Speculations : The Rumor Mill : Anonymous : Not-So-Urgent Announcements

Topic 448 was started on 2001-05-02. There are 1017 messages available to read.

Here's so you don't feel guilty putting something not as dire in the "urgent announcements" topic.

Previous First

Message 1017 was left by Terry on 2002-10-26 23:08:22. Feedback: 0/0 For those of us in the part of the US that suffers clock-changing twice a year: tonight's (one of) the night(s)!!! We're supposed to set our clocks BACK to one hour EARLIER than they're showing. (Can't tell you how many times I wish someone had reminded ME of this over the years...) We're gaining an hour of sleep...or whatever you may do overnight. Hope it's something you want to do for an extra hour. :)

Message 1016 was left by Ahmed A. Khan on 2002-10-22 18:53:41. Feedback: 0/0 Fiction choice for August 2002 has been updated at the Index of Online Fiction. Check it out. Best. -Ahmed

Message 1015 was left by Mikal Trimm on 2002-10-17 19:32:33. Feedback: 0/0 A sad note for any Chieftains fans out there. Derek Bell, one of the boys, died today in Phoenix. He was 66. Loss of a great talent, there.

Message 1014 was left by Evil Genius on 2002-10-11 22:57:35. Feedback: 0/0 Does this mean your future stories will feature villainous doughboys? Will pretzels hold the city for ransom? Will bagels hover using electro-kinetic energy? ;) Regardless, congrats on the job.

Message 1013 was left by Lenora Rose, severely ashamed of herself on 2002-10-11 19:15:59. Feedback: 0/0 By the way, thanks all for the congrats! I don't know what's with me today. I feel awake and seem to be functioning normally, yet my brain has been enjoying sitting in the "Off" position all day. And apparantly, so have my manners.

Message 1012 was left by Lenora Rose on 2002-10-11 19:13:27. Feedback: 0/0 For those who asked the details, I'm doing account data entry , phone reception, and whatever-they-come-up-with for a bakery. Most of the people I work with regularly seem cool. As I continue to play my taste in music, though, we'll see if they think the same of me... ;)

Message 1011 was left by Jae on 2002-10-11 17:29:07. Feedback: 0/0 Woo! Congratulations Lenora!

Message 1010 was left by Lindsey on 2002-10-11 12:14:13. Feedback: 0/0 Congrats to you, Lenora! Now we are both among the gainfully employed. Look out, world. -Linz

Message 1009 was left by Laurie Tom on 2002-10-08 23:58:21. Feedback: 0/0 Congrats, Lenora! :)

Message 1008 was left by Justin on 2002-10-08 22:30:20. Feedback: 0/0 Great news, Lenora!

Message 1007 was left by Lori on 2002-10-08 18:33:14. Feedback: 0/0 Yay, here too, Lenora! Good on ya!

Message 1006 was left by Terry Hickman on 2002-10-08 17:44:38. Feedback: 0/0 Yay, Lenora! Who're the lucky employers?

Message 1005 was left by Brian L. Blalock on 2002-10-08 16:43:26. Feedback: 0/0 Lenora: Congrats!

Message 1004 was left by Jamie Rosen on 2002-10-08 15:31:30. Feedback: 0/0 Alright, Lenora! What is it?

Message 1003 was left by Nancy Caroline Beck on 2002-10-08 15:30:16. Feedback: 0/0 Re: 1001 Duh - hit the wrong key on #1002. It was supposed to say CONGRATS to Lenora! Guess my fingers are too nimble on the computer keyboard. :-)

Message 1002 was left by Nancy Caroline Beck on 2002-10-08 15:29:06. Feedback: 0/0 Re: 1001

Message 1001 was left by Lenora Rose on 2002-10-08 15:25:52. Feedback: 0/0 Just a little happy for me: I got a job! I got a job! We'll see how things go, of course, but the prospect of doing ANYTHING right now is a bright one....

Message 1000 was left by Jamie Rosen on 2002-09-30 14:35:47. Feedback: 0/0 The problem seems to have sorted itself out. Never mind.

Message 999 was left by Jamie Rosen on 2002-09-29 11:37:27. Feedback: 0/0 My mailbox won't open, so if you're trying to send me an e-mail, send it to raccie (underscore) ballot (at) hotmail.com. Crossposted to my topic.

