Book review: The Loney

The LoneyThe Loney by Andrew Michael Hurley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Andrew Michael Hurley completely disregards several of Elmore Leonard’s ten rules of good writing in his debut novel The Loney, notably in regard to the weather, regional dialects and detailed descriptions of characters. His disregard is justified, however, because the weather–bleak, rain-soaked days–is as much a character in the story as the people that suffer through the constant downpours, whipping winds and blanketing fog while on a pilgrimage to northwest England to renew their faith and seek a miracle that will restore the voice of the mute boy “Hanny” Smith.

Told from the perspective of the boy’s older brother, The Loney winds back to the early spring of 1973 and details how a mini-bus of parishioners head out to The Loney, taken there by Father Bernard, a new priest who has recently replaced the much-loved and equally feared, Father Wilfred, whose unexpected death remains clouded in suspicion. Their task is to follow the rituals of past visits, as directed by the near-fanatical mother of the two boys, culminating in a ceremony at a shrine intended to demonstrate their faith and to seek a cure for Hanny’s silent ailment.

All is not as it seems, with some of the locals acting in both strange and intimidating ways. The sense of menace grows as the days move closer to the final ceremony, with disturbing discoveries and events that may have a supernatural–but decidedly unholy nature–taking place.

Hurley uncoils the tension steadily, building it as much by what is merely suggested but never seen. The Loney itself is a frightening entity, the sea lashing the shore and strong tides ready to sweep away the unsuspecting at a moment’s notice. Adding to this are the unpredictable actions of Hanny, derisively referred to as “the retard” by several sinister men who are paradoxically helpful and threatening.

The atmosphere Hurley creates feels so authentic you may almost want to open an umbrella while reading. Likewise, Hurley does a terrific job in slowly revealing mysteries, often leaving out just enough information for the reader to fill in the gaps with whatever hideous things they can imagine. My only disappointment comes with the somewhat bland ending, which doesn’t match the emotional impact of the events leading up to it.

The strengths of The Loney are more than enough to compensate for the weakness of the ending, though. The journey of these characters is fascinating to witness, as quiet niceties and the routine of ritual gives way to darker matters, testing the faith of all–and breaking it forever for some.

Recommended.

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Run 461: Pushing it, thanks to Olivia Newton-John

Run 461
Average pace: 5:07/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 5:04 km
Time: 25:52
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 20ºC
Wind: light
BPM: 161
Stride: n/a
Weight: 157.3 pounds
Total distance to date: 3685 km
Devices/apps: Apple Watch and iPhone 6

When I got home tonight I did not want to run. I was feeling slothful and the idea of not running had a sexy, alluring appeal.

But the guilt set it and eventually I set off, albeit about 45 minutes later than usual. While it was still light for the run, it was shade the entire way and getting dark within minutes of getting back home.

Although it was 20ºC, it felt cooler because the sun was tucked behind the trees. I started out, felt an unusual spring in my step and instead of resisting the impulse to speed up, I indulged it. After the first km I did back off, but only for a short time. I picked up the pace again and while being serenaded by the cheesy yet undeniably catchy second half of Xanadu (the ELO half, or more precisely, the better half) I made my way to a zippy 5:07/km pace. I’m alive, indeed.

I checked the splits and that first km came in at 5:00/km exactly. However, I pushed just that wee bit more on the final km and it came in at 4:58/km, the first time this year (and quite a long while) that I’ve managed to get below the five-minute mark, so that was nice.

My right leg behaved itself, though I could feel it for a part of the run.

Overall, I’m quite pleased with the energy level and result, especially considering I was firmly in sofa mode when I got home.

A few more random questions (plus some answers)

  • Why do wasps exist? They don’t gather pollen or make honey, they just sting and do gross things like lay eggs in spiders so their young can eat their way out.
  • Why is it so easy for me to slip into passive voice when writing? You’d think by now I’d have learned but I’m only a bit better than I used to be.
  • Would it be more or less depressing to know we are the only intelligent species in the universe? On the plus side, no risk of alien invasion. On the negative side, humans are generally terrible people.
  • What will the internet look like in a hundred years? When you think back to cars a hundred years ago and compare them to today, all the fundamentals are still there, we’ve just improved on the core design. Will the internet still consist of people obsessively checking Facebook but doing so with implants instead of smartphones?
  • Shower or bath? (This one is easy: bath. Warm and relaxing and for extra fun you can add bubbles or Epsom salts or something crazy like that. Showers are just go in, clean, get out.)
  • Why is the four-day work week not a thing yet? Seriously, we don’t need five days. It sucks. I can be productive with more free time–let me show you!
  • Could you write a decent novel that consists solely of lists? Something to consider for NaNoWriMo 2016 (ho ho).
  • Why not crop squares?

