<html><head></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; ">Rebecca,<div><br></div><div>I was aware of his surgery, yes. And was thrilled to hear that he came out in good health and good spirits. I'm glad Bobby is in good hands. I plan on sending him a letter very shortly (Gene, though I'm sure Bobby would appreciate one, too). I'm sure the mailbox is overflowing back home in any case.</div><div><br></div><div>Thank you for the update. And yes, I moved away from Barrington last year, but chance to visit the in-laws every so often. They actually informed me something was wrong when Gene and Rosemary were added to the prayer list at St. Anne's.</div><div><br></div><div>Would love any updates as you hear them. May I ask, are you friend or family with Gene?</div><div><br></div><div>...ryan</div><div><br></div><div><br><div><div>On Jun 16, 2010, at 11:17 PM, Rebecca Bushong-Taylor wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote type="cite">Hi Ryan -<br><br>It sounds from your note that you were in Barrington until fairly recently. I thought you might like to know that Gene had some fairly scary heart surgery and complications that have kept him away from home for the past few months. The great news is that he should be back home very soon. He is anxious to get back to work and has several stories in his head he can't wait to get to!! I'm sure he'd be pleased to hear from you if you want to send him a card or note.<br>
<br>Bobby is still alive and well and has been staying with family while The Master is away.<br><br>Rebecca<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Tue, Jun 15, 2010 at 6:54 PM, Ryan Dunn <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:ryan@liftingfaces.com">ryan@liftingfaces.com</a>></span> wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); padding-left: 1ex;"><div style="word-wrap: break-word;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><div style="margin: 0px;">
Hello,</div><div style="margin: 0px; min-height: 17px;"><br></div><div style="margin: 0px;">My name is Ryan Dunn.</div><div style="margin: 0px; min-height: 17px;"><br></div><div style="margin: 0px;">I know many of you are long-time participants here on the <a href="http://urth.net/" target="_blank">urth.net</a> mailing list. I am humbled by much of your prowess and breadth of knowledge on things both inside and out of Wolfe's Whorl.</div>
<div style="margin: 0px; min-height: 17px;"><br></div><div style="margin: 0px;">About me, briefly...</div><div style="margin: 0px; min-height: 17px;"><br></div><div style="margin: 0px;">I am a commercial film director living and working in New York City (<a href="http://www.ladies-gentlemen.tv/" target="_blank">www.ladies-gentlemen.tv</a>). I recently moved from Barrington, IL, where I worked in Chicago for a cumulative 7 years.</div>
<div style="margin: 0px;"><br></div><div style="margin: 0px;">But perhaps the only real tidbit you might care to know about me at this point is that, while working in Chicago, I was fortunate enough to have lived five doors down from Mr. Wolfe himself, and have found him to be one of the kindest neighbors a man and his family could ask for. Having watched him walk his dogs (first Calamity Jane and then Bobby) on a daily basis, we formed a very passing, but endearing relationship.</div>
<div style="margin: 0px;"><br></div><div style="margin: 0px;">Attempting to have conversations with him, however, was a bit like asking a toddler to contrast and compare Dickens against Shakespeare. I, of course, was the toddler. I remember one incident where a compliment from me on his latest book, "An Evil Guest," quickly evolved into a history lesson from Gene on when the Egyptians attempted to invade the Greek Islands.</div>
<div style="margin: 0px; min-height: 17px;"><br></div><div style="margin: 0px;">Wolfe was in fact my favorite author before I moved to Barrington (which quite coincidentally is where my wife was born and raised). I went through genre writing both quiality (Tolkien, Gibson, Stephenson) and questionable (Rowling, Goodkind, Jordan) before arriving at Wolfe's doorstep. But once I discovered him, all other writers could do little more than pale in comparison. I did not have any clue where Mr. Wolfe lived when we moved into that quaint village, so imagine my surprise when my father-in-law informed me!</div>
<div style="margin: 0px; min-height: 17px;"><br></div><div style="margin: 0px;">At any rate, I simply wanted to say hello, share my background, unique story about Gene Wolfe, and that I hope to add to -- and use this list in the future -- for reasons both selfish and social. I am a fan of the <a href="http://urth.net/" target="_blank">urth.net</a> group, and have been reading passively for many years (it is a bit of work to try and stay current with these discussions!).</div>
<div style="margin: 0px; min-height: 17px;"><br></div><div style="margin: 0px;">Hope to join the debate some time soon.</div><div style="margin: 0px; min-height: 17px;"><br></div><font color="#888888"><div style="margin: 0px;">
...ryan</div></font><div style="margin: 0px;"><br></div><div style="margin: 0px;">P.S. Also, I'm going to pretend he used my surname as inspiration for his main character in The Sorcerer's House, Baxter Dunn. A man can pretend, can't he?</div>
</span></div></div><br>_______________________________________________<br>
Urth Mailing List<br>
To post, write <a href="mailto:urth@urth.net">urth@urth.net</a><br>
Subscription/information: <a href="http://www.urth.net/" target="_blank">http://www.urth.net</a><br></blockquote></div><br>
_______________________________________________<br>Urth Mailing List<br>To post, write <a href="mailto:urth@urth.net">urth@urth.net</a><br>Subscription/information: <a href="http://www.urth.net">http://www.urth.net</a></blockquote></div><br></div></body></html>