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What was I going to say?
Jul. 1st, 2023 01:04 amI had a plan when I opened this post-an-entry window, really I did. But now that it's here, all visually empty, so is my brain.
I guess it's time for bed.
I guess it's time for bed.
Early Morning Randomness
Jun. 15th, 2023 09:05 amI woke up for a call of nature, but presumably as a result of going to sleep early last night was unredeemably awake. Well, my body was, anyway. My mind was drifting, awake enough to be bored and not awake enough to do any mental work. I tried laying down for a while, then playing with pixel dragons briefly, and finally let myself be lured out into the very early morning sunshine.
I'm still taking things very slowly, since though the breathing feels better, my chest is still tight, which could mean some wonderful new health adventure like heart disease. (There is a stress test scheduled.) So there was no digging or anything stressful, but I did clip branches off weed trees we want to dig up or otherwise kill, and sat on my grandmother's very comfy tub stool to strip the leaves to throw in the compost. And now the compost pile is covered with pretty green leaves, and needs to be turned.
That was enough to get me awake enough to be hungry. Time for leftovers. And then? Either napping or Eurofilk. Or maybe a little of both, but if it's to be napping, the CPAP will be on.
I'm still taking things very slowly, since though the breathing feels better, my chest is still tight, which could mean some wonderful new health adventure like heart disease. (There is a stress test scheduled.) So there was no digging or anything stressful, but I did clip branches off weed trees we want to dig up or otherwise kill, and sat on my grandmother's very comfy tub stool to strip the leaves to throw in the compost. And now the compost pile is covered with pretty green leaves, and needs to be turned.
That was enough to get me awake enough to be hungry. Time for leftovers. And then? Either napping or Eurofilk. Or maybe a little of both, but if it's to be napping, the CPAP will be on.
I'm so very tired
May. 4th, 2023 07:50 pmBut other than that, I'm finally feeling a lot better.
I haven't gotten anything done today, no gardening or music or anything but sleep. I even slept through #SciFiChat.
I'm really bored with this. But at least while I'm sleeping, I don't notice how bored I am.
So, let's see. I never had a reduction of taste or smell (though it occurs to me that with the Paxlovid that might have seemed a temporary blessing). I did have trouble breathing, and took my rescue inhaler a lot and thanked all the powers that I have a CPAP machine. I certainly had brain fog (leading to a chat with a friend where I talked about being incompetent, and he very kindly said he could imagine me incapacitated, but not incompetent). I did have reduction of appetite, but that started before the Paxlovid and ended after, so I'm hoping it was just the horrible taste and not some more serious side effect of either the virus or the medication.
Right now, the allergies seem less severe than they normally are, and allergies are immune-system-overreactions (to over-simplify). On the one hand, it is letting me not take my usual allergy meds as much as usual, which I think is a good thing, since my body seems to be trying to flush out the virus particles and paxlovid as fast as possible. On the other hand, it's worrisome, since a strong immune system matters, unless I want to be living even more in a bubble than I have been since this stupid pandemic started.
On the better side of things, apparently I didn't forget the new bass parts I was working on. I didn't get better at them either, but no practice is no practice regardless of the reason, so that's not unexpected. But I had days where I was not even hearing them in my head, and had no energy to play them on the guitar, and that was upsetting while it lasted.
I did manage one thing today. I made it official that I'm not going in to Chicago to hang out with my sister and daughter this weekend; the plan had been recording tomorrow and relaxing with family Sunday. But right now the normally pleasant drive to Chicago sounds totally exhausting, and I really don't need to expose myself to their animals and dust and everything either. So it will be a quiet Mother's Day, with lots of sleep and maybe some music, and no running around taking photographs or chatting and arting. (And no Himshikar take-out either.)
I guess I'll sign off here and see if I have enough energy to do a little music, or if I just end up falling back in bed. At least it's still a wonderful, comfortable new bed. I guess a gal's gotta count her blessings where she can.
I haven't gotten anything done today, no gardening or music or anything but sleep. I even slept through #SciFiChat.
I'm really bored with this. But at least while I'm sleeping, I don't notice how bored I am.
So, let's see. I never had a reduction of taste or smell (though it occurs to me that with the Paxlovid that might have seemed a temporary blessing). I did have trouble breathing, and took my rescue inhaler a lot and thanked all the powers that I have a CPAP machine. I certainly had brain fog (leading to a chat with a friend where I talked about being incompetent, and he very kindly said he could imagine me incapacitated, but not incompetent). I did have reduction of appetite, but that started before the Paxlovid and ended after, so I'm hoping it was just the horrible taste and not some more serious side effect of either the virus or the medication.
Right now, the allergies seem less severe than they normally are, and allergies are immune-system-overreactions (to over-simplify). On the one hand, it is letting me not take my usual allergy meds as much as usual, which I think is a good thing, since my body seems to be trying to flush out the virus particles and paxlovid as fast as possible. On the other hand, it's worrisome, since a strong immune system matters, unless I want to be living even more in a bubble than I have been since this stupid pandemic started.
On the better side of things, apparently I didn't forget the new bass parts I was working on. I didn't get better at them either, but no practice is no practice regardless of the reason, so that's not unexpected. But I had days where I was not even hearing them in my head, and had no energy to play them on the guitar, and that was upsetting while it lasted.
I did manage one thing today. I made it official that I'm not going in to Chicago to hang out with my sister and daughter this weekend; the plan had been recording tomorrow and relaxing with family Sunday. But right now the normally pleasant drive to Chicago sounds totally exhausting, and I really don't need to expose myself to their animals and dust and everything either. So it will be a quiet Mother's Day, with lots of sleep and maybe some music, and no running around taking photographs or chatting and arting. (And no Himshikar take-out either.)