Message 998 was left by Eugie Foster on 2002-09-25 09:47:13. Feedback: 0/0 Dave, The information is winging to you in an email as I type. For everyone's reference: Science Fiction and Mystery Bookshop, LTD 2000-F Cheshire Bridge Rd. NE Atlanta, GA 30324 Ph: 404-634-3226 Fax: 404-634-6697 email: sfamark@aol.com Thanks, y'all!

Message 997 was left by David KM on 2002-09-25 09:22:21. Feedback: 0/0 Does the store have a web site, or e-mail address?

Message 996 was left by DaveK on 2002-09-25 07:28:51. Feedback: 0/0 If you furnish me with an email giving the book store names and addresses, I'll post those in P&E.;

Message 995 was left by Mikal Trimm on 2002-09-25 00:13:27. Feedback: 0/0 Eugie-- Something similar happened in Austin recently. A GREAT specfic bookstore (Adventures In Crime And Space) went out of business. These people need our support desperately. Anyone that has the ability to help, please do.

Message 994 was left by Eugie Foster on 2002-09-24 19:25:50. Feedback: 0/0 For all you RMers in the Metro Atlanta area (or if you come here for business and/or play), the Science Fiction and Mystery Bookshop is having some major financial difficulties. Mark Stevens, the owner, in a letter to his loyal customers, is asking SF fans to please come by and think about buying something. His store is the best genre bookstore in Atlanta. It'd be a real shame if it bit the big one. Click HERE to see the letter he sent (including the book store's address and phone number).

Message 993 was left by Ahmed A. Khan on 2002-09-24 18:14:32. Feedback: 0/0 Today begins a new chapter in the history of my continuing efforts to improve the Index of Online Fiction. A few months ago, I had started a message board. It worked for some time. There were some thought-provoking discussions and we had luminaries like Ellen Datlow drop in for some time. But then the message board started floating tummy up. So scratch one message board. Replace with one guestbook. Go, visit the Index. Click on the "Sign My Guestbook" link. Preserve your valuable thoughts for posterity. Leave the imprints of your thoughts on the sands of time. In simple words, GO, SIGN THE GUESTBOOK! (Phew!) -Ahmed PS. It is indeed sad to hear about Robert L. Forward. His "Dragon's Egg" is one of the best hard SF books around, comparable to Hal Clement's classic "Mission of Gravity".

Message 992 was left by Gregory Koster on 2002-09-23 18:47:20. Feedback: 0/0 I've just learned that Robert L. Forward, the most distinguished hard SF writer, and more to the point, one of the people who were actually doing something to propel the human race to the stars, died yesterday. Gloomy thought. I will miss him as scientist and fictioneer, and any other way you can think of. Best regards, Gregory Koster

Message 991 was left by Shanahan on 2002-09-19 12:04:42. Feedback: 0/0 Starting next month, I'm adding to my Web site a section called Create: For Writers. What I propose to do is offer short essays on the art and craft of writing. If you've got such an essay and would like to share it with a small writing community, I'd like to run it. Pieces can be targeted at novices, experts, or anyone in between. (For example, next month I'll be running my essay on extrapolation, which is good for newbies and intermediate writers, and John D. Harvey's piece on promoting your writing [which appeared in Speculations some time back], which is more for accomplished writers.) Essays should be in the 1,000-word-max range, and should be sent in the body of an e-mail to the address above. There is no payment. (I wouldn't even consider this a market.) I'm posting this request here because there are a lot of writers whose talent I appreciate, and whose knowledge could benefit those people who sit there with pen poised over paper, wondering what to do next. You can have a look at the site at johnshanahan.com. And thanks in advance for your contributions.

Message 990 was left by Ahmed A. Khan on 2002-09-18 16:04:52. Feedback: 0/0 August fiction has been indexed at the Index of Online Fiction. Start sending in your votes for the best. -Ahmed

Message 989 was left by Mikal Trimm on 2002-09-16 21:41:42. Feedback: 0/0 'Accidently Like A Martyr'. That's a damned shame...

