I'm going to try this wattpad thingie out for a bit. Come read me here.

The single mom for a weekend edition…

1. Yes, just this one little weekend. Hubs is in L.A. at a nerd convention.

2. Have you ever gone into a store, say, like a Target and started looking at the clothes and one top looks very familiar? You look down and realize you are wearing that top right then. Suddenly, you turn red and leave as fast as you can hoping you don’t get stopped for shoplifting. Yeah, me either.

3. Many people believe that there is a great need for a sarcasm font. I nominate MS Comic Sans. Let’s get this thing rolling, folks.

4. Funny break

5. If you decide to do parent taught driver’s education for your child please be aware that you will be asked to raise your right hand and swear that you will be responsible for your child’s driving until they are 18. They snuck this little ritual in on me after Bird did the eye test, took a picture, and I had paid the sixteen dollars. Yes, PTDE is half the cost of traditional driver’s ed, but I’m not sure I can handle the responsibility.

6. Reading time:

7. Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore: I will read Rosemary until the day she stops writing. I am proud to say that I have read all of her published books to date. I love her style and how she sucks you right in to her stories as though you’re walking right along with her characters. Amy Goodnight carries a solid Texas name but her branch of the family turns out to be quite a bit less than traditional. And, omk, love interest Ben is swoon-worthy.

8. Connected by Jolyn Palliata: Jolyn is one of my writer friends from wayyyyy back to 2009. I know, forever, right? Anyway, she is really getting her stuff out there. Connected is a novella about two souls, one with a living body and one without which are by some twist of fate, interconnected. Rhys’ (my fave male name ever, btw) conscious is stuck inside Addison and at first it is a very uncomfortable situation. Fast, and fun Jolyn will pull you in to their story and won’t let you go even after the twisty ending. Disclaimer: This is not, I repeat NOT for a young adult audience.

9. Next I’m reading Amber Eyes by Jolyn as well. I read this a few years ago when it was in it’s primitive form and loved it, loved it, loved it then. Jolyn has edited it and sent it out into the world. Check it out. And last time I read it, it was for young adults.

10: For writers:

11. Check WeBook out and tell me what you think. I think it’s a very clever idea. I wonder if it will be successful in finding agents, etc.

12. Randomness:

13. So it’s mid January and the high today should be 77 degrees. I really love Texas in the winter.

14. The Sims 3 is coming out with a new expansion pack and Katy Perry is in on it.

15. Check ya later!

Hawaiian Haystack edition…

1. If the above picture looks good to you, here’s the recipe. For the love of refrigerator space, please halve the recipe. I did, and I still have mucho mucho leftovers. That’s okay though cause it’s Y-U-M.

2. Debated using half or halve on number one. By the time I post it I will be semi-sure though. English majors, speak up.

3. A week of Pete says:

Monday...oddly prophetic.

Tuesday. A weird question.

Wednesday. I wonder if he gets paid for this.

Thursday. heh heh heh...

Friday. It got a chuckle.

4. I think Pete needs a vacation. He wasn’t very informative/funny/creative this week.

5. So, if you love free stuff…go here. This is my fave site for the week. Thanks for the tip Sara!

6. I signed on for Google+ and I keep forgetting to actually go there. I also forget to tweet. I never forget to Facebook. *sigh*

7. Lala had to have her tooth (molar) pulled on Tuesday. It was rough. But it makes for really cute Dear Toothfairy letters.

8. Let me translate.

Dear Toothfairy,

I can’t put it [tooth] under my pillow because the dentist took it and [pulled] it out hard!!!!!!! Please still give me a quarter.

9. For the record, our fairy gives out a dollar. And she was going to give more than one this time, but when she saw she could get away with a quarter she reconsidered.

10. No new books this week. *double sigh*

11. Only ten days till school starts! And I’ve done absolutely no school shopping yet. Please tell me I’m not the only one.

12. The streak was broken yesterday. There will only be 40 days of 100 degree or over heat in a row this year for north Texas. My oldest was really pulling for us to break the record. Yes, he’s a teen.

13. I can’t wait to try it!!!!

14. I’m really glad no one showed up for my garage sale, cause it so didn’t happen.

15. Glad that I find out about Rockin’ the River at the end of summer vacay. not.

Is this thing on? Who knows if anyone will read this now that I’ve been gone from blogland for almost a full year. I tried my hand at the retail world for said year and have returned with many more bumps, bruises, tales and even muscles. Even as a part-timer that world took it’s toll and left me with very little down time (after caring for my family, of course). And unfortunately blogging, and even more sadly, writing were placed on the back burner which never got around to being turned on.

Enough with the woe is me! Time to regain the writing skills that I’m sure I’ve lost over the hiatus… And I’m so looking forward to it!

BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS

One thing I almost always have time for is reading. And I’ve done a bit of that in the last year. I finally got a smartphone.  And with it, the Kindle app, which I adore and have used more than any other feature. All this is leading up to what I read on my blog-cation. The Kindle has all kinds of free classics and I chose to read all of Jane Austen’s works. I positively lurvve historical fiction so it was a real treat to read fiction from history. On the not-so-free end of things I read The Help, Water for Elephants and In Zanesville. On the paper front, Eragon. All are worthy reads, but Austen and Kathryn Stockett’s The Help were definite faves.

Please leave a comment and let me know you’re here!

Just a little tidbit for Tuesday…

Apparently there are many many types of elves. Not all of them are small or helpful or under contract with North Pole Enterprises, Inc. I know, surprising, right? And I never would have known this if I hadn’t posted the above pic in my last fifteen for friday. I don’t know whether to be proud or scared that my husband knows so much about elves.

Since this is supposed to be a writing blog, I thought I might put up some actual writing! This is a very small part of the short story I’ve been revising. It was rejected a bunch, but I love the story and I haven’t been able to get it out of my head. Thoughts? Comments? Criticism? I can take it.

Even if Kaylee didn’t believe in them, the legends were their only hope now. She remembered the words her uncle recited after each bed time story, just before he kissed her forehead and pulled the sheet up to just under her chin. “In every legend there is truth.” She’d repeated the saying every time she told a story for the children.

Until the men left. Only the old and very young were left behind to look after the town. To watch it die, Kaylee thought bitterly. The able-bodied, including her uncle had gone on the same journey five years ago that she was just beginning now.

She opened her pack and placed the map into it. It was useless, but it couldn’t be left lying around. She felt to the very bottom of the bag where a cool, flat metal plate sat and pulled it out. Shaking it, she guessed that there were probably only a couple of ounces of water in the container. She pushed a tiny button that sat flush with the rest of the surface. This action caused a piece of the rim to pop up, revealing a small opening. Kaylee pressed the opening to her lips and drained the few drops into her mouth. With a small snap she closed the aperture. She pressed another invisible button. Her hand, holding the small plate peeked out from under the cloak she was using as shelter and camouflage. She placed the plate as flat as possible on the torn mound and pushed the button again. She withdrew her hand to the safety of the cloak and waited, counting slowly to one hundred. It was the only way to ensure she waited long enough.

She reached out to retrieve the disk, only it wasn’t a disk anymore. Her heart leapt and she peeked out of a small opening in the cloth. She knew it could expand as much as it was at this moment, but it was only in construction and testing that she’d seen it that way and never because it was filled with water.

She greedily grabbed the container which was expanded to its full capacity. Her fingers shook as she opened the drinking spout and poured the clean, clear water into her dry mouth. A drop fell onto her chapped lower lip and for once she let it happen without mourning its loss. She stopped drinking as soon as she was able. She had to be conservative. As she took a deep breath—even the air felt wetter—she placed the container back onto the mound and engaged the culling button once again.

***

In the beginning, man’s spirit was dropped from the clouds like rain. He swam through the rivers and lakes and oceans until he reached a welcoming shore. Our people sprang from the once mighty Colorado. Os-Makin was our great leader. He was the first to crawl onto our shore, his spirit dragging through the red earth and collecting it for skin as he moved.

Os-Ra emerged next, the mother of us all. It was she who foretold the dry days. And in that day, she cried, ‘our numbers will dwindle and our children will thirst. A great one will pass through to the west seeking aid. Through the thunder valley, between the white tops he will meet the earth people’…

If you want more, let me know and I will post the next part on Monday.

…the return. Remember these are random thoughts, k?

1. You think your commute is bad? Feel better? Glad I could help.

2. Looking over old drafts can be disheartening. See the purple marker? It’s purple for a reason.

3. Purple prose –noun

writing that calls attention to itself because of its obvious use of certain effects, as exaggerated sentiment or pathos, esp. in an attempt to enlist or manipulate the reader’s sympathies. (dictionary.com)

4. So I’m reading The Great Hunt by Robert Jordan right now. It’s the second book in The Wheel of Time series. It’s a fantasy book. Yeah, I lost like 15 cool points just writing that. I think I may be getting dangerously close to negative cool territory.

5. amusing

6. (WARNING: shameless plug) Into android applications (the phones not the robots)? Want to know more? Check out this site.

7. You never know where or when you may come in contact with a rogue elf. It’s best to be prepared.

8. I wonder if they have real elves to practice on?

9. Are children the only ones who take this class? It doesn’t seem fair to have a full grown human fighting against a little elf.

10. I wonder how Santa feels about this?

11. OMK, every time! I get to this point and I just wonder…do I seriously not have 15 random thoughts in my head?

12. Is it okay to have 90 unopened email in my inbox? Looking for validation.

13. There should be a term for the great fatigue felt in the first week or two of school. Back-to-school lag? Sudden routine syndrome? That one sounds good!

