Madcap Adventures and Distracting Hijinx – Page 3

Madcap Adventures and Distracting Hijinx

Still at Aussiecon 4

Today’s the last day of Aussiecon 4 and I’ll be kicking around the convention centre for most of the day, soaking up the remaining hours of the geek-nirvana that is the worldcon. I have also hit the part of the con where I’m surviving on about four hours of sleep a night, but that’s a good thing. Other good things: – I met Rob Shearman early in the con and he misheard my name. This, in and of itself, isn’t the stuff that squee is made of, but when I later bought a copy of his short story collection and he was doing the signing I was given the opportunity to tell him I was a Peter, not a Paul. Still not squee-worthy? Bare with me, for the next thing that happened was awesome. Rob Shearman glanced at my namebadge and was all “Wait, Peter M Ball? The unicorn porn guy? I really liked Horn” (actual wordage may be slightly

PeterMBall 06/09/2010

Madcap Adventures and Distracting Hijinx

Adventures in Cat-Sitting, a Play in One Act

Peter sits at the table, trying to work. He is grumpy and irritable after being woken two hours early by a deranged cat yowling at the bedroom door. The Cat jumps on the table and sits on the computer keyboard. Peter moves The Cat. Peter: What do you want, cat? The Cat: Feed me, mortal. Peter: Dude, I fed you ten minutes ago. You ate. There is no more food. The Cat: FEED ME. Peter: No. The Cat: I stare at you. Peter: Totally cool with me. The Cat:I stare with mighty stareness. Peter: Huh. The Cat: FEEL THE WEIGHT OF MY DISPLEASURE Peter: Got it. Trying to work. The Cat: I savage your toe. Peter: Fuck. Shit. Rack off, I was using that. The Cat: FEEEEEEEED ME! Peter: TRYING TO WORK. The Cat: Holy shit, there’s birds in the yard. Peter:They’re chickens. They’re there every day. You know this, because I pull you away from their pen every morning.

PeterMBall 11/07/2010

Madcap Adventures and Distracting Hijinx

Six Things About America That I Tend to Covet

It’s been a rough week thus far (yes, all two days of it) and I’m in a covety kind of mood. I can’t help it, honest. Coveting things is one of those survival tactics that kick in when I’m otherwise unsure of what’s going on in the foreseeable future. And I figured I’d share some of the coveting. A tiny big of it, anyway. It will distract me until my jelly is ready to come out of the fridge and do it’s comfort-foody magic. And so, in approximate order, the six things about America* that I tend to covet: 1) Home-delivered Chinese food that comes in neat folded cardboard boxes. Oh little paper boxes full of wontons, cashew and noodle, how I dearly covet thee. In the fifteen years I’ve actually been eating Chinese food (I started late in life, after some bad experiences in my childhood) I have always been disappointed by the plastic containers in which Chinese take-away

PeterMBall 12/10/2009

Madcap Adventures and Distracting Hijinx

Challenge!

Try and describe the taste of coke (regular or diet). Then go and drink a mouthful, to see how accurate your recollection of the taste is. Bonus points if you can do it without falling back on either the fizz or the use of cola as a flavour descriptor. I’ve been trying to do this – and failing – for most of the day.

PeterMBall 07/05/2009

Madcap Adventures and Distracting Hijinx

I predict that Jason is the sole person who’ll take me up on this, but-

I sat down this morning and thought “Right, post something that has nothing to do with writing, you’re about due.” But you know what? I’m being a little writing obsessive this week. Can’t be helped; I’m in the midst of the first prolonged stretch of writing I’ve had in a long while and I’m still far to excited about that to think of something else to talk about on my own. So consider me a dancing monkey waiting for someone to crank the hurdy-gurdy (aka give me a topic and I’ll attempt to say something meaningful for your amusement. Otherwise I predict the remainder of the week will consist of me showing up with some variation of “look, I’m writing stuff, and it’s an awesome feeling” as my theme…)

PeterMBall 22/04/2009

Madcap Adventures and Distracting Hijinx

Alas, poor schnitzels, I knew them

It’s Saturday morning and I’m sitting here listening to Chibo Matto and Regina Spektor, trying not to regret last night’s culinary adventure. This is what I ate: Actually before I start, it’s probably worth pointing out that I have this obsession with bad fast-food from places that do their best to try and replicate the fast-food experience of a McDonalds but just don’t quite get it. Show me someone’s random idea to try and revolutionize the franchise fast-food industry or a local take-away doing something odd and I’m there with a couple of bucks in my pocket and a desire to see their worst. It’s a sickness, I know, but it’s mine and I’ve come to grips with it. It’s like those people you know who are obsessed with bad movies and love them for their flaws – I’m obsessed with bad fast-food and love it despite the stomach pains and added kilograms that result. Call it a desire to

PeterMBall 28/03/2009

Madcap Adventures and Distracting Hijinx

Interview Meme, part three

Another round of questions, this time from the ever-stylin’ Ben Francisco. He starts with a big genre question that’s very close to the thesis that’s rattling around my head, then asks a bunch of tricky questions to follow up, so I’m going to be long-winded for this one. Consider yourself warned: 1. You were once somewhat active with the Goth community, and your stories are still often influenced by Gothic tropes (and noir tropes) just as much as they are by spec fic tropes. What is it about these other, darker genres that attracts you? Is it just the make-up and sexy black outfits, or is it something deeper? I think the phrase you’re looking for is “just barely active within the goth community” -I was a goth lurker, for the most part. At the time I was living on the Gold Coast, which is one of those places that’s fairly isolating if you’re young and you don’t have a

PeterMBall 29/01/2009

Madcap Adventures and Distracting Hijinx

More Interview Meme

Another five questions answered (see Yesterday’s post for the meme rules). Today’s interview comes courtesy of Lee Battersby. 1. 20 000 word unicorn novella, hey? What’s the follow up? If everything goes to plan, a 20,000 word noir story about a PI and her magical-talking cat partner. I’m thinking there may well be more after that, depending on the kind of fantasy tropes I come accross and want to corrupt, but I figure the magic talking cat genre is the next one I want to pit the gritty realities of noir against. 2. Where is this writing journey taking you, ultimately? I wish I knew. I’ve never really planned my writing career, just followed the chain of opportunities and challenges as they came along. For a long time that meant writing poetry, then writing and publishing RPG material, and now it’s the short story. Given that I finally seem to be getting a grip on the novella, which was the

PeterMBall 26/01/2009

Madcap Adventures and Distracting Hijinx

It’s a Slow News Day, so you get a Meme

It’s the day after the Aurealis Awards and I’m basically running on fumes at this point (courtesy of an early start for the official recovery breakfast, an industry seminar, lunch, and a reading by Margo Lanagan this afternoon). With that in mind, I’m suspending any pretense of coming up with original content and embracing the ancient art of memeage. The Rules: 1. Leave me a comment saying, “Interview me!” 2. I will respond by asking you five questions. I get to pick the questions. 3. You will post the answers to the questions (and the questions themselves) on your blog or journal. 4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post. 5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions. And thus the endless cycle of the meme goes on and on and on and on… Current Interview Questions courtesy of Jason Fischer (If you want to ask

PeterMBall 25/01/2009

Category: Madcap Adventures and Distracting Hijinx

Still at Aussiecon 4

Adventures in Cat-Sitting, a Play in One Act

Six Things About America That I Tend to Covet

Challenge!

I predict that Jason is the sole person who’ll take me up on this, but-

Alas, poor schnitzels, I knew them

Interview Meme, part three

More Interview Meme

It’s a Slow News Day, so you get a Meme

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