And other bee parts in the latest flower pr0n.

Not the best of my pictures I admit, but I still like it.

Dante’s Nine Circles of Hell and those who reside there.

And if there wasn’t already enough to be enraged about, “VA funding is short $1 billion this year.”

That’s right, this country is willing to “support the troops“, but only in so much as it means putting a sticker on the back of the SUV, and not, you know, actually giving them pay raises or increased combat pay or keeping open VA hospitals.

A video about intestinal gas.

How f@ck!ng stupid does he think we are?

After September the 11th, I made a commitment to the American people. This nation will not wait to be attacked again. We will defend our freedom. We will take the fight to the enemy. Iraq is the latest battlefield in this war.

Just to reiterate:
Iraq was NOT involved in the September 11th plots.
Iraq was NOT a terrorist haven until the US invaded.

Illusion (1992) Paula Volsky

Illusion is a good book, however I can’t say I really like it.

The characters are good–very good. Despite starting out as a rich snob, I quite liked Eliste. Her snobbery was quite obviously a product of her upbringing, and beneath it she showed herself to be a decent human being. The same can also be said for her grandmother, and several other characters.

Read More about Illusion

I was surprised by the Bookslut interview with Lois McMaster Bujold:

For quite a few years now I’ve been trying to figure out why speculative fiction still is one of the industry’s most gendered genres. Romance may still take the number one spot, in terms of which sex is most likely to be seen buying and writing the books, but spec fiction runs a close second. While it may be a stereotype, it still contains a nugget of truth: males tend to be overrepresented when it comes to science fiction and fantasy.

I readily admit that I don’t read Science Fiction–it’s just not my thing. But I read a lot of Fantasy, and I’ve never had a hard time finding good fantasy written by women.

I mean, scrolling through the past six months of posts in my book blog I find plenty of women:
Nina Kiriki Hoffman
Charlaine Harris
Ellen Kushner
Jennifer Roberson
Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling
Pat O’Shea
Jo Walton
Robin Hobb
Lynn Abbey
Diana L. Paxson

And those are just from the books I’ve written since the beginning of the year. Looking through my list of Fantasy authors there are even more women. I fact, I sometimes wonder if women are over-represented on my bookshelves. (Not that it bothers me, but it might be unfair to Michael.)

Now I would not necessarily be surprised to find women underrepresented in Science Fiction, after all women have been traditionally underrepresented in the hard sciences. But I can think of two authors off the top of my head: Marion Zimmer Bradley and C.J. Cherryh.

And as more women study and are involved in the sciences, I would bet that the number of women writing science fiction would also increase.

Next time I go to the book store, I’ll take a harder look at the shelves, to check out the imbalance for myself.

I think that part of the reason I didn’t like Revenge of the Sith that much, is because they failed to suspend my disbelief right from the first scenes.

Good to know I was justified in my irritation.

Bad Astronomy and Star Wars

I must be particularly slow and dense, because I can’t comprehend how Justice Bryer could vote the way he did on two cases that went in opposite directions.

Tell me that this:

No exact formula can dictate a resolution in fact-intensive cases such as this,” he read. “… The determinative factor here, however, is that 40 years passed in which the monument’s presence, legally speaking, went unchallenged.

doesn’t translate as “We’ve done it this way for a long time, therefore it must be okay.”

I’ve somehow managed to forget to read the Arcata Eye Police Reports for awhile.

Monday, June 6 7:49 p.m. When a BB impacted a trailer on Oasis Street, police quickly found a neighbor busily “assassinating slugs” on his porch. The mulleted mollusk murderer agreed to cease demising the slimies.

# Wednesday, May 25 10:53 a.m. A dog was reported overheating in a vehicle parked on H Street, but police found the windows rolled partway down and the pooch well within comfortable thermal parameters.

Tuesday, May 17 12:38 a.m. A 17th Street resident agreed with an officer that this would be a good time to stop hammering.

Yay!

ADDENDUM the First:
However, I could have done without 20 18 stinking minutes of commercials and previews. For putting up with that they should be paying ME.

ADDENDUM the Second:
Eighteen. Eighteen minutes of previews. Star Wars had twenty.

Latest flower pr0n!

Coreopsis, Purple Coneflower, Daisies, and much more!

It’s hot (current Morgantown temperature, 88 F) so everything feels sweaty and droopy. It’s one of those days when I’d rather sit inside and write about my flowers than go outside and tend them. It’ll be a little better later in the day, but still not condusive to sitting on the porch looking at the plants.

And for what it’s worth, currently Tom and I are the top two google hits for Flower Pr0n.

Of our feline residents, Kat is the smarter.

Unfortunately, he apparently wasn’t smart enough to tell the difference between a cast iron doorstop and a real cat. It took him about five minutes to get close, while in the meantime, any noise would cause him to levitate straight up and then back, as if he was about to be attacked by the ferocious creature.
(more…)

The Last Unicorn (1968) by Peter S. Beagle

Although I’ve read other books by Peter S. Beagle, I had not read The Last Unicorn before. It’s mentioned as a classic, and I kept bering disbelief that I had never read it. So I finally picked up a copy and read the book.

Read More about The Last Unicorn