Thursday tids.

I cut my web-scrolling finger lifting the air conditioner in our bedroom in place.

I'll fight though the pain to write this blog. The sacrifices I make!

**********

People kept recommending to me the Hugo nominated book, FEED, by Mira Grant.

I knew it was about a zombie plague. What I didn't expect was that was about bloggers and media and politics. Using the zombie plague and the response of the government and the media as a method to explore bigger themes such as civil liberties and truth to power.

The conceit is that bloggers were the first to notice the zombies and report on them and those people who believed the bloggers instead of the mass media (who scoffed and ridiculed the reports) survived.

Because, like you know, I'd totally tell you the minute I saw a zombie.

There goes one now!

**********

I dreamed last night that I found a cave with 50 fire breathing dragons. They were going to grow exponentially unless we sacrificed a virgin to them.

"And you couldn't find one?" Linda suggested.

**********

Came home yesterday to garden, but it way too hot.

***********

We finally hooked up our streaming Netflix and finally got our wifi at home working again, thanks to our friend Aaron.

I've abandoned the cranky old desktop computer (it was even beginning to weeze and rattle) and I am writing this on my Apple laptop. Which will be my new home computer.

My traveling computer is probably going to be a smaller, cheaper PC notebook, which I believe I can get for a couple hundred dollars. All I need or want from the thing is the ability to pick up the internet and to write.... (A PC because I like the Solitaire program.)

***********

I'm glad COVA is so optimistic about this summer's tourism. I'm kind of pessimistic based on current trends, and based on last year.

I am seeing quite a few people in the door, but they don't seem to want to open their wallets.

Lots of ones and fives in the register, instead of tens and twenties -- which for me is a sign that the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. It means I've had good foot-traffic but people are buying the smallest things possible.

I wonder sometimes if it's "guilt" money -- though I suspect that I'm the only one who thinks that way (probably because I own a store and know how it feels) -- going into a store and not spending money there always makes me feel slightly guilty. That probably is not the way most people actually think.

Anyway, the finances of the store are all in order, so I'll accept whatever level of sales comes our way.

**********

I had a blog reader in yesterday, who said that when he talks to other people about my store, they all thought I owned the building.

Seriously?

Do I need to change the title of this blog to: "No really -- this is the best minimum wage job a middle aged guy ever had.?"

Up until about 5 years ago, about the time I started writing this blog, I really, really earned minimum wage. The housing bubble was so crazy that we bought a house with two minimum wage jobs -- documented -- and a small inheritance.

Buying a commercial building is way out of reach, especially downtown.

Wouldn't it be nice.

So are they thinking about me that way because they can't figure out how I survive otherwise?

Heh.

Gardening entries; long.

I am really proud of the garden. It took time, but I’ve finally got the beginnings of a nice garden, maybe even a show-off garden someday. I know it’s probably weird for a 58 year old guy to think his Mom would be proud of him — but you have to understand what gardening meant to Libby McGeary. She was kind of a legendary gardener around here, and I think she always thought I was the most likely child to really pick up the gardening bug.

Well, it took a long time, but I think I have. I didn’t own my own property until about 7 years ago, and we had to do some of the physical changes to the house — like the porches and patios and the new roof, before we could do much more. I was able to transplant some of the plants from our previous residence, and buy some plants each year and do some gardening, but meanwhile, I had a big huge pile of dirt in the backyard and a lawn in front that was mostly weeds.

Last year, we finally put the new lawns in, and the automatic sprinkler system, and I suddenly I felt free to go for it.

Each gardening session starts off with a few easy tasks, like weeding, and then get more ambitious as the day goes on, and after 3 or 4 hours, I’m amazed by how much I’ve done.
I hate to say it, but it also helps that I can actually afford to garden. And that I’m getting time off. Both would seem to be prerequisites….

I planted the two lilacs against the back fence, and in a few years they should be tall enough to give us some privacy.

The guy who put in the lawn and sprinkler came by to fix it today, (loose wires and such), and all is working. He had the great idea of my putting arboreums on the OUTSIDE of the fence. Linda had vetoed evergreens, and I sort of agreed, but I wouldn’t mind getting the privacy shield and still keeping the gardening space inside.

So one final major purchase this year.

I admit, I’ve spent a bunch of money, but I’m really having fun with it. I’m putting in the physical labor, which would probably the most expensive part of the process, and once in place, I’ll just keep transplanting these plants in different combinations, and maybe try a couple of new things every year.. I could even start going to seed. I mean, use seeds. And like I said, I’m amazed by how much has gotten done now that I’m actually doing it.