I guess I'll sign off here and see if I have enough energy to do a little music, or if I just end up falling back in bed. At least it's still a wonderful, comfortable new bed. I guess a gal's gotta count her blessings where she can.
Musical Musings
Apr. 22nd, 2023 12:49 amI've been all focused on music things.
I made a ranking for the song swap songs. It was interesting, in that I wasn't just picking which one I liked best, but thinking about how each song might sound in my voice, and with my instruments, and my current recording skills (or at least skills that are very closely within-my-reach). I should do a proper post on this for my patreon.
Since then I've been working on a few of my own songs, getting ready for a recording session with friends. I tweaked words and realized that I'd put a guitar that's tuned low into Drop D for one song, and that complicated things I want to do (for instance, tuning an autoharp a full note low would be possible, but very time consuming), and re-chorded it. I have another one that I'm doing more re-writing on, and I desperatel want another day between now and tomorrow, and I don't have it.
Soon I must sleep, so I can wake rested and drive. See you all later!
I made a ranking for the song swap songs. It was interesting, in that I wasn't just picking which one I liked best, but thinking about how each song might sound in my voice, and with my instruments, and my current recording skills (or at least skills that are very closely within-my-reach). I should do a proper post on this for my patreon.
Since then I've been working on a few of my own songs, getting ready for a recording session with friends. I tweaked words and realized that I'd put a guitar that's tuned low into Drop D for one song, and that complicated things I want to do (for instance, tuning an autoharp a full note low would be possible, but very time consuming), and re-chorded it. I have another one that I'm doing more re-writing on, and I desperatel want another day between now and tomorrow, and I don't have it.
Soon I must sleep, so I can wake rested and drive. See you all later!
I had a whole week off for Christmas, and many plans for what to do with the time in between various obligatory family gatherings.
Now I admit sleeping until I woke up was one of the plans, but I didn't expect that to take so long, or to be taking naps in between.
Oh, well, sleep is good.
I even got one of my promised sneak peeks of the world I'm building done. I owe more people glimpses, still, but you can take a peek here: http://wyld-dandelyon.livejournal.com/229369.html More suggestions or questions are welcome too, but not required.
P.S. My dreams were filled with cats and magic...
Now I admit sleeping until I woke up was one of the plans, but I didn't expect that to take so long, or to be taking naps in between.
Oh, well, sleep is good.
I even got one of my promised sneak peeks of the world I'm building done. I owe more people glimpses, still, but you can take a peek here: http://wyld-dandelyon.livejournal.com/229369.html More suggestions or questions are welcome too, but not required.
P.S. My dreams were filled with cats and magic...
A warm day! At last!
Jun. 2nd, 2013 12:52 amI forget how good it feels, once in a while, to ignore work, housework, human and feline health issues, goals, dreams, and pretty much everything else, and sleep until I wake up, realize I'm still tired and sleep more until I wake up and feel rested, and then make pizza and read, eat pizza and read, and then read some more.
It's remarkably refreshing.
Too bad I can't do it for a week or two.
It's June, and we have lilacs, finally.
It's remarkably refreshing.
Too bad I can't do it for a week or two.
It's June, and we have lilacs, finally.
Words and Images
May. 6th, 2013 11:05 pmLife is still overbooked and frustrating, but there are words.
Just not very many on Live Journal right now. But I have a new poem up over at Torn World: http://www.tornworld.net/storypageview.php?id=512
It goes with this painting:
So far, May is starting better than April did, creatively speaking. Here's keeping my fingers...well, crossed isn't the right metaphor, is it?
Just not very many on Live Journal right now. But I have a new poem up over at Torn World: http://www.tornworld.net/storypageview.php?id=512
It goes with this painting:
So far, May is starting better than April did, creatively speaking. Here's keeping my fingers...well, crossed isn't the right metaphor, is it?
Belatedly, G is for Grumble
Apr. 9th, 2013 10:32 pmMy sleep was interrupted Sunday night with a loud crash followed by a scream and loud cussing. Given that in my not-so-distant memory, My Angel nearly died from a fall, I was immediately wide awake with a huge spike of adrenaline.
Yes, some things fell, and yes, there was a mess to clean up, but in the big picture, it was an annoyance, not a disaster. No one was hurt. Nothing of real or sentimental value was broken. I could, in theory, let My Angel deal with the mess and just go back to sleep. Too bad I already had all that adrenaline in my system.
I wasn't awake enough to write (I could have pushed myself all the way awake, but if I had, going to work the next day had no chance of being productive). Instead I played the dumb facebook games I use to help me get sleepy, with no success (well, no success at getting sleepy anyway). I finally went and laid down in the bed, luring a cat to come purr on me. She purred, she left, and I was still awake.
I did eventually fall asleep, then a couple of hours later succeeded in not killing my alarm clock,* got up for work, went to work, worked, and got home safely. I grabbed food that didn't need cooking,** and fell asleep on the couch. That lasted only until Fox News started to play on the TV (I'd fallen asleep to Bones and don't even know what came on at 8) and headed to bed soon after.
Sleep is a blessing
But it really works better
Uninterrupted
*a very good thing since my alarm clock these days is my multi-purpose cell phone
**mint chocolate chip ice cream--there's not much in the way of food I've found that I can still eat that doesn't need cooking
P,S. While I'm grumbling, I miss the old Mood selector, which let me choose the picture wanted and name it the way I wanted it named. It wasn't perfect, but was better than this!
Yes, some things fell, and yes, there was a mess to clean up, but in the big picture, it was an annoyance, not a disaster. No one was hurt. Nothing of real or sentimental value was broken. I could, in theory, let My Angel deal with the mess and just go back to sleep. Too bad I already had all that adrenaline in my system.
I wasn't awake enough to write (I could have pushed myself all the way awake, but if I had, going to work the next day had no chance of being productive). Instead I played the dumb facebook games I use to help me get sleepy, with no success (well, no success at getting sleepy anyway). I finally went and laid down in the bed, luring a cat to come purr on me. She purred, she left, and I was still awake.
