Warning: Some Violence and Much Strong Language.HE WROTE: It was the best of times, it was the . . .
We're coming down to the end of the year. It's cold out. I had to close the sliding glass door this morning. A dolphin just jumped out of the water and landed with a splash. Guess it was cold.
I'm working on the 2007 Blog. Starting from scratch. Using all that I've learned over the past couple of years. So it's going to be an interesting experience.
2006 lasted a very, very long time. There were many good things and some not so good things. I'm trying to recover all the blog entries from this year and put them in one document. Should make for interesting reading.
Jenny has been hacking and slashing at Agnes. I've got a good chunk of it and will print it out and go over it with the red pen over the weekend. I'm currently using the red pen on Chasing The Ghost. I'm just about done, then key in the changes, and I think it's ready to send in.
Also working on the Sanctuary proposal. We're going to have a hero and heroine who will have a lot more conflict between them than our previous characters. They're going to be very different people who are going to have to learn to work together. Yet, it will also require them to arc, well, I know at least my guy is going to have to change over the course of the books. He's going to need redemption in many ways, which is the strongest of character arcs. Of course, he won't be like the guy in A History of Violence. Not redeemable. Should make for an interesting experience in writing. My character in Chasing the Ghost, Horace Chase, has a similar path and I've really enjoyed refining his character.
Sixteen more days until the end.
Nothing but good times ahead.
We're doomed.
185 Comments:
Virgin Post!
Hi Bob. We are all eagerly awaiting the fruits of all your labors. Even looking forward to the new HWSW blog, at which we promise not to go wildly off topic or dance on the furniture or anything.
I'm really looking forward to meeting Chase too. Remind us again when to expect your new book, please.
And the Sanctuary series sounds fabulous. I love seeing characters evolve over a series of books. There's more nuance in their personalities and so in their arc too. This is going to be great.
Nothing but good times ahead, indeed. I refuse to be doomed. Too much angst.
I knew a girl once who couldn't spell.
(Actually I know several people who can't spell; not all of them have long nails either.)
I remember this girl specifically because once, just before a nasty algebra test, she wrote me a note that said "we're domed." I just think that spelling has a more positive ring to it.
All good things must come to and end...or at the very least, change...yeah, we're all dommed.
This blog will make for interesting reading. Some day we can look back and realize yes, we were all doomed.
While I'll miss this world, other worlds have been created, will be created, I'll boldly go where no alien has gone before. I look forward to the writing course, lord knows I need it right now. I will behave. I always do, (stop laughing I can be good).
Bob, Sorry it's cold. We're having a heat wave up here at 52 degrees this lovely morning. Kids went to school in shorts. I got to walk outside instead of on the treadmill. Doesn't happen often in Decemver in Western NY. It's been like this for a while now. Doubtful on the white Christmas. Bummer. I like the snow on Christmas.
16 more days...it's time. Thanks for the ride.
Ka-Boom!
"They're going to be very different people who are going to have to learn to work together."
Geez - I can't wait to read how this turns out. "Change over the course of the books" . . . nothing but good times ahead.
As opposed to Doomed, I prefer to think of all of us as Destined - for better things in 2007.
And, seriously, we plan to stick to topic on HWSW 2007. (Good thing the CB Bar & Grill is almost done! We'll definitely need to decompress after being so NICE at HWSW.)
Agnes, Horace, The Well Behaved Sisters, and the Sanctuary . . . Happy 2007!
zpzzgxou - no kidding - this was my verfication.
I could go on for a very long time about all the fun we have had living in the basement this year.
I have learned so much about the craft of writing, promotion,and selling a book. I have learned about life from crafty people.
Thanks for having us over. It has been more fun than I think we ever imagined. And probably much "weird-er"
than YOU could have ever imagined.
Our New Year's Resolution is to follow along nicely and quietly at the new site, RIGHT EVERYONE?
Nothing but good times ahead. There were lots of good times behind, too, thanks to Bob and Jenny and everyone here. I love you guys! *sniff*
rsndg Robert sends news, doing good!
Good Times Ahead!
Definitely!
Books, books, and more books by SHE and HE, Jenny and Bob....way to go.
2007 is looking to be a great year. A new Blog on writing. We're in a new home, (looking good there).
This past year's blogs would make an interesting book...hope that will be accomplished.
uljni...blocky green
U love Jenny, never incidentals
Above ground, outta jail, not on fire? Then there's still hope. Looking forward to 2007 and y'all's pearls of writerly wisdom!
If you all want to hear about weather, let me tell you about last night. Up here in the Seattle area, we get rain. Lots of rain. We don't get monsoons. Until last night. That was more water than I have seen here ever. EVER. Then the wind came. I got the first cookie exchange in the mail (Thanks CMS and SDCB). I was going to try to bake mine and send them off today. Apparently you need power to bake. Cookies may have to wait until Monday. Luckily we have power at work so I can check the blog. We lost two trees between our house and the neighbor's. They went the other way and took out the neighbor's car. The tree that took out the car was actually on their property though, so that was good. Hopefully it won't take too many days to restore power to the 1.5 million people who are now without. If I'm not with you over the weekend, that would be why. I'll check back in on Monday.
KL, ouch!
I've been putting off going in to work today so hopefully all the traffic jam/power outages will be sorted out before I leave.
I know what you mean about the close call last night. I'd been complacently patting myself on the back about how safe the trees outside my home were... only to go out this morning and find a branch had nearly gone into my bedroom window while I slept. Eek.
Let us know how you're doing with the outages and stuff! We might need to apply those shovels for real.
