So many things can end up being about Boston.

Sorry there has been not a single blog post from me since the beginning of December. Next week is the big Science Fiction and Fantasy Convention Arisia and my entire being mentally and physically has been all wrapped up in getting ready for the convention.  I hope to see many friends there and make a few more while I am at it. 

I happen to  be a fan of the blog 
 Unlikely Words  I like that he always finds new and interesting things for me to learn.  Wednesday's blog post was especially interesting because it talked about accents.  As a strongly non-rhotic "speaka" --- "er" I have always wondered how the Boston accent came to be.  Lucky me, Aaron Cohen was thinking about the very same thing.  Just unlike me he actually knew the answer. British people use to have American Accents

So with dropped R's to all and good reads I bid you not good bye but see you soon.  I will be attached to Byron, as always and having the time of our lives. Please remember when Byron is wearing his blue vest he is working and should not be bothered. That and my severe food allergies, I want to spend the weekend at the convention, not Mass General.

I am watching Warehouse 13

And, I wonder what would the Boston section of the warehouse contains?  What special things would be there?  What special abilities would those things have?

My list -
A bit of Plymouth Rock - Makes any place feel like home?
The wishbone from the first turkey cooked on Thanksgiving - bringing peace?
A bit of wood from USS Constitution - making even the smallest boat unsinkable?
The real John Harvard statue - I wonder what he would really look like.

Super busy

For the most amazing reason.  I was asked by a writer friend to proof read her most recent novel before it goes to the printers.  So I am getting to read a book before any one else does. 

Squee!!!!!!!!!

It is with great sadness that I write today

To share the new that one of the great authors has passed away.  Born in Cambridge Massachusetts on April fools day, author and world builder  Anne McCaffrey has passed away.  She had not been well of late, but hearing the news she had passed away from a stroke was still a blow.  I always admired Anne, and the one time I meet her years ago only made me love her more.  She was the first female author to win a Hugo, for her novella Weyr Search, and the first to win a Nebula for Dragonriders   The first woman to win both awards.  She always had time for her fans, and encouragement for people who wanted to write themselves.

I discovered Anne in high school. She had created a wonderful world where woman DID something. Must fiction and fantasy use woman as objects, some thing to be protected, to be chased after, never once to add or subtract anything to the story.  Anne was different, no one was useless.  Every person no matter what they did or who they were did something. Woman took the lead in many stories, strong woman, who did not need protecting.  In the Harper Hall series, Anne was writing commentary about  male centric  society.  Well she was writing a story about a woman who was a great songwriter and singer who lived in a society where woman did neither.  Kind of like how the world felt to me in the late 70's.  I wanted more than a working class girl should have wanted. I married the first guy who agreed with me that a woman should go to college, and be more than just a wife and mother.  In middle class and upper class famalies, it was expected that woman would go to college, but not in the blue collar world I lived in.  In Menolly I found a teen age girl wanting to be so much more than just a wife and mother. It was my life, only with Dragons!  I'm not a great singer, and it has been ages since I touched the organ even longer for the clarinet . But, like Menolly I wanted some thing more. When she found her place, I felt like I could do that too!

If you have not yet read this wonderful writer or know anything about  Pern wiki this will help. 

Anne did not just write Pern novels, thought they were her longest series.  She also wrote
The worlds of Anne McCaffrey



 My personal non Pern series is the Freedom Series 4 novels about what happens when the Earth is attacked by a superior alien race and manages to fight back. The series is complex, amazing and follows the  many races enslaved by the Eosi as they work together to bring freedom to the galaxy. As always Anne writes strong woman, and equally strong men.


When is a legend a legend? she famously asked in 1968 in the introduction to Dragonflight.  Well Anne my dear, you are a legend. An amazing woman who opened doors, and held them open for any one else who wanted to go through. 

 some of the most wonderful writing about her from the web. 

  NPR Remembering Anne McCaffrey   

About scifi Anne McCaffrey

My heart goes out to her family, and her son Todd, who like his mother is a wonderful talented writer, who always has time for fans, and turns most of them into friends. 

I wish I had been able to listen to this today

 I was on the Pike for a good part of today's episode of NPR Here and Here and Now I really like the program, but WBUR has a tendency to skip on the research some times. Since I am quite the nut about Boston and her history I can always catch the mistakes. While they are not massive mistakes, but things that should have been caught by a fact checker; or any one with a good history class under their belt it bothers me.  No it more than bothers me, it makes me angry. If they are not researching the stories about Boston well enough to suit me, well what else are the messing up?   I'm no historian, but honestly...

So I was driving out to my sisters and heard this story Black Pilgrim - Puritan and wished I could have called in.  They made the mistake of calling all 102 passengers on the Mayflower Pilgrims, when in fact  only 37 people on the ship were members of the Leiden congregation, which is what they called themselves.  




 

I'm reading

Sorry for the delay in posting lately. I stumbled upon a book called "Grand Theft Jesus"  It looked interesting and even though I walked away from Jesus a long time ago I thought it would be an interesting read, and it has been so far. It's also a hard book to get through, I have been doing a lot of page markup and taking lots of notes. So once I get through it, there will be a review. I promise. 

Guest post Tuesday

I would like the thank the great folks at Boston Smarts for today's posts. If you like what you read here, swing on over to their blog Boston Smarts blog and say hello. BPL's Children's Writer in Residence Program Boston is not only home to great schools, the Red Sox, delicious seafood and good museums, Boston is also a destination for young writers aspiring to publish their first children's book. Boston Public Library provides its patrons with award-winning children's literature and unique educational programs, but it also fosters excellence in children's writing within our own community. The BPL's Children's Writer in Residence is a year-long program focused on children's authors and is intended to provide an emerging children's author in the Boston area with financial and administrative support to complete one children's book. Additionally it establishes a link between the library and the community by promoting the awareness of its offerings to young readers, families and teachers. Many free educational opportunities are provided by BPL and this program seeks to draw attention to those as well. BPL just announced the most recent addition to their Children's Writer in Residence: Sarah Winifred Searle from Danver, MA was chosen from among 60 applicants. She graduated from Southern Maine Community College with a degree in New Media and is studying Humanities at Harvard Extension School. She started her career as a game artist and wants to use this background to create a unique storytelling foundation for her children's books. As the BPL Writer in Residence, Sarah will have a stipend of $20,000 for the next nine months, access to the Library's special collections, use of office space as well as use of the Library as a forum to promote her finished work.