By request.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Friday, May 23, 2008
Our Tax Dollars at Work
Spending On Iraq Poorly Tracked: "The inspector general for the Defense Department said yesterday that the Pentagon cannot account for almost $15 billion worth of goods and services ranging from trucks, bottled water and mattresses to rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns that were bought from contractors in the Iraq reconstruction effort.
The Pentagon did not have the proper documentation, including receipts, vouchers, signatures, invoices or other paperwork, for $7.8 billion that American and Iraqi contractors were paid for phones, folders, paint, blankets, Nissan trucks, laundry services and other items, according to a 69-page audit released to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform."
The Pentagon did not have the proper documentation, including receipts, vouchers, signatures, invoices or other paperwork, for $7.8 billion that American and Iraqi contractors were paid for phones, folders, paint, blankets, Nissan trucks, laundry services and other items, according to a 69-page audit released to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform."
From Michael Smith
Once again, it's the end of the semester (and academic year) - yeah - and I can get to fun stuff (i.e., writing HTML code and scanning ACE cover images). I also want to thank all the AIL users who have supplied new (or improved) cover images, publication data, or helped find some of the errors and corrections that a site of this size appears to accrue over time. I am continually working on this as time allows, so if I have missed a glaring error - please let me know.
The ACE IMAGE LIBRARY has had several new additions to the site. I have been trying to get a backlog of ACE POTPOURRI volumes scanned as well as catalogued and am finding that the ACE POTPOURRI section is getting a bit crowded and unmanageable. To this end, I have changed the front pages to the ACE sections by making them in a TABLE format where the user can select the particular Letter-Number series for their study. For the FIVE-DIGIT NUMBER series I have split them into batches (i.e., 00001 to 09999, for example). Hopefully this will make it more useful, although I recognize that it reduces the amount of browsing you can do at any one time. Let me know if this is working out for you.
Ace Potpourri
In my reading and snooping I have been bothered by the use of 'dos-a-dos' for the format of the ACE Doubles. I have pulled a bunch of book manufacture and publishing references from the library (oh, it's great to have a decent research library with a Creative Writing department that believes in good references). Thus, I have found (as some of you already know) that the proper term for the format of the upside-down, two cover, single spine ACE Double is tête-bêche. I have rewritten and edited the sections at this site based upon this new information.
I have developed several new pages for the ACE IMAGE LIBRARY. One page deals with a summary of the book format tête-bêche and dos-a-dos. In addition, on this page (accessed through the homepage of AIL) are the imitators of ACE Doubles. At this time this section includes TOR, Belmont, Signet, Galaxy Magabooks, and the single NESFA hardback. I have a few new tête-bêche volumes by independent small press (D. Nufer - The Mudflat Man/ The River Boys published by Soultheft Records) and one from Gollancz that I need to add (keep watching).
Another new page deals with the ADVENTURE stories of NICK CARTER published by ACE. I did this primarily as a counterpoint to the MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. Page. Take a look and let me know if you have any that I do not have.
I have also updated the WESTERN Doubles and Singles pages with more images and information. Please note I am still missing a couple of the ACE Doubles in this group and would appreciate any assistance from the AIL users.
The genres of MYSTERY and SCIENCE FICTION (both ACE Doubles and Singles) have had additional images installed, especially in the five-digit numerical series. I have also been checking titles and Letter-Number sequence as I keep finding some odd-balls as well as a trend in the late 1980's for ACE to fail to keep to its numbering scheme (look at the 00001 series in SF for example). Please note that a lot of the ACE publication lately (last 10 years or so) has been in Fantasy and I am still placing them with the Science Fiction pages (in part because some of them are cross-listed).
I have been compiling more artist information as well as new images of the original paintings, drawings, illustrations, or preliminary drawings. I have been aided by many people who have allowed me to place these these on the ACE IMAGE LIBRARY site and I thank them again for their permission.
Lastly, I have acquired a bunch of Television spin-off/tie-in volumes and am playing about with a page directed to this ACE genre. If any AIL users have information on the ACE Charter (think this is related to the ownership of ACE by Grosset & Dunlap in the late 1970's and early 1980's) and ACE Tempo (think this is a juvenile/young adult imprint - some of the numbers correspond, but some do not) series, please let me know. I am also looking for a list of the 2nd series of ACE Special Editions edited by Terry Carr when he returned to ACE in 1982. I have a few, but not all of them and am trying to find a way to differentiate them from the 1st series with the cover art by Leo and Diane Dillon.
So, have fun. Remember, all errors are mine and any corrections are always appreciated.
Sincerely,
Michael
Robert Asprin, R. I. P.
I can't resist saying it: He'll be mythed. I haven't read many of his books, but I've enjoyed the ones I did read. He came up with a great idea and played it for keeps.Link via Boing Boing.
Forgotten Books: REVENGE -- Jack Ehrlich
This book might not be in a class by itself, but, as Bum Phillips would say, it doesn't take very long to call the roll. For me, it's up there with The Killer Inside Me and The Vengeance Man. Like those novels, this one's narrated by a guy who's clearly off the rails, a man who knows "how to right the wrongs, his own way, a way no one else would ever approve of, or understand." Ehrlich wrote a series of novels about a parole officer named Flick, and those aren't bad, but this is the one you want to read. Or, if not this one, Bloody Vengeance, a novel with a similar theme, about vigilante cops. I didn't know when I read it if Ehrlich was serious, and I still don't, but it's well worth looking for if you don't have it on your shelves.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Gator Update (Reggie Edition)
Nice photos at the link.
Curbed LA: Hey, Reggie! His Zoo Life, One Year In: "“For the first four months, he was shy,” says Ian Recchio, curator of reptiles and amphibians at the Los Angeles Zoo. “But now he’s completely comfortable.” This Saturday marks the one year anniversary of Reggie’s arrival to Los Angeles Zoo."
Curbed LA: Hey, Reggie! His Zoo Life, One Year In: "“For the first four months, he was shy,” says Ian Recchio, curator of reptiles and amphibians at the Los Angeles Zoo. “But now he’s completely comfortable.” This Saturday marks the one year anniversary of Reggie’s arrival to Los Angeles Zoo."
Geezers Are Brainier! So Stay off my Lawn!
Memory Loss - Aging - Alzheimer's Disease - Aging Brains Take In More Information, Studies Show - Health - New York Times: "When older people can no longer remember names at a cocktail party, they tend to think that their brainpower is declining. But a growing number of studies suggest that this assumption is often wrong.
Instead, the research finds, the aging brain is simply taking in more data and trying to sift through a clutter of information, often to its long-term benefit."
Link via the Public Reader.
Instead, the research finds, the aging brain is simply taking in more data and trying to sift through a clutter of information, often to its long-term benefit."
Link via the Public Reader.
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
NEWS RADIO 590 KLBJ - Breaking News Headlines and Video from 590 KLBJ: "Former APD Officer Scott Lando has been indicted by the Travis County Grand Jury on several different felony charges. He was fired from the force earlier this year after APD officials determined he had repeatedly hired prostitutes, provided women with drugs, and even paid a woman for sex by giving her some of his wife's clothes."