I did eventually fall asleep, then a couple of hours later succeeded in not killing my alarm clock,* got up for work, went to work, worked, and got home safely. I grabbed food that didn't need cooking,** and fell asleep on the couch. That lasted only until Fox News started to play on the TV (I'd fallen asleep to Bones and don't even know what came on at 8) and headed to bed soon after.
Sleep is a blessing
But it really works better
Uninterrupted
*a very good thing since my alarm clock these days is my multi-purpose cell phone
**mint chocolate chip ice cream--there's not much in the way of food I've found that I can still eat that doesn't need cooking
P,S. While I'm grumbling, I miss the old Mood selector, which let me choose the picture wanted and name it the way I wanted it named. It wasn't perfect, but was better than this!
The intersection of dreams and new stories is (for me) intimately involved with sleep. I don't mean I dream stories whole (my dreams have huge plot holes), I mean that the surest way to get me staring at a blank screen and not filling it in with pixels is to have a brain yearning more for sleep than story.
Which leads me to the conclusion that since my Word document isn't filling with new words, I should head to bed.
But first, I promised a haiku for the letter D!
D is for dreaming
DM whimsical when bored
Time for a new tale
I will admit, though narrative consistency is notably lacking in my night-dreams, they aren't boring.
Which leads me to the conclusion that since my Word document isn't filling with new words, I should head to bed.
But first, I promised a haiku for the letter D!
D is for dreaming
DM whimsical when bored
Time for a new tale
I will admit, though narrative consistency is notably lacking in my night-dreams, they aren't boring.
Which brings me to my thought for today's A to Z Challenge:
B is for good book
A wonderful companion
when B is for Bed
I had thought to muse about writing books, and how that's different from writing short stories, but I didn't sleep well last night. Sleep takes up just as much time when the CPAP mask slips, but it doesn't do me the good it should, so I wake tired, or worse, tired and with a headache. Bleah. (Another B!)
Now it's time for my bath (still another B) so I will look professional tomorrow instead of scruffy.
See you tomorrow!
Oh--don't forget, today is![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
ysabetwordsmith's Poetry Fishbowl!
B is for good book
A wonderful companion
when B is for Bed
I had thought to muse about writing books, and how that's different from writing short stories, but I didn't sleep well last night. Sleep takes up just as much time when the CPAP mask slips, but it doesn't do me the good it should, so I wake tired, or worse, tired and with a headache. Bleah. (Another B!)
Now it's time for my bath (still another B) so I will look professional tomorrow instead of scruffy.
See you tomorrow!
Oh--don't forget, today is
ysabetwordsmith's Poetry Fishbowl!I abandoned the Internet
Nov. 13th, 2012 08:36 pmfor a whole weekend. I went to Windycon, totally ignored the panels, and spent the whole weekend doing music and applique. Well, I did wander through the dealer's room and the art show, and tried to sleep (the bed hated me), and I went swimming briefly too. But it was a break from my usual routine, and I'm sure it would have been very restful if the hotel bed had been friendly.
And I didn't write a word--unless you count tweaking Green Eyed Friend after a tune came to me late Friday night (or early Saturday morning, depending on how you count such things).
I also spent some very pleasant time with my sister, Dragon, who spent some time drawing me, thus the new icon.
I suppose now it's time to get back into the swing of things, writing-wise, seeing as how I've been back to work for two days already.
And I didn't write a word--unless you count tweaking Green Eyed Friend after a tune came to me late Friday night (or early Saturday morning, depending on how you count such things).
I also spent some very pleasant time with my sister, Dragon, who spent some time drawing me, thus the new icon.
I suppose now it's time to get back into the swing of things, writing-wise, seeing as how I've been back to work for two days already.
I spent part of Sketchfest with a needle and thread, having come to the conclusion that I'm better at free-hand embroidery than at sketching embroidery!
Below is a pocket watch, a feather, two winged keys, one wing, two gears, and three styles of "rivets".
We have finally had some rain--the mint is no longer badly wilted, though the grass is still brown. The chicory doesn't mind the drought, but the thistles do!
(Why take pictures of the brown parts when you can take prettier photos?)
I'm still trying to figure out where I put my Scraps costume--it's moved out of the closet that needs painting, but not to where I thought I put it. It would make a great display piece for the workshops in a couple of weeks--IF I can find it.
I've been researching horse and goat births, trying to imagine how that will scale up to snow-unicorn size--those critters are bigger than Clydesdales!
And there's work to do tomorrow, starting at O-Ghawd-Awful. So I need to go sleep soon. *sigh*
How's you summer going?
Below is a pocket watch, a feather, two winged keys, one wing, two gears, and three styles of "rivets".
We have finally had some rain--the mint is no longer badly wilted, though the grass is still brown. The chicory doesn't mind the drought, but the thistles do!
(Why take pictures of the brown parts when you can take prettier photos?)
I'm still trying to figure out where I put my Scraps costume--it's moved out of the closet that needs painting, but not to where I thought I put it. It would make a great display piece for the workshops in a couple of weeks--IF I can find it.
I've been researching horse and goat births, trying to imagine how that will scale up to snow-unicorn size--those critters are bigger than Clydesdales!
And there's work to do tomorrow, starting at O-Ghawd-Awful. So I need to go sleep soon. *sigh*
How's you summer going?
Perhaps I should say D is for extendeD Deadline for the Torn World critter contest (May 1st), but really, I should have done C is for Critter Contest yesterday. Never mind that I did a C post here and then a second C post over on DreamWidth (C is for Coyote) I meant for the Coyote bit to cross-post, but apparently in the muddle of resetting passwords I couldn't remember after losing my hard drive, I un-linked my two accounts. I'll fix that this weekend, I guess. But in the meantime, if you like songs or poetry, or if you have an affinity for Coyote, you are welcome to go peek at one of my absolute best songs, Coyote Afoot. For best effect, imagine me singing it to a group of Pagans.
