I buy any book of hers I can lay my hands on. I loved her dark take on the fairy tale – Red as Blood

I’m excited as I will be taking a class in book illustration next semester, and I’ve chosen Biting the Sun as the book to illustrate for the entire class. I thought about doing Silver, but was afraid I’d make it a little too harlequin at this point in my progress.

Sadly, these are the only two books of hers I’ve ever liked. I read the sequel to silver and it was far too cold and lifeless for me to accept it as anything close to the original. Her other work just seems way too flat and devoid of emotion, but maybe I just haven’t read the right stuff, considering how broad her career has been.

As for the question, I rather miss the days where breaking up with someone was done strictly in person. The one serious relationship I ended I had the decency to end it face to face, while I have had to deal with numerous break up emails and AIM conversations. Probably the kindest I’ve ever gotten was a phone breakup. Classy.

Can we do Kij Johnson next? I swear she’s like the female version of Neil Gaiman.

I used to think very badly of relationships that are primarily conducted by electronic means, but often these are the result of distance separating two people. Before AIM, Facebook, and Twitter, such relationships would’ve been pursued via extensive letter-writing. So what’s the difference, really, other than speed and convenience?

“Shocking, I don’t know, sure it is to many, but in my opinion the greatest revolution at the moment is how a lot of people are challenging the idea, or dogma, that monogamy is the only way a stable and mature romantic relationships may be had.”

EXACTLY.

Love cannot be pinned down so easily as it has been this past century. Somewhere between chemical splash and fairy tale love, there’s a land where I appreciate friends and lovers, alike. And my relationships reflect that, or they don’t last.

I’ve long held that Real Dolls were more than the mere laugh factory fodder they’ve become. Glorified dildos, but much much more. Or at least, they whisper of the very things Lee writes about here. We’re already on this path. It’s just unfortunate that those pushing towards it are typically deemed nutters. Maybe more unfotunate (advantageous?), is that a lot of them are. Heh.

As to how I’ve noticed tech changing our romantic approaches: The net has allowed, for me, a level of honesty and openness, never witnessed before. Sure, a great many people lie, but those I’ve connected with and gone the step further, in meeting, have truly shown themselves Internauting as they really are. Breaking down the standard walls before they even go up. I think, again, in my own experiences, it’s shown people as just that: People. Makes it easier in our society, to see them as such, and not a romantic mark, just there to fulfill our needs.

As much time as I spend with technology (to the point I become nearly insane if my internet is down) you’d think I’d see some change. I have noticed with myself that I call people I know on the internet “friends” when speaking to people outside of the net. These people are just avatars to me when I’m talking to them either on LJ or IM. They’re people I talk to about everything and they are the greatest support network I’ve ever had.

I think I almost lost my train of thought there.