If I had more time, what I would do is, get a domain name, hook a blog up to it, and then extensively document every one of the motor tours from the 1939 WPA book NORTH CAROLINA: A Guide to the Old North State. There are 33 tours, ranging in length from 35 to 613 miles. But more time is something I perpetually lack, so I have not done those things ( Read more... )

Last weekend was the fourth year in a row where we spent some time with friends (and several thousand other people) at the Maryland Renaissance Festival. So at this point, it's a tradition. barbmg  and I did a quick sprint through some DC area tourist attractions first. Arlington National Cemetery, I hadn't been there since I was a kid, and had never ( Read more... )

I can't say that I have seen that many movies that John Hughes wrote or directed, or that I know anything about the guy. Certainly, from interviews such as this one, he seems relatively cool. But The Breakfast Club was wildly important to me when I saw it oh so long ago at Mission Valley, where I still go see movies these days. While I haven't ( Read more... )

Roasted red onion, roasted organic chicken breast, just olive oil and pepper and some lemon slices in the oven with those two. Half an avocado. A gimlet, with bitters (the Philip Marlowe variant) to cut the sweetness of Rose's Lime Juice. There are many worse things to have for dinner on a Tuesday night ( Read more... )

Boy oh boy, am I sure missing WisCon.

I think it's clear that I'm crap at posting to LJ, but in the interest of keeping up appearances, here's some stuff we've done recently ... for barbmg 's 29th birthday, we met bondgwendabond  and colonelrowe up in Ash City, I mean, Asheville. Drove up the hill to the Grove Park Inn, where there is a beautiful view from the veranda of the ( Read more... )

I should probably mention my so-far-wonderful holidays ... Barb and I saw Hilton in Winston-Salem Monday night. I went back yesterday and after doing the present thing with my mother and sister, and after reading the first third of LOOKING FOR ALASKA, I went out to Elliott's Revue to talk to my ol' friend Phil. We talked about movies, theater, ( Read more... )

First, a current, nonfictional look at houses of the future. Note: I am not saying I agree w/ P.J. O'Rourke about this or about anything, nor am I particularly vouching for this essay as great writing. But it is worth reading.

Second, an early-21st-century fictional take on 1950s houses of the future, by me.

As Hanna was blowing through town, I was standing in the middle of Hargett Street getting blown away by the Dexter Romweber Duo. I've seen Dexter play several times recently, but this was the first time in ages that I'd seen Sara drum. And what a joy it was to listen and to watch. They've just been signed to Bloodshot, and later this month will be ( Read more... )

That's how long we spent in Maryland. (Note: this post contains no nut jokes.) The only two bummers of our weekend in Maryland were a) it was too brief and b) some jerk stole the Obama '08 magnet off of my car in the parking lot at the Maryland You-know-what Festival. It was, of course, wonderful to be in the sixteenth century and to see BeerPam, ( Read more... )

This story, first published in 2002, is up for your perusal at Strange Horizons. I'm glad those folks wanted to reprint it. That is all.