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My more substantive blogging is a little delayed at the moment. Here in the Lizard Lair I’m putting the pieces in place to podcast (say that three times fast), and also to do some streaming video, which could happen live, but will probably happen more in vlogging style or maybe cut nicely for YouTube consumption. Depends how much of a learning curve I want to climb, or how obsessive I become with new (to me) tech toys.
This week I’ve been accruing the geek widgets necessary for this next step in the evolution of dinosaurian communications. I have been spurred on by the fact that I have four pet mice (the Mouse People, or, Meeple, in my lexicon) who sort of surround me in their various cages where I work in my writer’s cave. They are rather compelling of my attention and I confess I am far more amused at their antics and behaviors than I ever imagined I would be.
I used to think, “Mice? Meh.”
Then I saved one from being dinner in the snake cage. This small white feeder mouse of course became Minnie Mouse. Then I had to get her a female companion, a large exotic who was Maxi Mouse, short for Maxine. Then it turned out Maxine was a Max (ahem), and suddenly there were mouse babies.
For a while there I felt like I was having tribbles. From one good deed to hordes of meeple in 4 weeks flat…
Several died early deaths, two for lack of nursing, I think, one killed by her own curiosity (Magellan Mouse, too intrepid an explorer who snuck outside the cage), and one of heat stroke, through a tragic transportation accident to and from the vet’s. Sigh. No wonder they have hordes of babies in their litters. Life is cheap when you’re a mouse. But 2 survived: the gray girl mouse, who became G.G., now Geegers, or Gigimus if we’re being formally latinate. And Mini-Me, the runt of the litter, a little boy who looked and acted just like his mother, and who was inseparable from her side until he had to be moved out when he hit adolescence (No more tribbles!)
So. I have Max, the large hefty boy who walks hanging from the roof of his tank, to whom I sing the Spider Mouse song (think Homer’s Spider Pig, only about a mouse). There is gentle little Minnie Mouse who runs laps every night, and Mini-Me, now grown into Micro-Mouse (Mike for short), who chuckles and chirps while he plays games in his cage wheel. And Gigimus, who fiercely defends the girls’ cage from intrusion by The Food Giant. (That would be me.)
This isn’t Geegers, exactly, but it could be if we had teeny little mouse protective gear to put on her. It certainly captures her guard-mouse attitude.
I’ve decided I should film some meeple footage, maybe start a Mouse Channel on YouTube. If I can catch the cute parts of their behavior on vid, and edit it right, it could be quite amusing to watch. Don’t know how much time I’ll have for this, but I figure this would be a fun project by which I could learn some technical how-to’s regarding desktop video and sound editing. Then I’ll be set for more serious non-meeple related Real Lizard content. I actually have quite a few things I want to record and release to the public, some of which have to do with my science fiction/fantasy writing, so a good learning project or two will serve me in good stead.
Besides, if I have to suffer periodically from Kw00tons over here, you should too. Share the joy and all that, you know?
I have a web cam on the way with a gooseneck on it that is perfect for setting up an in-cage view of meeple. When that’s here, along with my new (1 terabyte!!!! can we say Geek Heaven?) hard drive, then I’ll be ready to start putting the pieces together. Then there’s the re-doing the office, rearranging hardware, organizing and connecting multimedia components (audio recording gear, mixer, etc)…
A bit of a project, but it will rebuild my work platform and workspace, and take my project capability to a whole new level.
Meanwhile, our regularly scheduled book writing and blogging will continue apace. Stay tuned for more.
I leave you with this interesting photo of Super Mouse, a little fellow photographed as he leapt clear of a trap, a trick he and his fellows were apparently quite good at, according to the photographer and other pix in this spread. This appeared in the July 16, 1956 issue of Life magazine[1], the week I was born.
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1. The mouse photo spread starts on page 10. Interestingly, on page 92 of this same issue is an article summarized in the table of contents this way:
The Nixon Controversy. Would Richard M. Nixon make a good president? The most controversial figure in U.S. politics in pro and con debate.
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