Thanksgiving, as I was exhorted late last night, was October 12th. It was, according to some, the only Thanksgiving that should count. However those of us with two countries to our names sometimes get double holidays. (Japan, it should be known, has the best assortment of holidays: Christmas is for lovers, New Year’s is for family, Valentine’s Day is for men, White Day is for women, Golden Week is a whole week long, and there’s Obon and Halloween. But I digress.) This means getting two Thanksgivings.
In other words, I’m boarding a plane later today for Los Angeles. There was a frantic pawing through my bureau this evening (yesterday evening, technically) for my bathing suit (I found it!) and I’ve charged up my mobile and borrowed an EEE. I’m going to see my mother’s family and my former roommate. This will be my husband’s first opportunity to meet some of them. (I considered making flashcards.) Since family is the theme of the weekend, I thought I’d share these trailers.
I’ll try watching this one tomorrow, if my last-minute shopping doesn’t get in the way. To me it’s the perfect family film.
I’ve also included this trailer, because it’s far more informative than the one floating around on television. That one just spits out the names Roald Dahl, Wes Anderson, George Clooney and Meryl Streep at you, without any context. This one actually gets at plot. And showcases Bill Murray as a badger with a thing for explosives. Which is a real winner, as far as I’m concerned.
In other good news, related pieces of which I shall divulge later on, Shine: An Anthology of Optimistic SF*, edited by Jetse de Vries, is available for pre-order. I wrote a story especially intended for it, and I was lucky enough to see it accepted. I’ll probably do some talking about it to the family members I don’t see very often, if they ask what I’m up to lately. Then we’ll just segue into killer robots, and all will be well.
*Yes, I know about the typo. The fine people at Solaris are on it.