Attack of the Germs, Part 2

DH is sick.

I swear, I'm surrounded.

He has the same thing as DD -- this odd chest congestion and cough. Not a "real" cold, but the cough is nasty and persistent. He spent yesterday in a fog ... made me laugh, actually, because I'd catch him just staring off into space or at something (like the fire) for the longest time. He couldn't DO anything. He was tired, unfocused.

He has today off work, and hopefully that will be enough for him to get better. We, as a family, tend to get sick seldom and heal quickly, so I have my fingers crossed.

DD only has two school days this week: Monday and Tuesday. Then she's off Weds/Thurs/Fri, the whole next week and the following Monday. Winter vacation, mostly, though there's a teacher workshop in there. I'm not sure what we'll do -- she's expecting to be entertained significantly, and I can't take two weeks off.

Me? I'm just trying to avoid the germs that appear to be gleefully dancing through my house. Not sure if I'll succeed, but I'd sure like to!

Hope you all had a great weekend.

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You Are Boxing

You are assertive, strong, and downright aggressive. You have the power to demolish your opponent... And you have the endurance to make sure the job is finished.

What Olympic Sport Are You?

Muhahahahahaha! FEAR ME!

I am looking forward to the Olympics, though. :-)

Mini-Vacation

I do not really like vacations. I much prefer an occasional day off when I do not feel like working. When I am confronted with a whole week in which I have nothing to do but enjoy myself I do not know where to begin. To me, enjoyment comes fleetingly and unheralded; I cannot determinedly enjoy myself for a whole week at a time. ~Robertson Davies

So ... I was away most of the weekend. Saturday we spent up at my DH's uncle's place on the lake -- DH is the caretaker there, so this time I went with him to help and to get away from it all. DD has the job of mowing, and the yard is HUGE so it's quite a job with the push mower. She's done it two weeks now and has blisters on her blisters. But she's a trooper (and the fact it's a paying job helps!).

I reclaimed a flower garden -- neither DH's uncle or his wife are gardeners, so the poor thing was more weeds and overgrown plants than garden. It took me a couple of hours but it was FUN. I pulled weeds, I pruned bushes, and thinned a couple of plant groupings that were taking over. I found amazing joy in the discovery ("Oh! LOOK -- day lilies!") and in the organizing and cleaning. I was surprised at how good I felt when I was done, stepped back and saw the results. The carnage was huge -- it took three overflowing wheelbarrow loads to clean up all the stuff I took out, but it looks amazing. I only hope DH's uncle and wife think so, too. *gulp*

It was oddly relaxing as well -- because I COULDN'T get on the computer (no internet there) I was free to do what I pleased. At home, despite having LOTS of yardwork, I feel obligated to work on the computer because there is always work to be done. I do some gardening every day, but not for hours at a time. And we had a group barbecue and small family gathering. It was good.

Sunday we spent at DH's brother's place on the lake (oh... if only I could say we spent the weekend at OUR place on the lake, but no such luck because -ha- we don't have one.. yet) with the entire family (which is amazingly large anymore -- lots and lots of kidlets). I wasn't allowed to bring the dog up to this one (and I have to say that I think people who don't like, or at least tolerate well-behaved dogs have something fundamentally wrong with them ... no offense to any dog-haters out there, but how can you not like dogs???), so I only stayed for a few hours. It's a long drive up and back, and I prefer not to leave Dakota for more than 6 - 8 hours at once. Still, it was a pretty good day. Ironically, since we were there with the family, I mostly ended up spending the day with my husband -- we ate together, took a long walk together, and when we got back from the walk everyone was swimming (and we didn't choose to) so we hung out on the deck and gabbed. It was a pretty darn good day, too.

Then I came home and had to build all of the pages for next week's LASR/WC website and edit the reviews. We won't talk about the book videos I still have to create. But everyone needs a break now and then, right? LOL...

How was you weekend?

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You Are Dumbo the Flying Elephant

You rather be with your friends than be alone. You prefer to be surrounded by others. If you're bored, you will tend to become lazy and apathetic. You are content to just be. You are a total people person, and you get listless when you're alone. You need someone to bounce energy off of. You are outgoing and a social butterfly of sorts. You pride yourself on being able to get along with everyone.

What Disneyworld Ride Are You?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA.... no.

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Short Blogging Vacation

I do not really like vacations. I much prefer an occasional day off when I do not feel like working. ~ Robertson Davies.

Woke up with a headache again. The only thing I can think of to say is, "Two Advil, please."