I Was a Vegan for the FBI
Moles Wanted - City Pages (Minneapolis/St. Paul): "In preparation for the Republican National Convention, the FBI is soliciting informants to keep tabs on local protest groups."
Tired of these Lists?
Well, here's another one.
Top 100 Films: "Another film list? The same old Citizen Kane? No - this one’s different, says The Times’s chief film critic James Christopher."
Top 100 Films: "Another film list? The same old Citizen Kane? No - this one’s different, says The Times’s chief film critic James Christopher."
Twilight -- Stephenie Meyer
I read this YA novel because I'd heard so much about it. I'd also heard that it was highly praised, was a number one bestseller, was on a lot of "best of the year" lists. Let's just say that I don't agree and let it go at that. The less said, the better.Wednesday, May 21, 2008
The Smiley Face Killers
Here's the plot of your next novel. My usual 10% can be mailed in small bills. No consecutive serial numbers, please.
Smiley face killers may be stalking college men - CNN.com: "ALBANY, New York (CNN) -- At the age of 21, Christopher Jenkins appeared to have everything going for him. The University of Minnesota senior was good-looking, had a near perfect grade-point average and had a future in business.
Then, suddenly, he vanished.
He was last seen celebrating Halloween at a bar in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 2002. Jenkins' friends said he left about midnight. Four months later, his body was found in the Mississippi River, still wearing his Halloween costume."
Smiley face killers may be stalking college men - CNN.com: "ALBANY, New York (CNN) -- At the age of 21, Christopher Jenkins appeared to have everything going for him. The University of Minnesota senior was good-looking, had a near perfect grade-point average and had a future in business.
Then, suddenly, he vanished.
He was last seen celebrating Halloween at a bar in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 2002. Jenkins' friends said he left about midnight. Four months later, his body was found in the Mississippi River, still wearing his Halloween costume."
Richard S. Prather Interview
Gator Update (Naked Gator Wrangler Edition)
Man in Gator Case Held for Failing to Report | TheLedger.com: "Adrian Apgar, the infamous naked gator wrangler, was arrested Monday and charged with failing to report for a scheduled court date.
Apgar, 47, was being held at the Polk County Jail on Tuesday night with a bail set at $1,500.
He was originally charged with trespassing, exposure of sexual organs and breach of the peace in March when deputies found him scratched up, naked and wading toward an alligator in a pond at Saddle Creek Park in Lakeland.
But that wasn't Apgar's first run-in with the reptiles.
In November 2006, the same deputies rescued Apgar from the jaws of an alligator in Lake Parker. That gator wrangle left him with a partially amputated arm. The gator also took out several chunks from his side and buttocks."
Apgar, 47, was being held at the Polk County Jail on Tuesday night with a bail set at $1,500.
He was originally charged with trespassing, exposure of sexual organs and breach of the peace in March when deputies found him scratched up, naked and wading toward an alligator in a pond at Saddle Creek Park in Lakeland.
But that wasn't Apgar's first run-in with the reptiles.
In November 2006, the same deputies rescued Apgar from the jaws of an alligator in Lake Parker. That gator wrangle left him with a partially amputated arm. The gator also took out several chunks from his side and buttocks."
We're Home
As we hoped and expected, the MRI results showed no change. We're happy and relieved. The MRI wasn't quite the ordeal it often is for Judy because she had a very helpful lab worker who made sure she was as comfortable as possible and who adjusted the overhead mirror so she didn't feel so trapped. No more tests for a couple of months. Hooray.
Peru Update
Inca Skull Surgeons Were "Highly Skilled," Study Finds: "nca surgeons in ancient Peru commonly and successfully removed small portions of patients' skulls to treat head injuries, according to a new study."
Flash!
'Flash Gordon' reignited by Columbia: "Columbia might be rocketing a redo-update of 'Flash Gordon,' entering talks to acquire the film rights for a big-screen adaptation that has Breck Eisner attached to direct and Neal Moritz set to produce. Eisner also will exec produce.
'Flash' originally was a science fiction newspaper comic strip drawn by Alex Raymond in the 1930s and was created to compete with another sci-fi strip, 'Buck Rogers.' 'Flash' was first adapted to the screen via Buster Crabbe serials and was made into a lavish 1980 film starring Sam Jones but remembered more for its Queen score. More recently, it was a Sci Fi Channel miniseries that was seen as a critical and ratings failure."
'Flash' originally was a science fiction newspaper comic strip drawn by Alex Raymond in the 1930s and was created to compete with another sci-fi strip, 'Buck Rogers.' 'Flash' was first adapted to the screen via Buster Crabbe serials and was made into a lavish 1980 film starring Sam Jones but remembered more for its Queen score. More recently, it was a Sci Fi Channel miniseries that was seen as a critical and ratings failure."
The Somnambulist -- Jonathan Barnes
You won't read another book like this one for a while, I'll bet. The Somnambulist is an odd duck. It begins by telling the reader that the narrator has no literary skill and that he will occasionally tell outright lies. So you know from the start that he's about as unreliable as possible. And you don't even find out who he is until about three-quarters of the book is done. The plot involves a magician named Edward Moon, who's fallen on hard times. He does a great show, but he's no longer in fashion. The audiences are appreciative but small.Moon's also supposedly a great detective in the Sherlock Holmes vein, though he does precious little detecting in this book that I can see. He's bored with life until he gets involved with what appears to be an interesting murder that leads to something far more sinister.
In both his magic act and his detecting, Moon is assisted by a man known only as The Somnambulist for reasons that escaped me entirely. In fact, there's a ton of back story referred to but which we're never given. Moon's relationship with his sister, who or what The Somnabulist might be, what happened to bring Barrabas to his sorry cell in Newgate, whether Innocenti is a genuine medium, and so on, are all left up in the air.
But never mind. For 300 pages, I was on board and having a fine time. The style is straightforward, there's humor, the characters and situations are oddly strange and strangely odd, even bizarre. Literary allusions abound, to everybody from Dante to Eliot to Mary Shelley to Joseph Conrad. I did hit on a couple of problems, one of which involves hissing the unhissable: "'What do you want?' Moon hissed."
Somewhere about page 300, things started getting out of hand. What had seemed eccentric and fun went so far over the top that it because outrageous. My guess is, you're either going to suck it up and go with it, or you'll throw the book down to show your displeasure. I went with it, but I still don't know what to make of it. Maybe you will.
One thing: Every advance review I read (and there were quite a few) referred to this book as being set in the Victorian Era. But it's made clear several times that Victoria's dead and a man is on the throne. Wouldn't that make the setting Edwardian? Or am I missing something?
MRI
Judy and I will be toddling off to MD Anderson again this morning. Judy will have an MRI, not one of her favorite things, mainly because she becomes more claustrophobic every time she has one, and this will be the fourth in less than a year. About 15 years ago, Judy had a long and complicated surgery to remove a benign meningioma, and the MRI is just to make sure it hasn't returned. We don't think it has, but these days everything gives us a little scare.
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
iWon News - Man accused of repeatedly calling 911 for cab: "WACO, Texas (AP) - A man accused of calling 911 15 times in a row because he was tired of waiting for a cab was arrested early Tuesday, police said.
Each time Kevin Lewis Waits called, the emergency dispatcher told the man he had to call a taxi service and that police could not help him, said Waco police officer Steve Anderson.
