What Pimping Gets You

Friday has turned out to be a pretty good day for me. I went to the CWC reading at the B&N, and read the same selection from Orfeo that I had read at Zebulon's Lounge last Tuesday, but it went a little more smoothly this time, even though I wasn't drunk.

It helped that I had a few friends there with me. In addition to the Pirate, a friend and his wife from my new job showed up, as well as a friend from my old job and his fiance, and Mike M. and Ian D. The people who showed up for just me outnumbered those who had come to see everyone else. Thank you to those of you who made the trek out. It meant a whole lot to me.

A nice unforeseen bonus came in the form of another one of the evening's readers, a poet by the name of Carolyn Schuk, came up to me and said that she has a good friend who teaches mythology at the University of Maine. This particular professor would be highly interested in the fact that my stories combine Greek mythology and Mexican culture. Well, as they say, write what you know.

And, in a completely unrelated bout of pimping, the Pirate has caught on. He's had a series of interviews with three large, profitable, well-known Silicon Valley companies. Company G flew him down to Los Angeles, wined and dined him and impressed him with their high-energy corporate-cult atmosphere. Company N had him out for a regular interview at their Los Gatos office, and impressed him with the fact that they're a little older on average, and seem to be a little less out to prove something. Company A has only given him a phone interview thus far. Company G wants him in their Mountain View office on Wednesday for another series of interviews. Company A has asked for a second interview. Company N will make him an offer on Monday. They've already talked money, and the only reason they didn't make the offer is because the guy in charge of that was sick today. So, it's all over but the shouting, and I brought the Pirate home some nice champagne to celebrate.

It looks like the shitstorm is letting up a little at the ol' homestead. Actually, I'm feeling pretty blessed right about now.