I'd say not much has happened recently, but it has been a busy couple weeks. Just a blur of a couple weeks.
The bad stuff:
- Mom was laid off last Friday. It wasn't completely unexpected, though. She works in real estate, and the company had been stripping off personnel all year. I left a message for her to commiserate, but she headed off immediately for a vacation week at the beach. So I haven't talked to her yet. I'm gathering that the beach week means she's okay, though.
- Been sick for the better part of a week with some annoying low-grade thing that just will not leave me alone. I had a couple days in it that were very miserable with multiple trips to the bathroom for a couple different issues (ahem). Feeling a bit better, but I'm still obnoxiously tired all the time. Just drained.
- Work's been stressful due to the people I work with. Nothing new, but it hasn't helped matters.
The good stuff:
- Been doing my writing for Support Stacie. I'm about 1/2 done with wiggiemomsi's fic (hooray!), and then will start on the shorter after-pieces to thank other high bidders. Wiggie's should be done by mid-next week, then off to beta. The others I'll do on my week off at the end of the month.
- I HAVE A WEEK OFF AT THE END OF THE MONTH. Yay! First vacation week since the UK last fall. I need it so badly.
- Went last weekend to the University of Rhode Island for their spring farm fair. The masters students in life sciences grow plants in the college greenhouses over the winter, then sell them as a fundraiser. I got three different tomatoes (already large enough that they're staked), a jalapeno pepper plant, mixed basil, parsley, garlic chives, and 2 lavender seedlings. We're going to build a raised bed this weekend to plant everything. :)
- Mom's offered to come up when I take time off to help decorate the house - badly needed, since we haven't done a thing since moving in. I cannot wait to get rid of our loud, 1970's era wallpaper. She has ideas for the kitchen, and I will happily go along with them since I have no decorating sense whatsoever.
- My clothes are too big, and I need to buy new ones not only because mine are worn - but because THEY ARE TOO BIG ON ME. Woots!
- We're selling the Jeep to a guy who wants to fix it up as a second car project. Only getting $600 for it, but due to the amount of work needed, we're cool with it. And it's more than we'd get for a donation. It's not trade-in worthy, since it doesn't run.
- Soon, hopefully, I will have a new car. We've decided, barring issues with a test drive, on a Honda Fit, quite possibly in "Blue Sensation Pearl" which is so TARDIS looking, it's hysterical. And this car is definitely "bigger on the inside" than it appears. Heh.
Showing posts with label writing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label writing. Show all posts
15 May 2009
20 March 2009
The official plug for Support Stacie
I will be writing again for the Support Stacie Auction, being held April 3-6, 2009. (link above). I've pledged for one 5,000 word fic (bids will start at $10) in one of the three fandoms: Doctor Who, Torchwood, or X-Files. Prompts, rating, pairings, etc. are up to the winning bidder's choice. The only restrictions I've asked for are no requests for babyfic, wedding fic, or songfic, and if asking for a Doctor Who fic, please limit scope to sometime in the New Series, as my Classic Who isn't yet up to snuff for writing.
AND...
AND... ;)
my special offer for the auction is that if bids go above $100 for my fic, anyone bidding $100 or over will also get a fic of at least 1,000 words according to their requests as well, to be finished after the winning bidder's fic. (And knowing me... any of that fic is going to go at least 3,000 words, honestly).
So bid! Not just on me, though - bid on everyone! :)
28 July 2008
Monday musings...
Just because I haven't in a long while, I'm posting this to my blog at measi.net, too...
This past weekend was a bit odd and scatterbrained. A good one, and for the most part I finally feel like I had a productive weekend that didn't leave me feeling like crap for not doing XYZ. I did some chores. I did some writing. I also goofed around. So all in all - the balance I needed.
Friday night was the X-Files movie, which I did enjoy even if I was well aware going in that it wasn't going to be fantastic. It was fun. I think it was definitely geared more toward existing fans, and I don't expect many new fans of the series to come from this movie. But eh, no big deal. Enjoyed it, loved seeing Mulder and Scully go on another adventure together, and laughed along with many others in the audience. So good times. :)
On Saturday, Ivanna was up in the area, and the original plan had been to get together, but the party she said was happening was a bit too far away for our tastes, so we wound up not going. I'm going to have to plan some sort of a weekend to go down Easton-NJ way and see people instead.
We did finally get some good yardwork done on Saturday - the trumpet vines and wild honeysuckle needed to be tamed back quite a bit in the front yard along with weeds that had managed to grow taller than Erich (no... really. 6'4" foot high weeds). Thankfully with rain, they pulled right out of the ground, so it wasn't too difficult of work for me. Erich mowed a decent amount of the yard, and it's starting to look somewhat tamed back.
I focused a majority of this weekend on writing - my ficathon deadline was extended until August 2nd, and while I know where the story is going, I've really been having difficulty getting the "that's what we need to do!" point in the story out through my fingers and move properly. Lots of characters spinning around waiting for me to figure out where they're going. The irony is that the next chapter is already 3/4 written - so it's a basic "get from point A to point C" type situation. But my brain just has not been able to write in a way that I'm happy with.
I realize that I could be a complete slacker, ignore the years of "show, don't tell" that was beaten into me with every writing course I've taken. And yes, I realize it's fanfic and nothing earth-shattering and that it doesn't have to be good. I see fanfiction, however, as a way to practice and perfect writing - working on creating strong, fluid dialogue, improving story pacing, etc. It's a bit of a writer's workshop to me. So even though it's not for a grade or wage, I do take it seriously - perhaps too seriously.
Anyway, I think I've got the solution, and it's progressing nicely now - albeit a bit slower than I would want. I really need to push to get the chapter done today so I can get it to beta tonight and allow folks appropriate time to check them over. I'm concerned that the last two chapters may wind up too late for beta work, and I'll just have to risk it on my own.
Worst comes to worst - I had a half-day planned for Thursday. I'm already planning to spend a good portion of it at Borders writing.
More distractions were added to the home this weekend, too. Matt bought a copy of Lego Indiana Jones (which, from the little I saw, was absolutely hysterical). We also picked up our copy of Rock Band. The guys jammed a bit last night - I was offered the singer position, but I only recognized one of the three initial songs, and couldn't sing it anyway, so I just sat and watched (I generally hate to sing in front of other people. I can carry a tune okay... but I don't have a particularly strong voice and am just a bit too shy about it. That's why I play an instrument instead).
I also picked up two Sims2 expansions, although my CD-ROM drive seems to have died again... so it's off to purchase a new one before I can install.
Busy, busy, busy...
And now off to work!
This past weekend was a bit odd and scatterbrained. A good one, and for the most part I finally feel like I had a productive weekend that didn't leave me feeling like crap for not doing XYZ. I did some chores. I did some writing. I also goofed around. So all in all - the balance I needed.
Friday night was the X-Files movie, which I did enjoy even if I was well aware going in that it wasn't going to be fantastic. It was fun. I think it was definitely geared more toward existing fans, and I don't expect many new fans of the series to come from this movie. But eh, no big deal. Enjoyed it, loved seeing Mulder and Scully go on another adventure together, and laughed along with many others in the audience. So good times. :)
On Saturday, Ivanna was up in the area, and the original plan had been to get together, but the party she said was happening was a bit too far away for our tastes, so we wound up not going. I'm going to have to plan some sort of a weekend to go down Easton-NJ way and see people instead.
We did finally get some good yardwork done on Saturday - the trumpet vines and wild honeysuckle needed to be tamed back quite a bit in the front yard along with weeds that had managed to grow taller than Erich (no... really. 6'4" foot high weeds). Thankfully with rain, they pulled right out of the ground, so it wasn't too difficult of work for me. Erich mowed a decent amount of the yard, and it's starting to look somewhat tamed back.
I focused a majority of this weekend on writing - my ficathon deadline was extended until August 2nd, and while I know where the story is going, I've really been having difficulty getting the "that's what we need to do!" point in the story out through my fingers and move properly. Lots of characters spinning around waiting for me to figure out where they're going. The irony is that the next chapter is already 3/4 written - so it's a basic "get from point A to point C" type situation. But my brain just has not been able to write in a way that I'm happy with.
I realize that I could be a complete slacker, ignore the years of "show, don't tell" that was beaten into me with every writing course I've taken. And yes, I realize it's fanfic and nothing earth-shattering and that it doesn't have to be good. I see fanfiction, however, as a way to practice and perfect writing - working on creating strong, fluid dialogue, improving story pacing, etc. It's a bit of a writer's workshop to me. So even though it's not for a grade or wage, I do take it seriously - perhaps too seriously.
Anyway, I think I've got the solution, and it's progressing nicely now - albeit a bit slower than I would want. I really need to push to get the chapter done today so I can get it to beta tonight and allow folks appropriate time to check them over. I'm concerned that the last two chapters may wind up too late for beta work, and I'll just have to risk it on my own.
Worst comes to worst - I had a half-day planned for Thursday. I'm already planning to spend a good portion of it at Borders writing.
More distractions were added to the home this weekend, too. Matt bought a copy of Lego Indiana Jones (which, from the little I saw, was absolutely hysterical). We also picked up our copy of Rock Band. The guys jammed a bit last night - I was offered the singer position, but I only recognized one of the three initial songs, and couldn't sing it anyway, so I just sat and watched (I generally hate to sing in front of other people. I can carry a tune okay... but I don't have a particularly strong voice and am just a bit too shy about it. That's why I play an instrument instead).
I also picked up two Sims2 expansions, although my CD-ROM drive seems to have died again... so it's off to purchase a new one before I can install.
Busy, busy, busy...
And now off to work!
08 February 2008
Looking forward to the weekend
I'm a bit off-center this morning, mostly because Erich's cough sent him into the guest bedroom last night so he didn't have to feel paranoid about being restless (and allowing me to get some sleep). Very considerate of him, particularly since I am such a shitty sleeper as it is.
