My Weekend with Melissa

I just got back from spending the weekend in Philadelphia with Melissa. I'll stick some photos on here, but I think most of the good ones are on Melissa's camera. More on that later.

I took the China Town bus, which is $20 for a round trip. I wasn't even sure which bus I'd gotten on, but I did get to Philly. It was dark when I got there and Melissa took me on a tour down South Street, which is like State Street with a river at the end.

We stopped in at Lickety Split and watched some live music.

Saturday, we walked all over the city. We went to the Art Museum to get a discount card. It was college weekend, so anyone with a student ID got into the museums for free. Since Melissa and I both have student IDs, we got to check out the Franklin Institute and Natural History/Science Museum.

There was a butterfly display in the Natural Museum, like the one at Olbrich Gardens in Madison, but on a much smaller scale.

And dinosaur skeletons, of course.

We walked about some more with Melissa's old roommate and got some ice cream. This here is Love Park:

Philly has lots of cool murals.

That night, we made a run to get me a legit Philly Cheese Steak, which was pretty good. Then we went over to the World Cafe Live, which was exactly my kind of venue. The performer was really good too. At one point I told Melissa that I wished they'd play harmonica. Then later in the set, she did!

The next morning, we went out to brunch, and then it was back on the bus. All in all, great weekend. When it gets warm again, I'll have to be back because we didn't do any of the historic stuff that Philly's known for. But we sure did a lot, and it was nice catching up with Melissa. I can't believe it's been a year since all of us met up in Charleston.

To come:

Among the Oak and Ash Concert

Heavy Metal Book of Lists Release Party

another launch week

I'm on the train home from a book launch for The Salt Smugglers in Manhattan. Interesting how that book came about. It was a serial in a French newspaper that we translated to English and published as a book, so not even the French have it in book form.

Other work news...I'm still proofing a book about angels and I'm starting to help organize a book tour for Plants Don't Drink Coffee. On the Hl end, I'm still doing a lot of the same stuff plus some indi jobs like overstocks.

I'm going to Philly tomorrow evening.

Book Launch

Last night, I attended a book launch party for Breyten Breytenbach's "Intimate Stranger," which is a book on writing. I don't mean one of those craft books that I read for technique advice. It's a poetic meditation on why people write, who are writers, and what the relationship is between writer and reader. It's a very pretty piece of work. Things like how poetry is the phonebooth of our ancestors and things like that.

The party was nice. Maybe thirty-some people showed up. Quite suave. Wine and cheese and all that. Mr. Breytenbach talked a little about the work and read some poems from it. I chatted a bit to some people about books and the industry and New York. It was a nice little time. Getting home on the subway was somewhat less nice as I stood on the platform for nearly half an hour waiting for that blasted A train.

What else is new?

I've been doing some writing and reading (Pilo Family Circus, which is a new favorite). Some people from Bleak House may be moving out here next month. I'm in the library because the cable's out again, but what luck--they have a copy of Terry Pratchett's Nation this time.

Next weekend: exploring Philly with Melissa!

Comedians

Dylan Moran

I don't know who this is really, but it's hilarious (Rhod Gilbert)

Ricky Gervais

Robin Ince

Josie Long

Karl Pilkington - not actually a comedian or actor, but still the funniest man alive. Friend of Ricky Gervais.

Lee Camp

Derek Hughes

Michael Palascak

Isaac Witty

Brooklyn Book Festival

Such a fun day. Hanging out with book enthusiasts all day long. I helped sell books for AB (see photo) from 11 to 6pm, but I walked through the festival 3 times, looking at all the great books. No, I didn't go crazy with the spending. I bought Catching Fire, which I was going to get anyway, and a birthday gift. Plus, I got a free book from an author who is giving his book away. AB was lucky enough to get a tent right next to the international stage where one of our authors was on pannels twice during the day. He's having a launch party at the end of the week I may go to. We sold quite a few books. Many are familiar with our house and kept complimenting us on the look of the books. People really love them and I feel silly b/c I have only read ones that haven't been released yet. That will have to change.