So, anyway, D is for Daydreams. Maybe because it's Wednesday, and I had work and errands today and have work and errands tomorrow. Maybe because there was a big lottery jackpot recently, and I wasn't one of the winners. I do always daydream when one of the lotto drawings is really big, though I start with boring stuff like paying bills and fixing up the house. But wouldn't it be lovely to set up a trust to pay for my daily bread, health insurance, and the like, make sure my kid doesn't end up to her ears in debt after college, and be able to focus on storytelling and making beautiful things, whether they're evanescent like music or more durable.
The dreaming, once I get going, doesn't stop when the numbers roll out and don't match my ticket. Then I might as well get grandiose. What would it be like if I could fly, or breathe water? What if I could sense electric fields or taste radar? What if...
I find myself itching to open a word wars chat room a let my imagination free, my fingers dancing on the keyboard, a new story growing in front of my eyes. I want to stay up until the first draft of the story is finished or at least until I can't prop my eyes open with toothpicks despite the bright sunshine streaming in the windows.
Sadly, I have to respect the fact that it's bedtime, I have to be at work (and awake and intelligent and ready to juggle phone calls and figure out screwed-up medical bills or whatever else is needed in the moment) at 8:00.
I guess, for tonight, I'll have to settle for D is for Dreams. The restful, restorative kind that happen while a person sleeps. And I'll have to settle for enjoying the while the sun is below the horizon.
Too bad I can't type in my sleep. Some of my dreams are pretty cool!
The day job is a good thing, and I like it. But I also like letting the muse catch me up in inspiration and diving into an imaginary world, ignoring the passage of time in this one, until I've pulled a good serving of it into this world where I can share it with you all.
So here's wishing you all good dreams and fantastic daydreams. Perhaps we'll find each other in one of those otherworlds some night--or even some day!
So, anyway, D is for Daydreams. Maybe because it's Wednesday, and I had work and errands today and have work and errands tomorrow. Maybe because there was a big lottery jackpot recently, and I wasn't one of the winners. I do always daydream when one of the lotto drawings is really big, though I start with boring stuff like paying bills and fixing up the house. But wouldn't it be lovely to set up a trust to pay for my daily bread, health insurance, and the like, make sure my kid doesn't end up to her ears in debt after college, and be able to focus on storytelling and making beautiful things, whether they're evanescent like music or more durable.
The dreaming, once I get going, doesn't stop when the numbers roll out and don't match my ticket. Then I might as well get grandiose. What would it be like if I could fly, or breathe water? What if I could sense electric fields or taste radar? What if...
I find myself itching to open a word wars chat room a let my imagination free, my fingers dancing on the keyboard, a new story growing in front of my eyes. I want to stay up until the first draft of the story is finished or at least until I can't prop my eyes open with toothpicks despite the bright sunshine streaming in the windows.
Sadly, I have to respect the fact that it's bedtime, I have to be at work (and awake and intelligent and ready to juggle phone calls and figure out screwed-up medical bills or whatever else is needed in the moment) at 8:00.
I guess, for tonight, I'll have to settle for D is for Dreams. The restful, restorative kind that happen while a person sleeps. And I'll have to settle for enjoying the while the sun is below the horizon.
Too bad I can't type in my sleep. Some of my dreams are pretty cool!
The day job is a good thing, and I like it. But I also like letting the muse catch me up in inspiration and diving into an imaginary world, ignoring the passage of time in this one, until I've pulled a good serving of it into this world where I can share it with you all.
So here's wishing you all good dreams and fantastic daydreams. Perhaps we'll find each other in one of those otherworlds some night--or even some day!
Music, Writing, Art, and Pizza
Feb. 1st, 2012 10:36 pmEvery year the 19th Street Coffeehouse has a winter talent contest, right in the coldest and most inhospitable time to take yourself and your instruments out into the world. Most years I think about entering, look at the date, and realize the finals are the Saturday during Capricon. Oh, well, friends outrank contests, even though I am competitive enough to really enjoy games and contests.
This year, however, the final round of the contest is the week after Capricon, so I went ahead and entered. The first round was January 27th, and I just got word that I made it into the finals! So, if you're in Milwaukee on February 18, you can come see me compete.
In art news, I finished a couple of drawings that started out as sketches in SketchFests:
Dreaming of Butterflies will be Torn World "mystery art" which means, she will be in the non-canon gallery until she is identified as a character. Is she your character?
Shrallan During the Flower Festival is a drawing of a character in Wild Snowy Chase.
Over at Torn World, I have a new poem: Advice for a Young Carnal Guild Worker. The poem itself is visible to everyone, but the backstory is reserved for Torn World subscribers.
I also have a few written entries in the Torn World Fashions & Fads contest, though not as many as I'd hoped. Between getting ready for the Coffeehouse contest, which involved putting new strings on the guitar as well as the usual practicing and tuning and such, and life being unduly busy, I didn't have as much time I wanted for writing. But at least I am pleased with the bits I did manage to finish.
My Angel has been getting herself take-out pizza, which is all to the good, except I was out of Deirdre-safe pizza crusts, so I've been wanting pizza. Today I finally got to the Gluten Free Trading Company and got some crusts, so after other errands, I came home and made spinach pizza! I didn't have room for cookies, but I also picked up Deirdre-safe cookies for another day.
And now I'm half-asleep, so I'll wish you all Good Night!
This year, however, the final round of the contest is the week after Capricon, so I went ahead and entered. The first round was January 27th, and I just got word that I made it into the finals! So, if you're in Milwaukee on February 18, you can come see me compete.
