It always happens, but the trip schedule is starting to fill up, and fill up fast. I have a few emails from lovely people to reply to, and I need to actually sit down and write it all down so I don’t forget anything. I think dinner at Saratoga is now completely spoken for (nice), I’m making a few plans in Manhattan, and I am going to see Bruce Springsteen!!! Did I mention that? Springsteen. Me. I’ve been waiting for this since the first time I heard “Jungleland” played over headphones on a small stereo in a city record shop in the summer of 1979. They had a huge poster at the front of the shop for a new ELO record, but the guy in the shop insisted I listen to this track. It knocked me out. Twenty eight years ago. A lifetime. I honestly never thought it would happen. The Boss and the Big Man and the band. Here we go!

It would appear that I’m busy next Thursday night. Got plans. Somewhere to be. Here precisely. Magic. Many thanks to Cheryl and Kevin for organising the night out. It should be very special.

The World Fantasy thing is coming together. There’ll be a HUGE Aussie Bash party on the Thursday evening. If you’re at the convention in Saratoga, it’s on at 9pm and you must come. It’ll be fun, there’ll be FREE booze, and lots of good folk to talk to. If the party is half as good as the Madison party, it will be awesome. I can now also announce my one panel appearance for the convention. It is:

SATURDAY, 4 PM. City Center C
Survey of the Field: 2006.
Charles N. Brown, Ellen Datlow, Paula Guran, Stephen Jones, Jonathan Strahan (m)

I have no idea how I ended up moderating this puppy, but there you go. I imagine Ellen and Stephen will want to talk horror, Paula will want to talk paranormal romance, and CHARLES will want to talk about 2007.  And me? Well, I’m moderator, so I guess I get to push them around and try not to dominate things too much. It should be fun. Where else will I be during WFC? Well, apart from meal times, I guess around the dealer’s room, and hanging out. If you want to say hi or catch up, please come up and say hi. I’ll even wear the badge so you know who I am, and I hateses the badges. Actually, come to the Aussie bash and say hi, and then we can chat over the weekend. Saratoga should be fun.

So, you love Bruce Springsteen. You know you do. And you’ve just heard they’ve announced a second concert for Thursday, 25 October, which is great. But, how do you get from either downtown San Francisco to the Oakland Arena or from the Oakland hills without a car? This is the question. An answer is needed before tickets go on sale on Monday. Springsteen has never toured Australia. There may never be a better chance to see him in concert. How can this dilemma be resolved?

I took the first steps towards being ready to head off to the US. Last night I configured Skype so that I can talk to the loved ones while I’m in the US without experiencing undue expense. They can even see me, which should be novel. If you’re on Skype, drop me a line. And, if you’re not and you want to stay in touch, sign up. Other than that, the year’s best and Vance books race towards completion, which is good. I’m also beginning to put together my ‘to do’ list, covering everything I need to get done before I get on the plane on Wednesday, 24 October.

Speaking of getting on the plane, if you want to cross paths, here’s when I should be in your town:

San Francisco/Oakland: Oct 24-25
Manhattan: Oct 26-30
Saratoga Springs: Oct 31- Nov 4
San Francisco/Oakland: Nov 5 – Nov 9

I’ll also be passing through Sydney on Oct 24 and Nov 11, but those are really just connecting flights. I am still contemplating minor changes to this itinerary, but that’s pretty much it at the moment. Let me know if you’d like to get together.