KRAD's Inaccurate Guide to Life

William Elder, RIP

keith@decandido.net — Sat, 17 May 2008 23:37:19 GMT

William Elder, one of the original artists to work on MAD Magazine in the 1950s, has died at the age of 86.

I grew up reading those old MADs, and Elder was responsible for some of my favorites ("Starchie," "Shermlock Shomes," "Mickey Rodent"). He was famous for putting odd sight gags and such in the backgrounds -- what he referred to as "chicken fat."

Rest in peace to a fellow Bronx native. *raises glass*

for once, I'm impressed with Chris Mathews

keith@decandido.net — Sat, 17 May 2008 22:19:59 GMT

On Hardball, Mathews had Kevin James, a right-wing talk radio host, talking about President Bush's comparing of Senator Obama's desire to open diplomatic relations with Iran to Senator Borah in 1939 who felt that World War II could've been avoided if he could've talked to Hitler. The subject of Neville Chamberlain came up, and Mathews asked James point blank what, exactly, it was that Chamberlain did that was so bad -- and he didn't know.

Impressive and sad and pathetic at the same time....

Thanks to kovalic and ginmar for the link...

I am a big honking doofus

keith@decandido.net — Sat, 17 May 2008 18:25:56 GMT

So I slept through my alarm this morning.... *sigh*

I was supposed to catch a 9.05 train out of Penn Station, which meant getting up at 7, leaving by 7.30 to catch the subway down to 34th in enough time to make the train.

Instead, I got up at 9 and realized I was fucked.

I ran down the street to the nearby rental car place, where they know me, and helped me out, digging up a car for me. (The next train would get me in too late for my talk. Of course, they wound up postponing it, but it wasn't worth the risk that something might go wrong with the train on top of everything else....) Then, after spending four hours driving in the rain yesterday to and from Rutgers, I got to spend three hours driving to Lancaster for the Pennwriters Conference, and get to do it again going back tonight, since I promised to help with the kids' promotion at the dojo tomorrow morning.

Right now I'm sitting in the hotel bar, using their free wireless on Opportunity, and eating lunch before my talk starts at 2.45. Then is the autographing (and I brought copies of The Quality of Leadership for the latter...).

BTW, I used a GPS for the first time in my life while driving here, since I had no idea how to get to Lancaster. I hereby declare them to be the coolest thing ever. *nods*

Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader? 15 May 2008

keith@decandido.net — Sat, 17 May 2008 04:50:52 GMT

Grade 3 / Social Studies

What U.S. State was named after a King of England?

Georgia

wireless is fucked up

keith@decandido.net — Sat, 17 May 2008 04:45:59 GMT

Got home from driving girasole to Rutgers and dinner with the parents to discover that the wireless network is down. This often happens when it rains, and it's been raining all day.

If you've sent me e-mail, I've read it on my Treo (from which I'm typing this), but I can't reply to it.

I'm off to the Pennwriters Conference in Lancaster, Pennsylvania tomorrow to speak of writing tie-ins.....

Supernatural finale (no spoilers)

keith@decandido.net — Fri, 16 May 2008 05:17:15 GMT

The "Wanted Dead or Alive" scene may be the greatest scene in the history of television....

Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader? 14 May 2008

keith@decandido.net — Thu, 15 May 2008 23:41:43 GMT

Grade 4 / Grammar

What is the adverb in the following sentence? "My father snored loudly and it kept my mom awake."

Loudly

here we go again....

keith@decandido.net — Thu, 15 May 2008 23:34:14 GMT

The vet called today, announcing that Marcus has diabetes.

Sigh.

We went through this with Mittens, and we'll go through it again with Marcus. It means two shots per day, one at 7am (mostly administered by terri_osborne) and one at 7pm (mostly administered by me). It also means we have to board him every time we go away for any length of time, just like we did with Mittens.

We also have folks nearby who can help, which we didn't before, and bronxbob350 can also come over in a pinch.