I did sleep, but I swear, even while asleep, I had this weird sense about being alone in the bed. Marriage is clearly getting to me. :) Not that we haven't slept in the same bed for six years now, of course... but still... there's a LOT of room for one person in a king-sized bed.
The extra room, of course, promptly filled up with cats. I woke up with three balls of fur in various spots on the mattress. I imagine at least one of the additionals was with Erich, playing nurse kitten. Hoodsie was undoubtedly downstairs on his ottoman. Cat #5 (whichever it was) was... wherever.
I have a lot to do this weekend, but I'm intentionally forcing myself to take as much of Saturday as possible to curl up in my office and do some brain-dump style writing. Whether on my OSK fic, other fic ideas, or just random schlock writing. I need to get myself comfortable with my own thoughts, and I just need to make the time for it. As I told Erich last night - what I really need to do is just set aside a day, dump off all of my chores and errands as "will do later" and just let myself go for it. If I plan other things to do, I won't be able to relax and write. It just won't happen at all.
So that's tomorrow's plan. We'll see what comes of it. I do have a lot of little snippets of ideas churning, so it literally may just be writing 100 word images in my head that have absolutely no coherancy beyond the immediate images. But hey, they'll be down in print. And I can see later if something comes of any of them. I just need to get them OUT. If I'm getting too distracted at home, a trip down to Borders for a pot of tea may be used as well.
Speaking of tea...
The sorority Tea is on Sunday afternoon for the potential new class ofpledges membership candidates, so I'll be going up to Boston for the afternoon. Should be fun. Hopefully goes well. Need to remember to go buy a car battery beforehand so I can actually get to Boston, though. That may have to kick off Saturday pre-writing.
I read last night that next week's Torchwood is a double-bill. Eps 5 and 6 will be shown back to back on BBC2. Six is the first of Martha's run on TW... we'll see if something's actually done with her character now that the dreaded unrequited love crap on Who is over.
Hmmm...
I did sleep, but I swear, even while asleep, I had this weird sense about being alone in the bed. Marriage is clearly getting to me. :) Not that we haven't slept in the same bed for six years now, of course... but still... there's a LOT of room for one person in a king-sized bed.
The extra room, of course, promptly filled up with cats. I woke up with three balls of fur in various spots on the mattress. I imagine at least one of the additionals was with Erich, playing nurse kitten. Hoodsie was undoubtedly downstairs on his ottoman. Cat #5 (whichever it was) was... wherever.
I have a lot to do this weekend, but I'm intentionally forcing myself to take as much of Saturday as possible to curl up in my office and do some brain-dump style writing. Whether on my OSK fic, other fic ideas, or just random schlock writing. I need to get myself comfortable with my own thoughts, and I just need to make the time for it. As I told Erich last night - what I really need to do is just set aside a day, dump off all of my chores and errands as "will do later" and just let myself go for it. If I plan other things to do, I won't be able to relax and write. It just won't happen at all.
So that's tomorrow's plan. We'll see what comes of it. I do have a lot of little snippets of ideas churning, so it literally may just be writing 100 word images in my head that have absolutely no coherancy beyond the immediate images. But hey, they'll be down in print. And I can see later if something comes of any of them. I just need to get them OUT. If I'm getting too distracted at home, a trip down to Borders for a pot of tea may be used as well.
Speaking of tea...
The sorority Tea is on Sunday afternoon for the potential new class of
I read last night that next week's Torchwood is a double-bill. Eps 5 and 6 will be shown back to back on BBC2. Six is the first of Martha's run on TW... we'll see if something's actually done with her character now that the dreaded unrequited love crap on Who is over.
Hmmm...
19 December 2007
Wednesday musings
- I have listened to John Barrowman's Another Side quite a few times lately. I absolutely adore his versions of Time After Time, Weekend in New England and Heaven. His version of All Out of Love is quite good, too. (Is it just me, or am I hearing his Scots come through on that? Maybe I'm just too used to Russell Hitchcock's Aussie...) It's a fantastic album top to bottom, IMHO.
- Took last night off from all things fanfic once I posted the first half of my fic due yesterday. Needed to for my brain's sake. Getting back to it today. Once I get the rest of the OT3 fic posted and finish up the pinch hit piece I'm doing for OSK, I'll be taking a writing break for a while. I have cross stitching that's screaming at me to get done.
- I really need to get my Christmas cards finished and mailed. At this point, folks MIGHT get them by New Year's...
- I really need to buy something for my dad & his wife today. *sigh*
- My friends list on LJ amuses me, especially the random threads about sex toys. :)
- It's sad that I'm excited that Erich and I are buying a snowblower. But I suppose that's what you have to look forward to when you're married and homeowners. Goddess, I'm turning into my parents.
- Speaking of Goddess... two days until Yule. I probably should get on thinking about what I'm doing this year.
- Took last night off from all things fanfic once I posted the first half of my fic due yesterday. Needed to for my brain's sake. Getting back to it today. Once I get the rest of the OT3 fic posted and finish up the pinch hit piece I'm doing for OSK, I'll be taking a writing break for a while. I have cross stitching that's screaming at me to get done.
- I really need to get my Christmas cards finished and mailed. At this point, folks MIGHT get them by New Year's...
- I really need to buy something for my dad & his wife today. *sigh*
- My friends list on LJ amuses me, especially the random threads about sex toys. :)
- It's sad that I'm excited that Erich and I are buying a snowblower. But I suppose that's what you have to look forward to when you're married and homeowners. Goddess, I'm turning into my parents.
- Speaking of Goddess... two days until Yule. I probably should get on thinking about what I'm doing this year.
07 December 2007
Squirming again
Well, it was a productive night last night. Got the draft of the OSK piece done. I'm fairly happy with it. I could do more, but I can always do more, I suppose. There's always room for improvement. But I needed to get something to the beta readers (thanks guys!!!) and just feel productive about it.
To my surprise before I went to bed, I had beta reads returned from two folks - eep! That was fast. Granted, it's 2,000 words... but still, really fast. I haven't looked at comments yet, though. I want to get the OT3 fic draft done and sent off before I start editing. Keeping focus is good, and I've been struggling with it as it is.
My plan this evening is to loosen up with a small amount of alcoholic shots of my choice and then get to writing the sex scenes of this fic. I don't feel comfortable writing smut on the train - just in case someone's staring over my shoulder. Writing smut in general is very... well... revealing, I think. It definitely exposes a writer in ways that are unique. Perhaps it's one of those societal undercurrents gone wrong - or just my slightly more conservative upbringing. I don't know. But yes, it does make me feel like I'm exposed and on uncomfortable display.
Add to that the unknown of writing male-on-male sex, which I have no personal experience with beyond the occasional purient curiosity regarding gay porn (i.e. "how the heck do guys do this together?", and well, it's getting a bit tougher to figure out. Now add on the third party into this OT3 fic, and things are getting MUCH more confusing to figure out.
*Gasp* Writing threesomes? Measi, you should be ashamed of yourself!
So yeah - I've decided that in order to write this, I need to be drunk.
In case at some point anyone reading it thinks it's completely out of left field and crazy and wonders if I were drunk when I wrote this, I can quite honestly say "Yes. Yes I was."
It'll make me feel better, at least.
Popping the prOn cherry,
Mel.
To my surprise before I went to bed, I had beta reads returned from two folks - eep! That was fast. Granted, it's 2,000 words... but still, really fast. I haven't looked at comments yet, though. I want to get the OT3 fic draft done and sent off before I start editing. Keeping focus is good, and I've been struggling with it as it is.
My plan this evening is to loosen up with a small amount of alcoholic shots of my choice and then get to writing the sex scenes of this fic. I don't feel comfortable writing smut on the train - just in case someone's staring over my shoulder. Writing smut in general is very... well... revealing, I think. It definitely exposes a writer in ways that are unique. Perhaps it's one of those societal undercurrents gone wrong - or just my slightly more conservative upbringing. I don't know. But yes, it does make me feel like I'm exposed and on uncomfortable display.
Add to that the unknown of writing male-on-male sex, which I have no personal experience with beyond the occasional purient curiosity regarding gay porn (i.e. "how the heck do guys do this together?", and well, it's getting a bit tougher to figure out. Now add on the third party into this OT3 fic, and things are getting MUCH more confusing to figure out.
*Gasp* Writing threesomes? Measi, you should be ashamed of yourself!
So yeah - I've decided that in order to write this, I need to be drunk.
In case at some point anyone reading it thinks it's completely out of left field and crazy and wonders if I were drunk when I wrote this, I can quite honestly say "Yes. Yes I was."
It'll make me feel better, at least.
Popping the prOn cherry,
Mel.
30 October 2007
Today will be an adventure...
And this morning's trip in on the train was only the beginning, I think...
But before I get to the day, OMG - people like The Ritual of Tea. I'm seriously stunned - because I was kicking myself miserably all weekend as I tried to grasp on to this one and write it. Even now, I have no grasp on the plot guys, and I'm in a bit of disbelief. So yeah, I'm stunned... absolutely, bouncing with glee stunned. (insert over-played Sally Field reference here).
And on to the adventure of the day...
First off - free taco day. So for all of you lucky sods who can get to a Taco Bell (and stand in the line that's guaranteed to be there), go munch for me. Given that the only three I'm aware of in the greater Boston area are all too far away from me, I have no chance in hell. BUT... for those Bostonians who don't know where they are - 700 Comm Ave on BU Campus, the Cambridgeside Galleria food court, and on Mass Ave north of Porter Square. I'm sure there are others, but those are the three I've personally been to.
(Fellow Rhodys, both of the ones on Route 2 in Cranston & Warwick are now renovated and reopened... and of course, there's the one at Providence Place. Go forth and taco).