Police eventually went to the apartment complex and found a cab waiting for Waits, who was also there but did not have the $26 taxi fee, Anderson said. Waits, 25, was trying to get to a house in town, the Waco Tribune-Herald reported in its Tuesday online edition."
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Each time Kevin Lewis Waits called, the emergency dispatcher told the man he had to call a taxi service and that police could not help him, said Waco police officer Steve Anderson.
Police eventually went to the apartment complex and found a cab waiting for Waits, who was also there but did not have the $26 taxi fee, Anderson said. Waits, 25, was trying to get to a house in town, the Waco Tribune-Herald reported in its Tuesday online edition."
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Gator Update (Drug Bust Edition)
'Feisty' alligator seized during Roseville drug bust: "ROSEVILLE -- A 'very feisty' eight-foot alligator was seized during one of two drug raids in Roseville that also yielded 150 marijuana plants, cash and guns, police said today."
What is it with drug dealers and gators? This kind of story turns up all the time.
What is it with drug dealers and gators? This kind of story turns up all the time.
Fracture
Essentially a cat-and-mouse game between Anthony Hopkins and Ryan Gosling, Fracture works pretty well for the most part. I don't believe I've seen Gosling before, but he gives a fine performance, and Hopkins is as good as usualHopkins plays a man who murders his wife, dictates and signs a confession, and defends himself at his trial. He dares Gosling, the prosecuting attorney, to prove his guilt. Hopkins is a game-player, and a good one. It appears that Gosling doesn't have a chance. Rather than say more and spoil your fun, I'll leave it at that.
Judy and I both enjoyed the movie, but we thought it had one major plot flaw. So do others I've heard from. I didn't really care, but it did bother me just a little bit. I also thought a romantic relationship between Gosling and Rosamund Pike was an unnessary subplot, though Pike's very attractive.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Why Does Minnesota Hate Texas?
Texas students' photos altered in yearbooks - USATODAY.com: "MCKINNEY, Texas (AP) — School officials say they are appalled by altered photos — including heads on different bodies — in hundreds of McKinney High School yearbooks delivered this week.
Besides the head and body switching, some necks were stretched, one girl's arm was missing, and another girl's head was placed on what appeared to be a nude body, with the chest blurred.
A spokeswoman for Minnesota-based Lifetouch National School Studios Inc. said the alterations were 'an unfortunate lapse in judgment' by an employee but didn't believe it was malicious."
Besides the head and body switching, some necks were stretched, one girl's arm was missing, and another girl's head was placed on what appeared to be a nude body, with the chest blurred.
A spokeswoman for Minnesota-based Lifetouch National School Studios Inc. said the alterations were 'an unfortunate lapse in judgment' by an employee but didn't believe it was malicious."
Will the Persecution Never End?
Paris Hilton looks at wedding venues with Benji Madden | Celebrity News | Now Magazine: "Paris Hilton has been visiting churches in London – sparking speculation she’s about to wed boyfriend Benji Madden.
The pair have been dating less than 3 months but have already spoken publicly of their desire to settle down.
Paris is thought to be keen on having a ceremony just like the late Princess Diana's - so she’s been looking at historical churches while she's been in town promoting her new perfume CanCan, reports the Daily Star.
But the socialte, 27, isn’t having much luck. St Paul’s Cathedral is out because her father doesn't have an OBE. And St Bride’s church is believed to have turned her down because of her wild reputation."
The pair have been dating less than 3 months but have already spoken publicly of their desire to settle down.
Paris is thought to be keen on having a ceremony just like the late Princess Diana's - so she’s been looking at historical churches while she's been in town promoting her new perfume CanCan, reports the Daily Star.
But the socialte, 27, isn’t having much luck. St Paul’s Cathedral is out because her father doesn't have an OBE. And St Bride’s church is believed to have turned her down because of her wild reputation."
Old Folkies Still Score
The Associated Press: Loni Anderson marries folk singer Bob Flick: "LOS ANGELES (AP) — Loni Anderson was married Saturday to Bob Flick, a founding member of the 1960s folk group The Brothers Four.
The ceremony was attended by friends and family, including son Quinton Reynolds, who walked the 'WKRP in Cincinnati' and 'Nurses' star down the aisle. Reynolds is Anderson's son with Burt Reynolds, whom she divorced in 1993."
The ceremony was attended by friends and family, including son Quinton Reynolds, who walked the 'WKRP in Cincinnati' and 'Nurses' star down the aisle. Reynolds is Anderson's son with Burt Reynolds, whom she divorced in 1993."
Winter's Bone -- Daniel Woodrell
Daniel Woodrell says he writes "country noir." This book is plenty country, but it's not noir by my definition. Of course, we all know that different people have different definitions of that word. To paraphrase an old joke about economists, if you laid all the people with definitions of noir end to end, they'd all point in different directions. But I digress. I'll tell you at the end of this why the book's not noir, but it's a huge spoiler. Consider yourself warned.The story here is about a 16-year-old woman named Ree Dolly. Her father has a court appearance coming up, but no one can find him. That's bad, because he's put up his house and land to cover part of his bond. Ree either has to find him or prove he's dead to save the property. And she needs to save it because she has to have it to take care of her two brothers and her mentally incompetent mother. To Ree and to the Ozark folks in her part of the country, kin is everything. Blood trumps all.
I said the book wasn't noir, but it's sure hardboiled. Ree's odyssey is brutal, but she's tough (and tough-minded) enough to take it. It's all told in the kind of colloquial but still poetic language that works well for this kind of tale. It's not exactly a crime novel. More of a backwoods story, and Woodrell knows the people he's writing about intimately. Great stuff. And the book's short, always a selling point for me. Shorter maybe than a Robert B. Parker novel.
Now for the huge SPOILER explaining why the book's not noir. I'll drop down a few spaces before answering.
SPOILER: Winter's Bone isn't noir because it has a more or less happy ending. Fairy dust is dancing in the air. It's even set up for a sequel with Ree working for a bailbondsman. I can see it now: Stephanie Plum in the Ozarks. Okay, surely not. Whatever happens to Ree, it's going to be a lot different from anything Stephanie Plum might enounter. I, for one, will be interested to see just what it is.
A Gallery of Vietnam Zippos
Vietnam Zippos: "Vietnam War Zippos represent a varied and popular category for collectors for military memorabilia collectors as well as for Zippo fans. There are Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and Coast Guard Vietnam Zippos, as well as Zippos for the RVN, Australian and other services. A subset of Vietnam War Navy Zippos are Riverine or so-called Brown-Water Navy Zippos."
Hat tip to Test Pattern.
Hat tip to Test Pattern.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Department of Irony
The Charleston Gazette - News - ID theft protection firm sued�: "For a time, the ads were everywhere on TV and radio, the ones with the head of a security company brazenly challenging would-be thieves to try to steal his identity.
Richard Todd Davis, CEO of LifeLock Inc., was so confident in his company's ability to protect his identity that he publicly revealed his Social Security number: 457-55-5462.
But according to a new class-action lawsuit filed last week in Jackson County, LifeLock's identity theft protection services were so inept that Davis' personal information was stolen repeatedly.
