You are currently browsing the category archive for the ‘Travel’ category.
We went on a tour of Boulevard Brewery today yet sadly we failed to take pictures. Trinity had her new iPod Touch but forgot about it until we were enjoying the samples. I’ll blog on that visit tomorrow in any case.
In the meantime, I cleaned up my office area. Hopefully I can get some use out of it in the coming weeks. Normally any given desk I am assigned becomes a sort of catch all for paperwork. Just ask my cubicle mates at Longview about that.
We’ve got the basics here. Hanging on the wall behind the desk is the new dry erase board which is designed to help me keep track of everything. It has been pretty handy so far. The clock on the desk was an apartment warming present from the Woman I Love. The beverage is iced tea served in a Boulevard collectors glass honoring the USS Missouri, the latest addition to the Virginia Class submarine force.
Here you can see my evolutionary path in terms of technology. Trinity purchased both iPods though I have to admit I didn’t get much use out of the nano until she got me a Touch. The Touch, especially if you are around a reliable wifi source, is just slicker than snot on a doorknob. The Kindle is the latest addition to the electronics suite. I’ve read some newspapers on it so far but not much else. I’m going to try and get some book reading done over the next week.
Here we are in work configuration. I had fiddled with a keyboard dock for my laptop a couple of years ago but it just doesn’t work. It is best, it seems to me, to pull the keyboard drawer out and mount the laptop there. I’m typing this entry in that manner now and it seems that the keyboard does not stick as much when I type this way.
It isn’t always about me. I made brownies for us a few days back using the heart shaped pans. They turned out pretty fair.
So it goes.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
North Kansas City, Missouri
I’m way past overdue for this project but the road trip up north finally gave me an opportunity to take some July photographs of some of the places which inspired scenes in my first short story publication, Tearing Down Tuesday.
The Tinkerin’ Woman’s Shop: Audrey Young, Owner
Kyle’s parent figure of sorts is Audrey Young. She owns a sort of salvage and fix it shop headquartered out of a white barn on her property. The Murphy Family Barn in this shot is one half of the inspiration. It is actually an old hay and livestock barn.
The Seven Days of the Week in Tearing Down Tuesday make their home in the Tinkerin’ Woman’s Shop.
The Murphy Farm Tool Shed
The Tool Shed in this shot represents the other half of the inspiration for The Tinkerin’ Woman’s Shop. Oddly enough, my Uncle Paul had this John Deere Gator in for work, so you could say this gives a pretty good impression of what I saw in my mind when I created the John Deere Farmerbot Model 805, aka Tuesday.
I love the clutter of this space and the mingling of dirt, grease and other scents. You could hear the methodic beat of the electric fence generator in the background.
Lake Murphy, DeKalb Co, Missouri
In the story our protag, Kyle Hackshaw, reaches a decision point while swimming in a rock quarry pool. This lake inspired that scene, even if it is not a quarry. I think Kyle would have seen the same sort of Simpson’s July Summer Sky.
We used to swim in that lake but the algae blooms and snakes have made that untennable.
Overall Impression
I have mostly positive memories of my summers on the Murphy Family Farm. My Uncle Paul and Uncle Mike still farm up there and while things are a bit worn, the place still feels comfortable and welcoming to me. Strange that I’d set such a dark story in a place of incredible beauty.
To my eyes, the photographs, especially the emerald landscape against the brilliant blue sky, represent what Missouri truly is, a farming state with a culture and history worth retelling in fiction. The sad thing is that these days, most science fiction writers would be quietly appalled at the lack of bandwidth, Starbucks and the like in this environment.
I’ll try to post more photos this week along with other photos of the road trip.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
North Kansas City, Missouri
Jason asked the question and since I have a bit of time I’ll try to answer.
The question pertained to research and writing. Just how much research does one need to do? Will research overwhelm the writing process? And just how much time does one devote to research?
I suppose it depends on your goal. There are plenty of published writers in the fiction markets who honestly do not give a damn about accuracy. Their symbols and messages are more important than accuracy. For the most part, I do not read such people.
I know that John Birmingham does an incredible amount of research for his projects. How much time he spends on this can vary. Hours, days perhaps, I’m not sure.
So maybe the best way to answer is how I do it for myself.
It depends on the story. When possible, at least at my present stage of evolution, I stick very close to what I know for certain when writing. I also stick to things which I can easily verify, either by physically going to the place/information I need or from personal experience. This is one reason I tend to write stories set in the Midwest or on some planet which has a Midwestern flavor to it.