Second - the Commuter Rail trains after 3 p.m. have no express service, so if you take a train that usually runs express in any way (that would be me), it's not happening. With the Red Sox parade happening, everything is insane. People were coming in on the 7:10 from Providence this morning - to the point that they had to turn people away from the train due to over-capacity. Trains after 3 aren't going to be anywhere on time due to this, folks, so be prepared for it. I don't count on getting home anywhere before 7:30 tonight - and that's only a half-hour late.
And on top of it, I'm sitting reception today.
At least I can take my frustrations out on carving pumpkins tonight when I get home, and then introduce my husband to the glory that are roasted pumpkin seeds, which I discovered he's never had before. I'm a bit stunned by that.
Apparently, it's a week of being stunned.
But before I get to the day, OMG - people like The Ritual of Tea. I'm seriously stunned - because I was kicking myself miserably all weekend as I tried to grasp on to this one and write it. Even now, I have no grasp on the plot guys, and I'm in a bit of disbelief. So yeah, I'm stunned... absolutely, bouncing with glee stunned. (insert over-played Sally Field reference here).
And on to the adventure of the day...
First off - free taco day. So for all of you lucky sods who can get to a Taco Bell (and stand in the line that's guaranteed to be there), go munch for me. Given that the only three I'm aware of in the greater Boston area are all too far away from me, I have no chance in hell. BUT... for those Bostonians who don't know where they are - 700 Comm Ave on BU Campus, the Cambridgeside Galleria food court, and on Mass Ave north of Porter Square. I'm sure there are others, but those are the three I've personally been to.
(Fellow Rhodys, both of the ones on Route 2 in Cranston & Warwick are now renovated and reopened... and of course, there's the one at Providence Place. Go forth and taco).
Second - the Commuter Rail trains after 3 p.m. have no express service, so if you take a train that usually runs express in any way (that would be me), it's not happening. With the Red Sox parade happening, everything is insane. People were coming in on the 7:10 from Providence this morning - to the point that they had to turn people away from the train due to over-capacity. Trains after 3 aren't going to be anywhere on time due to this, folks, so be prepared for it. I don't count on getting home anywhere before 7:30 tonight - and that's only a half-hour late.
And on top of it, I'm sitting reception today.
At least I can take my frustrations out on carving pumpkins tonight when I get home, and then introduce my husband to the glory that are roasted pumpkin seeds, which I discovered he's never had before. I'm a bit stunned by that.
Apparently, it's a week of being stunned.
29 October 2007
Fanfic: The Ritual of Tea
Title: The Ritual of Tea
Pairing: Ten/Rose
Rating: PG
Written For: _elioclya_
Prompts: "Anything with tea - tea is good." and "Chrall, 16th Century"
Author's Notes: This piece is combining two ficathons - the first ficathon on time_x_space and the Anywhere but Cardiff ficathon on time_and_chips. Both are late, and my writer's ego is more than a little bruised at the mo' for that. A longer, more-in depth piece with Nine is also in the works relating to _elioclya_'s prompt - but Chris' voice is being cranky with me and is giving me the silent treatment. David's won't shut up. (typical, eh?)
Now posted over on my livejournal.
Anonymous comments are screened. :)
Pairing: Ten/Rose
Rating: PG
Written For: _elioclya_
Prompts: "Anything with tea - tea is good." and "Chrall, 16th Century"
Author's Notes: This piece is combining two ficathons - the first ficathon on time_x_space and the Anywhere but Cardiff ficathon on time_and_chips. Both are late, and my writer's ego is more than a little bruised at the mo' for that. A longer, more-in depth piece with Nine is also in the works relating to _elioclya_'s prompt - but Chris' voice is being cranky with me and is giving me the silent treatment. David's won't shut up. (typical, eh?)
Now posted over on my livejournal.
Anonymous comments are screened. :)
22 October 2007
Freaking at the date
So... I've been bringing my laptop with me to and from work for the better part of two weeks to get my fanfic challenges written?
Yeah. THAT's going well. I have maybe 6 paragraphs written on ONE. *sigh* The one that I've already decided to merge two fanfic challenges into one piece, since Anywhere but Cardiff via time_and_chips is slightly more open to interpretation.I'm already wicked late on it - better to combine it with this new project for time_x_space because hell, it can work. And then I have two projects done.
Then I need to figure out my courage for Nine/Jack smut for dwliterotica. I got a great prompt and should have some fun with it (it may require me to get a tad inebriated to loosen up to write, though). But this other project is just overwhelming me. I need to get it off my plate and over to a beta.
Hoped I'd get some writing done this weekend, but the toilet repair fiasco kinda threw that out the window. Between Tau Beta Sigma events and trying to recreate a functional bathroom in our house, it was... an interesting weekend.
I'm too much of a perfectionist. I really am. But I need challenges with deadlines to force myself to write. And I figured that post-wedding, I'd be fine. I'd be ready to do things. Rah-rah-rah! Free time to let my brain dump into words. Unfortunately, my brain is not agreeing with me. It wants to sleep.
I need some serious ass-kickage to get me in gear. Or inspiration. Please inspire me?
Mew?
Yeah. THAT's going well. I have maybe 6 paragraphs written on ONE. *sigh* The one that I've already decided to merge two fanfic challenges into one piece, since Anywhere but Cardiff via time_and_chips is slightly more open to interpretation.I'm already wicked late on it - better to combine it with this new project for time_x_space because hell, it can work. And then I have two projects done.
Then I need to figure out my courage for Nine/Jack smut for dwliterotica. I got a great prompt and should have some fun with it (it may require me to get a tad inebriated to loosen up to write, though). But this other project is just overwhelming me. I need to get it off my plate and over to a beta.
Hoped I'd get some writing done this weekend, but the toilet repair fiasco kinda threw that out the window. Between Tau Beta Sigma events and trying to recreate a functional bathroom in our house, it was... an interesting weekend.
I'm too much of a perfectionist. I really am. But I need challenges with deadlines to force myself to write. And I figured that post-wedding, I'd be fine. I'd be ready to do things. Rah-rah-rah! Free time to let my brain dump into words. Unfortunately, my brain is not agreeing with me. It wants to sleep.
I need some serious ass-kickage to get me in gear. Or inspiration. Please inspire me?
Mew?
16 August 2007
Preventative Sick Day
So... on Day Three of the unexplained cough from nowhere, I decided to stay home to tend to this thing. It kept me up for the better half of the night. Lots of tossing and turning. Bleh.
The thing is, I have a long and annoying history with bronchitis that lasts for months. Not weeks... months. My dad used to drug me up on codeine to try to calm the cough, and THAT wouldn't do it. So when I start getting a random cough that's predominantly dry and hacking, I start getting a bit paranoid. Especially when I'm in the very plausible "I could still be dealing with this late September" range.
I'm not a hypochondriac by any means - except when it comes to bronchitis. I've had enough days of lying on the couch winded with bruised lungs from pain in the past, thanks. I'll be overly cautious here. The kicker is that other than feeling drained from all the coughing, I feel okay. My sinuses are clear. I've had a couple small bouts of fever here and there, I think. But I just SOUND bad. Bad enough that I was getting some annoyed "god, stay home if you have the plague" looks on the train last night.
*sigh* So yeah, preventative sick day.
So after sleeping an extra hour this morning, I came back downstairs to my still delightfully warm cup of hot coffee, and flipped on the TV. Ooh... X-Files. Sick day with X-Files on SciFi. I can do this. Oh, but it's the damn Chupa-thingy episode. *sigh* Why is it always the crappy episodes that show on sick days?
Dammit.
Still, it's being filtered with a ton of ads for Doctor Who tomorrow night. At least I know the show's actually being advertised now. ;)
In any case, while I will be resting, I'll make the day somewhat productive too. The key is to do stuff that won't require me to be physically active, because that's when I really start to cough. So it's a day where I find things that can be done sitting down. I have a ton of various paper to get through & shred (old bills, etc.) that can be done easily while I stay relatively still. And since Victory over Japan Day on Monday has delayed our trash pickup until tomorrow, I can get it into recycling immediately.
I'm going to push to finish something for the Anywhere but Cardiff ficathon so I can send it to beta. Anyone available for some draft reading this weekend if I get it to you? I figure if I at least get the first portion of it posted for the ficathon, I'll be happy. But I am really going to push to finish it so it doesn't become another floating unfinished WiP.
Soniced_Up sent me Chapter 3 of her fic to beta. I'll most likely work on that today so I can turn it right back around. by the weekend. She has an interesting idea going for her ficathon piece, IMHO. I'm interested to see where it's going.
---
Thanks to everyone who replied to me about my wedding ranting yesterday (mostly over on LJ). I do appreciate it, and I'm relieved to hear that while I may be a bit whiney and crabby about all of this, I'm not being a bridezilla. I haven't replied to everyone basically because I got busy yesterday, and then last night was just drained due to this cough. But I do need to get back to people's comments all over the place now.
Erich has been doing an awesome job of tracking down our missing RSVPs. He's whittled the list down by about half already. As of last count, I think he said we have about 20 more people to track down for answers. Which is awesome, because between the two of us we have about a half-dozen people who have become bigger parts of our lives since the original invite list was put together, and we want to have the room to invite them. AND... my aunt asked yesterday if my cousin can bring her boyfriend (which I said I'd get back to her on, depending on what the headcount is).
Now I just need my parents to return my calls so we can get the transportation issues solved - and in my dad's case, hear from him on my proposed father-daughter song so I can get the list to the DJ and strike THAT off my list.
I may whine about this wedding planning, but I am still plodding along. Slowly but surely.
