Pride and all that...

 All the things I have to look forward to before Monday's exciting visit to Outpatient Land...for an ultrasound. And no, I'm not pregnant. This is the beginning of the tests for the previous mentioned health problems. Yay, I have insurance and a job so this it is possible to get this checked out, but otherwise, bleah. Hopefully, good results though and the more dire options won't be called for.

Tomorrow night, it's off to the Twin Cities Antiquarian Bookfair at the Fairgrounds. Somehow, I always find more Edward Gorey stuff. Even when I think I have all of it. And it's always fun to look at the pretties, regardless.

Then Saturday, I'll be at Twin Cities Pride in all of its gigantic corporate glory. Everyone to the Left of Rush Limbaugh shows up so it's primo people-watching. My personal favorites: the Fire Dept. (prettiest. I mean like gorgeous, modelesque folks) booth next to the Police Dept. (butchest, hands-down. Even the leather booths can't top this. As it twere); the University Baptist Church (because how can you not love them? They even do a float some years); the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet celebrating and being awesome and maybe recruiting, just a wee bit; True Colors Bookstore; the Minnesota Lynx; Bisexual Organizing Project; and a host of other things.Looking forward to it!

And on a completely random but Prideful note: a few lines from poet Mary Oliver -
"When it's over, I want to say: all my life
I was a bride married to amazement.
I was a bridegroom, taking the world into my arms"

The rest of the poem has a "Because I could not stop for Death, he kindly stopped for me" thing going on (which I love) - still, these lines really struck me. I'm not sure I've ever been married to amazement really. It's quite a thing to imagine. Think I'm going to give it a whirl.
Be married to amazement this weekend too - let me know how it goes. Happy Pride!

Whoa...this is shaping up to be quite the week

I just learned that my story "Twelfth Night" was accepted for Best Lesbian Romance 2011, edited by Radclyffe (Cleis Press, forthcoming 2012). :-D

I have apparently been foiled for the trifecta, alas, seeing as I've been shot down for Best Lesbian Fiction 2009.

Good heavens, though, This makes a grand total of 17 Best ofs (as in stories selected by editors from an annual pool of available stories, as opposed to some random volume with "best" in the title) -
6 volumes of  Best Lesbian Erotica (unless this story is a last minute deletion): 1999, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2011
3 volumes of The Mammoth Book of Best New Erotica - 4, 6 and 9
1 volume of Best Erotica 2008 (published in Italy in translation - international collection)
1 volume of Best Fantastic Erotica Vol. 1 from Circlet Press
3 volumes of best lesbian erotica of the year type collections from Alyson Books
1 volume of Best Lesbian Bondage Erotica
2 volumes of Best Lesbian Romance - 2009 and 2011

I hadn't realized that until now, largely because I always forget to finish listing things out (which is why I'm doing it here).
Now the fun begins - it looks like I only have one submission left out in the world. True, Hellebore and Rue will be out this Fall and the novel is making a lot of progress. But I haven't had less than 5 pieces submitted to the markets since I started writing and submitting. I have a difficult time weaning myself from that since 5-10 stories in circulation has always been my standard.
Eeek. Well, there's incentive to get the novel done among other things.