I'm taking the day off ... and tomorrow, too. I need one less thing to worry about right now. Thanks all!

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You Are Creative and Artistic

You are the type of person who has a very active imagination. You live in a bit of a dream world. Whenever you are able to channel your creativity, you are very productive and successful. You are a very visual person, and you appreciate beauty and design. You feel anxious in the wrong surroundings. You love luxury, and at times you can be an extravagant spender. You have no problem spoiling yourself.

What Does Your Middle Name Say About You?

I'm good with that....

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No More Vacations

"In times like these it is good to remember that there have always been times like these." — Paul Harvey

So, yesterday was a a day that perfectly illustrated how NOT to use time efficiently.

First, I was up nice and early, went to upload the LASR/WC pages and had my problem with images not loading. So, I futzed and I putzed and I messed -- for THREE hours -- and then discovered it wasn't something I could fix anyway because it had to do with how the graphics were created.

Scratch working on my editing for my JaNoWriMo project in the morning.

Then, all day long, DD would NOT sit and do school for more than about ten minutes at a time. It was "MOM" this and "MOM" that and "Can you find my science book?" (this search took more than an hour) and "I don't WANT to do my report on Clara Barton, can I do it on the universe?" (the answer was "no" because it's supposed to be a research report and she is an astronomy freak, so wouldn't have to research much of anything ... we compromised, and she's doing it on the person who discovered pulsars), and "How do I find 7% of $2450?" (which she knew, but .... )

I hate vacations sometimes, because getting back into the groove is so hard.

Hopefully today will be better. So far, so good -- the LASR/WC pages went up without a hitch!

How was your first Monday of 2010?

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Your Snow Test Says You're Independent

You feel like something good will happen to you in the next few days. You have an amazingly strong work ethic. You are likely to be very successful in life. You are an independent, individualistic person. You thrive when you're doing your own thing. Your biggest worry in your life is your health. You tend to be a bit of a hypochondriac. When it comes time to relax, you have difficulty relaxing. You are a bit high strung.

The Snow Test

Except for the health part, it's pretty dang close. I'm ridiculously healthy, so certainly not a hypochondriac, lol...

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Back! Didja Miss Me?

No man needs a vacation so much as the person who has just had one. ~Elbert Hubbard

Back from my short vacation. I did discover something about myself: I don't relax well. I did a lot of pacing. And I cleaned the camp. It was nice to have time to read -- something I haven't had in awhile. I nearly finished The Unfortunate Miss Fortunes, though I realized in hindsight that I probably should have brought up Harry Potter. I'm still only about five pages into that book! Oops.

I have pictures, but haven't downloaded them yet, so will have to post them tomorrow. The good news is, all the pillars survived. The bad news is my doggie missed me :-(

She's eleven years-old and has never been kenneled or away from either my DH or me. It was only one night, and my mom (who lives with us in an apt. over the garage and has known Bailey since she was a baby) watched her for us. And still, Bailey decided she didn't want to eat.

The cat, OTOH? Could care less. Celebrated our return by biting the DD when DD gave her a hug (Breeann is NOT a huggy kitty, and DD knows this but insists on squeezing her anyway).

DD had a wonderful time and may have sprouted gills and fins -- she spent nearly every waking hour in the water. DH was as relaxed as I've seen him in a really long time (though he's trying to figure out how we can afford our own place - HA! You should see the prices....)

I was the only one who came back less relaxed. Apparently vacations stress me out. LOL.

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Pillar Place: Monarch is fairly quiet. We had the initial rash of deaths -- oh, did I mention that Manuela II and Harry died? -- and now all is well. Otto is huge, and I was a bit worried to find him on the side of the container when I came home yesterday, and with little of his food eaten. I *think* he may just be shedding his skin and going through a growth spurt. I'll find out today when I go check on him.

All the others are eating, sleeping and pooping like the good butterbabies they are. Judy is far outgrowing Bob, though. And they hatched at the same time.

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Got two more rejections on my novel -- one from an agent and one from a press. Oh well. Time to send some more out!

Found out TWRP has changed their word count guidelines, so "Isn't She Liv Leigh" is no longer considered a full length novel -- that is now 65,000. However, they're going to start printing their "rosebud" length stuff (40,000 - 65,000) through Lulu (so no B&N or Borders for Liv), so I'd still get it in print... if it's accepted. Not great, but will have to do. It also means I either need to increase the word counts on my others (and had I known this was coming down the pike, I would have increased the count on Liv somehow), or find somewhere else to submit them. So, time to go back to the drawing board and decide what to do.

