a frog the size of texas

Before:

Writing is stone scraping skin
Blood beneath nails as I grope for the ledges while
Other hikers bound up the slopes
Their packs well-balanced, full.
I’m wearing the wrong shoes
Left my sun hat and sunscreen back in my room
Also
I’m scared of heights.

After:

Writing is a gold desert morning
Sun filtering blue while
Birds trill competing bids for the sky.
Sun caressing my arms,
Spines and prickles catching the light,
And
There is so much here to write about.

Which is by way of saying I’m back from a lovely, energizing, soul-filling week at Kindling Words West, in the company of writing community I’ve not seen for far too long, not setting goals for once but simply (yet not-so-simply) filling the well.

Also, I wrote today, not because I’m supposed to or because I’ve established useful routines and habits and know how to stick with them, but simply because it’s what I woke up wanting to do more than anything else in the world.

Mirrored from Desert Dispatches: Wordpress Edition.

The Intervision Song Contest (ISC) was the Eastern Bloc equivalent to the Eurovision Song Contest. Its organiser was the Intervision, the network of Eastern Europe television stations. It took place in the Forest Opera in Sopot, Poland.

The competition had an interesting way of voting. Because lot of citizens did not have phones, viewers would turn on lights if they liked the song or turned them off if they didn’t like the song. According to load experienced on the electrical network, points were granted accordingly to each contestant.

Also posted at Dreamwidth, where there are comment(s); comment here or there.

http://whatever.scalzi.com/2013/05/19/nebula-award-winners-2/

http://whatever.scalzi.com/?p=21885

The winners are in bold. Also noted: The Norton and Bradbury awards, as well as the Solstice and the Kevin J. O’Donnell Service to SFWA Award.

Novel:

• 2312, Kim Stanley Robinson (Orbit US; Orbit UK)
• Throne of the Crescent Moon, Saladin Ahmed (DAW; Gollancz ’13)
• Ironskin, Tina Connolly (Tor)
• The Killing Moon, N.K. Jemisin (Orbit US; Orbit UK)
• The Drowning Girl, Caitlín R. Kiernan (Roc)
• Glamour in Glass, Mary Robinette Kowal (Tor)

Novella:

• After the Fall, Before the Fall, During the Fall, Nancy Kress (Tachyon)
• On a Red Station, Drifting, Aliette de Bodard (Immersion Press)
• “The Stars Do Not Lie,” Jay Lake (Asimov’s 10-11/12)
• “All the Flavors,” Ken Liu (GigaNotoSaurus 2/1/12)
• “Katabasis,” Robert Reed (F&SF 11-12/12)
• “Barry’s Tale,” Lawrence M. Schoen (Buffalito Buffet)

Novelette:

• “Close Encounters,” Andy Duncan (The Pottawatomie Giant & Other Stories)
• “The Pyre of New Day,” Catherine Asaro (The Mammoth Books of SF Wars)
• “The Waves,” Ken Liu (Asimov’s 12/12)
• “The Finite Canvas,” Brit Mandelo (Tor.com 12/5/12)
• “Swift, Brutal Retaliation,” Meghan McCarron (Tor.com 1/4/12)
• “Portrait of Lisane da Patagnia,” Rachel Swirsky (Tor.com 8/22/12)
• “Fade to White,” Catherynne M. Valente (Clarkesworld 8/12)

Short Story:

• “Immersion,” Aliette de Bodard (Clarkesworld 6/12)
• “Robot,” Helena Bell (Clarkesworld 9/12)
• “Fragmentation, or Ten Thousand Goodbyes,” Tom Crosshill (Clarkesworld 4/12)
• “Nanny’s Day,” Leah Cypess (Asimov’s 3/12)
• “Give Her Honey When You Hear Her Scream,” Maria Dahvana Headley (Lightspeed 7/12)
• “The Bookmaking Habits of Select Species,” Ken Liu (Lightspeed8/12)
• “Five Ways to Fall in Love on Planet Porcelain,” Cat Rambo (Near + Far)

Ray Bradbury Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation

• Beasts of the Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin (director), Benh Zeitlin and Lucy Abilar (writers), (Journeyman/Cinereach/Court 13/Fox Searchlight)
• The Avengers, Joss Whedon (director) and Joss Whedon and Zak Penn (writers), (Marvel/Disney)
• The Cabin in the Woods, Drew Goddard (director), Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard (writers) (Mutant Enemy/Lionsgate)
• The Hunger Games, Gary Ross (director), Gary Ross, Suzanne Collins, and Billy Ray (writers), (Lionsgate)
• John Carter, Andrew Stanton (director), Michael Chabon, Mark Andrews, and Andrew Stanton (writers), (Disney)
• Looper, Rian Johnson (director), Rian Johnson (writer), (FilmDistrict/TriStar)

Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy Book

• Fair Coin, E.C. Myers (Pyr)
• Iron Hearted Violet, Kelly Barnhill (Little, Brown)
• Black Heart, Holly Black (McElderry; Gollancz)
• Above, Leah Bobet (Levine)
• The Diviners, Libba Bray (Little, Brown; Atom)
• Vessel, Sarah Beth Durst (S&S/McElderry)
• Seraphina, Rachel Hartman (Random House; Doubleday UK)
• Enchanted, Alethea Kontis (Harcourt)
• Every Day, David Levithan (Knopf)
• Summer of the Mariposas, Guadalupe Garcia McCall (Tu Books)
• Railsea, China Miéville (Del Rey; Macmillan)
• Above World, Jenn Reese (Candlewick)

Solstice Awards were awarded to editor Ginjer Buchanan and astronomer and entertainer Carl Sagan, the latter of which was accepted by his son Nick Sagan.

The Kevin O’Donnell Jr. Service Award was awarded to Michael Payne.

(The list above borrowed from this Tor.com posting. You may also see results on SFWA’s own site.)

Also, of course, we formally invested Gene Wolfe with the title of Grand Master. He was gracious and touching in his speech, which is of course no surprise at all.

I am delighted to say that my final Nebula Award ceremony as president went along swimmingly, with Robert Silverberg as our emcee. I got to introduced Bob and give him some good-natured ribbing; he got up and dropped a house on me, which may go down as one of the highlights of my time as SFWA President. If you ever get a chance to get zinged by Grand Master Silverberg, I highly recommend it.

Congratulations to the winners, commiserations to the other most worthy nominees, and many thanks to the volunteers and other who made the Nebula Ceremony, and indeed the entire Nebula Weekend, possible. It was a great time. As a fan, I was thrilled. As the President of SFWA, I was relieved.

Nigel Wright has resigned as Prime Minister Stephen Harper's chief of staff, following revelations he wrote a $90,000 cheque to repay improperly claimed housing expenses for Senator Mike Duffy.

Also posted at Dreamwidth, where there are comment(s); comment here or there.

Total   Female   Male  F/T
  9      2.83    6.17  .31

The Recipients of the 2012 Nebula Awards:

NOVEL: 2312 by Kim Stanley Robinson (Orbit US; Orbit UK)

NOVELLA: After the Fall, Before the Fall, During the Fall by Nancy Kress (Tachyon)

NOVELLETTE: “Close Encounters” by Andy Duncan (The Pottawatomie Giant & Other Stories)

SHORT STORY: “Immersion” by Aliette de Bodard (Clarkesworld 6/12)

RAY BRADBURY AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING DRAMATIC PRESENTATION: Beasts of the Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin (director), Benh Zeitlin and Lucy Abilar (writers), (Journeyman/Cinereach/Court 13/Fox Searchlight)

ANDRE NORTON AWARD FOR YOUNG ADULT SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY BOOK: Fair Coin, E.C. Myers (Pyr)

2011 DAMON KNIGHT GRAND MASTER AWARD: Gene Wolfe

SOLSTICE AWARD: Carl Sagan and Ginjer Buchanan

KEVIN O’DONNELL JR. SERVICE TO SFWA AWARD: Michael H. Payne

Also posted at Dreamwidth, where there are comment(s); comment here or there.

http://getrichslowly.org.feedsportal.com/c/34612/f/633263/s/2c1df740/l/0L0Sgetrichslowly0Borg0Cblog0C20A130C0A50C190Creader0Estories0Ehow0Ei0Ebuilt0Eup0Ethe0Ecourage0Eto0Equit0Ea0Epromising0Ecareer0Ewith0Ea0Esix0Efigure0Esalary0C/story01.htm

http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/?p=163473

This reader story is from a longtime GRS reader Sumitha, who blogs at afineparent.com. Some reader stories contain general advice; others are examples of how a GRS reader achieved financial success or failure. These stories feature folks with all levels of financial maturity and income. Want to submit your own reader story? Here’s how.

I said goodbye to a promising career with a six-figure salary last month. I have dreamed about this moment for over two years. Still, when it was time, I spent several days wrestling with acute anxiety and insomnia. This has, by far, been one of the hardest things I’ve done in my life.

Get Rich Slowly reader stories about quitting (here, here, here and here) provided me with immense insight into making a life-changing decision like this. The hundreds of comments on those articles gave me different perspectives to ponder. Together, they helped me work things out for myself. I want to give back, in some sense, by sharing my story.

Background

My husband and I came to the U.S. for higher education, and when we graduated, we joined tech companies as software engineers. Our jobs paid well, and as financially sensible DINKs, we paid off our loans quickly, started saving diligently and bought a home with 20 percent down payment.

Life was good — for a while, anyway. Then the 2008 financial crisis hit. I was expecting a baby at the time, and the worry that I would lose my job while I was pregnant drove me to work long hours all the way to my due date. I left on my maternity leave praying I would still have a job when I got back.