Run 460: The Perils of starting late

Run 460
Average pace: 5:36/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Distance: 10:04 km
Time: 56:26
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 18ºC
Wind: light to moderate
BPM: 161
Stride: n/a
Weight: 156.5 pounds
Total distance to date: 3680 km
Devices/apps: Apple Watch and iPhone 6

I slept in about an hour later than intended this morning and then poked about before finally getting out to run. As a result, only the first ten minutes of my run was in the morning and the rest in the afternoon. The temperature didn’t vary from 18ºC, though, and while it didn’t feel hot, it certainly felt warmer than the last few evening runs. I produced sweat!

I was initially planning to run clockwise but some cones and small signs indicated that the Running Room was having an event and the idea of running counter to potentially dozens of potentially inexperienced runners, along with the usual Sunday crowd, convinced me to go counter-clockwise instead. Given that I didn’t start until noon, I was fairly certain the event would be in clean-up mode but you never know, so off I went.

The run was a definite mixed bag. Time-wise it was better than many 10Ks, though a bit slower than some at 5:36/km. My left foot started to hurt at the halfway point but after a few km it settled into a tolerable kind of quasi-soreness. Around the same time the right leg began to feel sore and for a space of ten minutes or so the balanced each other out with competing mild agonies. The right leg also settled down and by the end of the run I wasn’t feeling uncomfortable.

I skipped the side trails, opting to assiduously follow the distance markers. As I passed the 10 km sing my watch reported 9.96 km. Impressive.

A few complications from people produced near-incidents and I chalk this up to my later start, as later usually means more people. On two occasions people remained utterly oblivious to my presence and I nearly had to abandon the trail to get by. On the second occasion I actually verbally warned a couple ahead of me with “On your left!” to which there was no reaction. Nearly upon them, I added, “Coming through!” and it was only as I literally brushed by that the woman on the left suddenly realized I was there. How is this even possible? I do not know. I am not a sneaky runner.

I also nearly had a dog incident. I passed another group of oblivious people and they had a dog off-leash. Fine, I passed them, let them enjoy their bylaw violating ways. But then the dog rushed up on my left and then cut in front of me–the exact same maneuver that led to me falling flat at China Creek Park lo those years ago. The only thing that prevented a repeat this time is the dog moved farther ahead of me before cutting over, giving me time to actually react. I made a “Really?” gesture with my hands then flashed a dirty look back at the group of people. I wanted to say something but wanted to just keep running more. I then nearly tripped going up the steps on the bridge at Deer Lake Brook, properly distracted by the dog. At this point I began to worry if I was going to get through the last three km upright.

But I did.

Next time I am not sleeping in.

Here’s a Pinterest (or whatever you call them) question I have answered myself

Under the usual headline of “We found some fresh pins for you” I looked over my latest email from Pinterest (a name that is equal parts dumb and clever). Most of these messages contain collections of tips on writing because I indicated writing was my primary interest when I signed up, rather than drag racing or bocci.

Here’s a “pinterest” from the latest missive I received, along with what I suggest is the only possible correct response:

How to make your novel impossible for the reader to put down
[expand more_text=”Click for answer” height=”0″ hide_less=”yes” link_color=”#1e73be” link_style=”underlined”]Super glue on the cover[/expand]

NaNoWriMo 2016 Pre-Update #1

Let’s check in on my progress in preparing for NaNoWriMo 2016!

First, a recap of my prep schedule below.

