The last time I was seriously online was Friday, which was when Hurricane Earl had us in New England squarely in his sights and was barreling up the coast toward us. Most of the projections were correct, though, and the storm missed us … by that much.

   We scurried around outside the house though, picking up and storing in the garage the table and chairs on the deck and anything else strong winds might pick up and dash down the street, or through a window, just in case. Sometime preparations in advance work, and it did this time. All we got was 15 minutes of rain and no wind to speak of.

   Just a little excitement to start the beginning of September and the end of summer. Wish I could say that postings on this blog are going to become a little less erratic, but I don’t think I can. Bear with me. I didn’t mean to go quiet all weekend, but that’s the way it turned out. It wasn’t planned; it just happened.

   I also am hoping to get caught up on email sometime soon. If you haven’t heard from me in a while, and you were expecting to, I apologize. Your only consolation might be that you’re not alone. I’ll try to do better.

   Looking back, I didn’t do a lot of reading in August, and that frustrates me, but everything I’ve read has been reported on here. Not reviewed have been six or so movies, but it’s been too long since I’ve seen them for me to report on them with any feeling that I could do them justice. You’ll have to wait until I watch them again, which I may.

   What follows are some announcements of sorts, some of this and more of that, as the heading says. Some might deserve posts of their own, but in order to cover them all quickly, I’ll combine them into this one long post.

    ● First of all, I’d like to to remind you that Dan Stumpf’s book ’Nada, as by Daniel Boyd, which I previewed here last July has now been published. You can buy it from Amazon and other online sources, and if I may once again, I strongly recommend that you do.

   I’ve just posted a version of my review of the book on Amazon, but I see that both Bill Crider and George Kelley have beaten me to it. (All three of us have given it five stars.)

    ● Ken Johnson has asked me to mention that he’s revised and expanded his checklist of the digest-sized paperbacks that were published mostly in the 1940s. I’m happy to do so, and in fact what I will do is publish his note to me in full:

    “I want to let people know that The Digest Index, my online reference to digest-size paperbacks, which was originally posted two and a half years ago, has now been substantially revised and reposted. It is hosted by Bruce Black on his Bookscans website and can be accessed here: http://bookscans.com/Publishers/digestindex/digestindex.htm

    “Among the revisions are the addition of 11 new imprints, the addition of series information into both author indexes (to books and contents), and the addition of artist identifications into the publisher index. Because I still lack a lot of cover artist data, I did not attempt a full artist index but instead supplied a summary of which imprints each artist was mentioned under and plugged in scanned samples of their signatures. This is in addition to tightening up the original data with more identification of abridgments and retitles, as well as additional personal data for a number of authors.

    “I’ve put a lot of effort into this Index, but it still has a lot of holes in it. Additions and corrections are always welcome. Actually, feedback of any kind is welcome; I get the sense sometimes that hardly anyone has seen it.”

   To which I reply, while I don’t go there every day, I do find the need to refer to it at least once a week. A large percentage of these books were either mysteries and westerns, making the information for me very useful. It’s a remarkable piece of work. Check it out!

    ● Finally, a comment left by the anonymous PB210 following my review of a Hugh North novel by Van Wyck Mason needs some additional exposure, I thought:

    “I tried to compare the Hugh North novels to other long running secret agent novel series by one author:

    “So far based on what I have written above, De Villiers has the overall record, while Van Wyck Mason has the record in the English language. Others more knowledgeable may have thought of a longer series by one author.

    “Anyone have any information about Herbert New?”

   I’ve not had a chance to check any of PB210’s data, nor do I know the Herbert New to whom he refers in his last question, but comments and suggestions of other authors are most certainly welcome.

Since late last week we’ve been packing up Jon’s apartment for his forthcoming move to the DC area (Bethesda, MD, to be exact). He’s the recent law school graduate, as you may recall.

It’s taken up way too much time already, it’s been hot, and I’m going to stop fooling myself that I can come home and start blogging until it’s done. The movers are coming Wednesday and he leaves on Thursday. By Friday things may be back to normal.

But don’t expect to see anything new here until then, except maybe comments from me on recent posts. Sorry about that, but I’ll be back when I can!

— Steve

   Paul dropped me off at home yesterday afternoon around four o’clock. Not only did we have a great time, but so (I’m sure) did everybody else who went to this year’s PulpFest. Attendance was up a little, sales were down a little — if the dealers could be believed — but the room was always busy with purchases and other additions to buyers’ collections, or so it seemed to me.

   Once back home I realized that I did not make it around the dealers room as often as I often do, and there were, alas, a few friends I did not spend as much time with as usual. The time went very quickly, and all too soon the convention was over.

   I spent more money on pulps than usual, and this happened in fact before the dealers room was even open. There were as many sellers offering paperbacks this year as there were selling pulp magazines, or so was my impression. I did not see many rare pulps for sale, but I suspect that they were grabbed up before I had a chance to see them.

