It’s summertime! I wonder: am I alone when I say that I thoroughly love the summer state of mind? Probably not. I love the sun, I love the freedom, I even love the heat (yes, the Texan really just admitted he liked the heat). I also love the mood it gets me in and that mood carried me to listening to a certain type of music, watching certain kinds of movies, and reading particular “summery” books. Yeah, I know: I’m a little (?!) weird that way. But just like some music is built to listen to in winter (old Genesis, for example), other music is built to listen to with the windows down, cruising down the highway, with said music blaring (old Chicago; Hendrix; Doors). Am I right?
The summer also brings for a mini To Do list. Like our annual resolutions which we usually break by the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday, my mini summer resolutions have a beginning time and an ending time. And, let’s be honest: there are some things you just want to do in the summertime and no other time.
I’ve made my mini to do list and a couple of resolutions and a short summer reading list. For SF-related material, you’ll have to head on over to my SF blog, SF Safari.
Music: I’ve decided to start reviewing music again here. I’m going to start with summery music. Don’t worry: even I don’t really know what that means but I hope to discover it.
Movies: Other than the ones in the theater, I enjoy watching old war movies. Over the Memorial Day weekend, I recorded a bunch of them and I’ll watch and write about them throughout the summer. Here are some of the ones I taped: A Walk in the Sun; Objective Burma; The Story of G.I. Joe; Destination: Tokyo; Where Eagles Dare; The Bridge over the River Kwai; The Fighting Seabees; Sahara; The Dirty Dozen; Kelly’s Heroes; They Were Expendable
Books: This summer, I want to read some swashbuckling tales I’ve just never read. Among those are Treasure Island and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. I’ll probably watch the films after that. On the pulp side of things, I have a few Shadow and Doc Savage reprints in the wings. Might get to those. On the crime fiction side of things, Megan Abbott’s new book, Bury Me Deep, Elmore Leonard’s new one, Road Dogs, Perry Mason #2 (The Case of the Sulky Girl), and Dead Man’s Brother, the Roger Zelazny tale from Hard Case Crime. And, in August, Gabriel Hunt at the Cradle of Fear. For the SF and comics stuff, again, head on over to SF Safari.
Writing: My non-blogging goals are simple: write the next Calvin Carter story (the first, "You Don't Get Three Mistakes," is still available at Beat to a Pulp) and finish half of my steampunk novel. An extended goal will be to work on my crime short stories including the Lullaby one I teased y’all with a week or so ago and work on a short story with Anne Chambers, my HPD detective.
TV: nothing new until Project Runway. Yes, I watch it and love it. TV on DVD boils down to one series: Firefly. More on that at SF Safari.
How about y’all? Do y’all have thinks y’all like to do only in the weeks between Memorial Day and Labor Day?
9 comments:
Your schedule seems as packed as mine. Good luck and I'd say I'm more of a fall than summer guy... can't wait for the Carter follow-up!
Having grown up and gotten a career that still involves school, the summer is a very special time for me. I'm loving it right now for sure.
Hey Scott, I'm back! Got a new blog called "Westerns and Stuff." Put you on my blog roll...would you mind doing the same?
It's great to be back!
David - Good to know I'm not the only one to pack in things during a time when most people tear up their To Do Lists. And, as for Carter, I'm looking forward to seeing what he does next, too.
Charles - The irony about life of an adult is that the year is still divided like you were still in school. But that makes things special, if you ask me.
Chris - Good to see that your back. Your link is now up.
You are more ambitious than I am for planning summer activities. I'm hoping to complete my current WIP and get a few short stories published mixed in with reading my review books and the occasional walk down to the edge of Lake Ontario to watch the sailboats.
Barbara - Ooo! Lake Ontario sounds marvelous! I've only see Lake Erie. Haven't even been to Canada yet. Good luck on your WIP. Here's the irony: I'll probably find something that's take me on a whole new track and I'll not even get half of my stuff done. C'est la vie.
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