Run-DMSteve

I did something very satisfying yesterday at about half past six in the evening. A few years ago, I was reading an essay on railroading and hit a phrase the writer intended as an off-the-cuff remark, just a bit of levity to balance a more serious issue. In theater or in a movie they’d call it a throw-away line.

It struck me as good dialog, if I twisted it a bit and if I could figure out who was supposed to say it and what the situation was. As my book came into focus, I knew I’d use this, and I eventually figured out who was talking to whom and where and why. Last night I finally got far enough into the book that I could type the words I’d been saving up. They fit perfectly.

I didn’t get far tonight in the final inning of the Write-a-thon, but I’m lucky I got anywhere at all. I’m so tired, I’ve been approving your comments without any of my usual put-you-in-your-place remarks. I’m so tired, I’ve been playing music I don’t even like. But I still wish I could do this all over again! I just printed all 23,000 words of my book and I feel as triumphant and invigorated as I did at the end of July 1986 when I walked out of my last Clarion class. (My Clarion only had eight students and we weren’t exactly a close group, so my going it alone this time wasn’t too far off my first experience.)

What have I learned? I’ll get into all that next Sunday. I need to think. I need to clear my head before I can think. I’m going on a road trip tomorrow and taking a week off (not counting work, marriage, friends, and the rest of my life). For now I just want to say how much I appreciate everyone who followed along for all or even some of these 41 days, for everyone who commented and expressed support, for my cash-money sponsors, Karen G. Anderson, Laurel Sercombe, and Mitch Katz (as promised, I’m sending you some original Run-DMSteve artwork), and for Special D’s unwavering support. I’m a lucky guy.

Two last quotes. They work beautifully together:

“Anthony Trollope shows us that nothing is more surprising, more thrillingly strange, than the twists and delusions of staid people about whom we believe we already know everything.” (Roger Angell)

“Hobbits really are amazing creatures. You can learn all there is to know about their ways in a month, and yet after a hundred years they can still surprise you.” (Gandalf the Grey)

The “Let Me Count the Ways Band Project” is ON!
Unless you round up some more strays, this is the list I’m going to work from:

Less Than Zero
.38 Special
Kenny Rogers and the First Edition
One Direction
KRS-One
Two Nice Girls
RJD2
Devo 2.0
2 Unlimited
2Pac
2 Tribes
Amon Duul II
U2
Boyz II Men
2 Live Crew
3 Doors Down
Three Dog Night
World War III
3 Mustaphas 3
Timbuk 3
Loudon Wainwright III
The Three O’Clock
Third Eye Blind
311
Classics IV
4 Non Blondes
The Four Horsemen
The Four Seasons
The Four Tops
Four Men & a Dog
Four Bitchin’ Babes
The Four Aces
The Four Freshmen
Bobby Fuller Four
Gang of Four
The Dave Clark Five
MC5
The 5th Dimension
The Jackson 5
Maroon 5
Five Man Electrical Band
Five for Fighting
The Five Satins
Ben Folds Five
We Five
Q5
The 5 Jones Boys
V6
Apollonia 6
Sixpence None the Richer
Six By Seven
Temperance Seven
7 Seconds
L7
Crazy 8’s
8-Ball
Napoleon XIV
Nine Inch Nails
10cc
Ten Years After
East 17
Heaven 17
Matchbox Twenty
UB40
Level 42
Black 47
The B-52s
MX80
M83
Century 93
The Old 97s
Apollo 100
Haircut 100
101 Strings
blink-182
Galaxie 500
Area Code 615
1000 Homo DJs
1910 Fruitgum Company
10,000 Maniacs