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My friend, Gay, is having a great contest! You can win an autographed copy of The Lottery by Patricia Wood. And all you have to do is what I just did: mention the title and the author in your blog post and then let Gay know. Easy-peasy, right?

Of course, if you guys don't want to, that's cool... because then I'LL win -- and it sounds like a really good book! ((evil laughter here)).

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You're Ulysses!

by James Joyce

Most people are convinced that you don't make any sense, but compared
to what else you could say, what you're saying now makes tons of sense. What people do
understand about you is your vulgarity, which has convinced people that you are at once
brilliant and repugnant. Meanwhile you are content to wander around aimlessly, taking in
the sights and sounds of the city. What you see is vast, almost limitless, and brings you
additional fame. When no one is looking, you dream of being a Greek folk hero.


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

Hmmm.... I don't know about this one. What do you think? First off, I may one of the least vulgar people you'll meet. I do have to admit to a bit of rambling, however... but, a Greek Hero? Puh-leez. Okay, I have to go back, pay closer attention to the questions and try again. I know, I know... and I don't usually do that, but this answer is not correct.

You're One Hundred Years of Solitude!

by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Lonely and struggling, you've been around for a very long time.
Conflict has filled most of your life and torn apart nearly everyone you know. Yet there
is something majestic and even epic about your presence in the world. You love life all
the more for having seen its decimation. After all, it takes a village.


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

Okay... nearly all different questions this time, and I STILL don't agree with it.

I surrender.

Vacation, All I Ever Wanted...

A vacation is having nothing to do and all day to do it in. ~Robert Orben

First off, I need to let you know that there will be NO blog post from me tomorrow (Sunday). I know, it's shocking... but I'm actually going to be away most of the weekend and *gasp* without Internet access. I don't know if I'll be able to handle it. I'll be back here on Monday.

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The other day, a friend (*waves to Michele*) asked me what was harder to write: short stories or full length novels. My answer? Both... or neither. But she really got me to thinking about it, since I do like to write both (and hate to write both) for different reasons.

I love writing novels. They give you time to build a world, to really get to know your characters inside and out... to give them time to really do things, to live, to change, to fall in love.

But they take a long time to write. And sometimes you hit a wall. And there are days you just can't face looking at those characters even one more time. There are times you're just sick of everything about it. Familiarity breeds contempt.

That's when I write short stuff. When I need a break. When I am desperate to write "the end" on something. And when I just want to have a little fun. But...

But it can be significantly harder to write a short story. You have less time to build your characters. Less time to set the stage. Less time to get your reader deeply involved, for them to care about what happens to your protagonist. You don't have time for in depth descriptions. This is the time you choose one or two things about your characters and let the rest fall by the wayside. I'm fairly certain, though I'd have to go back and double check, that I give little or no physical descriptions of any of my heroines in my short stories. For those of you who have read them -- did you notice? Did you care? Did you have your own picture of them in your mind?

I have to admit... I really enjoy them both. And I don't feel guilty for taking time off of my novel to write a short story. I think it can actually make the novel fresher in the long run.

Anyone else have any input into this?

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"Miles From You" got four roses at Sensual Reads! It says, in part:

Miles From You is a very believable and touching story. Marianne Arkins has created an extraordinary story for all ages to read. Millie has the sweetest personally and Paul is the perfect gentleman. I wish everyone was still like this today.

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We had two more casualties at Pillar Place: Monarch yesterday. Harry and Apollo died from unknown causes. Apollo's death was the strangest -- he was still in his resting position: head tucked under, body nice and straight. Just... dead. Very odd.

I'm happy to report, however, that the rest of the pillars are thriving. And, I've found FIVE butterbabies outside. I still feel guilty about leaving them there, but I did wipe all the milkweed aphids off their leaves and chase off a huge wolf spider (who had caught and killed a Japanese beetle... good spidey) onto another plant. EDITED TO ADD: I was incorrect in labeling the spider ... though we do have many wolf spiders here in the area, they are ground dwelling (and, Michele, they're good mama's... don't be afraid). The spider I chased off was a Garden Orb spider -- similar in look, but they spin webs and typically live on plants.

Still... I worry. Though it appears being taken inside is no guarantee of a long and healthy life, either.

I promise, I'll get pictures of Otto soon.

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I am not happy with this outcome... but I won't cheat and retake the test. Who are you?


Find out your Harry Potter personality at LiquidGeneration!

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See you on Monday!