I turned down a temp-to-perm job last week. The woman at the temp agency described it as an excellent job in a great location, but that there was one itsy-bitsy little requirement before I could be hired... I'll bet you're thinking I'm going to say "drug test", right? Wrong... They wanted an IQ TEST! And they would only hire me if I scored 120 or higher. Well, to my knowledge, my IQ is around 130 (not a genius, but adequate), and I agreed with some reluctance. The woman scheduled me for the test, then told me that this company used the management techniques of "someone named L. Ron Hubbard." Well, most of you would probably guess that this was a major red light for me -- I told the woman that there was no way in hell I would take a job with a bunch of mind-controlled Scientology zombies (well, I was politer than that, but not by much), that it was a very personal issue to me, and that I hoped it didn't affect my future with that temp agency. She seemed quite flustered, and wasn't familiar with either the Right Rev. LRH or his brainwashing cult, but agreed that I shouldn't go on the assignment... Jeez, another near-miss...

*Sigh* The car I bought from the lesbian couple is pretty much dead... I made the mistake of trying to drive it to Beaverton for my D&D game last week, and it barely made it. I guess I'm back to public transportation, but I'm hoping to get back at least part of my $200 from them, since they said they wanted to buy the car back... I doubt they'd want a useless hulk back, but maybe they'll give me part of it or something.

Good news includes some possible new freelance writing work, though I'm going to hold off on telling you who until it's a sure thing. I don't want to queer the deal by blowing any details. Suffice to say, the identity of my new potential client will come as a huge shock to some of you ;)

I'm working on a couple of side-projects, including a story that was requested by a reader, that I've been really lax in working on, but once that's done, and a couple of my "serious" pieces are underway, I'm getting to work on Elven Twilight. It should be quite a barnburner, but the story has moved along so briskly and has taken on such a life, that I'm not sure where I'm going to put the sex ;) In future, I'll try to integrate it a bit more smoothly... Lord of the Peaks is better in that respect, featuring some rather kinky stuff that's actually relevant to the plot... That will be my next project after ET, so stay tuned.

I'll be reworking Book of Thystra, too so that you guys will have a decent .pdf to work with. I'll keep y'all informed. In the meantime, wish me luck on this interview. I hope to have a real-live permanent job by week's end, or I'm going to be running on fumes. Good thing my computer's paid for, huh?

Narisha's Night is almost done! I'm in a work-frenzy, so I'm hoping to get it done tonight and posted this week. It's turned out to be harder than I thought (okay, make the puns now and get 'em over with), but it actually has some character development in it, and an event that will affect Narisha's future adventures in some manner... And lotsa sex... This kind of constitutes the "gangbang" of the Thystra mileu. You'll have to let me know what you think.

I'm still hanging about a really cool-looking job that involves writing technical manuals for commercial jets. They will train me in all the appropriate terminology, since I'm assured that my writing and publishing skills are more than up to par. They're taking their time making a decision, however, though the individual I'm talking to assures me that the odds are about 70/30 in my favor... My problem is that when I'm gaming and have to roll low, I always roll high, and vice-versa. I hope that particular trend doesn't continue in this case.

In the meantime, I've taken a temp job doing typing in a legal office. Sheesh... I'll have to wear a tie and everything. It's only two weeks, however, and it is money, so I shouldn't complain.

I have a temporary vehicle -- a klunking, clattering battleship of a station wagon that I bought from a really cute lesbian couple who works at a bar that I patronize because... Well, that particular story may have to wait a while... It's still in progress. Anyway, it cost me a mere $200,  it's big, it's noisy, it uses about a quart of oil a day, but it will get me to work for the next 3 weeks or so while I get in position to buy a decent car. If the writing job goes through, then I'm in good shape to get a "real" ride. We'll see.