It really doesn’t take as long as all that. I’ve probably had about ten 3 hour sessions this spring and summer, and I got a heck of a lot accomplished. I think my Mom probably did 30 hours a week in the garden, if not more. During the growing season, she was probably out there from dawn to dusk.

I have a full third of an acre, and good bones. Rock piles and juniper. The junipers are a problem, maybe, but I’ve worked around them, and tried to incorporate them. There is a natural boundary right now between the settled garden and what Linda calls “the wild side.” (She even has a sign that says, “A Walk On The Wild Side.” (Which our son, Todd, created.)

Right now, I have to beginnings of three paths that will lead into the wild side. I have the rest of my life, knock wood, to extend the paths and colonize. I’m intending to save some of the bitter brush and natural plants. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a garden that does that, but if you can’t do that in Bend, where can you?

I’ve got a magnificent rock pile at the end of the patio, and I’m going to colonize all the nocks and crannies with hens and chicks and other succulents.

I’ve used up most of the compost — I think I have enough to plant the boxwoods at the base of the patio, and fill in some holes here and there. Besides, I think I’m mostly through for the year as far as the big stuff. I’m going to clear away a bunch of grass tomorrow and follow the rock ridge that naturally follows the contour of the yard and garden.

Then I’m going to throw a packet of “wild flower seeds” around and see what happens.


From June 1, 2011:

My garden has been moving forward at a glacial pace.

But now that I have all the garden beds cleared, and I have my dumpload of soil to add in, I'm ready to start planting.

When we bought the house in early 2004, we knew that we were going to need to redo the patio, taking away a giant stairway and adding a wraparound porch to our bedroom. That was going to completely reshape the gardening space, so I held off on the gardening.

The backyard was basically a weed infested dirtpile.

I started working at eliminating the weeds, yard by yard. Going down a couple of feet and pulling every little bit of it out. About two years in, we accomplished our new porch and patio. I kept working on the backyard.

When we first moved in, I cleared enough gardening space on the left of the backyard to transplant the flowers from the garden I'd planted at our rental.

Then, over the years, we bought a few plants from nurseries and chainstores. (The chainstore plants didn't do well -- my bad.)

So we have had a garden all along, and it seems to be doing O.K. It was very Darwinian at first -- some plants really didn't do well at all under the Juniper trees, others didn't seem affected, still others suffered for awhile then rebounded.

On our sixth year, we had our roof done. And most importantly, we had new lawns put in back and in front. With a sprinkler system.

So I spent most of the rest of last year and this spring clearing away all the potential garden beds.

In building the front porch and the back patio's -- we had cut away a fair amount of shrubbery; overgrown and clotted potentilla's and juniper evergreens. So we have quite a bit of empty space.

I have all but about 10 sq. ft. of the backyard cleared; and all but about 10 sq. ft. of the front yard.

Last year we bought a drooping tree for the front of the steps -- I don't remember the name (Linda says it's a weeping pear -- no fruit). We put a bright yellow Dart's Gold Eastern Ninebark next to it. (Too close -- a constant problem with me, that I'm trying hard to correct.) That took care of the side of the stairs facing the street.

Along the side of the steps, we have an apple tree (very colorful this time of year) but otherwise it is bare. So this season, I chose Yellowtwig Dogwood, mostly because I liked the variegated leaves.

I bought some bright yellow Lydia Broom shrubs to plant in front of the Dogwood, but realized that -- along with the Dart's Gold-- it was WAY too much yellow. I moved them to the other side of the yard.

In fact, when I laid out the plants, I realized that I had too much yellow altogether; not enough red or whites, and hardly any blue (except for the forget me nots).

"Honey, we have to got back and buy some more colors. Let's stick to small plants..."

So off we went, and Linda saw some Bleeding Hearts, so we grabbed a couple of those, and then a really cool owl statue....

Once again, we went way, way over budget.

Went back and started planting. About half way through, I decided to only plant about 60% of the flowers I'd intended to use. I decided to give each plant plenty of space, so that in about 2 years, everything will fill in nicely. Plus, I decided that I'd plant each species of perennial in both the front and back yards,

A measure of success I can hope to obtain.

"'Phenomenal' return: Three salmon back to damn so far." Bulletin, 6/22/11.

Gee. If only all endeavors could be termed a 'phenomenal' success with only a 3/10th of 1% return rate!