Today, just a bit slower than other days. :P
The thing is, I have a long and annoying history with bronchitis that lasts for months. Not weeks... months. My dad used to drug me up on codeine to try to calm the cough, and THAT wouldn't do it. So when I start getting a random cough that's predominantly dry and hacking, I start getting a bit paranoid. Especially when I'm in the very plausible "I could still be dealing with this late September" range.
I'm not a hypochondriac by any means - except when it comes to bronchitis. I've had enough days of lying on the couch winded with bruised lungs from pain in the past, thanks. I'll be overly cautious here. The kicker is that other than feeling drained from all the coughing, I feel okay. My sinuses are clear. I've had a couple small bouts of fever here and there, I think. But I just SOUND bad. Bad enough that I was getting some annoyed "god, stay home if you have the plague" looks on the train last night.
*sigh* So yeah, preventative sick day.
So after sleeping an extra hour this morning, I came back downstairs to my still delightfully warm cup of hot coffee, and flipped on the TV. Ooh... X-Files. Sick day with X-Files on SciFi. I can do this. Oh, but it's the damn Chupa-thingy episode. *sigh* Why is it always the crappy episodes that show on sick days?
Dammit.
Still, it's being filtered with a ton of ads for Doctor Who tomorrow night. At least I know the show's actually being advertised now. ;)
In any case, while I will be resting, I'll make the day somewhat productive too. The key is to do stuff that won't require me to be physically active, because that's when I really start to cough. So it's a day where I find things that can be done sitting down. I have a ton of various paper to get through & shred (old bills, etc.) that can be done easily while I stay relatively still. And since Victory over Japan Day on Monday has delayed our trash pickup until tomorrow, I can get it into recycling immediately.
I'm going to push to finish something for the Anywhere but Cardiff ficathon so I can send it to beta. Anyone available for some draft reading this weekend if I get it to you? I figure if I at least get the first portion of it posted for the ficathon, I'll be happy. But I am really going to push to finish it so it doesn't become another floating unfinished WiP.
Soniced_Up sent me Chapter 3 of her fic to beta. I'll most likely work on that today so I can turn it right back around. by the weekend. She has an interesting idea going for her ficathon piece, IMHO. I'm interested to see where it's going.
---
Thanks to everyone who replied to me about my wedding ranting yesterday (mostly over on LJ). I do appreciate it, and I'm relieved to hear that while I may be a bit whiney and crabby about all of this, I'm not being a bridezilla. I haven't replied to everyone basically because I got busy yesterday, and then last night was just drained due to this cough. But I do need to get back to people's comments all over the place now.
Erich has been doing an awesome job of tracking down our missing RSVPs. He's whittled the list down by about half already. As of last count, I think he said we have about 20 more people to track down for answers. Which is awesome, because between the two of us we have about a half-dozen people who have become bigger parts of our lives since the original invite list was put together, and we want to have the room to invite them. AND... my aunt asked yesterday if my cousin can bring her boyfriend (which I said I'd get back to her on, depending on what the headcount is).
Now I just need my parents to return my calls so we can get the transportation issues solved - and in my dad's case, hear from him on my proposed father-daughter song so I can get the list to the DJ and strike THAT off my list.
I may whine about this wedding planning, but I am still plodding along. Slowly but surely.
Today, just a bit slower than other days. :P
06 August 2007
Meta thoughts on LiveJournal and fandom
X-posted from my LiveJournal
There’s been a lot of uproar lately from fandom regarding the suspension of journals, and now there’s a huge cry for people to move en masse to a new site, showing solidarity with the HP fandom whose journals are getting deleted. They’re protesting the right to free speech being trampled, and how LJ doesn’t want them to exist, and how they don’t feel welcome on LJ anymore, and all sorts of other feelings which I respect for being valid…
.. but sorry, guys, I just don’t agree with you.
One of the things that I’ve learned in my years on this Earth is that freedom of speech is not fundamentally free. To say that “you need to accept the free speech of others as well” is too simplifying. The reality is that yes, freedom of speech is a wonderful thing. But freedom of speech doesn’t mean that the speaker/writer is exempt from any backlash for said speech. In this case, since it’s appropriate, the artist can create whatever art, written or visual, that (s)he wants. BUT – others, including the company that owns the servers where the art is posted have every right to respond. The more controversial the opinion, the more backlash can be expected. And that includes having journals deleted without prior notice.
A lot of the screaming right now seems to be coming from the Harry Potter fanbase, particularly those who are creating NC-17 rated visual art and fanfic. I’m having a difficult time feeling sympathy for them in this case, and I honestly don’t want to be lumped in fandom with them, and here’s why.
Harry Potter is, at its core, a story about kids growing up in a fantastic world. They begin the books at age 11, and at the end of the final book (with the exception of the epilogue), end at age 17. Regardless of the audience-at-large, the target audience for these books is elementary and secondary school-aged kids. The main characters involved are underage school-aged kids.
So enter the world of fandom, and particularly the sidebar of fandom that insists that everything has to be smuttastic. They create communities for these adult-natured topics. They play as they wish to play, largely without incident until two months ago, pairing just about anyone up who can be paired up, including some extremely questionable incest pairings and images that blatantly appear to be of underage kids (fictional or not) involved in sexual acts.
And then they get all pissed off when, under recent new management, the server that hosts their material says “hold on, no” and removes their journals. Fandom, contrary to these outcryers’ opinions, is not a significant portion of LiveJournal’s population. And even within fandom, the percentage dealing with underage sex is more miniscule.
It may piss people off on my friends list, but sorry – I don’t have a lot of sympathy here. These fans are dealing with topics that are extremely sensitive, bordering on illegal, and it’s the artist’s responsibility, when dealing with such topics, to prove that (s)he isn’t supporting child pornography. To the outsider, a group like pornish_pixies, which has depictions of sexual acts between underage fictional character, IS going to look like a site which supports child pornography.
And for this reason, the sexual relationships in Harry Potter fandom are walking a fine line. Yes, I understand they’re fictional. Yes, I understand that teenagers have sex. But there’s a huge difference between private sexual relationships in real life and public sexual expression, bordering on exploitation, in the media. And from experience with many fandoms, most of the smut fic out there is written so the fans can get their jollies reading sexual fiction. Are there pieces with literary value? Sure… a few of them. But most of them? Oh heck no. They’re written as porn. And child pornography is illegal.
So yeah, sorry guys – but those of you uproaring about this? You’re dealing with sensitive topics that society – not just LiveJournal – has a problem with. Yes, you have your right to free speech. But so does society, and you have to deal with the consequences of your behavior.
If you want that free speech, you also need to be policing it to keep it in line. And if it's that accessible from the internet, you're doing it wrong. So LiveJournal has stepped in, to clean up servers they own. They have that right.
It sucks to be targeted, but as an adult in fandom, I'm squirmish with the topics you're dealing with. And I find it hard to find much sympathy when it's pretty evident that it's been carefree and unpoliced.
I wish you guys well wherever you end up. I won't, however, be joining you.
There’s been a lot of uproar lately from fandom regarding the suspension of journals, and now there’s a huge cry for people to move en masse to a new site, showing solidarity with the HP fandom whose journals are getting deleted. They’re protesting the right to free speech being trampled, and how LJ doesn’t want them to exist, and how they don’t feel welcome on LJ anymore, and all sorts of other feelings which I respect for being valid…
.. but sorry, guys, I just don’t agree with you.
One of the things that I’ve learned in my years on this Earth is that freedom of speech is not fundamentally free. To say that “you need to accept the free speech of others as well” is too simplifying. The reality is that yes, freedom of speech is a wonderful thing. But freedom of speech doesn’t mean that the speaker/writer is exempt from any backlash for said speech. In this case, since it’s appropriate, the artist can create whatever art, written or visual, that (s)he wants. BUT – others, including the company that owns the servers where the art is posted have every right to respond. The more controversial the opinion, the more backlash can be expected. And that includes having journals deleted without prior notice.
A lot of the screaming right now seems to be coming from the Harry Potter fanbase, particularly those who are creating NC-17 rated visual art and fanfic. I’m having a difficult time feeling sympathy for them in this case, and I honestly don’t want to be lumped in fandom with them, and here’s why.
Harry Potter is, at its core, a story about kids growing up in a fantastic world. They begin the books at age 11, and at the end of the final book (with the exception of the epilogue), end at age 17. Regardless of the audience-at-large, the target audience for these books is elementary and secondary school-aged kids. The main characters involved are underage school-aged kids.
So enter the world of fandom, and particularly the sidebar of fandom that insists that everything has to be smuttastic. They create communities for these adult-natured topics. They play as they wish to play, largely without incident until two months ago, pairing just about anyone up who can be paired up, including some extremely questionable incest pairings and images that blatantly appear to be of underage kids (fictional or not) involved in sexual acts.
And then they get all pissed off when, under recent new management, the server that hosts their material says “hold on, no” and removes their journals. Fandom, contrary to these outcryers’ opinions, is not a significant portion of LiveJournal’s population. And even within fandom, the percentage dealing with underage sex is more miniscule.
It may piss people off on my friends list, but sorry – I don’t have a lot of sympathy here. These fans are dealing with topics that are extremely sensitive, bordering on illegal, and it’s the artist’s responsibility, when dealing with such topics, to prove that (s)he isn’t supporting child pornography. To the outsider, a group like pornish_pixies, which has depictions of sexual acts between underage fictional character, IS going to look like a site which supports child pornography.
And for this reason, the sexual relationships in Harry Potter fandom are walking a fine line. Yes, I understand they’re fictional. Yes, I understand that teenagers have sex. But there’s a huge difference between private sexual relationships in real life and public sexual expression, bordering on exploitation, in the media. And from experience with many fandoms, most of the smut fic out there is written so the fans can get their jollies reading sexual fiction. Are there pieces with literary value? Sure… a few of them. But most of them? Oh heck no. They’re written as porn. And child pornography is illegal.
