More hearting of Neil Gaiman

That man. That boy, more like. In so many ways, Neil Gaiman comes across in his writing as someone who decided quite soberly and deliberately to Not Grow Up. And I'm loving that choice of his. At times, but not too often, his literary writing is too dark and twisted for me, but I can respect it and even see a reflection of my own dark and twisted side (which isn't allowed to see the light of day, but stirs and mumbles at times when I read Neil, or some Harlan Ellison for that matter). Which is probably why it makes me uncomfortable. But for the most part I really enjoy his stuff. American Gods sucked me in from beginning to end. And in Good Omens, the way he balanced out the almost-too-goofiness of Pratchett? Gold, people. But that's neither here nor there, nor why I'm writing this entry.

What I specially love about Neil Gaiman is his blog. The writing on his blog. Some people have a beautiful, lyrical, almost poetic writing style which carries you along like a leaf on a lazy river, and you get lost in the music of it. And I love writing like that. But you can't really hear anyone speaking like that in everyday life. Neil's writing, at least on his blog (or journal, as he calls it), is like your favorite smart-and-savvy friend plopping down on the coffee shop couch next to you and just chatting about this and that for 3 or 4 hours that feel like 3 or 4 minutes.

He's at once irreverent and respectful. Playful and direct. He writes what's on his mind, but he does it cleanly and clearly. He has super cool links (like this one) and he actually answers his fan mail. And now and then, some of that delightful British-ness that so fascinates me (and much of America, I'll warrant) will shine through. Who but a Brit can call a party "a lovely bash with nibbly bits" and get away with it? I totally didn't even snicker when I read it. (BTW, you have to scroll almost to the end of the post to see the quote and its context.)

So he already gets more traffic than Atlanta at rush hour, but here's yet another plug for the delightful Neil. Go forth and read.

Less hearting of I Heart Pgh

I miss the halcyon early days of iheartpgh.com. Or at least the early days of my readership. When the Folks Who Started It All were posting in an endearingly random way about places they loved in and around tahn. Piquing my interest, making me want to like this place after all. Exposing the little hidden gems like the local-mama-owned Pittsburgh Candle Company, the fun little dive bar Big Jim's in the Run, the places in Pittsburgh that were smoke-free before it was required by law. Things like that.

I applaud the fact that the originators of i-heart are gainfully employed (and moving up in the world, too), and I still enjoy reading the "Git Aht" posts by Patrick. I mean, who wouldn't love someone who can write like this:

Well, regardless, the Pittsburgh Lunch Club is the local chapter of the larger social networking site “The Lunch Club” which says it ain’t about the hookups, so right there, I mean, bad marketing. There’s a reason Tom sold myspace to Fox and skated out on all the emo kids with a half billion pieces of silver or whatever it was strapped to his Web 2.0 back… Still though, seems like a good idea, a way for people to network a bit, get out and press the flesh, even if said flesh-pressing is meant to be platonic.

But lately? That's all there is. Weekend to weekend it's a bit of a desert, and then some todo's for the twenty-something crowd for the F-S-S timeframe. And it's not like I can start submitting or something. Even after 3 years here I still feel like a newbie, and besides, I have no life outside of the dajamou.

So someone, out there, please. Jump on the iheartpgh.com bandwagon and start submitting. Tell me (and everyone else) about your favorite hole in the wall, your fondest childhood Burgh memory, your version of Pittsburgh's Best Kept Secret. Because lately, I feel like Pittsburgh's Best Kept Secret is Pittsburgh.