'While LifeLock has only publicly acknowledged that Davis' identity was compromised on one occasion, there are more than 20 driver's licenses that have been fraudulently obtained [using his personal information],' the suit states."
Richard Todd Davis, CEO of LifeLock Inc., was so confident in his company's ability to protect his identity that he publicly revealed his Social Security number: 457-55-5462.
But according to a new class-action lawsuit filed last week in Jackson County, LifeLock's identity theft protection services were so inept that Davis' personal information was stolen repeatedly.
'While LifeLock has only publicly acknowledged that Davis' identity was compromised on one occasion, there are more than 20 driver's licenses that have been fraudulently obtained [using his personal information],' the suit states."
Gator Update (Sinkhole Edition)
Daisetta sinkhole becomes private pool for 7-foot gator | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle: "DAISETTA _ Workers standing on the rim of a giant sinkhole that formed last week in this Liberty County town gasp and point as the water inside the cavity starts to ripple.
The first thing visible is a long snout. Then the creature begins to undulate through the water, with its muscular tail and back forming two humps, before vanishing beneath the surface as quickly as it appeared.
Sightings of a 7-foot alligator, although rare, have been reported since shortly after May 8 when the ground collapsed a block from the high school and fire station."
The first thing visible is a long snout. Then the creature begins to undulate through the water, with its muscular tail and back forming two humps, before vanishing beneath the surface as quickly as it appeared.
Sightings of a 7-foot alligator, although rare, have been reported since shortly after May 8 when the ground collapsed a block from the high school and fire station."
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
35-year sentence for HIV-positive spitter worries some | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Breaking News for Dallas-Fort Worth | Dallas Morning News: "Prosecutors convinced a Dallas County jury this week that HIV-positive saliva should be considered a deadly weapon.
But the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and countless doctors say no one has ever contracted the virus from spit.
And that's why several AIDS advocacy groups and many individuals contend that the 35-year sentence Willie Campbell received Wednesday for spitting into the mouth and eye of a Dallas police officer was excessive."
But the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and countless doctors say no one has ever contracted the virus from spit.
And that's why several AIDS advocacy groups and many individuals contend that the 35-year sentence Willie Campbell received Wednesday for spitting into the mouth and eye of a Dallas police officer was excessive."
Dead Heat -- Dick Francis and Felix Francis
This book marks the first time Dick Francis has shared author credit on one of his novels, though it's widely known that both his wife and son aided in his research on earlier books.I've been reading Francis's novels for 40 years or so now, and I don't think I've missed a one. I've also never failed to enjoy one, this latest is no exception. Max Moreton is a chef, but he's like all the other Francis heroes: competent, smart, brave, and in plenty of danger. When food poisoning afflicts many of the diners at a catered party Moreton gets the blame, but he knows he's not at fault. He starts looking into things, and soon he's got all kinds of trouble. And, of course, like all Francis heroes, he suffers plenty of physical hardship before arriving at all the answers.
Francis's straighforward style still reads as easily as ever, his characters are just as engaging, and the story moves along as fast as one of the horses that Francis used to ride. I recommend this one.
CSI: Croatia
Woman found after 42 years | The Daily Telegraph: "POLICE broke into a flat to check who lived there 42 years after its owner was reported missing - and found the mummified remains of the woman sitting in front of her TV.
Croatian police say Hedviga Golik, who was born in 1924, had apparently made herself a cuppa and sat down to watch her black-and-white television before she died.
Officers believe that would have been in 1966, when she was last seen by neighbours. They said one day she seemed to have just disappeared and they thought she had moved to the capital Zagreb."
Croatian police say Hedviga Golik, who was born in 1924, had apparently made herself a cuppa and sat down to watch her black-and-white television before she died.
Officers believe that would have been in 1966, when she was last seen by neighbours. They said one day she seemed to have just disappeared and they thought she had moved to the capital Zagreb."
Sheriff Dan Rhodes, Take Note
The Associated Press: Alabama sheriffs feed inmates on $1.75 a day: "BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Back in the day of chain gangs, Alabama passed a law that gave sheriffs $1.75 a day to feed each prisoner in their jails, and the sheriffs got to pocket anything that was left over. More than 80 years later, most Alabama counties still operate under this system, with the same $1.75-a-day allowance, and some sheriffs are actually making money on top of their salaries."
Hey, Kids, Let's Go to the Penis Museum!
Male organ on show at museum ( pics) - New Zealand's source for oddstuff - strange, weird & bizarre news on Stuff.co.nz: "Sigurdur Hjartarson is missing a human penis. But he's not worried: four men have promised to donate theirs to him when they die.
Hjartarson is founder and owner of the Icelandic Phallological Museum, which offers visitors from around the world a close-up look at the long and the short of the male reproductive organ."
Thanks to Doc Quatermass for the link.
Hjartarson is founder and owner of the Icelandic Phallological Museum, which offers visitors from around the world a close-up look at the long and the short of the male reproductive organ."
Thanks to Doc Quatermass for the link.
Iron Man
You already know all you need to know about this one. Robert Downey is having fun. Gwyneth Paltrow is a great redhead. Stuff blows up all over the place. The Iron Man suit is cool. And you should stay past the end credits for a scene that will tell you something about the sequel. Judy and I both had a good time.
School Daze
This is your big chance to see what I looked like on my first day of school. I'm guest blogging over on the Writers Plot, and there's even a photo. Check it out.
Friday, May 16, 2008
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
Fourth jewelry heist in month nets $1.4 million for armed robbers | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle: "A roving band of armed jewelry thieves targeting traveling salesmen struck again Thursday, marking the fourth such violent robbery in the Houston area within the past three weeks, authorities said.
The latest heist happened about 1:30 p.m. on Thursday when three masked men followed the victim into a Waffle House restaurant on Westheimer near Hayes, officials said.
'They pistol-whipped the salesman and took his merchandise,' said Special Agent Shauna Dunlap, with the Houston FBI office."
The latest heist happened about 1:30 p.m. on Thursday when three masked men followed the victim into a Waffle House restaurant on Westheimer near Hayes, officials said.
'They pistol-whipped the salesman and took his merchandise,' said Special Agent Shauna Dunlap, with the Houston FBI office."
Gator Update (Ride 'em, Gatorboy, Edition)
Deputy bitten by alligator - Tampa Bays Local News: "DELTONA, Fla. (AP) — A Volusia County sheriff's deputy is hospitalized in serious but stable condition after being bitten by an 8-foot-long alligator he was trying to subdue in a parking lot.
Authorities say Deputy Keith Baughman responded to a call late Thursday about an alligator roaming around the Deltona apartment complex. Witnesses say the deputy put a towel over the gator's head, jumped onto its back and tried to grab its snout.
One witness says the alligator “went crazy,” throwing off Baughman and biting him on the leg."
Authorities say Deputy Keith Baughman responded to a call late Thursday about an alligator roaming around the Deltona apartment complex. Witnesses say the deputy put a towel over the gator's head, jumped onto its back and tried to grab its snout.
One witness says the alligator “went crazy,” throwing off Baughman and biting him on the leg."
Once Again, . . . Oops.
