What's in this newsletter: July, 2003

MY NONSENSE
GOOD NEWS
CLEAN FUNNIES
SCIENCE BLURBS (For all of us Layman Science Nerds, with "inquiring minds that want to know" and who aren't afraid to ask.)
BOOK NEWS
FREE STUFF

MY NONSENSE
It's been a while since I sent out a newsletter, so I hope you didn't forget me. As I said when you first subscribed, this is one newsletter that won't clutter your mailbox with frequent mailings. See? I'm true to my word. Even though I did expect them to be a bit more often than they are, it works for me. How about you?

So many things have happened in my life, in the last couple of months, I'll just have to skim the highlights. Speaking of highlights, I tried that new hair color..oops..that's another story all together. Remind to tell you about my green hair someday.

Anyway, here's the latest:

First, my oldest grandson has returned from the war in the Middle East!! He is healthy and we are all ecstatic that he is home safe. We ask that you keep those brave men and women still over there facing danger every day in your hearts and prayers.

I'm a grandmother again--yes--a beautiful little girl named Madison!

BBC Radio interviewed ME! Read on for details.

My work is now featured in College Classes! Read on for details.

It's great talking to you again. Now on with the newsletter....
Jo
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GOOD NEWS!

I just did an interview with BBC Radio about a poem I wrote for my grandson, "I SAW AN EAGLE." The show is about people's experiences with wild birds and will air sometime in September. It will be titled: "Eagles, Owls and Nightingales." I'll keep you informed about when it will air. You can read the poem at http://www.sjoanpopek.com/eaglepoem.html

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My work is now featured in College Classes!
Technologies Branch (LTB) a nonprofit branch under the authority of Alberta Learning, part of the Government of Alberta will be incorporating one of my articles, "Flashing for Fun and Profit" in their curriculum. Now ain't that a hoot?
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My short story "Billy's Brew" is now available in "Stories of Myth, Legend and Future: SBD SF&F 2002 Anthology." Find out more at http://www.motordoc.net/sf&f/Advertising/reserve_stories_of_myth.htm
This is a great book! I'm proud to be a part of it.

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I am excited and pleased to announce that my EPPIE 2000 Award winning collection of short stories, "The Administrator" is now available in Trade Paperback from The Fiction Works. http://www.fictionworks.com/Ptheadministrator.htm It's on sale right
now so take a look!

"The Administrator" is also still available as an ebook, and will be in audio soon! So anyway you like your science fiction, horror and fantasy stories, you can have it your way!
Ebook URL: http://www.fictionworks.com/etheadministrator.htm

And, for a limited time, you'll get a free audio book (any of The Fiction Works titles) in cassette format, with every CD version audio book you buy, or with any paperback purchase. Ya just can't beat the deal.
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You can now get SOUND THE RAM'S HORN in paperback!! Go here to see: http://www.hardshell.com/ Of course it's still avaliable in ebook too. Both at Hardshell and Fictionwise.com. Check it out.
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Also:
The JoPop Gazette http://jopop.us/jopop.html is open for reviews of books, magazines, and I wouldn't be adverse to adding a short story category to that.

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CLEAN FUNNIES
From Jokes of the day: http://channels.netscape.com/ns/atplay/jokes.jsp?joke=1

Burning Questions:

Why do we call them English muffins when they were not invented in England?

Why do we call them French Fries when they were not invented in France?

Why do they call it root beer when there are no roots nor beer in it?

If someone invented instant water, what would they mix it with?

If you fill a cup with dry ice and melt it, what do you then have in the cup? Melted dry?

If you made wine out of raisins would you have to wait for it to age?

What would happen if you put instant coffee in a microwave? Would you go back in time?

When cheese gets it's picture taken, what does it say?

When dry ice melts can you drink it?

How does a thermos know whether a drink should be hot or cold?

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SCIENCE BLURBS (These are for real, folks.)
These are from http://www.firstscience.com/ Like these Facts? Then Sign Up for FirstScience's Free Newsletter for Three Facts each week sent direct to your email address: http://www.firstscience.com/SITE/factfile/factfile.asp

The military's leading sleep expert, Colonel Gregory Belenky's high-tech brain images show that sleep debt decreases the entire brain's ability to function - most significantly impairing the areas of the brain responsible for attention, complex planning, complex mental operations, and judgement.

The Doppler effect causes objects moving away to have their light spectrum red-shifted while objects approaching have their light blue-shifted. This really means that the wavelengths of light they radiate (or reflect) are moved downward or upward on the frequency spectrum. These measurements were the first clue that the universe is expanding.

These is from Science News Online http://www.sciencenews.org/ You'll find a lot more at the site.

Stout Potatoes:
Armed with a new gene, spuds fend off blight Splicing a gene from a blight-resistant wild potato into varieties used for consumption could lead to blight immunity for all spuds. http://www.sciencenews.org/index.asp?

Learning from the Present:
New field studies of unfossilized bones, as well as databases full of information about current fossil excavations and previous fossil finds, are providing insights into how complete—or incomplete—Earth's fossil record may be. http://www.sciencenews.org/index.asp?

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BOOK NEWS
Here is where I do my shameless self promoting, so bear with me on this, okay? If you haven't already done so, take a look at some of my books.

JUMP START YOUR WRITING CAREER WITH ELECTRONIC PUBLISHERS, an EPPIE 2002 Finalist, from Atlantic Bridge Publishing http://www.atlanticbridge.net/publishing/jumpstart.htm

THE ADMINISTRATOR, an EPPIE Award Winner & a Frankfurt Awards Nominee, from The Fiction Works http://www.fictionworks.com/etheadministrator.htm

SOUND THE RAM'S HORN, a Frankfurt Awards Nominee from Hard Shell Word Factory http://www.hardshell.com/ (Now available in ebook and print)

FAIRY TALES WITH A FREUDIAN FLAIR, http://www.atlanticbridge.net/publishing/fairytales.htm
Many fairy tale creatures are misunderstood and stereotyped as bad guys. Hey, they're not all bad. Take Ogres for instance, they have problems just like anybody else. Ogres need love too, you know. These mature fairy tales tell "the rest of the story." It's a rollicking romp through the demented mind of S. Joan Popek.


See them all and more at http://www.sjoanpopek.com/

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FREE STUFF:
I don't endorse any of the sites I list in this section. I merely put them here as a service so you can look for yourself. So don't blame me if you aren't happy with one of them. It ain't my fault!!

http://www.thefreesite.com/ offers links to free stuff all over the WEB.

http://netscape.zdnet.com/ Free software of all kinds.

Free SPAM filter program. MailWasher really works to cut down on your spam. I use it. Get it free here. http://www.mailwasher.net/

FREE PUZZLES, BOOKS AND BRAIN TEASERS. Go here. http://www.sjoanpopek.com

There's more, but If I write much more, you'll quit reading (if you haven't already, and in that case, you're not reading this anyway) so I'll STOP.
Jo

PS:
Remember to take life easy. You only go around once. Go slow so you don't miss anything.
Feel free to forward this newsletter to your friends, family or anyone else you want to annoy. But
if you do, all I ask is that you forward it in its entirety with full credit to me. After all, I'm gonna be famous someday, and you can frame it and say you knew me when. And my name is not Anonymous!