"Annihilation" Wins Nebula Award: Really?

Yeah, it seems so: official Nebula Award page here.

I mean, it was alright (here's my review from last month), but it wasn't that good.  On the other hand when you consider the competition in today's sci-fi market, maybe it was the best new novel at hand.  It's a common lament, as has been noted here in the recent past.

New Mountain Bike Glasses

Wanted to order amber lenses but they were out of stock, so I went with hi-viz oranges.  Using the tricksy hold-over-the-smartphone technique, you can see their effect in the two picture on the right:

They're pretty good for summer, but come fall and low-light conditions I may be switching back to amber.  At <$10 at Amazon, UVEX safety glasses are functional, priced right, available in many configurations to fit even the most Roman of noses, and considerably less dorky looking than many of the high-dollar options.

Hydrobike? Might be pretty good.

Here's the full article on these water beasts, but you can get what this is all about in one glance here:

Definitely goes on the Must-Try list.

Afterthought: Somebody's got to try crossing this with downhill mountain biking by riding rapids.  Film at 11.

Summer Reading: The Best of L. Sprague de Camp

A little over half-way through, and I have to say that The Best of L. Sprague de Camp is a thoroughly enjoyable collection of short stories.  Many years ago I'd read The Gnarly Man and not so long ago I'd found a radio play of A Gun for Dinosaur – first on WTIX-AM when it was in its final throes and then shortly after on the internet.  Here, you can dig the latter out of archive.org, just search down a little.  Give it a listen, it's just under 30 minutes long and it's a fair sample of this collection.

Most of these stories deal with fairly serious themes – a worldwide viral plague with a mostly harmless side-effect, an air-dispersed zombie drug, trade relations with other humanoids, a sort of proto-Jurassic Park story – but the author always keeps a light and amusing touch.  Sometimes the genie gets stuffed back in the bottle by the end, sometimes mankind just hitches its britches up and continues onward.  de Camp's handling of history  always rings of truth, in much the same way as Tolkien's writing, but with a definite 20th Century American twist.  It's fun reading that doesn't leave you feeling as if you'd eaten an entire bag of tortilla chips afterwards.

Here, have a couple of Wikipedia links, first to the collection's page, then to a short biography on de Camp.  If you want much more, you can find it starting there.  Also, a reminder that if you can't find a paperback copy nearby, these sorts of collections are tailor-made for downloading your e-reader for next to nothing.

Finally, I wish to point out that it doesn't take a time machine to go dinosaur hunting anymore these days.  What's more, they are pretty darned tasty, at least the right varieties if prepared properly.  Remember?  Yes, this is a good world.

That's Putting It a Little Strongly, but...

I Went Paleo and Now I hate Everything

I can see where she's coming from.  Don't worry, it's a humor piece, the author's not really serious.  She does point out some interesting things though.

Mostly, I'll take the downsides without complaints.  Having my back pain and asthma ease up almost immediately, then dropping twenty pounds without even trying makes the hassles worthwhile.  (Even if I did forgetses the tastes of bread, the soundes of trees, the softnessesses of the wind, and even our own nameses in the process.)

Had Enough Yet?

Tired of the TSA and their stunning success record?  Want to return to a more civilized age of air travel?  You might wan to give Southern Airways Express a call.  More on this little jewel of an airline at The Bitter Southerner.

Welcome Back to Hurricane Season

So far, so good:

Just don't count on it to stay this way.  You do have your hurricane supplies sorted out, right?  If not, then you'd better get on it, because a lack of storm preparation – on your or your neighbors' part – has been shown to actively draw hurricanes.  (This is simple enough to derive, starting from Bell's theorem and Murphy's law; left as an exercise for the student.)