Where I live, twice a year (or so), they have these book sales. And I mean book. sales.
The last time I was able to go to one, they allowed me to fill up an entire paper bag of paperbacks for $5. Solid. Not $5/book, $5 flat for like...30 books. And then they discounted the hardcovers I got.
Today, the deals weren't as stellar, I ended up spending $30, but I still got some excellent books. Not nearly as many, but by the time I got out of work the pickings were slimming down. Nonetheless, I am very pleased.
So this is where I turn the tables over to you:
Where do you like to buy books? Hands down, these sales and day after Thanksgiving sales are where I go. Or, you know, used bookstores or thrift stores. What about you guys?
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Sink Or Swim
So....life is messy. You let people in, you get hurt (cue sound tech for debbie downer music...now). It's a viscous cycle. But you have two choices when the world gets you down:
There are times when it's okay to grieve and to hurt, and to be sad. It's okay to cry, to punch things... It's normal and acceptable to just lay in bed.
But, if you're able to weather the storm, whatever it may be, you'll have a better tomorrow.
Something I've learned is that as writers, we feel...quite a bit. I think we may feel more than most people in the world, and that's okay. Give yourself time to function, to heal...and then get back to venting; writing. Life is what teaches you your stories.
Keep your head up, for any of you who are having bad days. Take care of yourself. Things take time, healing takes time.
Sink
 | |
| (In all fairness, this isn't a real sinking picture. This is a heartwarming picture, my good friend Jen is a wee bit of a crier. This day, I had thanked her for being a good friend while she was housing me in Seattle.) |
Or Swim
 |
| This is Murdock, my friend Stephanie's dog. She lives in Florida. My dog....is not a water dog. |
There are times when it's okay to grieve and to hurt, and to be sad. It's okay to cry, to punch things... It's normal and acceptable to just lay in bed.
 |
| This is my water fearing baby, Baxter :) Just for you J.A. :) |
But, if you're able to weather the storm, whatever it may be, you'll have a better tomorrow.
 |
| Jen and I after having a fantastic day and getting ready for an even better night |
Keep your head up, for any of you who are having bad days. Take care of yourself. Things take time, healing takes time.
Monday, October 3, 2011
Life, It Gets In The Way Sometimes
Hey guys,
Sorry I've been absent this week. Things went crazy (I went crazy). When things calm down I'll try to find something clever and witty to blog about. Or maybe a cute picture of Baxter or something, we'll see.
Sorry again.
Sorry I've been absent this week. Things went crazy (I went crazy). When things calm down I'll try to find something clever and witty to blog about. Or maybe a cute picture of Baxter or something, we'll see.
Sorry again.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Banned Books Week: September 24-October 1
I'm not really a person for rules and regulations, or being told what to do. I don't like that one of my three jobs requires that I to wear my hair down to hide my eyebrow rings and then stud my lip ring. I also don't appreciate being told that I can't wear an actual RING for my lip at another place of employment. I try to veer away from jobs that mandate "No visible tattoos" (mine is easily covered by my watch, but it still bothers me) or that I have to "Look clean" (What does that even mean, anyway? What ever happened to no shower Fridays?). It makes me feel like they're forcing me be someone I'm not..It makes me unGodly uneasy.
I like being able to make decisions for myself, be able to look the way I want to, do the things I want to. I don't think people should fit into certain molds that society creates, I don't like capital punishment or speed limits....I don't like things being off limits. It just kind of bugs me. One of the big ones that gets to me is banned books.
As Banned Books Week continues in full swing, I was kind of starting to wonder:
Do you ever find the list, and read books off of it just to feel rebellious?
I did (maybe still do :) ).
As a teen, I felt some form of vindication when I'd read the list and come find that a book that I'd loved was there, on the damn list. After that vindication, I'd feel anger. Overwhelming anger; who are these people trying to keep these amazing books out of kid's hands? More importantly, the question I kept falling back to was WHY? Why on earth are these pages so offensive to people that they wouldn't want them supplied in libraries, in schools?