September:

  1. Come up with a story idea
  2. Choose a program for the actual writing part

October:

  1. Ruminate over the chosen idea, perhaps outline a bit
  2. Configure the writing program as necessary

Since October hasn’t arrived yet, let’s look closer at September:

  1. Come up with a story idea

Progress: None whatsoever. I can say without hesitation that I have devoted no thought to what I might write about, other than a vague notion that it will be a story in which things happen. This is partly because the first week of September is the start of the fall semester and this is a very hectic time for me in my current work. My brain is not inclined to creative thinking during these early days. This is a bit of a stretch this year as Labor Day didn’t fall until the 5th, meaning I had five entire days to do nothing but think without significant distraction and instead of thinking I did other things, like eat olives. Mmm, olives.

2. Choose a program for the actual writing part

Progress: Some actual progress. Right now I’m looking at four different programs and mulling the pros and cons of each. The four are:

  • Microsoft Word 2016
  • WriteMonkey
  • FocusWriter
  • Scrivener

I’ve used three of the four in previous NaNoWriMos, with FocusWriter being the brash rookie trying to win me over. A succinct evaluation of my experience in using each would be:

Microsoft Word 2016: Technically I used earlier versions of Word but the last few have been essentially the same. I’ve encountered no issues in using Word for NaNoWriMo.

Pro: Works across Windows, Mac and iOS
Con: Way more than you need to write a straightforward novel, formatting code is a hidden, tentacled monster that will try to strangle your story if you start mucking about with it

WriteMonkey: Again, no issues. The spartan nature of the interface puts it squarely in the distraction-free writing category. Most of its extra functionality is hidden behind keyboard shortcuts or a single menu that is hidden by default.

Pro: Simple, highly configurable interface
Con: Curiously slow to start up, current version is Windows-only, some features are limited or hard to use

Scrivener: A mix-up in local vs. cloud (in this case, Dropbox) saves resulted in a catastrophic loss of a large chunk of the story (thousands of words). This derailed my attempt and further pushed me away from using Scrivener for any writing. Scrivener is essentially the opposite of WriteMonkey, with an absolute ton of options and tools, most of them staring you right in the face (though you can hide most if you choose).

Pro: Many options for researching, outlining, organizing characters and more, interface can be tweaked, scenes can be easily moved around, works across Windows, Mac and iOS
Con: Instead of a single file, it creates many, introducing more points of failure, save mechanism annoyingly saves after two seconds of inactivity by default. This can wreak havoc if you save to a cloud-based drive.

FocusWriter is similar to WriteMonkey, but emphasizes a different set of features, including backgrounds and ambient music intended to put you into a relaxed and writin’ kind of mood. Curiously I find these rather distracting so have turned them off. It works on Windows and Mac, which is a plus.

At this point I am leaning toward either WriteMonkey or FocusWriter. WM has a spiffy new version in the works but it may not be ready before November. The current version (2.70) is still perfectly fine, just less sexy (and Windows-only). FocusWriter is nice but I haven’t found that feature yet that would convince me to use it over WriteMonkey.

I expect to have settled on the tool in the next few weeks. As for the story idea? Maybe I’ll do some brainstorming this weekend. Yes, that’s it.

Run 459: A comfy run in the rain

Run 459
Average pace: 5:16/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 5:04 km
Time: 26:33
Weather: Light showers
Temp: 14ºC
Wind: light
BPM: 156
Stride: n/a
Weight: 157.8 pounds
Total distance to date: 3670 km
Devices/apps: Apple Watch and iPhone 6

I skipped Tuesday’s usual run because I was wiped out from work. This is not normal, but the first day of classes for the fall semester when you work at a college IT help desk can do that to you. I came home feeling like I’d walked 20,000 steps. Which I had.

I vowed to stay on track by running tonight and despite ominous clouds, I stayed true to my vow. Due to a light rain and a temperature of only 14ºC I donned my long-sleeved Nike shirt, though in the end a regular t-shirt would have been fine (because there was virtually no wind, so it never felt overly chilly).

Somewhat unusually I fell into a comfortable pace quite early and stayed there for nearly the entire run. Looking at my splits I had the usual drop at the 2km mark but actually got progressively faster to the end of the run, with my final km pace being 5:03 vs. 5:07 for the first km. Until about the last 500m I never tried to push beyond this comfy pace so I am surprised to see I kept picking up speed.

