Wilson is part of the irrealism and bizarro movement of literature that has sprung up in recent years. Part of the reason he caught my eye was being from Grand Rapids, Michigan and having taught at Michigan State.

From the cover of the book, and Wikipedia, here is a description:

In Pseudofoliculitis City nothing is as it seems and everything is as it should be. Today’s forecast calls for extreme confrontation, with sandwich flurries and the threat of handlebar moustaches to the west. By turns absurd and surreal, dark and challenging, Pseudo-City exposes what waits in the bathroom stall, under the manhole cover and in the corporate boardroom, all in a way that can only be described as mind-bogglingly irreal. Set in an imaginary, “post-real” metropolis, this book delivers a hauntingly satirical version of our own mediatized reality.

This is actually a collection of short stories all based in Pseudo City and with a few reoccurring characters. That was another reason this book caught my eye. I liked this idea and wish more authors and/or publishers would do this. I have read another book with a similar idea (“Draco Tavern” by Larry Niven) and another one that was thrown together in another fashion (“The Nick Adams Stories” by Ernest Hemingway). Some of the stories that appeared in this book had been published elsewhere before, mostly in magazines. Here is a rundown of the stories within:

“Pseudofolliculitis City”
“Hairware, Inc.”
“Synchronicity III”
“The Rorschach-Interpreter”
“Portrait of the Founder”
“The Meeting”
“The Thumb”
“Extermination”
“Dandies & Flâneurs”
“Classroom Dynamics”
“In the Bathroom”
“The Widow’s Peaks”
“Duel”
“Deli”
“Intermezzo”
“Bourgeois Man”
“Cereal Killers”
“Fascists”
“The Autopsy”
“Protractor Men”
“Haberdashery”
“The Personalities”
“The Other Pedestrian”
“PCP”
“The Snore”
“The Kitchen”
“When The Law Has Spoken”
“The Stick Figure”
“Horoscope”

D. Harlan Wilson

Some of the stories weren’t even two pages long. Some spanned nearly twenty. But most importantly, it is a strange array of stories. The funny thing is that some of the best hardly mentioned much of it’s ties to the city and turned out to be the best. A great example of this is “The Stick Figure”, which I don’t think ever mentioned Pseudo City. However, after reading the other stories it would be obvious where the story was set.

The word surreal has been used in describing this book and I disagree. I certainly prefer irreal and bizarre. The reason I don’t think this is surreal is because of the boundaries or laws within the city itself. To me, surreal is the fine line between a dreamlike world and reality, possibly even the shift. It’s almost “anything goes”, though more subdued. Surreal fictions also seems to come with authors who use very poetic prose. But these stories are lacking both the dreamlike nature and the prose. (Though it’s obvious that Wilson’s not a hack writer, so don’t get me wrong on the “no prose” comment.) There are reasons and laws for what happens to the characters and acts committed by the characters. It is rather cut and dry. Now, that’s not to say that it’s boring. On the contrary. Even though the things that are happening are bizarre or absurd, they are with a purpose and reason.

There is a frame of mind you need to be in to read these stories. I thought I was there, and was for the most part, before starting. Sure, at times some of the stories seemed to go too far in trying to be absurd, but many of them were real gems. I enjoyed it enough that I want to attempt an novel of Wilson’s, and soon.

I think the biggest part of this issue of blogging though is my adjustment to live among the working. I have been dog tired lately due to lack of sleep. Sure, Ian has contributed to this. He has teeth coming in and they seem to be disturbing him enough to wake him up during the night. He’s not crying, but he had a huge stretch of getting a good 8 to 9 hours every night straight. But for the last two weeks he hasn’t put two night together like that. At least every other night he is up around 3:00 in the morning. Since I am a light sleeper and usually have a problem getting back to sleep, especially if I know I “have to”, it makes for a long day without enough sleep.

So hopefully I will break out of this and start blogging more often, even having a batch of posts scheduled and be ahead of schedule. Hopefully soon.

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My friend Kate asked the following questions:

What are your top three new beer finds for the past year?

I am going to qualify this first. I had two beers that I would say were two of the three best, but they were both from Unibroue. Both of these were special beers that they don’t brew all the time. Given that I have had everything they brew on a regular basis, and how wonderful it all is, I buy these without thinking. Therefore, the beers that I am going to name here are ones that I never knew existed before.

