Neither of us had wine with dinner. Mild surprise registered on the face of the waitress, given that it was Valentine’s Day. After she disappeared, we looked at each other. “She probably thinks we’re having a…” “Completely non-romantic evening. Which is exactly right, of course!” The waitress returned with our pot of tea and no … Continue reading
Author Archives: Caitlin McDonald
Immersive Storytelling
I’ve been thinking a lot about stories lately. Particularly the many ways of telling stories and what separates a story from…that which is not a story. While the most recent installment of Sherlock was on, I was struck by their use of fictional websites like John Watson’s blog and faux twitter profiles such as Irene … Continue reading
Ways in which the London Riots Resembled a Zombie Apocalypse
Yet another writing contest that I did not win. Read on to enjoy my thoughts on zombies once again. Every time a zombie apocalypse starts, it’s always on an ordinary day with no warning. Like a lot of real cataclysmic events (flash floods, earthquakes, Vanilla Ice showing up at your 30th birthday and puking on … Continue reading
First Snow
My uncle is visiting. Every pub we tried to go to yesterday evening was absolutely crammed to the rafters. Not surprising on a cold Saturday night, but still we soldiered on in search of elbow room at the bar and possibly, with luck, a place to sit down. I’m not even going to tell you … Continue reading
A Fitzrovian Evening
For those of us of a Wodehousian disposition, life can occasionally be very difficult. There are few Jeeveses in today’s harsh modern world. There are yet fewer bemonocled Psmiths, impeccably dressed and always up for some sort of dashing adventure. We wander about, us Wodehousians, reading away in every spare moment and heaving the occasional … Continue reading
Follow the Dragon
There we were, shuffling along as quickly as possible. We weren’t able to run, because around us was a very large crowd indeed. We were attempting to follow through this crowd a drum and the bottom half of a lion dancer. It was the Chinese New Year parade in London, and we were making our … Continue reading
For Data Wizards Everywhere
Today’s discussion topic is the similitude between querying databases and casting spells. If you are not a person who deals frequently with databases, that probably means nothing to you. Actually, I imagine many of you who do deal frequently with databases are equally mystified. I shall endeavor to explain. Databases are made up of tables. … Continue reading
The Spirit of Christmas Present
My dad, full of festive cheer, bought a singing Santa hat last year. Not only does it sing, it flips back and forth in time to the music. This is Santa Hat 2.0. The first one, bought many years ago, just flipped back and forth when you squeezed the bobble on the end. This one … Continue reading
The Necklace
At Thanksgiving I received a beautiful gift. My aunt, the one whom we croned, gave me a silver necklace shaped like a dancer. One arm is raised above her head, the other stretches across her body. She is leading with her shoulder, her torso arched. Her dress ripples in a silver breeze. I have to … Continue reading
A Winter’s Candle
One of the keenest pleasures I knew as a girl was staying up through long winter nights reading by the light of Christmas candles in our windows. When the Christmas decorations came down from the attic each year, the first things to come out were the electric candles that sat in every window upstairs and … Continue reading
In a Merry Hour: Caitlin E McDonald 