Reality Might Be Far Stranger Than You Think

Being around a lot of writers of speculative fiction (a good categorization actually: usually includes everything from science fiction, fantasy, horror, magic realism, slipstream, etc., etc.), and all the, at least partially, crazy fans of said (meaning the previously mentioned) writers, even if only for a day (as in my case at Readercon this past Friday) is a truly strange and wonderful experience. As exhausting as the overall day was, I loved every minute of it. 
I can never get enough time to read. I have been reading speculative fiction since I was somewhere around 10 years old. Some of the authors I saw on Friday I had met at other Readercons in the past, such as Michael Swanwick, Elizabeth Hand, Paul di Filippo, Peter Straub, Jeff VanderMeer, and John Crowley, to mention a few. And I got to meet some authors for the first time, like Elizabeth Bear, Gemma Files, Paul Tremblay, Howard Waldrop, James Patrick Kelly, and Andy Duncan. I was able to sit in on readings by Matthew Kressel (a newer writer), Jeff VanderMeer, Paul Tremblay, and James Patrick Kelly. Matthew read from a story taking place in the future, as the last humans are being evacuated from Earth. It was a very touching story, where the central characters are an old man trying to preserve his family's home and land, and a young girl from the poor side of the tracks, so to speak.
Jeff read from a new novel, which although finished, has not been published, yet, with the title of Annihilation. Another book I'm just gonna' have to read. Paul Tremblay read from his new book, Swallowing A Donkey's Eye. Yep, that's the title. Now, I haven't read much of Tremblay, but after sitting through the reading, I can honestly say I will be reading more. Swallowing A Donkey's Eye won't be officially released until next month, but the publisher, Chizine, made several copies available, and of course, I managed to pick one up.
My favorite reading of the day (and that's saying a lot, 'cause I truly enjoyed them all), however, was by James Patrick Kelly, who read from a novella (much longer than your average short story, but not as long as a novel), The Last Judgement, which was published in Asimov's (a science fiction magazine). It took place in a world where all the men had disappeared years ago, so there were only women. The section of the novella he read from, was about the meeting between a young private detective (she was born after the disappearance of the men), and an old woman (who not only was around before the disappearance, but had been married and had a child) who wants to hire her to recover a stolen painting. The story itself is filled with humor, but the way the author read it was hysterical. It was a great reading. And now, dammit, I'm going to have to try to track down that issue of Asimov's so I can read the whole story.
You know, sometimes we have tunnel vision, and are only able to see our own little world right there in front of us. Yet, there's a much bigger world unfolding all around us, all the time. And the possibilities of where we'll be tomorrow are endless. In the meantime, however, I must take care of some mundane tasks in my own small reality, so I can spend time later considering that larger world around me. Sigh. 
Happy trails to y'all.