Signal Boost

Since I’m on vacation (yes, I’m on vacation, sorry, forgot to mention), here’s a food-for-thought article from the truly unfairly talented and brilliant Aliette de Bodard:

On The Prevalence of US Tropes in Storytelling

Enjoy! Or…at least enjoy the opportunity to see things from a different perspective?

YEAH, Tiger Beatdown!

This is a Doctor-Who-related post. Sorry to anyone who was interested in seeing an actual tiger-beatdown.

Anyway, this person just said EVERYTHING I HAVE EVER WANTED TO SAY about Amy Pond, in a single post. I have nothing to add. Well done, Lindsay Miller!

Okay, okay.

Here’s an actual tiger-beatdown for you.

Delivered by a gibbon.

Who really, REALLY wants to be tiger-chomped.

Enjoy!

Grumble.

This “work overnight as the senior night float resident every damn weekend this month” thing is getting very old.

However, no one has died yet.

So that’s something, isn’t it.

No, I swear I’ll be able to go to sleep in time for class tomorrow morning. I promise!

::grumblegrumblefreakin’scheduleflippin’grumblegrumble::

Bloggy, Mediciney Fiction

I felt like I should address this for the whole audience, rather than just in the comments section.

Dear Dr. Grasshopper:

You write fiction, Doctor G? Mind if I inquire the title? If you write narrative like you write your articles, I’d love to give it a read.

–Tagsy

First of all, Tagsy, thank you SO much for your kind words!

I hope you don’t mind if I politely decline to connect my blog pen name with my fiction pen name, which is very easily identifiable with my real name that I use for my professional activities. I may sometime in the future get more comfortable with the whole internet-identity thing, but to be honest, right now the medical community doesn’t seem to have embraced the concept of the blogosphere just yet, and I’d prefer that this blog didn’t pop up in a background check when I’m looking for my first job in a couple of years. (Not that I feel like this is anything to be ashamed of or anything, but I do have friends who have gotten into trouble because of internet activities in relation to their medical practice, and I’d just like to minimize the chance that I’ll have to whack my head against that particular set of problems.)

That said, I do write fiction, I have published four short stories to date, and I’m continuing to try to keep writing in my life. I’m deeply flattered that you want to seek out my fiction; to be honest, you may have already read something I’ve written. I’m just not going to tell you what it is right now. 😀

If this is a deeply unfair and disappointing answer to you, I’m even more flattered, but I’m going to have to stick to my guns on this for now. The best I can do is recommend that you read as many new authors as possible; I’m in there somewhere, and even if you don’t stumble across MY stuff, you’ll find a LOT of really good stories out there.

Sometime in the future, when I’m a little more secure in my position in my career, I may feel a little more comfortable letting you know which sparsely-published, rank-amateur author I am. Until then, I hope you’ll be patient with my stonewalling, and I hope I can write enough for the blog to satisfy your desire to seek out my writing.

And your timing couldn’t be more perfect; I just submitted a short story for the first time since I started my clinical work. Last night. To the New Yorker. (Go big or go home, right?) 😀

So thank you so much for your message; it means a lot to me. Especially right now, when I’m re-discovering the unique flavors of stress that come with sending a bit of your soul out on a rejection-fishing expedition.

Thanks for reading, Tagsy, and thanks for writing!

Dr. G

An Awesome Song, Plus Astronauts.

What’s not to love?

Undeniable Evidence That Big Bird Is A Velociraptor

From the inimitable John Murphy.

Thank you, John, for bringing us this important message.

The very last sight some children ever see.