The Cult of Lincoln

Thursday, August 06, 2009

Twitter is down. Where do I go to flail about this in 140 characters or fewer? Oh yeah, I have a blog!

So. My Epic Comic Con Post of Epicness has taken a back seat to a far more pressing deadline. Rather than merely plotting out the skeleton of the map to be printed in First Lord's Fury, book 6 of the Codex Alera, I'm now illustrating the finished product! My artwork is going to be published in tens of thousands of copies of the landmark final novel in an internationally bestselling series. And I'm being paid considerably more than the figure I originally ballparked when pitching the map idea to Jim and the Penguin folks.

No pressure. :D

Needless to say, I'm thrilled beyond belief. Thrilled and intimidated. Thrilled, intimidated, and flattered, ~~and filled with almost fanatical devotion to the Pope~~. Not only is it a huge responsibility, but it's a staggering vote of confidence in my abilities as an artist. Someone whose opinion I respect had such faith in my skills that he felt I was the best choice for such an important job. Wow.

Jim and I were tossing ideas back and forth last night, and I felt positively giddy at what we were coming up with. It's an inspiration, collaborating with such a creative mind. There's so much I want to include! Jim essentially told me to pull out all the stops, and that's what I'm going to do. I can't wait to prove myself worthy of this honor.

Labels: art, awesome, jim butcher, workin' hard for the money

Priscilla said at 1:52 PM
3 comments

Saturday, August 01, 2009

Another linkless mass Twitter-spam, to round out July. The developer fixed the bug preventing me from using Twittinesis, so hopefully we shall return to sanity before too long!