**********

"Paying admission at the bookstore."

This would seem like a bad idea.

However, I'm sympathetic since the last signing I did (and the last signing I'll ever do) had a huge turnout -- and minimal sales.

I had just assumed the attendees would reward the writer (and the store) for the effort....

**********

Global Insights, the same people who predicted we were the most overpriced market in the U.S.A. during the bubble, are saying we won't have the same level of jobs in Bend as before the crash until 2021.

2021.

I'm just going to hold my breath and make a big wish!

I think the best thing for a business to do in Bend is not expect improvement, maybe even plan for further downturns. Sad, but true.

But hey! everyone says to me. Look at all the new businesses downtown!

Thing is, they are NEW businesses. Ask yourself what happened to the old businesses....

**********

The sprinkler guy got the system up and working again. I planted the two lilacs and the rest of the plants, filled in the rest of the dirt, and it looks really good.

This garden could be show-off worthy in a couple more years.

I have a couple of huge, enormously long and detailed blogs about all the plants and the process...which I might post soon, with a warning. I don't know that it will be all that interesting to most people. But I wrote them, and the internet is large, so just ignore them if you please.

I have a book. The same book you have.

Imagine that I walk into your house, and on the table I see an I-pad, a Kindle or a Nook.

Imagine that I walk into your neighbor's house, and on the table I see an I-pad, a Kindle or a Nook.

Imagine that I walk into your brother's house, and on the table I see an I-pad, a Kindle or a Nook.

How bland. How Orwellian. How....shudder, Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

Imagine that you walk into my house, and on a bookshelf are Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones. A batch of mysteries. A book about ancient Rome, another one about gardening, and so on and so forth.

How interesting. How human. How individualistic.


Or how about this.

I walk into your kitchen, and in the cupboard is a box of pills. There's a red one for spaghetti, a green one for salad, a blue one for steak, and so on.

I assure you these pills taste every bit as good as the best gourmet meals, plus they are easy and cheap to buy.

Imagine I walk into your neighbor's house, and there in the cupboard is a box of pills. There's a red one, a green one, a blue one and so on.

What do I know about you? How bland. How uninteresting.


Imagine, if you will, that I walk into your living room, and there is a table. It's a beautiful table that does everything a table should do, it was delivered to your door, and it was ultra cheap.

Imagine I walk into your brother's house and he has the same table and it its beautiful and functional and cheap and convenient.



I hope and believe that individuality will emerge. That people like owning things, showing what they like and don't like, showing that they read certain books, being reminded of those books daily, surrounded by those books.


The problem, as I see it, is the majority of books that we read that we don't feel the need to keep. The e-readers function very well for your average pot-boiler that you're reading on summer vacation.

How do we keep the physical books around when 80% of the books purchased are digital? How do we keep the physical publishers, distributors, and book sellers in existence, for those of us who want to own the real thing?

My question is -- in your rush (you-all) to buy digital, are you going to force me to be like you? To have that I-pad, that Kindle or Nook on my table? Are you going to force me to search even harder for the real book, and pay much more for it?

Probably.

Welcome to pod world.

A book and a couch to sleep on.

There's a website I go to, called Rocket Bomber, which is written by a Barnes and Noble manager in Atlanta.

He's amazingly candid. I fear for his job if his corporate overlords ever read what he's saying.

Here's a line in his opening paragraphs of his current blog:

"Bookstore customers kind of suck, they unfairly hold bookstores to an impossible standard — a standard of service they don’t even hold internet book retailers to — and I don’t know how to fix it. (This is a rant; what did you expect?)"

Anyway, he complains about the things I would think a B & N manager would complain about,.

For instance, bums inhabiting his couches and restrooms.

I asked Linda this morning if she thought the couches and table at her store were a plus or a minus (Not that we would get rid of them -- for one thing, we need them for the groups that meet there.)

"Oh, I think they're a plus. It's where the non-readers go."

"What do you mean."

"If they don't have a place to go and look through picture books, they pester the readers they came with and so the readers buy less books."

"Huh. I never thought of that?"

Anyway, many of the B & N manager's complaints are the same complaints I would have if I was powerless to do anything about them. Fortunately for me, I can make changes that solve most problems.

I'm going to talk more about his rants later, because there are so many parallels and so many differences....

Happy Stepfather's Day!

Linda got me an I-Pad for Stepfather's Day. Which I'm going to loan to her to use as much as she wants. She loves the gadgets.

She shall be the Guardian of the I-Pad.

