What I Did on July 4th -- As Told By Others

I had been planning to write a post detailing what gnomi and I did for Independence Day yesterday, but it looks like I don't have to:

joecoustic on adopting our tradition:

Today I will spend following a tradition I adopted from mabfan and gnomi and will be watching 1776. Although many miles away I will feel like I'm watching it with friends (who won't get irritated when I sing along :)). I'm so glad I bought the DVD!! I love the cut things they added back - small but helps continuity, and I really like the musical number that they added back (along with the whole story behind it).

jenwrites notes that she finally managed to sit down yesterday with a writing project:

Today really was the first day I had, so to maximize my time, I skipped going out with mabfan and gnomi and the gang in the morning, worked out, and set my brain to the rewrite.

One LJ user talks about watching the movie with us, but under a locked post, so I shall not link to it here;

magid actually joined us for the reading:

This morning I went downtown to hear the annual reading of the Declaration of Independence, which has happened at the old State House in Boston each year since 1776. Which I hadn't heard about until last year, surprisingly.

fjm also joined us, and reacts as many of us do:

...but the rest is inspiring, particularly after a morning spent celebrating US Independence. mabfan and gnomi took me down to the Old Statehouse to hear the reading of the Declaration. I confess to being quite moved.

angwantibo joined us for almost the whole day:

Today, I joined mabfan and gnomi to hear the Declaration of Independence read at the Old State House. This was really cool to hear the declaration that gave birth to our nation on its anniversary... Then we went to watch the musical 1776. This was hilarious in parts but did a good job of supplying the personalities and political contexts behind the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Of course, after the reading, lunch, and the movie 1776 (during all of which at various times we were accompanied by arib, fjm, magid, angwantibo, mcdemarco, farwing, ckd, and non-LJers Julian Gorfajn and Shanna Giora-Gorfajn, plus we ran into Dan Kimmel and his daughter), gnomi and I rounded off the day with a viewing of the new documentary film March of the Penguins (still accompanied by mcdemarco).

Some Nice Comments on "Sanctuary"

It's nice when you get feedback on a story, and discover that the five or so years you put into crafting it have actually paid off for some of your readers.

Over on the Analog Discussion Board, there's one forum devoted to the September 2005 issue. Most of the discussion has centered around Stan Schmidt's editorial, but are also a few comments on the stories. I have gotten permission to quote the following comments about "Sanctuary" here:

John Thiel:

I like the way he quotes Consalmagno, giving him the recognition he deserves, and I like a good story with religion in it, a very rare theme in science fiction... I haven't finished it, but it's another of those stories that's well worth reading, not just a pasttime.

Jerry Wright:

The lead story "Sanctuary" by Michael Burstein was thoughtful and moving, and sad. I also give him full points for his treatment of the Catholic Church as well as the other religions. A man of conscience can make a mark.

I thanked them both, and replied, "I should also note here the importance of a good editor. Stan Schmidt saw two previous versions of the story, and made a lot of excellent suggestions to me on how to improve it. It would be a far weaker story without his help."

Readercon Schedule

gnomi and I will be at Readercon 16 this weekend, and for those who wish to find me, here's my tentative schedule. Note that the reading and talk I'll be doing on Saturday morning from 10 AM to 11 AM will be held in two different rooms.

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Amusing Songs With Flash Animation

First there were Llamas.

Then there was Sawyer.

And now... Daleks!

(Thanks to querldox for that last, brand new link.)