The next step is to write the story. I usually write it first then work up the research retroactively. In this instance, the research is designed to fact check what I am using for my story and correct any major flaws.
The thing is that neither Tearing Down Tuesday or The Limb Knitter required much research. Both are black blox technology stories and the inner workings of the science fictional elements are never truly explained. We know part of the reason Tuesday suffers from memory troubles which resemble schizophrenia and PTSD but we only get a taste of that. As for the Knitter, we never see them without their robes nor do we physically see the healing process.
For military stories, especially as I move further away from my time in the Army, I will work up a fair amount of research on present day tactics (somewhat different than my training) weapons and try to get a sense of how soldiers communicate both over the radio and informally to each other. The Limb Knitter actually required some research into World War I and the American Civil War but most of the battle scenes were cut and reduced to what we see in the present form.
As for research consuming too much time, to be honest, research has never excited me. I find it to be the drudge work of writing anything, be it fiction or non fiction. I tend to find what I need, make sure nothing contradicts it and then I get back to writing. I have never lost myself in research which is one reason I’d probably not make a very good Ivy Tower historian.
Perhaps the best research method, when it doesn’t involve books, is to get some hands on experience or physically visit a location. My Civil War reenacting experience often provides some ideas for my writing. My travel to various parts of the world also provides ideas and a level of detail that you simply can not get from Google Map Streetview or a book. In an ideal world, I would do more travel writing (if only I knew where to break in at and get someone else to pay for it).
Perhaps an imperfect answer to a good question, Jason. One cobbled together on a damp, cold morning in April with a hot mug of tea besides me.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
Nothing X rated for readers of The Pondering Tree. Sorry to disappoint.
Corner Cafe’s Half a Heifer Burger
Trinity’s youngest son, fresh from Marine Boot Camp, said something about wanting to eat healthy. It is possible to order something healthy at the Corner Cafe in Liberty, Missouri (you may have heard of the town, a guy named Jesse robbed a bank there once) but he got this burger instead.
Since many readers are Burger lovers, I thought I’d show you what the Corps put away on our big day out last Thursday.
Half pound of angus beef with bacon no less. And it is possible to get the full pound of angus to which the Marine commented, “I could have fit it.”
Kids. Cue eye roll.
The Spring Break Photos at Sunset Acres
While the teens of the college campuses went to raise hell on various beaches around the country, Trinity and I made our way to Sunset Acres Bed and Breakfast. Our first night alone with each other took place at this establishment so it has a special connection for us. It was also an opportunity to get some time away to ourselves, recover from the last six months of pure insanity and effect some repairs to our relationship.
Well, here it is. There are three rooms here and we always go with the room whose name I can barely pronounce and can not spell at all without spell check. There is an excellent patio by the poolside and our room is the lower one with the sliding glass door. Plenty of sunshine to be had as well, which both of us, suffering from seasonal affective disorder, desperately needed.
Brenda, our host, had a picnic lunch waiting for us when we checked in. Color us spoiled.
I’m going to have my own gravity well at this point. I can’t quite figure out why I look so cross in that photo. It was a good day, I was a happy man and I had food in front of me. My sinuses were clear (something I couldn’t say about NYC where my sinusues were about to explode) so I don’t know what the deal was.
I probably waited about twenty minutes too late to get this shot. The sun had already set. I’ll spare you the kissing photo we got.
Brenda’s establishment is a working farm in many respects with a sizeable congregation of fainting goats. Yes, the goats do faint if you scare them. No, I have not seen this happen. No, I am not sadistic enough to try it (if only you could make the students faint). Trinity was going to try it until she saw the set of triplet infant goats who were hollering for their food. One of the highlights of the trip was watching Trinity and Brenda feed the goats while I watched.
I am not much of an animal person myself. I don’t actively dislike most animals, but I don’t seem to react to them either. The exception to the rule tends to be horses, who seem to trigger something in me. In any case, I didn’t feed the goats but I did help put down more newspaper because the little buggers have very active bladders.
One advantage of Sunset is the hot tub. We missed it on the last trip but not this time.
It was nice, folks. Crisp and cold outside yet hot and inviting on the inside. Trinity and I enjoyed that tub, which we had all to ourselves, a great deal.
We came back much restored and relaxed. I think the relationship is stronger for it (sometimes you have to get away from everyone who is naysaying the relationship and we have a lot of them running around). It goes without saying that in April we’ll make another trip out there.
I supsect in two weeks of college insanity, we’ll need it.
