Good Wayne

Thursday, November 18, 2004

Bleck.

Man, it’s been a heck of week.

I'd say hell of week, but the winter's just starting and I don't really want to burn that phrase out... yet.

Everyone’s getting sick; TheBoy™ the worst of all. Or maybe it’s because he’s two it seems so much worse. Turns out he did get conjunctivites on top of this chest cold. His eyes are all red, bloodshot and full of goop. They give you drops for that. Something simple and easy, right?

Ever try to put something in the eye of a two year old? You might as well have a hot poker. And children are masters of contortions. No matter how well I tried to hold him, he would get away. You really need a straight jacket … no, that probably wouldn’t work either.

TheBoy™ would put Houdini to shame.

I was out both Monday and Tuesday, partly because of my own chest being filled with some kind of vile bug that has refused to leave. At least I get immunity to the superflu that’s going to decimate the planet soon.

I think yesterday was the first day I felt like my body was getting the upper hand on this thing. It’s nothing really terrible, just tenacious.

NaNo Word Count: 24,451

Of course, this has all blown up my count. I didn’t get anywhere near the writing done I should have and TheBoy™ kept me up all night last night. It’s really been rough this week and I have to really conceed that I won’t hit 50k like I was dreaming.

I predict I’ll hit around 35k by the end of the month, which is still better than what I originally hoped for (which was 20-25k).

I’m going to keep plugging away as best I can. And I do want to finish the story, even if it’s going in weird places I didn’t think it should go.

---------------------------
Working Title: Sethkyne_Blue
Checkpoints Passed Thru: 3
Horrible Fires: 1
Talking Watches: 1

Week 3’s Crappy Novel Excerpt:

The entire ride back I do nothing but think about the cable company shutting me off and then BT holding my last paycheck because I’ve violated the contract. Occasionally, I smack Dizzy in the arm. Sometimes, I almost wail on him until he swears up and down not to ever do it again without asking first.

To which I reply the answer will be no, then No, then Fucking NO!

We turn the bend that leads down the valley to Checkpoint Charlie and the radio cuts out from the white noise generator. For a few minutes there’s loud static coming from around us.

I reach down and hit the radio with my finger turning it off. Now it’s quite in the jeep, except for the rain and the wipers. It’s rythmatic and it’s enough.

I look in the backseat and Taxi is layed out, her legs crossed over and open to fit the length of the seat, her glasses on the floor. She has her arms up over her head and is cradleing her head, asleep.

She looks very beautiful this way. More than peaceful, I think. Her soft, smooth face, even though she’s got some serious mascara working there, it looks pretty next to her dark, short hair cut in a bob.

Oh Taxi, I think.

We hit the Checkpoint and, while the guard at the gate is different, the guy with the goatee is still there. He looks so out of place, even though he’s not wearing anything special, his general demenor might as well be a bright yellow jumpsuit.

It’s creepy, and he looks at the jeep for a few hard seconds. Mabye he’s got some augment that lets him see inside. I hear they’re doing that now. Biocustomizations. I’m sure Dizzy would know more or could know a lot more if I just ask, but I don’t feel like being Dizzy’s friend right now.

I wake up Taxi long enough to get through the checkpoint. Going in is different than coming out. They don’t mind it as much.

"You do realize that this sector is a Yellow Level 2, sir?" The guard repeats every time. "Yes," Dizzy replies neutrally.

"Very well," he says and opens the gates.

I hear a high whine and, off to my right the soldiers have lauched a drone. It’s a short cylinder that tapers fast to the rear, ending in two vertical fins. The front is a dome with lots of sensor that help the AI fly it. On the sides, two squat barrles that are the fans for hoving and flight. The whole thing is about a meter long and as it goes up, it spins around showing off it’s belly, an underslung projecile cannon.

I’ve only seen a couple in since I moved into this zone. They’re beautful looking machines. Kind of like a big black fish, but real deadly.

A month after moving in, there were some gang wars going on near the airport marketplace. This made the population nervous as some of them started sporting some automatic weapons.

I didn’t see it, but I heard about it. The security forces got wind of a big rumble going down and at the appointed hour, several of these guppies swooped down and obliterated anything that moved. It wasn’t pretty. The whole area was quarentened for four or five days. They washed it all down pretty good, but they couldn’t be bothered to rip down the buildings. I think they wanted them to stay up. To let the people know what they are capable of.

Two large steel hangers were filled with millions of tiny holes. When the sun would shine through, there were thousands of tiny rays of light. It was actually quite beatuful. Until it hit you. Thousands of tiny projectiles. There were about a dozen vehciles outside, parts of the metal were liquified they were shreded so badly.

"Guppy?" Dizzy says, trying to get a look.

"Yeah, I wonder if they’re looking for someone," I say.

"Hey, I don’t think it’s that kind of crime, do you?"

"No, I didn’t mean it like that. I’ve heard guppies at night zipping around. They either have more funding, or they’re looking for someone."

"I go with the more funding. Did you notice they’re cutting back on all kinds of things lately?"

I look away from the road and at Dizzy, "Why, what kind of stuff?"

"Food mostly. But some of the electonics I deal with are getting scares. Recycler can’t give me a straight answer on that one. But it could be a build up going on somewhere."

I sigh, "What build up?"

"They could be getting ready to attack," he says ominoously.

"I don’t buy it. I can’t see how we can sustain another long conflict. This country is already tetering on the edge, that would just push it over into oblivian."

"I don’t know, stranger things have happened. After the assassination of..."

Taxi cut in, "Will you shut up. Computers, politics, conspircies," she clutches the sides of her head like she’s trying to keep it from exploding, "Why the hell do I hang out with you guys?"

"We’re fun and lovely," Dizzy replies in that mocking voice.

"Sexy too," I add.

"Oh yes, quite sexy," he says.

Taxi rolls her eyes, "Yeah, you guys are sooo sexy."

[Excerpt Has Not Been Proofed or Edited. So there. :P]

posted by Evil Wayne | 11:36 PM

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