***********

What Bend cares about, based on number of comments to KTVZ articles:

animals and graffiti.

**********

Did the last stretch of weeding for the backyard yesterday. It was the last bit, because I kept putting it off. I think my subconscious knew something, because it was BY FAR the worst stretch of ground I have worked on. A tangle of roots.

But I've done 360 degree weeding, now.

We bought two five foot tall Ludwig lilacs, which can grow as high as 10'. (I've seen 15's around town.) At six inches growth per year, they should be providing the privacy screen I want in about 8 years -- just about the time I intend to be a full time gardener.

The guy at the nursery said it was the "year of the lilacs." A cool spring allowed enough delay for the buds to really develop.

I'm waiting at home today for the sprinkler guys, and hoping they can fix the system. I figure I'm about two sessions from finishing the big stuff for the year -- one to plant the lilacs and the other still potted plants, and one to do the sidestreet side of the house.

Turns out that 3 or 4 hour sessions in the garden, done consistently, is the way to go. Instead of two or three 10 hour sessions and weeks of recovery.

I need to spread the last fourth of the compost pile, and then resurface the gravel in front of the house -- I bought two cubic yards at the same time as the lilacs. (I would NEVER use gravel as a surface, but once you have it, you're kind of stuck with it...)

I'm glad I'm gardening, because it's keeping me out of the house and in the wind and sun and the smells and the feel of the earth and it gives me time to think about writing -- I got most of chapter 4 done yesterday. Also got my first glimmerings of the overall arc of the plot.

**********

I say "most" of chapter 4, because after I showered, I went down and popped a beer and began to finish it. Suddenly, it was 8:00 and we were going to miss The Killing and I took a break for that. Meanwhile, the one can of Tilt I drank completely discombobulated me.

My old habit of sitting down with a beer was 3.5 beer, and I would just use it to ease myself into a creative state. Using a beverage like Tilt just sort of blasted me past my goal, and I find myself looking back.

No more of that stuff. Sheesh.

Came down after the show, and did more writing, and then went up and watched the recorded Game of Thrones.

The pay off and the piss off.

The Game of Thrones and The Killing.

SPOILERS!!




O.K. Tell me the Game of Thrones didn't pay off, in spades. Great last episode. I was riveted and I read the book! Linda pulled down the book and read the last paragraph out loud, and the show just nailed it.

I liked the show all the way through, but it seemed a little plodding compared to the books. Now I think, like all good things, it just needed to wind up and prepare for the sheer power of the story. Bland camera movements, but you know what? I'm sick of jiggly camera's representing movement. Let the story speak for itself.

Terrific. A couple of times, it sent chills down my spine. When Jon Snow's friends proclaimed their oath, and the dragon unfurling at the end.

Can't wait for next year -- and can't wait for the fifth book.



The Killing.

Come on, really!?

To me this was like watching someone do the most obvious and easy things in very elaborate and sophisticated ways.

First thing I thought when they were talking gas mileage was -- what if the suspect got the car filled at the end of the drive instead of the beginning? But it took the two 'detectives' the whole show to figure that out.

The one detective's total betrayal came out of left field.

Too bad. Great atmosphere, great emotions, great acting, great editing.

Stupid plot.

I'll watch next year, because I'm a sucker.

Stealing plants.

I was asking a friend if I could come by and steal a couple of plants out of her front yard.

"You won't even notice," I said. "I think I can dig up shoots that wouldn't change the look of your garden."

"Which plants?" she demanded.

"Seriously. You won't notice. But you might notice me out there with my shovel...."

I see plants all over the place that no one would notice or care were missing.

But, like I said, they might notice a guy with a shovel. I don't feel like going to jail for stealing plants.

But really...what harm would it do?

I know, I know. Plant lust.

I've got an idea for a non-profit. A plant exchange. Everyone brings in their overgrowth and trades it for someone else's overgrowth.

(The nurseries might not like that much -- I suppose....)

Writing and gardening.

I'm getting kind of intrigued by the 'process' of writing -- fascinated by the many ways one can tell a story.

When I first started writing this new book, I had just finished reading a book where the chapters were short and punchy, and there was very little narrative. Currently, I'm reading a book that has long chapters, and is full of narrative. Both were good stories.

I'm also getting interested in the work 'habits.' One thing I learned in writing those seven manuscripts all those years ago is that HOW I go about writing was as important to the eventual results as the actual creative process of writing. I really hurt myself with bad habits. (Overwriting too soon, or too much, or not enough or....)