So yeah, sorry guys – but those of you uproaring about this? You’re dealing with sensitive topics that society – not just LiveJournal – has a problem with. Yes, you have your right to free speech. But so does society, and you have to deal with the consequences of your behavior.
If you want that free speech, you also need to be policing it to keep it in line. And if it's that accessible from the internet, you're doing it wrong. So LiveJournal has stepped in, to clean up servers they own. They have that right.
It sucks to be targeted, but as an adult in fandom, I'm squirmish with the topics you're dealing with. And I find it hard to find much sympathy when it's pretty evident that it's been carefree and unpoliced.
I wish you guys well wherever you end up. I won't, however, be joining you.
05 August 2007
My brain is mush
I owe three people fanfic beta work - and yes, it's going. I should have two of the pieces done this evening. The third is a long-term project, and I'm hoping to get two chapters completed by mid-week. My problem is that my inner editor isn't letting me READ the stories first, and just wants to jump into editing... and I don't like to do that. I need to read a story first, to see how the whole thing strikes me before I start combing through it.
As for my own writing? Hell if I know when it's going to happen. My brain is just in a pouty don'wanna sort of mood. And honestly, it's probably good for it to be that way, considering I have Lots of Wedding Crap To Do. But I need to get that little fic piece done for the "Anywhere but Cardiff" ficathon. I don't expect to have anything stellar to contribute, sadly. My question is should I post what I have during the ficathon, or shelve it and apologize, but add it in late, when my brain decides to work?
*sigh*
On the stuff-to-do front, it's been a very productive weekend, but I also found time to get some relaxation in, too. I took a half-day off from work on Friday (VERY needed after the three fourteen hour days earlier in the week). As always, the Commuter Rail sucks ass, leaving South Station about a half-hour late. What I wouldn't give for an on-time train. (sigh) But it does beat driving every day, and I have to remind myself of that. The Jeep isn't exactly good on gas, and it IS a 60+ mile drive each way. With Boston traffic.
Anyway - picked up my wedding dress from alterations on Friday afternoon. It fits beautifully now. Hem is just perfect, and the two small tucks under my arms make everything fit just right on the top. The bustle is a contraption to behold, I swear - ELEVEN ties. Because I have a fat ass. But the girls at David's Bridal were kind enough to number each ribbon and each loop for me (without me having to ask for it) to make it easier on the poor bridesmaids who'll have to deal with them.
So now, I basically am done with dress stuff. I bring it back two weeks before the wedding to have it steamed, and that's it.
Since I was in the area, I also picked up some metallic ribbon for my wedding Chucks. I wasn't thrilled with a lot of the color options, but I found a pretty metallic iridescent orange organza that has just a bit of wire in it for some strength. It's pretty close to the metallic shade of the orange on the heel stripe, so it'll go well. I bought three lengths, just in case one breaks. :)
So shoes are now done.
Updated the spreadsheet with our guest invites - so far we have 42 yes, 4 no. About half have sent RSVPs and the deadline is Friday. It's funny - my friends all said that they got a burst of RSVPs the first week or so, and then a trickle. There's really been no burst with us - we'll have one or two one day, none for a couple days, and then maybe four another day.
MY family are slackers. Like... only two families have sent back RSVPs. And I might note that my mom is NOT among the returnees.
(and I wonder where I get my procrastination?)
We got our first wedding gift delivered on Friday. We haven't opened the box yet, but it's from Linens & Things. I'm not sure whether to open it or wait until the wedding. For now, the box is sitting in the kitchen. It's not like Erich and I aren't staying together. But I know the tradition is to not use anything until the wedding, so... I guess it's probably better to wait.
Mom informed me that she has bought me the Margaritaville blender from Williams Sonoma as one of our wedding presents. She also said that "she needs to try it out first." ;) But needless to say, it'll be getting used for both the girls' day/night out if anything happens at my house and for the Unrehearsal Dinner. Because seriously... drinky things are required for wedding parties. And oh, this thing will get used - because both Erich and I like our drinky things.
and can I just say I'm cracking up at the tote bag on that webpage? I seriously may consider it... because I have a feeling this thing will be requested to be transported to various houses for use.
We wrote our vows this weekend so we can order our rings on Monday. Erich just needs to double-check his ring size before he sends in the order (because with the etching of our vows on the inside of the ring, it's not like they'll be easily resized).
And I've done a shitload of laundry. I'm not sure where it's all coming from - I feel like every weekend I'm doing a TON of laundry. There are only two people in this house-- where the hell is it all coming from?!?
And we reordered some of our kitchen, too. About two weeks ago, Erich found a great sideboard for the dining room that provided some much needed storage space. It's too big a piece for the kitchen, so we've put it in the dining room and moved all of the silverware, barware, bottles of booze, and bigger serving dishes/platters to sit on it. That opened up nearly an entire side of our upper cabinets in the kitchen, so we now have better storage space for dry goods.
I'm on the switchboard all day tomorrow, so I'll be doing a lot of the emails I didn't get to this weekend. And who knows, if it's quiet (which August does tend to be with the last weeks of summer vacation), maybe I'll get some scribble writing done?
I can only hope...
As for my own writing? Hell if I know when it's going to happen. My brain is just in a pouty don'wanna sort of mood. And honestly, it's probably good for it to be that way, considering I have Lots of Wedding Crap To Do. But I need to get that little fic piece done for the "Anywhere but Cardiff" ficathon. I don't expect to have anything stellar to contribute, sadly. My question is should I post what I have during the ficathon, or shelve it and apologize, but add it in late, when my brain decides to work?
*sigh*
On the stuff-to-do front, it's been a very productive weekend, but I also found time to get some relaxation in, too. I took a half-day off from work on Friday (VERY needed after the three fourteen hour days earlier in the week). As always, the Commuter Rail sucks ass, leaving South Station about a half-hour late. What I wouldn't give for an on-time train. (sigh) But it does beat driving every day, and I have to remind myself of that. The Jeep isn't exactly good on gas, and it IS a 60+ mile drive each way. With Boston traffic.
Anyway - picked up my wedding dress from alterations on Friday afternoon. It fits beautifully now. Hem is just perfect, and the two small tucks under my arms make everything fit just right on the top. The bustle is a contraption to behold, I swear - ELEVEN ties. Because I have a fat ass. But the girls at David's Bridal were kind enough to number each ribbon and each loop for me (without me having to ask for it) to make it easier on the poor bridesmaids who'll have to deal with them.
So now, I basically am done with dress stuff. I bring it back two weeks before the wedding to have it steamed, and that's it.
Since I was in the area, I also picked up some metallic ribbon for my wedding Chucks. I wasn't thrilled with a lot of the color options, but I found a pretty metallic iridescent orange organza that has just a bit of wire in it for some strength. It's pretty close to the metallic shade of the orange on the heel stripe, so it'll go well. I bought three lengths, just in case one breaks. :)
So shoes are now done.
Updated the spreadsheet with our guest invites - so far we have 42 yes, 4 no. About half have sent RSVPs and the deadline is Friday. It's funny - my friends all said that they got a burst of RSVPs the first week or so, and then a trickle. There's really been no burst with us - we'll have one or two one day, none for a couple days, and then maybe four another day.
MY family are slackers. Like... only two families have sent back RSVPs. And I might note that my mom is NOT among the returnees.
(and I wonder where I get my procrastination?)
We got our first wedding gift delivered on Friday. We haven't opened the box yet, but it's from Linens & Things. I'm not sure whether to open it or wait until the wedding. For now, the box is sitting in the kitchen. It's not like Erich and I aren't staying together. But I know the tradition is to not use anything until the wedding, so... I guess it's probably better to wait.
Mom informed me that she has bought me the Margaritaville blender from Williams Sonoma as one of our wedding presents. She also said that "she needs to try it out first." ;) But needless to say, it'll be getting used for both the girls' day/night out if anything happens at my house and for the Unrehearsal Dinner. Because seriously... drinky things are required for wedding parties. And oh, this thing will get used - because both Erich and I like our drinky things.
and can I just say I'm cracking up at the tote bag on that webpage? I seriously may consider it... because I have a feeling this thing will be requested to be transported to various houses for use.
We wrote our vows this weekend so we can order our rings on Monday. Erich just needs to double-check his ring size before he sends in the order (because with the etching of our vows on the inside of the ring, it's not like they'll be easily resized).
And I've done a shitload of laundry. I'm not sure where it's all coming from - I feel like every weekend I'm doing a TON of laundry. There are only two people in this house-- where the hell is it all coming from?!?
And we reordered some of our kitchen, too. About two weeks ago, Erich found a great sideboard for the dining room that provided some much needed storage space. It's too big a piece for the kitchen, so we've put it in the dining room and moved all of the silverware, barware, bottles of booze, and bigger serving dishes/platters to sit on it. That opened up nearly an entire side of our upper cabinets in the kitchen, so we now have better storage space for dry goods.
I'm on the switchboard all day tomorrow, so I'll be doing a lot of the emails I didn't get to this weekend. And who knows, if it's quiet (which August does tend to be with the last weeks of summer vacation), maybe I'll get some scribble writing done?
I can only hope...
27 July 2007
The upcoming weekend
Random aside - day to day, I've been hanging out over on LJ a lot... as I've become pretty involved with the Doctor Who fan crowd there. So if you have a LJ account, pop on over and say hi. My screenname over there is measi, just as it is here. All of my journal entries are cross-posted, though.
I'd originally toyed with (and signed up for) the Blogathon for tomorrow, but hadn't received an approved message by this morning. And honestly? I know better. I'm already running crazy, and I can't afford to blow the day on it this year.
So I'll do it next year. When I'm theoretically sane.