Summer Prep
I’m beating the bushes for summer jobs in a shitty employment environment. I might snag a course at the last minute but there is no way of knowing. Best not to plan on it.
So again, as with the last two summers since the Exodus from Uniguard, I am trying to find a summer job that doesn’t ruin my life. Something that gives me time to write, which isn’t too strenuous, that doesn’t chew up massive amounts of my time. I’ve got some ideas, one of which is to collect fees for the county at one of their lakes. Another is to apply for a position at Watkin’s Mill, which is a living history park that requires people in period clothing to give tours.
I have experience with that from James Country Mercantile and my time as a Civil War reenactor. Toss in two years of teaching (Jesus, two years already?) and the research credits for John Birmingham and I should be qualified for the job.
So part of the tasking this week is to get applications in for those jobs.
The Writing Front: Fan Fiction
I wrote and submitted another piece of fan fiction for the Without Warning universe created by John Birmingham entitled Coming Home. It probably isn’t up yet but I hammered it out in a couple of hours.
I may do more fan fiction for Without Warning simply because I have a level of freedom in that realm which I do not have in short story markets elsewhere.
The Teaching Front: Spinning up for the Second Half of the Semester
Tomorrow we hop back into the saddle. I start my second eight week class of American History. We’ll hit the ground running hot and heavy, trying to clear Reconstruction as soon as possible. We will also get started on their writing assignment immediately. That will use up the last forty-five minutes of class.
In my 0800 class we are moving up to the second exam. Once I finish World War I on Wednesday we’ll be in striking distance of the test. I am a little behind but not much. The class is moving smoothly enough this semester though a number of people who are not showing up are about to be dropped.
I’ve still got some grading to do for my first eight week class. Grades are due on Tuesday so I’ll try to get that knocked out. Pretty heavy attrition rate this time around. I am not bothered by that. Many students sign up for the eight week classes thinking that they will be easier.
I do my best to disabuse them of that notion.
Finally in my noon substitute class we are moving forward with the French Indian War. The syllabus says I’m supposed to test them this week but that isn’t going to happen. I think I can get them to a testing point by the last Monday of March. We’ll see. I’ll have to talk to the full time peer I am standing in for to see what their status is on their return.
Other Fronts
My new glasses will set me back $725, which is a massive chunk of change. The good news is that my eyes, given how nearsighted I am, are healthy and are correctable. The doc said I was lucky to be correctable to 20/20 vision given my condition. Still, the glasses are a bit high.
Health care? Don’t even get me started. I’m sure The Messiah will mandate mandatory health insurance for everyone. Given my opinion of insurance companies (they aren’t worth a fuck in my opinion) I am sure we will pay an undeclared tax which will make insurance companies richer without providing people like me a damned thing.
Maybe I can use the VA as an exemption, not that they are worth a shit either.
So it goes. Long entry folks.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
The Manly Night Out
Hooked up with Jason from Thoughts of a Limemonkey at Grinders last night for some cold ones. I had not seen him since he recorded the first public reading of Tearing Down Tuesday. We shared war stories of various types, to include our own frustrations with the writing business. It was good to see him again.
The Teaching Front
Well, I’ll be taking over a peer’s class this coming Friday. I’ve got a week to prep lectures, some of which are in need of revision. I will be in that class for at least a month, possibly longer. For reasons I can’t get into, I’m hoping that the peer, who is The Boss, comes back soon.
In my own classes I’m two meetings away from the end of the first eight week American History One course. I’ve graded most of their interviews with a historical figure and to be honest, I’m fairly disappointed. Some students took the project for what it was and pushed hard on it. Others didn’t put any effort in at ally. Others still wrote fluff thinking I would not read it.
Grades are doled out accordingly. This is a first draft so they have a chance to improve their lot, but I suspect results will be uniform.
My American History Two class is about to move into Theodore Roosevelt and Progressivism. TR is someone I like talking about. Progressivism not so much. I think we can safely say that he is one of the first of the Imperial Presidents in many ways, the archetype for the Presidency through the 20th Century. I am going to try to give them their second test before Spring Break.
My second eight week American History Two class starts after Spring Break. They’ll receive the same essay assignment as the first eight week class.
Spring Break Plans
Trinity and I aren’t sure what we are doing for Spring Break yet. The temptation is to drive down to the Gulf of Mexico and throw ourselves into the ocean. Yet it seems more likely that we will probably stay around the area. Plans include a trip to a Bed and Breakfast we are both fond of and a trip to Stroud’s (really, really, good food). We had pondered a trip to Lambert’s in Sikeston, Missouri, Home of the Throwed Rolls but once I saw where it was on the map, I decided that perhaps that was further than we wanted to drive.
