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Warning: NaNo post!
Oct. 6th, 2011 01:06 pmPrep for nano is coming together, though I know that if I continue to procrastinate, I'm going to be very annoyed this november.
There, I successfully imported my LJ stuff, which is good. Of course, I still have to take the time to post new thoughts and ideas.
I'm going to a personal development workshop starting tomorrow night and it'll last until Sunday evening. I've been carefully not thinking about it; I know it'll have lots of value and give me the kick in the butt I so desperately need (again), but I also know that if I think about it, I'll end up with an anxiety attack. So instead I'll just finish this post, drink my mojito and go back to a nice, safe, mindless FB game to keep me from hyperventilating.
Then I'll pack.
I'm going to a personal development workshop starting tomorrow night and it'll last until Sunday evening. I've been carefully not thinking about it; I know it'll have lots of value and give me the kick in the butt I so desperately need (again), but I also know that if I think about it, I'll end up with an anxiety attack. So instead I'll just finish this post, drink my mojito and go back to a nice, safe, mindless FB game to keep me from hyperventilating.
Then I'll pack.
one year later...
Sep. 14th, 2011 04:07 pmPretty much a literal one year later, too.
I keep forgetting I have various journals/blogs scattered throughout the internet, until suddenly I have a great little comment and no idea where exactly I'm supposed to put it.
I could, of course, embed my blogs within each other, so that if I manage to remember where one of them is, they all get the information.
Though I do worry that I could end up with an endlessly updating fiasco...
I keep forgetting I have various journals/blogs scattered throughout the internet, until suddenly I have a great little comment and no idea where exactly I'm supposed to put it.
I could, of course, embed my blogs within each other, so that if I manage to remember where one of them is, they all get the information.
Though I do worry that I could end up with an endlessly updating fiasco...
wow, talk about a sabbatical
Jul. 4th, 2011 12:27 pmfinally decided to stop in on livejournal, at which point I realized just how long it's been since I was here!
which is crazily long, given how much I need to talk about sh!t in my life. must be repressing again.
which is crazily long, given how much I need to talk about sh!t in my life. must be repressing again.
Time's growing short before nano, and I still haven't finished my outline. I think it's the usual low-self esteem crap, so I'll just have to smack my inner procrastinator with a mallet and get my butt in gear!
The CDs I put on hold through the library have all arrived; now my nano soundtrack is much closer to completion. Given the vaguely Tarantino feel of my story, I started with Resevoir Dogs, moved on to Pulp Fiction, and (DAM) just realized I should have gotten the Kill Bill soundtracks as well...
Um, okay, no more dodging the outline, time to stop posting here, and start typing there...
...
Right after I finish playing my FB games...
nanowrimo countdown begins!
Oct. 5th, 2010 07:01 pmplot outline found? check
laptop found & sig banner created? check
time spent in the Spork Room? double check!
It's October, and the time for getting ready for nanowrimo has begun. I've (mostly) decided on a plot, found the outline I put together over a year ago (oh, the joy of cryptic statements I *used* to get), put together a sig banner, and have spent far too much time on the nanowrimo forums.
I still seriously recommend that if you're having worries about your nano, visit the Spork Room thread in the Nano Ate my Soul forum. It's fun, great support, and very addictive. The only downside is the incredibly high volume of posts!
laptop found & sig banner created? check
time spent in the Spork Room? double check!
It's October, and the time for getting ready for nanowrimo has begun. I've (mostly) decided on a plot, found the outline I put together over a year ago (oh, the joy of cryptic statements I *used* to get), put together a sig banner, and have spent far too much time on the nanowrimo forums.
I still seriously recommend that if you're having worries about your nano, visit the Spork Room thread in the Nano Ate my Soul forum. It's fun, great support, and very addictive. The only downside is the incredibly high volume of posts!
Odd thoughts on dating self-help books
Oct. 1st, 2010 04:25 pmWhen I open up my browser, my iGoogle page has the XKCD comic on it. I didn't get the joke initially, so I googled 'The Rules' and 'The Game'.
( Read more... )I just don't get it.