Mary,
Once I got to the freeway, it was good. Side streets can be dicey though. At our house, rakes will be more useful than shovels. Lots of small to medium size branches littered everything. I was kind of sad that we had been so busy with the kitchen that we didn't get lights up this year. Now I'm very happy about that. We are all safe though so that is the important part. Hope you are all well too.
mary and kl: take care with those outages. Wacky things happen when people don't have power, namely they lose their common sense.
Bob wrote that he was getting out his red pen. My sister, a teacher, was telling me about a story she heard where the school system banned red pens because the kids might have negative issues with red pens in the future. I suppose it's ok if you use purple ink instead. You know, to date, I've never heard of someone cracking up and saying, "The red pen made me do it. Not once did I get validation from the gold star, but the red ink ... taunts me ... oh the humanity."
Onward and upward. Looking forward to 2007!
Bob - not doomed, determined to keep on reading, so keep that red pen moving, we anxiously await what is to come!
btuda - as a teacher I used red ink, but as a mom, when I see it on work my kiddo has busted fanny on, trust me there are lots of "the red pen made me do it - it taunts me" moments, because I want to fly up there on my broom grab his teacher and say, "You know he struggles, he barely likes you enough to pay attention, and now the HUGE red N, handed out by one of the lucky teacher helpers of the day. I don't think so!" Makes me spittin mad, spittin mad, I tell ya!
kl - my DH is in Seattle for business and was on the 11th floor of his hotel, he said he was a little scared the wind apparently was insane. He also didn't have power this am. Glad you and he are OK, I don't watch the news, so I had no idea he was flying into the Wizard of Oz.
I was reading the reports of the damage and outages from the storm up there in upper left corner. Hey you guys stay safe, check in as you can.
"Sixteen more days until the end."
Are you walking around wearing a sandwich board that says that? I think it's just supposed to say "The end is near." At least that's what the New Yorker cartoon guys wear.
And we're doomed? Ha. We all can arc - change & redemption isn't just for literary characters.
ktpdk - kissing the pathos, doncha know.
The "doomster" strikes again. Sheesh Bob, why so much doom and gloom? It's the holidays, spread some cheer fer cryin' out loud. *grin* Buy a Poinsettia (they smile so brightly and bring much more cheer than a red pen) light some candles, share a bottle of wine in front of a roaring fire, and hug your dog.
You know the universe can only deliver back to you the energy you put out. Think positive. 2007 will be an amazing and lucrative journey for you and Jenny. Also for us, because we'll be taking your workshop and learning new stuff. I'm so looking forward to that.
You can tell I'm reading the 10 secrets of Success and Inner Peace by Dr. Wayne Dyer. Right? *grin* I'll get down off my soapbox now.
I just went over my five year goals and then my 2006 goals. Amazing, I met all of them this year. When I took Bob's retreat course last October, it created a major turning point in my writing. Out of that course I learned about the HWSW blog, and the rest is history. I became a Cherry Bomb and now I'm on the Cherry Forums, and I read all of Jenny's books that I could get my hands on. And now I'm learning from a whole new set of writers.
Someone put another writer who lives in the CA desert in touch with me. She's one of Jenny's JCW's and we met yesterday. We really hit it off and today decided to critique together. Wow! I'm so excited. It's all about networking in this biz, you never know what will open up for you by taking a new road.
I met all of you, and we shared so much. It really has been fun, and seriously, I'm kinda shy and don't do groups well. I'm usually on the outer edge of the circle looking in, or sitting in the far back row on the edge just in case I need to escape quickly. This has been good for me. Thank you all. Now I'm going over to sign on to the CBBar and Grill before I forget, again. Lunch break is almost over.
And best to all who are healing from injuries, wild and crazy storms, and anything else negative that's out there.
Hell yes "It was the best of times". 2006 was a great year for readers.
I only get sloppy once a year, at about this time of year actually. So, Thank You both for the fabulous book, blog and being so gracious and patient with the signings and your generosity to new writers. You both are really lovely people. It was a privledge to meet you. Am looking forward to the new books and blog. Joy and peace to both of you in the new year.
Unless you are prepared to acknowledge fallen angels, there will be no doom! Well, unless Gaiman & Pratchett offer up more Good Omens.
Best, Deb.
there's sunshine Bob again, coming out at the end. :)
i personally learnt a lot, made some great friends, and...well, some other stuff happened. oh yeah, i got a whole bunch of baked goods. but you all made me think and you made me laugh, which is the best compliment i can give.
(oh, and tomorrow i'll be taking care of the cookie exchange. still haven't figured it out yet- sauce vs cookies)
ok, safety to those in bad weather. i live in LA- the sun's out. we don't really get bad weather here. the smog keeps it from entering.
HAPPY HANNUKAH. and don't worry, i'm not doing this all eight nights. :)
BTW, forgot to include this link, it's a fun rendition of White Christmas. Makes me smile. Can't remember how to make the link active but a cut and paste works. Dang I have a bad headache, must have been the cheap wine ...
http://www.doublehammer.com/merrychristmas.swf
KL & Mary,
Just heard your weather news--glad y'all are OK! We get hurricanes here in the south in the summertime that cause the kind of damage you have and it's VERY scary.
But don't worry, y'all are not doomed. Or domed, either. Cherrybombs are invincible!!
The last storm of this magnitude was 13 years ago. My DH and I were in Mexico. The vacation was great. The homecoming sucked. But we didn't actually experience that storm. Just the aftermath. Now I need to figure out what has power so I can bring hot food home for dinner.
rg: cute one.
rg: Ditto OH. Guffaws! Emailed it to family. I can hear DH laughing right now.
Seattle weather: You all be careful. Here in hurricane and tornado territory it can be pretty scary.
