Keep Calm And Carry On

Just 18 hours away from a new era, and this blogger’s only resolution is to become employed. I gave up the cliché’d resolutions long ago. Of course, it’s irrelevant to make a New Year’s resolution that never applies to one in the first place. I don't imbibe, snort, smoke, work-out, over-spend, over-charge, over-sleep, or make promises I can’t keep.

I’ve also not done a very good job of maintaining a usual blog output. Or have I? How can one justify a blog-entry, if little to nothing has changed. Am I then only attempting to fill a space out of boredom? I can’t imagine that makes for a very stimulating blog.

Being a Gemini, I’m not one to care what someone else’s expectations are for me. I’m only happiest if I please myself. Though, that’s not to say that I’d be happy while someone else is miserable. The old saying is true: ‘If Mama ain’t happy, ain’t no one happy.’

Anywoo, back to resolutions: I’ve spent six months doing the same thing; hoping for a relevant change. I’ll still hope, but try harder. In the meantime, I’ll keep up on the happiness part, which involves consuming mass quantities of reading, and doing lots of writing.

Not to turn Oprah on y’all, but what was your ‘favorite thing’ that happened this year? Mine was the opening ceremonies of the London Olympics. I’ve glanced up to notice an occasional blurb happening on my T.V. screen during past Olympics—brain-dead and disinterested. I’ll even admit to not paying attention, when London initially got the vote for the 2012 Games.

However, this has been a banner year for England; William & Kate celebrating their first year of marriage, a baby on the way, the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, a new James Bond film, and the 50^th anniversary of Bond, The Beatles, and the Stones.

Makes the Union Jack flag hanging in my loo seem relevant. ;)

Happy New Year!

The Tryptophan Will Get Ya...

Well, as you can tell, I took a long break from blogging. I no longer feel obligated to blog every few days, as I think that would tax your interest, were I to not come up with something original. IOW, I've figured out that not everyone wants to try and keep up with me. C'est la vie!

Moving on, Thanksgiving was great! But at the end of it, Mah's observation was surprising, as she seemed disappointed. "I spent almost two days cooking...and it took us less than an hour to sit and enjoy the meal." Ha, ha! She was enjoying getting a head-start on the process of cooking, making everything nearly 48 hours ahead of time. And, as there was only three of us at the table, we were 'thankful' that we didn't have everyone else’s 'out-of-town-nightmare-relatives' situation going on. Though, I can't think of anyone in our family that's like that...not even a 'Drunk Uncle'. We got to wear our sweatpants or stretchies, saving ourselves the familiar images of 'open-belt-zipper-down'. (Shudder!)

And, I am thankful for all that I have. A healthy and happy family. A warm, dry roof over my head, and a fridge with leftover turkey. I know others are having tougher times than I. The only 'tough' part that I can allow myself some despondency is my unemployment status.

The saying: "There's a lid for every pot," is set aside for people seeking relationships. I don't need a relationship, dagnabbit. I need work. So, I'd like to think this same quote could work for job-seekers keeping that hopeful spark. I have to hold out hope that there's a lid for my pot, somewhere. :)

I attended the Excel workshop, and got fairly comfortable with it. It'll still take some getting used to, but I won't give up. It's a step in the right direction.

I'm still working on the manuscript, naturally. And, I'm soooo glad we live in a time where the researching is waaaaay easier. Information at your fingertips! I have scenes in which one of my characters has plagiarism problems. (Cue melodramatic music here! Dunh-dunh-DUNH!)

Anywoo, here's to hoping that this time next year, I'll enjoy being one of the many nut-cases that parks themselves outside a big-box store, waiting for its doors to open, so I can spend hard-earned money on huge Black Friday sales.

The Politics of Writing

   Shall I touch on the possible changes in our future, in the next 48 hours? Or, should I leave it alone? Like we hear from the media, I, too, am saturated with the election news. Ever progressing, but still the same. Thank Cookies it's almost over. And, I'll either be very happy, or be really let down by the outcome. The race is so close. Both thoroughbreds are neck-n-neck at the finish line, and the gamblers, which are pretty much all of us, are going to feel it absolutely if we lose.

   Also, on a side-note, I did not put my ballot in one of those ballot boxes. I'd considered it, but instead mailed it via the U.S. Postal service. And, man, am I glad I did. In less than three weeks, I've heard news stories of voter application forms being thrown out by reps of the Republican party, and ballot boxes being filled in with Republican nominee names, by those the ballot doesn’t belong to.  

   It'd be a funny thing though; if Obama wins, despite all the lying, cheating, violating, and other scurrilous behavior we've been hearing about on the part of the Republican party, then I'll feel that he was meant to win.

   Then, I can breathe a sigh of relief, and go back to my more immediate concerns; attending a computer workshop. Namely, helping me navigate Excel. (After all, I've not had any need for using a spread-sheet)


   On writing: researching restraining orders has opened my eyes to the fact that there’s no such thing as one kind of restraining order.

   “Quoi?” you ask. Exactly.

   Upon hearing a cop or lawyer on T.V. say "restraining order," we all think, ‘Oh, that guy’s not allowed anywhere near that woman for the rest of his life.’

