Jackson now knows somewhat reliably: "sit" "stay" "no" "whoa! (stop)" "quit (doing what you're doing)" "fetch" "give (what you are holding in your mouth)" and "off (the furniture)". When he play bites we yelp like puppies and he stops. He really does seem to be a fast learner, and not very stubborn, unlike a certain LBD* I could name. He gets an upset stomach now and then. Yesterday he vomited five...

When people say my work is sometimes dark (and it is), I feel like showing them things like this. What goes on every day in the real world trumps anything a writer can come up with. http://www.slate.com/id/2213959/pagenum/all/#p2

The other day someone wrote to me, asking what magic smells like in my world, since I often mention smells. I've never been asked that before! :-) I think I mentioned that the making of fire chips stinks, and of course Sebrahn's magic smells sweet. The magic used on Seregil in LITS stank bad enough to make Thero sick. In other places I simply mention that there is a smell, but leave it to the reader's...

We've made some wonderful progress with Jackson, who's now 5 months old. He now walks nicely on a leash and goes for walks, shows little shyness except for people we meet, and lawnmowers. I've been using a Gentle Leader on him, which Doug calls "the lobotomizer", and it really helps. He's warming up to having company in the house, too. I just tell everyone to ignore him until he comes to them, and...

The send button hath been pressed. White Road is off to Editorial Land. I am taking the day off.

We Netflixed the BBC series "Skins" to see what it was about, since we missed it on TV. It's great! I'm not usually interested in shows like this, but this is so not "90210". Finished the last of the edits today and am watching multiple episodes as my reward. :-)

Even as a great rock is not shaken by the wind, the wise man is not shaken by praise or blame. -The Buddha

25 Things About Me 1. I love animals. 2. I love to receive flowers. 3. I'm terribly lazy sometimes. 4. I am a Buddhist. 5. I used to hunt, and was very good at it. 6. I get motion sick on everything that moves except when I'm driving. 7. I have a kid sister. 8. I'm allergic to nuts, canola oil, and kiwi fruit. 9. I hate to exercise, but should. 10. I am working toward being a connoissseur...

Took a chilly scooter ride up to Panera with a chunk of White Road and edited all morning, then home to make the digital changes. It's coming along great and I will (for once) easily make an agreed upon deadline. My reward tonight? Pesto pizza and back to back to back submarine movies on Turner Movie Classics. I don't know why I like them so much, since I'm quite claustrophobic. Maybe it's the sonar...