To this day, I still don't really understand why people ban books, or burn them. (Okay, some exceptions....like...you know, hate literature. I'd burn that quick.) But books, wonderful, character evolving books. Sure, at the start of the story, they can be racist, and there may be awful words....but what if at the end, the character learns that people really are equal, that hate doesn't solve anything? Why would we keep this from kids? Why would we keep these lessons from PEOPLE? Even if the character doesn't arc well enough to learn their lesson, as a parent, teacher, person...why not engage with the person reading the book;
Did you like it?
Why?
Do you agree with the way this character thinks?
Why?
Dig deep, give advice. Books give a great platform for launching conversations. Every time I see someone with a book, I ask what they're reading, if they like it, what it's about, if they're on GoodReads..etc. (It might just be because I'm a huge nerd....)
But what if these stories help save someone? Why would we keep this hidden away?
Anyway, I pulled up the lists for the 90s HERE and the 00s HERE. Here are some of the books that either I've read or currently own and will read some day:
90s:
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain
Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck
The Giver, by Lois Lowry
My Brother Sam is Dead, by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
Goosebumps (series), by R.L. Stine
Go Ask Alice, by Anonymous (My teacher, Mrs. Watchorn totally made me write up a permission slip for my mom to sign so I could read this book so she could have a clean conscious. It is an amazing book...)
Julie of the Wolves, by Jean Craighead George
Fallen Angels, by Walter Dean Myers
The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton
To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut (Side note, may have almost cried the day I found out he died. I loved this man)
The Face on the Milk Carton, by Caroline Cooney
Where’s Waldo?, by Martin Hanford
The Drowning of Stephen Jones, by Bette Greene
00s (Without the titles mentioned above)
His Dark Materials (series), by Philip Pullman
Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, by Ken Kesey
The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini
Summer of My German Soldier, by Bette Green
Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson
The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold
Cut, by Patricia McCormick
Grendel, by John Gardner
Moral of the story is, I love books...Like I love them. When I get published, I'd like to some day make it on the banned books list, because I will then I feel like it'd cause me to write more, and more. I'd be on a stupid list with a lot of other amazing authors and best yet, PEOPLE.
So, to those of you who read what's banned:
Keep reading strong.
I like being able to make decisions for myself, be able to look the way I want to, do the things I want to. I don't think people should fit into certain molds that society creates, I don't like capital punishment or speed limits....I don't like things being off limits. It just kind of bugs me. One of the big ones that gets to me is banned books.
As Banned Books Week continues in full swing, I was kind of starting to wonder:
Do you ever find the list, and read books off of it just to feel rebellious?
I did (maybe still do :) ).
As a teen, I felt some form of vindication when I'd read the list and come find that a book that I'd loved was there, on the damn list. After that vindication, I'd feel anger. Overwhelming anger; who are these people trying to keep these amazing books out of kid's hands? More importantly, the question I kept falling back to was WHY? Why on earth are these pages so offensive to people that they wouldn't want them supplied in libraries, in schools?
To this day, I still don't really understand why people ban books, or burn them. (Okay, some exceptions....like...you know, hate literature. I'd burn that quick.) But books, wonderful, character evolving books. Sure, at the start of the story, they can be racist, and there may be awful words....but what if at the end, the character learns that people really are equal, that hate doesn't solve anything? Why would we keep this from kids? Why would we keep these lessons from PEOPLE? Even if the character doesn't arc well enough to learn their lesson, as a parent, teacher, person...why not engage with the person reading the book;
Did you like it?
Why?
Do you agree with the way this character thinks?
Why?
Dig deep, give advice. Books give a great platform for launching conversations. Every time I see someone with a book, I ask what they're reading, if they like it, what it's about, if they're on GoodReads..etc. (It might just be because I'm a huge nerd....)
But what if these stories help save someone? Why would we keep this hidden away?