I'm glad that, if something had to be wrong with him, it's something we can handle. I was especially a'feared of it being his thyroid, which would probably mean pills. I don't even want to think about having to give Marcus pills.... *shudder*

snurched from chris_walsh and popfiend

keith@decandido.net — Thu, 15 May 2008 19:46:04 GMT

Superhero Team Quiz

LiveJournal Username

Your Primary Super Power

Cape?

Identitiy

Origin

Location of Head Quarters

Primary Costume/Uniform Colors

Why are you a Superhero?

Your Superheroic Codename

The veteran grim member of the team

jaylake

The sexist and crass but annoyingly effective one

preacherman01

The bright-eyed novice or sidekick

rainfletcher

The teammate that will eventually go evil or insane

bill_leisner

The inept yet determined/reoccurring supervillain

claudiagray

The sinister Arch-Villain and team's greatest foe

varkat

The perky civilian that keeps getting kidnapped

jon_chance

How often does your team actually 'save the day'?

26%

This Fun Quiz created by Shannon at BlogQuiz.Net

Watch cool car videos including BMW Videos at Car-Videos.Biz

It especially amuses me that my arch-villain is also my agent.......... *snorfle*

some good news, for a change....

keith@decandido.net — Thu, 15 May 2008 19:37:30 GMT

The California Supreme Court has overturned the ban on gay marriage. And good for them, says I.

Here's the actual decision.

a hilarious video...

keith@decandido.net — Thu, 15 May 2008 17:58:38 GMT

...about the life of a writer in the 21st century. Thanks to darth_libris for the link.

Book Launch 2.0.

there he goes again.....

keith@decandido.net — Thu, 15 May 2008 16:29:35 GMT

Every time I think that President Bush has gotten as low as he can, he goes and sets the bar lower....

In an interview recently with Politico.com, which included questions from Yahoo! users, President Bush made a bunch of astounding statements that showed a disconnect with reality that is frightening and despicable and unforgivable, and is the latest piece of evidence to add to the huge pile that he is wholly unfit for office. He claims that a Democrat in the White House will lead to another attack on American soil, which is hilarious considering that the attack on American soil that started this whole mishegoss was on his watch. He claims that "people" told him there were WMDs in Iraq, which as justification for war, is beyond pathetic.

And then there's the golf thing. Keith Olbermann's most recent special comment hammered President Bush on all three major howlers in the interview, but he saved the best for last. From the original interview (jump to page four of the transcript):

Q: Mr. President, you haven't been golfing in recent years. Is that related to Iraq?

THE PRESIDENT: Yes, it really is. I don't want some mom whose son may have recently died to see the Commander-in-Chief playing golf. I feel I owe it to the families to be as -- to be in solidarity as best as I can with them. And I think playing golf during a war just sends the wrong signal.

Q: Mr. President, was there a particular moment or incident that brought you to that decision, or how did you come to that?

THE PRESIDENT: No, I remember when de Mello, who was at the U.N., got killed in Baghdad as a result of these murderers taking this good man's life. And I was playing golf -- I think I was in central Texas -- and they pulled me off the golf course and I said, it's just not worth it anymore to do.

This is appalling and pathetic and contemptible on three different levels. One: golf? Seriously, this is what you sacrifice to show your support for the troops? Golf?

Two: as Olbermann pointed out, according to his own story, they had to pull him off the golf course when Sergio Vieira de Mello was killed. It wasn't even his idea to stop playing...

Three, and this is the killer: he's lying.

From Dan Froomkin of the Washington Post:

Not only is it a hollow, trivial sacrifice at best, Bush's story doesn't hold water. While he dates his decision to abjure golf to Aug. 19, 2003 -- the day a truck bomb in Baghdad killed U.N. special representative Sergio Vieira de Mello and more than a dozen others -- the Associated Press reported on Oct. 13, 2003, that he'd spent a "cool, breezy Columbus Day" playing "a round of golf with three long-time buddies.

"Bush played at Andrews Air Force Base with Clay Johnson, Office of Management and Budget deputy director, Richard Hauser, Department of Housing and Urban Development general counsel and another friend, Mike Wood."

