I got my UK season tickets again, courtesy of a thoughtful niece and nephew (she’s a UK employee and graciously allows me to buy the tickets she won at the employee lottery a few years ago). Turns out getting the tickets on my own is…complicated. I would have to establish KY residency (possible, I almost spend enough time there, but some big implications there, including tax implications) AND win the resident lottery held each year for prospective season ticket buyers. That’s some kind of business model – people will enter a lottery and only the winners get to pay dearly for nosebleed seats. Wild. But I’m grateful for the chance.

Yesterday’s cross-country trip was fine, flights mostly on time and the long flight, SDF to PHX, was on a comfortable 737-800, only about 75% full. The last leg, PHX-SAN, was on an ancient 737-700, completely packed and struggling with Phoenix’s 100+ temperature. Not as comfortable and I was actually a little nervous about the plane getting off the ground. There’s not as much lift when the air is hot, so commercial carriers have a limit around 118 degrees where they won’t even try for safety reasons. Phoenix has gotten close to that several times this year. So with a 100% full flight, the 100+ degree temp, and an ancient airframe, I was acutely aware of how long it took to get off the runway. That kind of physics is not what I really want to be thinking about when flying. But we made it. I hope they retire that 737-700 very soon, though.

Now that we’re here, the big news is the weather. A heat wave is upon us, again. Over the next 10 days, the temperature in Fallbrook will range from 94 to 99 degrees each day. We often get 90+ degree days, but 10 straight days is very unusual. Thankfully it will get down to mid-60s at night, so we do get a chance to cool off. But as the sun comes up, it’s gonna be hot in Socal.

I’m racking my brain for a new or renewed story idea – something that will get me excited to sit down and write again. Here’s the list, in no particular order:

• Bite the bullet and rewrite Lost Hope yet again. It’s complete in my head, on paper it’s a jumbled mess.
• A big story about an heir from a wealthy planet 5-10 light years away, traveling back to Empire Earth. Speed of light is in effect, so travel and communications are natural barriers.
• A story about Earth orbit garbage collectors, sweeping up the debris of millions of satellites put into orbit during Earth’s ill-advised low Earth orbit satellite wars (I’m talking about you, Elon). Kind of a precursor to the Belters in The Expanse.
• A story about telepaths – they’ve always fascinated me. Pretty sure that being able to read other people’s thoughts would be a complete nightmare. I don’t have a high regard for people these days (I’m talking about you, MAGA).
• A story about the invention of anti-gravity. It would change…everything. Space flight, transportation, construction, energy, war…just everything. Problem with this one is narrowing down the scope, as what happens after the invention is too big, too much to really cover. Might be a good thing, as it would force me to focus on a character or two instead of the tech.
• What if it suddenly became really hard for humans to reproduce? Much lower population, industry fails; mothers and children even more revered; murder/killing even more unthinkable. This was done in Children of Men, but I think it could be done better.

That’s not everything, but it’s a good list. Now just pick one and get started.