📚 Clarkesworld Issue 211 edited by Neil Clarke

24/2024 – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A particularly strong issue this month. I really enjoyed “The Lark Ascending” by Eleanna Castroianni, “An Intergalactic Smuggler’s Guide to Homecoming” by Tia Tashiro, “The Indomitable Captain Holli” by Rich Larson, “The Rambler” by Shen Dacheng, translated by Cara Healey, and “Occurrence at O1339” by Kelly Jennings.

Me holding Clarkesworld 211 on my iPad.

Year 50 Day 337

Me on my couch, wearing a shirt that says "Star Trek" but uses the Star Wars logo font and design.

Day 337: A shirt that came with me to con this year, but didn’t get worn (because it’s been worn at con the past few years, and while many of my shirts get worn every year, some of them do need to be rotated out every so often).

Year 50 Day 336

Me in my office at work, with my X Files poster and IDIC wall art visible behind me.

Day 336: Made it through my first day of work back in the real world! Not nearly as many fairies, aliens, Imperial Stormtroopers, or Starfleet officers, but I suppose these humans I work with are nice enough.

📚 Star Trek II Biographies by William Rotsler

23/2024 – ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Something of a historical curiosity now, these “biographies” of the principal characters have since been nearly or entirely overwritten by later films or more official pseudo-canon works. Still, it’s a fun artifact of this point in Trek’s real-world history, and as the first published material giving Uhura’s first name of “Nyota”.

Me holding Star Trek II Biographies

Year 50 Day 335

Me at my desk at home, next to two stacks of Star Trek books, including all the James Blish logs, some of the photonovels, and near complete sets of the TNG and DS9 YA series.

Day 335: I always take the Monday after con off so that I can rest and recover. I got a full normal night’s sleep plus an extra couple hours after my wife left for work, unpacked my suitcase and did laundry, made some con website and social media updates, and processed and posted the audio from the Thursday night dance. A nice low-key day to transition from the con world back into my normal routines.

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Year 50 Day 334

Me in a hotel meeting room with a few people around chairs behind me; I'm wearing a black button-up short-sleeve shirt with large colorful Easter eggs on it.

Day 334: Norwescon day four is done! A fair chunk of the day was taken up by either packing or end-of-con web duties (awards posts, site updates for when the con is over, etc.), but there was also enough time for chats, goodbyes, and hugs from friends (and plenty of compliments on the Easter-themed shirt that my wife found for me). Another good year in the books! Next year, Norwescon 47…and Seattle Worldcon 2025!

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Year 50 Day 333

Me wearing a shirt that says 'yes, this is me flirting with you', standing in front of a group of convention photographers with their cameras aimed at me.

Day 333: Day three of Norwescon is done! While I had much less on my schedule today, it was still a very full day, with a mix of socializing, helping out here and there where I could, and some very well-deserved mid-day napping. Both of today’s shirts got a lot of laughs, and though I certainly wasn’t costumed, I got hauled into having my photo taken in the evening photography area, which seemed an obvious opportunity for a good selfie. Then a night of floating between the dance and the parties until it was time to fall over.

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