I went to writing group tonight. I have word porn: this isn't just Word Porn, this is Half Price Word Porn. My first Concise Oxford dictionary in 16 years; my first since I came to York to read English Literature. I think I paid less for this dictionary than I did that one. Group was good. Good feedback, good company. The Hussar is open again under new management; the wine glasses are a thing of beauty to behold and the ladies loo seats are a choice of zebra striped or Union Flag: both better than beige plastic and cigarette burn chic.

Cycling back was, as always, a war between past and present. The sodium lights and London Plane trees tug me back to the 1920s, even though the poplars have all been taken down. There's no more whispering as I head home along 5th Avenue. But the moon sailing up above, planet attendant, more than made up for the two youths on one bicycle in the shadows on the opposite pavement and the menace of a 'Hey you!' as I noticed them, noted them, and sped up.

On nights like tonight I am Toreador, moonstruck, my critical functions taken out by the beauty of trees, streetlamps, the moon. At least I'm not driving at sunset.

Dear friends, once more...

So, still not dead... I'm in Lymington at my twin's house (she made stew which was amazingly good, including dumplings) and am on my way to Dinan, in Brittany, with ravenlas, Sue and India, and the new (to me) car. In case anyone's interested, I have: sewed by hand a medieval dress and hood, knitted 3 pairs of socks, written an 18,000 word Stargate: SG1 story and failed to cut my grass. I've also proofread a few books, not been fired for my terrible sick record, and driven around 900 miles. I miss not being on LJ, not seeing you guys, not keeping in touch, however peripherally, and I hope to be back properly in a couple of weeks when I'm home and have internet access.

Btw, the original series of Star Trek is a lot better than I remember, a lot more complex, and the remastered box set is definitely worth it.

So, stay well, stay safe, and I'll catch up with you soon.

I has it!

*beam*

For those of you who are interested, it are here and includes reviews of my friends, RJ Smith (not a 'he'), DJ Muir, SJ Cooper, and Marie Prior aka Fred (a much finer name). Also alasdair1076.

Okay, so my review is this:

With its local denizens attuned to the land’s darker mysteries, Ellen J. Allen’s “Day Trippers” brings to mind the pub customers in the original An American Werewolf in London. A ravening werewolf seems hackneyed nowadays, but Allen’s mythological beast is far more interesting, both in its origins and its desires. A fresh plot and smart, pitch-perfect dialog make “Day Trippers” one hell of a good read.

I'm happy! *big grin*

If anyone wants to know more about the beast, let me know. :)

This time, to o_faolain, who started his new job today. Hurrah! I hope it continues to be interesting and new and shiny and much, much fun.

I had a piece of flash fiction published in this week - Day Trippers. Hurrah! Go, read, read the other stories! Subscribe! (It's free!)

And if you really, really like what you see, or if you just think that small press magazines/ezines need supporting (it's the largest genre ezine in Europe afaik) - consider making a donation. Not many people do and, well, Hub pays its authors. Which is really nice.

Has been quite busy after all. Let me tell you. ( No, there is too much. Let me sum up... )

The November G.E.D. Month to do list! And if anyone wants to come round and give me a hand, shout out encouragement, etc, you're very welcome to do so. I'll be adding to the list, I dare say...

House

Kitchen - put a heavier curtain over the back door / take the catflap out of the back door and board up the hole and repaint the board / get a top shelvey bit for the sideboard or put up some shelves (shelves bought and put up 8/11/08) / repaint the kitchen / replace the cupboard doors / measure up and replace the drawer runners if possible
Living room - polyfiller the hole in the ceiling / put film over the windows to keep the draft out / do a whole pile of tidying up - started (8/11/08) / rearrange the furniture so I can get to the wall heater and/or get ravenlas to move the tv that's in front of the fire / move some more of the books out to the shed / clear space to use the wii / fix the door of the display cabinet / read the gas and electric meters and phone the power company / catch up on paper shredding - started (8/11/08)
Hallway - go through the bag of stuff at the bottom of the stairs and file or bin it / polyfiller the holes in the wall and drill new ones, put the bannister back up (3/11/08) / get rid of the bag of clothes to ebay or give away - (started 10/11/08) / find some place to put away my box of clothes / put up a curtain rail & curtain over the front door - bought rail (8/11/08), put up 9/11/08 / put a letter cage over the letter box / put a draught excluder over the letter box - bought (6/11/08), put up (8/11/08) / put up a high shelf for hats - bought (8/11/08), put up (9/11/08)
Bathroom - put up the skirting board, put down beading / check the bath sealant / put up a shaving mirror (not for me!) (3/11/08)
Spare room - go through the clothes and shoes in the wardrobe and get rid of or trunk anything that doesn't fit or I don't wear any more - started (6/11/08), finished (10/11/08) (and get ravenlas to do the same) / go through the boxes and get rid of piles of stuff - started (6/11/08) / get legs for the table and put it up (8/11/08) / get ravenlas to put the spare telly on the wall in here / replace the chests of drawers - new chests of drawers bought (8/11/08), put up 1 (10/11/08) / put up some shelves
Attic stairs - repaint / stick down the paper around the velux / clean the velux / put away the decorating stuff at the bottom of the stairs / go through the boxes at the bottom of the stairs
General - get house rewired / replastered / central heating / new windows (or at least new hinges) / remodel downstairs / get conservatory built

