So I took a week and took a genuine vacation, which I have rarely been able to in my life. I flew out to Washington DC (on the hottest, muggiest fishing day of the year, apparently) overnight. I landed at Dulles with one carry-on bag, which I checked at Union Station. Then I went to see the one thing I wanted to see in the whole city: yep, the Castle.
I only had a few hours in town, and it was too dang hot to wander the Mall, so everything else I saw that day was from the back seat of an Uber. (I had great drivers to and from the Castle, A+ Uber service in that town) But I sat in the Castle and the only things open were the cafe and the museum shop. There was a docent tour scheduled for 1pm but I was so exhausted I was content sitting in the space, taking pictures of the space, existing in the space, and looking out the window. And enjoying something cold with peach and mint and just breathing history. It wasn't what I expected but I was not disappointed. If the Smithsonian survives Agent Orange and reopens when the renovations (their own, not mandated by That Fucking Guy) are completed in a couple of years, I can go back. That'll also give them time to fumigate the place. God the amount of Pussolini propaganda on every fishing federal building was heartbreaking.
Then I went back to Union Station and boarded a train to go all the way back to California. I spent over 3 days on two trains (first to Chicago, then from Chi to LA) in a private little roomette and it was the most wonderful journey ever. Trains are awesome. Except that the same way you get wobbly legs coming off a cruise, you also get that from train travel. I am still bobbing around.
But anyway, here's some pics I took. I'm not much of a picture taker and I don't do selfies as a rule but the ones I took were things I wanted to either use for reference in the book, or remember for myself.
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The main portal. Those steps are really steep. There are six where there should be seven or eight, easy.
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| There's a bench over there, I'll take a pic from that one so I can get the entrance without the ugly banner on it. |
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| Bench is nice. Wish it wasn't so muggy. Definitely have to do this again at a better time of year. (the only reason I did it now was because it was only open till Labor Day before renovations restart) |
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| The main entry hall is huge, and yet small. Here's my view from the cafe table. It was quiet in there. In three hundred years, you'd be able to see one of the legs of the Tower that perches over the area. |
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| Tall columns are tall! So much wasted space. But hey, when you're renovating, and just have the minimum open, you make do with what you got. Facing toward front of building. |
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| From my table, toward the front. Museum shop is on the other side. I bought some pins because I love me some pins. I almost bought a Lego style brick kit of the building, but again, I like pins. |
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| On my way out, this is the main entrance, an octagonal space where the founder, James Smithson, has his tomb. Through the arch are two great staircases on either side, then you go in further to the large hall where I sat and existed. |
Well, that's it for real life. I didn't get much writing done on the trip but I did untangle some plot points that have bothered me for years. I feel much better about where this is going. Anyway, time to show off some characters for the book. Now that we've been introduced, here's some Justin, with extra bonus pic of Gynnix's mother, Kazz Yarrow. Welcome aboard, the crazy train is about to leave the station.
Thanks for reading.
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| These are sketches I made, cleaned up and colored with Craiyon. |
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| He looks a bit too young in this one though. But this is his whole getup. Because it's important to look good when you're doing secret stuff. |
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This is a version of the cover for Easy As X,Y, Z. Sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows your name...
 | | Commander Kazuri "Kazz" Yarrow. Hero of Charon. Badass Engineer. Mother of an "ungrateful daughter." You know how it is. |
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And because he can't just let anyone else have the last word, here's an animated version of him. Cheeky lil bastard, him and his "I know more than you do" grin. So infuriating. Kids, amirite?