Did a 13yo buy hookers with dad's credit card? - New Zealand's source for oddstuff - strange, weird & bizarre news on Stuff.co.nz: "A widely published story that a 13-year-old has been convicted of fraud after stealing his dad's credit card and ordering two prostitutes from an escort agency may be a hoax.
The original story said Ralph Hardy used the card to take his friends on a $US30,000 spending spree that ended with them playing Halo on an Xbox with prostitutes in a Texas motel, according to a Money.co.uk report.
However police from the county where the alleged incident was supposedly took place say the story doesn't stack up."
The original story said Ralph Hardy used the card to take his friends on a $US30,000 spending spree that ended with them playing Halo on an Xbox with prostitutes in a Texas motel, according to a Money.co.uk report.
However police from the county where the alleged incident was supposedly took place say the story doesn't stack up."
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
Garland man finds fossil of mosasaur in Duck Creek | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Breaking News for Dallas-Fort Worth | Dallas Morning News: "Charles Amyx had seen fossils in museums, but he didn't buy into the notion that dinosaurs ever existed.
'How can these be 3 million years old?' he asked, citing his belief that the world is much younger.
But the 62-year-old school bus driver has no doubt that the mosasaur bones he unearthed in the river bottom behind his Garland home are something special. Members of the Dallas Paleontological Society agree."
'How can these be 3 million years old?' he asked, citing his belief that the world is much younger.
But the 62-year-old school bus driver has no doubt that the mosasaur bones he unearthed in the river bottom behind his Garland home are something special. Members of the Dallas Paleontological Society agree."
Oakley Hall, R. I. P.
Oakley Hall, 87, Novelist Attuned to the Old West, Is Dead - New York Times: "Oakley Hall, the author of the novels “Warlock” and “The Downhill Racers” and a literary heir to fellow California writers like Wallace Stegner, died Monday at his home in Nevada City, Calif. He was 87 and lived in Nevada City, Squaw Valley and San Francisco."
Thanks to Jeff Meyerson for the link.
Update: Here's a personal remembrance from David Laurence Wilson, whose name you may have seen on a few introductions in Stark House volumes:
"Oakley was a good guy, with a distinctive voice that I will hear
until the end of my own years. I knew him for almost forty years,
more than two-thirds of my life, ever since my first week of college,
when I won a lottery and was admitted into one of his writing
classes. He turned me from a Biological Sciences Major to whatever
it is that I am now. I wasn't part of the UCI Writing Program, since
I was an undergraduate, but I was editor of the newspaper at the
school, and Managing Editor for the literary magazine. In his own
undergrad days Oakley was at San Diego State, in a class with Sid
Fleischman and Bob Wade and Bill Miller, who wrote under the name
"Wade Miller". San Diego had never had it's own Private Eye
character but "Wade Miller" gave it one, followed by Sid Fleischman
and then Oakley, with his first effort, Murder City. Like a lot of
writers, Oakley was particularly known for one novel, Warlock, but he
had a lot more affection for that effort that many other novelists so
afflicted. He'll be missed by a lot of writers whose horizons were
expanded by this fine teacher."
David Laurence Wilson
Thanks to Jeff Meyerson for the link.
Update: Here's a personal remembrance from David Laurence Wilson, whose name you may have seen on a few introductions in Stark House volumes:
"Oakley was a good guy, with a distinctive voice that I will hear
until the end of my own years. I knew him for almost forty years,
more than two-thirds of my life, ever since my first week of college,
when I won a lottery and was admitted into one of his writing
classes. He turned me from a Biological Sciences Major to whatever
it is that I am now. I wasn't part of the UCI Writing Program, since
I was an undergraduate, but I was editor of the newspaper at the
school, and Managing Editor for the literary magazine. In his own
undergrad days Oakley was at San Diego State, in a class with Sid
Fleischman and Bob Wade and Bill Miller, who wrote under the name
"Wade Miller". San Diego had never had it's own Private Eye
character but "Wade Miller" gave it one, followed by Sid Fleischman
and then Oakley, with his first effort, Murder City. Like a lot of
writers, Oakley was particularly known for one novel, Warlock, but he
had a lot more affection for that effort that many other novelists so
afflicted. He'll be missed by a lot of writers whose horizons were
expanded by this fine teacher."
David Laurence Wilson
The Night Remembers -- Ed Gorman
Here's a forgotten book that's not entirely forgotten. It's back in print from Ramble House. Jack Walsh is a former cop who now manages an apartment house and does a little sleuthing. He's in his 60s and is dating a younger woman who has some serious problems of her own. The wife of his former partner keeps showing up at his office, trying to prove she can be a part of his life, maybe even become his partner in the agency. But those are the least of his problems. A prospective client shows up, Mrs. Pennyfeather, the wife of a man Walsh sent to prison when he was a cop. She wants him to prove that her husband, who's just been released, was innocent to begin with. Walsh refuses, but he finds himself drawn into a new case when a woman is murdered in the Pennyfeathers' back yard. What he uncovers is about as dark as it gets.
The Night Remembers was originally published in 1991, and it proves that Ed Gorman has been very good for a long time. But then you knew that. He gives us real people with real problems, trapped by their pasts and trying to deal with the present as best they can. Pick this one up from Ramble House if you haven't read it already. But don't read it when you're depressed.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
Kids' novelist Rick Riordan on the brink of something big | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle: "In April, children's book publisher Scholastic, the company that brought Harry Potter to America, flew San Antonio author Rick Riordan to Bologna, Italy. There, Riordan's job was to help explain The 39 Clues — a forthcoming multiplatform series for children incorporating books, collectible cards, video games and $100,000 in prize money — to international publishing executives.
The 39 Clues is important to Scholastic since it represents the publisher's first serious attempt to replicate Harry Potter sales. Riordan (with a long 'i,' like 'fire') was hired to write The Maze of Bones, the first in the 10-book series, and to create the overall storyline."
The 39 Clues is important to Scholastic since it represents the publisher's first serious attempt to replicate Harry Potter sales. Riordan (with a long 'i,' like 'fire') was hired to write The Maze of Bones, the first in the 10-book series, and to create the overall storyline."
Happy Birthday, Katherine Anne Porter
Today is the birthday of a famous Texas-born writer, Katherine Anne Porter. I've blogged about my meeting with her before. (See here, here, here, and here.) In at least one of those posts, I told the story of how Charlotte Laughlin took a photo of Miss Porter's coffin, which she kept in a closet in her apartment. I don't recall that I've published that photo, however, so here it is.
Gator Update (Immortality Edition)
Metro - Alligator immortalized: "The most famous resident of Okefenokee Swamp Park in Waycross, Ga. — an alligator that attracted the stares of tourists for decades — will soon be immortalized nearly a year after his death.
The skeleton of Oscar is being assembled and will be put on display like a museum dinosaur. The four-metre, 450-kilogram alligator had roamed the swamp from the time the park opened in 1946."
The skeleton of Oscar is being assembled and will be put on display like a museum dinosaur. The four-metre, 450-kilogram alligator had roamed the swamp from the time the park opened in 1946."
Robert McGinnis Comes to DVD
The Robert McGinnis DVD won't be available until July, but you can pre-order it here. You can also see the trailer, which is great.
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
If I taught junior high, I might have to be drunk to go to work, too. Thanks to Doc Quatermass for the link.