Yes, I'm currently working on a massive Con post. I'm a slow writer. :D

@twittinesis The URL is http://www.theninemuses.net... -- Thanks for such a quick response! 7 minutes ago
@twittinesis Publishing via FTP to site w/ Blogger, getting"Could not determine type of blog/blog is unsupported" @ sign up. Please advise? 13 minutes ago
@nataliemorales Fingers are crossed! about 18 hours ago
RT @wendywoowho Follow Friday: @lisawalkscom Help find a cure for breast cancer while bidding on cute teddy bears signed by hot celebrities! about 20 hours ago
RT @sarah_haskins 1. I got my driver's license! 2. New Target Women! http://bit.ly/yHXcT about 20 hours ago
@jennyowenyoungs Wow! And here, I thought it was about divvying up a Kit Kat bar. about 23 hours ago
@SheckyX Something hilarious in authors talking about their testicles to near-strangers? I can't imagine what could be funny about that. :D 8:33 PM Jul 31st
@Dietcoke219 The bleeping in #Middleman is a joke. It's a joke that wouldn't work on HBO. :D 7:37 PM Jul 31st
"Stray Italian Greyhound" just came up on random. Good lord, I adore that song! Thank you, @viennateng! 7:26 PM Jul 31st
@SheckyX Yup. Within like five minutes of meeting me. 6:28 PM Jul 31st
@NewMexiKo WOE! *clings to Chichi and Millie* 6:27 PM Jul 31st
Yippee skippy! It's Bunny-Killing Day! http://www.killerbunnies.com/ @spodalicious 6:22 PM Jul 31st
Finished Brandon Sanderson's "The Hero of Ages." Awesome! Hmm, what to read next? 6:20 PM Jul 31st
*dies laughing* You know why they call it "Real Life Comics"? Because it happened to me IRL, too! http://bit.ly/Qz7tO 4:33 PM Jul 31st
@scifantasy The DVDs came out on Tues. Not sure of the street date for the Ep13 comic, but I thought it was the same. It's not on Amazon. 9:10 AM Jul 31st
RT @Jamie1km RT @macworld: Top 10 iPhone annoyances and how to fix them: http://is.gd/1V1kl 5:56 AM Jul 31st
@Dietcoke219 @mkcho73 I still need to watch the last three episodes, but I'm really enjoying "Kings." I recommend it! 5:06 AM Jul 31st
@jonrog1 The weekend before last, I hooked EIGHT new fans! The show is addictive. 4:52 AM Jul 31st
Potential roommate #1 is ADORABLE. Cross your fingers for me! 4:45 AM Jul 31st
@ironicsegue WOOHOO, congrats! 3:00 AM Jul 31st
@jonrog1 The writers are concerned about a woman who was introduced gleefully bombing her own home at age 6 coming off as "terrifying"? 2:30 AM Jul 31st
Oh Lord, you were so good to me at SDCC, and I know I must serve my dues, but is making me google "shirtless old man" for work justified? 10:53 PM Jul 30th
Cleaned room in preparation for visits from 2 potential roommates tonight. Need to dedicate a night to sorting through looming paper heaps. 5:11 PM Jul 30th
Decided to turn down the cat-owning potential roommate. Would rather not drown in kitty litter and fur. 8:19 AM Jul 30th
Cleaned kitchen and washed garbage can. Should clean out fridge, too, but I am le tired. 8:17 AM Jul 30th
@SheckyX ArgJimflail! *clings to certain imperiled characters who shall go unnamed* 7:57 AM Jul 30th
Security flaw could allow evildoers to hijack all world's iPhones. Hackers getting ideas from Ep 13 of Middleman? http://is.gd/1TmPr @OKBJGM 6:55 AM Jul 30th
@NewMexiKo Glee! Welcome, Astrid! What is she? 6:51 AM Jul 30th
@xiehicks *squeaks* Too cute for words! 3:08 AM Jul 30th
Hmm. A potential roommate has two cats. Is this okay with me? Good question. 3:07 AM Jul 30th
@boymonster Alas, it is not! My workplace is anti-nap. 12:27 AM Jul 30th
Neglected to mention I posted photos from Dollhouse, Doctor Who, and True Blood panels to my Flickr last night: http://bit.ly/3k5JkE 10:03 PM Jul 29th
Mmm, roast vegetable curry soup. Makes me want to curl up in my chair and take a lovely nap. 10:01 PM Jul 29th
@SheckyX *sporfle* I'm in if you are. 8:12 PM Jul 29th
@AnneSowards Your country thanks you! 8:01 PM Jul 29th
RT @lisawalkscom Let's see what twitter can do! http://bit.ly/MPa17 // Project Teddybear auctions going live soon! 7:52 PM Jul 29th
Today's XKCD is magnificently apt: http://xkcd.com/616/ 6:05 PM Jul 29th
