Just an update...

Random thought #1: Next year, I will go to BEA, no matter who I have to kill and impersonate.
Maybe I can go as one of those authors who's still publishing even though they're long dead...

Random thought #2: Today, June 5, is our 9th wedding anniversary. 9 years ago, Mary (AKA alemya) and I tied the knot in a lovely ceremony I hardly remember at all now, owing to the massive groom-jitters I was suffering. It was a great day, even if we had to replace both groomsmen in the days leading up to the event (rainfletcher, braxana, I'm looking at you, heheh. Wacky day. Waaaaacky day.) and the only non-family person I specifically invited who showed up was my ex-girlfriend, who was a heinous bitch according to people who remember the day better than I do...  

But I digress.  We've been together 9 fantastic, fabulous, maddening, baffling, delightful, silly, exciting years, and I love Mary with all my heart.  She's pretty much the perfect woman for me.  Sweet, caring, intelligent, creative, thoughtful, forceful, intimidating, frightening, unpredictable, tolerant, accepting, pushy, direct, giving, and loving like you wouldn't believe.  Yeah, I'm biased.  But dammit, she puts up with my books, comics, and plush Cthulhu collection.  And we have cats.  Sure, we have our moments of friction, and need our alone time and separate spaces, but you know?  9 years married, and 11 1/2 together and we're still going strong, and she makes me happy.  And I'll gleefully shout it out for the world to hear today.  Because if I shout loud enough, she'll hear me from Germany.  

I don't think we've ever been apart like this for an anniversary.  Certainly, this two weeks she's spending in Europe is the longest time we've been apart since I moved down to Roanoke.  (The -furthest- apart we've been was several months back when she was in Virginia and I was the Middle East...)  And I miss her terribly.  But I know she'll be back.

So happy anniversary, Mary!  When you get back, we will celebrate properly.