And last night... da-da daaaaaaaaaa... I was actually persuaded to play a Vampire game by a young lady who... Well, that's a long story, too, and  I think I should wait to go into that one until I'm certain exactly what to tell. Suffice to say, she's the cutest damned thing I've met in a long time, and she's becoming a very good friend; otherwise, how in hell do you think someone of my obvious inclinations would attend a damned game of Vampire the Marinade and actually enjoy myself? Anyway, I was actively considering playing on a semi-regular basis, but only if I could play Alex St. John or a similar character (journalist/hunter who associates with the "lawful" vampires and helps them exterminate the renegades and sociopaths in their ranks), but I don't think the GM would like it, since he's the type who actually challenges the notion that vamps are cool, ultra-powerful, world-shattering superheroes who have nothing to do with us puny little humans save as favored, cherished little weany pet-boys... And a human who can kick ass on vampires might not fit very well into their mileu; since the game was designed with the dracs in mind, it's probably difficult to create a human character with any survivability factor whatsoever. Besides, Alex (and such vampire-hunters as Jack Crow and Captain Kronos) have a number of useful sidekicks and/or team members who defeat the damned bloodsuckers through teamwork (and remember that the turnover rate on Crow's team was near 100%). I mean, hell, we can't have a competent human hanging out with the all-powerful vampires... Hell, it might actually make the dracs question their somewhat slanted world-view... Maybe they're not so all-powerful and all humans aren't either cattle or pets... Heh-heh... Oh, well, if I played Alex I'd probably get my ass killed, but I'd have fun doing it. I refuse to play a damned bloodsucker...

Well, that's about it for now. I HOPE I'll get N's Night done today or tomorrow, and get it online before I'm totally exhausted by this legal typing work I'm forced to do. I'm heading out at the crack of dawn tomorrow, clad in suit and tie, hoping that I'll survive... Wish me luck ;)

I now have a cable modem so I'm once more free of the restrictions of the 56k modem (which, of course, never connects even close to 56k... unlike most of the people who used to call me when I was a tech support operator, I understand that just owning a fast modem doesn't automatically mean you'll have a fast connection). My scanner is back on-line, and as soon as I can afford the $85 for a new cartridge I'll have my printer again. Hopefully, you've all noted that I finally finished Armada (to a very gratifying response, btw... thanks to everyone who's written), have posted Kurt's n'doro story and put up a bunch more art. I finally feel as if I'm up to date... I've been kind of lax in writing for the last week, but I think that's forgiveable considering circumstances.

I love it back here. I love the trees, I love the rivers, I love the houses and the people. Don't get me wrong, LA is a perfectly decent place... I'm not going to join the legions of LA bashers out there who think it's a hell on earth. Any place can be a hell on earth if you're not happy, and I guess I wasn't really happy. On the other hand, I think I did need some time away, and some fresh perspective. The fact is that I'm happier now than I would have been if I hadn't gone... Having dealt with the complications and difficulties of life in Burbank, being here among the greenery and the rivers and the fresh, cool breezes seems that much better, and the issues of my life seem much less complicated.

Hmmmm... Let's see; what else? I want to get to work on Narisha's Night this week, and I should have it finished fairly quickly (hell, how hard is it to write 5,000 words or so of non-stop boinking?). Then I either work on Lord of the Peaks (another shorter work about young Wulf and Akumi) or I do Elven Twilight and finish the DV saga once and for all. We'll see.

I bought a DVD player and a big-screen TV and have been enjoying viewing The Matrix in all its glory. The subtleties and wisdom of that film continue to amaze me, especially given that it's in such a thrilling shoot-em-up action package. Get the message through any way you can, I say -- escape the Matrix and be free.

The release of the AD&D Third Edition has inspired me and my friends to get back into roleplaying. My best bud Dale (who doesn't have a web page or anything, the Luddite...) will be running an "urban adventure" setting in a vast fantasy city that is the crossroads of the world, and bigger than Constantinople at its height. Kind of in the tradition of Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser, and other "gritty" urban fantasies. I've been experimenting with character generation, and I can only say that the new game seems elegant, streamlined, logical, easy to play, and so many more things... It's the culmination of 25 years of roleplaying, and I've yet to find any major flaws with it. All of you who roleplay (and I KNOW you're out there), should check it out. The release also hastens work on my mysterious "Project X," allowing me to come up with solid 3rd Edition stats for Wulf and company. In fact, I'll post his AD&D stats in Extras soonly just so you can see what I've done with him (also, frankly, if anyone wants to see some tweaking or changes in his stats to bring him in line with your view of Wulf, by all means let me know).

It's not all perfect. I will be needing employment relatively soon, but I don't feel the old rush/stress combination that turned me into such a creep and contributed in large part to the destruction of my marriage, and by all that's holy I intend to rebuild my life piece by piece in a logical fashion that won't turn me into an inconsiderate stress monster.

And oh, yeah, I threw out my knee in some horrific manner last night, leaving me relatively immobile for the next couple of days while it gets better. An excellent opportunity to write, wouldn't you say?

Best to all.

