.webp)
News & Events
Survived Coldmagedeon …
Well, January has been quite the month. There will be a lot of changes this year. So much to look forward to achieving. Happily, this year is starting off a bit less dramatically than last year. A few minor goals have been reached with many more coming into reach. Thus, I am looking forward to seeing what unfolds this year.
Geek Tank Radio (www.geektankradio.com) continues to amaze me with the growth of the number of fans around the world. Talk about blessed, we get to sit around a studio at Kiss 101.9 and act like we normally do and talk about the stuff we normally carry on about. We just so happen to have the mics on and y’all enjoy listen to our madness. Thanks for all the support and we have a lot more coming this year.
The Fix-It Up Show (podcast: The Fix-It Up Show) is another growing show now getting fans from all over. We broadcast live at 8:00 AM on WREC 600 AM and 92.1 FM in Memphis, TN but we are catching on all over the place thanks to the IHeartMedia podcast app. It is fabulous to hear from people from around the globe that enjoy listening to our silliness and dubious advise.
For everyone caught in the bitter cold a few days ago, thank goodness it is just about over. We got massively lucky in Memphis and did not get pounded unlike last year when we got slammed by lots of ice and cold. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I am ready for some warm temps.
On the book front, if you have not read anything by me yet, I am going to pitch you my Short Story Collection. It has a little bit of this and that. I am sure I have a story or two you will enjoy.
Later Y’all.
https://www.darkoakpress.com/allanstory.html
https://www.darkoakpress.com
https://www.spreaker.com/show/the-fix-it-up-show
http://www.geektankradio.com
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZeqwiRmndPqhU_ifBYuvfg
To The Stars And Beyond
I would like to thank the Memphis Astronomical Society and for an amazing evening on Saturday of dark sky viewing at Village Creek State Park. The night was clear and the telescopes truly delivered incredible images of everything from Saturn to globular clusters. Basically, dark sky viewing works like this. You have to get away from city lights. You may not realize how much of the sky is being drowned out by the ambient light shining up from the ground in any city. Happily, we have a state park about 50 miles from Memphis that is just dark enough to see the Milky Way. The Astro members with the better telescopes set them up on various targets and you get to to wander from station to station looking at the amazing objects in space. It is a great way to spend an evening. If you have never done this before, you are missing out.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/memphisastro/
http://www.memphisastro.org/
Its All About Writing – Thursday OCT 18 at 7 pm, Robert Krog and I will be presenting Make It Spooky at the Germantown Community Library located at:
1925 Exeter Rd, Germantown, Tennessee 38138
Reserve a spot early and come out and have a little creepy fun with us.
Geektankradio.com – I finally got to do the story on the follow up to the Cassini Mission to Saturn. We have been waiting on the results of the data gathered as the ship ended the overall mission by crashing into the planet. The initial data on the inner most ring was fascinating. Then I got to go see the planet on Saturday night. I know, a space geek weekend. Reminder the show is now searchable on the I Heart Radio/Media’s app.
The Fix It Up Show is still too much fun. This week, Joe and I began our month long routine of DIY “horror” stories. Stephanie with Serenity Carpets joined us this week and plenty of stories of her own. Listen to the show, come up with a question or two for me and call into the show and be live on the air with me Saturday mornings from 8 to 9 in the morning 600 WREC AM and 92.1 FM.
The Mid-South Pyrate Blades are booked for lots of upcoming events. It looks like a good time to be a fighting pirate. We will even be setting a http://www.pyrateblades.com website in the next few weeks. A big shout out to the Pyrate Blades captain, Ms. Ruby Storm also just did her first big stage show as a belly dancer and totally nailed it.
https://www.darkoakpress.com/allanstory.html
https://www.darkoakpress.com
https://www.spreaker.com/show/the-fix-it-up-show
http://www.geektankradio.com
http://www.cafepress.com/gtrmerchandise
Time is fleeting ….
Time is not just flying by right now. It is leaping forward in huge gaps. I can not believe it is October already. Well, at least the heat is breaking and we can get down to some reasonable temperatures.
Geektankradio.com has been going just fine. The show continues to grow and spread across the globe. Seriously, the show is now searchable on the I Heart Radio/Media’s app. That is allowing the world to discover the madness that is the Geek Patrol. If you haven’t heard the show, click over and check it out. It has lots of geeky news and pop culture.
The Fix It Up Show is just too much fun. Joe and I keep discussing the foibles of do-it-yourself and other topics of home care. The callers are great and we literally have months of material and stories to try to cover. Joe now thinks he can stump me one of these days. So far, I get him every time. Listen to the show, come up with a question or two for me and call into the show and be live on the air with me Saturday mornings from 8 to 9 in the morning 600 WREC AM and 92.1 FM.
