Into a Writer's Head: December 2005

Happy New Year!!!

Since there are some of you who I will not see tonight, I wish you all a very happy and healthy New Year. May 2006 bring you nothing but joy and wonderful opportunities.

Yiddish Word of the Week

Neshome (noun): meaning Soul or Spirit. Pronounced ne-sho-meh.

This one seemed appropriate, considering the whole car thing. Plus, it's just a neat word. Enjoy!

My car is possessed...

No, seriously! My car is possessed. Ask my friends, they'll tell you!

The first indicator was how close it likes to hold my passengers, Christina in particular. It likes to hold her very close, to the point where she has some trouble breathing. Usually, this is the extent of things. It doesn't phase me, as I'm pretty used to it. My mom's old car was possessed (we're pretty sure) by my great-grandfather. He liked to play with the locks while we were waiting for mom to come out so we could go to school.

The latest event occurred the other night, on my way to a movie with a friend. Everything was going along just fine, to start with. I picked her up, we grabbed dinner. Then we got back in the car, but when we closed the doors, it still registered a door open. Um...okay. Open the doors, slam them all again. Nothing. Lights are still on all over the car. Hmph. Probably a fluke. So we drive to the theater, I let my friend out to get in line, and I go to park. Lights still on. Get out of car. Re-slam all the doors. Nothing. Lights still on, car battery still at risk. *sigh* Okay, open all doors, repeat steps 1-3.
After about 8 minutes of this, I finally pried the cover off the interior light, figuring if I could just undo that, at least the battery wouldn't run out, as the car appeared to be closed up nice and tight. Too bad I failed to consider that all the lights that run around the interior of the car would still be lit. Okay, replace lightbulb and cover. Re-start car. Low and behold, light goes off. Hallelujah!
Quickly turn car off, get out, lock car to go get friend who is still in line. The early show has already started, so we decide to go back to the car to eat dinner and see the next one, which starts in 20 minutes.
Lights are back on. Shit! Thankfully, it only took another couple of minutes to get them off. I've since had no such problems.
So there you have it, my car is possessed. But at least I feel loved.

Pull up your pants man!

The carpet guy apparently was a plumber in a past life. He's actually kind of cute, but I refuse to flirt with someone who's butt crack can be seen above his pants. It's just wrong...so very, very wrong.

Water, water everywhere...

If I'm not careful, I'll soon be able to turn my apartment into an aquarium. Maintenance is still working on stemming the flow of water through my walls (it stops temporarily, but then the rain comes back and so does the dripping). Caulking really only works if it stays dry enough outside for the caulk to dry. When the sky pours buckets of rain out onto the caulk, it will wash away. Now they are trying to take out the siding, and divert the water away from the walls with something called "flashing" along with heavy duty roofing tar. Huh.
On the inside, I have fans blowing on all fronts in an effort to dry my carpet and carpet padding. They have also set up a de-humidifier. The irony here is that the air in my apartment is dry enough ot set up a sandbox. Now they're going to steal even more moisture from the air. *sigh* This does not bode well for my nose, let me tell you. My living room currently looks like a shipwreck, with all the odds and ends pushed into the middle of the room, smooshed around so as to create a devil-may-care attitude about the place. This, of course, will make for much entertainment on Saturday night, let me tell you.
In the midst of all of this, I feel this grand urgency to shop. To be more specific: I feel the need to buy sweaters. "Why?" you ask. Well, some would say this is do to a deep seated psychosis in my brain. Ms. K. would say it's because I secretly enjoy shopping. I saw it's a need to create a feeling of home and warmth amidst the madness that is my living space.

Happy, happy, joy, joy!!!

Okay, I figured after yesterday's bummer of a post, I'd list all the things I'm thankful for. Yes, this is an extreme effort for me to not continue to freak about the amount of water currently in my carpet (and also apparently my ceiling judging by the dark spot next to the door wall).
So, without further ado:

Unleash the Night! Hee hee, B&N had it out early yesterday. I picked it up and read it in one day. So happy...I do love me the Dark Hunters :D
Serenity! Borrowed Serena's copy of the movie yesterday and watched it last night. I love the Firefly series, and I LOVED the movie. Joss Whedon is an incredibly talented writer and director. Not to mention funny as hell. I picked up some great quotes, both from the movie and the outtakes :D
Channuka lights...Last night was the 2nd night, and I remembered to light my menorah again. Go me!!

Yes, I know a short list...but I don't feel like being sappy today. Sorry.

It's raining, it's pouring, the old man is snoring...