And dam it, I just realized I left my nano outline at work...
( Read more... )I just don't get it.
And dam it, I just realized I left my nano outline at work...
first post
Sep. 3rd, 2010 10:21 pmThank you so much, gramina, for the account link! I totally plan to use this space for NaNoWriMo writing, as well as other literary musings.
Flames to dust
Sep. 1st, 2010 08:50 pmI've started doing the character creation, which has gotten confusing, since I'll start off writing about one character from Story A and find myself ten minutes later writing about a character from Story B! Lot of cut & pasting going on...
I've also found the soundtrack for the character I was chewing on. I'd thought it would also be pop punk, like the music for the love interest, but that didn't pan out (though I did develop an appreaciation for Lillix.) Instead, while I was at work and trying to find the right accuradio station, I found myself listening to latin rock, and two songs in a row, I heard songs I knew in English, which were surreal and almost disorientating to hear in Spanish (that sense of almost, but not quite, understanding.) The emotional response was totally appropriate for my MC!
And that led me to Nelly Furtado, specifically her Folklore, Loose, & Mi Plan albums.
Baby steps
Aug. 21st, 2010 12:12 amReading lj posts by writers plus finally reading Flirt by LKH made me take another long look at why I haven't been writing. Being the kind of person I am, I'll now list the realizations I've had.
1. I'm still letting my fears keep me back. Procrastination is a form of protecting myself from risk; I need to get through it. Again.
2. The afterword in Flirt reminded me of the importance of music as inspiration. I'd already been thinking about how one character in my current story (it counts as current even if I haven't done more than half an outline, right?) suited the entire Masterpiece Theater album by Marianas Trench.
3. I realized I had no soundtrack for the main character. Which made me realize that...
4.I had no real grasp of the MC's personality. And really, how can you write about someone so nebulous? What's their motivation?
5. I realized that few of my MCs ever have well-developed personalities. Hideous epiphany. Beyond loosely basing them on myself (and asking myself, 'what would I do here?'), they had no individual personality. And while I could reassure myself that if I were writing cheap romances, identical characters between books are okay, I'm not writing cookie-cutter romances. I'm not even writing regular romances. All of which doesn't even address that primary issue of never having created a full character in the first place. Very embarrassing.
6. Which leads me to this; has this failure to create a full & rich MC this been the biggest cause of my failure to finish a novel outside of NaNoWriMo? When the MC has no real focus, then how can the story have one?
So, I surfed around and found some character creation questions, which I will have to gird myself up to answer over the next few days, and hope I come out the other end with a functional, fun & write-able main character!
Oh, and I've started 'auditioning' various albums to see if I can get a feel for this MC, and finally give her a dammed soundtrack!
1. I'm still letting my fears keep me back. Procrastination is a form of protecting myself from risk; I need to get through it. Again.
2. The afterword in Flirt reminded me of the importance of music as inspiration. I'd already been thinking about how one character in my current story (it counts as current even if I haven't done more than half an outline, right?) suited the entire Masterpiece Theater album by Marianas Trench.
3. I realized I had no soundtrack for the main character. Which made me realize that...
4.I had no real grasp of the MC's personality. And really, how can you write about someone so nebulous? What's their motivation?
5. I realized that few of my MCs ever have well-developed personalities. Hideous epiphany. Beyond loosely basing them on myself (and asking myself, 'what would I do here?'), they had no individual personality. And while I could reassure myself that if I were writing cheap romances, identical characters between books are okay, I'm not writing cookie-cutter romances. I'm not even writing regular romances. All of which doesn't even address that primary issue of never having created a full character in the first place. Very embarrassing.
6. Which leads me to this; has this failure to create a full & rich MC this been the biggest cause of my failure to finish a novel outside of NaNoWriMo? When the MC has no real focus, then how can the story have one?
So, I surfed around and found some character creation questions, which I will have to gird myself up to answer over the next few days, and hope I come out the other end with a functional, fun & write-able main character!
Oh, and I've started 'auditioning' various albums to see if I can get a feel for this MC, and finally give her a dammed soundtrack!