   I’m hoping that Walker Martin will write up his comments on PulpFest soon, as he’s been doing for other pulp and paperback shows like this one, and by the time he does I expect to have a few photos to post here as well.

   Traveling by air is the only way to go, but it’s no longer easy. We were delayed an hour going when our second plane had to be worked on before taking off. And coming back I lost a pair of reading glasses after going through security. The case fell out of my pocket when I sat down to put my shoes back on. I called Lost and Found at the Columbus airport this morning and luckily they had it. It’s on its way to me by UPS now, so all is well.

   This will be my only post today. It won’t be until tomorrow that I’ll start the blog up again, for real.

   This will be my last post for a few days. Right around 8:30 tomorrow morning, Paul Herman will be picking me up and we’ll be on our way to Columbus and the second annual PulpFest.

   And I won’t be back until Sunday, once again with my satchels full of books and magazines and my checkbook empty. Heck, if I plan it very, very carefully, my checkbook will be empty several minutes after the doors to the dealers’ room open on Friday. It won’t be hard to do, especially with all the wares that’ll be out for display, fully designed to tickle everyone’s fancy. Well, mine, at least.

   Some of you I will see there, I am sure. If not, so long until next week Monday. For the rest of this evening, it’s time to pack.

My brother from Canada is visiting this weekend. He arrived around five this afternoon. I think I’ll use the occasion to take a short vacation from the blog. I’ll be back around this same time on Sunday. See you then!

   Call this post “Cataloging My Collection.”

   I have no idea if anyone is interested or not, but here goes anyway. Part of what I do in my spare time is go through boxes of paperbacks I have in dead storage, catalog the books I find inside, and rebox them and put them away, in places where theoretically I can find them again easily. I’m still working on the latter part of that.

   I’ve been doing this since the Fall of 1968. I know this exactly since that was the first semester I was not in school, either as a student or as a teacher. It was also the year the Detroit Tigers were in the World Series (I’m talking baseball here) and I remember typing up books individually on 3×5 index cards sitting with an electric typewriter before the television set.

   Once I started my first full-time teaching job here in Connecticut, I gave that up, but I made sure I brought all the books — and the 3×5 index cards — with me when we moved. I don’t know what year it was that we got our Apple IIe (with around 64K of memory), but when we did, I transferred all of the info on the cards into computer files, and started adding the books I’d accumulated in the meantime.

   These files now exist only as a notebook filled to its two-inch capacity with printouts from a dot matrix printer. I’m sure it would be impossible to read the floppy disks now, if I still had them, but I have the data. (I also gradually discarded the 3×5 index cards, in case you were wondering.)

   When we started using PC’s, I didn’t transfer any of the old data, but I continued on, but essentially starting over, adding more and more books to a new computer file of data. I’ve always used word-processing programs, rather than database ones, and luckily I began with WordPerfect, which I still use, and so far I’ve had no problem with losing data to formats no longer readable.

   In any case, here’s a small segment of the PC-based data. If you see any missing books or authors, either I don’t have them — or I do, and the data’s in my notebook with the dot matrix printouts. (A third possibility, of course — and for new books, an extremely high one — is that I have it and haven’t Gotten To It yet.)

   The box numbers are included, along with an indication of the condition. (I didn’t do this originally.) There are also some notes about the authors themselves and cover artists, too, but I haven’t done this consistently over the years.