Ugh, I have another leak in my apartment. This one by my doorwall in my living room. And do you think I can get this fixed promptly? The answer here, is NO. As in NO one is answering the emergency pager today because it's a "holiday". As in NO one is in the rental office today because it's a "holiday". Um...excuse me, but I'm pretty sure that water coming in through my walls is a bad thing that would constitute and emergency, and that would require them to fix it ASAP, in order to avoid further damage. Don't you agree?

*sigh*

My ceiling is leaking. I'm off for my massage, but something tells me it's only going to do me so much good, thanks to this new problem.

Random thoughts...

Ms. K has informed that she is very disappointed that I did not blog today. Apparently it is my job to entertain at the moment. Never mind that I posted like 3 the other day. So here you go, some random thoughts from my exhaustion addled brain...

4.5 hours of sleep is not enough if I'm supposed to drive my parents to the airport, then go to work. It makes me cranky, and you know what happens when I get cranky...
My couch is a good nap couch. It is just the right amount of comfy...
When you are so stuffed up that it all stays in your head, you will get a headache. Accept and move on (yes, I'm talking to myself here).
I love my new tea mug. Thank you, Shannon! It was perfect for my tea tonight.
It's very unfair that some shows can only be seen on cable, and on the premium channels at that. I'm too impatient to wait for them all to be available on DVD.
Farscape (at least the first couple of seasons that I saw) is available on DVD now. Something to look forward to!
I need to make an appointment for a facial. I've already got one for a massage, but I've decided that while I CAN rub my own face, I really don't feel like it. It's much nicer when someone else does it.
There are not enough hours in the day to be a vegetable, and still be productive.
As it is Christmas Eve, and I don't celebrate Christmas, I was going to order Chinese for dinner. But I got lazy, and they don't deliver. I guess New York has it's bonuses...

Okay, that's it for now...Happy Holidays to everyone!

Party time!!

Okay, not that I was worried, because to be honest I'd hit that point where all I wanted was out. But I passed!! It's official, now that grades are in, I'm officially done with last quarter. Just two more to go!

I'm also slightly weirded out by the current episode of Ellen on t.v. She's got some guy who video tapes himself dancing all over the world, and now he's in her green room dancing. It's creepy...he's not very good. And what's worse, they've got him moving around their studio, and keep cutting to him. Really, there is so much wrongness here.

And the Alphasmart (affectionately known as the alphadumb to my friends) is giving me fits. It took me almost 15 minutes to get the files to transfer over yesterday. I was not very happy at all...

Yiddish word for the week...

Shmaykhl (n.): pronounced schmay-kel. A smile. As in, she sent a flirtatious shmaykhl his way, in hopes of catching his attention.

I have a title!

Well, okay, to be exact I had a title before. But I now have a better one, with some help from the girls. I'm so excited! It renews my excitement about this manuscript, and really makes me want to finish it already.

So...off to work :D

What a scam...

I just got back from the dentist for my semi-annual cleaning, and all I have to say is what a scam! When I got there, she had my "file" up on the computer, and it showed what I was scheduled for, including the prices. Now, keep in mind that because of my student status, I do not have dental insurance at this time. I haven't scimped on going in, but these cleanings are expensive! So the list looked something like this:
Exam: $54.00
Cleaning: $105.00
X-Rays: $59.00

Um...excuse me? $54.00 for my dentist (who does not even do the cleaning part!) to come look into my mouth for 2 minutes and tell me it's all good? I don't think so!

Thankfully, I also got out of the X-Rays, so all I had to pay for was the cleaning. But still...I'm seeing something extremely wrong happening here.
Very, very wrong...

No, it's not pronounced Shishkabob...

I was pleasantly suprised to see that yesterday's Word of the Day was Shiksa (n. meaning: a Non-Jewish woman). See, Shiksa has become somewhat of a private (now relatively public) joke between Ms. K. and myself. It's one of those words guarateed to make us both smile and laugh. So, while at Serena's yesterday, I shared the word of the day, and then continued to laugh my tuches off for the rest of the day. Serena, it seems, has great difficulty in pronouncing Shiksa. This of course makes for many opportunities where I can then ask her to "share" the new word she learned. The conversation went something like this:

Me: Serena, tell the girls the new word you learned.
Serena: Shis...shi...Shitka? Shiska?
Me: Close, shiksa (said with a smile and a laugh).
Serena: That's what I said, Shiska!
Christina: it's like mysugarnuts!

At this point I was basically rolling on the floor laughing. There's almost nothing funnier than watching two of my best friends try to speak Yiddish. To review: it is ShiKsa, not ShisKa. And it's Meshugenah, not Mysugarnuts.

Now, talk amongst yourselves.

So you say you have a goal...

