shameless self-promotion

Reflection's Edge has published it's late February issue with my short story, Rituals of Grief.

Samuel's November Photo

My bro wanted to see a photo of Samuel, so here's one of the most recent ones on the computer. I still have to upload some photos from the camera...so you'll have to wait for that.

This week has been really super-busy. I've barely had time to go online.

Monday, we went to the class I'm taking. The class is held in Alsmere which is about 45 minutes from where I live, and we left the building at eleven in the evening. There was this thick mist on the highway, and coming home was really tense as sight visibility was about a couple of meters. I don't know how much, I'm not good at that. Suffice it to say, that if a car was in front of us, the lights were barely visible. And it was pretty much like driving all alone in the dark. Thank goodness for our awesome driver who got us home safe and sound just a few minutes short of midnight.

Jan came and met me on his bike, and even though it was chilly and misty, it was nice biking home with him. Sort of like being in the boyfriend-girlfriend stage, we were. lol. I think this course is good for more things than just Sunday School. It's certainly added a romantic note to our marriage ;) You know, bike rides at close to midnight, holding hands in the dark...walking an extra round around the block, and simply chatting. Every marriage needs that.

We're thinking of taking an evening off and going out to have dinner with just the two of us, sometime soon. We just need to contract a babysitter.

temporary disturbances

Our computer has been in a bit of trouble. Some of it due to a download that affected everything else and caused a temporary absence from the ether. We're back online though, and I'm happy to say Word is usable again. Yay.

I received a lovely email from Sharon Dodge accepting Rituals of Grief for an upcoming issue. I'm looking forward to being in Reflection's Edge again. I dithered for a long time before sending them another story as they'd published World in A Bubble in 2006, and I tend to get really perfectionist about work that I send in to a market I'm trying to get into for a second time. I did a little leap in the air when I saw the acceptance email :)

Last week's flash challenge at Liberty Hall went surprisingly well. I was quite ecstatic about having my first Liberty Hall challenge win. Yayness. I got to supply the trigger for the weekend challenge (agonized about whether I'd done it right, I did), but didn't get to join in because of microsoft weirdness.

I posted my lengthy Children of the Sun for critting in the polish challenge, but it looks like it's begging to be turned into a novel. Ow! Oh well...

On other news, Stichting Bayanihan has decided to launch the Hope Away from Home book on International Women's Day.

I've been invited to give a short talk on the choices that we make. Since I'm fonder of being in the background than being onstage, I'm already a bit nervous...what will I say?

I loved the email I received from Strange Horizons with regards to my small histories, and I've decided to give the stories leeway and let them expand and fill out the space they want to fill. I love how Paraluman is coming to life quite nicely. What started out as a protest against governmental abuse of tribal rights seems to be growing into something different and new. It combines all the stuff I've been thinking about. I like this new direction and well...I suppose I can't keep preventing stories from turning into novellas if they want to go that direction. I have to accept the inevitable and run with it, I suppose.

Being myself though, I must confess the short form is much easier for me than the novel or novella form.

I would like to send something new to Route's new anthology. I'm hoping I can find my UK stamps so I can send off my submission to Ian Daley. The Skin byteback publication has provided so many lovely offshoots. I'm quite, quite happy.

I just signed my name to this petition. If you'd like to sign it to, drop me a message and I'll send you a copy of the email.

Over the last few weeks in South Africa, a two year old was abducted from her crèche and raped and left in the bush, where she was found crawling around and crying, by an old woman, two hours after her abduction.

Another child in a pre-primary school was molested, and the authorities have done nothing. We have all heard the story of Sheldean Human who was abducted and brutally murdered close to her home.

A while ago a 3 year old girl was beaten and raped. She is still alive. The man responsible was released on bail. He is walking the streets.

If you are too busy to read this then just sign your name and forward this on. The Government is planning to close the child protection unit and this is a petition against it. This is a very important petition. It is an essential part of the justice system for children.

You may have already heard that there's a myth in South Africa that having sex with a virgin will cure AIDS. The younger the virgin, the more potent the cure. This has led to an epidemic of rapes by infected males, with the correspondent infection of innocent kids. Many have died in these cruel rapes.

Recently in Cape Town , a 9-month-old baby was raped by 6 men. Please think about that for a moment.

The child abuse situation is now reaching catastrophic proportions and if we don't do something, then who will?

Please don't be complacent, do something about the kids of South Africa . You can make a difference. This is just one of the million cases of child abuse, so please pledge your support and help keep CPU (CHILD PROTECTION UNIT) open. Please give your support to the petition and ensure that it goes to as many people as possible. Please don't just leave it, make a difference. In order to write your name copy this message and paste it in a new mail (compose). Or click on forward and add your name to the list and send it on to others.

America, land of the beautiful, the good and bla, bla, bla

America,land of the beautiful, land of the good...land of the bla, bla, bla. Leigh Dragoon posted the link to this article: Veterans having no legal right to specific types of medical care, the Bush administration argues in a lawsuit accusing the government of illegally denying mental health treatment to some troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Reading it made me feel really sick. I wouldn't be human if this didn't move me one bit. Talk about all kinds of ways in which the Bush Administration has failed to show it has a heart.

I remember seeing a clip on youtube about a young soldier. He was crouched down under a table or a bench during mortar fire. The young soldier just kept on crying and repeating over and over again, oh god, oh god, let it stop.

I question a government that drafts young men and pushes them into a war they didn't ask for. I question a government that does not have the heart to care for the needs of these young men when war has broken and shattered pieces of who they are forever.

There's this Filipina writer living in France, whose essay won second place in last year's Carlos Palanca awards. I am hoping she'll be open to doing an interview for Munting Nayon. So here's keeping fingers and toes crossed.

Her winning essay can be found
here.