Behind the cut is my weekend at Readercon, minus detailed panel descriptions where noted. Those writeups are coming in separate posts, because they are very long and because I want to invite discussion on them.

( Readercon in brief )

ETA: My detailed panel reports:

• "A Theory of Narrative Aesthetics Informed by Cognitive Science"
• "My Secret (or Not-So-Secret) Story Structure"
• "The Beginnings of Stories and the Endings They Promise"

ETA: other people's reports (will continue to be updated—please point me to more):

• veejane
• theodosia
• rushthatspeaks
• impressionistic panel notes by yhlee: "Libraries in Imaginative Literature" and "Towards a Taxonomical Nomenclature of the Fantastic (Assuming We Care)"; notes on "Beginnings of Stories and the Endings They Promise"
• Chad's panel comments: "Embracing the Uncomfortable"; "Social Class and Speculative Fiction"
• ckd: Friday, Saturday, Sunday

Long week; work was very busy, Chad had a couple of late nights, and I was generally too brain-fried by the time I got home, dealt with the dog, etc., to do anything but mindless things like making LJ icons or watching TV (or falling asleep on the couch when I meant to watch TV). One night it was at least a pleasant brain-fry, stopping briefly by a Happy Hour to celebrate a new co-worker's passing the bar exam, but still.

This weekend we drove out to see my parents for an early Thanksgiving. Went out for dinner Saturday night (and got carded over a glass of wine), watched Mom's videos from Scotland and Romania this summer, and generally had a nice low-key time. On the way back today we listened to football; the Patriots thoughtfully sounded very good while I was listening, and saved the tense bits until after we lost reception. They did win; can't say it was for Bill Belichick's dad Steve, who died at the age of 86 last night, since the team wasn't told until after the game, but it's a good thing all the same. The Giants also won, so a good football day.

And how did it get to be almost Thanksgiving already? Ack.

Hey, I was pretty busy this week: not only did I write a lot of posts (by my standards) but I read a couple of books and even fit in some socializing. Yesterday I drove out to Massachusetts for the bachelorette party of a friend from high school. I only went to the dinner part, passing on cocktails before or dancing after, but it was lovely to see the bride-to-be having a good time and to have a chance to catch up with some other friends. It reminded me of the dinner they took me out for before my wedding, not in the specifics but in the general happy relaxation and enjoyment. (Dinner was yuppified Mongolian grill; it tasted just fine, but I prefer the real thing.)

Also, I got carded when I asked for a glass of sangria at the bar. I'm noting this down because some day I will no longer be carded, and this way I can check back and say, "I was still being carded when I was practically 28," or whatever.

Today my grandmother, aunt, and uncle came down for lunch as a low-key birthday celebration for my grandmother, and I drove back afterwards (learning in the process that Jolt caffeine gum tastes nasty, but is a lot easier on my stomach than an equivalent quantity of soda). Tentatively on tap for this week: work on the Saiyuki re-read, since volume 1 of Reload might appear on store shelves any time in August, and contemplate hobbit birthday presents.