Fantastic reading. But Mr. Cmar will always be Smidgen to me. ;) :P
Sorry, but I just didn't care for it. They don't write SF like this anymore, and there are reasons. Everything was a bit too simple and sweet. Likeable characters going about their likable lives until they get a chance to fall over each other attempting to sacrifice themselves for the greater good. It had the ring of an old western radio show retooled to run on an equally old SF radio show. Sweet but not particularly satisfying.
Sincerely,
A crusty old cynic, who now feels like he just beat up a kitten.
Their devotion was perhaps most evident in what they gave up to carry out their mission: Dr. Thomas L. Grams, 51, left a thriving dental practice; Dr. Karen Woo, 36, walked away from a surgeon’s salary; Cheryl Beckett, 32, had no time for courtship or marriage.
Most of all, the 10 medical workers massacred in northern Afghanistan last week — six Americans, one German, one Briton and two Afghans — sacrificed their own safety, in a calculated gamble that weighed the risk against the distribution of eyeglasses and toothbrushes, pain relief and prenatal care to remote villages they reached on foot.
Dear Escape Artists, Inc.,
Please stop making me cry on my commute, it's embarrassing.
But then this couple brings three small children along. WTF? And I believe they even specifically said they brought them with them. Who pays for the kids contracts? If they were rich enough to not have to have contracts for 5 people, three of which couldn't work anyway, why the hell would they need to go out to space? And furthermore who would be willing to blast small children into deep space mining operations where even adults had a good chance to die? None of that made any damn sense.
But then this couple brings three small children along. WTF? And I believe they even specifically said they brought them with them. Who pays for the kids contracts? If they were rich enough to not have to have contracts for 5 people, three of which couldn't work anyway, why the hell would they need to go out to space? And furthermore who would be willing to blast small children into deep space mining operations where even adults had a good chance to die? None of that made any damn sense.
I gathered that the Japanese (I think) family owned their ship together, whereas Molly didn't, so she had to buy a contract to get someone to help her do the mining.
But then this couple brings three small children along. WTF? And I believe they even specifically said they brought them with them. Who pays for the kids contracts? If they were rich enough to not have to have contracts for 5 people, three of which couldn't work anyway, why the hell would they need to go out to space? And furthermore who would be willing to blast small children into deep space mining operations where even adults had a good chance to die? None of that made any damn sense.
Anyway I guess the larger point is that it'd be criminally negligent to let a couple go into mining with three small children with them even in a modern, Earth mine. Doing so in deep space would, I think, be pretty much unthinkable.
I enjoyed this story, but wow, Cmar's reading kind of put it over the top for me. I'm not exactly granting him absolution for Smidgeon (he'll always be a desirable love-cake in my mind), but it's nice to know he's not only a vehicle for lust, but love.
It's not just Heinleinesque, it's Golden Age-esque. RAH, Clarke, Cold Equations -- it's a homage to all of them. I liked. One gets so tired of deep, emotionally engaging, complex stories while inching along bumper to bumper on the Belt.
One gets so tired of deep, emotionally engaging, complex stories while inching along bumper to bumper on the Belt.
It's not just Heinleinesque, it's Golden Age-esque. RAH, Clarke, Cold Equations -- it's a homage to all of them. I liked. One gets so tired of deep, emotionally engaging, complex stories while inching along bumper to bumper on the Belt.
When you wrote "Belt" there, my first thought was of the asteroid belt.
It's not just Heinleinesque, it's Golden Age-esque. RAH, Clarke, Cold Equations -- it's a homage to all of them. I liked. One gets so tired of deep, emotionally engaging, complex stories while inching along bumper to bumper on the Belt.
When you wrote "Belt" there, my first thought was of the asteroid belt.
Me too.
It's not just Heinleinesque, it's Golden Age-esque. RAH, Clarke, Cold Equations -- it's a homage to all of them. I liked. One gets so tired of deep, emotionally engaging, complex stories while inching along bumper to bumper on the Belt.
When you wrote "Belt" there, my first thought was of the asteroid belt.
Me too.
And ditto.
It's not just Heinleinesque, it's Golden Age-esque. RAH, Clarke, Cold Equations -- it's a homage to all of them. I liked. One gets so tired of deep, emotionally engaging, complex stories while inching along bumper to bumper on the Belt.
When you wrote "Belt" there, my first thought was of the asteroid belt.
Me too.
And ditto.
Therein lies he difference between a Brooklyn native and a space cadet.
[snip]... It feels right to deceive your gullible partner into thinking you did not sacrifice yourself until it's too late. But I have to wonder wouldn't it make more sense in deep, cold space, to chose the parent. That would be an interesting story.