Now, for instance, when I'm not completely satisfied with my chapters, or I see that they need work, I just tell myself that I will be rewriting this whole thing when I'm finished. How and when I choose to rewrite is probably more important in some ways than having the original ideas and first draft.

And whether I can keep up my enthusiasm during the task. I'm telling myself to enjoy it as a process and an experiment.

**********

Our sprinkler system stopped working. I already had a couple of dead heads; and they weren't all reaching the new parts of the garden. We also had the landscaper create a drip hose system last year, but we didn't get it put in place -- I was supposed to call him when I was ready.

So he's coming Monday, and I'm hoping he can get all those problems solved.

I've been watering in three stages, which isn't really that big a deal. But if we ever want to go on trips in the hot months, we will need the sprinkler system.


I have one last little stretch of grass removal left to do.

When I remove invasive grass, I go a foot or two down and remove every little bit of root. It quite a bit more work, but once done, it's solves the grass problem -- as long as I keep up.

When I'm done there, I still have the last half of the side street to clear. I'm going to put my yucka plant babies over there, and be done. This part of our property is out of sight out of mind, but I still feel responsible for it.

Last step for now, is to try to fill two parts of the backyard that need some privacy screening. We've decided on using those purple lilac plants that can get 15 or 20 feet high. They are affordable, and I don't need outside help to plant them, they contour to the fence, and they grow fast and they look and smell nice.

After that, I want to let the garden mature for awhile before I make any more major changes.

Once again, I'm struck by the similarity of gardening and writing. They just seem to go together, somehow.

I should be selling candy.

I chose the wrong business, I tell you.

Seems like every young family who came in over the last two days had bags of candy.

I've actually carried candy before, but I tend to eat up the profits. I can only stare at a candy bar for so long before it starts staring back at me. ("eat me!" it whispers...)

I know one thing -- if parents thought to feed their kids minds with books as much as they are willing to fill their stomachs with candy, I'd be a wealthy man.

(Still -- I'm thinking of giving in and carrying a variety of Costco candies -- and just try to be more disciplined. If you can't beat them, join them.)

Summer business has started -- sorta, kinda.

This week is what I term "transition week." The kids have just gotten out of school; they are transitioning to summer plans -- staying with the 'other' parent, camps, etc. etc. So actually quite a few locals, versus out-of-towners.

Next week we should start seeing more tourists and less at-loose-ends-locals.

It's always kind of a shock to be getting so many people in the door. Don't get me wrong, I still do most of my real business with regulars, but I'll sell the occasional this or that to tourists, enough to boost sales.

The lateness of the summer start is one of those things that have really changed over the last 20 years. Used to be, summer business would kick in right around Memorial Day and pretty much end at Labor Day.

Now, at least two or three weeks later for the start. And the end of summer has extended halfway into September. I think this is because the school year has shrunk the summer months, and we get older tourists taking advantage of the summer weather in September. Something like that.

The old 80/20 rule seems to be in play, though. 80% of the traffic flow accounts for 20% of the sales; and 20% of the traffic flow accounts for 80% of the sales.

It's just everything is at a higher level of activity. Not like the old days, where I'd do as much as 50% more business. It's much more moderate than that nowadays, but it's still helpful to catch up on the bills.

Last summer was the smallest boost I'd ever seen, so I've planned for a small boost this year, too.

It's all about the expectation.

Who you gonna believe?

Another ridiculous statement by a local realtor. Honestly, I hate to keep going there. I was going to make a blanket statement that the local media should put a moratorium on interviewing real estate agents about the real estate market.

"Hey, Mr. Used Car Salesman, are your cars any good?"

"Hey, Mr. Drug Pusher, are your drugs any good?"

You see the problem. But I'll forestall the suggestion. I don't suppose being a real estate agent precludes them being candid and truthful. I certainly wouldn't want the media not to interview me about books or comics just because I sell them.

If you are going to interview a real estate agent, it makes sense to have a counter opinion, which is what KTVZ does in this story.

HOUSING PREDICTOR WEBSITE: "...has predicted Bend’s housing prices will drop an average of 11.5 percent this year, topping their “Worst 25 Housing Markets” list ahead of Las Vegas, Atlantic City and Miami, all predicted to see a 10.8 percent price decline"

REAL ESTATE AGENT: "...he doesn’t believe the much-discussed “pending foreclosure flood” and further depreciation in some parts of the country will “be much of a factor here in Bend.”“With less than four months of housing inventory in Bend, buyers could use the extra inventory."

