So Many Kerfuffles... and stenciling

Every time I think that the puppy-Hugo's thing is going to settle down, something flares up again. The latest dust-up revolves around Irene Gallo, who is an employee of Tor Books, and a comment she made on her personal Facebook feed. There's a round-up of all the latest (from both sides) on File 700. A lot has been said about this, but I will say that while I believe it's reasonable to call the Rabid Puppies Neo-Nazis, the Nazi argument is almost always the nuclear option and is, in point of fact, know as "Godwin's Law."

TBF, I believe I did call out the Rabid Puppies as Neo-Nazis in my first article about the Hugo Awards, and, while individuals might not self-lable that way, I linked to Charles de Lint's Charlie Stross's article about Vox Day/Theodore Beale's publishing house which does have very clear and strong connections to that movement. Sad Puppies, IMHO, are better labeled "a conservative movement within science fiction." I *do* understand not wanting to be associated with Neo-Nazis, but maybe one should have considered that before going to bed with them, as it were. If you lie down with dogs, don't be so damned surprised when people expect that you have fleas.

If you wade through the whole of the File 700 round-up from yesterday, you'll see that they also excerpted my latest Bitter Empire contribution "Hugo Puppery Disappoints." I'm hoping to do a follow-up in which I also discuss the ways in which I bounced out of the other books on the Hugo ballot, too. Because, in all fairness, I did. I WANTED to like Ann Leckie, but I just found her main character kind of distant and hard to get into. I tried both ANCILLARY JUSTICE and ANCILLARY SWORD. I also bounced out of THE THREE-BODY PROBLEM kind of for the same reasons. I didn't really find any characters to like. In both the situations were mildly interesting, but just not in a sustaining sort of way, as Pooh might say. As I say in the review on Bitter Empire, I just couldn't with THE GOBLIN EMPEROR either--even though many of you told me it's worth another try (and maybe it is. I will confess that I've had hard bounces out of all of the fantasy books on this year's nomination lists, too. So maybe I'm just not in a high fantasy mood at the moment.)

The last of my writing/fannish/review news to report is that I got contacted the other day by Anime3000. They're doing a "Manga Corner" podcast about GANGSTA (which will be an anime soon), and which is a manga I reviewed on MangaKast (the site that Mason and I post our podcast on). Apparently, they think I'd make a worthwhile guest podcaster, which thrills and tickles me no end. I haven't heard back from their coordinator, but I picked out a couple of dates that would work for me later this month and so we'll see how it all goes down. When it's up and such, I'll be sure to post a link here and probably everywhere. Because I'm seriously so pleased with the extent to which I'm kind of becoming a notable anime/manga fan.

Maybe I have hopes for a Hugo, too. (ha. ha.)

So, in other news, I've gotten a Pinterest-y yen to do some stenciling. There's this ugly little hallway that leads to our side door and basement that I painted this last weekend. It had been some kind of dull, chalky white and it is now "lemon meringue." At any rate we have coat hangers along this wall and I talked Shawn into letting me paint those bright green, just to jazz up the corner. I was telling her that I desperately wanted to stencil some stars or flowers or something on those, but she reminded me that they were mostly covered by the things hanging on them so I let that idea go.

HOWEVER, there is still this bit of overhang that leads to the basement. I'm pretty sure it needs stars upon thars.

It might just happen if I can make a good stencil.

Also, I need to distract myself today. Rainbow Tree Care called yesterday and their crews will be in the neighborhood so they're doing all our work at some point today. They have to remove an ash tree from our Japanese garden and... well, honestly, I they don't need me standing over them wringing my hands and muttering, "Oh, watch out for the ferns! ARGH, my hosta!" so I think a project that has me hiding on the basement stairs is probably a really good idea for everyone involved.