There was a time when I would have told you that I loved pretty much everything that Jonathan Carroll had written. Way back in the day, when the world was young, he produced a remarkable body of work, including novels like The Land of Laughs, Sleeping in Flame, Bones of the Moon, and A Child Across the Sky, all of which I think remarkable, and recommend unhesitatingly.

I have, in all frankness, been a little less seduced by the handful of novels he’s published in the last four or five years, including those featuring Vincent Ettrich. Still, I note that a new one, Glass Soup, is due shortly, and a website is up. Even when imperfect, Carroll’s novels are always worth checking out.

Perhaps more to my taste, I also note that Carroll has published his story “Home on the Rain“, from Conjunctions, on his website. I may be alone, but I liked it a lot.

I’ve been meaning to post something about anthologies, but every time I try to something else comes along. In this case the distraction is the welcome news that Night Shade Books will be publishing Tim Pratt’s second short story collection, Hart & Boot and Other Stories. This is very cool news. I think 2005 has been a remarkable year for short story collections, but with next year promising new collections from Tim, Theodora Goss, Jeffrey Ford, M. Rickert, Bruce Sterling, and Paul Di Filippo amongst others, it could be just as good. Why is it, when faced with evidence like this, that people still question whether or not these are good times for the short story?

You are a Social Liberal (80% permissive) and an… Economic Liberal (20% permissive) You are best described as a: Socialist Link: The Politics Test on OkCupid Free Online Dating

I guess this isn’t too far off. Hmmm. But, how do you explain the inexhaustible thirst for money? I think I make for a pretty poor socialist. Meme: via Liz Williams.

Well, for those interested, here are the sources of the first lines listed last week:

1. Dune, Frank Herbert
2. Stranger in a Strange Land, Robert Heinlein
3. Pattern Recognition, William Gibson
4. The Sirens of Titan, Kurt Vonnegut
5. Green Eyes, Lucius Shepard
6. The Book of Skulls, Robert Silverberg
7. The Child Garden, Geoff Ryman
8. Gateway, Frederik Pohl
9. The Mote in God’s Eye, Niven & Pournelle
10. The Crow Road, Iain Banks

There have been a number of surprising revelations that have accompanied the move to iPod over the past month. Possibly the strangest thing, though, is that I’ve discovered that I may have a headphone fetish.

Last year, through the good auspices of Kirsten at Locus, I bought a pair of Sennheiser’s PXC-250 noise reduction headphones. I love them when I’m travelling. They’re light, comfortable, have great sound quality, and are very good at reducing background noise. I also have a pair of Grado SR-80 headphones, which I use for home listening, and which are simply fantastic. Best quality headphones I’ve ever owned.

Now, when I bought the iPod they came with a particularly crappy pair of earbuds. I don’t like earbuds. They are uncomfortable, invasive, and I’m pretty sure they kill your hearing. That said, they are convenient. Of late, I’ve found myself using the Sennheisers in the office, but switching to earbuds when going downstairs or outside. largely because the Sennheisers come with a battery pack that makes them just that little bit unwieldy.

Over the past week or so I’ve begun to think about upgrading. First, at home, I’d love to move to Grado’s SR125‘s, which look fantastic, and I’ve had recommended to me. They are $Us150.00, though.

I’m also sorely tempted by Etymotic Research’s ER-6i Isolator earbud headphones, which cost about the same as the Grado’s, and which I don’t really need. I’m not moving away from the Sennheiser’s at all. I love ’em, but it would be nice to have these too.