The right leg felt fine for the first half of the run, began to feel a bit stiff in the second half, but began to feel better again before the run ended. It is weird, my right leg. I can handle weird better than injured, however.

The rain was pretty light and wasn’t even a nuisance on my glasses like it usually is, thanks to the aforementioned lack of wind. The trail was all but deserted, save for a cyclist or two. I know it makes me seem anti-social but I kind of like running Omega Man-style.

Overall I’m pleased with this run. It is probably the most relaxed I’ve felt while doing a 5K in a long time.

Book review: The Communion Letters

The Communion LettersThe Communion Letters by Whitley Strieber
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I decided to pick this up because it recently got re-released as an ebook.

This is a collection of letters received by Anne and Whitley Strieber after the publication of the latter’s book Communion, and some its subsequent follow-ups. (The book came out originally in 1997.)

I’ve always enjoyed Strieber’s Communion books because a) he’s a novelist, so he knows how to tell a story b) the stories he recounts are by turns freaky and fascinating and c) they satisfy a part of me that is intrigued by the possibility that the reality we see and the reality that might be could be vastly different things. There is some scientific evidence to suggest the possibility of parallel dimensions, for example. Imagine if we had definitive proof–it would shatter our current conception of the universe. The mere thought that multiple Adam Sandlers could exist is almost too much for the human mind to comprehend.

But I digress.

The Communion Letters is loosely themed into chapters focusing on specific types of encounters with beings that may be aliens or have some connection to the dead or could be super-evolved humans come back from the future to keep us from screwing up the planet. Each chapter has a short introduction from Whitley (Anne’s task was to read through the staggering 200,000 letters they received) but the bulk of the book are the letters themselves.

They range from odd incidents that may or may not be explainable through conventional means, to stuff that would fit right in with the wackiest theories floated on Ancient Aliens. The quality of the writing is just as varied, with some letters being somewhat disorganized as the authors backtrack on their thoughts or interject in the middle of a recollection with something else, while others have that “just cracked open a thesaurus” feel to them. More than a few are not just well-written, the stories they tell are riveting, filled with details of small town life interrupted by strange, sometimes wondrous and often terrifying events.

In the end no definitive conclusion is drawn by Strieber, other than a wish that science would study the people reporting these experiences, to help demonstrate that their stories are not just the products of over-active imaginations or even mental illness (Strieber says he read over many writings from people suffering mental illnesses and found a clear distinction between their work and the stories recounted in the letters they received).

At times creepy and at times so out there that I had to fight the urge to roll my eyes, The Communion Letters is an interesting showcase for ordinary people to sound off on their experiences with the “visitors.” If the subject matter intrigues you, this is worth a read, even if the selection of letters could have been a bit stronger overall.

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At least they got the month right

On September 1st I received the following in an email:

Happy birthday whenever!

It’s a birthday wish from Xbox. It’s nice of them to think of me.

My birthday is September 19th.

This made me wonder–since they got the month right, do they just send a mass of email out twelve times a year at the start of each month that covers every birthday for that month? If so, why? Is it a money-saving measure? Email has to be cheap, I’m inundated with it all the time.

Or did they really send it nearly three weeks before my actual birthday by mistake?

Anyway, it’s a cute dog, so thanks Mr. Xbox for the kind-of-early birthday wish!

I do not like dog owners: My rant for 2016

Having given it some thought, I’ve come to the conclusion that no, I do not like dog owners.

I should add that I am only referring to ones I’ve encountered. I have no opinion on all of the others–yet.

But of those I have met, yep, I don’t like most of them. They are irresponsible and selfish, they often have poorly-trained dogs and show little regard for the safety or comfort of others.

Dogs can be dangerous, even tiny toy dogs can bite hard and if they’re not healthy, they can spread infection or worse. A dog that is off-leash is not under the owner’s control, no matter what the owner may think. “Oh, he always comes when I call!” may seem ironclad because that’s always what has happened before, but if the dog decides to ignore you, your ability to control it lies in how long it will take you to get to it and grab it by the collar–assuming it doesn’t turn on you.

