not falling down

Today is my sister’s birthday! Well, it was until nineteen minutes ago. Caitlan is eighteen! Happybirthday, Caitlan!

In the proud Adkins tradition, Caitlan plans to do nothing with her newly legal status but vote.(Well, the Adkins children tradition. Mom drinks sometimes.)

In other news, Sumana has frequently plugged Bookfinder, akickin’ service that, well, finds books. It’s kind of like the “network of bookstores” that Amazonuses to find out-of-print books, only much, much better. I was reading some of her comments on theservice and how cool it was, and I kept thinking “gee, I wish I had a rare or used book that I waslooking for.”

A couple days later, I was surprised to remember that I WAS looking for such a book, and had beenfor three years–Orson Scott Card’s short story omnibus, Maps In A Mirror. Bookfinderturned up several copies, all of which were too expensive at the moment, of course, but most ofwhich were still cheaper than the few an Amazon search turned up two years ago.

So I went away satisfied, but came back tonight when I remembered a book that this amazing girl hadshowed me at convention. Her namewas Anne, and she had this laugh, and she liked my brother a lot even though he didn’t realizethat, and–well, anyway. The book is Anthropology, and it’s one of those forced-restriction masterpieces: 101stories, each 101 words long. What I got to read of it was fantastic, and I wanted my own copy, butI remembered she’d said it was out of print.

Which it is–but tonight I found it for just ten bucks with shipping, and bought it. Thanksto Bookfinder! Hooray, Bookfinder!

(Expect a full retraction in two weeks, when I get it and it’s not nearly as good without a prettygirl around.)