GENEVIEVE HOLDEN –
   Something’s Happened to Kate (Ace G-558; c.1958) M305 vg-g
LARRY HOLDEN –
   Dead Wrong (Pyramid G306; c.1957; Pyr edn, 1957) M152 vg+
   Hide-Out (Eton 132; c.1953) M239 fair-poor
WILLIAM HOLDER –
   The Case of the Dead Divorcee (Signet 1539; c.1958; 1st pr., June 1958) M22 fine
ELISABETH SANXAY HOLDING –
   The Blank Wall (Pocket 662; c.1947; 1st PB Pr., Jan 1950) M28 good
   The Blank Wall (Ace Double G-512; c.1947) M158 g-vg
   The Girl Who Had to Die (Ace Double G-512; c.1940) M158 g-vg
   Kill Joy (Ace Double G-534; c.1942) M37 vg-g
   Net of Cobwebs (Ace Double G-530; c.1945) M94 vg+
   Speak of the Devil (Ace Double G-534; c.1941) M37 vg-g
   The Unfinished Crime (Ace Double G-530; c.1935,1963) M94 vg+
   Who’s Afraid (Bonded Mystery #14) M179 fair
   Who’s Afraid (Ace Double G-524; c.1940) M89 vg-g
   Widow’s Mite (Ace Double G-524; c.1952-53) M89 vg-g
ISABELLE HOLLAND –
   Counterpoint (Fawcett Crest 24423; c.1980; 1st FC pr., July 1981) M294 n.fine
   The deMaury Papers (Fawcett Crest 23606; c.1977; 1st FC pr.) M323 good
   Flight of the Archangel (Fawcett Crest 20977; c.1985; 1st Ball edn, Dec 1986) M304 n.fine
   A Lover Scorned (Fawcett Crest 21369; c.1986; 1st Ball edn, Nov 1987) M303 fine
REBECCA HOLLAND –
   Danger on Cue (Raven House #18 [60018]; c.1980; 1st pr., June 1980; pub Dec 1980) M280 n.fine
       Note: This is one of two books by this author in CFIV under this pen name.
JIM HOLLIS –
   The Case of the Bludgeoned Teacher (Avon 725; c.c.1955; orig pub as Teach You a Lesson) M19 g-vg
   Teach You a Lesson (see The Case of the Bludgeoned Teacher)
J. HUNTER HOLLY –
   The Assassination Affair (Ace G-636; c.1967; TV tie-in: The Man from UNCLE #10) M189
      Note: Of the two “UNCLE” books written by the author, the other seems to been published only as a British hardcover. She is perhaps known better for her work as an SF-Fantasy writer. (Both of her other two entries in CFIV are SFnal in nature.)
HUGH HOLMAN –
   Another Man’s Poison (Signet 718; c.1947; 1st Signet pr., Apr 1949) M98 vg-fine
   Slay the Murderer (Signet 684; c.1948; 1st Signet pr., Sept 1948) M322 g-vg
TIMOTHY HOLME [UK] –
   The Devil and the Dolce Vita (Futura 3712; c.1982; Futura edn pub 1988) MB286 fair-good
   A Funeral of Gondolas (Futura 3078; c.1981; Futura edn pub 1986) MB286 good
H. H. HOLMES –
   Nine Times Nine (Penguin 553; c.1940; 1st Peng edn, Jan 1945) M47 fair
H. H. HOLMES –
    See also ANTHONY BOUCHER.
HAZEL HOLT –
   Mrs. Malory and a Death in the Family (Signet 21989; c.2006; 1st pr., Nov 2006) M220
   Mrs. Malory and the Only Good Lawyer (Signet 19264; c.1997; 1st Signet pr, Dec 1998) M288
HENRY HOLT [UK] –
   Calling All Cars (Collins Crime Club #12; 7th CC pr., Sept 1936) MB277 poor
ROBERT LAWRENCE HOLT –
   Good Friday (Signet 15703; c.1987; 1st Signet pr., Sept 1988) M143 vg-fine
      Note: The author has only one other entry in CFIV.
SAMUEL HOLT –
   I Know a Trick Worth Two of That (Tor 50463; c.1986; 1st Tor ppbk pr., Mar 1988) M290 vg+
   What I Tell You Three Times Is False (Tor 50465; c.1987; 1st Tor ppbk pr., June 1988) M139 fine
      Note: “Samuel Holt” is a pseudonym of Donald E. Westlake. In all he wrote four books listed in CFIV under this name.
VICTORIA HOLT –
   The Black Opal (Fawcett Crest 22271; c.1993; 1st Ball edn, Jan 1994) RS11 vg
   Bride of Pendorric (Crest t885; c.1963) RS3 vg-g
   The Curse of the Kings (Fawcett Crest Q2215; c.1973; FC edn, Aug 1974) RS10 vg-g
   The King of the Castle (Fawcett Crest T1162; c.1967; 1st FC pr., Aug 1968) RS14 vg+
   Kirkland Revels (Crest M1385; c.1962; 7th FC pr., Mar 1970) RS9 vg-fine
   The Legend of the Seventh Virgin (Fawcett Crest 2-3281; c.1964-65) RS9 vg+
   Lord of the Far Island (Fawcett Crest 2-2874; c.1975; 1st FC pr.) RS10 vg-fine
   The Mask of the Enchantress (Fawcett Crest 2-4418; c.1980; 1st FC pr., Sept 1981) RS2 vg
   Menfreya in the Morning (Crest t1020; c.1966; 1st FC pr., May 1967) RS2 vg-g
   Mistress of Mellyn (Crest t1132; c.1960) RS15 vg+
   The Shadow of the Lynx (Fawcett Crest P1720; c.1971; FC edn, July 1972) RS4 vg+
HUGH HOLTON –
   The Devil’s Shadow (Forge 57042; c.2001; 1st Forge ppbk edn, June 2002) M217
   Windy City (Forge 56714; c.1995; 1st Tor ppbk edn, Apr 1996) M111 vg+

   I’ve been a baseball fan since 1952. Not too coincidentally I’ve also been a Detroit Tigers fan since 1952 — I grew up in a small town in Michigan. The team was awful, but I was ten years old and that didn’t matter to me. Whenever they won, I remember running up to my dad when he came home from work — they played baseball in the daytime then — and telling him, “The Tigers won! The Tigers won!”