@DerekRuiz Enjoy it! "Turn Coat" is one heck of a read. 6:02 PM Jul 29th
@spodalicious Christmas in July! 5:58 PM Jul 29th
Hee! There's a street carnival at the end of my block, currently engaged in a pie-eating contest to the tune of @alyankovic's "Eat It." 4:28 AM Jul 29th
Video of David Tennant, John Barrowman, and Russell T Davies exchanging smooches at Comic-Con http://tinyurl.com/mhyxzb (h/t @bbcamerica) 3:30 AM Jul 29th
Yay, ten minutes until I can tear out of this office and grab me some Middleman DVDs! Still need convincing? Read this: http://bit.ly/7Pofe 3:28 AM Jul 29th
Ha! Richard Castle is now on Twitter. And it's "official"! This is going to be amusing. @WriteRCastle 3:08 AM Jul 29th
@SheckyX *glee* Thank you! 1:34 AM Jul 29th
@boymonster Yup, Valerie plays a vamp. Meanwhile, Joanne Kelly is off playing a skeptical government agent trafficking in the paranormal. :D 12:51 AM Jul 29th
Middleman, aka the best show you've never heard of, comes out on DVD today! Joyously geeky and absolutely hilarious! http://bit.ly/q6gHk 11:15 PM Jul 28th
Posted photos of Project Teddybear participants to Flickr! http://bit.ly/rKoWl @lisawalkscom 10:19 AM Jul 28th
Posted first batch of SDCC photos to Flickr, including Middleman panel and cosplay! http://bit.ly/P0160 @OKBJGM @davidHopkins 10:18 AM Jul 28th
Catching up on "True Blood" while selecting photos for posting. Holy cow, it's Valerie Cruz! I forgot she was going to be on the show. 5:34 AM Jul 28th
Rarg, Con-Brain continues to plague my every action. Can you help me, "Focus"-branded Vitamin Water? 1:30 AM Jul 28th
@davidhopkins @OKBJGM That's me! Thanks for the Middlelove. I'll post pics of myself with the two other Wendys and @NatalieMorales tonight. 1:11 AM Jul 28th
@mkcho73 Mop-wye fop-ae-vop-oh-rop-eye-top-ee kop-eye-dop lop-ae-nop-gop-yew-ae-gop-ee eye-sop oh-pop nop-oh-pop. 1:03 AM Jul 28th
*sporfle* I love you, Psych. RT @psych_usa The "Mentalist" spot everyone was talking about! http://bit.ly/4PvoB 12:45 AM Jul 28th
After several days of con food and heavy dinners, a lunch of quinoa and apricots, hummus, and roast cauliflower really hit the spot! 10:14 PM Jul 27th
Trailer for Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland." http://bit.ly/qLwkZ Looks fun, but I'm ready for him to get back to doing original stuff. 10:12 PM Jul 27th
Glee! Some heroic soul filmed clips of the Middleman table read and posted them to YouTube! The first is here: http://bit.ly/13OfaR 9:17 PM Jul 27th
Wearing Middleman shirt on day I'm instructed to create Terra Cotta Warrior for spot. Somebody up there is laughing their tail off. @OKBJGM 9:09 PM Jul 27th
My dad asks, "If SDCC is over and you are on your way back to NYC does that make you an Ex-Con?" My dad = adorable. 8:57 PM Jul 27th
@boymonster I am astounded by what I hope is a Molesworth reference! 8:27 PM Jul 27th
Things not to do the morning after Comic Con: Explain the principles of distortion in dollying vs. zooming a camera. I have a math hangover. 7:50 PM Jul 27th
@fredhicks In Harry Potter, Florean Fortescue is a wizardly ice cream vendor. "Carmella" sounds like the perfect name for a wife or sister. 7:36 PM Jul 27th
Someone with a very tiny head has been using my headphones at work. I may have to nickname her "Goldilocks," despite her hair being brown. 6:49 PM Jul 27th
RT @whedonesque Joss Whedon's Amazon intro for the Dollhouse DVD. http://bit.ly/oQEu2 // Yay for silly accents! 6:38 PM Jul 27th
@DerekRuiz I had a fantastic time, and I was happy to pitch in at the booth! Count me in for next year! 6:20 PM Jul 27th
The Merriam-Webster Word of the Day is "quaff." Wouldn't that have been more appropriate for Comic Con weekend? @definethis 6:17 PM Jul 27th
Sleep draws nigh! Will have to watch videos of @Esperacchius' concert tomorrow. I've been looking forward to it since it was announced! 10:39 AM Jul 27th
Woah! Will not share the photo of DT looking like he's heiling Hitler. Instead, shall post shots of DT and RTD losing it with laughter. 10:34 AM Jul 27th
