W2 - Wendy to the Second Power

Lots of rain, no-show from the handyman working on my house (which was why I didn't make commitments to travel), high tension at work to shake off, no invites to a friend's wedding, and then a long & unsuccessful attempt to add a CMS or a new Internet forum software to my www.slugtribe.org writers' group site*. It made for one of the yuckiest 3-day weekends in recent memory. All the more ironic for the fabulous Burning Man and WorldCon in Japan events that had people I knew attending.

I guess there are ups & downs in all of life, huh?

But I did have a fabulous dream study meeting Friday night, and took my family for what turned out to be a surprisingly tasty and affordable meal at Willie Nelson's restaurant -- Texas Roadhouse.

Then, because my karma was good from that event, I maundered over to the Austin Antique Mall on Sunday and found a huge drop-leaf table like I've been seeking for many years. It was pine, circa 1910. I wanted oak, but as I pondered it, the owner came by and offered me 30% off. Woo hoo! Now I have a sturdy table that folds to 6 feet long and 29 inches wide, but opens up to make an oval table big enough for 8 people. Leaves me with lots of open space in my den like I enjoy...


*Drupal versus Mambo for an open source content management system? Simple Machines Forum versus phpBBS for a forum software? Of course a CMS will give me a forum I can set up. But dang, they really expect you to know how to give PHP commands, and I can only sorta write a script.

Such a beautiful and well-told movie, STARDUST is one of my favorite films so far in 2007. It's based (somewhat loosely) on a series of comics/graphic novels written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by a friend of a friend, Charles Vess. Well, after the World Fantasy Con last November, I hung out with Charles and his wife Karen a lot, so I consider them friends in the first degree now.

Here's this funny photo I found online about the making of the movie. The director sits in the center, with Neil in his black leather jacket showing him some sort of art. I'm pretty sure that's Neil's younger daughter Maddy with the ponytail. The orange-haired woman is the screenwriter, Jane Goldman, whom Neil has professed deep respect for. (She changed his story and he still loved the experience.)

Then that small man popped up at the back with the surprised look on his face? That's Charles Vess. Can't see him? Oh okay. I'll point him out.

( Photo and art behind the cut... )