"RICHARDSON, Texas (AP) -- A substitute teacher suspected of being drunk in a suburban Dallas middle school class was too intoxicated to complete a sobriety test and was arrested, authorities said.
Thomas Brownlee, 56, was in a classroom Tuesday with students and another staff member for about 20 minutes, Richardson school district spokesman Tim Clark said. Another teacher suspected Brownlee was drunk and told a police officer at Parkhill Junior High."
"RICHARDSON, Texas (AP) -- A substitute teacher suspected of being drunk in a suburban Dallas middle school class was too intoxicated to complete a sobriety test and was arrested, authorities said.
Thomas Brownlee, 56, was in a classroom Tuesday with students and another staff member for about 20 minutes, Richardson school district spokesman Tim Clark said. Another teacher suspected Brownlee was drunk and told a police officer at Parkhill Junior High."
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
Thanks to Art Scott for the link.
Ants swarm over Houston area, fouling electronics: "In what sounds like a really low-budget horror film, voracious swarming ants that apparently arrived in Texas aboard a cargo ship are invading homes and yards across the Houston area, shorting out electrical boxes and messing up computers.
The hairy, reddish-brown creatures are known as 'crazy rasberry ants' — crazy, because they wander erratically instead of marching in regimented lines, and 'rasberry' after Tom Rasberry, an exterminator who did battle against them early on.
'They're itty-bitty things about the size of fleas, and they're just running everywhere,' said Patsy Morphew of Pearland, who is constantly sweeping them off her patio and scooping them out of her pool by the cupful. 'There's just thousands and thousands of them. If you've seen a car racing, that's how they are. They're going fast, fast, fast. They're crazy.'"
Ants swarm over Houston area, fouling electronics: "In what sounds like a really low-budget horror film, voracious swarming ants that apparently arrived in Texas aboard a cargo ship are invading homes and yards across the Houston area, shorting out electrical boxes and messing up computers.
The hairy, reddish-brown creatures are known as 'crazy rasberry ants' — crazy, because they wander erratically instead of marching in regimented lines, and 'rasberry' after Tom Rasberry, an exterminator who did battle against them early on.
'They're itty-bitty things about the size of fleas, and they're just running everywhere,' said Patsy Morphew of Pearland, who is constantly sweeping them off her patio and scooping them out of her pool by the cupful. 'There's just thousands and thousands of them. If you've seen a car racing, that's how they are. They're going fast, fast, fast. They're crazy.'"
At First I Thought They'd Hurtled "Thriller" into Deep Space
The Raw Story | Jacksons Thriller among cultural treasures: "The best-selling pop album on planet Earth and a disc sent hurtling into deep space are among recordings the Library of Congress will preserve for their cultural significance.
Twenty-five selections were added to the National Recording Registry on Wednesday, part of the library's attempt to save America's aural history by archiving recordings deemed 'culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.'
The inductees range from Michael Jackson's 1982 all-time-bestseller 'Thriller' and jazz artist Herbie Hancock's 1973 fusion smash 'Headhunters' to the 1977 record of Earth sounds that flew aboard the spacecraft Voyager in the event alien life forms encountered the craft. Other recordings added to the registry include works by Roy Orbison, Charlie Parker, Duke Ellington, Kitty Wells and Smokey Robinson and the Miracles."
Update: Todd Mason provides the registry link in a comment, but it's worth including here.
Twenty-five selections were added to the National Recording Registry on Wednesday, part of the library's attempt to save America's aural history by archiving recordings deemed 'culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.'
The inductees range from Michael Jackson's 1982 all-time-bestseller 'Thriller' and jazz artist Herbie Hancock's 1973 fusion smash 'Headhunters' to the 1977 record of Earth sounds that flew aboard the spacecraft Voyager in the event alien life forms encountered the craft. Other recordings added to the registry include works by Roy Orbison, Charlie Parker, Duke Ellington, Kitty Wells and Smokey Robinson and the Miracles."
Update: Todd Mason provides the registry link in a comment, but it's worth including here.
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
Disney to set up advertising research center in Austin | Statesman Business Blog: "The Walt Disney Co., which owns ABC and ESPN, plans to set up a research center in Austin to figure out why people choose certain television shows, and to test their reaction to practices such as the integration of products into programs and how they watch programs on cell phones."
We're from the Government, and . . .
. . . we're here to mellow you out.
Caught Without Care | Some Detainees Are Drugged For Deportation (washingtonpost.com): "The U.S. government has injected hundreds of foreigners it has deported with dangerous psychotropic drugs against their will to keep them sedated during the trip back to their home country, according to medical records, internal documents and interviews with people who have been drugged."
Caught Without Care | Some Detainees Are Drugged For Deportation (washingtonpost.com): "The U.S. government has injected hundreds of foreigners it has deported with dangerous psychotropic drugs against their will to keep them sedated during the trip back to their home country, according to medical records, internal documents and interviews with people who have been drugged."
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
Thanks to James Reasoner for the link.
Man uses gun for backscratcher, shoots himself | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Latest News: "A Fort Worth man trying to scratch an itch on his back used a revolver and accidentally shot himself.
Jorge Espinal, 44, was drinking beer and playing poker around 3 a.m. Sunday in his home in the 3500 block of Montague Street, when he got up from the table and walked into another room, said Fort Worth police Lt. Kenneth Dean.
“He told officers he had an itch on his back and grabbed the first thing he could get a hold of, which was a revolver,” Lt. Dean said. “The gun went off.'"
Man uses gun for backscratcher, shoots himself | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Latest News: "A Fort Worth man trying to scratch an itch on his back used a revolver and accidentally shot himself.
Jorge Espinal, 44, was drinking beer and playing poker around 3 a.m. Sunday in his home in the 3500 block of Montague Street, when he got up from the table and walked into another room, said Fort Worth police Lt. Kenneth Dean.
“He told officers he had an itch on his back and grabbed the first thing he could get a hold of, which was a revolver,” Lt. Dean said. “The gun went off.'"
Python Update
Great photo at the link, for which thanks go out to Jeff Meyerson.
FOXNews.com - Giant Pythons Could Spread Quickly Across South - Science News | Science & Technology | Technology News: "As if killer bees and kudzu weren't enough, the southern United States may soon have another invasive species to contend with — giant Burmese pythons capable of swallowing deer and alligators whole.
Approximately 30,000 of the big snakes, which can reach 30 feet and 200 pounds, already live wild in Florida's Everglades, thanks to thick-headed pet owners who've released them into the swamps when they've grown too large to keep at home."
FOXNews.com - Giant Pythons Could Spread Quickly Across South - Science News | Science & Technology | Technology News: "As if killer bees and kudzu weren't enough, the southern United States may soon have another invasive species to contend with — giant Burmese pythons capable of swallowing deer and alligators whole.
Approximately 30,000 of the big snakes, which can reach 30 feet and 200 pounds, already live wild in Florida's Everglades, thanks to thick-headed pet owners who've released them into the swamps when they've grown too large to keep at home."
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Got 10 Bucks You Don't Need?
SomethingStore.com: Surprise Yourself at The Something Store: "SomethingStore is a fun new website that operates simply: We will send you something, an item selected randomly among many things from our inventory, for $10 (free shipping) and you will find out what your something is when you receive it."
