Random Thoughts...

Cycling back through a webjournal is like digging through the layers of a time capsule. It's pretty instructive to look at trends and news stories from the recent past. And I'm not a huge fan of a link dump, but time is scarce and I'm only passing by here occasionally. So, without further adieu, here are a few things I think:

• I'm so into Oregon football right now that I'm not objective, but I think it's a dirty tactic for PAC-10 coaches to fake injuries to keep their defense rested. Look, Oregon recruits speed. Chip Kelly is on the record as saying he wants the fastest Division I football team in America (and with Kenjon Barner and LaMike James, he has two of these guys on one of America's fastest T & F 4X100 relays), so he recruits undersized speed demons. Then he gathers depth (our two-deep is just sick) and coaches them up. I've heard that on Tuesdays, all they do is run. They run to space, they run routes, they run and run and run. And if the opposition can't keep up, they've been flopping. I've seen it all year. It was shameless in Tennessee (the SEC lacks power and speed to handle teams like Oregon), and even worse last week at California. I know, I know--it's not illegal. It's just poor sportsmanship...


• David Garrard is playing lights out football. Aside from Micheal Vick, no one is doing it better right now. David is a good guy an excellent team leader. He often doesn't get his due, but after the cardiac cats' miraculous win last week, he's starting to now...


• And as for Mike Vick, I'm happy for him. I love animals and I think what he did was heinous. But he paid his debt to society when he went away to federal prison for a few years. He lost his personal fortune and still owes creditors. He'll never regain the acceptance of a large portion of fans, but I respect him for reclaiming his career...


• Realms of Fantasy has been on a long, strange trip. It's now found a home with Damnation Books. I read the last copy under Tir Na Nog Press and I have to say I really enjoyed it. All of the stories were good, but the tales by Jerry Oltion and Scott Dalrymple really struck a chord with me. These were darker works--less high fantasy and far more grounded. I'm not a huge fan of sword and sorcery, so the news that RoF is heading over to DB is good news for me. Publish more mundane, creepy fantasy and I'm taking out a subscription. Scott Dalrymple's "Queen of the Kanguellas" was particularly impressive. I'm a sucker for a good epistolary text, and this one has it all. Part captivity narrative, part familial allegory, it was a riveting read (albeit with a scene that has a particularly unappetizing stew!)...

I need to get on with outlining the ultimate anthology, dang it!