Will's Writing Update and Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue Spectacular

Good afternoon, assembled Stroock's Books readership. Circumstances have combined for an afternoon post. Those circumstances being the near completion of the World War 1990: Norway read through, a morning weightlifting session, and the desire for an Arturo Fuente Gran Reserva Short Story and a drink, our first in two + weeks. So here we are.

We hate this stage of the writing process. We've written and written and read and read till we're bored and frustrated with the whole damn thing. We await the formatting process with great fear and trepidation. What other problems will we find? Baaaah...we swipe at the air and swig our Yuengling Black and Tan. We save the bottle of chianti for when we know absolutely we won't be needed for something.  

Our writing frustration is all perfectly normal, like the feelings aroused by an adolescent's first Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue. To quote the great Clay Travis, this is when a boy realizes he wants to become a man. For us that would be February, 1988, Elle McPherson. Ah...there we go.  Interestingly this is the issue the young Georgie is seen reading in several episodes of Young Sheldon. We'll have something to say about tomorrow's finale.* 

Segeu...Hot Air says Sports Illustrated hate's its readership, and they are right. No one wants old ladies on the cover, they don't even want models in fancy gowns. And don't get us started on the fat chicks. Sexist? Misogynist?  We'll make this point again. Publish a menswear catalogue featuring portly fellows with body hair issues, something with which we're very sympathetic, given our Mediterranean ancestry.** We thought so. And hey, we aren't the one's putting dudes in the Swimsuit issue. Now who hates women?

Moving on...[Thank god, -Ed].

Dune 2000 IV...the Atreides gom jbabar. For us, Frank Herbet's Dune comes together when Paul's sister Alia is brought to the emperor, newly arrived on Arakis and raging against Paul's surrender demand. Alia is not impressed with the emperor and laughs at him. As Alia torments the Bene Gesseret witch, Princess Irulan steps forward and says, 'Look at her father. Can you not see it? She is the daughter of Duke Leto. She's Atreides. Her brother is the Duke's son, Paul. He is Muad'dib...' That moment of realization, that understanding...it's an extraordinary scene. 

On Paul's order, 'Do it now!' he shouts, Gurny triggers the atomics, blowing a hole in the mountains and unleashing a storm upon the palace. Alia mocks, 'My brother comes!' The building tension explodes.  Fremin worms swarm onto the plain and wave after wave of thopters attack. The battle has begun in earnest. Then Alia kills the baron. 'Goodbye, grandfather. You finally know the Atreides gom jabbar!' 

*We also feel blessed to have matured during the Age of Kathy Ireland. Wow. 

**We are a Jew and our people come from the desert. It calls to us, we yearn for it. [Your people come from New York and Kentucky- Ed]. Heh, at the gym today a member asked us, 'Aren't you the guy who wears a lot of Israeli T-shirts?' He went on to say that he used to see a car in the parking lot with tags that read, 'Merkeva', which is totally based.