I did, but the stress of working in an uncertain environment on a high-profile project while raising a baby started to take its toll. Things hit rock bottom around my daughter’s second birthday. For the first time, I remember thinking I really want to quit. I didn’t know what I would do after I quit — I just didn’t want to go on like this for the next 20 to 30 years.

Then, I pulled myself back together and carried on.

The breaking point

A few months after that, however, my husband had a major health issue. It was the kind where you sit nervously outside an emergency room and question everything — from the quality of your life, to the kind of work you do, to the kind of person you’ve become, all the way to the existence of God.

It was the last straw on the camel’s back. When the storm passed, I realized I had a choice – pull myself back together (again!) and continue like before, or treat this as a defining moment and build a new life.

I chose the latter.

Financial planning

Part of the change was to move out of the high-stress tech job. It took me around two years from then to finally be ready — financially and emotionally. Here’s what I did:

First step: mortgage

From the time the layoff rumors had started we had been saving money like squirrels on steroids. Also, right from the beginning, we had been paying off the mortgage at an accelerated pace. So the first big change was to finish off that mortgage.

Second step: savings

My first “plan” was to keep working and save diligently until we had enough. But, both my husband and I are financial paranoids, and one fine day, it dawned on me : We’d never have enough. So I set a rule for myself: when I had enough savings to pay myself a salary that covers my average monthly expenses plus a small buffer, for the period of a year, preferably two, I would quit. These savings were after the 401(k), emergency fund, HSA, and vacations. I knew it would take me at least a couple of years to get there.

What’s next?

After my husband’s emergency room episode, I went through a period of intense introspection. I didn’t like what I saw. Somewhere along the way, I had let the stress of my life turn me into an impatient and snappy cynic. And the person who got the brunt of it was my little 2-year-old daughter.

I wanted to do something about it, but change was proving hard. One day in a desperate attempt, I indulged myself by buying over half dozen self-help and parenting books.

Those books changed my life.

I’d heard a million times that being a parent is the most fulfilling thing in the world, but for the first time, I started experiencing it. It felt like magic.

That’s when the light bulb went on.

There must be a million parents out there just like me, struggling with who they have become and the impact it has on the way they raise their kids. These folks want to become better people and better parents but don’t know how or where to start. There are people like me who make a resolution to change but give up as the demands of everyday life interrupt.

What if I could be the catalyst for change? What if I could build a blog that challenges people to improve the people we are, and in turn, improve the kind of parents we can become, and thereby the kind of people our kids will grow up to be? What if I brought together the best advice from different fields and helped them apply it to everyday parenting challenges?

I don’t remember the last time I was as excited. I went out and bought afineparent.com, and spent every free minute dreaming, planning and fantasizing.

Planning for success

Anybody can start a blog, but turning it into an honest livelihood – that takes a bit of planning and work. I could potentially figure it out by myself, but considering there are so many proven experts out there, why reinvent the wheel?

I joined an intensive coaching program by Jon Morrow, someone who is as well known for his keen marketing savvy as his exceptional writing style. With this choice, I spent most of my “learning” budget, but gained a mentor who’s been in the trenches and knows the terrain well. I’m hoping that will improve my odds of success just like having a mentor did back in the corporate world.

Besides, plunking down a chunk of change does wonders to your commitment.

Will I succeed? Financially — I don’t know. I sure hope so.

Otherwise, to some extent, I think I already have. I’ve broken the status quo and started on the course of a positive change for myself, for my family, and hopefully for a bunch of people around the world that I am yet to meet.

Several of these have issues ... one is blurry in a way that makes me think that some of the misty drizzle got on the lens, and I managed to get my finger in another one, but I wanted to use it anyway.

This entry is also posted at Dreamwidth. Comment at either location, as you prefer.

It started me thinking about all the REAL women for my daughter to know about and look up too, REAL women who without ever meeting Emma have changed her life for the better. My daughter wasn’t born into royalty, but she was born into a country where she can now vote, become a doctor, a pilot, an astronaut, or even President if she wants and that’s what REALLY matters. I wanted her to know the value of these amazing women who had gone against everything so she can now have everything. We chose 5 women (five amazing and strong women), as it was her 5th birthday but there are thousands of unbelievable women (and girls) who have beat the odds and fought (and still fight) for their equal rights all over the world……..so let’s set aside the Barbie Dolls and the Disney Princesses for just a moment, and let’s show our girls the REAL women they can be.

Also posted at Dreamwidth, where there are comment(s); comment here or there.

http://whatever.scalzi.com/2013/05/18/a-mind-is-a-terrible-thing-to-taste/

http://whatever.scalzi.com/?p=21883

Me and Jay Lake at the Nebula Mass Signing yesterday. I taste of executive power. For another few weeks, anyway.

Picture borrowed from jay’s site, here.