Importing photos from Doctor Who panel before ZZZs. Pics displayed as they transfer--DT is so gloriously expressive! Can't wait to share. 10:27 AM Jul 27th
@JekkaW It was great getting to hang out with you. May your trip back to NYC go smoothly from now on! Hope to see you at KGB sometime. 10:17 AM Jul 27th
@Uilos Oh, man. I missed that series of tweets. Rough. You guys will be in my thoughts tomorrow (today?). 10:08 AM Jul 27th
Home! And for my next trick, ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ. 10:03 AM Jul 27th
Now have been waiting at Baggage Claim for nearly half an hour. Struggling to remember the last time I had a positive experience at JFK. 9:18 AM Jul 27th
Woman next to me lustfully eyeing my sandwich. Mine! You cannot has! 8:45 AM Jul 27th
In-flight entertainment was showing Psych when I woke up, but interrupted it for some weird cruise infomercial. Not on, AA. 8:40 AM Jul 27th
Landed in NYC safely, but weather grounded all outgoing flights. Taxiing foreverrrrrrr. (30 min plus so far) 8:36 AM Jul 27th
On the shuttle to the airport. That con was FANTASTIC! Count me in for next year! I may sleep until then. :D 11:29 PM Jul 26th
Have squeed like no fangirl has squeed before! 10:43 PM Jul 26th
Second row, just off center! Oh, sleep, your noble sacrifice was not in vain! Perfect view of David Tennant! 8:56 PM Jul 26th
XD! While posing for photos, girl dressed as Jack just felt up girl dressed as Ianto. I love this fandom! 8:22 PM Jul 26th
Who fans have good taste! One fan is wearing a Middleman shirt, and several more joined my cry of ART CRAWL! #artcrawlsdcc 8:18 PM Jul 26th
Frak! The John Barrowman autograph ticket Heidi gave me fell out of my pocket in said lunatic sprint. Retracing steps proved fruitless. 7:54 PM Jul 26th
Gods. These jokers could write a book on how NOT to manage a mob. Have fulfilled my quota in lunatic sprinting for this millenium. 7:09 PM Jul 26th
Handful of Who fans already in line, but I'm only the 2nd with an Exhibitor's Pass, and we get in an hour and a half before the serfs! Woo! 5:41 PM Jul 26th
Oh god, I'm awake. How am I awake? And I've been awake for 20 minutes, to boot! Hardcore, thy name is me. 4:48 PM Jul 26th
Dinner was grand, full of great gossip and lesbian unicorns. A fantastic last night for Comic Con! #patfreakingrothfuss 11:43 AM Jul 26th
Am going to dinner with @AnneSowards, fellow Penguinite Jessica, and Pat Freaking Rothfuss. Pinch me? #patfreakingrothfuss 9:25 AM Jul 26th
Badass! Managed to sneak up to the 7th row center for True Blood! Triumph! 4:31 AM Jul 26th
Arrived in B20 in time to see John Noble being awesome at Fringe panel. True Blood is next, but I'm enjoying being here now! 3:56 AM Jul 26th
http://twitpic.com/bmps5 - You speak for us all, Exhausted Ballroom 20 Line Guy. You speak for us all. 3:40 AM Jul 26th
@travelingheidi Sounds good! I shall be hardcore! Know of any place I can stash a suitcase at that hour? I'll need to bring it with me. 2:36 AM Jul 26th
Thank you, @robinthorsen, for participating in Project Teddybear! @lisawalkscom 2:05 AM Jul 26th
@travelingheidi Is there an outside line, then? Must be, as folks shouldn't be allowed in the Convention Center until 9:30. 1:42 AM Jul 26th
Meeting and chatting with impressive number of Dresden fans at DBPro and SoCal Browncoat booths. Good taste here at Comic Con! 1:40 AM Jul 26th
And Javi recognized me, even dressed as I was as Kaylee! He took a bunch of photos with the bear to ensure a good one. Javi = awesome! 11:01 PM Jul 25th
LUCKIEST FAN EVER! Stopped by Viper Comics booth to see if Javi would be by that day, so I could retake PTB photo, and he was there signing! 10:59 PM Jul 25th
Are you going to try to attend the Doctor Who panel tomorrow, @jbkuma and @travelingheidi? What time are you planning to get in line? 10:19 PM Jul 25th
Eating leisurely breakfast at hotel. Jon Favreau, director of Iron Man, is at the next table. 9:06 PM Jul 25th
To @camsmith25: I shared Awesome Jim-Thing #3 a few weeks ago! I'm helping make a map of Alera for "First Lord's Fury." 8:48 PM Jul 25th

