Old SciFi short story Search. I can't remember the name or the author. I can't remember what I had for breakfast. : )

[Steve Leoni]

I read a SciFi short story years ago (I am 73). The plot was set far into the future with much of the galaxy populated. Some sort of political crisis occurred and the only person who could solve it was a retired diplomat who lived in an intelligent house on the edge of the galaxy. He is old and tired, but understands the need for his services and decides to journey to the galaxy capital to solve the crisis. However, his intelligent house doesn't want him to leave it knowing, at his age, he would most likely not return. So the house keeps throwing stumbling blocks in his path to keep him from going until, finally, he ends up not going.

This story is a metaphor for my life at 73. I have lost my desire to travel. It is as if my house is keeping me home. So, I would very much like to find this story to show my wife and children how I feel. Any help would be appreciated.

Steve

 

[nixie]

Moved to book search, hopefully someone will know.

 

[Danny McG]

Faint memories...
Maybe House Arrest by Frank D'Angelo?

 

[Steve Leoni]

Faint memories...
Maybe House Arrest by Frank D'Angelo?

The title got me excited for a second, but, no, googling brought up a book by Frank Dent called House Arrest, but, unfortunatley, that is not it. Thanks for the help.
Steve

 

[Danny McG]

Drat! Senior moment

The book I was thinking about (intelligent but malevolent computer controlled house) was House Arrest by Erik Larson

This book features a character named Frank D'Angelo

 

[Ravensquawk]

This isn't your sought story, but because two of the mechanisms of memory are similarity and contrast, and because it's such a damm fine story, you have probably got to read this story for the reasons you mentioned.

Clifford Simak's story "Huddling Place" in his collection of related short stories called "City"

is "opposite" your sought story in that the brilliant, famous, retired exobiologist physician, claustrophobically won't leave his lifelong, generations-old home, even though he is the only physician on two planets who can perform a lifesaving procedure on his Martian lifelong friend.

You can see the similarities already.

It's just his own self holding himself back, not his home.

Damm, a good story though.

 

[Steve Leoni]

Drat! Senior moment

The book I was thinking about (intelligent but malevolent computer controlled house) was House Arrest by Erik Larson

This book features a character named Frank D'Angelo

No problem. Senior moments are I.

 

[Steve Leoni]

This isn't your sought story, but because two of the mechanisms of memory are similarity and contrast, and because it's such a damm fine story, you have probably got to read this story for the reasons you mentioned.

Clifford Simak's story "Huddling Place" in his collection of related short stories called "City"

is "opposite" your sought story in that the brilliant, famous, retired exobiologist physician, claustrophobically won't leave his lifelong, generations-old home, even though he is the only physician on two planets who can perform a lifesaving procedure on his Martian lifelong friend.

You can see the similarities already.

It's just his own self holding himself back, not his home.

Damm, a good story though.

Indeed. Thanks for your post.

 

[Ravensquawk]

Thank you! I am searching for House Arrest to read. (Probably, read again, but you know how that goes.)

I have this post bookmarked in a folder called "Sentient Buildings and Appliances", because several famous (except, sometimes, to me) stories with that theme keep coming up in the question boards.

 

[AllanR]

Oh, you might like Unauthorized Bread by Cory Doctorow, while not quite sentient, the appliances are terrible.

I have this post bookmarked in a folder called "Sentient Buildings and Appliances"

 

[Ravensquawk]

Oh, you might like Unauthorized Bread by Cory Doctorow, while not quite sentient, the appliances are terrible.

Sweet! Another one I never heard of.
He writes about how he came to put up his own audiobook store on Craphound after Audible became "monopolized".
He has had Craphound out for so long that I think it is an institution in its own right.

 

[BAYLOR]

Thank you! I am searching for House Arrest to read. (Probably, read again, but you know how that goes.)

I have this post bookmarked in a folder called "Sentient Buildings and Appliances", because several famous (except, sometimes, to me) stories with that theme keep coming up in the question boards.

Have you ever read The Humanoids by Jack Williamson ? They're androids created to aid mankind , to keep us safe and secure and away from anything that could be construed as harmful. Yes, they're here to serve our needs whether we like it or not and, if we don't like it ,they will condition us to like it . I would put this under the heading of a cautionary tale about the dangers of giving too much power to household appliances .

 

[Ravensquawk]

Thank you! I just bookmarked that one too.

I haven't read it. Or, read it and forgot that I did, ha.

You know how that goes.

 

[Danny McG]

Have a look at this one....
It features an intelligent building (a galactic police station) that is authorised to fight battles when attackers get too near.

 

[PaulMmn]

On the lighter side of appliances-- The Brave Little Toaster is a 1987 American-British animated musical[3] film adapted from the 1980 novel The Brave Little Toaster by Thomas M. Disch.

Features the voice of Thurl Ravenscroft as Kirby, a very deep-voiced, individualistic Kirby vacuum cleaner
Ravenscroft was the voice of Tony the Tiger for decades (and was a whole lot more tigerish than whoever's doing it now); he sang "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" (uncredited).

[notes from WikiPedia]

 

[BAYLOR]

Have a look at this one....
It features an intelligent building (a galactic police station) that is authorised to fight battles when attackers get too near.
View attachment 80574

Ive seen that exact edition , years and years ago, only once.

 

[AllanR]

I thought I recognized it from the description looked it up and saw it was the same story--though I read the previous version called With Folded Hands

Have you ever read The Humanoids by Jack Williamson ? They're androids created to aid mankind , to keep us safe and secure and away from anything that could be construed as harmful. Yes, they're here to serve our needs whether we like it or not and, if we don't like it ,they will condition us to like it . I would put this under the heading of a cautionary tale about the dangers of giving too much power to household appliances .

 

[BAYLOR]

I thought I recognized it from the description looked it up and saw it was the same story--though I read the previous version called With Folded Hands

With Folded Hands is a prelude story to The Humanoids.

Fred Saberhagen wrote a short story Bad Machines in which the Humanoids met the Berserkers with humans caught in the middle .

 

[Ravensquawk]

I thought I recognized it from the description looked it up and saw it was the same story--though I read the previous version called With Folded Hands

The Humanoids is an extension of "With Folded Hands"?!

How magnificent is that!

That's yet another short story I knew and loved for which I didn't know there was a longer version.

(Tom Godwin's "Too Soon to Die".)