1. Olde Richmond’s Brown Ale Batch No. 4
This is one that I got from my Uncle Steve. He has given me two bottles of it. It’s a brown ale, but pours, smells, and tastes like a porter. And probably one of the best porters I have had.

2. Lagunitas’ Cappuccino Stout
I made a very big mistake in drinking this with a very non-fitting dinner. But this was a dynamite beer! Probably best drank after a nice meal, but with a desert, and something chocolate.

3. Bastone’s Dubbel
Given that you and George told me about the place, and you were sitting next to me when I had this one (and another …), I don’t really have to tell you how great this one is. When I come back to visit my family, a trip to Bastone will be a must.

Your husband’s wheat wine was a close fourth.

Do you think you’ll make it back to Michigan with the family this summer?

You better believe it! More then likely, like we usually would do when I was employed, we would come in for Mothers’ Day weekend. And now that we have cut our drive to Michigan and my family in half, we hope to take advantage of this with more long weekends.

Oh, and did I mention that I was going to get people together to go to Bastone when I next come to town?

How do you think the Tigers will do this season with all the trades they’ve made?

I am not too optimistic about the Tigers this year. There are two key issues for this. One could turn out really good and help propel them into another pennant race. The other is going to hurt them, period.

The first is pitching. Verlander has proven to be “The Man” again for their rotation. I don’t see him doing anything less again this coming year. Along with Porcello, they could have a great one-two combination there. Now, if Bonderman can get over his injuries, and Willis work through his issues and pitch even up to 75% of what he did with the Marlins, the Tigers could have one of the best four starters in the league. But again, that’s up to how Bonderman and Willis do. The bullpen I think was upgraded. Valverde is a much better closer then Rodney. The few times I saw Valverde last year, there was a real confidence in him. He showed it himself and his teammates seemed to echo that. So the pitching staff could be a real force to be reckoned with, and could really be THE key to the Tigers winning. After all, we know pitching wins more games then hitting. (cough ::: Atlanta Braves ::: cough) Though my adopted NL team, the Phillies, have proven that decent pitching without a very strong staff throughout, but with a very potent line-up, can win pennants. Three division pennants in a row, two league pennants in a row, and a World Series pennant, as a matter of fact.

The hitting is going to hurt, no matter what. I don’t see any team trading away the first two hitters in their batting line-up and bat just as well the following year. (Well, other then the Yankees or Red Sox going out and buying replacements.) I understand the desire to cut some salary by trading Granderson and Polanco, given that they will be taking on Ordonez’s extension and still paying Cabrera. And both are good, and will continue to contribute, but it’s hard to find two good bats to lead the order off. (And what a treat the Phillies have now with having three great bats that can lead their order, already having Rollins and Victorino, and now adding Polanco!) But losing that salary I think will help in the long run. It’s better spent on pitching. They can find some decent bats to help fill the gaps more cheaply, but the pitching needs to hold up.

I think the Tigers could surprise and at least make it look like it could make a run for the division, but I just don’t see them beating the Twins. I see them finishing third, ahead of the Royals and Indians.

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My Mom asked the following:

How does the cost of living compare on the western end of PA to the eastern end?

I don’t know if we have been here long enough to really say, but for most every day things it seems pretty even. What prices I remember of groceries back east are about the same as they are here on the west side of the state. I am not really sure about gas. I will be able to tell better when we go back and get the rest of our stuff. Plus, do to things being so close to us, especially work, we have only been to the gas station twice since moving here.

Housing prices when renting seem about even, though leaning towards it being better here in western PA. Housing price costs are certainly lower here. We have heard and seen some nice places that go for under $200,000 and would be in the same area/school district as we are in, and are nice, newer, single homes. Hopefully we can save some money and take advantage of that, and soon.

How does it compare to back home in Michigan?

I would have a hard time knowing. From the things we have bought while visiting and what I know of the housing market, I would say that things are probably a bit cheaper in the Detroit area.

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Internet friend Roger, who celebrated his birthday yesterday, asked the following:

First a statement from him (Admission: I recently asked the first two questions of someone else and the third question he asked of his readers):

Should any of the following be in the Baseball Hall of Fame: Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Rafael Palmeiro. Why or why not?