Instead, I'll be working through a massive half-wedding, half-house chores list this weekend. Thankfully some of it is just email/computer related, so hopefully I can get a head start on it if I have some lulls in work today.
-Update RSVP list, email to Mom and Erich
- Email caterer
- Email DJ
- Email payment addresses to Mom
- Finish Lowes registry, double-check Linens & Things registry
- Update wedding webpage
- Laundry
- Dishes
- Scrub office
- Move bookshelves in office
- LoM files to iPod
- Backup all mp4s to DVD
- Whittle through "my docs" folder
- Time and Chips "Anywhere but Cardiff" fic... 1,000 words written
- Level Tennetty to 70
- Email girls list to Melinda
- Strip beds from last weekend, wash, remake
- Grocery shopping
- Beta reading
Seriously... with all of the crap I have to do... there's absolutely no way I could do that Blogathon. I was stupid to even think of it.
But hey, I'll find a way to get through the list. And I'll multitask when possible to try to get stuff done faster. I'm a professional admin assistant. I can multitask quite well. :) And since the weekend's supposed to be absolutely craptastic, it may help me to stay on task.
I can dream at least. Stop giving me those looks, Erich.
I do hope to have at least a couple hours of couch time this weekend. I bought copies of The Second Coming and Revengers Tragedy (both with Chris Eccleston) weeks ago and haven't watched them yet - and since I can only watch them on the living room TV since they're Region 2 discs, it limits my time a bit. Doctor Who was mostly to blame for that, of course. But maybe this weekend I can find a couple hours for one of them.
We'll see.
Happy Friday, all!
I'd originally toyed with (and signed up for) the Blogathon for tomorrow, but hadn't received an approved message by this morning. And honestly? I know better. I'm already running crazy, and I can't afford to blow the day on it this year.
So I'll do it next year. When I'm theoretically sane.
Instead, I'll be working through a massive half-wedding, half-house chores list this weekend. Thankfully some of it is just email/computer related, so hopefully I can get a head start on it if I have some lulls in work today.
-Update RSVP list, email to Mom and Erich
- Email caterer
- Email DJ
- Email payment addresses to Mom
- Finish Lowes registry, double-check Linens & Things registry
- Update wedding webpage
- Laundry
- Dishes
- Scrub office
- Move bookshelves in office
- LoM files to iPod
- Backup all mp4s to DVD
- Whittle through "my docs" folder
- Time and Chips "Anywhere but Cardiff" fic... 1,000 words written
- Level Tennetty to 70
- Email girls list to Melinda
- Strip beds from last weekend, wash, remake
- Grocery shopping
- Beta reading
Seriously... with all of the crap I have to do... there's absolutely no way I could do that Blogathon. I was stupid to even think of it.
But hey, I'll find a way to get through the list. And I'll multitask when possible to try to get stuff done faster. I'm a professional admin assistant. I can multitask quite well. :) And since the weekend's supposed to be absolutely craptastic, it may help me to stay on task.
I can dream at least. Stop giving me those looks, Erich.
I do hope to have at least a couple hours of couch time this weekend. I bought copies of The Second Coming and Revengers Tragedy (both with Chris Eccleston) weeks ago and haven't watched them yet - and since I can only watch them on the living room TV since they're Region 2 discs, it limits my time a bit. Doctor Who was mostly to blame for that, of course. But maybe this weekend I can find a couple hours for one of them.
We'll see.
Happy Friday, all!
19 July 2007
Personal exposure
Erich's had a nickname for me, said somewhat jokingly because of my blogging online for so long - "Measi, Queen of the Internets." It generally gets an eyeroll from me, sometimes an amused snort, and we carry on.
And then this week has rolled around, and I feel a bit wigged.
It all started last week when a member on LiveJournal posted a truly atrocious opinion article about a particular subset of Doctor Who fandom, accusing them of ruining the show, being racists because they didn't like a particular character, and just a lot of nonsense that basically is summed up with "they don't agree with me, so they suck." And I got sucked into the fire for a few brief hours, being careful not to troll but also to vent my anger. This type of insane drama, for those not in the internet fandom community, is generally known as wank. And if you're familiar with that phrase and its British usage... you're on the right track as far as the quality of these discussions.
Anyway - I did quickly come to my senses and backed off, shaking my head at the idiots who decide to determine fandom for everyone else, and started my week. But a lot of quiet, kind emails have followed me back to my little corner of LiveJournal, saying I was right to say what I did, in the manner that I did.
Was I? I'm not so sure. I stand by my words - I did mean what I say, how I said them. But I feel a bit dirty for jumping into any sort of fanwank.
And then my first completed fanfic in eight years was published for one of the fandom ficathons... that was early Monday morning. Oh, might I add (for the readers who aren't reading this via LiveJournal, where it's posted), I finally got over my fear of writing intimacy, and jumped in for this fic. And as nervous as I was to write it, it did feel good - liberating, even - to finally cross over that barrier. Definitely a sense of accomplishment, even if my ultra-introvert mind feels like I'm standing naked in the public square with a ton of onlookers. Writing sex scenes is... well, quite the exposure. I was taught, and generally have composed based on the "write what you know" philosphy.
That gets a bit personal when you're dealing with sex. And so I've been terrified of it.
So early Monday, it gets posted. To my surprise, so far people are really liking it. Me - who always thinks my writing is complete utter shit. People are liking it. I'm getting added to favorite author lists on fanfic sites for it. I go to my friends' list on LiveJournal this morning, and I'm seeing it rec'ed by a few people.
All a bit surreal for me.
Does it make me more confident as a writer? Oh hell no. The day I feel good as a writer is probably the day I need to stop. Insecurity is probably the driving force that makes me always try to improve.
Encouraging? Definitely. Once this wedding is over, I'm looking forward to more writing.
But in the meantime, I'll switch between being flattered and wigged out over here in my corner. Because contrary to the "Measi, Queen of the Internets" persona, I'm fairly intimidated by the whole thing.
(but yes, thrilled at the same time)
And then this week has rolled around, and I feel a bit wigged.
It all started last week when a member on LiveJournal posted a truly atrocious opinion article about a particular subset of Doctor Who fandom, accusing them of ruining the show, being racists because they didn't like a particular character, and just a lot of nonsense that basically is summed up with "they don't agree with me, so they suck." And I got sucked into the fire for a few brief hours, being careful not to troll but also to vent my anger. This type of insane drama, for those not in the internet fandom community, is generally known as wank. And if you're familiar with that phrase and its British usage... you're on the right track as far as the quality of these discussions.
Anyway - I did quickly come to my senses and backed off, shaking my head at the idiots who decide to determine fandom for everyone else, and started my week. But a lot of quiet, kind emails have followed me back to my little corner of LiveJournal, saying I was right to say what I did, in the manner that I did.
Was I? I'm not so sure. I stand by my words - I did mean what I say, how I said them. But I feel a bit dirty for jumping into any sort of fanwank.
And then my first completed fanfic in eight years was published for one of the fandom ficathons... that was early Monday morning. Oh, might I add (for the readers who aren't reading this via LiveJournal, where it's posted), I finally got over my fear of writing intimacy, and jumped in for this fic. And as nervous as I was to write it, it did feel good - liberating, even - to finally cross over that barrier. Definitely a sense of accomplishment, even if my ultra-introvert mind feels like I'm standing naked in the public square with a ton of onlookers. Writing sex scenes is... well, quite the exposure. I was taught, and generally have composed based on the "write what you know" philosphy.
That gets a bit personal when you're dealing with sex. And so I've been terrified of it.
So early Monday, it gets posted. To my surprise, so far people are really liking it. Me - who always thinks my writing is complete utter shit. People are liking it. I'm getting added to favorite author lists on fanfic sites for it. I go to my friends' list on LiveJournal this morning, and I'm seeing it rec'ed by a few people.
All a bit surreal for me.
Does it make me more confident as a writer? Oh hell no. The day I feel good as a writer is probably the day I need to stop. Insecurity is probably the driving force that makes me always try to improve.
Encouraging? Definitely. Once this wedding is over, I'm looking forward to more writing.
But in the meantime, I'll switch between being flattered and wigged out over here in my corner. Because contrary to the "Measi, Queen of the Internets" persona, I'm fairly intimidated by the whole thing.
(but yes, thrilled at the same time)
10 July 2007
Distracted
The fog that has decided to settle all day over Boston Harbor definitely reflects my attention span today - lots of little things floating around, but nothing's quite distinct.
I have an omnipresent thought floating around regarding Melinda today, who's now recovering from surgery. As of the first update last night, she was doing quite well. Erich, who's had the same procedure - albeit under the methods done eight years ago - was surprised that she was up and walking yesterday. He told me this morning as I read Kevin's email that it took him the better part of a week before he was moving.
Amazing what a few years does for surgical procedures, eh?
In any case, Melinda's a fairly strong presence in my thoughts today, and I'm hoping her recovery goes smoothly so I can envy her in about ten weeks when I see her looking fabulous in a floor-length truffle gown.
Add to that the fact that I'm completely distracted from work today because my office bought out two theater showings for Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Erich and I are going tonight after work. I cannot wait. :)
On the planning side, now that it's ever-present...
I'm about 3/4 done with addressing my wedding invitation envelopes, taking a break after every few to rest up my wrist so my writing doesn't start getting scrawly. When my wrist is fresh, my handwriting is surprisingly good - if I'm not using a ballpoint pen, at least. Ironic, considering that I always flunked handwriting in grade school!
Most of my friends have asked why I don't just print out the invitations using a pretty font on the printer, and I've said I don't want to. This is just one of those things I feel the need to do. It's the right thing to do - spending the time to personally address envelopes for my wedding. My love of writing isn't just in the structure of words on a page. I've always loved getting letters written by hand, and whenever possible - I've made a point to write letters by hand. There's something elegant and relaxing about it - reminding the world that it's not all about computers and technology. It's personal, and it's very me. And besides, it's not like I have hundreds of these to do. I have about sixty total. Not too bad at all.