Tonight I went for a short walk through Hume Park and back. I follow the usual route I take when running, going down the stairs to Lower Hume Park. Just past the bend on the trail is a large dog sniffing about. It’s off-leash. There is no way to physically get past the dog without getting within range of its mouth, which is presumably full of sharp doggie teeth. The dog hasn’t noticed me and may very well be as friendly as all get-out. I have no idea, as I’ve never seen it before. Its owner is not within view. I back off and decide to wait thirty seconds or so, thinking by then the owner will have caught up and both dog and owner will move on.

That doesn’t happen. Instead the dog is still there. I wait again. After the third strategic retreat the dog has moved over to the parking lot and is standing next to the open door of a truck, which presumably belongs to the owner, unless the dog has the amazing ability to drive motor vehicles. I am then able to proceed forward on the path without facing imminent potential mauling.

I’ve been attacked and bitten by dogs before, having done nothing to provoke them. I’ve just unluckily been within proximity when they decided to flip out for whatever reason. My childhood was a series of tetanus shots. I don’t wish to repeat this as an adult.

This could have been avoided by the owner simply leashing the dog, as required by law. But the majority of dog owners I see don’t do this (I should add that a lot of them do and are nice people and usually the leashed dogs seem pretty nice, too).

I walk up the hill past the off-leash dog park. This is a fenced-in area that nonetheless has signs warning people that they must still keep their dogs under control at all times. As I walk by–keeping well away from the fence–a large dog with the coloring of a doberman runs up to the fence and starts following along, growling at me and taking on body language that says something to the effect of, “I would like to snack on you.” This does not amuse me.

The dog’s owner is oblivious.

I mutter obscenities and finally offer the dog advise of a carnal nature, while continuing to walk along. The dog either listens to my request (doubtful but not entirely impossible) or more likely reaches the end of the imaginary territory it needs to defend and backs off. The owner continues to remain oblivious.

A responsible dog owner would not have a dog that would follow and growl at a stranger when in public for no reason. An irresponsible one would.

I do not like dog owners.

Also, here’s a sign that’s posted on the same path I was walking along. If only all dogs were this cute and cartoony.

Your dog shall not poop nor be free

I’m not sure if the fine is for having your dog unleashed, not cleaning up its poop or a combination of both. What I do know is $2,000 is a heck of a lot of money to risk for the sake of letting Spot walk around unleashed.

Also, that cartoony dog is apparently owned by the invisible man.

Run 458: Snakes, side trails and people everywhere

Run 458
Average pace: 5:33/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Distance: 10:09 km
Time: 56:05
Weather: Cloudy
Temp: 16ºC
Wind: light
BPM: 156
Stride: n/a
Weight: 156.7 pounds
Total distance to date: 3665 km
Devices/apps: Apple Watch and iPhone 6

I was still a bit concerned about the stiffness in my right leg so my plan today was to run steady but not push so I expected my pace to be lower–and it was, but only by a few seconds, coming in at 5:33/km. More importantly, the leg behaved and there were long stretches where my breathing was relaxed and I just felt good, that feeling where you feel like you could keep running forever or until your shoes completely fall apart.

There was some sun heading to the lake but it vanished behind the clouds for the run. The promise of sun and a slightly later start meant the trails were packed, with both joggers and walkers a-plenty. Reluctantly, and for the first time since I tripped, I opted to take all three side trails, to help avoid the crowds.

The good news is it worked. The side trails were completely clear and I remained upright the entire time. Here’s the tree root hazard report:

Spruce Loop: one root on the left side of the trail (not an issue as I was running on the right)
Conifer Loop: massive root that crosses the entire width of the trail and sits in the open. It’s impossible to miss seeing it. There is one other prominent root, on the left side. This is the Evil Tree Root, the one I tripped on. It was in the sun today and looked deceivingly harmless.
Piper Mill Trail: a few small roots located in the middle of the trail

While I settled into a comfy pace for most of the run, the starting km was an unusually brisk 5:03/km, the closest I’ve come this year to breaking the five minute mark. This is not a mark I expect to break, so seeing the time was a bit of a surprise.

I spied a garter snake slithering rapidly into the brush ahead of me. It was much faster than the python I saw a few weeks ago. It probably sits lower on the food chain than a python, though. For reference, this is what it looked like:

Western garter snake

I am happy to report no dogs off-leash and every runner and pedestrian was polite and alert. Overall, a surprisingly pleasant run.