Comments | zhai: The New Digs

zhai

The New Digs

Oct 01, 2007 17:31

Back from Context, and I enjoyed it a great deal. Con report comes later, since I'm still behind on the updateage. But I managed to hijack a panel into talking about virtual worlds, where the new gig and the idea behind it (also more later) gained a lot of enthusiastic traction, which was very cool. Didn't catch up with people as much as I would ( Read more... )

hm, travel, cottage, photos

Comments 18

justinhowe October 2 2007, 00:20:58 UTC

Your rural enclave makes me sudder.

justinhowe October 2 2007, 00:21:26 UTC

... shudder...

:p

zhai October 2 2007, 01:44:28 UTC

Like the city, though, they do burn shit here.

This is not a good shot of it, but there's a firepit in my backyard that I suspect would be very good for burning things in while consuming alcohol. I also have a barbecue.

justinhowe October 2 2007, 01:51:10 UTC

I was at a barbecue over the weekend, and felt like a hobo while standing around the grill.

It is a nice backyard (even if it does look a bit like a golf course). I'm sure it would be a pleasure to consume alcohol and those exotic hand rolled cigarettes, I enjoy upon occasion.

devilwrites October 2 2007, 01:20:55 UTC

Your new digs: very cool.

Concerning Context: I may be able to go next year, so if you're interested, maybe we could work something out and be roomies? :)

zhai October 2 2007, 01:41:02 UTC

Thanks re the digs. I am pleased.

Re Context, you have a provisional "definitely", meaning if I am able to go (I want to, but I have no idea whether I'm going to be on the east coast this time next year, and if I'm not, finances may not permit), and if I'm able to go, Jay may go also, particularly if Gary is doing workshops again, and so the room situation would go that way -- but if everything lines up, sure, that would be terrific. :) Wish I'd had a roommate this year just to defray costs, I should have gotten organized on that a bit sooner...

devilwrites October 2 2007, 03:08:13 UTC

Well, whatever happens--because expenses may not allow me to go either--we will plan to CHILL no matter what, so if you and Jay room together, I'll rope someone else from Odyssey into going and rooming with me. Michele would be a good candidate, though that's a really long trip for her. :)

zhai October 2 2007, 17:29:17 UTC

That would be awesome! It would be great for Context to become a sort of splinter Odfellow gathering. Of course I say that not knowing if I'm going to be geographically near enough next year... but if there's enough momentum getting people to go -- it really was a good con and I think very advantageous for doing writing business and making connections -- I'm sure I could make it work. It would be awesome to see you and Michele there, if she could make it. Maybe she could stop over in TN and stay with you (or even fly) and then you could carpool? I would imagine that drive for you would be a lot easier if you had someone along.

It wouldn't be far for Maggie...

Thread 7

anguirel October 2 2007, 01:57:18 UTC

I thought you hated box houses. ;p

Are you far enough down the St. Lawrence to get tidal effects (and salt water, for that matter)? Just curious since the dock is high, so I'm wondering if it's tide or spring flood that required it to be built that high. Should build you a floating dock-section to attach to that one... then I shall swipe my parent's canoe and not take you out in it (since last I knew, you also hated canoes).

zhai October 2 2007, 02:23:46 UTC

Box houses are bad. Cottages are fine. The box houses look really bad when they have multiple floors and still have these huge white broad featureless sides. skkyechan is with me on this, as is her mother, so we must be right.

No tidal effects. I suspect the dock is that high because the overall level of the water used to be higher. A lot of these waterways are receding. The portion where I am used to be a full fledged inlet of the St Lawrence, but it's really pretty boggy at this point.

There is a lot of boating all around the 1000 Islands, though you'd want to stay in the bays and inlets, it gets pretty Atlantic-like not that far from the shore.

anguirel October 4 2007, 02:50:53 UTC

A box is a box, regardless of size. :P

Wait for the spring thaw to flood the area. Fall is a terrible time of year for waterways, most of them are low.

I have taken a canoe in the ocean. Your piddly river will not daunt me! Though a sea kayak might be a better option, as long as I can get the rudder out before hitting the reeds.

braunian October 2 2007, 12:20:20 UTC

Do you have a Mustang now??

I love your property, it reminds me of where I grew up on Long Island.

zhai October 2 2007, 17:38:03 UTC

No Mustang -- it's a '99 Corolla, custom paint. The previous owner removed the back plaques for reasons unknown to me -- when I get time I plan on replacing them, since the back looks goofy to me without them and tends to confuse auto places. The parents of the previous owner (a college student), also for reasons unknown, thought that it was a Camry and advertised it as such to me -- didn't discover it was a Corolla until derren had driven me three hours to Boston to look at it. But it's a good car. I named it "Spider".

hildebabble October 2 2007, 14:27:20 UTC

Nice roommate. I snicker into my coffee whenever I look at the fish. Can't imagine why anyone would leave it behind.

Buying or renting? Because man, that whitewashed outer wall just screams "PAINT STUFF ON ME!"

zhai October 2 2007, 17:39:31 UTC

Well, the cottage used to be a temporary lease sort of deal, so there's a lot that "lives" there, including the fish. I feel fairly friendly toward it at this point.

Renting, since I'll probably only be up here for about a year. If it was going to be any longer I would have bought, and honestly I'm liking this enough that I already know it's going to be hard to leave -- the place, the cottage, the lifestyle. It has me wondering why I didn't do it sooner.