Although I have to admit that writing formal envelopes to my close friends addressed as "Mr. and Mrs. HisFirst TheirLast" is a bit surreal. I'm going pretty casual on the inner envelope, just to stop weirding myself out.
I still have to get in touch with someone regarding hairstyles for the wedding. And I need to touch base with the caterer to start getting those gears going.
T-minus ten weeks...
I have an omnipresent thought floating around regarding Melinda today, who's now recovering from surgery. As of the first update last night, she was doing quite well. Erich, who's had the same procedure - albeit under the methods done eight years ago - was surprised that she was up and walking yesterday. He told me this morning as I read Kevin's email that it took him the better part of a week before he was moving.
Amazing what a few years does for surgical procedures, eh?
In any case, Melinda's a fairly strong presence in my thoughts today, and I'm hoping her recovery goes smoothly so I can envy her in about ten weeks when I see her looking fabulous in a floor-length truffle gown.
Add to that the fact that I'm completely distracted from work today because my office bought out two theater showings for Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Erich and I are going tonight after work. I cannot wait. :)
On the planning side, now that it's ever-present...
I'm about 3/4 done with addressing my wedding invitation envelopes, taking a break after every few to rest up my wrist so my writing doesn't start getting scrawly. When my wrist is fresh, my handwriting is surprisingly good - if I'm not using a ballpoint pen, at least. Ironic, considering that I always flunked handwriting in grade school!
Most of my friends have asked why I don't just print out the invitations using a pretty font on the printer, and I've said I don't want to. This is just one of those things I feel the need to do. It's the right thing to do - spending the time to personally address envelopes for my wedding. My love of writing isn't just in the structure of words on a page. I've always loved getting letters written by hand, and whenever possible - I've made a point to write letters by hand. There's something elegant and relaxing about it - reminding the world that it's not all about computers and technology. It's personal, and it's very me. And besides, it's not like I have hundreds of these to do. I have about sixty total. Not too bad at all.
Although I have to admit that writing formal envelopes to my close friends addressed as "Mr. and Mrs. HisFirst TheirLast" is a bit surreal. I'm going pretty casual on the inner envelope, just to stop weirding myself out.
I still have to get in touch with someone regarding hairstyles for the wedding. And I need to touch base with the caterer to start getting those gears going.
T-minus ten weeks...
14 June 2007
Thursday Thirteen #25 - Being Productive
It's been a very busy week. I'm so ready for the weekend so I can catch up on some sleep.
For this week's Thursday Thirteen, my list of accomplishments for the week (both good and bad). Most of them are wedding-related.
1) I found a wedding photographer! We've chatted briefly through email, and will hopefully talk over the phone within the next couple days... both of us are just having those "gah, can't talk now" weeks. But yes... photographer is now getting setled.
2) All of my bridesmaids have been contacted and have info to go dress shopping and such.
3) Erich and I picked out our invitations. We still need to decide on the wording - but they'll be ordered this week.
4) I had a LONG talk with my mom about the emotional b.s. that erupted two weeks ago. I still don't feel that she gets my point of view at all, but supposedly she's put out the fires down there. To a point. We'll see. BUT, at least two things were settled, in my opinion-
5) I made my first dress fitting appointment.
6) I contacted vendors for my hair/spa day, flowers, and cakes. All still unresolved but in the works.
And for the non-wedding ones...
7) I wrote 1,500 words on my fanfic for a challenge due July 1st. The minimum wordcount is 1,000 words. That was never a problem. I'm probably about 1/2 done with the first draft. I hope to have it done within the next three days, give it a once-over myself for editing/reworking, and then send it to my beta editors.
8) I figured out what the weird triffyd plant is in our yard that has grown about 15 feet in two years (no. Really. - 2005 - 2006) It's called a Northern Catalpa. I finally was able to figure out what it was once it started flowering this week. Between the flowers and the leaves as big as a human head, I was able to narrow it down pretty quickly yesterday.
9) I've somehow managed to lose 10 pounds, entirely through stress and non-eating over the wedding. It's just enough to make my pants feel like they're going to fall down.
10) I covered an entire day at front reception at work without needing a single cup of coffee.
11) I stupidly got in the middle of a cats-figuring-out-the-pecking-order fight last night between Colley and Hoodsie, and managed to land a pretty nasty set of scratch/bruise marks when Hoodsie latched onto my leg in defensiveness. It looks nasty, but doesn't hurt.
12) I bought a new battery for my iBook, so I can start writing during my commutes.
13) I levelled my character in World of Warcraft.
Productive week. Very productive week.
- Mel.
For this week's Thursday Thirteen, my list of accomplishments for the week (both good and bad). Most of them are wedding-related.
1) I found a wedding photographer! We've chatted briefly through email, and will hopefully talk over the phone within the next couple days... both of us are just having those "gah, can't talk now" weeks. But yes... photographer is now getting setled.
2) All of my bridesmaids have been contacted and have info to go dress shopping and such.
3) Erich and I picked out our invitations. We still need to decide on the wording - but they'll be ordered this week.
4) I had a LONG talk with my mom about the emotional b.s. that erupted two weeks ago. I still don't feel that she gets my point of view at all, but supposedly she's put out the fires down there. To a point. We'll see. BUT, at least two things were settled, in my opinion-
- 4a) Erich and I are handling the Unrehearsal Dinner, so she can stop obsessing over it (we're having a BBQ at our house... housewarming for the relatives & relaxed afternoon in one).
4b) My relatives are accepting, in their own levels of acceptance, that we are not catering to their whims with our wedding vows. They can accept a Justice of the Peace ceremony, or they won't. The alternative is for us to NOT compromise out of respect for their religion, and go back to a handfasting. But that's what it is. Full stop.
5) I made my first dress fitting appointment.
6) I contacted vendors for my hair/spa day, flowers, and cakes. All still unresolved but in the works.
And for the non-wedding ones...
7) I wrote 1,500 words on my fanfic for a challenge due July 1st. The minimum wordcount is 1,000 words. That was never a problem. I'm probably about 1/2 done with the first draft. I hope to have it done within the next three days, give it a once-over myself for editing/reworking, and then send it to my beta editors.
8) I figured out what the weird triffyd plant is in our yard that has grown about 15 feet in two years (no. Really. - 2005 - 2006) It's called a Northern Catalpa. I finally was able to figure out what it was once it started flowering this week. Between the flowers and the leaves as big as a human head, I was able to narrow it down pretty quickly yesterday.
9) I've somehow managed to lose 10 pounds, entirely through stress and non-eating over the wedding. It's just enough to make my pants feel like they're going to fall down.
10) I covered an entire day at front reception at work without needing a single cup of coffee.
11) I stupidly got in the middle of a cats-figuring-out-the-pecking-order fight last night between Colley and Hoodsie, and managed to land a pretty nasty set of scratch/bruise marks when Hoodsie latched onto my leg in defensiveness. It looks nasty, but doesn't hurt.
12) I bought a new battery for my iBook, so I can start writing during my commutes.
13) I levelled my character in World of Warcraft.
Productive week. Very productive week.
- Mel.
18 May 2007
Weekend Plans
Our plans to go to the drive-in were quickly squashed by the current weather. While I wouldn't mind going to see a movie under warm, rainy skies, I don't care to go and freeze my ass off in low 40's damp. Bleh. So change of plans - we'll go to see a movie in Boston tonight along with some friends. The plan is to go see Shrek 3, which was the original drive-in plan, too.
Hopefully we can go to see Pirates at the drive-in next weekend, along with the masses. I imagine it will be crowded as hell.
Based on the weather, the Scottish highland festival is going to feel quite... Scottish. It's supposed to be pretty cool and rainy through early afternoon tomorrow.
Then there's a new Doctor Who episode on BBC One tomorrow night, which I'll probably watch several times before I finally go to sleep.
I have a fanfic to draft up for a ficathon I joined a couple weeks ago. Deadline for the story is July 1st. I have my three prompts to write from. One has me a bit stumped (mostly because I don't want to fall into cliches with Doctor Who fandom that surround the episode particularly mentioned), but as long as I write to fulfill at least one prompt, I'm in good shape. And I'm completely confident with two of them - so I'll start there. Minimum word count is 1,000 words. Not. A. Problem. I may have half of that longhand already, and I'm still in the first scene.
In any case, my goal is to get the draft written by the end of Memorial Day weekend so I can shunt it off to my betas (aka fanfic editors), giving me plenty of time to fine tune it with my betas before the deadline.
Other than that, I have some organizing to do this weekend, some little wedding contact stuff to finish, some big wedding research stuff to do, and a lot of stitching.
All in all, a big weekend. :)
Hopefully we can go to see Pirates at the drive-in next weekend, along with the masses. I imagine it will be crowded as hell.
Based on the weather, the Scottish highland festival is going to feel quite... Scottish. It's supposed to be pretty cool and rainy through early afternoon tomorrow.
Then there's a new Doctor Who episode on BBC One tomorrow night, which I'll probably watch several times before I finally go to sleep.
I have a fanfic to draft up for a ficathon I joined a couple weeks ago. Deadline for the story is July 1st. I have my three prompts to write from. One has me a bit stumped (mostly because I don't want to fall into cliches with Doctor Who fandom that surround the episode particularly mentioned), but as long as I write to fulfill at least one prompt, I'm in good shape. And I'm completely confident with two of them - so I'll start there. Minimum word count is 1,000 words. Not. A. Problem. I may have half of that longhand already, and I'm still in the first scene.
In any case, my goal is to get the draft written by the end of Memorial Day weekend so I can shunt it off to my betas (aka fanfic editors), giving me plenty of time to fine tune it with my betas before the deadline.