Message 988 was left by Lori on 2002-09-16 19:40:32. Feedback: 0/0 Has everyone heard about Warren Zevon? Untreatable lung cancer. Some not-so-urgent, not-so-good news. law

Message 987 was left by Evil Genius on 2002-09-13 11:27:50. Feedback: 0/0 Then again, there's always the possibility that those numbers are selected because they're a verification code for hidden conspirators that they hit the right target or giving them information on what target to hit, depending on whether the numbers are given out before or after. It won't take many more coincidences like this to flesh out a full-blown conspiracy theory complete with black helicopters that make no noise and secret computer programs that index and link all known major corporation databases for the benefit of Big Brother. Why else would the government permit the corporate world to join what was first developed as a military network? If you can't legally create your own database of citizens, then look into someone else's. ;)

Message 986 was left by Shanahan the Penitent Doubter on 2002-09-13 09:09:16. Feedback: 0/0 Okay, I'm slightly less cynical after finding this at snopes.com about the lottery numbers drawn on the day Flight 587 crashed: "News and random chance intersected again on 12 November 2001, the day American Airlines Flight 587, bound for the Dominican Republic from New York City, crashed in Queens shortly after take-off. The state of New Jersey holds two Pick-3 lottery drawings per day, and on 12 November the numbers selected for the evening draw matched the number of the crashed flight: 5-8-7. Even more coincidentally, the same numbers has been selected for the earlier mid-day draw, with the two digits transposed: 5-7-8. So many people (27,829) chose the former combination for the evening draw that the prize was a mere $16, considerably lower than the average $275 payout." So, okay...it happens. But boy, imagine thinking you'd hit the lotto by being clever and getting a whopping $16! ;-)

Message 985 was left by Shanahan on 2002-09-13 09:01:22. Feedback: 0/0 Does anyone not think that perhaps it was arranged as a commemorative thing? Again, it's one thing, odds-wise, for the number to come up on the day; it's another entirely for it to happen on the same day in two states. I figure the chances of two sets of lottery numbers across the country being the same on the same day are pretty thin. Add in to that the fact that it's an "eerie coincidence"? Uh-uh, friends. Mark me as an Unbeliever.

Message 984 was left by DaveK on 2002-09-13 08:48:00. Feedback: 0/0 What made it spooky is that it occurred in two of the three states where the events of 9/11 took place and so close to the first anniversary. Had those numbers been drawn at some other time and in states other than the three, it wouldn't have garnered as much attention. I agree with Mikal that such a coincidence in fiction would gain a rejection unless the editor was presented with justification in the story where the coincidences were engineered for the purpose of financial or political gain.

Message 983 was left by Mikal Trimm on 2002-09-13 00:07:59. Feedback: 0/0 Jamie-- As Meatloaf once said, "You took the words right out of my mouth..." Including the 'cynical' coment...

Message 982 was left by Jamie Rosen on 2002-09-12 23:23:24. Feedback: 0/0 "Odds are that number will show up." Odds are 1 in 1000 that numbers will show up. My personal reaction wasn't "Ooh, spooky" but "Ooh, fixed." I didn't mean to be cynical, it just happened.

Message 981 was left by Mikal Trimm on 2002-09-12 22:54:41. Feedback: 0/0 And, just to add ANOTHER spike to the 'ooh, it's spooky' thread--when you dial emergency help, you call 911! Who'da thunk! C'mon folks--odds are that number will show up. coincidence is something that happens in life--just don't use it in your writing or you'll be spanked...

Message 980 was left by Terry on 2002-09-12 20:50:00. Feedback: 0/0 Erm. Apparently the Lathe of Heaven is on again tonight? I see by our local listings. I'm confused. But I'll check it out!

Message 979 was left by DaveK on 2002-09-12 19:35:53. Feedback: 0/0 John, there's also this added into the spooky mix when one remembers that the Pentagon is in Virginia. Virginia's pick three on Monday evening, 9 Sep 02, was also 9-1-1.

Message 978 was left by John Savage on 2002-09-12 18:26:34. Feedback: 0/0 Here's something spooky: According to CNN, the New York "pick 3" lottery's winning numbers today were 9 1 1 If you put that in a novel, it would be rejected as unbelievable.

Message 977 was left by John Savage on 2002-09-09 12:54:33. Feedback: 0/0 Don't be excited about this version of Lathe, which tries very hard to cut out all of the speculative elements.