Pens: Back when I had to grade/critique/whatever, since red seemed to be viewed as harsh, I changed. Nobody could see yellow. Blue or black couldn't be distinguished from the own person's work. But since nobody in his right mind would use a green pen and because the color stood out almost as well as red, I went with that. It worked.
Somebody suggested a final party before going to the CB Bar & Grill permanently. Should we try for the last week? Nice thankyous and stuff to J&B. Goodbyes to those who can't move and must leave us. Oh, piffle. We could put out sleeping bags for them so they wouldn't have to leave us.
sugtbux: Such Ugly Guts To Be Used Xenobiotically.
Happy Festivus, Bob. I hope 2007 exceeds your expectations.
I'm so jealous right now. I want frolicing Dolphins! Instead I've got at least two cars per five minutes driving down my cal-de-sac to check out the neigbors decorations! And this isn't the "big" one in the neigborhood. The lady two streets down with the Santa in the Helicopter has more decorations than blades of grass - I kid you not! Really, this is nuts and it's going to drive me crazy. yes, I pulled my shades down, but I can still the headlights!!!!
And the temp dropped to like 40, it's windy and now rainy. No, I'm not feeling snarky at all now am I?
Oh, and I keep getting this spam e-mail titled "hot toy" which makes me think of Jenny, but do you know what the hot toy is (no, get your minds out of the gutter please), it's the best all time toy helicopter. go figure.
As soon as the snow comes I'm making myself a snow dolphin!
gatorperson you made me laugh and reminded me of university 20 years ago. I had a professor who insisted on putting so much red ink on our essays it looked like he was writing one over it. I did feel it had negative connotations when there was so much so I went out and bought him 20 green ink pens. He laughed like crazy and I discovered that when your paper has green ink all over it at least you are the only one that knows it may not be positive remarks. /,D
Bob would love to have seen your dolphin. I think they are extremely intelligent, beautiful creatures.
Look forward to the "classes" in the new year. Hope you don't use a lot of red pen then. Will there be homework?
Look forward to seeing you next weekend glamour geek.
blue zsguntc
Zaza suggests guests use names tactfully chosen.
K.L. and Mary: remember, In the darkness, there are CherryBombs! (Good luck with the weather and power)
I'm doing quite well, actually. Portland got the downed power lines and the downed trees, but nothing like Seattle.
On the other hand -- K.L., I'm not much of a cook, but I've got a working oven, if you need to make a batch of cookies for that exchange. We could have the world's first ever surrogate cookie baking.
xjykkik - the kind of thing I usually end up with when playing Scrabble
scope: thank you! (they came today)
i decided on sauce. it'll be sent out monday.
tomorrow my friend is spending the day doing her baking. i'll sit there and eat dough. it's going to be a good day. :)
ok, i am having an excellent day. was one of the winners of Jenny's Twelve Days Contest. so cool.
in fact, this has just been an excellent month.
ok, have to go scream from joy some more. quietly, mind you. my parents are sleeping. :)
OH, congrats on the excellent month! And Happy Hannukah, in case I forgot to say that before.
My floors are sooooo pretty! They're not done yet and are supposed to come back this morning, very soon now, and finish up. Yesterday they tackled the harder part, the side that had closets and pantry and so forth. And it looks so good!
OH - many congratulations! Very exciting. I hope the rest of your month is as good as the first half.
MCB - I'm glad about your floors - it's so gratifying when things look as good (or better) than you had visualized them, once they're finally assembled or in place.
KL and Mary - take care as the weather clears up, and, I hope the downed powerlines, too - I think it's most impressive that Mary volunteered to be a surrogate baker!
I'd better warn my parents that cookies (and sauce) are coming (I was thinking for a moment that they'd come to me here, but I have SO MUCH stuff at my house that it's a good thing I'll have to wait for CB treats). I think I warned 'em once, but we all forget things...
It's been a lovely year, here, so thanks SOOO much to Bob and Jenny for catalyzing the craziness and learning.
John Stoll was TOO redeemable! Just needed to clean up a few stray ends...
Mary said...
xjykkik - the kind of thing I usually end up with when playing Scrabble
You must not be a cat person. Else you'd recognize that as the exact sound a cat makes when it spies a bird on the other side of the window glass. /;+)
zuqydz (red)
Zoe undulated quite yexily during Xmas. (sorry, embarrassingly bad)
Zaza's verification sentence was: Zoe undulated quite yexily during Xmas. (sorry, embarrassingly bad)
Umm...you have now stuck a horrible image in my head. That's my sister's name. We both meet up at my mother's for Christmas on Thursday.
Eww...
Zaza, I quite like cats. Unfortunately, my dog loves cats. Raw. So yes, none around my household.
Um Christina? Now you've gotten me more puzzled. Puzzleder. Doesn't Christmas fall on a Monday? Or are you marching to a different little drummer boy?
It's all a plot to confuse me, I know it.
gzeszv - ostensibly a blessing, not unlike gesundheit, but only expressed when one Christmas shopper elbows out another for the last MacGuffin doll. In reality a deadly curse.
Anonymous wrote: "John Stoll was TOO redeemable! Just needed to clean up a few stray ends..."
If memory serves me correctly the characters name was Tom/Joey (not John) Stoll and I have to disagree - the man was not redeemable. Is not redeemable. Will never be redeemable. Not possible. And I'm all for redemption. It can be sexy as hell and make for a great hero. Nothing great about Tom/Joey. He was a bad man who is completely unredeemable. Just saying.
Canada is awfully cold right now. Colder than where I came from. But the hotel is nice. Has internet. I'm happy.
G-G, you're going to see the Canadians? Way cool. Give them hugs for me. From me. Whatever, you know what I mean.
rcbapo: Righteous cherry bombs apparently play oboes.
