was crossing the campus on rounds, he looked up toward the Yoder Building. There on the edge of the roof was a man dressed like a painter or laborer, just sitting on the roof. Security walked over to the building and called up to him. There was no answer. After several attempts to talk with this person, the guard entered the Yoder Building and started climbing the stairs, thinking he'd go up to the roof access and see what was going on. About halfway to the third floor he stopped as he realized that the Yoder Building had no access to the roof: no door, no panel, no ladder, no way to get to the roof from the inside. He went back outside and looked up: the figure was gone. As he walked around the building and stood farther away, there was nothing, no clue of who this person was or why he was on the roof. The other guard on duty did come rushing up to the first, and asked him, "Who was that guy up on the roof?"

The Former Site of Highland Hall



10. Highland Hall – This is the only specter that has been aggressive with anyone on campus. The experience here has been encountered by several staff and faculty members over the last twenty years. Working the graveyard shift, a security guard went into Highland Hall to check the doors and lights. First floor was offices and classrooms: no problems. Second floor was student offices and faculty offices: no problem. Third floor was used, at that time, for storage of college property: lamps, bookcases, bed frames, mattresses, etc. As he approached the door to the hall, he noticed all the lights were out, which is unusual for that floor. So, he turned to the switch panel, turned on the main hall lights, and walked on down the hall. Ten steps down the hall, the lights went out again. Turning on a flashlight, he turned around and went back to the switchboard. He again flipped the switch. Nothing happened. He tried this several times: still nothing. So he turned to go back down the hall, and the door to the switch panel slammed shut. He walked down the hall just a few feet farther than the first time, and encountered a lamp pushed toward him. Then a drawer came flying out of a room not far from him and the bed frames started to shake, then still more lamps and a chair. The guard quickly turned to go out the hall door, but on the first try the door would not open: more noise from behind him on the hall, a second push, leaning on the door, and it finally gave way. The next morning, the maintenance staff called security to report vandalism to third floor Highland Hall: lamps broken, mattresses ripped open, and wooden furniture smashed. That particular guard never went up to the third floor after dark, alone, again.

Another staff member recounts the story about coming out of her office in Highland Hall, starting down the hallway, and looking up to see a man standing just feet from her, dressed in just pants: no shirt, no shoes. As she approached and attempted to talk with him, the vision turned and entered a room. When she got to that room there was no one there. Other staff members who have offices in the building have reported howls and moans, doors slamming, and banging on the walls.

P.E. Monroe Auditorium



11. P.E. Monroe Auditorium – For many years, students and faculty have reported strange lights appearing in the auditorium. Lights, like that of a small table lamp, moving throughout the auditorium and its offices and hallways. One day the lights stopped and there were no more reports. For a couple of years, no reports were made of the lights. Then they started again, just as suddenly as they had stopped. When they started again, a member of the faculty stayed in the building for several nights trying to observe the lights firsthand. The professor did witness the light - emerging from the portrait of Dr. Monroe and roaming the entire auditorium for most of the night. It was the next morning, as the faculty member examined the place where the light started and ended that he and others discovered that the portrait light above the picture of Dr. Monroe was missing. The light was replaced and the same surveillance was conducted the next night. Nothing. No sightings. The light was removed and the sure enough the mysterious lamp lights reappeared. Because of that discovery, every night the auditorium faculty check to make sure that the portrait of Dr. Monroe is lit with the accent light, so that Dr. Monroe can rest. And if that light over the portrait ever goes out, we will know, because Dr. Monroe will roam the auditorium until it is fixed.

Another report from the auditorium relates the sighting of a large shadow floating through the office area and auditorium lobby, as well as the spinning of the Astrosoma, as if its being intentionally spun one way, then stopped and spun the other.

The Mauney Music Building



12. The Mauney Music Building – Students over the years report a great deal of spirit activity in the Music Building. One student reported an unauthorized person playing the large practice organ in the building. When the report was responded to by security, the organ was in operating mode, but there was no one in the room. Another student reports that while practicing in the building, she heard a large group of people moving up and down the hallway. When she opened the door to see what all the commotion was about, there was dead silence and not a soul in sight.

View Across Campus



I hope you have enjoyed reading these legends and tales of the Lenoir-Rhyne campus!

Let's conclude with Emily Dickinson:

One need not be a chamber to be haunted,
One need not be a house;
The brain has corridors surpassing
Material place.

Far safer, of a midnight meeting
External ghost,
Than an interior confronting
That whiter host.

Far safer through an Abbey gallop,
The stones achase,
Than, moonless, one's own self encounter
In lonesome place.

Ourself, behind ourself concealed,
Should startle most;
Assassin, hid in our apartment,
Be horror's least.

The prudent carries a revolver,
He bolts the door,
O'erlooking a superior spectre
More near.

Happy Tuesday!

Happy Tuesday!

* The first part of a two-part interview with me is now up here at Darkcargo, in which I talk about science fiction, classic novel/monster mashups, "further adventures of," and other literary subjects. The second half (about genre, Sherlock Holmes, and writing, among other things) will be up on Friday. Darkcargo is a terrific multi-authored blog about reading, book anticipation, con-going, and general genre-related fun, and I highly recommend checking out its other features!

* There's additional information online about this upcoming Saturday's PotterWatch 2011 Scholarly Conference on Harry Potter at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. My keynote talk will be "On Fairy-Stories, Readers, and the Potterverse." I hope to see some of you there!

* Happy belated birthday wishes to delenn1960 , lbilover , shagungu , and xanath , and happy birthday to curtana ! May all of you enjoy a wonderful year to come!