In taking a page out of Christina's book, I'm here to share my writing goals for the upcoming year (though Serena and I talked about it, and we think maybe we set the goals in the January meeting last year). Every year we make our goals, and we report in, on a weekly basis to tell each other how we're doing. The GK Girls help keep me on track, cheer me on when I feel like writing is the last thing on my mind, and basically make me feel like all my dreams are attainable.
So, without further ado, here they are:

Edit INDEPENDENCE DAY (possibly to be retitled MESHUGENAH)
Submit I.D. to publishers/agents
Finish one new book (either a Young Adult, or a slightly racier romantic novella), and edit.

So here's to next year's Tiara-wearing celebration, and being able to say I've met all of my goals!

Dancing Queen...

Or, observations made while out dancing.

If you look like you're being electrocuted while you are dancing, it's probably better for you to go find a seat, and maybe drink more beer.
Don't ever, ever ask the band to play something like the song whose chorus goes: "I come from the land down under". It's just embarrassing for everyone.
Order Diet Coke when you go up to the bar. They WILL remember you.
Get in good with the band...They will watch your jackets for you.
When you see a friend of your ex's, be sure to be friendly, but not too friendly. Do not allow time for an actual conversation when dancing can be had.
Go in the winter. Less people can get to the bar during the holiday season thanks to parties...this means more room for you.
Stay away from the women who insist on holding their tote bag-size purses while dancing. You can never be sure what they're carrying in them.
Do invite friends. Especially if you are the only one who will dance. This keeps the creepy, learing, drunk men at a distance (usually).
Do not push everyone out of your way so you can get to the front of the floor, only to turn around and invite someone who has moved out of your way closer. It just makes you seem drunk and crazy. We will step further away.
Yes, the dancefloor is your place to show off those fancy lessons you've been taking. But please, make sure you have enough room to do it.
When the band asks you to make sure everyone has fun and no fights break out, that probably means don't hit anyone or spill beer on them.
No cigarettes on the dance floor=good. I love to move without flaming sticks of death in my way.
If your friend is so drunk he can't walk, maybe you should sit down for a minute, or call a cab to take you to your car.
Make nice with the bouncers. They will remember you and look out for you.
Dance your booty off! It doesn't matter if you are the only one out there. Someone needs to start things off.

Thus ends my observations. Back to your regularly scheduled program.

witty words?

Sorry, you're outta luck. It's been a tiring week. I forgot (briefly) how exhausting waking up before 6 a.m. can be (hush Ms. K!!). Of course, now that I'm finally maybe starting to get used to it, the field week is over. Doesn't that figure?

So, since I've been sorely lacking in my posts, I'll try to give 'em all to you in one. Remember, I promise no connection between thoughts here (and really, are any of you surprised by that?)

Cranberries in sparkling cider, or champagne, are a wonderful thing. Christina took multiple pics, i drank multiple glasses. Really, how can you go wrong with bouncing fruit in your glass?

Email...I hate playing catch up on email. It takes way too long, and I feel like half the time my comments are out of date. Plus, I confuse easily, so if I read them out of order major problems can ensue.

Amazon...my books finally arrive, 6 weeks after they were supposed to. One bright red lettered note later, and a poor wrapping job of packing tape, they are being sent back. At this point, I could have flown to China to pick them up...Twice!!

Finishing my book...this is gonna be tough. I still intend to do it, but I don't promise my disposition is going to be very nice...

Scarves...My college roommate just sent me the most awesome hand knit scarf for Chanukah. Awww...it's warm, fuzzy, and hot pink. Does she know me or what?

New book...everyone should go read Surf Girl School by Cathy Yardley. She's an awesome writer, and a friend. I'm loving this one!

Smoking bans...I'm so excited to go dancing this weekend, without having to breath in a year and a half's worth of smoke in one night.

Apple Kugel...my new favorite recipe and potluck companion. Need I say more?

Dark Hunters...new book comes out in 2 weeks. Can't wait!!

This will hopefully tide you all over for at least a few days...

Yiddish Word of the Week...

In honor of Christina, the word of the week is really a phrase. Bist meshuga? Are you crazy? Have you lost it?

Now, talk amongst your selves.

I knew it!!

Just needed to get that out of the way.
Sometimes you just know stuff in advance. You can feel it in your gut, and you know it to be true. And so here, for all the world to see, I'm making my knowledge known, so that in the future, when I say I knew something, you'll all believe me.

And no, you get no more detail than that.

Better late than never: Yiddish Word of the Week

Geshmak (adj.) meaning: tasty, delicious. As in, those potato latkes are geshmak, can I have another?
(okay, admittedly, that's a lame sentence, but it's been a long day, so deal)

Here's another peek!

(Liz, Jessica L. and me...and no, that's not beer in our hands! Get your mind out of the gutter!)

