http://www.tmcamp.com author, playright, poet, and podcaster Thu, 20 Nov 2008 20:19:05 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Before I forget, a new friend-of-the-site La Piñata has a website out there, where she says rather nice things about me. You should also take a look at her presence on Deviant Art. Give her a wave, she's a good egg. http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/11/ola-la-pinata/ I'm just now starting to come out of the foggy haze that washed over me last week -- a low fever, chills, and not much else to show for it all. I felt bad enough to notice but not enough to take off of work. My coworkers kept offering me ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/11/a-little-bit-of-november/ On August 4th, 2007, NASA launched a new Mars exploration mission named Phoenix. After a series of failures and disappointments, Phoenix represented perhaps the last hope that Martian exploration would continue. It's purpose was clear: Gather data near the Nortnern polar cap, sift through the icy soil there to find ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/11/a-eulogy-for-the-phoenix-mission/ So, I've done movies and songs and poems and books and even dreams. But the scariest thing of all..? This was years ago. It was summer. My family had gone on an extended trip to visit grandparents on the West Coast and I was alone in the house for six weeks. I ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/five-seconds-maybe-ten/ [For those of you who have been putting up with my little hints about the October Surprise, here's the payoff.] I've received a fair amount of mail from listeners over the past few months who, much like Oliver Twist, are politely asking for more. In many cases, they want to stop ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/the-winter-chap/ The spiral winds tighter as it descends, so we're getting pretty close to the core at this point. I've done my take on scary books and movies, spent some time babbling about ghost poetry and music . . . but now it's time to switch off the light and go ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/gates-of-horn-ivory/ Leading up to Halloween this year, I've been writing a bit about various things that scare me, and why. So far, I've gone through movies, poetry, and music. I've got a few more things I want to write about but it's time to take a turn deeper inward and talk ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/the-livid-scar/ Poetry is probably one of the few things that doesn't typically get marginalized into genres. Sure, you have anthologies geared towards specific themes like Love/Romance or Nature but that seems fairly rare and certainly as artificial the literary classification that I've written about here from time to time. Edgar Allen Poe ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/thin-rain/ Music is a funny thing and, usually, not something you think of in terms of horror. Even at it's darkest, I don't know that it's ever scary. There are some kinds of music -- particularly the harder, harsher speed metal or even some of the more artsy experimental composers -- which ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/the-music-of-fear/ In case you missed it above, The Winter Chap (aka The October Surprise) is now available for purchase. http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/now-on-sale-the-winter-chap/ Last year, I posted a few articles during the week leading up to Halloween. At the time, it had been my intention to write one article a day on different topics. But real life stepped in and I had to stop after Werewolves and Ouija Boards. Alas. I'm taking another swing ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/the-haunting/ COMING SOON -- Lots of nice people have been asking for something new to read now that they've made it through both of the podcasts/audiobooks. The new podcast is still under development, but I've got an October Surprise coming sometime in the next few days. Hopefully that will give you ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/the-october-surprise/ After almost ten years, I'm just starting to apply tags to blog posts, so apologies for the thin pickings at this point. It'll grow over time, promise. http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/tags/ Over at Starship Sofa, they're running Julie Davis' very kind review of "Assam & Darjeeling" in their latest podcast. She's expanded her comments a bit further than in her original review, but in case you missed it... One of the truest pleasures of Assam & Darjeeling is the relationship between the ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/starship-sofa-review-of-assam-darjeeling/ The "Assam & Darjeeling" problem files have been fixed out on the server, so the iTunes, RSS, and MP3 links should be all sorted out. Thanks and let me know if you run into any other problems. http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/fixed/ Looks like at least a few of the "Assam & Darjeeling" podcast files are corrupt. I'm working on a solution, stay tuned... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/a-quick-one/ The new site is up and running, mostly without any major problems — thanks mostly to Wordpress rather than my own skills. And I'm still picking off the 1,600+ blog entries from the past 8 years, getting those manually moved over from Blogger to the new format. If you're really ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/garricks-lament-and-the-appeal-of-milkweed/ I've posted a few new pictures out in The Vanity Illustration. Enjoy. http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/the-vanity-installation/ Yup. I'm doing some updates, so things will be goofed up for a few hours. Probably have things sorted out by midnight tonight. Apologies. [ADDENDUM] Well.. I'm still digging through code. I think I should get things cleaned up by the weekend. Stay tuned and thanks for your patience. http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/pardon-my-dust/ The leaves are turning. The warmth of summer that lingered on unexpectedly through September snapped off last night, like a lightswitch. Autumn, sudden. The past few weeks haven't been as productive a time as I would have liked. The schedule started off a little tight, just a squeeze around the ankles — ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/10/from-the-outskirts-of-october/ http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/09/goodnight/ I received a nice note from someone this weekend about the formatting of the podcasts, politely asking for the books in MP3 format (as opposed to the MP4s that are posted). After doing a little research, I've converted the "Matters of Mortology" podcasts as MP3s for people who have older ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/09/the-road-to-xibalba/ "Big Pop" A plastic bowl of grapes. The dusty, almost-black globes polished by our fingertips. The tart snap of the skin between my teeth. He teaches me to spit out the seeds, the stones bitter on the tip of my tongue. Wrestling old Smoky to the ground, he bites the dog’s ears, both of them growling. I watch, I ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/08/big-pop/ (Note: This past week marked the birthdays of Ray Bradbury and H.P. Lovecraft. I’m willing to go out on a limb and say that they are perhaps two of the most influential American writers of the 20th Century. Perhaps that’s overstating it but, at the very least, readers and writers ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/08/in-the-ghetto/ Yesterday was my son's fourteenth birthday. Ephemeros... In case you haven't heard, the Hugo Awards were announced this past weekend. You can see the nominees and winners here. I have to say, while I haven't read many of this year's nominees, I think that the award for film should have gone to ... http://www.tmcamp.com/2008/08/in-which-i-report-on-hugos-inexplicable-beavers-and-other-zoological-conditions/