The Manor of Lost Time

The Manor of Lost Time

Richard Parks

« Stop lying to me, Sahel! ». I told you I know illusion, and this is not an illusion! I’m not merely seeing this, I’m there! I’m myself and yet I am with them. I know what that girl sewing the dress is thinking, I know what she’s feeling. I’m watching it all, yet the thread is in my hand and I feel the sting from the needle’s point! If you don’t tell me what this means right now, our bargain is ended. And I do know the way out!”

She wasn’t bluffing. I’d thought the lie might make things easier, but this was Driana I was dealing with, and let me confess frankly that I was only just then beginning to understand what that meant. I abandoned the lie.

I don’t know the true name of this place, Driana, if it has one. I call it “The Manor of Lost Time.” Humans and demon-kin alike generate a nearly infinite cache of lost possibility for every path not taken. This is the place where all the “might have beens” reside. That is what you’re experiencing now. The potential was there, but it was thwarted, for better or worse. What you’re seeing and feeling now, and knowing now, did not happen. You’re right – it’s not an illusion, but it’s also not real, and never can be real.

“I lost this the day my parents died,” she said simply.

I nodded, forgetting for the moment that she could not see me. Yes, I said.

The Manor of Lost Time. Photo by Elena

“What will I see next?”

I truly do not know, Driana. Perhaps something horrible, or something painful and sad, but also perhaps something wonderful, joyous. Whatever it may be, it is something you’ve lost forever. That’s what is waiting behind every door. Fortunaltely, only a limited numbeer of doors block your path to me, but I do not know exactly how many, or why the ones that appear are the ones that do appear. I’m trapped in a room of my own lost time, and I cannot see my door, or you. You’ll have to cross your own lost time to reach me, and find the door I cannot see.

I’m not sure what I expected then. I halfway expected her to flee from both myself and Ledanthos binding spell or no. But after a very long silence, I heard her voice again.

« Makan. I was going to marry Makan. I rather suspected that.” Maybe it was my imagination, but I think there was a touch of relief echoed in her words.

He wasn’t your choice?

“He was… Makan. A year older than I was. He was tall and strong and pig-headed, and he cheated at ring-toss. I liked him well enough when I didn’t actually hate him. Yet when I’m sitting with my mother sewing my wedding dress, I love him more than anything. I’ve never been in love or lost a love, but I do know what both feel like, to love and lose in the exact same moment. Thanks to you, Sahel!.

I’m sorry.

« No you’re not, and you may go to blazes. But not until after you honor our bargain. I see the next door. I’ll open it now, » she said, and that’s what she did.

Science Fiction and Fantasy 2015, edited by Rich Horton, Prime Books, 2015.

How to Get Back to the Forest

How to Get Back to the Forest

Sofia Samatar

I’ve looked for you on the buses and in the streets. Wondering if I’d suddenly see you. God, I’d jump off the bus so quick, I wouldn’t even wait for it to stop moving. I wouldn’t care if I fell in the gutter. I remember your tense face, your nervous look, when you found out that we were going to have a check-up.

“I can’t have a check-up,” you said.

“Why not?” I asked.

“Because,” you said, “because they’ll see my bug is gone.”

And I just – I don’t know. I felt sort of embarrassed for you. I’d convinced myself the whole bug thing was a mistake, a hallucination. I looked down at my book, and when I looked up you were standing in the same place, with an alert look on your face, as if you were listening.

You looked at me and said: “I have to run.”

It was the stupidest thing I’d ever heard. The whole camp was monitored practically up to the moon. There was no way to get outside.

But you tried. You left my room, and you went straight out your window and broke you anlke.

A week later, you were back. You were on crutches and you looked… wrecked. Destroyed. Somebody’d cut your hair, shaved it close to the scalp. Your eyes tood out, huge and shining.

How to Get Back to the Forest. Photo by Elena

“They put in a bug in me,” you whispered.

And I just knew. I knew what you were going to do.