On that outing, he was typically full of what passes for good humor at the White House. The AP reported: "'Fine looking crew you got there. Fine looking crew,' Bush joked to reporters. 'That's what we'd hope for presidential coverage. Only the best.'

"He hit a couple of practice balls before flaring his tee-off shot into the right rough."

You know for a long time, it's been hard to be outraged at anything done by President Bush, as I was beaten down by eight years of lies, of scandal, of self-serving nonsense, of tragically disastrous decision-making motivated by venality. I was tired, and found it impossible to muster up any more outrage.

But somehow, watching Olbermann's special comment last night, the outrage came back. President Bush scares me because he's so disconnected from anything remotely resembling reality.

Recently, in debg's LJ she was discussing Senator Obama and how intensely she dislikes him as a potential president, and one of the things I pointed out was that any problems that anyone might have with Senator Obama and/or Senator Clinton are tiny and insignificant compared to this: Senator McCain is just going to keep doing what President Bush has been doing if he's elected. His voting record, his policies, everything makes that crystal clear, and that will lead this country to disaster. As it is, the next president is going to have to spend most of his or her (and I love that I have to use that construction, BTW) time cleaning up the mess President Bush has made, but I have no faith in a McCain presidency's desire to even try.

The notion of President McCain makes me fearful for my life, and I'm not exaggerating. I'm scared for my life right now, because the guy in charge has failed on every possible level.

a nice Grand Designs review

keith@decandido.net — Thu, 15 May 2008 15:59:44 GMT

defcons_treklit has written a nice review of Star Trek: Corps of Engineers: Grand Designs for the Unreality SF site.

Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader? 13 May 2008

keith@decandido.net — Wed, 14 May 2008 22:42:42 GMT

Grade 3 / U.S. History

During what decade did James Marshall discover gold nuggets, sparking the famous California gold rush?

The 1840s.

snurched from miintikwa

keith@decandido.net — Wed, 14 May 2008 04:53:56 GMT

The rule is you can't duplicate the answers of the person you took it from.

1. Name something a claustrophobic person should not get into:
A closet

2. What one thing does a woman spend the most time on when getting ready to go on a date?
Never having been a woman, I haven't the first fucking clue.

3. What is a Spanish word that everyone knows the meaning of?
Bueno.

4. Name something in your bathroom that you leave plugged in all the time?
The CD player.

5. Besides golfers, what is something you see on a golf course?
Grass.

6. Name a household chore you actually enjoy:
Uhm.... Uh....

7. Name something you walk out on:
Time. (What? I often walk out of the house on time...)

8. Name a place where you see nervous people:
Hospital waiting rooms.

9. Name something that can be cherry flavored.
Soda.

10. Complete this phrase: "I’ll never forget my first _____":
Kiss.

11. Name another word for "Dad":
Pop.

12. Name another word for "Mom":
Maw.

13. Name something a married couple might want to have 2 of:
Computers.

14. What is the first part of a person’s body to lose the war with gravity?
Feet. No matter how hard you try, they always wind up on the ground eventually.

15. Name something that is sold by the bunch:
Grapes.

16. What age would you retire if you had enough money?
21.

17. Name something you find on a kitchen table:
On ours? Christ, name it....

18. Name something that rhymes with “dizzy”:
Spindizzy.

19. Tell me how many people you kissed last New Year’s Eve:
One.

20. Name something you see in a jail cell:
A toilet.

21. Name a month with 31 days:
May.

22. Name an occupation where you might work all night:
Doctor.

Tuesday's dead

keith@decandido.net — Wed, 14 May 2008 03:54:36 GMT

Today, one of terri_osborne's coworkers had surgery. She has no family in the area, so Terri volunteered to pick her up from the hospital and take her home, and I went along, too, as I know the neighborhood she lives in, and there was no guarantee she'd be in any condition to direct the cabbie home (she lives in Inwood, which is off the usual yellow cab's beaten path).

She was supposed to get out of recover at 1.30, so of course, she got out at 4.15. *laughs* Luckily, I had a book to read and my Treo (though I finished the book and the battery on my Treo was almost dead ere long). But it was worth it, as Terri's coworker really needed someone to get her home.