Other than that, I have some organizing to do this weekend, some little wedding contact stuff to finish, some big wedding research stuff to do, and a lot of stitching.
All in all, a big weekend. :)
12 May 2007
Writing exercises - When readers read my novels...
As part of my "Mel needs to work on improving her writing, particularly with her story structure" edumacation... I've taken a blank notebook and am working through the exercises in the book.
I now have an hour plus commute each way on the train by myself, so it gives me plenty of time to do some personal study work - especially if I've been successful in claiming one of the coveted single seat rows on the train. (I do every morning from Providence, but it's not always possible on the way home due to the masses at South Station).
Anyway... for my own records, I'll be typing some of my quick-response essays in the exercises here. It'll be something hopefully a bit more interesting than the oodles of memes that have taken over lately. I'll be typing these exactly as written, with all spelling and grammar mistakes.
I've started with the "Plot and Structure" book mentioned a couple entries ago. It's been extremely interesting so far. Lots of ideas to chew on, but it's written in a laid-back, accessible style that's not intimidating at all.
Exercise 1, page 20 - write a mini-essay that fits the following. Write rough for 10 minutes.
When readers read my novels, I want them to feel ___________ at the end. That's because, to me, novels are __________."
I now have an hour plus commute each way on the train by myself, so it gives me plenty of time to do some personal study work - especially if I've been successful in claiming one of the coveted single seat rows on the train. (I do every morning from Providence, but it's not always possible on the way home due to the masses at South Station).
Anyway... for my own records, I'll be typing some of my quick-response essays in the exercises here. It'll be something hopefully a bit more interesting than the oodles of memes that have taken over lately. I'll be typing these exactly as written, with all spelling and grammar mistakes.
I've started with the "Plot and Structure" book mentioned a couple entries ago. It's been extremely interesting so far. Lots of ideas to chew on, but it's written in a laid-back, accessible style that's not intimidating at all.
Exercise 1, page 20 - write a mini-essay that fits the following. Write rough for 10 minutes.
When readers read my novels, I want them to feel ___________ at the end. That's because, to me, novels are __________."
- When readers read my novels, I want them to feel transported at the end. That's because, to me, novels are an escape from the mundane. I read to escape and unwind, whether on the train - as I am now - or in bed. Reading allows me to let go of the everyday stress I carry with me, helping me to clear my mind and refocus myself.
A good novel, well - any enjoyable novel, anyway - is one with quirky, deeply-realized characters in well-realized worlds. I love to be able to close my eyes and see the view around me. I want to share in my character's joys and sorrows. I want to cling nervously to a ledge that may break at any moment, and feel the grit of loose rock beneath my fingers.
A good novel also makes me think. I far prefer happy endings - but I'd rather have a sad or ambigous ending - sucha s the end of the TV one-off "Recovery," than have a picture-perfect, everything neat and tidy ending. The ending needs to fit. And I want to care about the ending. At the end of Recovery, Alan's future is left unclear. A few days after watching, I wondered about how the character might be doing. Is his life improving? Has he had another setback? Does his story have a happy ending, or merely fall into statistics?
A novel makes me want to care. And, caring about a novel means I'm enjoying my spare time.
- Time ends -
04 May 2007
Attempting to kick my inner writer in the ass
I've determined that I have three major problems with my writing. And this goes for both fanfiction and my everyday fiction writing. I found this problem during my NaNoWriMo attempts. It annoyed the shit out of me:
1) Fear to actually put words on a page because I can't get my brain to wrap around the concept of a first-draft. My inner editor wants to correct everything in my head before I put a word to the page... so well, nothing gets written. ETA - Nothing, I should say, means that I've actually put about 20,000 words to paper, which is a hell of a lot more than most people can or will write. But I don't feel happy about probably half to over half, and I feel that I'm second- and third-guessing my ideas so much that I'm losing all of them before I get them into written text.
2) I'm getting seriously stuck in writer's block, due to not figuring out how to push my story forward.
3) Somewhere along the line, I've either forgotten how (or never quite mastered) the idea of plot and scene structure. I don't doubt it's causing the most of the writer's block problems.
So, in an attempt to work through these issues, I've done the following:
1) Searched for, and found, two lovely beta-readers for my fic writing. Both of whom I've loved reading, and am thrilled they're willing to work with me.
2) Bought three books at Barnes & Noble to help me do some inner-searching to work through my hangups:
- "Unstuck - A supportive and Practical Guide to Working Through Writer's Block" by Jane Anne Staw, PhD
- "Plot & Structure - Techniques and exercises for crafting a plot that grips readers from start to finish" by James Scott Bell
- "Scene & Structure" by Jack M. Bickham
Hopefully these will help a bit. Regardless of what I'm writing, I definitely want to have my writing improved. Right now, that means putting some damn words to a page.
1) Fear to actually put words on a page because I can't get my brain to wrap around the concept of a first-draft. My inner editor wants to correct everything in my head before I put a word to the page... so well, nothing gets written. ETA - Nothing, I should say, means that I've actually put about 20,000 words to paper, which is a hell of a lot more than most people can or will write. But I don't feel happy about probably half to over half, and I feel that I'm second- and third-guessing my ideas so much that I'm losing all of them before I get them into written text.
2) I'm getting seriously stuck in writer's block, due to not figuring out how to push my story forward.
3) Somewhere along the line, I've either forgotten how (or never quite mastered) the idea of plot and scene structure. I don't doubt it's causing the most of the writer's block problems.
So, in an attempt to work through these issues, I've done the following:
1) Searched for, and found, two lovely beta-readers for my fic writing. Both of whom I've loved reading, and am thrilled they're willing to work with me.
2) Bought three books at Barnes & Noble to help me do some inner-searching to work through my hangups:
- "Unstuck - A supportive and Practical Guide to Working Through Writer's Block" by Jane Anne Staw, PhD
- "Plot & Structure - Techniques and exercises for crafting a plot that grips readers from start to finish" by James Scott Bell
- "Scene & Structure" by Jack M. Bickham
Hopefully these will help a bit. Regardless of what I'm writing, I definitely want to have my writing improved. Right now, that means putting some damn words to a page.
25 February 2007
Lazy weekend
It's been a laid-back weekend, which is good. Erich's fallen ill with the most recent bout of plague. Somehow, I haven't caught it yet. Miracle of miracles.
Meadowbird came over yesterday, and we spent the better portion of the day being lazy, crafting, and watching Not Who. Bad Wolf was on during the day, but other than that... not a single episode. Shocking, I know. That's not to say the day was without Who actors. We watched every episode since January of Heroes (oh, scruffy!Chris...) along with the World of Warcraft episode of South Park, which she hadn't seen (and really is a good one).
Erich was at a D&D game all day yesterday, so even after doing the to Boston and back drive to take Meadowbird home - which got me back to our house at midnight, I knew I had hours before he would get home. I did some writing sketches to work on expanding chapters 2 and 3 of Translating Extraordinary before sinking into bed, throwing Harry Potter into the DVD player, and zonking out sometime after 2.
I didn't hear Erich come home- he said it was around 4:15.
Today started out as a lazy morning stitching. I'm finishing up my work on the UFO RR before I have to mail it off this week. I watched the first two episodes of Blackpool along with Erich. I was surprised that he enjoyed it, although he was a bit disturbed by a couple of the musical numbers. I was slightly disappointed - and jarred - to hear a non-Kenny Roger's version of the Gambler at the beginning of episode 2. I don't think I've EVER heard anyone else sing it, and the original was in the broadcast... so it was just... weird. I suppose some licensing rights didn't translate to DVD.
The rest of the day has passed quietly. I've been doing some laundry, doing some writing. I made my grandma's kielbasa & sauerkraut recipe for dinner. And now I'm enviously reading post-viewing thoughts from Brits on Recovery, which aired tonight on BBC1, while continuing to work on fanfic.
Oh... and a side note of semi-worthwhile news... the cards for our Save the Dates arrived on Friday. We're waiting for the magnet inserts (which were ordered separately), and then we can start sending the things out.
Progress, progress...
Meadowbird came over yesterday, and we spent the better portion of the day being lazy, crafting, and watching Not Who. Bad Wolf was on during the day, but other than that... not a single episode. Shocking, I know. That's not to say the day was without Who actors. We watched every episode since January of Heroes (oh, scruffy!Chris...) along with the World of Warcraft episode of South Park, which she hadn't seen (and really is a good one).
Erich was at a D&D game all day yesterday, so even after doing the to Boston and back drive to take Meadowbird home - which got me back to our house at midnight, I knew I had hours before he would get home. I did some writing sketches to work on expanding chapters 2 and 3 of Translating Extraordinary before sinking into bed, throwing Harry Potter into the DVD player, and zonking out sometime after 2.
I didn't hear Erich come home- he said it was around 4:15.
Today started out as a lazy morning stitching. I'm finishing up my work on the UFO RR before I have to mail it off this week. I watched the first two episodes of Blackpool along with Erich. I was surprised that he enjoyed it, although he was a bit disturbed by a couple of the musical numbers. I was slightly disappointed - and jarred - to hear a non-Kenny Roger's version of the Gambler at the beginning of episode 2. I don't think I've EVER heard anyone else sing it, and the original was in the broadcast... so it was just... weird. I suppose some licensing rights didn't translate to DVD.
The rest of the day has passed quietly. I've been doing some laundry, doing some writing. I made my grandma's kielbasa & sauerkraut recipe for dinner. And now I'm enviously reading post-viewing thoughts from Brits on Recovery, which aired tonight on BBC1, while continuing to work on fanfic.
Oh... and a side note of semi-worthwhile news... the cards for our Save the Dates arrived on Friday. We're waiting for the magnet inserts (which were ordered separately), and then we can start sending the things out.
Progress, progress...
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