This is going to be a short entry, since tonight I'm getting ready for the big move tomorrow... I was HOPING that I could finish Armada tonight, but there's just too much to do; I hope to have the story posted and new stuff, including some new pictures, up by the end of NEXT week, assuming that I can get on-line and settled. Rest assured, however, that I'll get the silly thing finished (only a couple more scenes to do, but I'm just too worn out nad busy to do it). Wish me luck -- I'll be out of contact for a few days while we head back up north.

Cliff is concerned about his money situation, so we're not going to Six Flags; I'll take Dev to X-Men this afternoon instead. I think I have a solution for Cliff -- he has been laid off, but he's not concerned about getting another job, so we're probably going to drive up to Portland like a bat out of hell, then unload my stuff, sign my car over to Cliff, he'll pick up Colleen and the two of them will drive back down. Colleen can make substantial $$$ playing violin (so long as the streeties stay away), while Cliff's new roomie will be making money, and Cliff has sufficient skills to get a decent job. In the end, I think I'll leave Cliff better off than he was when I was here, since he'll have two income-earning roomies instead of one. Believe me, the relief I feel when I know they'll be okay down here is worth the price of the damned car... Besides, I'll get a new one as soon as I find a job.

I never was a superstitous person, but I'm now concerned about jinxing my luck, which I think has changed. I just got word back from Hard Shell Word Factory that they want to see the complete manuscript of my novel The Queen's Lancers, and that their editor said "Superb battle scenes.  Just right mix of narrative and dialogue.  Nice range of emotions played out.  NIce writing as well.  More interesting to guys than gals?" Damn, finally... Hell, it's not Simon and Schuster, but then I'm not Stephen King and, hell, the Internet is the world's newest medium, and hopefully e-books will become a real force in publishing someday. If not, well it's a credit, and I've finally got some people paying attention to my other fiction.

Heading home a week from tomorrow. Las Vegas next weekend. Armada some time during the week... Keep in touch ;)

In other news, Armada will be hitting the web next week some time... I just have a couple of s&m scenes and a lesbian three-way to finish writing ;) Then, my deck will be cleared to finish my packing and moving...

A slight glitch has entered my plans, as Cliff's employers are once more messing with him -- they say that his job will end "Friday" (whether that means tomorrow or next week was not made clear), and that he might have a shot at a job in Van Nuys, but he doesn't have a car. We're busily trying to arrange some kind of transportation/financial situation to give him some breathing space, but if that doesn't work he may have to move back with me and Devon after all. I THINK I've got a couple of ideas that will save the situation, so keep your fingers crossed. The fact is that I feel kind of guilty about bailing on Cliff after committing to a year down here, even though my reasons for doing so were pretty good. I feel an obligation to do my best to help him stay here.

We're going to the water park tomorrow and enjoying the wonders of water slides and tubes, which I haven't done in YEARS... Should be fun. We're scheduled for Las Vegas next weekend, so that should be fun, too. Keep an eye out for Armada; it's almost ready to roll ;)

So, anyway, it was a lot of fun anyway. Devon liked the Haunted Mansion and Space Mountain (I didn't go on that last one, having an aversion for roller coasters). I liked the Indiana Jones adventure, which is more of a thrill-ride than a roller coaster, with the huge jeep-like cart lurching up and down and side to side as you fly through the haunted temple. The biggest bust was the so-called "Rocket Rods" which are supposed to be Disneyland's newest mass-transit innovation. They're these high-speed rail cars that fling you all over the park and around corners at a breakneck pace. It would have been fun had the line been shorter, but as it is we stood in line for an hour and a quarter just to be slingshotted around for 3-4 minutes. That's an hour of my life I'll never get back, and it's Disneyland's fault :)

Took it easy today, watched TV, ate donuts... That sort of thing. The big move starts Monday as I go in search of boxes. I'll also be helping Cliff's new roomie move in, taking Dev to see the sights, switching over the utilities, and trying to police things up here before I go. We're going to a water slide park on Friday, and I'm having Cliff take Dev to Six Flags on Sunday so I can save money and get some work done.

Wonder of wonders, I may actually get a story done on schedule... Armada is about 3/4 finished. As always, I'm leaving the sex for last... I truly hope that posting it is one of the last things I do before leaving LA. We'll see.

I just wrote a fairly intense segment from Wulf's point of view as he reconsiders some of the things he's done in the past. I guess it springs from a personal epiphany and the thought that perhaps many of the things we do in our lives aren't necessarily as selfless as we think. I'm curious how you folks will feel about it when it's done.