I Need These Stamps
Dracula sinks his teeth into Royal Mail history - Times Online: "HE may appear in the guise of the undead but Christopher Lee will make history next month by being among the first living non-royals to be portrayed on a British stamp.
The 85-year-old actor will appear as Dracula on a set of commemorative stamps next month marking the 50th anniversary of the Hammer horror and Carry On films."
Tiny stamp photos at link, for which we thank Doc Quatermass.
The 85-year-old actor will appear as Dracula on a set of commemorative stamps next month marking the 50th anniversary of the Hammer horror and Carry On films."
Tiny stamp photos at link, for which we thank Doc Quatermass.
INDIANA JONES MR POTATO HEAD TATERS OF THE LOST ARK
Fedora tip to Doc Quatermass.
INDIANA JONES MR POTATO HEAD TATERS OF THE LOST ARK: "Unearth this silly spud toy from its packaging and use your imagination to create all sorts of wacky looks fashioned after the famous action hero. Complete with bullwhip and gold-colored idol in hand, this silly character can sport his jacket and fedora."
INDIANA JONES MR POTATO HEAD TATERS OF THE LOST ARK: "Unearth this silly spud toy from its packaging and use your imagination to create all sorts of wacky looks fashioned after the famous action hero. Complete with bullwhip and gold-colored idol in hand, this silly character can sport his jacket and fedora."
Monday, May 12, 2008
No Nudes, but . . .
. . . Playboy is auditioning on YouTube. If you want to be the 55th anniversary Playmate, now's your chance. Only 31 entries so far, and you can find a link to them here.
7 Movie Comebacks that Didn't Work Out
Cinematical Seven: Comebacks That Didn't Take - Cinematical: "A good comeback is like a great third act in American lives; it's the triumphant return, the end of the story. James Cagney retired in 1961, then made a triumphant comeback in 1981 with Ragtime. But a good movie never deals with the aftermath of the comeback. Just as often as not, the comeback leads to nothing. Cagney died a few years after the hubbub. Though we all love a good comeback, the following is a list of comebacks that weren't the end of the story, and didn't provide the inspiring coda that they could have."
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
Woman finds mouse in her popcorn | Latest News | WFAA.com: "DALLAS -- A North Texas woman says she was repulsed by what she found at the bottom of a bag of movie popcorn. A live mouse. She said the movie theatre has been slow to fix the situation."
Thanks to Jeff Meyerson for the alert.
Thanks to Jeff Meyerson for the alert.
Gator Update (Bus Stop Edition)
Deputies Find Alligator Waiting At Bus Stop On Universal Drive - News Story - WFTV Orlando: "ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. -- An unusual passenger was waiting at a bus stop in Orange County.
Deputies said a 6-foot alligator was waiting at the bus stop near the Residence Inn on Universal Drive just south of Sand Lake Road. Universal Drive was temporarily shut down.
The gator was captured and the Fish and Game Commission will decide what to do with it."
Deputies said a 6-foot alligator was waiting at the bus stop near the Residence Inn on Universal Drive just south of Sand Lake Road. Universal Drive was temporarily shut down.
The gator was captured and the Fish and Game Commission will decide what to do with it."
The Mystery of the Alvin Stradivarius
I live in the 1600 block of Hill Street, and I pass this restaurant nearly every day. It's a tiny place, and if you're wondering what a Straivarius was doing there (or in Alvin, Texas, for that matter), so am I.
The Facts: "ALVIN — Police are investigating the burglary of a Mexican food restaurant during which a $25,000 Stradivarius violin was taken from its case.
Someone broke out the bottom window pane of the front door to enter the restaurant in the 700 block of Hill Street early Sunday, Alvin police reports state. Blue tape was placed over the window before it was broken, the reports state.
An employee came in that morning to find the window broken and later discovered the 1733 Stradivarius violin missing, Alvin Police Sgt. Jaime Crabtree said.
“It was in some kind of case in the restaurant,” he said."
The Facts: "ALVIN — Police are investigating the burglary of a Mexican food restaurant during which a $25,000 Stradivarius violin was taken from its case.
Someone broke out the bottom window pane of the front door to enter the restaurant in the 700 block of Hill Street early Sunday, Alvin police reports state. Blue tape was placed over the window before it was broken, the reports state.
An employee came in that morning to find the window broken and later discovered the 1733 Stradivarius violin missing, Alvin Police Sgt. Jaime Crabtree said.
“It was in some kind of case in the restaurant,” he said."
They're Taking away our Freedom, Bit by Bit
Man Ticketed For Wearing Speedo On Beach - Orlando News Story - WKMG Orlando: "Bob Hezzelwood said he has been visiting Bonita Beach for years and no one has bothered or complained about his bathing suit.
However, recently, a Lee County sheriff's deputy gave Hezzelwood a ticket for trespass and told him not to return to the beach.
A judge tossed out the case.
However, Hezzelwood said he plans to sue the sheriff's department, saying his civil rights were violated."
However, recently, a Lee County sheriff's deputy gave Hezzelwood a ticket for trespass and told him not to return to the beach.
A judge tossed out the case.
However, Hezzelwood said he plans to sue the sheriff's department, saying his civil rights were violated."
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Help! I've Been Hijacked!
By Anthony Neil Smith, a certified psychobilly. Or something. Worst mullet I've ever seen. Wait, that's not a mullet. The guy has a squirrel on his head. Or possibly a ferret. Okay, it's a squirrel. He says he's going to eat it later. He says, "What's your favorite part of a squirrel?" This is not going to end well. Which reminds me of Yellow Medicine, a fine book that I've read. You should, too.
Last stop: Stephen Blackmoore's L.A. Noir Blog
Sorry for the lapse. We stopped along the way to do some mud diving. But now we've finally arrived at the penultimate stop on our long, strange trip. But first, we must compete against Bill Crider in the Feats of Strength.
Yes, he's a legend. He spawned his own contest (we all entered out of fear of what he'd do if we didn't). Telling tales of Bill, like, "He can eat you for breakfast, but he doesn't want to get up that early." "He once shoved an entire human being into a toaster just to prove a point, but then he forgot that point, and the toaster guy forgave him anyway." It all comes down to this: Crider is as big as Texas.
We all limp and groan our way back to the Hummer-sine having been utterly embarrassed by the man. He's barely broken a sweat. Then he looks at his watch, laughs louder than a Van Halen concert, and says, "It took you long enough to get here. I missed the whole goddamned trip." All we can do is meekly apologize and say, "Surely a man of your great stature would have been offended by the likes of--"
"Bullshit!" His shout echoes like that of a bear. "And you know it, too. So let's do the whole thing over again." And so we do. We drive and drive and drive (and drink) and drive some more. We drive and party and self-destruct so hard that Bill wrests even Ray Banks into a submissive sleep. But it was worth it.
