NativeImagesPG's California Indian Blog: Forest's tribal relations program manager honored ...

Here's an interesting blog about preserving our national forests.

Did you know that I live in a forest?

NativeImagesPG's California Indian Blog: Forest's tribal relations program manager honored ...: CONGRATULATIONS DAN! We know how valuable you are to "Us", Glad to see other's do as well! INLAND: Forest's tribal relations program manag...

My book got one star on Amazon, five stars on Library Thing

Terry Allen gave my companion book, Firebright and the Edge of Reality, a five-star rating (5 out of 5!). 

See it on Library Thing.

http://www.librarything.com/work/12720914/book/87001567 

Buy the book on Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Firebright-Edge-Reality-Collector-Edition/dp/1463632630/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1340464183&sr=1-4&keywords=tessa+dick

And plese note that it has only one Amazon review, and it gives my book one measly star!

Also see my memoir TessaB. Dick: My Life on the Edge of Reality.

http://www.amazon.com/Tessa-B-Dick-Life-Reality/dp/1461142695/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1340464183&sr=1-1&keywords=tessa+dick

and the original memoir, the one that started this chain of events,

Philip K, Dick:  Remembering  Firebright

http://www.amazon.com/Philip-K-Dick-Remembering-Firebright/dp/1442110279/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1340464183&sr=1-2&keywords=tessa+dick

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Snacking for writers

Despite all the warnings about keeping liquids away from the precious and fragile keyboard, I always keep a cup of coffee and a glass of water at hand while I'm using the computer.  I figure that, if it's going to happen, there is nothing that I can do to stop it.  After all, I once tripped on an electrical cord a full ten feet away from the computer, and the coffee flew out of the cup then landed in a belly flop all over the keyboard.  I'm talented that way.

So I have my liquids, and I have my snacks.  At least once a day, I turn the keyboard upside down and shake out the crumbs of donuts, cookies and potato chips.  Yes, I'm probably ruining my health, such as it is, with all that junk food.

In an attempt to improve my health, and to continue avoiding the need to step away from the computer for an actual meal, I have taken to surrounding the computer with better snacks.

Cheese, I love cheese. Shredded cheese is a great topper for a bowl of soup, especially if you first toss in some croutons for the cheese to hug.  Cheese is also good on crackers, of course, but that strategy lacks imagination.  I like to pan fry a tortilla in butter, adding shredded cheese on top so that it melts into a gooey, delicious mess.  You can add tomato chunks or salsa for extra flavor.

Celery is great, after I strip off most of the strings.  Those strings are too hard to chew, and sometimes they roll up into a ball and choke me.  Celery is good dipped in peanut butter or cream cheese.  I've given up on carrots, unless I have the time and inclination to cut them into thin slices.  My dentures just can't handle the biting and chewing any more.

Oh, and then there's fresh fruit in season.  August is my favorite month because the fruit on my wild blackberry vine ripens in August.  At about the same time, the tomatoes in my garden start producing enough fruit to share with friends and neighbors.

The apples on my ancient tree usually ripen by Halloween.

And then there's the frozen fruit off the Schwan's truck.  Since I can't drive, it's a blessing to have food delivered, and their prices are competitive with the grocery store -- sometimes lower.  (No, they did not pay me to say that.)  Schwan's has a variety of snacks, meals and ingredients for meals, plus the most delicious ice cream I ever ate.

But I digress.  Surrounding myself with snacks enables me to spend more time writing and less time fussing around the kitchen for something to eat.

Living alone -- unless you count the cats -- makes it possible for me to ignore the habits and rituals of family life.  In fact, even when I had a husband and child, I often ignored them until dinner time.  Writing is my life, and other people just have to get used to it.

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The Darkening of the Light, cover art

Nick Buchanan's wonderful art work is always awesome.  Here's his cover my my latest novel, The Darkening of the Light.

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Abandoned owls, revelation and insanity

An interesting post on Word and Film urges Harry Potter fans to stop abandoning their pet owls now that the movies have come to an end.

http://www.wordandfilm.com/2012/05/harry-potter-fans-stop-abandoning-your-pet-owls/

The same post goes on to point us to a "three-part Opinion piece in the New York Times (here's part one) exploring the difference between spiritual revelation and mental illness."

What, exactly is the difference between revelation and insanity?  Are children mentally ill when they see monsters in the closet or under the bed?  Are religious people insane when they talk to an invisible God?  Are creative artists crazy, or perhaps childlike?

Was Philip K. Dick mentally ill when he encountered information from a parallel universe?

I don't understand why the New York Times piece refers to the "golden fish".  Phil always called it the "pink light".  In any case, it is interesting that a university professor finds the subject worthy of exploration.

Here's a snippet:

Skimming through and across multiple encyclopedia entries, Dick found links and correspondences of ideas everywhere. He also stumbled into the primary texts of a number of philosophers and theologians — notably the pre-Socratics, Plato, Meister Eckhart, Spinoza, Hegel, Schopenhauer, Marx, Whitehead, Heidegger and Hans Jonas. His interpretations are sometimes quite bizarre but often compelling.

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/05/20/philip-k-dick-sci-fi-philosopher-part-1/

Professor Simon Critchley seems blissfully unaware of the fact that Phil studied philosophy at the University of California, or that he continued studying philosophy on his own after leaving the university.

A word of advice:  If you click the links, read at your own peril.  These things might expand your mind.

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My books are now available in Europe and the UK on Amazon!

My books are now available On Amazon Europe and Amazon UK!


That includes my latest novel, The Darkening of the Light, in which we follow Edna Stax down the rabbit hole of alternate worlds. 


Yippee! 


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Excerpt, The Darkening of the Light

If you like my other books, you're sure to love my latest novel, The Darkening of the Light.

Here's an excerpt: 

“Clear!” the doctor shouted, and then came the shock.  Again he shouted, “Clear!” and again the shock came.  And yet a third time, the charm, “Clear!” and then the shock, as if Dr. Frankenstein were bringing the monster to life.  The dead parts began to live, and the sinus rhythm settled into a regular pattern on the monitor, and the beeping became more regular and less frantic. 

Clearly the light had begun to darken, yet she lived.  Unable to move, but seeing and hearing all those around her, she lay in the hospital bed while her faithful suitor sat in the chair and talked to her, or Mother sat reading aloud from the newspaper, even reading the want ads, but never the obituaries, for the thought of death must never enter this room.  

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Available on Amazon HERE 

or on Kindle HERE

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Cover art by Nick Buchanan