The Mid-South Pyrate Blades were featured by the Hooks Central Public Library and The Friends of the Library last Sunday for their Talk Like A Pirate show. We had literally hundreds of guests come through the library. Not only were we fighting this year, we also get a pirate games are with booths for the very popular games, Ring the Hooks ( get your ring on the suspended hand replacement hooks), Ring Around the Rat ( through a ringer around the standing rat mounted on a basket), Rat in a Basket (toss three rats into a swinging basket), and The Memory Game (match the pirate symbols etched on the bottom of cute little skulls). Yeah, it was a great day.
I have a new story published in the “End of the World Potluck” edited by Robert J. Krog. I enjoyed writing this one. I love dark characters.
Here’s a snippet from my, “A Choice Made”.
“I’m here, just like you asked.” Thor Everdall stood at least 30 feet away and leaned backwards against a tombstone. The two men stood still as they sized each other up. Thor had gained some weight and had a different hair style, but, fundamentally, had not changed much. John, by contrast, had the hard look of man locked away for 15 years. His face wore too much stress and pain for his age.
“I didn’t think you would actually show up.” John had pictured the moment for all his jail time. Now, with a glowing sky and the world ending, it jumped from a dark dream to a hallucinatory reality.
“We don’t need to do this. You’re out. You could try to enjoy what little life we have left.” Thor remained relaxed in spite of the topic.
“Enjoy. Enjoy life. My life ended that night. The night you ruined everything in my life.”
“Really? The night I ruined your life? You mean the night you got so drunk that playing Russian roulette seemed like a good idea. The night you and Sarah got so drunk that pointing a gun at each other in bed was a good idea. That night? Is that the night you’re talking about?” Thor kept his voice level and his gestures to a minimum. He didn’t want to completely set off John just yet. However, he knew they were going to have to hash it out for a while.
John didn’t show any signs of anger, just intensity. “Yeah, the night you left bullets in my Colt 45 revolver. The night Sarah took one of those bullets to the chest.”
https://www.darkoakpress.com/allanstory.html
https://www.darkoakpress.com
https://www.spreaker.com/show/the-fix-it-up-show
http://www.geektankradio.com
http://www.cafepress.com/gtrmerchandise
Now that the rain has gone …
I have reached the age when my memories are clouding up the modern day. For instance, I do remember numerous serious thunderstorms, tornadoes, and even the occasional hurricane, however, I also remember that most of the time, rain was just that, a nice rain for a few hours. Everything got watered, the creeks and streams rose a little bit, and the plants all looked really perky. Now, it seems that most rain events are now storms absolutely dumping inches of water as fast as possible. Of course, I could be wrong, but it certainly feels like I am right.
Been getting a lot of editing and pagination done. We have numerous new projects coming up very quickly. I am excited about both our books and media works. If you haven’t checked out the new YouTube channel, dive in and enjoy. Of course the more subscribers we get, the more stuff we can do. https://youtu.be/SOUhsMPdRBA
Sadly for Geek Tank Radio, Jessie has traded up jobs and has moved over to the TV world. We will miss our defacto mum/Harley Quinn.
This coming Thursday night on Apr 19th at 7:00 pm the Writers Around Town will be at the Germantown Community Library. The topic for the night is “Writing Series And Keeping It Fresh”. I am having a blast with these seminars.
I am also happy to mention that our Pyrate Blades performance group keeps getting better. Who knows, the pirate fight club may show up at a convention near you.
http://www.darkoakpress.com
http://www.geektankradio.com
http://www.cafepress.com/gtrmerchandise
Full Moon Motivation …
It has been a wonderful full moon weekend. The weather has been pretty good and the night sky has been spectacular. The best part is that I can watch the moon rise from my desk chair.
I am prepping for another convention appearance next weekend in Tupelo, MS. at Tupelo Titan Con ( http://tupelotitancon.com/ ). Not only do I get to be a writer/radio host I also get to be there with Pyrate Blades. Yes, there will some live sword fighting. I am very excited. This is going to a lot of fun.
This weekend a lot of video rendering and editing also got done. The Desk of Endless Tasks has had a steady stream of projects coming and going. I just love the sounds of productivity in the evening.
Geek Tank Radio ( http://www.geektankradio.com ) has continued to grow. If you have been keeping with the show, you already know all about geek eats, science news, and shower thoughts. If not, dive in and catch the madness 🙂
This weekend would not have been complete without the annual first yard beat down. It is shocking just how rough the yard gets over the winter. Now, the yard is beat into submission for a few days, the beds have been cleared and planted, and the blueberries are already blooming. No bad at all.
http://www.darkoakpress.com
http://www.geektankradio.com
http://www.cafepress.com/gtrmerchandise
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZeqwiRmndPqhU_ifBYuvfg
Such a lovely full moon …
After another couple of days of complete downpours, the skies finally cleared and this evening we had one the best rising full moons I have seen in years. Such a wonderful evening after so much rain.