"BUYERS COULD USE THE EXTRA INVENTORY." Really. He said that.

Keep it simple.

This is a response to a post on another blog of a store owner who is feeling burnt out.

Keep it simple. Drop everything but the main stuff. Let it go. Don't worry about advertising and promotions; let word of mouth and location do the work for you. Say no to everything except the basics of your business.

It can be hard to say no.

It can be hard not to pursue every opportunity. It can be hard letting go of trying to be perfect.

Just say no.

Keep it simple. Every decision should include a cost/effectiveness measure -- and time, labor and space needs to be included in the cost.

Accept less money, if that is what it takes. Selling a little less, but saving your sanity is a fair trade.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: in my opinion just about as many businesses quit because of burn out than because of money.

Turn down the constant temptation of trying new things, changing old things, adding, adding, adding. Drop something if it isn't working.

In every case -- measure the FUTURE work load involved in every decision and realize you are ADDING to your future work load.

Do more of the stuff you like, but less of the stuff you don't like.

Just say no.

Let the product and service speak for itself. Concentrate on the important stuff -- like the quality of presentation, and the quality of the product and service. Let everything else go. Every contest, every promotion, every event, every meeting, every trip, every organization you join, that pulls you away is extra work.

Just say no.

If your product is good, you'll still be O.K.

Did I mention, keep it simple?

Dunc

No credit, no cash, no terms.

I've been thinking a lot about that award-winning comic shop that recently went public with their troubles and asked for help.

I don't wish to kick them while they are down; thus, I won't use their name. Nevertheless, an object lesson is an object lesson.

Something was nagging me about the story, more than I had talked about before. This morning I realized what it was.

There seemed to be no awareness on the part of the owners that just getting back into the black -- into NOT losing money -- is only the first, and maybe the easiest step.

Paying back all the money owed -- the angel investors, to loans, to credit cards, and to suppliers -- that's the real bitch.

What bothered me in reading a description of their woes was that there seemed to be little concession toward austerity.

I'm not going to pretend I'm a paragon of thrift -- for one thing, there were hundreds of comic shops in the great collapse of comics in the mid-90's who went through the same sort of crisis.

But I do know that I had to cut back -- really cut back.

I had no credit, no cash, no terms. I was cash on delivery, and I had no margin for error. None.

A full 40% of my gross profit went toward debt for seven years. It was a long, slow, agonizing process.

But I went ahead and did it because I felt that the store itself could provide a living and that I had learned enough lessons that if I could just get through, it would pay in the end. It was a trial by fire.

I think results have proven I was right, though having the Great Recession come along just as I was crawling out of the hole wasn't helpful.

But what I remember was being extremely austere. Cutting every unnecessary expense. Working every day straight for seven years. And so on.

I see no evidence that the owners of the above mentioned shop are making the necessary austerity measures. They appear to want to continue to do business as usual.

My advice, painful as it might be for such a lionized shop, is to give up trying to be a 'model store' and try instead to be a simple, functional store.

Because it's going to take years and years and years to pay back the debt, to climb out of the hole they've dug for themselves.

If they aren't going to make true changes, then any money they beg for is just money down a rat hole.

Schizo for the genius.

There was an article in the Bulletin today about Johnny McDermott, the first American golfer to win the U.S. Open. He won in 1911 at the age of 19, and then again in 1912.

Then...he went nuts.

The article terms it a "mystery", and looks for reasons; "fragile mind," pressure from the golf gods, I suppose.

Combine this with a recent documentary I saw on Bobby Fischer, which tried to explain his madness as a result of his genius.

Well. no. At least, not mostly I don't think. (Obviously, I'm no doctor.)

They both had the onset of schizophrenia at about the usual age. Early 20's. Fischer managed to hold on to his mind a little longer, but it's pretty obvious he was suffering from his late teens on.

Anyway, they weren't crazy because of their genius, but geniuses despite their illness.

It must be particularly poignant for someone to be so successful so early, and then have this happen to them. But it's what happens with the disease.

People seem to want to romanticize these diseases -- long after the fact, because almost no one would be willing to put up with the behavior while they are still around. But for the sufferers, there is nothing romantic about it.

Tuesday tingers.

I watched the last half of the Mavs/Heat game, pretty much the only basketball I've watched all year.

I was rooting for the Mavs, all the way. Turns out, I'm not the only LeBron/Heat hater.

It used to be that teams would try to buy their way to championships.

Now the players do.