Max came to see me a few days ago. I’ve felt sick ever since. Max is the same hunched and timid; you’d know her if you saw her. She sat in my living room and I gave her coffee and lemon cookies and she took one bite of a cookie and started crying.

Cee, we miss you, we really do.

Max told me she’s pregnant. I said congratulations. I knew she and Evan have been wanting one for a while. She covered her eyes with her hands – she still bits her nails, one of them was bleeding – and she just cried.

« Hey, Max,” I said, “it’s okay.”

I figured she was extra-emotional from hormones or whatever, or maybe she was thinking what a short time she’d have with her kid, now that kids start camp at eight years old.

“It’s okay,” I told her, even though I’d never have kids – I couldn’t stand it.

They say it’s easier on the kids, going to camp earlier. We – me and you and Max – we were the tail end of Generation Teen. Max’ kid will belong to Generation Eight. It’s supposed to be a happier generation, but I’m guessing it will be sort of like us. Like us, the kids of Generation Eight will be told they’re sad, that they can always be reminded of what they’ve lost, so that they can remember thay need what they have now.

I sat across the coffee table from Max, and she was crying and I wasn’t hugging her because I don’t really hug people anymore, not even Pete really, I’m sort of mean that way, it’s just how I turned out, and Max said “Do you remember that night in the bathroom with Cee?”

Do I remember?

Science Fiction and Fantasy 2015, edited by Rich Horton, Prime Books, 2015.

Virtual Worlds

Virtual Worlds

Virtual Worlds in the Age of Cyberspace

Who has never, I mean never, wanted to escape reality, for a moment, a minute, a second perhaps? Perhaps only in thought. Not for real, which brings us back to the reality concept. Now, don’t get me wrong, I do not mean anything which has to do with recreational drugs, mental health wards or anythings of the sort, I am referring to fantasy art and science fiction. The literary, the artistic, the healthier and safer escape routes…

Virtual reality has long fascinated the collective psyche. Often portrayed by the media (science fiction – countless imagined worlds and alternate, parallel realities, and even mystery – SVU Law & Order -and thriller and, probably the most intuitive, cartoons and animation – Bart Simpson shocks everyone when he finishes a novel video game in seconds, game developers have to make a game difficult in order for it to be interesting), it has now become an alternate, but indeed accessible reality with MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games), such as the World of Warcraft. Naturally, scientists have decided to look at the repercussions of such games on individuals, their development and interactions.

Virtual Worlds old painting style. Virtual world heroes and superheroes often possess superpowers. Image: Megan Jorgensen (Elena)

Violent games such as Grand Theft Auto had often been blamed as inciting violence players, for example by desensitizing the user to graphic depictions. Alternatively, other research has suggested that these pass-times may serve a cathartic function allowing the only possible safe expression of such feelings. Regardless, one is reminded that aggressive television shows do result in more aggression exhibited by children during playtime, as recorded by number of hostile acts. Along these lines, psychologist Albert Bandura’s research on modeling has shown that youth tends to imitate adults in behavior (e.g. the Bobo doll treatment study).

Superpowers. Illustration by Elena.

Astro-Investing

Astro-Investing

A New Reading on Astro-Investing

Wall Street’s best-known astrologer on how planets affect markets

Does astrology affect the stock market? Arch Crawford, called “Wall Street’s best-known astrologer” by Barron’s, is convinced it does. In his much read newsletter, Crawford Perspectives, Crawford uses astrology and a variety of financial indicators to forecast favorable times to trade stocks, bond and gold. Skeptics should not that the newsletter is often among the top market timers in the popular rating services. Here Crawford explains what astro-investing is all about.

What’s the connection between the planets and the stock-market?

Planets affect the market through electromagnetic fields. The planets stir the sun’s surface and the resultant particle flows affect the Earth’s magnetic field and weather. Nearly thirty years of astronomical research have proven to me beyond any doubt that planetary movements exert an important influence on people, just as they do on the ocean tides, and that the changes they cause in behavior are reflected in the stock and commodities markets.