Bill's Dan Rhodes series (the latest being Of All Sad Words) is my kinda fun. Crazy people down South thinking they're just fine while doing ridiculous things. Kind of like My Name is Earl but with more people going to jail. Crider slides in the humor so that it's already slapped you a few times before you realize it. Mighty fine. And then he went and got himself an Edgar nomination for the story "Cranked" from the Damn Near Dead anthology, which is one of the finest collections I've seen in years. And, glory of glories, the man's a college English teacher, like me. He's even written about English teachers who solves crimes (Carl Burns and Sally Good). The first mystery they should've tackled is "Who's teaching (or, more like it, not teaching) our kids grammar these days?" But no. They just solve murders and other mundane things.
No, wait, Bill, I take it back! No, please! I need my legs to walk!
I meant murders and other fantastically imaginative things.
Better?
After escaping from the law through New Mexico (we lost them when Bill did donuts in the desert and stirred up a dust storm of epic proportions), Bill hands the wheel over and says, "She's all yours." And I know what he means. We've only got one more day until Psychobilly Monday, that blessed day when I hope a lot of people will go to one of those Barnes and Noble stores (or online) and order up a copy of Yellow Medicine. I mean, you don't become a legend overnight. It usually takes two or three nights. And in the meantime, you do little baby-step promotion sort of things like a egomaniacal blog road trip, or go off on signing tours with your fingers crossed. But you meet great people (like Bill and all our other road-trippers) along the way, find out that people still have a passion for books, and feel better about that year you spent crafting your little labor of love into a bunch of pages that tell that story you just had to tell.
And our next destination, our final stop, is The House that made it possible to get that story into the hands of you, our generous readers. So when I say "The Future is Bleak", it's not that I'm some Old Testament prophet. It's actually a compliment.
Driving time: Twice as long
Fanzines Beget Blogs
That's Roger Ebert's theory, at any rate. He says so on his blog. Link via Test Pattern.
Roger Ebert's Journal: Fanzines beget blogs: "Fanzines were mimeographed magazines that were circulated by mail among science fiction fans in the days before the internet. They still are, for all I know, although now they're generated by computer printers. I first learned about them in a 1950s issue of Amazing Stories and eagerly sent away 10 or 20 cents to Buck and Juanita Coulson in Indiana, whose Yandro was one of the best and longest-running of them all. Overnight, I was a fan, although not yet a BNF (big name fan). It was a thrill for me to have a LOC (letter of comment) published on such issues as the demise of BEMs (bug-eyed monsters), and soon I was publishing my own fanzine, named Stymie."
Roger Ebert's Journal: Fanzines beget blogs: "Fanzines were mimeographed magazines that were circulated by mail among science fiction fans in the days before the internet. They still are, for all I know, although now they're generated by computer printers. I first learned about them in a 1950s issue of Amazing Stories and eagerly sent away 10 or 20 cents to Buck and Juanita Coulson in Indiana, whose Yandro was one of the best and longest-running of them all. Overnight, I was a fan, although not yet a BNF (big name fan). It was a thrill for me to have a LOC (letter of comment) published on such issues as the demise of BEMs (bug-eyed monsters), and soon I was publishing my own fanzine, named Stymie."
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
cbs11tv.com - Fort Worth Donut Shop Robber Shot & Killed: "A Fort Worth businesswoman was almost robbed at her shop, but a neighbor comes to her rescue. In the end, the man suspected of the crime is shot and killed.
Chong Im Randle, who friends call Angel, described her conversation with the would-be robber. 'I say you not to shoot. Okay, you kill me I'm going to heaven. You go to jail.'
By Friday afternoon Angel appeared calm and collected as she detailed the morning's activity. 'He followed me, then grabbed me. I hit him with my elbow.'
Randal says 45-year-old Richard Lane wore a mask when he broke into Happy Donuts around 1:30 a.m., with what looked like a rifle. He stole money from the cash drawer, beat Randal up and tried to steal her car.
'I grabbed my telephone,' Randal explained. 'He said, don't call police. I say I gotta do something.'
Meanwhile her neighbor, 54-year-old Stanley Livingston, heard the commotion next door, grabbed his shotgun and ran over to help. That's when Lane allegedly pointed his gun at Livingston, who fired one shot killing the robber.
Fort Worth defense attorney Trey Loftin told CBS 11 News, 'We're a gun toting state. We have a lot of John Wayne in our blood. We're gonna shoot first and ask questions later.' Loftin says Livingston will most likely not be charged."
Chong Im Randle, who friends call Angel, described her conversation with the would-be robber. 'I say you not to shoot. Okay, you kill me I'm going to heaven. You go to jail.'
By Friday afternoon Angel appeared calm and collected as she detailed the morning's activity. 'He followed me, then grabbed me. I hit him with my elbow.'
Randal says 45-year-old Richard Lane wore a mask when he broke into Happy Donuts around 1:30 a.m., with what looked like a rifle. He stole money from the cash drawer, beat Randal up and tried to steal her car.
'I grabbed my telephone,' Randal explained. 'He said, don't call police. I say I gotta do something.'
Meanwhile her neighbor, 54-year-old Stanley Livingston, heard the commotion next door, grabbed his shotgun and ran over to help. That's when Lane allegedly pointed his gun at Livingston, who fired one shot killing the robber.
Fort Worth defense attorney Trey Loftin told CBS 11 News, 'We're a gun toting state. We have a lot of John Wayne in our blood. We're gonna shoot first and ask questions later.' Loftin says Livingston will most likely not be charged."
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
Some DISD students not ready for college | Latest News | WFAA.com: "75 percent of the seniors headed to Dallas community colleges, can't read above an 8th grade level, and others can't add or subtract."
Rocket Stories
Looking at a copy of the first issue of Rocket Stories (1953) the other day, I noticed that the lead "complete novel" was by H. A. deRosso. Having liked a couple of deRosso's noirish westerns (including this one), I thought I'd give "The Quest of Quaa" a try. What a mistake. It's terrible.The opening is the kind of thing I'm a sucker for. Cardwell is a prisoner in a Venusian jail, but he has a chance to earn his freedom. After that, it's all downhill, from the entertaining to the ridiculous. I'm sure I'd have fallen for about nine-tenths of it when I was a kid, but I think that even then I'd have found the fairy-dusted ending ridiculous. Rocket Stories didn't last long, and if this story's any example of its general quality, I can see why. I'm tempted to read a couple of the others and see. John Jakes and Milton Lesser are usually pretty reliable entertainers. But I'm almost afraid to give them a look.
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
Thanks to Lauren Bettinger for the link.
13 Year Old Steals Dad's Credit Card to Buy Hookers: "A 13 year old from Texas who stole his Dad's credit card and ordered two hookers from an escort agency, has today been convicted of fraud and given a three year community order.
Ralph Hardy, a 13 year old from Newark, Texas confessed to ordering an extra credit card from his father's existing credit card company, and took his friends on a $30,000 spending spree, culminating in playing 'Halo' on an Xbox with a couple of hookers in a Texas motel."
13 Year Old Steals Dad's Credit Card to Buy Hookers: "A 13 year old from Texas who stole his Dad's credit card and ordered two hookers from an escort agency, has today been convicted of fraud and given a three year community order.
Ralph Hardy, a 13 year old from Newark, Texas confessed to ordering an extra credit card from his father's existing credit card company, and took his friends on a $30,000 spending spree, culminating in playing 'Halo' on an Xbox with a couple of hookers in a Texas motel."
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