In art news, I finished a couple of drawings that started out as sketches in SketchFests:
Dreaming of Butterflies will be Torn World "mystery art" which means, she will be in the non-canon gallery until she is identified as a character. Is she your character?
Shrallan During the Flower Festival is a drawing of a character in Wild Snowy Chase.
Over at Torn World, I have a new poem: Advice for a Young Carnal Guild Worker. The poem itself is visible to everyone, but the backstory is reserved for Torn World subscribers.
I also have a few written entries in the Torn World Fashions & Fads contest, though not as many as I'd hoped. Between getting ready for the Coffeehouse contest, which involved putting new strings on the guitar as well as the usual practicing and tuning and such, and life being unduly busy, I didn't have as much time I wanted for writing. But at least I am pleased with the bits I did manage to finish.
My Angel has been getting herself take-out pizza, which is all to the good, except I was out of Deirdre-safe pizza crusts, so I've been wanting pizza. Today I finally got to the Gluten Free Trading Company and got some crusts, so after other errands, I came home and made spinach pizza! I didn't have room for cookies, but I also picked up Deirdre-safe cookies for another day.
And now I'm half-asleep, so I'll wish you all Good Night!
I've always liked spontaneity, giving myself the freedom, as much as possible, to do what I want to do in the moment. I've also always dreamed big, wanting to do many different things, and do them well. Add to that the necessity of paying my own bills, and my time is always seriously booked.
I find myself having to think about scheduling downtime. Time to read, time to watch TV, time to play games. Time to sleep.
Sleep is particularly important, since exhaustion resembles writer's block quite thoroughly.
I guess one of my goals in the new year should be to schedule--or give myself kudos for spontaneously grabbing--enough good, quality downtime.
But not today. Right now, I have to pay bills, and I have a story half-written that's inspired by the Journal of Unlikely Entomology's current theme, and I do want to get a proper bio up over at Amazon and Goodreads (where I now have new, under-construction author pages), and the next installment of Wild Snowy Chase to finish (will it finally be the last one? That's the plan anyway.) and ...
Work now, downtime later!
I find myself having to think about scheduling downtime. Time to read, time to watch TV, time to play games. Time to sleep.
Sleep is particularly important, since exhaustion resembles writer's block quite thoroughly.
I guess one of my goals in the new year should be to schedule--or give myself kudos for spontaneously grabbing--enough good, quality downtime.
But not today. Right now, I have to pay bills, and I have a story half-written that's inspired by the Journal of Unlikely Entomology's current theme, and I do want to get a proper bio up over at Amazon and Goodreads (where I now have new, under-construction author pages), and the next installment of Wild Snowy Chase to finish (will it finally be the last one? That's the plan anyway.) and ...
Work now, downtime later!
How'd it get so late?
Dec. 29th, 2011 12:05 amI meant to post something substantial, but fell asleep on the couch. Now my eyes are open, but I'm yawning and I have work tomorrow. I guess I should go sleep behind my face-hugger and get some real rest.
Now I guess I should just point you over here: My brand-new under-construction Amazon Page! Or at least, it's a page of books (and a magazine) that I have stories in, conveniently collected so people I've never met can, theoretically at least, buy right now. Even in my current half-asleep state, that's exciting.
So, what else should I add to my presence on Amazon--besides more publications? (I'm working on that, a little at a time.) I know I should put in some kind of bio, at the very least.
Oh, well, off to bed. Sleep well, everyone. Hopefully I'll see you tomorrow.
Now I guess I should just point you over here: My brand-new under-construction Amazon Page! Or at least, it's a page of books (and a magazine) that I have stories in, conveniently collected so people I've never met can, theoretically at least, buy right now. Even in my current half-asleep state, that's exciting.
So, what else should I add to my presence on Amazon--besides more publications? (I'm working on that, a little at a time.) I know I should put in some kind of bio, at the very least.
Oh, well, off to bed. Sleep well, everyone. Hopefully I'll see you tomorrow.
Tea from My Garden
Sep. 26th, 2011 12:56 amClare-Dragonfly wrote a story from a prompt I gave her! Go check it out: Steam Therapy.
In other news, I didn't manage to properly write it up, but for those of you who heard that my equinox evening was disrupted by an escaped cat, she got in safely. She wouldn't come to the door when called, and wouldn't let us catch her outside, even with canned cat food in hand. We finally resorted to trickery and rank bribery--we opened the window that opens onto the front porch, having first closed the living room doors, and then opened a new can of cat food. The other cats set up a caterwauling--there was canned cat food and they weren't getting any. She came in to investigate and eat, and we closed the window. Once safe inside, she was delighted to be picked up and petted.
And now, I'm going to stop typing with my eyelids drooping and fall in bed! See you all again soon.
P.S. Leftover steak, the second half of a can of peas, fresh basil, and purple haze goat cheese is a wonderful way to use leftovers! Next time I'll try adding some sautee'd onions.
In other news, I didn't manage to properly write it up, but for those of you who heard that my equinox evening was disrupted by an escaped cat, she got in safely. She wouldn't come to the door when called, and wouldn't let us catch her outside, even with canned cat food in hand. We finally resorted to trickery and rank bribery--we opened the window that opens onto the front porch, having first closed the living room doors, and then opened a new can of cat food. The other cats set up a caterwauling--there was canned cat food and they weren't getting any. She came in to investigate and eat, and we closed the window. Once safe inside, she was delighted to be picked up and petted.
And now, I'm going to stop typing with my eyelids drooping and fall in bed! See you all again soon.
P.S. Leftover steak, the second half of a can of peas, fresh basil, and purple haze goat cheese is a wonderful way to use leftovers! Next time I'll try adding some sautee'd onions.
Tea from My Garden
Sep. 26th, 2011 12:56 amClare-Dragonfly wrote a story from a prompt I gave her! Go check it out: Steam Therapy.