   Not entirely, mes amis.  It’s a ‘blanket’ word—we get the gist of its meaning, but if you ever find yourself needing one, there’s very specific types of orders:

 * Emergency Protective Order

 * Temporary Restraining Order

 * Permanent Restraining Order

   And from those, there are branches of what type of order is needed:

Civil Harassment Orders

Workplace Violence Prevention Restraining Order

Juvenile Restraining Order

Stalking Protective Orders

Elder Abuse Protective Orders

Family Abuse Protective Orders


   I’ve looked at several websites, and there doesn’t seem to be a consistent theme as to whether there are two or three types of ‘orders’ to be applied for. And, as a writer, I thought I could just slap a restraining order on my protagonist’s evil enemy, and have done with it.

   However—and I’ve found this helpful—I’ve had to navigate specifically what constitutes successfully applying/arguing for an order. So, while it can alter one’s writing from what was thought to be known, it can also improve it.

   It just sucks that I can’t apply for a restraining order against the person who sent my laptop that damn virus. Sigh!

Not exactly La Push...

     Politics, casinos, baking, reading, and writing. Yah, that's been my world for the last few weeks. Or else I might've had nothing to update my blog with, and it all would've been very blah in here.


    And here I am about to light a match of pissed-offness in you, depending on your political P.O.V.; come November, I'm voting for "four more years," because I don't believe our president was given enough time to clean up the mess he was left with. (Burn!) Also, NO non-tribal casinos. And I've got a charismatic governor to back me up. : D

     We knew the good weather wouldn't hold here for much longer, and Mah was really wanting sand and surf, in lieu of not being able to indulge in her Daytona time-share this year. So, she and I road-tripped to the coast recently. I once said that we were good road-trip partners, and I was right. Talking, listening to music, reading, snacking, gambling, pointing out beautiful northwest wine country scenery along the way...that's a road-trip! Especially when you know she knows how to have a picnic on the beach; crackers, fruit, cheese, wine, and chocolates. Only thing missing was the cast of Downton Abbey. : D

     As for the reading, I've been Googling more local writers, getting a feel for which authors would interest me. And one of my favorite genres is mystery. So, with a recent trek to my local library, I now have enough reading material to last me many rainy days. I'm a book-foodie, as you know, and I'll be feasting on the mystery novels of Kate Wilhelm. The first one I broke into has already got my love; the story spans from Oregon, to my 'second home' of New Orleans. Sigh! I'm definitely savoring that one. :)


     Baking: I helped make Mah more aware that there are expiration dates on box-mixes; they aren't to be bought and stored away high up in a cabinet, forgotten. Because when someone else actually gets around to baking them, they're not quite as good as you hoped. Of course, it also helped me to understand the concept of 'tester recipes'. And my 'testers' of box-mix sugar-cookies (and later, brownies) weren't sampled and then thrown out. No, when I make 'sweets', the people around me eat them. I.O.W., I don't bake crap.


     And, I've found that I really enjoy it. I'm no Nigella Lawson, mind you. I just enjoy a task where the result is going to be decadent, and fattening, and totally bad for me. And, would you believe it actually helps with my writing?? Without revealing too much, one of the characters I write of has a desire to be a business-owner, but somehow, she picked up the mad skills for baking.

     Anywoo, I have near-future plans to try more complicated scratch-baking recipes. However--and for those of you whom are familiar with my past posts--I'll wait until Marie Barone is visiting her little brother in Brokeback country.

A Million Little Pages

     Tabloids/tabloid t.v. shows can have such fun bullshit to read/watch sometimes! For one, Ellen DeGeneres poked fun at the paparazzi on her show yesterday for taking pictures of she and Portia in matching outfits and calling it a 'fashion-showdown'. It was basically nothing, but tabloids always love to remove the 'no,' and turn it into a 'thing.' 

     The job-searching continues, but hopefully, I'm getting closer to resolving it. The [nameless] work-search facility I've been going to has been helping me figure out what I need to do to better my chances at employment. It looks like a handful of workshops are in my future. But then, I never met a workshop I didn't like. :)


     I'm almost finished consuming the fourth Chelsea Cain 'Archie/Gretchen' book. (I put it down for a short time while I read the Kathy Reichs book--the same autographed copy I sent to my SIL for her birthday) As soon as I finish the fifth 'A/G' book, I'll switch back to April Henry. Cain and Henry are proving to be my favorite local writers. I am a mild junkie for crime-novels. (And proud of it. I like reading about the bad guys getting what they deserve.)

     I love to read, but sometimes I'd feel bad that I wasn't reading the kinds of authors we're told by the more learned folks that we should be reading. So, with a little help from Wikipedia, I'd go and read the synopses of a well-known author's works; ones that either made a bestseller's list, or were listed as a 'prolific read'. It doesn't ruin the story for me, as it only goes into mild detail, leaving me enough room to decide if I'm interested in reading it.

     Now, I'll likely get some haters on this, but I've concluded that I'm no real fan of Graham Greene. I only like a few stories of Ursula K. Le Guin's, and William Faulkner has been a little difficult for me to analyze. (Can you tell I was my English Lit professor's favorite??)

     However, this doesn't mean that I won't ever read these authors. History has shown me that I likely will; I barely got through 'The Scarlet Letter', or 'Brave New World' in high school. But I picked them up again in my mid-30's, and liked them better, then.

     I'm also not a fan of non-fiction. I don't read 'bullshit memoirs', so you'll never spot James Frey on MY bookshelf. But there are exceptions; I'd like to get my hands on Rosalind Russell's autobiography, 'Life Is A Banquet'.

     In the meantime, here's your moment of Zen.

                      "So many books, so little time." ~ Frank Zappa