I was awakened at about 7.15am on Sunday by the two balls of joy. Well, one. Jessica was up first. I used the early start to get organised for futbol practice. Breakfast was made, girls prepped etc, and then we picked up my mother, who was spending some time at our place while we were out. Futbol was fine, though I noted my own continued reluctance to refer to WorldCon or World Fantasy as science fiction conventions when talking to non-SF folk. They’re all “publishing conferences” or some such. I guess I just don’t want them picturing me in a Star Trek t-shirt or a propellor beanie, neither of which I own (or have any problem with). Something I need to think on.
After that, it was back to the house, pick up mum and Marianne and head off for dim sum. Jessica was in a odd mood – angry and aggressive – which was unpleasant and concerning. Something for parents to work on. We had a pleasant lunch, then home. I headed off and picked up Marianne’s re-tooled PC, along with Gordon, who helped install it. There’s still considerable network rationalisation to be done here at Merton Way, though I’m not sure when, and Marianne noted it was slower than her old PC, which was less than good. Still, we’re moving forward. Next steps: kids’ PC, network rationalisation, and such.
Once the PC was settled, I grabbed a cup of coffee and sat down to read. I don’t really know why – perhaps because I was reading up about the well-intentioned but ill-fated ‘Virginia Edition’ of the collected works of Robert A. Heinlein – but I picked up Citizen of the Galaxy for the first time in 20 years, or more likely 30 years when I think on it. The story of Thorby Baslim picked me up in a way that re-trying Glory Road a few years back did not. There’s both a real driving narrative in place and a lack of datedness. There are a few things that seem ‘period’ – the types of technology mentioned etc – but this is a 52 year old book and it still seemed pretty fresh to me. I’m half way through, so I’ll see how it continues.
As to today: a return to the international repository of joy (aka ‘the day job’) is on the cards, and fine. For all the occasional grumbling, it’s a good job with a better bunch of people.