The Moon and Babylonia

I'm all sleepy and weird-feeling come midnight lately; I think the sleep patterns I developed during Meg's visit have taken over. I wake up at 6:30 a.m. and can't go back to sleep; I got to work half an hour early today, just because I was up (of course, I left half an hour early too, so it works out well enough). So my brain hasn't been working well during my normal update-time, and that holds true tonight as well. Fortunately, I foresaw this difficulty, and wrote down a few things I wanted to mention. I can't promise elegant prose, but here's something approaching content:

New favorite song: "3rd Planet" by Modest Mouse-- honestly, this The Moon and Antarctica disc is the best piece of music I've bought in ages. I've been singing it all day-- "The universe is shaped exactly like the earth/ if you go straight long enough you end up where you were," and "Reminding you we used to be three and not just two/ And that's how the world began/ and that's how the world will end." I went to Pergolesi tonight (as is my wont), and that song was playing. Awesome. I love life.

My dear friend and ex-girlfriend Blah took a workshop with Orson Scott Card-- the same kind of workshop I did with him back in '96. She had a wonderful time and learned a lot; seems like she had a very positive experience. At least, that's what I gather from the e-mail and answering machine messages. We've been unable to connect-- hardcore phone-tag going on. She also told me she's engaged. I have to admit, that's messing with my head. This is Blah. She's not supposed to get engaged; she's the fairy princess. She's supposed to wander the earth, breaking hearts and spreading wonder. He sounds like a cool guy, though, and honestly better suited for her than I ever was-- he's a Ren Faire type. Still, it's a very hard concept for me to wrap my head around. First Amily gets engaged, and then D., and now Blah-- what's up with that? At least Scott's a confirmed bachelor, and I'm not getting married anytime soon. I'm obviously getting old, though.

Oh, cool news-- I sold a story! "The Man Who Loved the Moon," to Kinships, a print semi-prozine. It's an honest-to-goodness fairy tale, with a Witch, a Magician, a King, a Princess, and a Lady. It doesn't end with "Happily ever after," though-- I mean, I am Tim Pratt; there are some things I just Don't Do. I think it's a good story, if very different (at least superficially) from my usual work. I wrote it... gosh, in the summer of '98. It's reassuring to me that these old stories are selling-- my newer stories, which are better, will probably sell, too. Eventually. I also got the nicer of the two forms from Asimov's for a novella... which will go to Strange Horizons after they reply to my last submission. I'm so happy they upped their word limit. Another market for my longish tales!

After I make a sale, I give money to street musicians. I didn't plan for that to turn into a ritual, but it has. I just feel all happy and generous when I come out of the post office with an acceptance in hand, and when I pass whatever buskers happen to be on the street down that way, I empty my pockets of change.

I talked to D. for a bit tonight. He was working, but he had a spare half hour and he was near my house, so I scooted over to Logos and hung out with him, ate Starburst and talked about the plague of marriages (though he doesn't see it as a plague, since he's one of the Betrothed himself). I never thought matrimony was contagious...

I bought King's new novel, Dreamcatcher. I've heard nothing at all about it, but I imagine it'll be readable. Should be fun, and I can give it to Dad when I finish it, as a little gift. He recently signed over the title of the car to me (it's been in his name all this time), which was pretty nice of him, so I'd like to give him something.

I also finished Tam Lin at last-- very good, though it's odd that she squeezed all the plot into the last forty or so pages. A very strangely structured book, but charming enough that I'm mostly unbothered by that.

I hung out with Lynne and Scott and Sasha (the cool cosmologist) at the coffee shop tonight. Actually took part in most of the conversation (usually they start talking about red-shifted galaxies and stuff, and I sorta tune out), movies and 80's music. Nice talk, though it pretty well bulldozed any chance I had at productivity. I'd have probably just read Dreamcatcher anyway, though. I know myself.

That's enough rambliing for tonight. There's lots of stuff I want to write about, here, and I'll get to it all in time. I'm definitely coming out of my sad pit of a mood-- very up-and-bouncy today, even before receiving my acceptance, which made me even more boisterous. So, tra la, hurray, and good night, my darlings.