Powell Gardens is a possibility and maybe (I’ve not told Trinity this yet) a run out to KU to look at the campus museums.
We should have memberships at the Northtown Community Center by then so we’ll both be in the gym over that week as well.
Summer Job Hunt
Well, the hunt for summer jobs is already on. I’ve been looking at Federal Temporary jobs with the National Parks Service. There apparently are some local options that might be viable. I’m going to put in for a few of them.
Outside of that, the only thing I know is that I have no desire to work security again this summer. World’s of Fun is also out. So I’ve got some pondering to do.
So it goes.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
The Teaching Front
Today we covered the Philippine Insurrection and two pieces of literature from the time period. Most students have never heard of the Philippine Insurrection (our Nam before the Nam as I call it) nor do they know about the Anti-Imperialist argument against our involvement there. I spent time on that, telling them that the Philippines were not protected by the Teller Amendment (which prevented us from doing the same thing to Cuba) and we discussed the argument that the Philippines were not ready for self government.
Which, to my ears, sounds very much like the debate about whether or not you could get a Federal Republic established in Iraq. “They simply do not have the cultural experience,” and blah, blah, blah.
According to the research I did for my notes nearly two years ago, over 200,000 civilians were killed between 1898 and 1913. We lost 5,000 troops killed in action (that is more, at present, than we have lost in Iraq and Afghanistan) and far more than the 379 lost in combat during the Spanish American War. Granted, we lost 5,400 during the war but most of those were disease and medical mistreatment.
Finally, we discussed two pieces of literature. The first was Rudyard Kipling’s The White Man’s Burden, which is basically an open letter to the United States saying, “Welcome to the Imperialist Club.” Kipling is not often discussed these days because he is politically incorrect, fairly racist in his attitudes (racist insofar as we in the 21st Century judge him, no doubt in the 22nd Century we will be seen as just as racist in our own way) but I wanted to illustrate the Imperialist argument as it manifested itself in literature.
The second was a YouTube presentation of Mark Twain (aka Samuel Clemens) The War Prayer, which presents the Anti Imperialist side. Now personally, I have very little use for Twain, as a writer or as a political commentator. I also find him to be a chicken shit of the first order. Two reasons for this, the first being that he ducked out of military service before the Civil War truly got started. The second pertains to this very story.
The War Prayer was not published until long after Twain’s death. He was told by his publishers that he was committing career suicide by trying to get this story published. Twain, preferring the comfort of his pocket book, trunked the story.
That I disagree with some of what Twain says in the story is not the main reason I have a problem with the man. The main reason is that he took the easy way, the comfortable way, he slipped away from the Fight just as surely as he did in Missouri back in 1861. If he had the depth of his convictions, he would have said, “Damn the Torpedoes.”
That said, I thought I’d share The War Prayer to you, the Readers of the Pondering Tree. It comes in two parts.
It was animated in 2007 if memory serves correctly, mainly for use as an Anti-Iraq War protest tool. In any event, it allows me to convey the Anti-Imperialist message with far more conviction than I could personally do on my own. I let Twain have his soapbox, even if I find his own conduct as a writer to be rather pathetic.
Photography
Some random shots, some of which will serve as new entry icons.
Yours truly playing a Fencer.
Some personal research shots in New York City.
For those looking for more after action briefs, I’ll try to get to those soon. I’ve been a bit busy with teaching, lecture prep and trying to work the tire off of my body.
Later.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
Conventions.
I do not normally do them. In fact, I have a deep and abiding dislike of crowds in general. So when John Birmingham said he was slated to do Comicon and asked if I wanted a pass, I had to admit that I went back and forth in my own head about it.
John will be there, so it’ll be cool.
Umm, so will a pissload of other people, who will probably not be cool.
Granted, I do not consider myself to be the grand purveyor of cool points. Further, as a Civil War reenactor of four years standing (since retired as the war only lasted four, why should I fight longer?) I really do not have much room to snicker at people who dress up in funny clothes.
Well, umm, aside from the reality that the Civil War did happen and reenactors do provide some sort of educational value whereas someone in a Storm Trooper outfit probably doesn’t. And sure, I’ll be the first to admit that some of this gear is pretty cool but to see it all gathered en mass without any sort of regimentation at all is just a bit much.