***********

It is still taking me all week to read the New York Times, sometimes even longer if you include the magazine.

I have no idea why I read some articles -- they have no utility to my life whatsoever.

I guess I just like knowing random things.

**********

When my Barnes and Noble stock went up 15% right after buying it, I had a momentary urge to sell.

It then dropped 65% and I said, it can't get worse. But if it EVER gets up to the price I paid, I'll sell.

Now it's again 15% higher than I paid, and I still can't pull the trigger.

I should have known -- it's the way I do things. I don't let go; I don't give up.

Even when I know I should.

**************

Some vandals spray-painted the Westside Church, and this was the comment of the "director of facilities:'

"But the bottom line is that God is the one that's going to get revenge -- we aren't."

Heh. I was expecting something more along the lines of, "May God forgive them."

I have to try...

I am emotionally committed to writing this story.

I'm not proceeding very fast; so far, I've managed about 3 four page 'chapters', or about 1500 words each. But I'm satisfied with the results so far.

The main thing is that I'm keeping my headspace in the story. It's still there, just in the back of my mind, and I think the sub-conscious is working on it. I spent two weeks on this last chapter mulling it over, not really getting very far, and then it all came out in about 3 hours.

As long as I can maintain "the fictional dream" I can keep writing.

Back when I was writing full time, I had a wellspring metaphor in my head; the well would fill up and start splashing over, and I'd know it was time to write. I used to leave a starting point for the next session at the end of every writing session; just a word, a line, a glimmer of a scene, was often enough.

When I bought Pegasus Books, too much was going on to maintain the headspace, the fictional dream, the wellspring was neglected.

I think having time off from the store has been the main reason I've been able to commit to another book.

I've had the usual doubts. This time, about originality. The story is about a supernatural detective, which of course has been done -- even going back to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, one of my all time favorite shows. Jim Butcher.

There was even an announcement of this kind of show on network T.V. next season.

Oh, well.

I've always thought you could give the same kernel of story to ten different writers and come up with ten different results.

My thinking about originality has evolved in my time off from writing. I tend to think there isn't really anything completely original, it's what you do with it.

I find myself explaining to customers that I don't read fantasy books much anymore because they aren't original.

But The Game of Thrones and Bujold's fantasies and Name of the Wind are all pretty much standard in their elements -- it's the quality of the writing that makes them stand out.

Not that I think I'm a great writer. I think I struggle to write good fiction.

But I have to try.

Random shows.

The blog is about the current shows I've been watching and is full of Spoilers.



So The Killing has rounded back to the obvious suspect; but it's a little too obvious.

Question: Did the drunk driver push the councilman's wife into the river?

But I figure it's someone on his campaign who did it. Unlike most reviewers, I wasn't really put off by all the red herrings. It was only, what, 12 episodes? I can handle that.

Try three or four seasons of Twin Peaks. Or X-Files. Or Lost! Never did much wrap those up adequately.

**********

Speaking of continuity problems: Went to see X-Men: First Class, and thought it was great.

Everyone I've talked to has mentioned the continuity errors; like I should be outraged as Head Comic Nerd.

Well, hell. I just don't care. I long ago gave up worrying about continuity in comics. There are 50 years worth of stories, by hundreds of different writers and artists.

It's inevitable.

And every time they try to fix it; Crisis on Infinite Earths, or whatever, it just adds another layer of complexity.

52 new #1?

Won't solve the problem, just add 52 new continuities.....

Give it up.

**********

As I said in my twitter, all over America people watching Game of Thrones yelled out: WHAT!?

I have wondered how this would go over.

And Martin doesn't let up -- much -- in the following books. My three favorite characters are still alive, but I expect at least one or two will be polished off before he's done.

War is hell.

Which I think is the point.

(Thanks for not showing the head rolling....)

**********

Random movie: Stone.

I thought this was a really good movie; DeNiro, Norton and Milla did some fantastic acting, and it surprised me all the way.

Got less than 50% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but they were just wrong....

What He said.

You're probably as sick of the housing news as I am. One of the things I learned about bubble crashes is -- just when you think they are at an end, they drop again. And then again.

It's only when you've given up expecting it to change that it does. When you don't care anymore.

Anyway, the Bulletin had two mutually contradictory articles about housing that can be explained, I think, by timing.

The announcement that "Foreclosures Surge 287%" is the beginning of a new trend. (Or a continuation of an old trend...)

The news that housing prices went up for one month, is the end of the last trend -- as well as being what looks to me a temporary blip upward. My interpretation is that it just happened that the houses that sold in April happened to be higher priced.

