Shooting the sequel before the treatment's even finished

[sovay]

As if last night's pot-banging to bring back the sun weren't enough, my family and I rang in the New Year with half a dozen metal cooking bowls and one conch shell. So far, the neighbors haven't called the police. I finished my first story of the new year—I had wanted it to be the last story of the old year, but I had to take time out for familial celebration—and now I'm waiting to see if it's any good. And how do I otherwise celebrate the start of 2006? With a meme nicked from docbrite, of course.

The Last Things of 2005 Meme . . . also suitable for filling out in the first few days of 2006.

Last Book Read: Spider Kiss, by Harlan Ellison (a re-read. Last new book read, John C. Wright's Orphans of Chaos).

Last Live Music Show Seen: The Decemberists at Toad's Place in New Haven, October 6th. (Or the Christmas Revels at Sanders Theater in Cambridge, December 27th; but I class that more as theater).

Last CD Purchased: For myself? The soundtrack to Good Night, and Good Luck, I think. Otherwise, the original cast recording of Finian's Rainbow, for my mother.

Last Thing Cooked: Cheese fondue—Emmental, Gruyere, and a lot of white wine.

Last New Thing Eaten: Er. Probably the sushi at Miya's that involves tiny Japanese soft-shell crabs, Havarti cheese, and potato skins. If nothing else, the combination was not one I had experienced before.

Last Thing Bought: A subway token for the Red Line back from Harvard Square.

Last Gift Received: Firewood.

Last Piece of Clothing Bought or Received as a Gift: A pair of seal-brown corduroy pants.

Last Embarrassing Experience: Blithering like an idiot around gaudior and rushthatspeaks' housemates.

Last Totally New Experience: Writing erotica on a cellphone.

Last Foreign Country Visited, if any: Ireland.

Last New Bird Seen (feel free to substitute enthusiasm of your own if not a birder): For the hell of it, what looked like a very lost osprey over the Arlington Reservoir this afternoon.

Last Big Achievement: Surviving this year. As I pointed out, many good things happened to me in the course of 2005. But much of it—especially the last four months—have sucked, yea, out loud. Less cynically, I also taught an entire Latin class: as achievements go, not a bad one.

Comments

[sovay]

Look, I tend to feel that when I meet new people, my brain has quietly opted out of the experience and gone off to read in a corner somewhere, leaving the mouth to take care of business all on its own. But: thank you. And I like the boy, too.

And you should come back soon so we can watch that movie so I can give it back to Nine.

Definitely. I should be here until about the 6th (classes start again on the 9th, and I need time to get ready). When are you free?