Gabriel’s Moon

Gabriel’s Moon by William Boyd Saw the title in a bookstore. thought about it. I recognized the author’s name from a novel I read years ago, maybe decades back? I think he’s a British novelist, not that it matters? Picked it up.

“Who was it who said that one of the consolations of ageing was seeing how the children of your friends turned out?” Page 16.

Nothing to do with anything, but true. So true.

From an idle memory, the story unfolds in a spy/thriller from days of yesteryear.

“He reminded himself of the famous quotation in which, given the option of betraying your country or your friend, you would hope to – how did it go? – ‘have the guts to betray my country’.” Page 148.

Does bring up a good point, country or family?

Gabriel’s Moon

The protagonist is a travel writer swept into intrigue and various geopolitical themes. Set mostly along a timeline from before — and during — the Cuban Missile Crisis — the novel affords a different look at some of the vents, as seen through the eyes of a very British novelist.

In terms of what is happening, even now? Makes for an interesting story.

Plays a little with espionage, counter-espionage, the audacity of the Americans, and the various “secret services,” in pure fiction.

Gabriel’s Moon

Nuanced, light, yet substantial with a full-bodied plot to keep it interesting.

  • Aperture: ƒ/1.5
  • Camera: iPhone 14 Plus
  • Taken: 7 October, 2024
  • Flash fired: no
  • Focal length: 5.7mm
  • ISO: 320
  • Shutter speed: 1/60s

This Sunday: Jan. 19, 2025

Jan. 19, 2025: Guiding Light Healing Arts
Eagles Nest
1235 Basse Rd
San Antonio, TX 78212
Store phone: 210-354-7343

11 AM – 4 PM

Star Card

This Sunday: Jan. 19, 2025

astrofish.net/travel

Eagles Nest
  • Aperture: ƒ/1.5
  • Camera: iPhone 14 Plus
  • Taken: 14 October, 2024
  • Flash fired: no
  • Focal length: 5.7mm
  • ISO: 160
  • Shutter speed: 1/60s

Lock In

The first of John Scalzi’s work I think I read? Red Shirts (here.) Eventually followed him on various social media, as he is funny, wry, captivating, and easily earned my respect.

While I had another book spooled up to read, one of his recent titles popped through the feeds, and I snagged it long enough to give it look.

Lock In

Eery elements parallel William Gibson’s The Peripheral. As the son of polio survivor, the notion of the old iron lungs, combined with the contagious nature of the corona? Interesting premise, got my attention. The author himself, I’m not always a fan of his work, but a couple of his books are really enjoyable, and he does have a confident voice, one I’m sort of familiar with, looking at a bookshelf full of out-dated science fiction. Always worth a try.

Lock In

Now that was fun, and holds up quite well, means he’s got serious chops. Like his stuff. Waiting on number two.

Lock In

Starter Villian

Politely Disagree

Kaiju Preservation Society

If Lock In really was published in 2014, like it suggested, that makes it even more of frightening set of tropes to look at. Why science fiction, literature itself, is so important.

  • Aperture: ƒ/1.5
  • Camera: iPhone 14 Plus
  • Taken: 7 October, 2024
  • Flash fired: no
  • Focal length: 5.7mm
  • ISO: 320
  • Shutter speed: 1/60s
Welcome to Austin

January 14, 2025 at Nature’s Treasures Note Address!

Note Address!

January 14, 2025: Tuesday at Natures Treasures
4103 North IH 35
Austin‎ TX‎ 78722
Phone: 512.472.5015

12PM – 4PM, appointments encouraged. E-mail.
Tuesday at Nature’s Treasures.

It’s really him,” at the rock shop in Austin.

Discounts are available.

January 14, 2025 at Nature’s Treasures

Use the code, “sparkle faerie” at the check out — for applicable discounts.

Price Selection Won’t Be Beat!

Vincit Qui Primum Gerit

“First to arrive gets the best deal.” (Source.)

astrofish.net/travel

Mercury Misspelling
#Austin

Sunday in San Antonio at Blue Heart Studio

Almost like a pop-up? Covers the first part of this year, inside a yoga studio. Readings and prognostications, looking at the year ahead?

January 12, 2025: Blue Heart Studio
11 AM to 4 PM
1031 Northeast Interstate 410 Loop
San Antonio, Tx (inside Moxie Hair Salon and Spa)
Store phone: 956-620-1000

Sunday in San Antonio at Blue Heart Studio

Libra Cards

astrofish.net/travel

Blood Test

It’s simple, right, like science? Or science fiction?

