You know? This has been a good birthday.

I mean, if you ignore the fact that I spent much of my actual birthday kind of pissed off by nothing at all except perhaps the existence of other sophonts breathing the air I was trying to breathe.

First: I spotted, when reading back entries here and there, someone who was selling a complete set of back issues of KMT for notably less than it would take to accumulate them individually. Which, mind, I couldn't afford, so I sent a plaintive email to teinedreugan asking about.

Then artan_eter brought me the mail, which had two items for me. One of them was my contributor's copy of Sekhmet: When the Lion Roars. The other was a thick envelope from my father, which contained a bookmark, a stack of photos (mostly of my late cat Misty), and a birthday check for $LARGENUM, a sum roughly equivalent to the asking price for the magazines.

So I arranged for the purchase of the magazines.

Then I spent a while while hiding from the world and being cranky pounding on wordpress to set up a professional blog, because my first book The Traveller's Guide to the Duat is due out impendingly, and having professional presence under the name on the spine of that is worth doing. So if anyone wants to follow the professional blog, check out Peaceful Awakenings.

Talked with my father, who was amused to learn what he had gotten me for my birthday. Put my mother in touch with Immanion's publicist for her own book marketing.

Today we did some work in the old house which we really need to fix up and sell. whispercricket minded both of the kids, and sent us video of KJ playing outside.

Then this evening we went into Cambridge for a birthday dinner for me. Since I'd been to Mary's with baratron, we went to the Central Kitchen because they have very good steak tartare. At some point I really want to have a favorite restaurant dish that isn't in Central Square? But. I got what I wanted (steak tartare and good bread) though I missed out on sweet, fruity wine, which would have been my trifecta.

Then I walked up to Seven Stars with artan_eter and KJ. I asked the proprietor if he ever hosted events or signings, he said no. I said I had a book coming out soon, you see. He expressed some curiosity, I mentioned that I was aware that POD presses aren't exactly in high demand in brick-and-mortars, he said that actually he didn't worry about that - he would take the book on consignment, and if it sold well he would then order it straight up. So I will get my book into at least one brick-and-mortar!

I celebrated by buying books, because Seven Stars is one of the few metaphysical bookstores (or indeed any bookstores since Mac and Moore closed) that has stuff that's useful to me regularly on the shelves.