Shuttle wasn't running this weekend. Annoying. Had to take the bus. Over it.

List of things that did and didn't get done

Update for this week? Hmm.

• Didn't have to work Monday, but will have to work Friday.
• Somewhat less bugness on both fronts.
• Submitted "White Elephant" to second magazine after getting rejected by Hitchcock.
• First day of school, and I don't have school anymore. This is weird.
• Finished reading "Sold Out: How I survived a year of not shopping" by Robert Llewellyn. Told him about it on Twitter and he suggested I read his wife's book next. Might do eventually. Looks quirky. Read my review for Sold Out.
• Going to call book review series "Subway Selection Series" and will link in the sidebar with some stories.
• Started drawing an AtOaA picture.
• Finished a story that isn't very good.
• Going to start planning someone's signing tour tomorrow at AB.
• Too late to shower, too late to check out new book from library, too late to cash my check at the bank. Getting home at 7:30 every day has its downfalls.

Gov

This picture looks fake, but I swear it's not a backdrop!

I went to Governor's Island with Erin and her friends. It was a gorgeous day, the ferry was free, and we had fun being tourists. One place we went to was the Art Fair. I think the island is a kind of haven for artists. Imagine that. We spent a fair amount of time trying to figure out whether people live in these big houses and deduced that they must.

Afterward, we went to Manhattan for ice cream and went shopping. All right so Top Shop and Sephora aren't really my thing, but it was nice to be wandering Manhattan again.

We topped it off with dinner in Little Italy, which has a pasta sauce to die for.

The others went on to karaoke, but it was nearly 8 and I had a long ride home (plus I don't like to sing), so I headed back. All in all, a great way to spend Labor Day weekend.

It's funny that I spent way too much money today even though I started reading "Sold Out: How I Survived a Year of not Shopping." This book is supposed to inspire me to NOT spend money! Ha, but it was worth it.

News Aggregator

Here's some interesting things happening 'round the blogverse lately...

LITERARY WORLD

14-year-old from Wisconsin becomes famous published author.

Neil Gaiman's bookshelf

Writer Appreciation Week

The Hunger Games sequel reportedly not as good as the first


Maybe more on this later.

What's new

Update on what's going on with me.

WORK

Started my new internship at AB. It's a completely opposite vibe from the corporate HL vibe, but the work has been pretty much the same.

Today at HL, I made a tech support house call to one of our authors. Me, tech support? Ha! But I sorted it out, no worries. Nice change of pace.

I did some freelancing research for a book called Theatreworld and made some extra cash.


BUGS

So fleas in the house and giant cockroach in the bathroom at work. Seriously, it was so big, it was practically a mammal. I go upstairs to use the toilet now.


BOOKS

Now that I work 4 days per week, I can get through books really fast. I read a great book called Time Out of Joint by Philip K Dick. Some kids were snickering at my book on the train. When they left, I looked at the cover to see what was so funny. Does the man on the front look like their dad? Are the old enough to know it's sci-fi and therefor nerdy? No, I'd wager it's the word Dick printed in huge letters at the top. Anyway, go to my writing blog for my review.

I was on the subway and there were 9 Audible.com ads all the way down the train. I sat down and looked up to see it saying that Ray Bradbury reads F451 on Audible.com, which is just 1 of 60,000 books read by my favorite authors. How did it know Ray Bradbury was one of my favorite authors. Then I looked at the one next to it. It said the same thing, except for Neil Gaiman and The Graveyard Book. Now this is just weird.


COLLEGE

My little brother is in college now. How time flies.


UPCOMING

AB invited me to the Brooklyn Book fair next weekend. That sounds fun.

Philly on the 26th. Finally.

MAYBE Among the Oak and Ash on the 30th if I can find someone to go with me.