So when we arrived at the convention center on 34th Street, which reminded one of the Crystal Pavilion of London (though at the time I couldn’t even remember the name of the damned thing, that is how out of it I was) it was a bit . . . strange, to find oneself buffetted by so many levels of Media Fandom. It is easy to see why the Snottier Literati Wannabes of the SF community complain about.
That said, conventions in general are not my thing. I like guns, but I don’t go to gun shows. I like books but I generally do not go to book signings unless John Birmingham is there or maybe Nancy Kress. I’m really, truly, deeply, not a crowd sort of guy. And this place had such a miasma of hormonal nervousness that it put my teeth on edge.
So what’s to say? Well, these folks are potential customers and they all seem to like either science fiction or fantasy. They seem to be younger, in the 12 to 28 age group though there were some older ones running around. They were enjoying themselves and it was their convention. As such, I should not be doing anything more than reporting on what I saw, which was a massive opportunity to open your wallet and shove it down a deep hole for something like Frank Miller’s Black and White Batman, which was on our traveling gift list. Since it was priced at ninety dollars US I immediately hit the Command Veto Button on that Fiscal Fire Mission and informed Trinity that the person wanting that item could find it on Ebay if they liked but I wasn’t subsidizing it.
Birmo and I were joined by CraigWA, Tarl having decided that Friday was a geekout dose too far for him. For a couple of hours we wandered around in various stages of awe, horror, fascination, bemusement and then awe again. I gotta say that the take away prizes were the Stormtroopers and the men dressed up as Ghostbusters, complete with particle accelerator packs.
I think I’d have been more impressed if there had been some test firing of the implements in question but Comicon, as is much of NYC, appears to be a Weapons Safe Zone. The fucking killjoys.
John was slated for a panel on Science Fiction and Fantasy writing which was advertised to be content free. At the same time I had a wounded Trinity back at the local anchorage in need of my attention as well as John’s leave to attend to her if needs must. I was going to manfully stick it out for both panels but after a dose of the first one decided to throw in the towel.
Why? Well, I can’t remember the person’s name but the panel drove on into the standard issue Gender Discrimination Score Points for Political Correctness issue to which my brain muttered, “Ho hum, here we go again.”
Fortunately for me, Trinity called on the cell at just that moment, preventing me from going to Weapons Free on a person I didn’t even know.
I picked up a couple of Star Wars stuffed toys for Trinity, who is a Star Wars fan. She felt bad about not going until she saw the light saber fight on YouTube and some of the flickr shots.
“Maybe staying in bed with a busted knee was better,” she said.
“Babe,” (yes, I call her babe, get the fuck over it because she calls me that too) I said, “a root canal without novacaine would be better.”
Thus it was decided by the Burger Meister, CraigWA and Myself to egress on foot for our lodgings. We made the hike from 34th Street to 52nd in short order. Birmo had to return for a suvudu.com interview (which still hasn’t appeared on the internet as I type this) for Without Warning. Craig, meanwhile, obtained intel on carriage rides through Central Park.
I, on the other hand, had work to do of the non writing related sort. Birmo was slated for a private function that evening so Trinity and I would be flying solo.
More on that later.
Umm, yes, I know there are no pictures. Go to flickr and punch in NYC Comicon and you’ll find a shitload of pictures. Trust me.
Oh, there was one delicious little bit of pleasure to be had. More than a few of my American SF literati PC Nazis attended this function. Without their realizing it, I passed within mere feet of them.
In one case, very close.
Fortunately, I’m not the crazy nutter I’m often marked out to be by these assholes. 
Right?
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
US Burgers at Rosano’s with Birmo
I can’t figure out why this one is blurry because I didn’t take the picture. As for the yellow tint, that is a mystery too.
From Screen Left: Tarl of New Hampshire, Myself, Trinity, going across the table to CraigWA and finally the Master Burgermeister Himself, Birmo.
Trinity’s Meal
My Meal
Note for the log: That was some fair sangria there.
And earlier in the day we took care of the obligatory NYPD photo for Trinity at the Times Square Subway Station.
It is a funny thing. I never ran into an asshole the whole time I was there. Well, except for that twit who is kissing Trinity. I need to kick his ass.
More later.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
Expeditionary Report: NYC 2009
At 0545 hours Friday morning, Trinity and I flew out on a Midwest Air Boeing 717 for NYC, with a layover in Milwaukee. I had not flown on a plane of any type in sixteen years so the changes were some what interesting. The Midwest Air 717 was fitted with leather seats throughout the aircraft. It was a comfortable flight with no real problems from pressure, ear popping or the like.