In other news, I didn't manage to properly write it up, but for those of you who heard that my equinox evening was disrupted by an escaped cat, she got in safely. She wouldn't come to the door when called, and wouldn't let us catch her outside, even with canned cat food in hand. We finally resorted to trickery and rank bribery--we opened the window that opens onto the front porch, having first closed the living room doors, and then opened a new can of cat food. The other cats set up a caterwauling--there was canned cat food and they weren't getting any. She came in to investigate and eat, and we closed the window. Once safe inside, she was delighted to be picked up and petted.
And now, I'm going to stop typing with my eyelids drooping and fall in bed! See you all again soon.
P.S. Leftover steak, the second half of a can of peas, fresh basil, and purple haze goat cheese is a wonderful way to use leftovers! Next time I'll try adding some sautee'd onions.
In other news, I didn't manage to properly write it up, but for those of you who heard that my equinox evening was disrupted by an escaped cat, she got in safely. She wouldn't come to the door when called, and wouldn't let us catch her outside, even with canned cat food in hand. We finally resorted to trickery and rank bribery--we opened the window that opens onto the front porch, having first closed the living room doors, and then opened a new can of cat food. The other cats set up a caterwauling--there was canned cat food and they weren't getting any. She came in to investigate and eat, and we closed the window. Once safe inside, she was delighted to be picked up and petted.
And now, I'm going to stop typing with my eyelids drooping and fall in bed! See you all again soon.
P.S. Leftover steak, the second half of a can of peas, fresh basil, and purple haze goat cheese is a wonderful way to use leftovers! Next time I'll try adding some sautee'd onions.
Foggy Foggy Wiscon
May. 31st, 2011 11:10 pmI don't know why I was so tired all weekend. Well, except Monday. A roommate being sick all night was the cause of that (and no, she hadn't been drinking).
Admittedly, I was tired when I headed home on Friday, arriving in time to hear that I-94 heading west was traveling at 10 miles an hour. I checked in online for the couple of errands I wanted to do before leaving, and the delay led to the new news--7 miles an hour. I laid down for a half-hour nap, and didn't wake up until quite late. I had dinner--I'm much better off driving distances after I've been awake for a while, and I was hungry.
I talked with a couple of people after returning the cart to the lobby, and eventually got to sleep.
One of my roommates helpfully said to me, too early the next morning, that I had a reading at 10. I'd thought it was the panel, not the reading. Silly foggy dyslexic brain! Thanks to her, I got to the reading not only on time, but with words to read and paintings to share, and even with time to spare for picking up my badge and dropping off flyers for Torn World and Ellen Million Graphics on the freebie tables.
I then wandered from panel to panel until the Three Fates concert, which had been helpfully scheduled for a slot when the musicians could play longer if they wanted to, which they did. And that was very nice indeed. Though they didn't play long enough for me to sketch all three of the three fates; nor did I manage to sketch their musician-guests. I'm not fast enough, yet.
Instead of dinner, I opted for a nap. Later, there were people to talk to and a wonderful, musical and magical fairyland party, and stopping by other parties.
I had a number of opportunities to give away Torn World flyers and even a few chances to show off the PDF of the anthology to people. One woman asked enough questions to get a bit of a guided tour of the Torn World website. Oh--and one person refused the flyer but took a picture of it with her phone, a more eco-friendly way to remember us than taking the paper.
Eventually, I ended up in another party, and did another sketch. Remembering my sister's comment to a friend she was sketching, that one of her challenges was drawing people who didn't look like the Murphy clan (she was more specific--something about who didn't share the substantial number of recessive genes as the people she'd grown up drawing), I picked someone who looked as little as possible (given the few people still up at that hour) as the people I usually draw.
Sure enough, I'm not as happy with the resemblance as I was with S00j and Ginger, despite drawing the mouth about a hundred times.
Sunday, I found the dealer's room and talked to booksellers. I need to follow up on those contacts later this week. And I was on a very, very silly (and adult-rated, for the innuendo) worldbuilding. Frivolous suggestions about the solar system led to basic physics particles including the lustion, squikion, pecunion, and brokion. Much laughter was had by all, though I'm not sure if anyone learned anything about worldbuilding.
By this time, I was craving protein, and headed to a restaurant, where I did some edits to stories awaiting attention on the Torn World site, since I didn't see anyone I knew and my body was being insistent about eating Right NOW!
I spent most of the evening at the Broad Universe party, where I read the end of Dance to Fend Off the Sky, which was received very well. I also met some of the people I'd been corresponding with online for a while now, which was very cool. I gave up on parties relatively early, for me, anyway, and headed back to get a real night's sleep. Well, that didn't work. And my friend is fine, now--she even managed to moderate her final panel on Monday.
One of the highlights of Monday was realizing that one of my co-panelists for the worldbuilding panel was the author of The Color of Silence, a book that I really enjoyed. I got a new book from her. After saying hello to a number of writers I'd met before, and some that I hadn't (and even some friends I hadn't seen before), I took my new-to-me shoes (freed from years in bondage, unclaimed from a prior Wiscon's lost and found) and drove home in my poor, battered old car, with no radio (and no air conditioning) to help me stay awake.
I arrived home and dined on cottage cheese (I was too tired to cook) before falling asleep in front of the computer while trying to motivate myself to wash my masks (I was not going to breathe through them after Sunday night without washing them first) and head to bed. So I got to watch part of Leno with Angel while the masks partially drip-dried before getting real sleep.
All in all,it was a good weekend and I'd love to go again next year--or, for that matter, to Marcon, or to one of the camping events that are always on Memorial Day Weekend. Oh, for a Tardis!
How was your weekend?