Garden

Put the tomato plants on the compost heap - likewise, the courgettes / cut the grass / clean the patio / weed / take out the bamboo / weed the front garden / put edging stones along the front bed / plant a few more plants between the primulas / clip the long grass around the 'grassy knoll' / turn the pond into a bog garden? / replace the pond liner? / relay the stones around the edge of the pond? / spraypaint all the woodwork / get the house repointed / get the guttering cleaned and resealed / get the dormer woodwork treated and the flat roof checked / replace security light at the back / add a security light at the front / rotivate lawn & add more topsoil and sand for drainage / edge all flower beds / add more bark chippings & cardboard to the bottom of the garden / replace front drainpipe

Writing

1 6k short story (asap) - started! (800 words, 3/11/08) / Squirrels - finish editing - submit to agents / Thunder Moon - finish writing / Tie Me To The Mast (But Do Not Stop My Ears) - to finish writing / Desperate Measures - write a sequel (4/11/08) / Shed World - edit story

Crafts

Shawl for Mum - to finish knitting - done more on (4/11/08) / Stripey Socks - to finish knitting / Purple cardigan - to finish knitting / medieval kit - to design - to cut out - to sew / viking kit - to design - to cut out - to sew / '50s housecoat - to make / Frock coat - to make / mittens for Sue - to naalbind / make curtains for the whole house

Online

Get my website up and running (finally) / clear out Hub's slushpile / clear out Pseudopod's slushpile - started! (3/11/08) / clear out my email inbox - started! (down to 67 3/11/08) / list things for sale on Amazon and Ebay /

People

Phone round the family (started 3/11/08 - Anne, Kate, Mum & Dad) / email Emma, Audrey, Cat, Paul / Phone Sue, Sarah

Other

Give blood / change bike brake pads / wash the car / take India and Emilio climbing / make a gastroenterology appointment 27/11/08 / phone 3 and ask for pac code 27/11/08

When gothgrr came round on Wednesday, she happened to mention the Boxercise class at St. John's.

So this evening (after a fab day with rhube watching Short Circuit, Batteries Not Included, Flight of the Navigator and Tongan Ninja), I dragged my saggy behind off the sofa and went to Boxercise, along with alasdair1076 and Kate. It's rather hard work, but I very much enjoyed the boxing stuff. Hugely. Mwa ha haaa!

Alas, I appear to have left a lung out in the car park somewhere. I'm sure I'll stop coughing before I go to bed... Mind you, cycling in to the station tomorrow is not going to be so much fun, I very strongly suspect. Ho hum, never mind! I'll be going back next week, I reckon, and maybe I'll be a teensy bit fitter (and have stopped coughing).

G.E.D. month... Not so much. I started knitting that bath mat (from strips of t-shirts). And that story I'm putting up over on the_proofreader has hit 13.5k. So another 500 words and that'll be an average of 2,000 words a day for the last week. Hurrah! And it Doesn't Suck! Even better! :)

Anything else? Well, the living room is pretty tidy. Well, for my living room. So that counts, I think. And tomorrow the car goes in for its MOT, and... um... that's about it, I think.

Have a great week, y'all.

Today's things off the list:

Bought a draught excluder to put on the back of the door over the letterbox.
Called Sue.
Started going through the wardrobe and the boxes in the spare room.
Written another 500 words on that short story.
Knitted several more rows of the shawl for my mum.

Oh, does anyone want to come and see Patrick Stewart and Sir Ian McKellan in Waiting for Godot in Newcastle next April?

Would anyone like a bread machine? Or a box of candles? Or a 1950s black and white dress with a shawl collar? Or a long (good-quality) leatherette trench coat? (Both size 12) Or a pair of jeans with rhinestone bits on the sides of the legs (from my twin, not my thing, honest)? Or a size 16 silk summer dress with a boned bodice (unworn, from Debenhams)? Or a book on Feng Shui?

Please say yes...

Today I have:

Written 800 words of a short story and added 600 words to the sequel to Desperate Measures.
Started clearing out a slushpile.
Started clearing out my email inbox.
Taken down the end of the bannister that was still attached to the wall, filled the holes, drilled new holes (with a trip to B&Q for a new drill bit as the old one was around half the length it used to be), and put the bannister back up.
Drilled holes in a tile and put up a shaving mirror in the bathroom.

And amongst all that I have been to work (we had a power cut), cycled home, made and eaten dinner, put the dishwasher on, emptied & refilled the dishwasher and put it back on and had a cup of tea. Now I'm finally sitting down with a bowl of apple crumble and another cup of tea. And then I'm going to bed. Because tomorrow is another G.E.D. day!