We arrived at LaGuardia on time and picked up our bags. The weather was cloudy and cold. A GoShuttle took us from the airport to the hotel.
Now the ride was not much worse than trips I have taken in vehicles in Saudi Arabia and Korea. Vehicles missing each other by mere inches, near collisions, lots of honking, that sort of thing. Trinity, on the other hand, was a bit more concerned.
The first hitch was that we could not check into the room until 1600 hours. Trinity and I, thus, had some time on our hands. The hotel did store our bags while we made our first foray into Manhattan. Among our first stops we hit a hot dog stand, which Trinity said was the best she had ever had, a Starbucks for a hot venti tea (it was cold and I found I was stopped up something fierce), our first run through Times Square (depicted in the below entry) followed by a wandering and meandering trip that brought us to the New York Public Library.
At the Library we signed up for NYC Library cards (which John later pointed out, enabled us to outgeek everyone at Comicon) and toured the building. We did see the fabled reading room on the third floor, which featured an internet facility at one end.
Got into some trouble for hitting the internet (quality time in NYC, is a precious thing, kids) and we’ll skip that part of the trip. Needless to say, some patching up was required.
We finally got checked into the hotel room a little early (for some reason the hotel staff took some pity on us).
So, what to say about the hotel? Well . . . for now, let us simply say that we did not get the best room. We had a jacuzzi bathtub that did not work in jacuzzi mode and it was at least four to six inches higher than any tub Trinity and I were used to. We both slipped in the damned thing.
I slipped getting into the thing, nearly knocking Trinity over. I managed to break her fall (just barely) and save the day. It was for naught as she fell later on getting out, truly busting up one of her legs and putting a hitch in her giddyap for the rest of the weekend.
Birmo himself was tied down with obligations at Random House but he made contact with us around four or so (perfect timing). I met him down in the hotel bar for a drink while we waited for Trinity to get her battle rattle on.
It is interesting to meet someone in person after years of corresponding to them via the internet, first by e-mail and lately by Skype. Birmo has a way of gliding across the floor that he probably picked up from martial arts training. He’s low key in his speech with a very dry sense of humor. We exchanged hostages, fudge in our case from Missouri (he had received a care pack of BBQ stuff previously) and books/wine in his case. Trinity became the proud owner of a copy of He Died with a Felafel in His Hand and I got three books. More on those later.
Took our first true cab ride to 18th Street to meet CraigWA and Tarl of New Hampshire. It was the first cab I’ve flagged down since Korea and I was trying to do this during the height of rush hour and shift change.
“Why is it taking so long?” Birmo asked.
“Yeah, why aren’t the cabs stopping, babe?” Trinity asked.
“It is rush hour and shift change,” I replied. “I read it somewhere. Between three and six is the worst time to try to get a cab. Trinity, why don’t you show some ankle or something?”
I was, however, able to flag one down. With a little bit more effort on Birmo’s part on the communication’s side, we linked up with Craig and Tarl at Rosano’s.
Mexican in NYC? Yeah, it does seem like some sort of punch line to a joke, doesn’t it? It was recommended to Birmo by his peeps at Random House so Mexican it was. I tried to get some photographs but the combination sangria, whiskey and Dos Equis made my photographs virutally unuseable. Craig and Tarl both had far superior cameras and perhaps they came off better.
CraigWA and Tarl both are in the IT industry with the former working in Scotland and the later working in the States. Tarl had reconned Comicon early on Friday and decided one trip was enough.
I wish I could say I heard more of the conversation but by now my left ear felt as if it was stuffed with sludge. Craig and Trinity had a very animated conversation, of which I could hear very little. Instead I talked to Birmo and Tarl, which eventually lead to a discussion about After America, the current project.
An arm wrestling match nearly ensued over the ticket, which Tarl won.
We walked back to the hotel, dropping off various members of our party along the way. NYC is, in some odd ways, smaller than you think, bigger in others. Getting from 18th Street to 52nd Street did not take near as long as it would if you tried that in Kansas City.
After a night cap, Friday shop was closed up. The rest of the events are classified Top Secret Ultra.
Overall, a good first night though I was already catching a horrible cold. My ears were jammed, my sinuses compacted and the tub slippage incidents were rather worrisome.
There was a bit of humor involving some texting but I think we’ll keep that on the downlow.
More on the next pass.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
A sample of things to come. After Action Briefs later today and this week.
Umm, the hot chick is Trinity. I don’t know who that asshole is she is kissing.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
Those that done said stuff