In the mid-1970s, I made what I believe is a quantum leap in market prediction by correlating numerous planetary cycles with the movements of the Dow from 1897 through 1970. I found that the reliability factor in catching the course of the stock market runs very high.

Astrology, can it save our world? Photo by Elena

How did you get interested in astrology?

In the early 1960s, I was struck by a front-page article in the Wall Street Journal about David Williams, who had developed a way to predict the direction of the stock market by using the relative position of the planets. That stirred my interest.

I was also influenced by John Nelson, who was a radio propagation specialist for the RCA Corporation during the ‘40s and ‘50s. He showed that the alignment of the planets in relation to the sun helped him time sunspots and solar flares, helping his company reroute radio transmission efficiently. Later, when Nelson retired, he would call me and tell me that a flare was in progress, for example, and that radio communications across the Atlantic were totally blocked. I would then call a broker and find that, typically, the stock market was dropping sharply and that gold was rising during the geomagnetically disturbed period.

Why did you begin to introduce astrology into your forecast?

When I was a technical market analyst at Merrill Lynch, I started to sense that there was something lacking in traditional econometric models. I observed, for example, that there is often little relation between news reports about a stock and the price of that stock. Around that time, I became interested in astronomy and began to use sunspot activity and astrology to chart the stock and commodities market. By using astrology, along with a lot of technical analysis, I have an edge over people who simply rely on numbers.

What factors other than astrology do you consider in making your forecasts?

Astrological events may signify a turning point, but they don’t always indicate in which direction.

As a former technical analyst at Merrill Lynch, I also maintain 28 technical market indicators, including the volatility of the most active Big Board stocks, the number of new highs and lows, and advances versus declines.

What happens if the astronomical readings and the technical findings don’t agree?

As technical data become more available. I would move more heavily on that side. But some types of planetary configurations, such as eclipses or multi-planet alignments, override such considerations.

What’s your advice for the long term?

Stay extremely negative on the long term. Even those bearish people who believe in a good correction cannot conceive of a long lasting bear market similar to 1992 – 1994 or the period from 1966 to 1982, where the Dow Jones industrial languished under the impenetrable 1000 level. We are afraid of the long-term market and atmospheres.

Example of astro-investing prediction: Overlaying the Dow Industrial averages are the movements of Jupiter and Pluto, as the planets spin away from each other and then align again – a cycle that takes about 12 ½ years. Astro-investors say the strongest down period will come in late 2015, bottoming out in 2016…

Where to hear about stars and stocks (expert sources)

Untold numbers of Wall Streeters are quietly subscribing to an expanding universe of astro-investing newsletters. Among the best known:

Astro Geometrics Journal: Uses geometric techniques to cruise market, astrology as timing tool.

Astro Investor: Uses planetary configurations and market wave patterns.

Astro Trend Newsletter: Personal consultations, specific buy-sell recommendations. Uses technical research, astrology.

Carolan Spiral Calendar Research: Links lunar timing and market peaks, crashes.

Cash in on Chaos: Studies effect of planetary movements and changes in electromagnetic fields on humans.

Crawford perspectives: Often rated among top 100 newsletters in the business. Uses astrology and technical research.

Future News Network: Weekly summary of trends in leading astro-economic newsletters.

Market Systems: Stock market timing using technical analysis, cycles, and scientific methods.

Whole Earth Forecaster: Studies solar activity and its effect on weather, markets, and other business indicators

Making of Presidency

Making of Presidency

How the office has changed in more than 250 years. How has the institution of the presidency evolved since George Washington took office in 1789?

How has the presidency changed over the years?

It was created by Washington, who was very conscious that he was the first president, and that everything he did would create a precedent.If there hadn’t been a strong figure in the beginning, the office would not have evolved the way it did. The president was known then as the Great White Father.

With the exception of Washington and Lincoln, most people didn’t know what the president looked like during the 19th century. With the exception of Lincoln, the president was not the center of news until Teddy Roosevelt’s time. The institution has been accentuated by television. There is hardly a television broadcast that isn’t done from the driveway of the White House. Teddy Roosevelt was the first to put the White House on his stationary.