As much as I dislike him, and as much as I do truly believe he used HGH’s and/or steroids, Barry Bonds needs to be voted in. He won the NL MVP seven times. SEVEN TIMES!! Also, he won a Gold Glove eight times. You don’t get that good taking steroids, or play the field that well, for that matter. Besides, he won some of those when he was much smaller.

Same goes for Roger Clemens. I was sorely disappointed to find out about his possible juicing. Not that I liked the guy, but really respected him.

I think Mark McGwire belongs in. It’s just a feeling. Even though some of his numbers are low, he still could make a difference. Plus, on the more personal side, and not that it means anything, he seems like a genuinely nice guy.

I’m on the fence about Sosa. I think it’s obvious that he juiced. He didn’t want to be out done by Mac and Bonds. He hit over 60 home runs three times, the only MLB player to do that I might add, but did it only in the years that Mac and Bonds broke the same barrier. (Also, for those stat hungry folks, Sosa is the only player to hit over 60 home runs in a season and NOT lead his league in that category.) But Slammin’ Sammy brought character to the game, like Mac. But that doesn’t win MVP’s or ballgames more importantly.

As for Palmeiro, even if he didn’t use, I’ve never thought of him as Hall of Fame caliber. His numbers are there, and even better, in some categories as Mac, but he did it so quietly. He just never seemed to be that good, like he was overshadowed by others. I always knew Mac was hitting home runs and helping the A’s go to the World Series. I always knew that Bonds was tearing up the league. I always knew that Clemens was probably the best pitcher in the AL. And I always knew that Sosa could be a threat. But Palmeiro was not someone that I ever really thought of or hear a lot about like he was a great player. Maybe that will be his downfall, because others that juiced will get voted in. And maybe his adamant display, and lie, on Capitol Hill will hurt as well.

Why isn’t there a punter in the Football Hall of Fame? Should there be, and if so, who would you choose?

I am not sure why a punter has never made it into the hall, other then that it’s not a position that someone needs to excel at to help the team win. Now, don’t get me wrong. I can think of a few teams that have won the Super Bowl and it’s hard to remember who the quarterback was. But you still need someone that can really play the positions to make your team truly good. But a punter, most of them give you the same amount of yards on a kick. And it’s not easy to pin the ball so deep, without getting it into the end zone. And really that depends on the other 10 players on the punting team to down the ball.

Punting is still a part of the game. I think someday someone needs to be inducted.

That said, I think the obvious choice for the first punter to be inducted would be Ray Guy. When I was growing up, he was known for his hang time. It gave his teammates plenty of time to get positioned before the returner could get the ball, therefore usually forcing a fair catch and eliminating the possibility him running back the punt for a touchdown.

Do you hate Sidney Crosby or not? (He asked “because this was the topic on the sports talk show I listen to on the way home from work the other day. The hosts were generally baffled as to why there is so much apparent hatred of Sidney Crosby around these parts.”)

I don’t hate Sidney Crosby, but I am not a fan. I respect him. I think he’s going to be “The Next One” as they say. I think he has already proven that. But I am not a fan. And his scoring the gold medal winning goal in the Olympics didn’t help my feelings for him. After watching him hoist the Stanley Cup last year at Joe Louis Arena, combined with this, he just doesn’t make me want to tout his skills and abilities.

You occasionally have pictures of your sons on your website, just as I’ve had my daughter pictured. Do you worry about “Internet predators”, as some people clearly do?

People have mentioned this, not directly to me, but I don’t see what could really be done with the pictures. Sure, they would know the name of the child and how they look, but if I do my job as a parent, I shouldn’t have to worry about this.

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Our friend John, who has spent quite a bit of time in Pittsburgh, asked the following:

Who do you like for the Stanley Cup this year? Don’t be a homer here …

Come on, John. I wouldn’t go spouting off about the Red Wings unless I really thought they could win it all. I may be a die-hard fan, but I can see reality. (And no, I don’t see the Wings getting much of anywhere this year, so no Wings-Pens III.)

I think that the Sharks or the Blackhawks are still the teams to beat. However, one of the Hawks’ goalies are going to have to get hot if that is to happen. (Huet has been looking terrible when I have seen him.) I don’t think anyone out east can beat them, other then the Penguins. And it doesn’t matter where the Pens finish in the standings. But they still need to play better.

How do you like your new Job?