Admittedly, I was tired when I headed home on Friday, arriving in time to hear that I-94 heading west was traveling at 10 miles an hour. I checked in online for the couple of errands I wanted to do before leaving, and the delay led to the new news--7 miles an hour. I laid down for a half-hour nap, and didn't wake up until quite late. I had dinner--I'm much better off driving distances after I've been awake for a while, and I was hungry.
I talked with a couple of people after returning the cart to the lobby, and eventually got to sleep.
One of my roommates helpfully said to me, too early the next morning, that I had a reading at 10. I'd thought it was the panel, not the reading. Silly foggy dyslexic brain! Thanks to her, I got to the reading not only on time, but with words to read and paintings to share, and even with time to spare for picking up my badge and dropping off flyers for Torn World and Ellen Million Graphics on the freebie tables.
I then wandered from panel to panel until the Three Fates concert, which had been helpfully scheduled for a slot when the musicians could play longer if they wanted to, which they did. And that was very nice indeed. Though they didn't play long enough for me to sketch all three of the three fates; nor did I manage to sketch their musician-guests. I'm not fast enough, yet.
Instead of dinner, I opted for a nap. Later, there were people to talk to and a wonderful, musical and magical fairyland party, and stopping by other parties.
I had a number of opportunities to give away Torn World flyers and even a few chances to show off the PDF of the anthology to people. One woman asked enough questions to get a bit of a guided tour of the Torn World website. Oh--and one person refused the flyer but took a picture of it with her phone, a more eco-friendly way to remember us than taking the paper.
Eventually, I ended up in another party, and did another sketch. Remembering my sister's comment to a friend she was sketching, that one of her challenges was drawing people who didn't look like the Murphy clan (she was more specific--something about who didn't share the substantial number of recessive genes as the people she'd grown up drawing), I picked someone who looked as little as possible (given the few people still up at that hour) as the people I usually draw. Sure enough, I'm not as happy with the resemblance as I was with S00j and Ginger, despite drawing the mouth about a hundred times.
Sunday, I found the dealer's room and talked to booksellers. I need to follow up on those contacts later this week. And I was on a very, very silly (and adult-rated, for the innuendo) worldbuilding. Frivolous suggestions about the solar system led to basic physics particles including the lustion, squikion, pecunion, and brokion. Much laughter was had by all, though I'm not sure if anyone learned anything about worldbuilding.
By this time, I was craving protein, and headed to a restaurant, where I did some edits to stories awaiting attention on the Torn World site, since I didn't see anyone I knew and my body was being insistent about eating Right NOW!
I spent most of the evening at the Broad Universe party, where I read the end of Dance to Fend Off the Sky, which was received very well. I also met some of the people I'd been corresponding with online for a while now, which was very cool. I gave up on parties relatively early, for me, anyway, and headed back to get a real night's sleep. Well, that didn't work. And my friend is fine, now--she even managed to moderate her final panel on Monday.
One of the highlights of Monday was realizing that one of my co-panelists for the worldbuilding panel was the author of The Color of Silence, a book that I really enjoyed. I got a new book from her. After saying hello to a number of writers I'd met before, and some that I hadn't (and even some friends I hadn't seen before), I took my new-to-me shoes (freed from years in bondage, unclaimed from a prior Wiscon's lost and found) and drove home in my poor, battered old car, with no radio (and no air conditioning) to help me stay awake.
I arrived home and dined on cottage cheese (I was too tired to cook) before falling asleep in front of the computer while trying to motivate myself to wash my masks (I was not going to breathe through them after Sunday night without washing them first) and head to bed. So I got to watch part of Leno with Angel while the masks partially drip-dried before getting real sleep.
All in all,it was a good weekend and I'd love to go again next year--or, for that matter, to Marcon, or to one of the camping events that are always on Memorial Day Weekend. Oh, for a Tardis!
How was your weekend?
Foggy Foggy Wiscon
May. 31st, 2011 11:10 pmI don't know why I was so tired all weekend. Well, except Monday. A roommate being sick all night was the cause of that (and no, she hadn't been drinking).
Admittedly, I was tired when I headed home on Friday, arriving in time to hear that I-94 heading west was traveling at 10 miles an hour. I checked in online for the couple of errands I wanted to do before leaving, and the delay led to the new news--7 miles an hour. I laid down for a half-hour nap, and didn't wake up until quite late. I had dinner--I'm much better off driving distances after I've been awake for a while, and I was hungry.
I talked with a couple of people after returning the cart to the lobby, and eventually got to sleep.
One of my roommates helpfully said to me, too early the next morning, that I had a reading at 10. I'd thought it was the panel, not the reading. Silly foggy dyslexic brain! Thanks to her, I got to the reading not only on time, but with words to read and paintings to share, and even with time to spare for picking up my badge and dropping off flyers for Torn World and Ellen Million Graphics on the freebie tables.
I then wandered from panel to panel until the Three Fates concert, which had been helpfully scheduled for a slot when the musicians could play longer if they wanted to, which they did. And that was very nice indeed. Though they didn't play long enough for me to sketch all three of the three fates; nor did I manage to sketch their musician-guests. I'm not fast enough, yet.
Instead of dinner, I opted for a nap. Later, there were people to talk to and a wonderful, musical and magical fairyland party, and stopping by other parties.
I had a number of opportunities to give away Torn World flyers and even a few chances to show off the PDF of the anthology to people. One woman asked enough questions to get a bit of a guided tour of the Torn World website. Oh--and one person refused the flyer but took a picture of it with her phone, a more eco-friendly way to remember us than taking the paper.
Eventually, I ended up in another party, and did another sketch. Remembering my sister's comment to a friend she was sketching, that one of her challenges was drawing people who didn't look like the Murphy clan (she was more specific--something about who didn't share the substantial number of recessive genes as the people she'd grown up drawing), I picked someone who looked as little as possible (given the few people still up at that hour) as the people I usually draw.
