Jeff Rubard
2021-11-13 01:03:01 UTC
From a recent email:
One of the more popular pseudonyms is that of the "hard SF" writer Andy Weir, but I shy away from discussing it, especially because of the tie-in to *The Martian*. (Matt Damon is an awesome person. Matt Damon is also Matt Damon.)
The name is about equally a joke about Weir Rd in south Beaverton, Ore., a place "margin walkers" would live in rented homes and know to take a joke well enough... and the joke "Is Bob Weir here?" (I lived a little bit away from there.) The books present a way for the "tech enthusiasm" of my cohort of white male IT workers to age well into a more complicated century.
The three major books:
*The Martian* is roughly a metaphor for you yourself involved in a practice known as "gulching", when a commercial or industrial environment loses its patience with you and you have to run a gauntlet. I've had to do this many times, and it's cool to make it through, but do understand that the point is that you were trying to "suck up" to a place you voluntarily tried to make it and kind of perforce didn't meet the standards in the end. (Who saves him in the end? A *deus ex machina*, for real. They asked people for the movie. Don't plan on doing some things yourself.)
*Artemis* is your female co-worker, and *what a co-worker*! No, really, idiot. The character "Jazz" is based roughly on the youthful personality of my good acquaintance Jenny Lewis -- yes, the drop-dead gorgeous feminist who is also just *sort of vaaaguely* way ethnic. Jenny is "from good homes" and would know a thing or two about a Cobra Starship, but hey, you know, guy, make us proud here, make yourself safe here, for real, these are not people to "try" etc. (Also crazy competent in a workplace environment, like, don't check in about this today either.) The Moon is her world, in other words.
*Project Hail Mary*? You've "made it" and it's unmaking you, but only the "power of science" (giving up) will save you.
Jeff Rubard
One of the more popular pseudonyms is that of the "hard SF" writer Andy Weir, but I shy away from discussing it, especially because of the tie-in to *The Martian*. (Matt Damon is an awesome person. Matt Damon is also Matt Damon.)
The name is about equally a joke about Weir Rd in south Beaverton, Ore., a place "margin walkers" would live in rented homes and know to take a joke well enough... and the joke "Is Bob Weir here?" (I lived a little bit away from there.) The books present a way for the "tech enthusiasm" of my cohort of white male IT workers to age well into a more complicated century.
The three major books:
*The Martian* is roughly a metaphor for you yourself involved in a practice known as "gulching", when a commercial or industrial environment loses its patience with you and you have to run a gauntlet. I've had to do this many times, and it's cool to make it through, but do understand that the point is that you were trying to "suck up" to a place you voluntarily tried to make it and kind of perforce didn't meet the standards in the end. (Who saves him in the end? A *deus ex machina*, for real. They asked people for the movie. Don't plan on doing some things yourself.)
*Artemis* is your female co-worker, and *what a co-worker*! No, really, idiot. The character "Jazz" is based roughly on the youthful personality of my good acquaintance Jenny Lewis -- yes, the drop-dead gorgeous feminist who is also just *sort of vaaaguely* way ethnic. Jenny is "from good homes" and would know a thing or two about a Cobra Starship, but hey, you know, guy, make us proud here, make yourself safe here, for real, these are not people to "try" etc. (Also crazy competent in a workplace environment, like, don't check in about this today either.) The Moon is her world, in other words.
*Project Hail Mary*? You've "made it" and it's unmaking you, but only the "power of science" (giving up) will save you.
Jeff Rubard