* In personal news, three cheers for my baby sister, Margret!
-- Her first refereed scholarly article has been published! So next time you're reading the International Journal of Climatology (who doesn't?), be sure to look for her work: "Spatial Coherence of Rainfall Variations Using the Oklahoma Mesonet." Woohoo!
-- She has a brand new, shiny job (besides perpetual tornado chaser extraordinaire) with the Oklahoma Climatological Survey. Yay!
-- She and my brother-in-law are expecting their first child. Huzzah! The whole family is excited about welcoming baby Kaitlyn in the spring.


And here's Virginia, doing her impersonation of my reaction to the new Star Wars blu-ray release:




"It's not that I expect Lucas to stop screwing with Star Wars. I imagine that he'll do so until he dies, and even then, he'll probably build a special robot that lives on after him with the sole purpose of finding things it doesn't like about Star Wars and 'fixing' them."
- A. Lee Martinez, "Why You Should Stop Telling Fans to 'Get Over It'"

Happy Autumn!

Thanks for the get well soon wishes! I am beginning to feel human once again. I'm dreadfully behind on my messages, but I'll be catching up ASAP.


So, while I was under the weather, apparently things happened:
* The great young adult science fiction author William Sleator died. Very sad news indeed. R.I.P. Read more about William Sleator here.

* After 31 years and 15 albums, R.E.M. is no more. What? What?

* And faster-than-light neutrinos? That's more like it.


And in more personal news...
* The PotterWatch 2011 Scholarly Conference on Harry Potter at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, for which I have the honor of being the keynote speaker, now has the full conference schedule posted. It will be held on October 1, 2011, and it looks like a terrific lineup!

* The forthcoming The Philosophy of Joss Whedon (The University Press of Kentucky, 2011), which includes my essay "'Just Get Us a Little Further': Liberty and the Frontier in Firefly and Serenity," now has an official cover:




And Happy Autumn, everyone. Wheeee! All for Fall!


"I learn more from books than from people"
― William Sleator, The Beasties

Long Live the Halflings! Praise Them with Great Praise!

I've been sick. Sorry for my silence! More coming soon, but for now, first things first:


Happy birthday to Bilbo and Frodo Baggins! Today is the anniversary of the Long-Expected Party celebrating Bilbo's eleventy-first birthday and Frodo's coming of age in The Lord of the Rings. It was on this day that Bilbo gave his infamous birthday speech, saying "I don't know half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve," before disappearing from the Shire forever. My thoughts are with the Lómelindi Smial of the Tolkien Society and everyone else who will be celebrating the Baggins Birthdays.

Also on this day, according to the Appendices of The Lord of the Rings, 99-year-old Samwise Gamgee rode out from Bag End for the final time. He was last seen in Middle-Earth by his daughter Elanor, to whom he presented the Red Book. According to tradition, he then went to the Grey Havens and passed over the Sea, last of the Ringbearers.


And now, in honor of the Baggins Birthdays, the departure of Samwise, and Hobbits in general, a quote about the Ring's temptation of - and failure with - one of J.R.R. Tolkien's (and, for that matter, world literature's) greatest heroes, Samwise Gamgee:

"Wild fantasies arose in his mind; and he saw Samwise the Strong, Hero of the Age, striding with a flaming sword across the darkened land, and armies flocking to his call as he marched to the overthrow of Barad-dûr. And then all the clouds rolled away, and the white sun shone, and at his command the vale of Gorgoroth became a garden of flowers and trees and brought forth fruit. He had only to put on the Ring and claim it for his own, and all this could be. In that hour of trial it was the love of his master that helped most to hold him firm; but also deep down in him lived still unconquered his plain hobbit-sense: he knew in the core of his heart that he was not large enough to bear such a burden, even if such visions were not a mere cheat to betray him. The one small garden of a free gardener was all his need and due, not a garden swollen to a realm; his own hands to use, not the hands of others to command."
- J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

TV polls!

amedia brought up an excellent subject today: what new television series are you planning to give a try?

We're going to give American Horror Story (because the premise is intriguing), Dark Matters: Twisted But True (science! horror! John Noble! and science!), and Person of Interest (a J.J. Abrams show with Michael Emerson, enough said, although I still hold a grudge against Jim Caviezel for that unforgivable remake of The Prisoner) a try. I thought about recording Terra Nova , too, but it promises to be a CGI-fest, so I think not.

View Poll: Which new TV series will you give a try?


Speaking of which, I'd love to know which TV series (renewed for the next season) my friends watch. The poll below includes the shows I follow year-round, in order of my love and devotion.

View Poll: Which ongoing TV series do you watch?


And...

View Poll: What other ongoing TV series do you watch?

3 TV polls

Whoops! LJ got a bit crazy, so I'm reposting this... Apologies for the inconvenience!


amedia brought up an excellent subject today: what new television series are you planning to give a try?

We're going to give American Horror Story (because the premise is intriguing), Dark Matters: Twisted But True (science! horror! John Noble! and science!), and Person of Interest (a J.J. Abrams show with Michael Emerson, enough said, although I still hold a grudge against Jim Caviezel for that unforgivable remake of The Prisoner) a try. I thought about recording Terra Nova , too, but it promises to be a CGI-fest, so I think not.

View Poll: Which new TV series will you give a try?


Speaking of which, I'd love to know which TV series (renewed for the next season) my friends watch. The poll below includes the shows I follow (in order of my love and devotion).

View Poll: Which ongoing TV series do you watch?


And...

View Poll: What other ongoing TV series do you watch?