Sure enough, I'm not as happy with the resemblance as I was with S00j and Ginger, despite drawing the mouth about a hundred times.
Sunday, I found the dealer's room and talked to booksellers. I need to follow up on those contacts later this week. And I was on a very, very silly (and adult-rated, for the innuendo) worldbuilding. Frivolous suggestions about the solar system led to basic physics particles including the lustion, squikion, pecunion, and brokion. Much laughter was had by all, though I'm not sure if anyone learned anything about worldbuilding.
By this time, I was craving protein, and headed to a restaurant, where I did some edits to stories awaiting attention on the Torn World site, since I didn't see anyone I knew and my body was being insistent about eating Right NOW!
I spent most of the evening at the Broad Universe party, where I read the end of Dance to Fend Off the Sky, which was received very well. I also met some of the people I'd been corresponding with online for a while now, which was very cool. I gave up on parties relatively early, for me, anyway, and headed back to get a real night's sleep. Well, that didn't work. And my friend is fine, now--she even managed to moderate her final panel on Monday.
One of the highlights of Monday was realizing that one of my co-panelists for the worldbuilding panel was the author of The Color of Silence, a book that I really enjoyed. I got a new book from her. After saying hello to a number of writers I'd met before, and some that I hadn't (and even some friends I hadn't seen before), I took my new-to-me shoes (freed from years in bondage, unclaimed from a prior Wiscon's lost and found) and drove home in my poor, battered old car, with no radio (and no air conditioning) to help me stay awake.
I arrived home and dined on cottage cheese (I was too tired to cook) before falling asleep in front of the computer while trying to motivate myself to wash my masks (I was not going to breathe through them after Sunday night without washing them first) and head to bed. So I got to watch part of Leno with Angel while the masks partially drip-dried before getting real sleep.
All in all,it was a good weekend and I'd love to go again next year--or, for that matter, to Marcon, or to one of the camping events that are always on Memorial Day Weekend. Oh, for a Tardis!
How was your weekend?
Admittedly, I was tired when I headed home on Friday, arriving in time to hear that I-94 heading west was traveling at 10 miles an hour. I checked in online for the couple of errands I wanted to do before leaving, and the delay led to the new news--7 miles an hour. I laid down for a half-hour nap, and didn't wake up until quite late. I had dinner--I'm much better off driving distances after I've been awake for a while, and I was hungry.
I talked with a couple of people after returning the cart to the lobby, and eventually got to sleep.
One of my roommates helpfully said to me, too early the next morning, that I had a reading at 10. I'd thought it was the panel, not the reading. Silly foggy dyslexic brain! Thanks to her, I got to the reading not only on time, but with words to read and paintings to share, and even with time to spare for picking up my badge and dropping off flyers for Torn World and Ellen Million Graphics on the freebie tables.
I then wandered from panel to panel until the Three Fates concert, which had been helpfully scheduled for a slot when the musicians could play longer if they wanted to, which they did. And that was very nice indeed. Though they didn't play long enough for me to sketch all three of the three fates; nor did I manage to sketch their musician-guests. I'm not fast enough, yet.
Instead of dinner, I opted for a nap. Later, there were people to talk to and a wonderful, musical and magical fairyland party, and stopping by other parties.
I had a number of opportunities to give away Torn World flyers and even a few chances to show off the PDF of the anthology to people. One woman asked enough questions to get a bit of a guided tour of the Torn World website. Oh--and one person refused the flyer but took a picture of it with her phone, a more eco-friendly way to remember us than taking the paper.
Eventually, I ended up in another party, and did another sketch. Remembering my sister's comment to a friend she was sketching, that one of her challenges was drawing people who didn't look like the Murphy clan (she was more specific--something about who didn't share the substantial number of recessive genes as the people she'd grown up drawing), I picked someone who looked as little as possible (given the few people still up at that hour) as the people I usually draw. Sure enough, I'm not as happy with the resemblance as I was with S00j and Ginger, despite drawing the mouth about a hundred times.
Sunday, I found the dealer's room and talked to booksellers. I need to follow up on those contacts later this week. And I was on a very, very silly (and adult-rated, for the innuendo) worldbuilding. Frivolous suggestions about the solar system led to basic physics particles including the lustion, squikion, pecunion, and brokion. Much laughter was had by all, though I'm not sure if anyone learned anything about worldbuilding.
By this time, I was craving protein, and headed to a restaurant, where I did some edits to stories awaiting attention on the Torn World site, since I didn't see anyone I knew and my body was being insistent about eating Right NOW!
I spent most of the evening at the Broad Universe party, where I read the end of Dance to Fend Off the Sky, which was received very well. I also met some of the people I'd been corresponding with online for a while now, which was very cool. I gave up on parties relatively early, for me, anyway, and headed back to get a real night's sleep. Well, that didn't work. And my friend is fine, now--she even managed to moderate her final panel on Monday.
One of the highlights of Monday was realizing that one of my co-panelists for the worldbuilding panel was the author of The Color of Silence, a book that I really enjoyed. I got a new book from her. After saying hello to a number of writers I'd met before, and some that I hadn't (and even some friends I hadn't seen before), I took my new-to-me shoes (freed from years in bondage, unclaimed from a prior Wiscon's lost and found) and drove home in my poor, battered old car, with no radio (and no air conditioning) to help me stay awake.
I arrived home and dined on cottage cheese (I was too tired to cook) before falling asleep in front of the computer while trying to motivate myself to wash my masks (I was not going to breathe through them after Sunday night without washing them first) and head to bed. So I got to watch part of Leno with Angel while the masks partially drip-dried before getting real sleep.
All in all,it was a good weekend and I'd love to go again next year--or, for that matter, to Marcon, or to one of the camping events that are always on Memorial Day Weekend. Oh, for a Tardis!
How was your weekend?