As I said to Terri, what's the good of being freelance if you can't do stuff like this? Hell, what's the good of being human if you can't do stuff like this?

After a 30-minute nap, I went to karate and fighting class. The latter felt better, though I still need to train myself to get my arms up when there's a kick toward my head. I keep ducking, which is entirely the wrong thing to do. *sigh* And in regular class, I still need to work on the part of Pinan kata #5 where you jump in the air and land in a hook stance. There's an adult tournament the last week in June that I intend to participate in, and I'll likely be competing against two advanced brown belts (Dorian and Liza) who are really good. (There's only one other brown belt in the dojo right now, and his attendance is sufficiently sporadic that I doubt he'll enter the tournament.)

Also found out in class that the son of one of the black belts is going to be (along with his writing partner) the show-runner on Life on Mars, which was their consolation prize for October Road being cancelled. *laughs*

very late irons in the fire update

keith@decandido.net — Tue, 13 May 2008 15:25:45 GMT

Because I'm 13 days late anyhow, I'm not going to do the whole list. I will for June, but here's what's currently on the ol' plate...

I've turned in the page proofs on both Supernatural: Bone Key and A Gutted World (in Star Trek: Myriad Universes: Echoes and Refractions), so they're more or less done. So is my part of Star Trek: Alien Spotlight II: Klingons, as I've completed the script, and we're not just waiting on jkwoodward to finish the art. Ghost Writing Project #1's revised manuscript is turned in, and I'm in the midst of #2.

"Family Matters" (in Star Trek: Mirror Universe: Shards and Shadows) has been turned in, and now I'm just awaiting copy edits.

Star Trek: A Singular Destiny is due 13 July.

I've turned in revised proposals for both StarCraft projects -- the novel Spectres and the first three volumes of the manga series Ghost Academy -- and am awaiting feedback. I've got seven comic book pitches in to three different publishers.

I've turned in a first draft (and it's very much a first draft) of an essay for another Smart Pop book, and there's another essay for them that's on hold until the book's re-scheduled. I also turned in my essay for Assembled! 2.

I've got three magazine articles on tap for Star Trek: The Magazine over the course of the next few weeks/months.

Finally, I've written more of Super City Police Department: The Case of the Claw, and sent what I've done to varkat (my agent) to make sure it doesn't suck.

Nothing else has changed since the beginning of April, I don't think.....

Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader? 12 May 2008

keith@decandido.net — Tue, 13 May 2008 15:04:24 GMT

Grade 5 / World History

Roughly when did the "Renaissance" in Europe begin?
a) 900 A.D.
b) 1300 A.D.
c) 1600 A.D.

b) 1300 A.D.

proposal revised!

keith@decandido.net — Tue, 13 May 2008 05:46:34 GMT

I've revised the proposal for StarCraft: Ghost: Spectres, incorporating all the notes from Blizzard (I think), and trundled it off to Pocket and Blizzard for their okee dokee.

Glad I accomplished something today besides sleeping, returning the rental car, and buying sneakers. (The latter was for the gym. I looked really really really stupid going to the gym wearing Rockports, but that was all I had....)

it's a book!

keith@decandido.net — Mon, 12 May 2008 20:52:39 GMT

I'm holding a copy of Doctor Who: Short Trips: The Quality of Leadership in my hot little hands. (Well, okay, I'm not holding it right this second, as I'm typing this LJ entry, but you know what I mean.....)

It looks fantastic (to coin a phrase from a Doctor not featured in this book). As nice as the cover looks on a JPEG, it's as nothing to how gorgeous it is on an actual hardcover book.

The book's available in UK bookstores, as well as through Big Finish, Amazon.co.uk, Who North America, and the wonderful folks at Mike's Comics. It's also possible that the Forbidden Planet in New York will be carrying it, as other Short Trips have been sighted on their shelves in the past.