Don’t forget MidSouthCon (www.midsouthcon.org) next weekend (March 9-11) at the Hilton off Poplar and I-240. Come out and join the madness. If you have never been to a fandom convention before, this is a great place to come out and find out what it is all about. If nothing else make to “Dark and Stormy Night” on Sunday afternoon, I promise it is worth it.
I had a wonderful time with a couple of friends from Grace Healthcare chatting about medical science and levels of care. Listen in:
http://www.darkoakpress.com/media/gtrgrace.mp3
Don’t forget the new Dark Oak Press and Media YouTube channel. We are adding content as fast we can get out there and shoot it.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZeqwiRmndPqhU_ifBYuvfg
http://www.darkoakpress.com
http://www.geektankradio.com
http://www.cafepress.com/gtrmerchandise
Is it the monsoon season already?
I ask because it is still raining. Now, it is not some kind of wild thunder blizzard, it is just raining – raining – raining – did I mention still raining …. We can safely say the the Mid-South is well watered in. Even though I know better, and yes, there will be another cold spell, I have started my spring planting. Maybe I could consider a rice paddy section in the yard?
My tank of tiny minions is doing quite well. The new food seems to be doing the trick and the little swimming dots are starting to look like brine shrimp. Hopefully, they will be big enough to photograph next week.
The Desk of Endless Tasks and I are making some pretty progress in editing and pagination. This means new stuff coming.
My dear friends at Malice in Memphis have decided what they really want to do right now is hold a writing contest with yours truly as a final judge. I feel my inner Simon bubbling to the surface. Check it out here:
https://www.maliceinmemphis.com/hit-me-with-your-best-shot-contest.html
If you haven’t seen the new stuff at the Dark Oak Press and Media YouTube channel, do check it out and Subscribe. We got more cool stuff coming.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZeqwiRmndPqhU_ifBYuvfg
Here is one the new shows from Haunted New Orleans. I love the legends down there!
Inch by Inch
Inch by Inch, I am clearing the backlog on The Desk of Endless Tasks. With all the bad weather over the last few weeks, I have gotten just a little behind. The Desk and I still have to sit down and pick out new merchandise. Happily, I have a little time to find some new stuff. https://www.cafepress.com/gtrmerchandise/14488659
Editing is going well. Several books are now in various stages of the process. Yes, please keep buying books and we can afford to make more.
Video editing has finally managed to claw its way up the top of The Desk of Endless Tasks. So much stuff to do and so little time. Hopefully, this means I will have a lot more projects wrapped up.
Here is a peek: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9ME5xWtuk4
Please go check out the Dark Oak Press – Vampires For Valentines selection. I have a couple of books in the line up for those of you who haven’t read them yet.
https://darkoakpress.wordpress.com/
Writing events are booking up fast. We have just about got a full year’s schedule laid out. If you are in the Mid-South, come out and have a little fun with us.
https://darkoakpress.wordpress.com/2018/01/08/events-for-writers/
Last but certainly not least – the brine shrimp are doing fine. They are getting bigger every day and starting to swim like tiny brine shrimp are supposed to.
Welcome to the Tundra …
Or at least a reasonable facsimile thereof. The Intergalactic Truck of Hauling and I have rolled more than 350 miles in the last two days through this freezing mess. People had to be picked up and dropped off – everywhere. I am fairly certain I have seen at least on Yeti lurking around the house. Okay, it might have been a neighbor’s cat, but it was dark, I was tired and cold – so in my mind – Yeti. You get the picture. I also got around to refilling the bird feeder after knocking all the ice off of it and let’s just say my lovely forest of banana trees is in the “not so much” department. However, sooner or later, we will thaw out and move on with the weather.
Thanks to everyone listening to the Geek Tank Radio show. We have achieved true international status with more people listening in every day and from all over the world. http://www.geektankradio.com
At Dark Oak Press, we have several new releases in the works. I will be posting more about them as we get closer to done on the projects. Happily, I am closing in on being done with the portable (and downloadable) murder mystery party game. Look for more details on that coming very soon. Seminar – we got a lot of seminars coming up all over the Mid-South. Check out the Dark Oak Press Blog for more information.
https://darkoakpress.wordpress.com/
Sea Monkey Update – the baby brine shrimp are doing fine. You can almost make them out with the naked eye, but they are in there swimming around living the brine shrimp version of the good life.
Allan Gilbreath 