Linguistics & Science Fiction Network Online Bulletin

**NOTE: This bulletin is mailed only to members of the L&SF Network, and only by request. If you receive a copy by mistake, please let me know and I'll take you off the list immediately, with my apologies.

Greetings; I wish you the happiest of holidays and the gentlest of New Years! The bulletin will be short this time -- mostly early warning alerts -- because every single one of us is horrendously busy.

1. I want to alert you to the November 30, 1998 issue of Forbes ASAP; it's a marvel. It's 290 pages on the single subject of TIME, divided into technological time, personal time, natural time, business time, and social time. There are 57 essays -- almost all brief, almost all excellent -- by an astonishing variety of writers, including Arthur C. Clarke, Greg Benford, and William Gibson. Most are men, but some of the best are by women. Esther Dyson writes on the hypothesis that goods -- products, stuff -- are "the embodiment of time on a production line."

Peggy Noonan's essay is apocalyptic, and she begs us to do things so good that they "stay God's hand." Don't miss this; it's really spectacular.

2. Guests of Honor for WisCon 23 (science fiction convention in Madison, Wisconsin, over Memorial Day weekend in 1999) are Mary Doria Russell [author of The Sparrow, and of Children of God] and Terri Windling [author of The Wood Wife]. George and I will be there; I wouldn't miss it for anything. Membership will be cut off at 850 people and it won't take long for that to happen: *If you want to go, please do register right away, or there'll be no space left.* WisCon has a Web site at <www.sf3.org/wiscon>; email is <wiscon.conom@lists.best.com>.

3. Many thanks to all of you who have visited my grandmothering Web site at Abbeville Press; many thanks for all the comments and helpful suggestions. I turned in the copy for the December issue of the Newsletter (and its various bells and whistles) before Thanksgiving, and it all made it through the various editorial gauntlets; with any luck at all there'll be new stuff there when you visit again. The address is <http://www.abbeville.com/grandmother>.

I'm still not registered with the search engines [not my fault, no] and an Internet search with the word "grandmother" or any variant thereof still pulls in primarily pornography, but I'm trying to turn this around. Your help is more welcome than I can say.

4. The next L&SF will be the Language In Healthcare issue; material you'd like included should be sent as quickly as possible, since I'll be putting it together immediately after Christmas.

5. I'm going to shut this down with two Christmas filksongs. What format they'll have at your end of this transaction I can't say, since not all of you are using the same software, but I think you can sort it all out.

If Christmas isn't the winter holiday that you celebrate, feel free to make whatever alterations are needed.

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"O Holy One" -- to the Doxology (Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow)

O Holy One, this Christmastide, forgive us for our foolish pride; forgive us all our selfish greed and our cold hearts toward those in need.

In orbit high above the Earth, we celebrate the Blessed Birth -- sweet Earth held in our heart and mind, first cradle of all humankind.

Soon may we leave this our first home, cross seas of space toward worlds unknown; oh, let no seeds of human wars despoil our cargo for the stars.

(Repeat first verse)

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"The Captain's Carol" -- to "Streets of Laredo"

As I was out walking this bright Christmas morning, as I walked toward the bridge on this bright Christmas Day, I saw Earth below us in garlands of starlight, saw Terra below us and so far away.

CHORUS:

O blessed be Terra, may the Holy One guide her!

Merry Christmas to Terra and a Happy New Year!

There's peace on the Earth now and peace in the starlanes...

Merry Christmas to Terra from all of us here!

On Terra this morning they're all singing carols, and high overhead we'll be singing along!

Oh, joy to the world that lies shining below us, and joy to the spacecrew that joins in the song! (Chorus)

Oh, it's Christmas on Earth now, and Christmas in orbit; through the universe round, it's the season of light!

No ornament brighter on the tree of the heavens than the radiant Earth wrapped in azure and white. (Chorus)

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Rejoice, please! Being joyful isn't voluntary, but rejoicing is.

Suzette

All text formatting errors are the responsibility of Steve Marsh and not the fault of Dr. Suzette Haden Elgin.  All copyrights remain in Dr. Suzette Haden Elgin.  [return to Lingua] BTW, if you want to register an url with search engines (such as http://www.abbeville.com/grandmother) you can visit a page such as http://adrr.com/adr0/submit.htm and use the links.  The best page of that type is http://www.siteowner.com/ (which has a great link to a good free submission service). Remember, to be sure your link has not been lost by a search engine, you should resubmit the links at least once a month.