I was GOING to do a big update this week, but it turns out that a bunch of attachments sent to me by artists and writers have DISAPPEARED from my Eudora in-box, which pisses me off no end. I've sent mail to Daniel, Kurt and Cyanure asking them to send me new copies of the images... I hope they still have them. Once I get those back, well, there will be some new stuff up on-line.

Project X continues, though I'm now almost at the point that I need to stop until D&D 3rd Ed. comes out so I can complete some of the entries. I'm also getting artwork off the net for it -- I'm hoping everything is copyright free and usable. I think you guys will all be quite happy and surprised when you see the final result.

More anon. Stay loose.

The most disconcerting event at Knotts for me was something called the "Haunted Shack." Cliff handled it pretty well since he's got a pretty good sense of balance, but I was totally disoriented. Picture this -- a shack built at an extreme angle on a steep slope. All the angles and perspectives LOOK right, but they're not, since the viewer has no reference points with which to orient himself. Consequently, the brain says everything is fine -- upright and normal, while the body is saying "NO! Wait! Everything's off kilter!" This place is so bizarre that the guide can do odd things such as apparently pour water uphill, let balls roll by themselves across a "flat" surface, suspend things in mid-air, etc. All this occurs, of course, while Anthony is busy bobbing, weaving, and grabbing things for support. It took me about an hour to get back to normal after leaving.

We also saw The Perfect Storm, which was enjoyable, though far from perfect (maybe I should be a movie critic... "You'll laugh! You'll cry! You'll stand up and cheer! It's the feel-good hit of the summer! A non-stop roller-coaster ride of excitement and adventure!"). Everyone does a great job, and I must say that Mark Wahlberg has graduated from the top of my "Guys I'd Like to Hit with a Baseball Bat" (back when he was Marky Mark, the rapper/underwear model) to one of my favorite actors (now that he's just a regular, average-looking Joe who's actually very likeable and self-effacing when he's on talk shows). There are some problems, like some changes in what really happened, and a couple of impossibilities -- according to the captain of the Andrea Gail's sister-ship the Hannah Boden, there's no way in hell anyone can stand on a rolling, surf-drenched deck in a force 12 gale, let along clamber out onto a steel boom with a lit cutting torch. There's also some meteorologists who claim that the Columbus Day storm, which devastated my part of the world back in (I think) 1962 was far stronger than the Halloween Storm of '91, but I think it all depends on whose measuring stick you use. The fact is that the Halloween Storm did a number of very unusual (not to say unique) things that no other storm had done before, or has done since (such as moving west to east, then doubling back and moving east to west). In any event, it's an enjoyable flick, with some decent characterizations and performances to counterbalance the SFX-fest.

Didn't do anything for the Fourth of July (for my English readers, that's kind of like Guy Fawlkes Day, only our guys won) besides listen to people set off firecrackers in the neighborhood. Didn't even hear the big explosions from LA proper. I wasn't too upset, since I usually hate having to fight my way back home through traffic after fireworks displays.

As for projects, Armada progresses... I'm finishing off Li's arc and continuing to get through Wulf's section -- there's a little more smbd stuff in his side of things, as well as the murder of at least one character (not one you like, I assure you). The big battle in the Livia/Narisha/Li arc results in some tragic and heroic deaths, however... Hope no one hates me for it... Still shooting for an August 1 completion, but I might fall a little short.

My "top secret" project has actually taken most of my attention. That's both the blessing and the curse of working on your own; you get to work on what's most interesting at that moment, and neglect everything else. As it is, "Project X" is going very well, but completion will have to wait until I get my mitts on more details about the new D&D 3rd Edition. I hope to have it ready for you some time this fall.

Anyone play Everquest? I'm thinking of joining up when I get to Portland. I'm also, as per suggestions of discussion board correspondents, considering putting together some Thystran adventures for Neverwinter Nights when it hits the shelves.

Future projects include a trip to Disneyland (tomorrow!), La Brea Tarpits and the Queen Mary (next week), Universal Studios (next weekend, I HOPE!), and Las Vegas (weekend of the 21st). Now plans are to shove off for Portland on Monday, July 24, and an arrival home on the 26th. Right now, I'm mostly engaged in switching the utilities over to Cliff (for whom we've obtained a roommate, Manawolf and Chythar's bud Teverant), and collecting boxes for packing.

Busy, busy... Hope to have more stuff for people some time today, so stay tuned.