Jen is obviously not in my part of Canada. I was outside with the dog a little while ago (careful to stay FAR away from his chain) in just my shirt and jeans. It was comfortable.
Feeling nostalgic, I went back to January's posts. They're gone. I didn't realize Bob was taking them away, I just thought he was copying them to his own files. Now I'm nostalgic and sad. I wanted to watch the CB evolution.
I hope there's a book, then a movie-of-the-week. : )
I'm having lunch with Glamour-Geek in a week. Anyone want to join us?
Okay, Bob didn't take all of the posts away, I just had to go back a different way. I haven't even read to DLD's release and have already re-learned so much. The new blog is going to be fantastic.
I checked the "archives" section ...None would come up..just a "not found" page. The titled ones all came up.
That basement is getting smaller and smaller, tighter and tighter.
khsbrw...red
kindly hours show Bob, Robert, writing
thanks mcb and tt. and glad your floors look nice.
john stoll. my mind is really fuzzy so, umm, who is this? and why is/isn't he redeemable?
oh, the guy in A History of Violence? didn't see the whole thing (fell asleep), but rape scenes...not redeemable. and there was other things (boring me, for one thing). siding with JJ on this one.
Mary--I wrote that confusingly, no? We both arrive at my mother's on Thursday and will indeed celebrate Jesus' b-day on Monday. We're just trying to maximize time with mom since she gets some extra time off work around the holiday this year.
But this only gives me three days to do my Christmas shopping. Procrastinator extraordinaire, that's me.
Well I agree, it's been a great year. Even got to meet one of you guys which was extra special - hi rg. SF in 08 I hope to meet a few more.
Weather? Air con's been runing non-stop for a month now. Down south they're fighting a fire that has a 250km front!! Busy fires have been burning on and off for a fortnight now. One of our Aussie icons Craigs Hut seen in the film Man From Snowy River got burnt to the ground. Praying for rain or a cold front anyways.
I'm in countdown mode for my TBR pile. 4 more days - the 21st, my birthday too, happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me - I'm hitting that sucker hard. Even have 2 or Bob's books. Can't wait.
I say nothing but interesting times ahead.
cakbocnf - a pissed parrot
Yes, yes, I'm a bad spell checker. Do we have spell check at the Grille? Please? Pretty please with cherries on top? And a bomb?
I'm playing with some plugins which will give a "live" preview of posts. I've found one that does spell check, but it hasn't gotten a very good rating. We'll see how they work out.
In election, er, poll news...there are only 34 votes, but the numbers are about 60-40, so I guess we can declare the type, "Cherry/Bomb" the winner. Now we have to vote on which one from that group will be our official logo. Which may be a problem, since there are 13 of them and Bravenet only allows 10 images.
Something else for my to-do list.
G'night all.
rmgdvfgk (red)
Robert Mayer gave dogs very fine, gravied kibble.
Joey/Tom...he did go after his wife, but SHE'S the one who raped him! He fought back his violent side, then she grabs him and sticks her tongue down his throat, and then leaves him on the stairs.
He lived his life longer as Tom than he did Joey...a fine upstanding man...
Tom loved his family. Remade his life until the bad guys showed up.
But the movie overall????
BORING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
:)
Hey, speaking of movies, does anyone know the title of a Humphrey Bogart movie about a screenwriter suspected of murdering a young woman and tossing her out of a car on Benedict Canyon in L.A.?
I saw it after it started last night on the Turner Classic Movie channel and loved it. But I never got the name and don't have a T.V. guide to look it up. It had similar elements in it to a romantic suspense I'm currently writing, mine is contemporary and set in the desert not in L.A.
Any H.B.lovers out there that could help me out, I'd love to see the movie in its entirety.
RG--I think it's In a Lonely Place. Check the month schedule on the TCM website though to be sure:
http://www.tcm.com/index.jsp
Ah Bogey. Casablanca and African Queen - 2 of my all time favorites. I don't know the one you're talking about, though.
Okay... salad made for office pot luck (check), statement reconciled (check), bills paid (check) ...
why I do believe I'm going to go read a while now. I'm almost done with this book RSS recommended, "Dreams of Stardust" by Lynn Kurland. Really good, fun read. File it under Historical Romance - Lite.
Also recently read "gods in Alabama" by Joshilyn Jackson which is one of the books I won in the Dee&Dee contest. Also really good and some humorous character stuff (girl returning to her southern hometown after many years away). But there was some edgy stuff in there too.
BUSINESS:
Here it is! The final poll to choose our OFFICIAL CB LOGO!!! Hey, it's exciting. Get with the program. /;+)
Well, after testing to be sure the link worked, I see that not only is Bravenet chintzy with the number of pics they allow, but they are also stingy with the words. That last sentence in the instructions should say, "That will be adjusted when the final version is chosen." So, there.
GO VOTE!
Me! I voted 1st! Aha!! You all go vote!
Who's John Stoll? who's Joey/Tom. Is that Nora ROBERTS contributing? A History of Violence? What's that?
Chuckle, chuckle, DUG. If we were to have a US spellchecker, it would have grabbed your grille.
Archives disappeared almost a month ago.
Christina, thanks so much. Yes, the movie is, In A Lonely Place. Sheesh. I don't watch much T.V. and I didn't even know TCM channel had a website. : ) I'm so behind the door when it comes to technology. Duh. Everyone has a website.
Anyway, I checked it out and you are right. I'm going to get a copy of the movie.
And hi DUG, I forgot to say it earlier. Hope the fires are under control soon.
WOW, those logos are fantastic! Great job.
I voted.
mzmfm: Mary zapped Michael's forgetful memory.
I voted.
