Not So Special FX, More Fun and Updates

Okay, nobody panic. I'm not going through anything as serious as a relapse. However, the activities of recent weeks has clearly pointed out that I am not quite ready to leap tall buildings in a single bound. On a more practical note, I'm going to have to seriously rethink some of my short term plans. The problems stem from the side effects of the chemo. It's a poison, after all, that I was taking for several months. My primary care Doc pointed out – with great patience – that it would be unreasonable to think that it would take less than several months for the side effects to fade. And that is at minimum. I've also discovered through the support groups I've found that some of the side effects that I thought were related to the chemo are likely permanent internal changes due to the extensive tinkering that occurred during the two surgeries. None of this is life threatening, but it presents some serious challenges with a day to day routine at times. It is really difficult to work myself up to exercise when I wake up with my joints painfully locked up or my feet are either numb or very painful – but most days, I do. For something other than a daily routine, I'm going to have to seriously think about what I can handle during the next few months. This doesn't mean that my plans are canceled by any means. However, I may have to postpone some things. I plan to make decisions and announcements to pertinent people on Tuesday.

Month of fun – Home Stretch

This is some big fun for me. I got an offer to submit a story to an anthology. I just signed the contract a little while ago. This was especially nice since I wasn't sending anything out. And it was good that I had some new material to submit. It's all very exciting. I'll post the title and where to find it when it comes out.

This month's treats were usually some sort of food. There were sweets like chocolate birthday cake (finally found a butter cream icing that worked), brownies and rhubarb compote (my first time cooking with rhubarb) and the Tiramisu. When I wasn't having a home made baked good, I was indulging in the occasional ice cream treat like a Dove bar or a Hagen Das Ice Cream bar – mainly after a long walk. And I've discovered some cheeses I've never had before. One of the nearby supermarkets sells the ends of big wheels or wedges at a steep discount per pound. My favorite new variety was an aged Irish cheddar with Irish whiskey in it somehow. And I've finally indulging in my favorite fruits. Cherries are in season and those mini seedless water melons are prime now. I've even been having mangoes! I don't typically buy them. So, not all of my treats have been calorie laden. And speaking of healthy foods, I've learned how to make sushi! I chickened out on making the inside out sushi rolls where the rice is on the outside. But I made a genuine California roll! But it wasn't inside out. I also used the extra rice to make rice balls rolled in Tobiko. I really love sushi rice and didn't want to waste it. I also managed to make buttermilk biscuits. Food wise, it's been a really fun month.

In the category of miscellaneous fun, I had some odd things published or listed on the internet. I found something really funny online that was also literary. It was a pair of actors from the Broadway play The Importance of Being Ernest reading transcripts from Jersey Shore as it the words had come from Oscar Wilde. It was called Jersey Shore Gone Wilde. I shared it with Roger Ebert and he put it in his widely read newsletter. I was as jazzed by that as I was that I had amused Roger Ebert. And my lengthy rant in defense of being an anime fan was cross posted on imdb.com. That's happened to a number of my pop culture related blogs, but I've finally figured out that I should be keeping track of that sort of thing.

I didn't get to have lunch with everyone I planned on seeing, but I don't have to restrict that to one month. Thanks again for all the kind wishes and encouragement. And don't think I'm done having fun, because June is rolling around. I still have plans. Nefarious plans.

Updates

We're still casting Octodemon: The Alcamagod. I think that's going to run over a few weeks as everyone is fitting the film in around other projects. Beyond that, we're starting to crew up. I think that's going to take some time as well. As far as I know, we keeping the same start date in July. I'll post an official update on that on the film's blog page. I will also post a reminder of where that update is on this blog. As far as the productions I'm working on, I'll be blogging about them later this week. The books are coming along at a nice, regular pace. I promise, promise, promise an excerpt or two next week.

Stay tuned.