Weekend at Cthulhia's

I’m back! I spent the weekend with cthulhia in Massachusetts, seeing movies, party-going, and hanging out.

I caught the 6 PM Fung Wah bus on Friday. These buses used to cost between $10 and $25 per trip, but competition has brought them down to $10 all day. They’re really popular; all the seats were filled on my trip up, mostly with college students, looked like. We got to Boston around 10:30 or 11, and I hopped on the T and reached the party at dancingdeer’s place before midnight, I think. Cthulhia and I had to head back at a reasonable hour, to be up in time for art on Saturday.

Saturday we went to see open studios at Brickbottom. I don’t know whether I was more impressed by the art or by the studios themselves; lots of these were live-in studios, and as a New Yorker I’m easily subject to apartment lust. The art was really good too, though I don’t think there were as many artists displaying as there were at 111 First Street.

Back at Cthulhia’s place, she whipped up a tasty dinner out of pho noodles, sausages, and veggies. I whupped her butt at Lost Cities, then she smacked me back down not just once but twice at Volcano.

The Volcano games went on a bit longer than expected (I’m new to the game, and a very cogitatey player), so we just barely missed the champagne toast (in honor of the recent Mass. supreme court ruling in favor of freedom-to-marry) at a party at, um, damn, I’ve forgotten where. But I had a great time chatting with folks and noshing and I met srakkt and various other people.

We ducked out early again, to catch The Animation Show at midnight. This is a touring collection of animation shorts (only two or three of which I’d seen before) that I’d missed when it was in NYC. Don Hertzfeld’s hilarious work (“Sweet Jesus!”) was entirely new to me. Back in college I’d gotten into the habit of hunting down annual touring animation collctions, and somehow lost that habit in the past decade or so. I should start doing it again, though I’ve heard Spike & Mike’s isn’t what it used to be.

Sunday we braved the crowds at Johnny D’s for The Oatmeal, saw School of Rock, and then had Indian food before I hopped the T and caught the 8 PM bus back home. It didn’t occur to me till after I’d already taken the Grand St shuttle to West 4th and gotten on the PATH that I could’ve walked west and tried out the newly-reopened-that-day World Trade Center PATH station. jayspec462 has rushed in where I was too lazy and forgetful to tread.

Update: And I almost forgot this sketch:

( Sketch of Cthulhia )

Thought inspired by today’s PvP

I wonder if anyone’s written a Photoshop filter for generating Kirby Crackle.

Recent reading

I finished rereading Geoff Ryman’s The Child Garden on the trip up to Boston. Though it’s got a couple of scientific mistakes that bugged me, it remains my favorite book I’ve read in the past decade or so. It’s got memorable characters in a strange, startling, vividly-described future: ( Synopsis of The Child Garden )

I started John Crowley’s Aegypt, but the beginning annoyed me. Here’s an opening scene set in the 16th century, then another set in mid-20th-century America, then we switch to one character in late-20th century America, then here’s another, and damn it, the plot hasn’t started yet, why the fuck can’t you just get on with telling a story, and not waste my time getting all the chess pieces into place! As you can see, I’m growing impatient with currently-popular storytelling techniques.

So I picked up the copy of Stanislaw Lem’s The Cyberiad that I got for six bucks from a sidewalk book vendor a few weeks back. Ah, that’s better! It’s just as good as I remember, perhaps better. Not very moving, but overflowing with wit.

I hope I’m not losing my ability to enjoy new books.

I got blisters on my fingers!

I’ve just had my first guitar lesson, courtesy of ladymondegreen. I used her larger guitar (too big for her), while she showed me what to do on her smaller one. Just the basics so far, and three chords (E minor, A, and, um, D, I think). I can feel the numb spot on the tip of my middle finger that means it’s working up a blister or callus.