I like the new job very much. Mostly this is due to the people. There are a lot of things that I need to learn to get up to speed. But I know I can do it. I have switched industries before and done well. The biggest challenge will be the documentation storage software they use, which everyone in engineering, except a select few, are still learning. The people I work with already have welcomed me. Everyone I have met or dealt with have been very friendly. Even Shawn, the big Pens fan that sits next to me. Some of the projects I will be working on may not be as exciting and challenging as those I had done at CHL, but that is mostly due to having actual products that Metso is really known for and that customers world wide buy from them. So of the things I will be “designing” will basically be an item that has been done before, but maybe not as long, or with a different motor/reducer, etc. I hope to get into some of the specialized projects eventually. And more importantly, I am looking forward to (hopefully) a long career with them.

How do you like Pittsburgh?

Given that Marcia and I have gone to a couple of Pens games before, we have seen some of the area before. Being in the south hills we are coming to find that is it pretty nice. We still have more to see, obviously, but I think we are going to find settling in the area will be a good thing, especially for the boys.

Have you been to Quaker Steak and Lube yet?

I was there nearly six years ago on a business trip I took to a place in Warren, Ohio. Nothing better then having a great steak and a Guinness. The day we went, there was a biker show of some sort in the parking lot. It was pretty cool to walk around and check things out. Hopefully sometime I will be able to take Marcia there, and eventually the boys.

By the way John, if you ever find yourself coming to the area for a few days and have some time to kill, let us know. We can have you over for dinner or meet up with you somewhere.

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More answers tomorrow!

1. How long have you been blogging?

It will be six years on June 9, 2010.

2. What made you start?

I can’t remember exactly what, but I found some site that was a blog and mentioned it to my brother-in-law David. He then mentioned he had one. So I went to Blogger and set one up from myself.

3. Who inspired you?

David, to a point, and other blogs I read in those early days.

4. About how many hours a week would you estimate you spend on your blog?

Used to spend at least five to six hours a week. That included getting the images I wanted for posts and doing any research, if it was something I wanted to do before posting something. Now these days, especially the last couple of months, maybe an hour a week at the most.

5. What kind of experience or background do you have with writing?

The most significant was writing for my high school newspaper my senior year. My first assignment, interviewing a new teacher, was a disaster. After that, it got much better. Especially my articles about the wrestling team. Our school usually had a very good wrestling team, and I had gotten to know one of the coaches, being a teacher of mine, really well. It turned into an absolute joy interviewing him and the other coach and writing those articles.

I also wrote some stuff in my science fiction class my junior year which landed me the gig on the school newspaper. The teacher was taking over the following year and asked me to sign up. Then there are a few stories that I started to write and never finished, including my “novel” through NaNoWriMo this past November.

6. Talk about how you come up with blog topics. Where do you get your ideas?

Just things that are on my mind or things happening in my life, or things that interest me, like the book reviews and sporting events/stories.

7. What or who inspires you and your blog?

My life and those in it. Especially my sons. I like reviewing books and never intend to be a prolific, but I like the book blogs I have read over the years and am inspired to write better reviews.

8. Where and/or how do your brainstorming for your blog?

Whenever something comes to mind I’ll make a note of it, usually electronically. In the past, even at work, I would jot down a few things to help me remember what I wanted, mostly by emailing myself at home.

9. Do you have any blogging rules or guidelines you follow?

I try not to rant too much about anything that I don’t like. And I try to sound intelligent and get things together and think things through thoroughly, even holding off on posting something for days due to wanting to work things out better before posting.

10. Is there anything you will not blog about?

I try to stay away from politics. There are so many political blogs out there and by writing about it only will cause firestorms. I also am not as well informed as I should be.

11. Do you have any sort of a publishing schedule in terms of day of week or topic?

Back when I was blogging a lot, I would post things Monday through Saturday, and usually would have things set up well in advance. As of late I just try to blog when I can, though sometimes I still date things ahead if I have a few things to post.

The book is based on the movie by the same title, which Kalogridis was the screenwriter. If I understand her forward in the book, Shy was working on the movie project in coming up with ideas on how they wanted the movie to look, and they decided to put together the graphic novel as a side project.

From Booklist via Amazon.Com, the description is as follows:

After the Viking ship he is on runs aground on the coast of North America, a stranded young boy is taken in by a tribe of Native Americans. As he grows older, he is keenly aware of his differences, and he can’t seem to cast his past aside. Then the Vikings return and slaughter the Indians, setting the boy on the road to his destiny as Pathfinder and the seeker of justice for his chosen people.