“You get this sort of human profit-and-loss exam from women before you marry them. They’re making a bet on you and they want to know the odds, but after the wedding they don’t care that much anymore, at least for a while. All the accounts are temporarily settled.” Page 48.

Comic diversions and witticisms about life.

It’s a wry voice with an interesting premise, if science could reliably predict an outcome for a personality, like, “you’re going to be bad,” should it? Consequences, humorous or other?

It’s the modern world, a little dark, but lightly funny.

Blood Test

January 12, 2025 in San Antonio at Blue Heart Studio

Almost like a pop-up? Covers the first part of this year, inside a yoga studio. Readings and prognostications, looking at the year ahead?

January 12, 2025: Blue Heart Studio
11 AM to 4 PM
1031 Northeast Interstate 410 Loop
San Antonio, Tx (inside Moxie Hair Salon and Spa)
Store phone: 956-620-1000

January 12, 2025 in San Antonio at Blue Heart Studio

Capricorn Cards
  • Aperture: ƒ/1.6
  • Camera: iPhone 12
  • Taken: 23 November, 2021
  • Flash fired: no
  • Focal length: 4.2mm
  • ISO: 200
  • Shutter speed: 1/60s

Your Mom’s Gonna Love Me

The library’s short text about Your Mom’s Gonna Love Me, was something like, “Part stand-up comedy special, part memoir…” Looked fun, borrowed that library copy.

Your Mom’s Gonna Love Me

There’s a sociological theory that suggests a when a character is at the memoir stage of life, the career has peaked. Since this is a comedian I never really heard of before? I had to dig around on the inter-webs to find his golden, viral moment.

Never found it.

Did find a lot of “crowd work,” and apparently, he has a type: older, female. But the text was engaging, a raw voice, with special elements that I liked. Lightweight, confessional in tone, but a narrative voice that wasn’t just scraped out of the social media morass to make a book-length manuscript (something I know about).

Book by and about “internet sensation” Matt Rife (Virgo).

Your Mom’s Gonna Love Me

But to be an artist?

“Don’t get me wrong. Plenty of my ideas end up being shit. It’s the nature of the business. The nature of creativity.” Page 127.

Truth.

Your Mom’s Gonna Love Me

Very pleasant diversion.

Oldish TV
  • Aperture: ƒ/1.8
  • Camera: iPad Pro (11-inch)
  • Taken: 12 August, 2022
  • Flash fired: no
  • Focal length: 3mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/60s

The Stainless Steel Rat

In my college then university career, I had a couple of these books. Old paperbacks, just one step above pulp magazines, and as it turned out, not much of a stretch above the pulps.

Several authors, in particular come to mind. I hadn’t even thought about the Stainless Steel Rat series until this floated through my reading lists feeds. There were several, and the cover was gray, with a cartoon caricature of the titular character depicted.

Between heavy, epic tomes, I wanted something fast and light, with some kind of historical perspective for myself. My own itinerant and migratory ways, plus the great flood of ‘94? I lost that collected library, washed away. Pretty sure my copies of the books went downstream, then.

The Stainless Steel Rat

There are choices in diction, and use of the then-popular technology that clearly dates this kind of novel. Instead of digital or even disk-based data, the way machines were programmed included “tapes.”

The Stainless Steel Rat

Other dictionary, almost antiquated and archaic?

“Hindsight is a great revealer of obviousities and this one was painfully clear now.” Page 128.

As always.

“All that remained was screwing my courage to the sticking-place as they say in the classics.” Page 142.

Might steal that one, in some form.

Snappy bits interconnected by dated digital storytelling. Sharp-witted as ever.

The Stainless Steel Rat

Might be the origin story, couldn’t day for sure. The other element, reading along, I wondered if this was a precursor to Douglas Adam’s and the Hitchhiker’s Guide type of humor. Felt like there was a connection.

The Stainless Steel Rat

Part of the original Astounding Tales grouping, I think.

  • Aperture: ƒ/1.5
  • Camera: iPhone 14 Plus
  • Taken: 7 October, 2024
  • Flash fired: no
  • Focal length: 5.7mm
  • ISO: 320
  • Shutter speed: 1/60s