Labels: awesome, cons, twitter

Priscilla said at 12:30 PM
0 comments

Sunday, July 05, 2009

In the past 26 hours, I have resolved all of my life's immediate woes, including woes I did not have 26 hours ago!

Last night, I planned to meet a Potential Roommate named Marina from Russia, who was coming to NY for a two-month internship. This would be perfect for me, as it would free up the room in time for the influx of students to NY in September, and I would be much more likely to find someone.

When she arrived in my apartment, however, she was shocked to see that "bedroom" did not mean "a room with a bed in it." While her English is great, she did not know the meaning of the word "unfurnished." So she was stuck in an unfamiliar country with unfamiliar people, and her only housing option had just proved to be completely unlike what she was expecting. She had booked a hotel for Saturday and Sunday nights, but if she didn't stay with me, she was going to have to start again from scratch, finding a place to stay at the very last minute. Because I am not heartless, I decided to follow the words of the great Tim Gunn and Make It Work.

As luck would have it, I had been shopping around on Craigslist for a new futon for the common room to replace the one my previous roommate took. I told her it could go in her room, and then I could move it to the common room when she moved out. Problem solved! I just needed to find the right futon.

After exhaustive research, I made contact with three likely candidates, scheduling them around a production of "Coraline: The Musical" at 3. The first one (the only one before the show) I really liked. It was also cheapest of the lot, and would look the best in the common room. Because I absolutely needed a futon by tomorrow night, I bought it and scheduled a mover for later in the evening. Unfortunately, I realized that my cell phone was perilously low on batteries! This could greatly complicate the move. Still, I treated myself to a delicious, leisurely lunch before the show, content in the knowledge that come hell or high water, Marina would at least have a place to sleep on Monday.

The show was awesome. It was bizarre in a way only a collaboration between Neil Gaiman and Stephin Merritt can be, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I was particularly delighted by the Cat, who stole every minute of the show he was onstage. And during the show, it occurred to me that there was an Apple store not seven blocks away! Another problem solved! Afterward, I stopped by the store and discreetly stuck my phone on their charger, as I checked my email on one of their swanky new MacBook Pros.

Then, it was on to the other two options! I decided that I really wanted to get two futons: one for the common room and one for Marina's room, and I could stick the surplus futon in my room or resell it on Craigslist when she moved out. Or maybe the next girl could use it. Whatever works! Both options were in the Upper East Side, thankfully, only about 10 blocks from each other. Sweeeet. The second futon was pretty nice, but I fell in wild, passionate futon-monkey-love for the third. The mattress was of a decadent quality one does not traditionally associate with futons.

Anyway. I called the mover around 6:30 to add the additional stop to the itinerary (the move was scheduled to start at 8), but I got the answering machine. I chilled at the third place as I waited for the pieces to click into place, helping the young couple decide where to put stuff in their new apartment, but the movers never called me back.

Finally, I called the first guy (Mario) and filled him in on what was happening. He was cool about it, and he agreed to help the mover (Jeremy) load the futon into the truck, while I waited at the other location. Yay, Mario! It went off without a hitch. Afterward, Jeremy drove to my location, and we loaded the second futon into the truck in an engineering feat that would make Richard Feynman swoon.

Then, we were off to my apartment! But alas, some scallywag had made off with the doorstop, so I was going to have to juggle half of a futon as I unlocked the door. Doom! Fortunately, God can be pretty darn literal when she has a mind to be, and we were greeted near the door by four Mormon missionaries, who were headquartered in my building! They helped us into the building and into the elevator, then even toted the second futon to my room as Jeremy, Mormon #1, and I wrestled with getting the first into Marina's bedroom.

Then finally, all was done! Life was won, and it was won by me.

...and as I was finishing this post, I just got another hit on my Craisglist ad for the stint starting in September. The I looked up and happened to see a lovely, perfectly full moon shining down at me in my seat on my new futon, appearing smack-dab in the center of my window. I'm not sure which Karma Policeman accidentally mixed up my file with that of a baby-saving fireman or humanitarian aid worker, but I'm grateful for the clerical error nonetheless!

Labels: awesome

Priscilla said at 10:44 PM
3 comments

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Okay, I think I love Wolfram Alpha.

Labels: awesome

Priscilla said at 12:28 PM
0 comments

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

A number of my friends are participating in the Happiness Meme, and I decided I should, too! It's simple: Post about something that made you happy today, then rinse and repeat for eight days. I'm a very happy person, so I'm going to challenge myself to five original happy things per day.

