Fantasist's Scroll

Well, as several of you have noticed, there seem to be some on-going issues with the conlang scripts.  After getting them working again post ISP move, their usage has spiked to a level that the new ISP/WebHost can’t seem to handle.  So, I’m working on it.

Unfortunately, I’m also a cancer patient who’s got to go into the hospital rather frequently for chemotherapy, so I don’t have a lot of time or energy to work on the problem.  I’m about a third of the way through my treatments, so you can expect me to work on this issue sometime before the end of the year, but I can’t make any guarantees as to when.
Sorry.

Not sure how long these have even been broken.

Honestly, I’m a little shocked that no one told me some of my conlang scripts were broken, but they have been.  I think it happened when my web host sold their business to someone else and they changed servers, but I’m honestly not sure how long that these haven’t worked.  Usually, when something goes wrong with them, people are all over it, so now I wonder how many people still use them!
Well, in any case, they’re all fixed and working again, so enjoy them!

Okay, so my idea of fun may be changing a bit.

I’ve noticed a theme in my cancer caregivers’ rhetoric lately: clean. Get clean, stay clean, avoid things that aren’t clean. Wash your hands, gargle with their special solution to keep the mouth sores away, don’t eat raw foods that might have bacteria on them. This over-riding theme of cleanliness may have had some small effect on my choice of interesting links.

First, with all the house cleaning, there was this tool to minimize, if not eliminate, dust from doing wall-board work. Now, that might not seem like a big thing, but, trust me, all that dust is an irritant for months to come after the work is done! I know, having stuck my leg through a ceiling while running cable and doing the repair work myself.
Next, is a link to a toothbrush sanitizer, which has always been a thing for me. Well, not toothbrush sanitizing, per se, but generally good oral hygine. I’m always worried about things stuck in my teeth and bad breath and making sure my gums don’t bleed. That’s gotten very important to me these days! Bleeding is bad when my red and white counts are down so low!
And, this automatic soap dispenser caught my eye, since I’m washing my hands so much. Before I even saw it, I was thinking about how the most likely point of contact for bacteria was at the soap dispenser. An automatic soap dispenser would cure that and this shiny, chrome one would look nice on my bathroom counter!
Finally, while not a cleanliness link, this web-enabled pill box struck me as just the thing for someone having to track a bunch of medications. Their service, which isn’t quite available yet, helps a patient keep track of all the various medications and times and frequencies they have to take. And, at $60 a month, trust me, this would have been a Godsend this past week. I have so many pills to take that a little extra help keeping them straight would have been a big help!

So, there you are, that’s what sounds “fun” to a cancer patient with a lot on his mind! Kind of boring, but at least it’s something to think about over the weekend. Enjoy your Friday!  (And, yes, this was also posted on my other blog, Diary of a Network Geek.)

Okay, so you might have noticed that I missed my Friday Fun Link.

There’s a good reason for that.  Mainly, it’s because I’ve got cancer and I’m in MD Anderson getting chemotherapy.  So, as lightly as I’ve been maintaining this site, it’s going to be even more lightly maintained until I’m on the mend.  I will, however, keep my other site and blog, Diary of a Network Geek, up to date.  So, if you want to keep current with my cancer situation, that’d be the place to do it.

Oy!  I don’t have the energy to do two posts these days, so head over to Diary of a Network Geek and Meet Cletus!

No, nothing new about my health.

Just some fun/strange news stories from the past week or so.
First, apparently, some political unrest in Africa is going to cause a world chocolate shortage. Yikes! (Actually, if you read the article, it’s more likely to cause prices to go up, slightly, because manufacturers have likely taken some of these problems into account.)
Then, in an impressive variation of “Man Bites Dog”, there was the story about a teacher being “reprimanded” for biting a student. But, before you decry the sad state of our proessional educators, the poor man, who happened to be the wrestling coach, was being attacked by several of his wrestlers who were trying to give him a wedgie. The kids got, basically, a scolding and were otherwise off scott-free. But, the assualted teacher got into trouble. That is what’s wrong with our education system today. Those kids should have been brought up on charges! Damn psycho-jock brats!
Thirdly, here’s a news story that proves what I’ve been telling my mother for years: it’ snot a mess, it’s my system. Apparently, there is a direct link to a messy desk and higher productivity after all. See?! All this time I was right! HA!

And, as a bit of a bonus, here’s something for all the folks thinking about getting married soon: How to Tell that the Honeymoon is Over. In short, to summarize the article, you know your new marriage has taken a turn for the worse when your new spouse tries to run you over in the car. It’s a sure sign.
And, on a more personal note, yesterday was the anniversary of my adopting Hilda from H.O.P.E.. I know because someone I used to volunteer with there e-mailed me after seeing my blog. Apparently, she was checking on who had linked to their website and the post at Diary of a Network Geek, four years ago, where I talked about adopting my darling girl, was one of the prominent links. If you’re in Houston, and thinking about adopting a dog, or cat, H.O.P.E. is definately the way to go. A great organization that I’m proud to pay dues to annually, even if I don’t have the time to volunteer for them right now.

So, in any case, I hope one of those things made you smile a bit on this Friday. Either way, enjoy your weekend!

Today is William Gibson’s Birthday!

For those of you who have been hiding under a rock for the past twenty years, or have been freshly cloned, William Gibson is the primary progenitor of the cyberpunk movement. He’s generally credited with coining the term “cyberspace” and popularizing a somewhat more realistic, if somewhat bleak, view of the future.
He also ran away to Canada in 1968 to avoid the draft. Which is the only bad thing I can say about him. I otherwise admire his work and thought processes. Certainly his literature is beyond compare. I admire his work very much and occasionally will reread some of his short stories, just to capture the feel of his prose.

Anyway, celebrate his birthday with a little science-fiction in thanks for what he’s done for the genre.

Well, cancer seems to be on my mind this week.

Go figure, right?
Well, it’s been a long week and I’m tired, but I have two fun links for you regarding cancer. The first is a link to the National Children’s Cancer Society educational publication page, which includes a cancer coloring book called “Sammie’s New Mask: A Coloring Book for Friends of Children with Cancer“.
The second link is to The Adventures of Captain Chemo and the Chemo Command. I’ll let you make your own judgements about both of these, but they struck my strange sense of humor. I know they’re trying, but I think they can do better on the “fun” links for cancer.

Hmm, maybe I should put together a cancer coloring book myself as I go through all this. Might fill some time and keep me amused.
Anyway, it’s the best I can do this week. Better links next week, I promise. Until then, enjoy your weekend. Hell, enjoy every day.