   I wasn’t very athletic when I was ten. Later on I could play fairly well. But the game of baseball — any sport — has a way of humbling you whenever you think you’re good or even really good. What I discovered, though, back in 1952 were record books. All kinds of numbers for every player on every team and I think I memorized every one of them for the previous year and from then on until Major League Baseball expanded and there were too many teams that were simply too far away and if Detroit didn’t play them, then the numbers started not to mean so much.

   There was a fellow on that 1952 team, a team that was in last place all season long, named Virgil Trucks, and even though he had a win-loss record of something like 5 and 22 that season, he pitched two no-hitters. I remember listening to both of them on the radio (no TV back then) but maybe that’s memory speaking, and I only think I listened to them. Maybe one, maybe neither, but I remember listening, and to me that’s all that matters.

   Earlier tonight, or really late yesterday, while I was lazing around trying to figure out is rewarded play legit on my phone, I was watching as a pitcher for Detroit named Armando Galarraga was almost a hero, and I think he is, since he pitched a perfect game (not a single opposing batter reaching base for any reason) in which he got 28 outs, one over the legal limit of 27.

   He knows he pitched a perfect game, the whole world does — the parts of the world where baseball has any meaning to the people that live there. But in the record books he threw a one-hitter. The very last man he faced in what would have been perfection, 27 batters up, 27 batters down, was called safe by the umpire, a fellow whose life-long career has been umpiring, a fellow nobody ever heard of until now, a fellow named Jim Joyce.

   And Jim Joyce missed it. He called the batter safe at first base, but he was out. All of the replays showed it, and Armando Galarraga had to face one more batter. He could have lost control, lost his temper, but he didn’t. He stayed cool, got the next batter out and won the game. In the long run, in baseball terms, that’s the goal. To win the game.

   When he saw the replay after the game, Jim Joyce was distraught. He knew he blew it. He apologized profusely, but the game was over. It was too late. It was in the record books.

   When that last batter came up, Jim Joyce knew the situation. He’s a baseball fan himself, he has to be. He called the play at first base the way he saw it. He could have taken the easy way out and called the batter out. No one would have blamed him, even if the replay had shown the batter safe. He didn’t shade the truth. He was honest, and he called it the way he saw it. He’s a man of integrity. An honest man.

   An honest man who apologized when he discovered he was wrong. A man who probably won’t sleep well again for a long time, but what he did was the job he was paid to do.

   When he shows up for work tomorrow, and I hope he can, as he’s in for an ordeal of media coverage that you won’t believe, but whenever he does, the fans in the stadium ought to give him a standing ovation. I know they won’t but if I were there, I’d give him a standing ovation of one person. Me.

   I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’ve jammed a sizable number of posts into the span of the last two or three days. Ordinarily I might have been spread them out over a longer period of time, but something’s up. Soon after noon tomorrow, I’ll be on my way to Chicago and this year’s annual Windy City Pulp & Paper Convention.

   And I won’t be back until Sunday, with my satchels full of books and magazines and my checkbook empty. Heck, if I plan it right, my checkbook will be empty several minutes after the doors to the dealers’ room open on Friday. It won’t be hard to do, especially with all the wares that’ll be out for display, fully designed to tickle everyone’s fancy. Well, mine, at least.

   Some of you I will see there, I am sure. If not, so long until next week Monday. For the rest of this evening, it’s time to pack.

    Judy and I, 45 years ago. We were married in Jamaica. New York City, that is. Queens.

    “A merry Christmas, Bob,” said Scrooge, with an earnestness that could not be mistaken, as he clapped him on the back. “A merrier Christmas, Bob, my good fellow, than I have given you for many a year. I’ll raise your salary, and endeavour to assist your struggling family, and we will discuss your affairs this very afternoon, over a Christmas bowl of smoking bishop, Bob. Make up the fires, and buy another coal-scuttle before you dot another i, Bob Cratchit.”

    Scrooge was better than his word. He did it all, and infinitely more; and to Tiny Tim, who did not die, he was a second father. He became as good a friend, as good a master, and as good a man, as the good old city knew, or any other good old city, town, or borough, in the good old world. Some people laughed to see the alteration in him, but he let them laugh, and little heeded them; for he was wise enough to know that nothing ever happened on this globe, for good, at which some people did not have their fill of laughter in the outset; and knowing that such as these would be blind anyway, he thought it quite as well that they should wrinkle up their eyes in grins, as have the malady in less attractive forms. His own heart laughed: and that was quite enough for him.

    He had no further interviews with Spirits, but lived upon the Total Abstinence Principle, ever afterwards; and it was always said of him, that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge. May that be truly said of us, and all of us! And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God bless Us, Every One!