GP - A History Of Violence is a movie that Bob critiqued a while back. Didn't have much good to say about it.
And we should be so lucky, but there might possibly be other Nora's out there in the universe. That is other people by that name. Only one Nora just as there is only one Jenny or Bob. Or Jenny and Bob writing team.
I'm gonna stop now before I get the other foot in there.
Xavier understood Krissie's calm question.
i voted.
i'm feeling blah right now. don't want to reread what i have and don't want to start anything new.
oh, there's a book called A Problem from Hell: America and the Age of Genocide by Samantha Power. haven't finish it yet but really good. and my friend loved it.
Nora Wrote: "Joey/Tom...he did go after his wife, but SHE'S the one who raped him! He fought back his violent side, then she grabs him and sticks her tongue down his throat, and then leaves him on the stairs. He lived his life longer as Tom than he did Joey...a fine upstanding man."
Interesting take on this scene, but fighting his volient side and letting it win are two different things. I still think he's unredemable. And as far as living his life as Tom Longer than Joey, well, I don't think that matters much. I still think he's a bad man and in my humble eyes, not redeemable much less likable. i won't get into his wife, a whole other topic. I'm almost tempted to rent the movie again though just to look at that scene again, but I won't. The movie made me angry the first time, would probably have the same effect this time. Guess we just disagree. That's what makes the world go round.
Night all. Had the weekend from hell.
JJ: Poor Baby
had the past hour from hell. guessing the rest of the night wont be that great.
Yeah - Poor me. When I got to Canada all was good until about 11pm when my lovely daughter got the stomach bug, followed by me. Wasn't a pleasent evening. And it annoyed me that she bounced back so quickly and ended up playing her her two games the next day while I suffered with stomach cramps in the stands. Then we had to drive home and since she is not yet old enough to drive she climbed in the back and slept the whole way home while I chatted with just about everyone on my cell so I could stay awake.
Now I'm off to go christmas shopping. Any idea how much I hate shopping! Yuck.
I know, must get in the spirit. I will, eventually.
Have a great day everyone - still raining here. I'd prefer the snow. Or maybe a dolphin.
dug: sorry to hear about Craig's Hut. Man from Snowy River is one of my favorite movies. *sigh* I hope the fires get under control soon too.
Survived another weekend in retail at the mall. Had a little kid offer to have us all over for Twinkies later. Too funny, especially the mom's face.
Hope everyone's day/week/month gets better.
It was a lovely Fall weekend here, today as well. I think someone is trying to use my dog ot kill me. Al ittle melodramatic but my friend thought it would be a good plot point. I was outside yesterday with the DD(og). His fence was fixed, no chain. he ran in front of me, I stepped on him then fell. Twisted one of the darn ankles, skinned my knees and bent back my fingers, broke the phone. I was lying there trying to decide whether to cry because of the pain or laugh from the absurdity when the dog came over, looked at me then dropped his ball on my chest.
I'm telling everyone they are pole dancing injuries.
I hope you all have a fantastic day, even Jen out there shopping.
CMS, I winced as I read that -- until I got to the end, when I had to laugh. Yes, pole dancing is clearly quite hazardous.
I wonder if you can get dog insurance, the way you can get earthquake insurance? Might be worth looking into.
Here -- have a little virtual tequila. Supposed to help with injuries of that sort.
OK, this is completely off topic in all ways, but I had to share.
LibraryThing has this lookup tool called the UnSuggester, where you put in a book you own, (say, I don't know, maybe DLD?) and then it will give you a list of books you are very UNLIKELY to own.
http://www.librarything.com/unsuggester/356256
Apparently we aren't big Kerouac fans.
You can put in any book you like (or don't) and see how the results go. Very good for boring days at work.
PS Yeah, I know, I forget how to format a link (shamefaced)
Hi Everyone,
Mary, thanks for the offer of the virtual oven. Power came back on last night, so I think I'll be fine. Cookies should be in the mail tomorrow.
That was one cold weekend though. Turns out, our fireplace is very decorative and looks very nice when a fire is burning. Doesn't heat worth a darn. Mostly it was between 50 and 60 degrees, depending on time of day and where you were in the house. Just when we decided to abandon ship (or house as it were) the power came on. There are still about 250,000 people in the region without power, so the saga continues. DD 8 called it our Forest Adventure. Seems we were camping out in the forest called the living room. Ahhh to have the imagination of an 8 year old.
CMS, maybe dear you should step back from Extreme Pole Dancing and go back to Intermediates for a while.
Pets, there's a reason God made them so cute. Its largely what they get by on.
k.l. congrats on having power back. At least your DD could look on it as an adventure.
And my floors are so pretty!
sffweon: science fiction fans, we on.
We have to get all our flooring warmed back up before they can install it. About 3 days. Of course, then it is so close to Christmas that I don't see it happening until after that. Glad your floors are pretty. That is so rewarding. I can't wait for mine.
k.l.: I'll just warn you that when they were done there was a coating of very fine dust over EVERYTHING. I spent all afternoon on Saturday going over everything with a damp cloth. If you're smart you'll cover anything you can with old sheets. Even with moving all the small stuff to another floor we were still left with a lot of cleaning.
Oh Joy. Maybe I'll just enclose the kitchen with plastic sheets at the doors. I'm getting tired of dust. Thanks for the "heads up".
Jen-t said...
she climbed in the back and slept the whole way home while I chatted with just about everyone on my cell so I could stay awake.
Poor Babies all round on the stomach virus. If you want to add me to your travel phone roster, shoot me an email. My best friend travels all the time for business, and I spend a fair amount of time on the phone with her as she's waiting for planes or driving from NYC to Philly or something.