Anyway, I pulled up the lists for the 90s HERE and the 00s HERE. Here are some of the books that either I've read or currently own and will read some day:
90s:
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain
Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck
The Giver, by Lois Lowry
My Brother Sam is Dead, by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
Goosebumps (series), by R.L. Stine
Go Ask Alice, by Anonymous (My teacher, Mrs. Watchorn totally made me write up a permission slip for my mom to sign so I could read this book so she could have a clean conscious. It is an amazing book...)
Julie of the Wolves, by Jean Craighead George
Fallen Angels, by Walter Dean Myers
The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton
To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut (Side note, may have almost cried the day I found out he died. I loved this man)
The Face on the Milk Carton, by Caroline Cooney
Where’s Waldo?, by Martin Hanford
The Drowning of Stephen Jones, by Bette Greene
00s (Without the titles mentioned above)
His Dark Materials (series), by Philip Pullman
Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, by Ken Kesey
The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini
Summer of My German Soldier, by Bette Green
Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson
The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold
Cut, by Patricia McCormick
Grendel, by John Gardner
Moral of the story is, I love books...Like I love them. When I get published, I'd like to some day make it on the banned books list, because I will then I feel like it'd cause me to write more, and more. I'd be on a stupid list with a lot of other amazing authors and best yet, PEOPLE.
So, to those of you who read what's banned:
Keep reading strong.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Positivity ; Pass It On
As promised months ago (okay, maybe A month ago)...More wisdom coming at you from PNWA:
Chances are that by this point in the conference I was exhausted; whether it was due to the fact I'd just flown across the country (Literally, North Carolina to Seattle), the fact I hadn't really been sleeping more than three hours, the fact that the conferences were so in depth that I couldn't focus....But I'm not sure.
Honestly, I can't remember the panel, or who I was surrounded by. I can't remember what I wore that day, or really, what day it was. But this day...my life kind of took off. (No, really, this was life changing advice for me, if it's not for you, then it's not for you and leave it at that :) ).
We're adults now. We can pick and choose who we associate with. Whomever was speaking at this moment told the crowd, "From here on out, only associate with people who will help propel your career, not bring it down."
Amazing advice, no?
Here's why I LOVED this.
There will ALWAYS be people wanting to latch on to you for what you can give them; if you work in retail, "Hey, can I use your discount?" If you work at a coffee shop, "Free drinks? Free coffee?" People are greedy, it's part of nature. I'm not going to lie, I'm greedy, I've used people in the past. But there are people who just take, and take, and never give back. Then...
There are those who take, and give. These are the people you want to find. These are the people willing to critique pages for you, if you do pages for them. They're willing to read your query, if you read for them. They don't want anything more or anything less. They want to offer help, and receive help.
Then there are those people already in the industry who can't critique for you, but they can offer advice. People like Janna Cawrse Esarey, a presenter (and author) at the conference who stayed well after her allotted time to help the newbies like me with their pitches. People like Kerry Cohen, Rebecca Rasmussen, Zu Vincent, and James Frey who tell you that you have something, and to just not give up.
Branching out a little further, I've kind of taken this advice and put it toward a lot of what's been happening in my life. Within the last month or two, I was being treated poorly by a person who said they wanted to be my friend. After PNWA (literally, days later), I was talking on the phone and came to the realization that I was better than what I was receiving. I blatantly told the person, "Hey, I don't deserve to be treated like this. If you are going to change the way you're treating me, then I'd be happy to keep you in my life. If not...Well..It's not a real loss then, is it?" (I was then called a dumb bitch and hung up on. Point proven? I think so.)
Moral of the ramble is, you choose who you talk to. You choose the relationships you have to people. If they aren't nice, and they aren't supportive, you don't need them. (This is not just for writing, either). People should accept you the way you are, even if you want to some day find Atlantis, because dammit, if you set your dreams high enough, you'll reach em. (Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise).