(no subject)
Aug. 13th, 2010 05:05 pmSo, I didn't get the job; they went with someone with tonnes of experience.
I just have to keep telling myself I'm going to get a great, full-time job soon, and really believe it. Sigh. Obviously, it's a little tough to do.
Oh, and an earwig snuck into the newspaper, which I didn't notice till I picked the thing up from the couch to put it in the recycling, when the little b*st*rd made a beeline for the crack between the cushions and disappeared!
Why me?
So I had my oracle cards done, and apparently, they're trying to wake me up, force me to keep passionate and alive. I have to say, knowing there's an earwig somewhere in the couch and could pinch me at any moment sure has me 'awake.'
I just have to keep telling myself I'm going to get a great, full-time job soon, and really believe it. Sigh. Obviously, it's a little tough to do.
Oh, and an earwig snuck into the newspaper, which I didn't notice till I picked the thing up from the couch to put it in the recycling, when the little b*st*rd made a beeline for the crack between the cushions and disappeared!
Why me?
So I had my oracle cards done, and apparently, they're trying to wake me up, force me to keep passionate and alive. I have to say, knowing there's an earwig somewhere in the couch and could pinch me at any moment sure has me 'awake.'
Job Interview coming up
Aug. 7th, 2010 08:31 pmI have a job interview coming up on monday, and being the sensible person I am, I consulted the I Ching on how to behave during the interview. I got hexagram 13, which changes to 37 with the fourth line the changing line.
In my fav interpretation book, The I Ching Workbook by R.L. Wing, 13 is Community, and the changing line reads "Your obsession with the attainment of your personal goals will ultimately cut you off from others. The more you pursue your dream, the farther you drift from your community. In time, your loneliness will bring you to your senses. Good fortune."
What the frick does that mean!??!? My desire to have a decent job, that will pay the rent and keep my kids in food, clothing, & utilities will be my downfall?!?! oh, and then throw in 'good fortune' to make up for that?!
According to Sam Reifler's I Ching book, the changing line is "you are about let yourself go and fully enter into an unselfish, rewarding society of men. You still retain some feelings of competitiveness and wariness, but it has begun to dawn on you that these feelings are truly absurd."
Much better.
I have an ongoing relationship with earwigs this summer.
This started about two weeks ago. At night, when I went to go outside and sit for a bit, they were everywhere, perching. Like, tiny little vultures that like to pinch things. In that first week, I got pinched twice, as they decided to climb on me as an ultimate overhang on which to lurk. So during daylight hours a few days later, I got out buckets of soapy water, and washed the whole area down. This resulted in fewer early lurkers, then by midnight, there were as many, if not more earwigs than before!
And I got pinched again.
I began to wonder about the spiritual significance of earwigs. After all, I reasoned, if they were than insistent about getting my attention, surely there was a reason for it.
Then they at my Mom's marigolds.
Now when I go out and sit outside for a bit, I see maybe two earwigs, and fifty moths (which were probably being eaten by the earwigs before.) It's quiet, and I can relax, knowing that my skin will not be the target of creeping hunters (though mosquitoes still must be endured.)
Personally, I'd rather wave away fluttering moths than have earwigs trying to pinch my butt!
This started about two weeks ago. At night, when I went to go outside and sit for a bit, they were everywhere, perching. Like, tiny little vultures that like to pinch things. In that first week, I got pinched twice, as they decided to climb on me as an ultimate overhang on which to lurk. So during daylight hours a few days later, I got out buckets of soapy water, and washed the whole area down. This resulted in fewer early lurkers, then by midnight, there were as many, if not more earwigs than before!
And I got pinched again.
I began to wonder about the spiritual significance of earwigs. After all, I reasoned, if they were than insistent about getting my attention, surely there was a reason for it.
Then they at my Mom's marigolds.
Now when I go out and sit outside for a bit, I see maybe two earwigs, and fifty moths (which were probably being eaten by the earwigs before.) It's quiet, and I can relax, knowing that my skin will not be the target of creeping hunters (though mosquitoes still must be endured.)
Personally, I'd rather wave away fluttering moths than have earwigs trying to pinch my butt!
