Turn And Face the Strange

Recent events in my life have put me on a seriously introspective kick the past few weeks, and looking back, I can honestly say; Thank fuck THAT'S over with. I hate introspection, it makes me maudlin and hum the theme song to "The Way We Were".

A schism has occurred in my school, and amongst those I considered close friends. Words have been passed, lines have been drawn & the cards have fallen in a 50-50 split. Some of it I saw coming a few years ago, other parts caught me completely by surprise. Live and learn.

Word got around - of course - before I was ready to address it, and I have been approached by some people who heard of it, and others I reached out for. The resounding question has always been the same: "Bobbe, what do you think you could have done to prevent this? What could you have changed to alter the outcome?"

Here's my answer: NOTHING.

Read that as, "Not what I could have done, but given the chance, what I would have done, had I seen it coming."

I am what I am, period. I'm perfectly happy with WHO I am, and I have no pretensions about who I'm not. Oh, don't worry, I know where you all are coming from (those of you whom I have spoken with). And, I know what you're trying to say. I'll even go so far as to say you're not wrong. Everyone has their shortcomings, and mine are a lot clearer than others. That's not difficult with me, I'm the single most up-front person I know. When you know someone intimately, someone you have broken bread with on countless occasions & been privy to their personal side, it's an easy thing to point at them and say, "Look, look! His fly is down! Look!" It's not like any of you have to say..."I wonder what Bobbe thinks?" One thing I can say above all others: I'm not to everyone's taste.

I'm writing all THAT, however, to say THIS: The recent changes and upheavals haven't done anything to affect my judgment of others either. I was worried that, for a while, I should change my school intake policy, alienate and restrict my current group, hell, maybe I should close it down altogether. The payoff is certainly far less than the investment, and I have let some real assholes into my trust sometimes.

But being the person I am is what has also drawn some really great friends close to me, friends I wouldn't trade in for the world. At the end, I just decided; You win some, you lose some. Half the group left - the other half stayed. That's proof enough in my book.

My book...Ungh, that's another thing...

I Have Been Given Notice
My wife came in last week and asked what I was working on. I thought it was obvious since I had Microsoft Word open, 30 pages chock full of text and absolutely nothing else going on in the background, but I answered anyway.

"I'm working on an idea for a short story I have. It's about a guy with a birth defect that-"

"Yeah, yeah, great. A short story. How many does this make?"

"Huh?"

"You heard me; How. Many. Does. This. Make."

"umm - Short stories, you mean?"

No answer, just a LOOK. Married men out there will know what I mean by this look.

"Uh, I dunno...Maybe 25? maybe 30?"

"What about your novel you were working on?"

"Uhhhhmmmmm...."

"Honey - That's not an answer"

So, I have been forbidden to write, at least to completion, anything not related to finishing a novel and getting it circulated. For some reason, a collection of short stories don't count - This blog notwithstanding. I guess she has a point, I have almost a dozen novel ideas, most with outlines, many in various states of completion laying around. Also, when my wife puts her foot down, I tend to pay attention. It's much less screechy around my house if I let things play out like that.

Not that I don't wear the pants in my household - I waited until my wife was only halfway down the stairs before I whispered "I'll write whatever I goddam well please, you harpy".

Sci Fi can be FUN!
Okay, check out this book I found the other day:

I haven't read it yet - I may never read it - But the cover has three bunny women of different colors (or women in bunny suits? Same thing, really, in my book) crowded around some haughty-looking dude in a spaceship. I don't fucking CARE how bad the writing is, gimme the space sex!!!

Just when I thought they couldn't possibly find some new kink for me to go apeshit over involving Sci Fi.

(Edit: I just realized...That pink bunny-babe on the left? She's playing with a big red knob. Ooooohhhhhhh, my stars and guitars!)

Speaking of Bunnies

This has been my lucky week for this shit; I just got a vintage copy of DC's "Tales of the Unexpected" with the man-eating Easter bunny in it. This bastard gave me nightmares as a kid, & I can't wait to read it again. But the best part?

I didn't pay for it - I traded for it. And something that didn't matter much to me at that. Probably this comic didn't matter much to my friend either, but I'll take what I can get.

Shit, my wife's coming back up the stairs...Gotta go!