The description was part of a quick review. One of the first things said of opinion in the review was “hauntingly beautiful” regarding the artwork. I agree. It appeared that some of the work was done with pictures of real human faces with the artwork used around them. Regardless of the method, the artwork is stunning. The story? Well, not so much. It had potential.

Laeta Kalogridis

The problem is that the artwork carries the whole story. There is very little dialog at all. And what words appear in the book are few and far between. It only took me half an hour to read the entire book. And the story wasn’t as encompassing as I had hoped. It almost seemed that it was their storyboard work with a few words thrown in.

Christopher Shy

I am still looking forward to “Soul Stealer” given Shy’s artwork. It is really something to admire. Very dark and haunting, making you want to look away at times, but not being able to do so. And I have heard that the story within “Soul Stealer” is very good. For the price of this book it was worth getting a peak at his artwork from another story. And it has driven my desire to see the movie, which I am sure will take a few years for me to get around to.

They have housed it in an old elementary school, which was rather interesting. Some of the school still shows it age, but other areas, especially the area by the restrooms, and what looked like an area to sit and have a snack, had been nicely remodeled. It also appeared that more remodeling was going on.

The main attraction for us, obviously, was the trains. Those took up most of the 2nd floor. They had an “O” gauge layout and an “HO” layout. Nigel was most fascinated by the “O” gauge, but the “HO” gauge was more impressive. I was so impressed with it, I forgot to take pictures of it.

The pictures above are from the “O” gauge room and a room that didn’t have a layout, but housed many other trains in display. That room also had a few trains and a small oval track for kids to play with, which Nigel didn’t pass up. Judging by the dates on the trains on display, the trains that Nigel was playing with were from the late 1920’s to the early 1940’s.

The layouts had buttons that would make noises or turn on lights. One even controlled a manual train with two cartoon characters on it that I can’t remember (though it was either Porky Pig and a female pig, or Donald and Daisy Duck). Nigel had a very good time, and I am sure we will be returning. Luckily we could sign up for the yearly membership and possibly save some money.

Per usual, I turn to Amazon.Com and Publishers Weekly for a description:

Anax, the dedicated student historian at the center of Beckett’s brutal dystopian novel, lives far in the future—the distant past events of the 21st century are taught in classrooms. The world of that era, we learn, was ravaged by plague and decay, the legacy of the Last War. Only the island Republic, situated near the bottom of the globe, remained stable and ordered, but at the cost of personal freedom. Anax, hoping her scholarly achievements will gain her entrance to the Academy, which rules her society, has extensively studied Adam Forde, a brilliant and rebellious citizen of the Republic who fought for human dignity in the midst of a regimented, sterile society. To join the Academy’s ranks, Anax undergoes a test before three examiners, and as the examination progresses, it becomes clear that her interpretations of Adam’s life defy conventional thought and there may be more to Adam—and the Academy—than she had imagined.

This story is short. I really don’t know how to truly classify whether something is a novel, though I know some of the doorstoppers published today are certainly novels, but some “stories” seem so short, yet are said to be novels. I would call this a novella or novelette, especially because of today’s standards. What is funny, is that I think it’s still too long.

Bernard Beckett

Someone that goes by the name of P. Blackburn wrote an excellent review of the book on Amazon.Com. The title of the review is “Derivative material strongly written” which hits it on the head for me. Though the reference to “Brave New World” by Adolus Huxley is lost on me, since I have not read the book yet, he/she hits on many of the same feelings I have about this book.

… I found “Genesis” becoming tiresome at about two-thirds through.

I started to find it tiresome even sooner. There was a lot of philosophical discussions between Adam and Art, and though filled with some tension, it got too deep for me to enjoy. Sometimes I felt they went on far too long.

The twist at the end is meant to be surprising, but when a twist comes out of the blue with little set-up, the effect is difficult to believe and less successful.

I almost felt cheated by the twist. It threw off my whole perspective of the characters, as it should, but made it felt almost worthless to read.

The final pages reminded of a certain “Twilight Zone” episode.

I couldn’t put my finger on exactly how I felt about the end until I read this. It really sums it up well.

Beckett’s writing is very good. His prose, his descriptions, his dialog, are all well done. He has talent. But given the nature of the story, I think it could have had more of an effect if it was shorter. Still an interesting science fiction story.