CMS: Ouchies! Are you going to survive this pet? /;+))) It's so funny how they don't see us as one entity. We're hands to pet and feed, and faces that talk and make kissy sounds, but to them it seems like we're just random bits. My cat strolls up my body when I'm trying to sleep, every night, and every night she stands with her paws in my protuberances, and every night I howl, and it just doesn't every click that those, too, are part of Mommy.
k.l. and mcb, congrats on the flooring. I'm thinking about doing something about my mother's kitchen flooring. Whoever put it down didn't do a very good job - the seams are all coming up and the edges have cracked. She has pieces to have it patched, but I'm wondering if it's worth it. Trouble is, it was very expensive, and she loves it, so change will not be a happy thing. Then again, is replacing one broken seam with two new and breakable seams going to be a good thing? Sigh.
dhmhhp (blue)
Do hips make him happy, Pappy?
(very bad)
CMS - My sympathies. Fred's gotten better about cutting in front of me, so we don't have that problem so much anymore. Dog insurance - hah!
Oh, and why doesn't anyone tell newbie dog owners about the grass thing? Freaked me out when he woke in the middle of the night begging to be let out, only to see him start mowing the side lawn.
That'll teach him to chew his crate pad. Eegh. Another $30 down the drain.
K.L. - Lucky you. My sis is still waiting for power in Kirkland. Mom got it back on Saturday, Dad Sunday, but my sis, her husband and three kids are all hot-water-less. PLEASE pray they get it back on before Christmas. I'm not going unless they all take showers/baths again.
Word is that they should be down to about 150,000 regionally by the end of the day. Unfortunately for those left, it may still be a while. Those last areas are the most difficult to get fixed.
CMS, no kidding about pole dancing injuries. My friend is doing a class at the moment and she's black and blue in the oddest places!!
Cool front now, fires under control.
rphfnxs - roof needs fixing
Andi I sent you an email regarding the cookie exchange. Please let me know if you got it. Thanks
I'm going to step away from the pole for awhile, let my poor old body heal. I promised my massage therapist I would go get x-rays on the ankles. She's working on the ulna nerve damage from yesterday's incident. Fortunately, my dog is not only gorgeous, he amuses me with his exuberance. Last night, he sat on my feet to keep them warm. Too bad that caused me to scream from the pressure. Poor guy has no idea why I'm avoiding him like the cliched plague.
Really off Topic, but had to share.
So, watching the news while I cook what is suppose to be dinner. Tried something new and well, lets just say I should stick with the grill. Anyway, the news reported that the local pet store was robbed and 8 snakes and 1 aligator was stolen. We have aligators here in NY? Geez. Anyway, 7 snakes have been returned, but 1 boa and 1 aligator are still at large. Good Lord, I'm going to have nightmares. I hate snakes. Can't say I'm overly fond of Aligators either.
Its ok. Since both the gators and the snakes are cold blooded, if they are let outside, they probably will just go sleep somewhere. They won't sneak out and attack you until this summer.
CMS: Poor Baby. and mcb was so right "Pets, there's a reason God made them so cute. Its largely what they get by on."
JJ: sorry to hear you and DD were sick.
heather: thanks for the site. having a lot of fun with it. i seem to read a lot of unsuggestions though. :)
ok, making sauce tomorrow. hasn't been the most productive day for me.
Totally wigged out here. So, I'm working on my book DARK WATER and a news update comes across the radio about the missing Boa and Aligator, which are still missing!!!!!! The Aligator is 3 feet! What the heck is an Aligator doing in an exoctic pet store? It's not exoctic and it's not a bet and it's 3 f.finn feet long! Don't they know it's going to get even bigger and it's not like we have animal control up here used to dealing with Aligators! Geez. Here come the flipping nightmares. Aligators are right up there with sharks.
I wished for a dolpin, not an aligator!!!!
Totally wigged out here. So, I'm working on my book DARK WATER and a news update comes across the radio about the missing Boa and Aligator, which are still missing!!!!!! The Aligator is 3 feet! What the heck is an Aligator doing in an exoctic pet store? It's not exoctic and it's not a bet and it's 3 f.finn feet long! Don't they know it's going to get even bigger and it's not like we have animal control up here used to dealing with Aligators! Geez. Here come the flipping nightmares. Aligators are right up there with sharks.
I wished for a dolpin, not an aligator!!!!
Totally wigged out here. So, I'm working on my book DARK WATER and a news update comes across the radio about the missing Boa and Aligator, which are still missing!!!!!! The Aligator is 3 feet! What the heck is an Aligator doing in an exoctic pet store? It's not exoctic and it's not a bet and it's 3 f.finn feet long! Don't they know it's going to get even bigger and it's not like we have animal control up here used to dealing with Aligators! Geez. Here come the flipping nightmares. Aligators are right up there with sharks.
I wished for a dolpin, not an aligator!!!!
Whoa Jen, it's okay. The alligator will not bother you. It's Moot. Bob said she sent back to the swamp and we all know how many swamps there are in New Yourk State.
I feel much better. The massage got all the blood flowing back into the muscles, joints and everywhere else it's supposed to go.
mcb said - "Pets, there's a reason God made them so cute. Its largely what they get by on."
Doesn't that apply to kids also?
qlnou - quick look now ( for exotic pets) over and under
Ok, I have to ask. They have classes for pole dancing?
13 more days till the end...kaboom.... just saying.
