What I won't do for him

So a week or so ago I was all excited. I found out Neil Gaiman was coming to San Fran and tickets were on sale. I went to the affiliated book store, found a book to buy then went to the counter. the clerk was new so I said no problem and waited for the experienced person to be available. Mean while another customer with a rather loud and insistent voice kept saying "I was told I could order it" not bothering to include the who it was who said or the what it was he supposedly could order. Things got worked out and I was next.

I made my purchase and asked about the ticket. The clerk looked confused (can you see it coming?) then told me, "Oh that was for last year," (teach me to look at the whole date.)

Last night I was back at ye olde Gaiman site when, lo and behold. He is coming to SF after all: next Sunday. But, only 100 people can go and you have to pre-order a book to get a ticket. I checked the link and only 7 tix were left as of last night. Which means over 90 were sold in two days. Dilemma: should I go to the city to wait until the store opened, wielding my cash in hand? Should I wait by the phone, finger on the auto redial? What to do what to do.

Why, yes, I did wake up at the crack of dawn to make sure I didn't miss the 11am opening of the seller. Yes, I did wait until 11:01 to call. Patience is a virtue after all. And, yes, I have a ticket!****CV

Some interesting Elements

Long live Claudius! Clearly I have reached one of my goals. (I've already read Claudius the God so i do know what happens as per Mr. Graves.)

I did return to Our Mutual Friend this morning, but that was after a few days dalliance with Mr. Sherlock Holmes (the Return of Sherlock Holmes) and Sam Spade (the Maltese Falcon). I even went out looking for more Hammett in the hood but apparently he is not so popular this side of the bay. Considering the increase in BART and MUNI I am most unwilling o go to San Fran to purchase him. Ah well.

Currently uploading Stardust and the Graveyard Book so I can have some spoken as well as sung words. 

I opted to do summer camps this year: one for plots and one for poetry. My plot camp has participants running in age from 6 to 10. The mind boggles. At any rate I'm going to the tried and true fairy tale venue and may throw in some of the older myths (Irish mostly). Do wish me luck. I've ordered Christopher Booker's the Seven Basic Plots as a reference but at an amazing 700+ pages hardly think it will be fully studied before the camp begins.***CV

Mem-ries

Ah Summer Break. The reason, I hear, that many go into the teaching profession. 

Me? Never had a summer break as a teacher until I started teaching in Portland. Now that I'm back in CA I have thee weeks of Summer Break. So let's see how much reading I can squeeze in shall we?

So far I have read:

the Merlin Conspiracy, DW Jones

Day Watch (russian sci-fi author, sue me I don't have the book right now)

Borderliners, Peter Hoeg 

the Thin Man, Dashiell Hammett

Goals? Why yes I have goals. sane. reasonable. perfectly obtainable ones too.

I Claudius, Robert Graves

Our Mutual Friend, Charles Dickens

War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy (the original which eliminates about 300+ pages, thank you very much)

the Count of Monte Cristo, Alexander Dumas

Almost done with the first: Augustus is dead, Livia's dead, Tiberius is dead, Sajaenus is dead and Caligula has ascended the throne, so not much more left to go.

Lessee anything else? Hmm I have an ipod. Lovely thing that. Makes one realise one has a heck of a lot more music than one thought and perhaps one should have gotten the largest capacity after all? Oh well.***CV