Happy Independence Day!

Well, it's been a few days, so let me bring my readers up to date: not much happening here.

My laptop finally bit the dust, and seeing that it was my only home computer, that means I've got to use my work computer to make posts. But at the same time, I've been swamped at work because things are finally reaching the home stretch before implementation. (I'll be more specific about this once things get rolling.)

On another front, I've been reading tons. I breezed through the six Harry Potter books in about three weeks, and I'm dying to have that Book Seven in my hands RIGHT NOW!!

It's interesting how a writer can pull you into a fantasy world, and leave you begging for more, dying to find out what happens to characters who only exist in fantasy.

Fascinating.

I've decided I want to do that.

So I piled up some paperbacks I'll be working through over the course of the summer: some Stephen King, some Tom Clancy, some Dean Koontz, some Orson Scott Card (who many of you may not have heard of, but who has written tons of interesting and well-written sci-fi books).

But I'm reading for more than just pleasure--I want to analyze what these writers do to capture the reader's attention and keep them hooked throughout an entire 600-700 page book. I love a good a story. And I think I could tell a good one, myself.

On yet another front, Alba and I are going camping over the fourth. It's been AGES since I've been camping. In fact, I bought a tent 'way back in 2000 and have never used it. So I figured it's time to break that baby out and put it through its paces.

Of course, one overnight stay up on a high and dry Mt. Pinos in the Los Padres National Forest probably won't be putting it through its paces, but it will be fun, anyway. There are hiking trails, camping spots....well, that's about it. But there will be trails and camping spots, and I suppose that's all you need except for a john, and fortunately there is one of those close by, as well.

But what I'm most looking forward to, and I'm hoping dearly to find, are the amateur astronomers who like to congregate at the Chula Vista parking lot close to where we'll be camping. If there are star nerds with their humongous telescopes out, you can bet I'll be making friends with some of them in the hope of getting a peak through their telescope!

(It just occurred to me that some of you may consider these humongous telescopes to be phallic symbols--which I suppose they are--and may find my wish to gawk at them quite amusing. Particularly since in the astronomy world, bigger is definitely better, and certainly gets the owner a lot of attention. But I assure you that phallis is not on my mind...just a desire to see some cool astronomical--NOT asstronomical nor gastronomical--phenomenon.)

I'll tell you about my trip when I get back. So, until then...

The Stan