But a few more months of heavy foreclosures can't do anything but drive prices down again, you would think.

Nevertheless, this is what you hear from the Bratton Report: "We do appear to bumping along the bottom of the market." ...."As you can see, we appear to be in a bottoming process and the large declines that occurred in 2008 and 2009 are leveling out."

"I believe this a great time to buy a house...."

So when does an organization's credibility become low enough not to be quoted anymore?

It's easy. I'll subject myself to the same criteria. Check out what they've said and I've said in the past and see how accurate we've been. Go ahead, all my posts are still there.

I'd be willing to bet that the Bratton Report has called a bottom and used the words "great time to buy a house" oh, I don't know, a dozen times?

Shall we compare notes in 3 or 4 months? It's not just about being bullish or a bear--it's about being somewhere in the realm of reality.

At least the Bulletin also quotes Tim Duy, director of the Oregon Economic Forum:

"Duy anticipates home price could take anoher dip in May and June." "Duy said it is likely to put downward pressure on housing prices."

What HE said.

Who's liberal? Who's conservative?

To follow up on my comments in the last thread, here's a little attempt at irony.

I'm sure that RDC will be along shortly to fact-challenge my assumptions. (Fact-challenged assumptions = common sense. ;)

The reason small businesses are conservative icons, is that I think conservatives know in their hearts that they are the quintessential pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps, work hard and get ahead kinds of businesses.

Especially Mom and Pops.

I think in their heart of hearts, most conservatives realize that not all big business is purely capitalism. Because of their ability to buy patronage and campaigns and interests (otherwise known as lobbying) they are helped in their efforts to expand. There are monopolistic aspects to big business -- special prices, exclusives, favoritism, that seem to me undeniable.

Besides, no one has ever sufficiently explained to me why it is fair for big business to get better prices because they buy more; it seems a little too much like "might makes right" to me, no matter how you rationalize it.

If I was six foot four and you were five foot four, and I demanded two thirds of the watermelon, you'd hardly think it was right.

Anyway, most Mom and Pops get little or no help.

But the same conservatives who tout small business will often shop at big business because they save a few bucks. Even though they know that small businessman is a neighbor and is likely to spend his money locally.

They'll complain about small differences in prices.

Whereas, I'd be willing to bet that most of the Shop Local supporters are bleeding heart liberals.

Big business to me is not conservative -- it is aided and abetted by big government.

Small business is almost always a local thing --

So who's conservative and who's liberal?

Unfair competition?

Common Table also raises the question of whether it is unfair for a for-profit business to have to compete against a non-profit business.

In this case, I can't really answer for the other fine-dining restaurants.

O.K. Yes, I can. I'm betting it makes no real difference in this particular case. It's not like there isn't tons of competition already; and I'm betting that the majority of the restaurants downtown are probably in support of the idea.

Good 'em.


But I do know that -- competing against a non-profit for the same dollars when there isn't the same need to pay off employees, suppliers, etc. etc. can be difficult.

I guess, in the long run, I don't mind if it truly is a non-profit charity business where the bulk of the revenue streams toward the intended goals. Charity is needed in this world.

What has always bothered me are the for-profit businesses that cloak themselves as for-the-public type businesses. The kind that says, "Hey, this is all for YOU! We don't care if we make money! We're providing this service and this space for YOU! This is for the COMMUNITY!"

Meanwhile, they are indeed a for-profit business.

So -- I guess it's a pretty good marketing ploy, but I suspect in the majority of cases that is all it is.

If not, they don't stick around long. Because believe you me, a business that is not run like a business does not survive.

Meanwhile, it can be hard to compete with a "holier than thou" type business.

I ran into this problem back at the peak of the sports card business. A store would open up, professing to be "for the kids." "We aren't trying to make money off you," they'd announce, "We just want there to be a place for kids to have fun!"

The implication, of course, is that us "for profit" businesses are making money off the kids and how dare we?

Ummmm. To stay in business?

How is it that the public is totally supportive of the idea of small businesses making a profit -- IN THEORY -- and yet, so often opposed to it in reality?

It's interesting psychology.

Underlying it all, I believe, is the feeling that businesses that earn money are somehow taking advantage of us. Scratch underneath any popular hobby, and there is the feeling that a hobby should be pure -- and how dare you make money! It should be fun! For us! For the kids!
How dare you?

Capitalism is a great idea, until it gets in the way of what you want.