There are many, many more where these came from (thanks Becks!). Sadly, my camera battery ran out before I snapped even one pic, so I must rely on the kindness of others :D

Potluck time!

(Liz, Becca and I at our breakfast potluck for school. Note the relief on our faces now that the quarter is basically over.)

Who said you can't have fun in school? How can you go wrong with mass quantities of sugar, pastries and other breakfast type foods?

Is it getting hot in here?

Yesterday Christina, Kelli, Serena and I went to the Seattle Crave Holiday Party. Crave brings in all sorts of vendors from purses to jewelry to athletic wear to Urban Striptease workouts. While I couldn't stay very long, I did get to have a little fun, so check it out!

(Serena and I getting our mini-manicures)

(Mr. April and me...hey, who said I can't have my own fireman?)

(Serena, Kelli, The Nutcracker, Christina and me)

It's here! It's here!

The end of the quarter is basically here. 2.5 more papers to get through and I'm done! I'm done! I'm done!
Yes, apparently this has finally soaked in to my slightly addled brain.
Today: Video in Science, short meeting about next quarter, work on papers, got to Crave Party with the Girls (will post pics soon), then memorial for Jeremiah.
Tomorrow: Potluck in Math/Literacy...then home to work on papers (hopefully finish them).
Friday: more paper writing, but that is interspered with talking with friends, maybe some personal writing(?) and then parties...lots of parties over the next week or so (which mean I get to dress up!)
Does this mean I get to bake? I hope so...I have a recipe for a kick-ass Chocolate cake that even I like.

So yes, ladies and gentleman, looks like I survived the quarter...it can only get better from here, right?

Moving on...

At least a little bit. It's been a rough few days, but I'm hanging in there. In honor of Jeremiah, we played ping pong and bowled all morning. I can't think of a better way to remember a friend, then to do the things he loved.

In other news...the bad juju table is gone. There was a whole thing with Goodwill about it. They did not want to accept the table and chairs because H and I had removed the table legs for transport. Apparently, tables without legs are not allowed. We spent 5-10 minutes explaining to them how we planned to reattach the legs, that they would not have to try to sell a legless table.

I have replaced the bad juju table with...what else? The good juju table. Or at least that's what I'm calling it. Considering it was one of the few items (save for an extremely ugly couch and some furniture too difficult to move) not stolen from Dad's apartment recently, I feel it is going to be lucky. I promise to keep you posted on this...

Sometimes I just don't understand the world...

I received a phone call today. Not one of the exciting kind of phone calls that all us writers hope to receive. No, this one was from my University Supervisor. She called to tell me that a member of my cohort died yesterday in a car crash. 25 years old, and now he's gone. It makes no sense at all. We were a week from the end of the quarter. 3 weeks from the holidays. 2 quarters away from graduation. Now all of it is gone because some guy who probably shouldn't even have been behind the wheel decided to drive south on the Northbound side of the highway.
None of it makes any sense.
So to all of you who I don't say it enough to, I love you. You are all important in my life and I can't imagine it without you.
Please send up a prayer for my friend and his widow.

New way to get rid of telemarketers...

Yesterday I discovered a fun new way to get rid of people calling to ask you for your hard earned (and quickly dwindling) money. When you answer, and they ask, "Is So-and-so there?" You answer with, "May I ask who's calling?" As soon as you establish it is in fact a telemarketer, you answer with, "I'm write in the middle of writing a 20 page paper, I can't talk." They will quickly apologize and hang up. It works even better if you can get that little hit of psychosis or near hysteria in your voice,. Go ahead, try it!

You know you're single when...

Your trip to the grocery store consists of you buying a package of ground turkey and microwave popcorn....
you wait until 3 of the 4 lightbulbs in your kitchen burn out before buying new ones.
you don't have to worry about hiding any gifts from snoopy people.
you can't convince someone else to clean out your fireplace for you, so you can burn another log.
it really doesn't matter how late you have caffeine, because the only person you keep awake is yourself.
you've actually gone to the store to buy 2 slices of cheese.

Who wants to add to this one?

Ps...the bad juju table is being taken to goodwill tomorrow. May the good juju commence!

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Funny Quote of the Day

What's Come Before

Into a Writer's Head

Saturday, December 31, 2005

Happy New Year!!!

Yiddish Word of the Week

My car is possessed...

Wednesday, December 28, 2005

Pull up your pants man!

Water, water everywhere...

Tuesday, December 27, 2005

Happy, happy, joy, joy!!!

Monday, December 26, 2005

It's raining, it's pouring, the old man is snoring...

Saturday, December 24, 2005

Random thoughts...

Thursday, December 22, 2005