The creation of the presidency was discussed at the Constitutional Convention, but the details were an afterthought not formally voted upon. The term of the office wasn’t even decided. At the beginning of the 20th century, the president became known as the head of party, head of government, and chief of state.

The president also has assumed an enormous legislative role. There was less legislation during the 19th century, largely because this was before the enlargement of the country. The Montesquieu model of the Founding Fathers was seen as compartmentalized, but it didn’t work that way. We do not really have the vaunted separation of powers.

New York, Broadway. Photo by Elena

Have there been times when the president was less important?

There was a lack of preeminence in presidents between Madison and Lincoln, and during the post-Civil War period, with the exception of times of real crises in the country. Now we’re in a similar situation, but we’re not at all geared to it. Today we have a press and electronic media that are completely geared to covering the presidency and maintaining expensive staff at the white house, but it’s almost irrelevant, because all the action is in Congress. Whoever wins the election, he or she finds great frustration. The job is really not all the important, not as it has been. It’s not a question of personality.

What distinguishes the presidents of our century?

In the 20th century, the president has been expected to have a program. The New Nationalism of Teddy Roosevelt, the New Freedom of Wilson. The New Frontier, The New Deal, the Fair Deal, Prior to the 20th century, the vision thing was not something presidents were expected to have.

What influences a president’s ability to succeed?

It doesn’t not have much to do with their characteristics. It has more to do with crises and whether the president can convince the country that there was a crisis in health care. Franklin Roosevelt, on the other hand, was more successful in persuading people of the need for social security. And Teddy Roosevelt was able to convince the country that there was a crisis in conservation, so he accomplished a lot.

It also takes something else that’s lacking today: money in the bank. Eisenhower was a successful president, a builder. But not since Eisenhower have we run the kind of surpluses we ran at that time.

What makes a good president?

A president has to be both extraordinary ad ordinary in all dimensions: in his political performance, in his personal performance, in his family performance, in his television appearances. It is difficult to do. On television, he comes across as too ordinary, when he is reclusive, he is seen as too distant.

Power of articulation, believeability and credibility, and an ability to show concern are very important. Basic honesty. Does character matter? I think it does. Washington, Grant and Jackson are examples of soldiers who have been successful. Indecisiveness certainly is a great weakness in the White House. That applies to everyone.

 Presidential Statistics

    Male of the species – 42 (100.0%)

    Protestant – 38 90.5%

    Married – 41 97.6%

    Studied law – 28 – 66.5%

    Owned dogs – 22. 52.4%

    Over Six Feet – 18. 42.9%

    From Virginia – 8. 10.0%

    Named James – 6. 14.3%

    Had a beard – 5. – 12.0%

    Went to Harvard – 5. 12.0%.

    Owned pet raccoons – 2. 5.0%.

Park Avenue, New York. Photo by Elena

Electoral College

Who Really Elects the President

Just in case you forgot how the Electoral College works

The authors of the American Constitution devised the Electoral College to act as a kind of buffer between the masses and the ultimate process of selecting a president. The voter would choose electors for their state on a predetermined election day and then those individuals, along with electors from other states, would then take it upon themselves to choose the president.

Today, the Electoral College is a body of 538 people. Each state receives a number of electoral votes equal to the number of senators and representatives in its congressional delegation, and Washington, D.C., which has no congressional representation, gets three votes. A candidate needs 270 electoral votes, slightly more than a majority, to be elected president. The candidate who wins a majority of a state’s popular vote wins all of its electoral votes. As a result, the electoral vote tends to exaggerate the popular support of the winner.

If no candidate receives a majority of the votes of the Electoral College, the election will be decided by the House of Representatives. This has only happened once, so far, when in 1824 Andrew Jackson won the popular vote in a four-way race but John Quincy Adams was elected president by the House. In 1876, Rutherford B. Hayes lost the popular vote but won the presidency bu a single electoral vote