Brain damage

Last night I finished two book reviews, one that has been in progress for a couple of months and one that I started writing earlier this week. They are: The Painter of Battles by Arturo Perez-Reverte and Fatal Revenant by Stephen R. Donaldson. That clears off my slate of reviews until I read something else that seems review-worthy. I’m almost done with The Barbarous Coast, but I’m not sure what I’ll pick up next.

I reached the end of Chapter 7 on the novel-in-progress this morning, just a tad under the 20K word mark. I know where I’m going with Chapter 8, so I didn’t mind ending on such a note of finality. Sometimes it’s good to stop in the middle of things so there’s some momentum to pick up at the beginning of the next session, but I don’t always have the luxury.

I watched Wednesday’s Law & Order last night. All neatly and tidily wrapped up at the end. Crisis averted. Justice served.

The owner of our neighborhood bagel shop, a Brooklynite, has a banner hanging out front this morning: Jets Giants by 6. One of his customers asked him if he fell and hit his head. He’s an optimist if nothing else. “At least by six,” he declared. The day after the Green Bay game, I asked him when the Super Bowl party would start. “Last night at about 10 o’clock,” he answered.