14. I once had a guest blogger on here, Jenny Martin, librarian. Well, guess what? She got herself an agent! Way to go Jenny!

15. I think I might look into this wattpad thing. Not sure about it yet, though.

See ya next week!

…was a new air conditioner!!!

My niece made this!

My 13 year-old niece R.A. came to visit us for a week and left a bunch of awesome artwork. She did this free-mouse in PAINT! No really, we watched her. Amazing!

I’ve started a new job. It makes for interesting people watching, interacting, etc. People are strange, btw.

We swam at the Y a bunch, with our friends a little and visited the library not nearly enough.

My big summer read was The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand (after I finished Lonesome Dove for the second time), not really what you would call a beach read, but satisfying nonetheless. And I wasn’t on any beaches anyway. So, The Fountainhead. What do I say? It was interesting to say the least. But what I can’t say is that I’ve ever met anyone like the people found in its pages. But I’ve also never lived in 1930′s New York either. It is hard for me to believe that there was seemingly no positive growth in any of the characters, save one. The others who “learned” from their mistakes took the lessons and twisted them into unhappiness for themselves and others. The one character who never changes, always stays the same (supposedly stands by his principles) is our protagonist and winner in the end, the person we should admire and try to be more like.

The writing was phenomenal. I can definitely see why this is a classic. The story is good. The characters are as believable as caricatures…reminding me of the people minded animals of Animal Farm. I’m certainly no expert. Just calling it as I see it.

Now that the kids are back at school I hope to have more time to WRITE!!!! Here as well as the many many unfinished projects floating on notebook paper, in word docs and in my gray matter.

record breaking snow edition:

1. I realize that this may not look like record breaking snow to a lot of the country. But I have never in my life seen so many healthy white snowmen. Usually they are streaked with dirt and full of dead leaves and grass.

2. Personally I wouldn’t mind never ever making a snowman.

3. I dislike cold immensely.

4. My bushes don’t like it either.

5. Do cats have armpits? If they do, that’s what my cat was up to in the snow last night. He must’ve liked it though, cause I couldn’t get him to come in.

6. Hard to believe that only a month ago it was in the 70′s. That’s Texas for you though.

7. This list is boring. I’m talking about the weather for goodness sakes.

8. Just finished reading Respect for Acting by Uta Hagen. Lots of useful stuff in there for actors. And I guess for compulsive liars too, if that’s your cup of tea.

9. Some people have too much money.

10. Why are Hoarders, Intervention and Celebrity Rehab so entertaining? Trying to figure out if it’s the train wreck aspect, but for the grace of God, or “Whew, dodged that one”!

11. What I’m going to read when I decide to leave the house (or when the snow melts or ten degrees are added to the temperature, whichever comes first):

12. The Lightening Thief by Rick Riordan – Came highly recommended by a real life school librarian.

13. Bloodroot by Amy Greene (no, haven’t found it yet)…and why did the local librarian look at me like I was crazy when I asked for it? You’d think, being a librarian that you’d be used to hearing all kinds of strange titles, and I don’t think Bloodroot is the weirdest ever. Maybe that’s just Fort Worth.

14. Fort Worth can be backwards sometimes. Can you tell I’m a Dallas girl? I mean, the closest bagel shop is like five miles away…FIVE MILES!

15. Sarah’s Quilt by Nancy E. Turner – The second book to in the Sarah Prine series. Loved These is My Words, and I’m ready to take on some more of the old west.

PS – Writing writing, always writing. Will tell more when I have something worthwhile on the subject.

PS#2 – Today is this blog’s one year anniversary!! Yay Writer’s Cramp woo hoo!!!!

These are the books I’ve read for the last week or so…

An Abundance of Katherines by John Green: Funny, funny, funny. Loved the footnotes especially. A light read.

Lucky by Rachel Vail: For me this was uber light. For rich kids whose parent(s) lose their income it might be more significant. I suppose it’s hard for me to relate. But I did enjoy it since I’ve always liked to imagine what it’s like to be wealthy. Nannies, housekeepers, stocked pool houses and all.

These is My Words by Nancy E. Turner: This book reminded me of Lonesome Dove for it’s rough and tumble western setting, though it’s not nearly as graphic. The novel is written in diary form you would think would be limiting but never feels that way due to the writer’s skill. It’s interesting to see the transition of the character’s writing from teen to mother, both for her growth as a writer as well as her growth as a person. The character is based on the author’s Great-grandmother.

Have you read any of these? What did you think about them?

As for my own writing…I’m thinking of jumping back to my long neglected novel. With so much time that has passed, maybe the changes that need to be made will be clearer. My poor protag in my current short story is going to have to wait in the woods for a while.