Monthly Archives: May 2021
The Big Idea: Alex Zohar
Posted on May 18, 2021
Is there such a thing as too much progress? Sometimes we are more preoccupied with the question of “if” we can do something, we don’t think about if we “should”. Such is the case in Emotional Robots: A Question of Existence, when the very robots that replace us may find themselves replaced. Follow along in co-author and […]
Christy Gaitten, RIP
Posted on May 18, 2021 15 Comments
My pal Christy Gaitten (seen here on her wedding day in 2000, from a snap Krissy took) passed away yesterday. I don’t think she would want me to get too mushy or overlong in a public remembrance — she definitely edged toward the “sarcastic quip” side of things — so let me just say that […]
Charlie Photo: Deployed
Posted on May 17, 2021 11 Comments
Just in case anyone here could benefit from a photo of a happy pup in the yard with her tongue out. If you are that person, here you go. If you’re not, well, you still got a puppy photo out of it, and that’s not bad. — JS
LD+R a Netflix Top Ten Show
Posted on May 16, 2021 22 Comments
And actually, top 5, as it was nestled in at number five when I checked, and of course I checked, because I was curious. This is a pretty good showing for its debut weekend and I’m unsurprisingly pleased about it. “Top 5 Netflix Show” is a nice thing to be able to add to one’s […]
Thoughts On the Imminent Unmasking
Posted on May 16, 2021 60 Comments
As many of you know, the CDC recently changed masking guidelines for vaccinated folks, and in Ohio, at least, guidelines are also changing — both immediately for vaccinated people and then for everyone in a couple of weeks. I’ve had some people ask me what I think about it and what I plan to do […]
Follow-up to the Week’s Excitement
Posted on May 15, 2021 18 Comments
Athena has already updated you all on the, uh, exciting events of her week, so I don’t need to go over that again, but I did want to check in to thank the folks who checked in with me or Krissy to see how we were doing in the wake of Athena’s unexpected medical emergency. […]
And Now, The Moment You’ve Been Waiting For
Posted on May 14, 2021 125 Comments
If you saw this video I posted on Twitter yesterday, you may be wondering about what the heck happened to me: I’m fine and at home and will be writing a post on the details later but for now enjoy this post-hospital video I took a couple hours ago ☺️ pic.twitter.com/y9716Rv3GI — Athena Scalzi ⭐️ […]
The Big Idea: L. R. Braden
Posted on May 14, 2021
Though individuality is what makes us great, sometimes you have to find common ground to bring everyone together. Read along in L.R. Braden’s Big Idea, where she tells us how this idea of bringing wildly different groups together took shape in her newest novel, Of Mettle & Magic. L. R. BRADEN: Fear drives people to do […]
Love Death + Robots Volume 2 Now Out
Posted on May 14, 2021 14 Comments
In case you were wondering to yourself what you should watch on Netflix today, the new season of Love Death + Robots just dropped, with another eight episodes of futuristic and/or fantastical animated chaos and mayhem. Not only do I have an episode in this season, but it’s the lead-off episode: “Automated Customer Service,” for […]
Dogs in the Yard, 5/13/21
Posted on May 13, 2021 15 Comments
I’ve mentioned elsewhere that my yard has become the de facto dog park for the neighborhood. Here is evidence of that: Buckley (black labradoodle), Gus (golden labradoodle) and Charlie (doofus sprinter) all hanging out in the lawn. And a fine day for it. We don’t mind that they hang out here. They’re pretty cool. And […]
I’m Totally Not Feeling it Today, So Instead of Incisive, Thoughtful Commentary I’m Just Going to Show You Something That’s Making Me Irrationally Angry
Posted on May 13, 2021 43 Comments
Fucking “Jumbo Donettes”?!?!? THEY’RE GODDAMN DONUTS THAT’S WHAT THEY ARE “But ‘donette’ is their trademark” YOU DON’T THINK I DON’T KNOW THAT IT’S STILL THE WORST THING EVER SERIOUSLY IMMA GO DOWN TO HOSTESS WITH A BAT AND “TALK” TO THEIR MARKETING PEOPLE (eats his Jumbo Donette gloweringly) That’s it, that’s all I got for […]
Scared Of Surgery
Posted on May 11, 2021 148 Comments
I’m having surgery for the first time in my life tomorrow and let me just say, I am hella nervous. I’m honestly really scared, mostly because I’ve never been put under with anesthesia before. Also I’m getting my tonsils burned out of my throat so, that’s scary to think about, too. I remember as a kid […]
The Big Idea: Jeff Noon
Posted on May 11, 2021 5 Comments
The famous saying is that “life is like a bunch of chocolates.” In author Jeff Noon’s case, it’s more like a deck of cards, and for the same reason: You never know what you’re going to get. Follow along as Noon tells you how total chance helped him write his newest novel, Within Without. JEFF […]
Ten Years of Fuzzy Nation
Posted on May 10, 2021 31 Comments
Today is not only my birthday, it is the tenth anniversary of the release of Fuzzy Nation, otherwise known (to me, anyway) as The Makeup Book, because it was the book that came out after Tor and I briefly and privately broke up for a couple of years before patching things back together. Why did […]
52
Posted on May 10, 2021 46 Comments
It occured to me last week, as I was coming up on my 52nd birthday, which is today, that I am now old enough that I have a year of my life correspond to every week of a standard-sized year. This is not a particularly deep thought, to be sure, but to someone who is […]
Mother’s Day 2021
Posted on May 9, 2021 6 Comments
It was low-key but lovely here. If Mother’s Day is something that gives you joy, I hope it was joyful for you. — JS
Chocolate Chip Failures
Posted on May 8, 2021 71 Comments
Welcome to another segment of me making something and having realistic problems along the way and being unashamed I fucked up a little bit! I told my dad that I wanted to bake something, and he recommended cookies. I asked what kind, and he showed me Claire Saffitz’s chocolate chip cookie video that was just […]
New Music from Matthew Ryan
Posted on May 7, 2021 2 Comments
You may remember Matthew Ryan as the fellow with whom I co-wrote that Christmas song late last year, or you may otherwise be familiar with him from his own extensive and excellent discography. He has a new project now, called The Pines at Night, and with it has released a maxi-single that leads off with […]
The Big Idea: Griffin Barber
Posted on May 7, 2021 2 Comments
The difference between a tyrant and a king is found in if he is a ruler or a leader. But what makes a leader? Author Griffin Barber begins to answer this question in his Big Idea. Follow along as he tells you of his newest tome, 1637: The Peacock Throne, and how to write a […]
Whatever Everyone Else is Saying