In addition, I'll have copies for sale at Shore Leave 30 in July for the low low price of $20, with the added bonus of me and nine of the twelve authors being in attendance at the con. *grin*

sleeping cat theatre!

keith@decandido.net — Mon, 12 May 2008 19:58:57 GMT

Well, one sleeping, one just waking up and stretching. This is what I came home to when I returned the rental car:

Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader? 10-11 May 2008

keith@decandido.net — Mon, 12 May 2008 15:47:48 GMT

Grade 4 / World Geography

What country borders Spain to the west?

Portugal

Mittens's peonies!

keith@decandido.net — Mon, 12 May 2008 02:15:47 GMT

The peonies that grow over where we buried Mittens are blooming, and they're the size of Cleveland....

more stuff on the Arlo concert that I forgot to post last night....

keith@decandido.net — Sun, 11 May 2008 16:03:00 GMT

By way of introduction to "The Motorcycle Song," Arlo was talking about his own motorcycle, which he hasn't taken out in ages. He's on the road most of the time, and when he has been around, the weather's sucked. Then last summer he had some time off, and finally took the thing out, only to have his kids point out that the license plates had expired.

His wife, though, let him keep the motorcycle in the living room -- which is the sign of a keeper wife right there, he said -- and that led him to the story of another man who kept his bike in the living room, constantly working on it, tweaking it, trying to make it perfect. When he was done, he started it up right there in the living room, but the clutch wasn't open (or something -- I don't remember exactly, and I don't know shit from motorcycles) and the bike went out of control, with him holding the handlebars, zooming around the house, tearing it up, and crashing through the living room wall and out into the street. His wife called the paramedics, who took him to the hospital, and the wife, while waiting, cleaned up the house, including cleaning up all the oil-stained stuff in the living room, and dumped it in the toilet. The guy got home, arms in casts, tired and frustrated, and he went to the bathroom and lit a cigarette....

The same paramedics came to get him the second time, since now his ass was on fire in addition to everything else, and apparently the paramedics were laughing so hard they dropped him and broke something else.

"This song is for that guy," Arlo said, and then went into "The Motorcycle Song."

On a much more poignant note, after doing "Alice," he talked about last summer. They were doing a free folk festival that's held in his father's home town every year, and their next gig was several days later in Peoria, Illinois. Since they had time, they drove up from Oklahoma and picked a hotel at random to stay in.

It turns out there was a Vietnam Veterans reunion in the same hotel, and they found out Arlo was staying there, and asked if he'd say a few words. Arlo then quoted Marilyn Monroe: "Nobody ever went wrong saying, 'What the hell.'" So he said, "Sure, what the hell."

There turned out to be some old friends there that he grew up with in Brooklyn, whom he hadn't seen for 50 years, and he did "Alice" for them and had a wonderful time. He was worried at first, but then he remembered that he sold more copies of Alice's Restaurant at PXs than at record stores.

Afterwards, he headed back to his room, and something was niggling at the back of his head, and he looked it up on the web: turns out that it was the 40th anniversary of the day he first performed "Alice's Restaurant Massacree" at the Newport Folk Festival in the summer of 1967. That, he said, was the best possible way to celebrate that particular anniversary.

After "Coming Into Los Angeles," he talked about taking a flight he was taking, and there were two Secret Service agents in the same waiting area for the same flight. Arlo was getting nervous, especially when one of them started to walk over. "Are you Arlo Guthrie?" the agent asked, and Arlo nervously answered in the affirmative. The agent then asked, "Are you bringing in a couple of ki's?"

Turns out the agent was a fan, and they got all kinds of Secret Service pins and other cool stuff. "I guess times really have changed...."

Great great show....

JK Woodward is my artist

keith@decandido.net — Sun, 11 May 2008 14:06:50 GMT

Since editor Andrew Steven Harris has let the cat out of the bag on the Trek BBS, I can now say that the artist on my Star Trek: Alien Spotlight II comic book featuring the Klingons will be JK Woodward. Best known for his work illustrating Peter David's Fallen Angel, JK is a fantastic artist. The icon in this post is from his artwork for Klingons: Four Thousand Throats... (it's an illustration of Kang). He's only done four pages so far, but they are beyond amazing. I can't wait to see the rest of it....