My reading was grand. (I know, I know, it only took me a week to write this, and it's going to be light on the words.)

The turn-out was better than I'd imagined, with many of my friends and fellow writers coming -- Mandy Himel, Dan Percival, Jen Larsen, Susan Groppi, Jed Hartman, Frank Wu, Sean Klein, Sam Ling and Mark, Lisa Goldstein, Lori Ann White, David Cleary, Scott Seagroves, Lynne Raschke -- a great turnout. Even Heathen and Cole stopped in to wish me well, though they couldn't stay for the reading. An old friend from college, Brian, whom I hadn't seen in years, apparently saw my name in the window of the store and decided to come. I didn't even know he lived out here. (There were even a couple of people at the reading I didn't know...)

Here's my pile of books!

Here's a picture of me sitting on the couch before the reading, before anyone showed up, when I was certain no one would show up, and that I would be reading to an audience consisting of Heather and a hairless cat.

I read a couple of poems, "My Night with Aphrodite" and "Daughter and Moon", and the short-short "The Heart, a Chambered Nautilus", and the first two scenes of "Terribles Ones" (available now in The Third Alternative #37! Just got my copies yesterday!). People seemed to like the reading, and I was comfortable, though it's been a while since I read. Afterward, Scott told me I read well. He's been listening to me read off-and-on since high school, and he says I've improved a lot over the years. I used to try too hard, be really artificial and "go big," but now he says I sound comfortable and natural and project well. That's nice to hear. Then, the reading done, I took a few questions, provided by Frank and Jed, mostly, bless 'em. After that, I signed! Many people asked for signatures! It was most flattering.

Here's me signing for Jen:

And for Frank:

Yeah, that's enough pictures. Afterward a bunch of us went to a Vietnamese restaurant for food and chat, with a brief stop in the pirate store on the way to look at lard and tiny wooden frogs and other piratical things. Then Scott and Lynne gave Heather and I a ride across the bay. They'd never seen this apartment! So they hung out all evening, and we gave them very-much-belated Xmas gifts, and played Fluxx for hours, and talked, and had a generally fine time. We don't see them enough.

Such is the saga of my reading. It was great fun, and I thank Alan and Jude at Borderlands for having me, and I thank my dear beloved Heather for clapping and cheering and taking all the pictures you see above!

Now, I'm off to finish packing for the trip to Hidden City, which commences tomorrow at mid-day. I'll be incommunicado for the week at least. We return on April 3, so don't expect to hear from me before then. Have a pleasant end of March, everyone. I hope it goes out like a tasty braised shank of lamb.