Okay, so I tried to do a little christmas shopping again last night since yesterday was basically a bust. I ended up at target to get stocking stuffer stuff and wound up buying two more white boards. I know have a cork board and three white boards hanging in my office. Three because I have three books going here. One under contract due like soon. The other two, well, just books I'm writing that I really, really, really like and really want to finish and well since I'm trying to refine my skills here I decided to listen to Jenny, or learn from Jenny, or whatever. Anyway I spent till 2 in the morning putting stuff on the white boards. Of course I didn't finish my shopping last night so I have to do it today after work. At least I only have one class this morning.
Have a great day!
Watch out for pets and other aligators.
sorry about the triple post, not sure what happened, blogger kept telling me I typed in the wrong verification letters. Silly blogger.
Yep theresa. All thats required is stamina, arnica(?sp)gel and stilletos.
The mind boggles.
My friends husband tells everyone she's taking a polish dancing class.
svlgxw - polish for cheers.
dug said: polish dancing class
I love it!
iowkbby: I only want kelidoscope bouncing bubbles yesterday.
DownUnderGal said...
mcb said - "Pets, there's a reason God made them so cute. Its largely what they get by on."
Doesn't that apply to kids also?
Oh yes.
btw, polish dancing ... *snort*
yvewq: Yesterday Veronica entertained Welsh queen.
UGH! I am doomed! I was supposed to go shopping today, but nooooo youngest child had to get sick and now I'm home with him. Why do I do this to myself every year, wait until the last minute? I'm doomed.
jen-t: you are not doomed. I still have quite a bit of my shopping left to do too. Where there is a will, there is a way ... and relatives too.
My second job is in the mall and I still can't get my shopping in. The breaks just aren't long enough, even if I grab something the second I step inside a store.
Yes, that's what I want to do. Work 8 hours, then fight traffic for a parking space, stand for 4 to 6 more hours and then shop with the same happy campers I just sold stuff to. Wheeee.
Besides, why do you think certain stores are now open 24 hours, regardless of the season?
I forget exactly how old your kids are, but is it time for them to embrace the magic of "gift cards?"
I am so disorganized this year. Last night I discovered something didn't get put in the box to be shipped to my sister's family so I had to send it down today by fed ex - 2 day economy. Then I realized that I was short a gift for a family member. And I've worked hard at not stressing myself over the holiday this year. Didn't even put up a tree this year because getting new floors put in would make the timing way too tight. Did do some other decorations though.
And strangely this is the first year I didn't do any on-line shopping. Just realized that. How odd, I usually do quite a bit of it that way.
ehiakxy: Empires historically ignore any King Xavier yarns.
A friend and I were discussing the "Festival of the Last Minute Gift". Out here, the Safeway grocery stores have a rack of gift cards for all sorts of retailers - even a gift card for Merry Maids. (Wouldn't that be handy. Can't decide if I'd rather have it for before everyone comes over or after everyone's left.)
Btuda - I've done my time in Christmas retail (although fortunately, I've blocked most of it out). I fully sympathize. But, if you're already in the mall, wouldn't you have technically already parked there and not need to do the crawl between the parallel lines? Or do they kick you out of employee parking right after your shift? Or do they force you to hike to outer Mongolia to retrieve your car? Yikes. Didn't think of doing that with packages. Never mind. Shop online. The extra shipping costs are well worth it.
Pets... hummm. A week ago yesterday (Monday), I was taking my two small dogs out for their before bed stroll and accidentally put my foot down on the edge of our walkway. My ankle (left) turned under itself sharply, then I fell and landed on my hands and knees on the cement. Now if it were 20 years ago, I would have just cowgirled up and kept on. But being a little older and not wanting a permanent limp, I went to the doctor. Lo and behold - it was broken - not badly, bone was not displaced - but broken. I am now stuck in one of those "boots" with velcro straps and metal "stays" for 4 weeks. Cramping my style A LOT!!
So... those of you that have ankle injuries that are not healing appropriately, GO GET THEM X-RAYED!!
tuelle - that material from France that they make curtains, etc. with
P.S. I voted.
cary: I have my day job downtown and then I've got the retail thing over the holidays. I'm off at 5:00 from Bank World and have to drive across town to the mall to start my evening shift at 6:00. Usually it's easily doable, except it's Christmas and I'm fighting everyone else who needs a parking place at the mall after work.
I'm with you and MCB for the on-line thing. I've done some of my shopping that way. I just ordered something for my dad the other day. We'll have to see just how quick "Rush" really is. Dad might be getting a gift card if it doesn't make it in time.
Did I mention that I just started my Christmas Cards? I just may need a piece of tape for each one that says, "Happy Valentine's Day." Or St Patrick's Day. Maybe even 1st Day of Summer.
fguinkrw: the language of the elusive parking place seekers
cmtglz: salutations from the parking place seekers.
You people and your ankle injuries ... I'm starting to think this place is jinxed. Lou, take care of yourself.
Thanks McB!! Nah... not jinxed. It's just this time of year people are so busy that their brains are not paying attention to minor details. If I hadn't been trying to miss a wet bush that had grown over a good portion of our walkway and if said walkway wasn't curved, it never would have happened. Now I knew the bush had grown over and I knew the walkway is curved and had managed to avoid said problem all year.
So, everyone now, deep breath - O.K., another deept breath. Let each breath out slowly and go put your feet up for 15 minutes. You'll feel much better!!
I have a magical way of getting my Christmas shopping done. Have a huge rain and windstorm blow through your area, knocking out power to most of the region. Then have your husband's work not get power back for a week. Since he can't go to work, he gets elected to get the Christmas shopping done. Works for me.
Btuda: Ugh. Your schedule sounds awful. And actually, I didn't do the online thing (too cheap, too much a procrastinator). I finished my shopping Sunday night.
Maybe we should start a business with your "insert current holiday here" sealing tape for cards. We could make a ton of money off just ourselves.