Lunch in Bryant Park. The boss let us go out for lunch today, so I snagged food from a street vendor and found a table on the grass with a few coworkers. As I ate, I took my shoes off and luxuriated in the feel of the grass between my toes, then afterward, I lay down on the grass and basked in the sun. Mmm, Vitamin D!
Jim Butcher validated my one-sided, unrequited Hendricks/Gard crackship! Well, evidence was already there in canon for those that wanted to see it, but it's nice to see it reinforced.
Really fantastic Amazon customer reviews a coworker just sent me: Three Wolf Moon Shirt and Tuscan Whole Milk. I love the internet.
The fact that my smoke detector has only gone off once since I cleaned my oven on Saturday. It used to happen nearly every time I cooked anything.
The satisfaction in banning an obnoxious forum troll.

Runner up: Gorgeous Doctor Who fanart.

Labels: awesome, memes

Priscilla said at 6:48 PM
1 comments

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Reason eleventy-frillion seventy-twelve Jim Butcher is a great guy:

Labels: awesome, dresden files, jim butcher

Priscilla said at 5:26 PM
2 comments

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Oh, did I mention...

#1 on the New York Times bestseller list, baby!

Labels: awesome, dresden files

Priscilla said at 9:31 AM
0 comments

Monday, March 30, 2009

Academic Earth fills me with giddy glee. As described by LifeHacker:

Web site Academic Earth is like Hulu for academic lectures, pulling free lectures from Berkeley, Harvard, MIT, Princeton, Stanford, and Yale into one attractive, easy to navigate site. It's incredible.

The site clearly takes its cues from Hulu and iTunes on its design, but it's ten times better than either, because it's open. The videos can be embedded anywhere or downloaded and enjoyed wherever you want to take them. It's easy to use, has tons of great content, and it doesn't cost a dime.

Wow. I am on that like beige on unbleached rice. Now I just have to figure out where to start! Biology? Economics? Psychology? History? I think I'll start with The Civil War and Reconstruction Era, 1845-1877.

Labels: awesome, intarwebs

Priscilla said at 9:34 AM
1 comments

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Holy cow! Get ready for the most amazingly mindblowing feat of subconscious Scrabble you've ever seen!

Look on the right side of the board. By playing the vertical word "DOM," I spelled out three new words horizontally: "ID," "DO," and "HIM." Or "Dom: I'd do him."

Dominic Monaghan? I haven't thought of him in a while, but yeah... I guess I would.

It's Scrabble-fate.

Labels: awesome

Priscilla said at 8:59 PM
2 comments

Monday, October 22, 2007

Headline of the Day: Pregnant Teens Common Among Dinosaurs

Labels: awesome, news

Priscilla said at 4:22 PM
0 comments

Friday, March 16, 2007

Wow. Just read a couple theories that remind me of how much I love Harry Potter. Check out The Stoppered Death Theory, plus theories for the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff Horcruxes.

Labels: awesome, harry potter

Priscilla said at 7:53 PM
0 comments

Monday, February 26, 2007

Got back from New York Comic Con late last night! It was sooooooo fun, but I am sooooo exhausted. Setting up a meeting with my advisor at 10am the next morning was stupid beyond belief. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

I posted a lot of costume- and Dresden-related pictures here, plus a little bit about meeting Jim Butcher and Paul Blackthorne here. Full con report coming after I sleep for a week, waking up briefly to take the Midterm From Hell on Wednesday and write a paper for Friday.

Labels: awesome, dresden files, nerd glee

Priscilla said at 9:34 AM
6 comments

Thursday, January 11, 2007

Some things are truly awesome. OH THE BEEMANITY is one of these things. This is what it means to be an American!

Labels: america, awesome, links

Priscilla said at 10:46 AM
0 comments

All content � 2000-2005 Priscilla Spencer unless otherwise noted.
Title cartoon by Bruce Eric Kaplan, used without permission.