One decade old!
Jul. 7th, 2010 07:26 pmMy eldest is ten years old today! Weird to think that I've been a mom for a decade now... (of a living, breathing child). A decade seems like a hell of a long time, and makes me feel more baffled than anything. I finally understand why so many parents say, "Where did all the time go?" It sure doesn't seem like ten years!
So, Happy Birthday, Baby!
I should add, I also realized a couple of days ago that 2011 will be my 20th grad year reunion. That really makes my brain want to go 'sproing'. People with 20-year grad reunions are *old*, aren't they?
So, Happy Birthday, Baby!
I should add, I also realized a couple of days ago that 2011 will be my 20th grad year reunion. That really makes my brain want to go 'sproing'. People with 20-year grad reunions are *old*, aren't they?
Step one, step two, repeat
Jul. 7th, 2010 07:19 pmI borrowed a number of CDs from the library, but I keep listening to only one; Masterpiece Theatre by Marianas Trench. Could there be a better band? Not for me!
They placed recently in the town I live in, but I didn't go. Firstly, I couldn't really afford it (damn the end of student loans!) and secondly, I'm sooo much older than their regular fans, it felt kinda creepy even to contemplate going. Silly, I know.
They placed recently in the town I live in, but I didn't go. Firstly, I couldn't really afford it (damn the end of student loans!) and secondly, I'm sooo much older than their regular fans, it felt kinda creepy even to contemplate going. Silly, I know.
why you should always wear a bra
Jun. 5th, 2010 11:13 pmSo I ran out to the gas station to grab some nibbles and stuff, and as I'm walking away, I realize someone is calling my name. It took me a sec, cuz a) I'm lousy at paying attention to my surroundings, and b) it was a guy, and I don't really know any guys.
Anyway, I turn and look, and it's a dad of one of my Eldest's classmates. So I wave, and say hi and get in my car. I briefly thought, "I should run over and chat," before sanity struck. I don't care if he's cute, ugly, married or a grandpa; I don't like talking to people when I'm braless! I hadn't expected to see anyone I knew, so of course I did. sigh
And I haven't actually talked to him in like, ten months or so, since I started school and my mother took over taking and picking up the girls at school. I like his daughter (the one who's the classmate of Eldest), and here was a perfect opportunity to get them together! sigh.
I'll have to give him a call and see if I can arrange something, after I talk to Eldest and make sure they're still friends. fingers crossed.
Anyway, I turn and look, and it's a dad of one of my Eldest's classmates. So I wave, and say hi and get in my car. I briefly thought, "I should run over and chat," before sanity struck. I don't care if he's cute, ugly, married or a grandpa; I don't like talking to people when I'm braless! I hadn't expected to see anyone I knew, so of course I did. sigh
And I haven't actually talked to him in like, ten months or so, since I started school and my mother took over taking and picking up the girls at school. I like his daughter (the one who's the classmate of Eldest), and here was a perfect opportunity to get them together! sigh.
I'll have to give him a call and see if I can arrange something, after I talk to Eldest and make sure they're still friends. fingers crossed.
twitilations
Jan. 5th, 2010 11:40 am- lol, finally voted in the #biggaybattle. My choice? No one's classier and sassier than George Takei.
twitilations
Jan. 4th, 2010 11:40 am- tomorrow's gonna be weird; first day in a completely different classroom!
- plus, new people in program; even weirder... g'night
- Math - 6 hours a day...
twitilations
Jan. 2nd, 2010 11:40 am- already thinking about next New Years: hilarious scifi from the 80s! tiny.cc/zs5Hq
- perfect time to watch 2010.
- oh dear, no.1 holiday activity of FB games will have to end soon! wah!
twitilations
Jan. 1st, 2010 11:40 am- am ready for New Year's: have cider, end-of-world movies, a Thin Man marathon on TCM, and books to read if I get bored.
- snowfall warning for tonight; guess there's a plus side to staying in New Year's eve!
- trying to cast a prequel to The Thin Man, can't quite figure out who I'd want as Nora.
- happy 2010, and may all of your hangovers be as mild as mine.