K.L. - My sister's been using that excuse for dining out for the last week. Now that her power is finally back, she's used that as an excuse to clear out the refridgerator (thank god - there were glowing green substances in there), and since the grocery store only just got their power back, and haven't gotten their re-stock shipments yet..... "BURGERMASTER" night.
Andi - If you're around, I think you were a fellow admirer of the book Eats, Shoots, and Leaves. Did you know there is a page-a-day calendar version?!!! Guess what is sitting on my desk at work....
Okay, Lou, I think you, me and CMS should form a group. We could call ourselves the Twisted Sisters. Oh wait, that's been done.
Virtual hugs of sympathy are being sent your way. CMS, gimme back the virtual tequila. It's Lou's turn. No, I said give it back, not hold on to it tighter. Hey, whatever happened to Esprit du Blog? ;)
Sorry, Lou, you get the virtual hugs anyway. And I am going to see the Doc on Boxing day (weird day for an appointment) so I'll mention the ankle to him, see what he says. I hope the cast helps you heal quickly!
hvnxiyx - a sound made by Zaza's cat, most probably after seeing a human sprain an ankle
Twisted Sister! Brings back memories from my camp days. "We're not gonna take it, no, we aint gonna take it, we're not gonna take it anymore!" Yeah. That was the theme song for all the 84 counselors. That and in the last week of camp, "What are they gonna do, fire me?" Of course there was "bugs" and his black n decker party recker. Snort.
Okay, so I've got issues. Sick kids, white board problems (someone thought it would be okay to erase and leave mommy a love note! NOT!), but I've got a clean office! yeah me.
My apologies to anyone who now has the song "We're not gonna take it" stuck in their head :(
fxkjl - what you need to do when your kjl has broken down
(All right, you come up with a better one!)
btuda: you make cards? cards are for mother/father's day and your grandma on v-day. i write the person's name on the gift and say "enjoy".
i love gift cards. have you seen all the kinds they have at borders/barnes 'n noble/bookstores?
lou, mary, and CMS: i hope your legs give you the excuses to get out of all the bad holiday portions.
my dog disappeared and didn't come home till 5 am this morning! she's damn lucky she's cute or i'd wring her neck for worrying me.
sauce going out tomorrow. dog and alarm guy kind of put me behind schedule.
Mary - that's okay because it replaced Black Sabbeth's IRON MAN. I know I said I'm a big country freak, which I am but for some reason when I deep clean I'm a heavy metal nut and I blast head banging music throughout the house. My middle child loves it, the other two, not so much. They like rap. Gross. Of course there is my disco dancing hero that when I go back to that book I have to listen to stupid songs like Disco Inferno. Okay, so some of them are really good to dance to, but to write to? Geez.
Right now I'm listening to Styx - Welcome to the Grand Illusion. But it's time to get ready for work. Sigh, there I get to listen songs like Puff the Magic Drangon, Head Shoulders Knees and Toes, Wheels on the bus, The wiggles and of course the Pony song! yeah.
Have a nice day everyone!
My sympathies to all the injured and ill! It's a tough time to be in pain, when there's so much to do - do your best to work out how to milk it for getting out of everything you don't want to do!
Sympathies, also, to those with pet-related pain/ anxiety. ZaZa, are you SURE your cat doesn't realize she's hurting you? Maybe you're funny when you scream? I love cats, but they don't, generally, suffer from an excess of empathy.
I made it to OR, after a VERY LONG day of flying (it could've been worse, I ended up with space next to me on 2 flights). And enjoyed CherryBomb cookies when I got here! Thanks, CMS and SDCB!
I'm experiencing some gift anxiety - I ordered something for my mom & dad from Amazon (I thought) and considered it done; didn't follow up to make sure it had arrived. Well, it hasn't; for some reason my dad's computer has trouble loading Amazon so I can't check, but I do know I checked my email, and there's no auto-respond "we got your order" email. Did I imagine ordering this? Urgent email to sister, may call if she doesn't get back to me pronto - we've got a shipping deadline, you know!
Jen-T - Styx can be pretty fun, and I completely agree on the necessity of hostile, alienated music when one is cleaning house (or at least, loud and energetic - The B52s have a song called Housework that's fun, and any of their stuff, while pretty upbeat, is good to keep one moving)! And I agree that rap is gross - there's something about the rhythm and the rhymes that just sends me RIGHT up a tree. But I also like Puff and HSK&T, so it's all good.
I saw Little Miss Sunshine on the plane - the little girl's routine was TOO funny - taking the pageant thing to its logical extreme but sending the organizers into hysterical outrage. A good film.
I just had to retrieve an errant apostrophe - proofreading! It's a fine thing.
Jen: ((hugs)) for sick kids, last minute shopping anxiety and white board distress. Deep breath, exhale ... feel better?
I got Diane's (TT) package yesterday. My DH is very happy with my blogging buddies right about now. Said something about me having very good cooks for online friends. We got CMS and SDCB's package just before the Big Dark, so that was a small ray of sunshine for the weekend.
I got my stuff out yesterday. Keeping fingers crossed it gets there this week.
DH's work power finally came back last night, so he is off to work today. Luckily he got almost all the Christmas shopping done, so we are almost caught up.
For everyone already sick or injured, get well fast, and watch out for those pets. Fluff can be dangerous. For those not on injured reserve, take it easy and be careful. We don't want to have a virual hospital party.
Ooh, it's so cool to see the inchoate* Online Writers' Workshop posted up in the Cherry Forums. No posts yet, but it's a good reminder that instead of thinking of this blog as ending, we can look forward to new informative and fun posts! The learning never stops. Or shouldn't.
*Oh come on now. What's the use of learning all these 2 dollar words if I can use one now and again?