marylowd – Page 185 – Deep Sky Anchor

Surreal Experience

I was driving my car, and there were warning signs put up on the road…‬

‪then pieces of wreckage…‬

‪then a yellow school bus on its side…‬ Continue reading “Surreal Experience”

When Star Trek Lurched Back to Life

Star Trek: Picard starts today!‬

‪I’m excited & nervous. It feels like going to a family reunion w/aunts & uncles you used to be close to, but haven’t heard from in decades.‬

‪Will the connection still be there? Will you still like each other? Or will the changes just be too much?‬ Continue reading “When Star Trek Lurched Back to Life”

The Brutality, Oh the Brutality

I like being asleep. Being awake is okay.‬

‪But going to sleep and waking up? Both terrible.‬

Test for replicants, I mean, writers:‬

‪“There’s an unfinished novel, in the desert, on its back. But you aren’t finishing it. Why aren’t you finishing it???”‬

The Highest Stakes

“A cupcake’s never as funny the second time.”‬
‪—The Comeback, S1E12‬

I just finished watching the first season of The Comeback, and OH MY GOD WHAT A JOURNEY.

I would fight for Valerie Cherish. I want all good things for her. Continue reading “The Highest Stakes”

Paradigm Shift

In the last year, I’ve stepped down from chairing the Cóyotl Awards, editing ROAR, and attending my weekly critique group.

Leaving these things behind has made room for new things in my life. But that’s still a lot of change, and it’s always sad to say goodbye.

Watching Voyager to Get By

That feeling when you don’t have enough spoons to figure out how to get more spoons.‬

So, I’m re-watching Star Trek: Voyager, and…‬

‪Janeway: Forest cat who’s spent her life acting like one of the dogs‬ Continue reading “Watching Voyager to Get By”

Thoughts on the Helicopter Story

Yesterday I read a beautiful story in a top market that helped me understand pieces of myself, and I stayed up late having a conversation where quotes from it helped me explain a dynamic in my life that’s been going on for decades.

This is everything art should be. Continue reading “Thoughts on the Helicopter Story”

“Are We Winning?”

Deep breath. It doesn’t feel like it today. BUT. I tried to watch Murphy Brown from the beginning, back when it got rebooted. And that’s a show that was ground-breakingly feminist for its time. And now… oh my god. It’s sooooooo full of sexist tropes. There are only two women, and they’re constantly at each other’s throats. Murphy is constantly put down for not being feminine enough. Continue reading ““Are We Winning?””

For the Sake of Mushrooms

by Mary E. Lowd

Originally published in All Worlds Wayfarer, Issue I: Summer Solstice 2019, June 2019

“On the star maps, the sun’s name was still the same. But this red giant didn’t deserve a name. It didn’t deserve to be remembered.”

The red sun glowed like an evil eye on the forward viewscreen. It stared into Irudy’s soul. Once it had been the warmth on her fur and the shine in a smiling sky while she ran through fields, her paws bare against the wholesome dirt. Now it was death’s mocking wink, as the cold, stale air of her cargo ship recycled endlessly through algae filters and mechanical pipes. Continue reading “For the Sake of Mushrooms”

Welcome to Ob’glaung

by Mary E. Lowd

Originally published in Midwest Furfest 2019 Conbook, December 2019

“He submerged, and a moment later, the bubble-like helmet he always wore bobbed back up to the surface.”

Water splashed into the Ob’glaung Station airlock, wetting three sets of feet — a pair of red-furred paws belonging to a Heffen, a pair of gray-tufted paws belonging to a Woaoo, and a pair of green-scaled S’rellick talons. A long blue fin hovered, trailing over the water’s surface, as an icthyoid Lintar swam eager circles through the air. Continue reading “Welcome to Ob’glaung”