Hurricane Irene stopped by to visit last night.  I let my toddler sleep in my bed on the second floor so he’d be safe from falling trees (unlike the third floor) and flooding (possible on the first floor). Then I stayed awake all night to watch over him and the house, ready to bug out for Coop’s or my ex-wife’s at the first sign of flooding, mudslides, or a tree crashing through my roof (provided their homes weren’t experiencing the same). Come the dawn, all three of those things had happened, but luckily, they didn’t happen to us (except for a mini-mudslide). I’ve posted damage pics below, including a $50,000 houseboat that crashed on shore within walking distance of my house. There was a big gash in the bottom, but no one aboard.

Next weekend is, of course, Horrorfind Weekend in Gettysburg, PA. Complete details can be found here. I’ll be sitting between Mary SanGiovanni and Kelli Owen in the Celebrity Room. I will have books for sale, or you can bring your own. I do not charge for signatures or photographs. Also, the folks who run Horrorfind informed me they are starting an annual Literary Award, and I am honored to be the first recipient. That takes place Saturday night, from 7pm until 8pm. But while I am thrilled and humbled at this news, what I’m looking forward to the most is drinking a few pints with Tim Lebbon. It’s been way too long since he and I have done that. How long? The last time we split a bottle of Knob Creek around a campfire, I was still married and Tim still had a few remaining tufts of hair. So yeah, it’s been too long. And of course, it will be good to see all of you, as well.