Free trip to the 16th century...

I've got the next two days off! And I was thinking about going to Seattle--it's only a few hours north by train and I've never been. But I can't bring myself to pay $100 for a lousy hotel room for one night.

Unlike Mosquito Grant, who could simply find a decent twig (or Space Needle) to cling to, I require a comfortable spot to lay my head at night. But not for $100. Uh-uh...no way, José.

So it looks like instead I'll be hanging around Portland, enjoying this beautiful 85 degree weather. Sorry for all my loved ones out there in California where it's been an insane 100+ degrees for the last week. Just think of me when you poke your head into the cool refrigerator.

Meanwhile I've got a couple of short story ideas rattling around my brain. I think I've found my niche. A blend of history and fantasy, aptly termed fantahistorical.

The story I sold is about a guy who feels where people have died--he experiences their death as they did and can point out the spot where it happened and what was going through the deceased's mind during their final moments. The Vatican hires him to search out the exact spot of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. You'll have to read the story to know what he discovered.

Right now I'm fixated on Nostradamus and how he supposedly predicted the future by witnessing events in a mirror that he'd stare at for hours. In my mind it wasn't a mirror but a flat screen hi-def television that a time traveler had conveniently left in his care.

So rather than taking a costly trip to Seattle I'll be tripping out for free on some hardcore 16th century Nostradamus. Yeah, man. Way cool...