Wednesday, April 12, 2006
Waxing Moon
Jupiter Retrograde
Cloudy and warm

“Time and Place” is on the front page at Espresso Fiction.

Today’s Circadian Poem: “The Misuse of Laughter” by Adele Swift.

Work was fine yesterday. My colleague had a great time down in West Virginia checking out her new career opportunity. It’s along the lines of what she wants, and I think she should go for it.

I went to Coliseum Books. I bought the two books I had had my eye on over the weekend: Honeymooning With My Brother by Franz Wisner and The Flaneur by Edmund White (there’s supposed to be a little hat over the “a”, but my keyboard shortcuts aren’t doing what they’re supposed to). I also bought Letters from New Orleans by Rob Walker, a NYC writer who moved there in 2000.

I feel guilty about not going down this month to help build houses there, but with things so uncertain here at home, I can’t leave. Well, as the person I spoke to about it said, “We’ll be building down there for a good long time. We’re going to need you just as much in six months or a year as we do now.”

Work was fine, and then I came straight back out. I don’t know why I’m so tired all the time – the accumulation of stress, probably. I went out and bought some vitamin supplements this morning, to see if that helps.

I read Honeymooning With My Brother last night. It’s a clever, well-written travel essay book. However, the author was a Republican press secretary who later worked for a major development corporation in California against environmentalists. In other words, money and power are his gods, and, much as he tries to present himself as redefining priorities and becoming somewhat “enlightened” (quotes intended), there’s still enough of the moneyed arrogance under his words for me not to buy it. I enjoyed reading the book, but he’s not someone I feel I’d like to get to know. And I’m sure he’d feel the same about me! Glad he’s making a living now as a travel writer, and here’s to our paths never crossing!

Got a bit of writing done on the proposal yesterday, but not enough. I’m beside myself with frustration with my web host – going on six months and I still can’t get my sites up because they won’t give me the information I need to connect the FTP. The information they send me has no relevance to what appears on the screen. And they simply repeat it, over and over again, instead of actually responding to what I ask. I might as well change hosts again, because these people have been useless. USELESS.

And now, I get thousands of spam emails, PRETENDING TO BE FROM ONE OF MY OWN ACCOUNTS. Um, excuse me, I don’t send myself emails entitled “Sexy” or “XQUR!!” with attachments.

So, if any of you are getting emails that pretend to be from me with attachments, delete them. If I have to send you something with an attachment, we’ll discuss it ahead of time.

And the host’s response? First of all, not dealing with the pretending-it’s-me-addresses at all. And then telling me I have to send them the list of spam addresses – um, excuse me, first of all, I don’t open spasm, and second of all I’m supposed to compile a list of (as of yesterday) 3700 addresses? I don’t think so.

Useless. Totally useless.

I’m looking at another host that costs about double, but was just ranked internationally as the #2 best web host. Changing over all the emails will be a major pain in the ---, but it might be worth it to actually get customer service.

I want to congratulate a few political breakthroughs:

The State of Massachusetts for passing legislation regarding universal healthcare. That’s not what they’re calling it, but that’s what it is.

Nantucket Island, in Mass., for passing a ban on chain stores. The ban was crafted by independent bookseller Wendy Hudson of Nantucket Bookworks. The only chain store allowed is Ralph Lauren, grandfathered in because it’s already there. Good for them. And you know where I’ll be spending my money next time I go to Nantucket.

The State of Maine for passing legislation to include pets in protection orders in domestic violence cases.

At least there are a few politicians who have brains and are actually working for the people they purport to represent.

Off to spackle the bedroom.

Devon