Chances are that by this point in the conference I was exhausted; whether it was due to the fact I'd just flown across the country (Literally, North Carolina to Seattle), the fact I hadn't really been sleeping more than three hours, the fact that the conferences were so in depth that I couldn't focus....But I'm not sure.
Honestly, I can't remember the panel, or who I was surrounded by. I can't remember what I wore that day, or really, what day it was. But this day...my life kind of took off. (No, really, this was life changing advice for me, if it's not for you, then it's not for you and leave it at that :) ).
We're adults now. We can pick and choose who we associate with. Whomever was speaking at this moment told the crowd, "From here on out, only associate with people who will help propel your career, not bring it down."
Amazing advice, no?
Here's why I LOVED this.
There will ALWAYS be people wanting to latch on to you for what you can give them; if you work in retail, "Hey, can I use your discount?" If you work at a coffee shop, "Free drinks? Free coffee?" People are greedy, it's part of nature. I'm not going to lie, I'm greedy, I've used people in the past. But there are people who just take, and take, and never give back. Then...
There are those who take, and give. These are the people you want to find. These are the people willing to critique pages for you, if you do pages for them. They're willing to read your query, if you read for them. They don't want anything more or anything less. They want to offer help, and receive help.
Then there are those people already in the industry who can't critique for you, but they can offer advice. People like Janna Cawrse Esarey, a presenter (and author) at the conference who stayed well after her allotted time to help the newbies like me with their pitches. People like Kerry Cohen, Rebecca Rasmussen, Zu Vincent, and James Frey who tell you that you have something, and to just not give up.
Branching out a little further, I've kind of taken this advice and put it toward a lot of what's been happening in my life. Within the last month or two, I was being treated poorly by a person who said they wanted to be my friend. After PNWA (literally, days later), I was talking on the phone and came to the realization that I was better than what I was receiving. I blatantly told the person, "Hey, I don't deserve to be treated like this. If you are going to change the way you're treating me, then I'd be happy to keep you in my life. If not...Well..It's not a real loss then, is it?" (I was then called a dumb bitch and hung up on. Point proven? I think so.)
Moral of the ramble is, you choose who you talk to. You choose the relationships you have to people. If they aren't nice, and they aren't supportive, you don't need them. (This is not just for writing, either). People should accept you the way you are, even if you want to some day find Atlantis, because dammit, if you set your dreams high enough, you'll reach em. (Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise).
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Blog Award, And Other Fun Things!
It was awhile ago....It seems actually to be July to be exact...But the lovely J.A. Bennett gave me the Blog On Fire Award, and I haven't properly taken the time to redistribute, nor thank. So, Ms. Bennett, thank you for the award.
I honestly don't know how these things work....but it seems most people have posted the picture of the award or what not...so I guess I'll do that:
And then I hear that you're supposed to answer some random questions? I'm not sure, but it kinda seemed like fun and I don't have anything else to say today....so here I go:
1. Are you a HOT rutabaga? Describe yourself in two words:
Pet friendly? I don't know....I don't really have anything to say here, but I do love pets...
2. When was the last time you ate lion meat?
Umm....In a past life probably. But I'm not so sure sea turtles are into that kind of thing...I know they eat weird crap...but lion meat? Really? Maybe not in a past life....
3. Upload a heartwarming picture that makes you smile.
This was in 2007...my sisters, all of them and I took a trip in Michigan to the other side of the state. It was amazing. I love all of them.
4. What songs would be playing when you go back in time to beat the crap out of someone, and who, may I ask, would be this someone unfortunate enough to be in your time traveling dimensional line?
Probably something by Rise Against, or Silverstein. They're pretty angry. Or something like..really silly. If you've ever seen that part in Dirty Work, the G SEVEEEENNNNN! Dude, you just pushed G8 "If you like pina coloadas, and getting caught in the rain". Yea...I could see that happening to me.
5. Name one habit you want to change in yourself because it makes people plot your demise.
I have a bit of a temper.....(Shh...don't tell anyone)
6. How many goats, stacked atop one another like Yertle's Turtles, would it take to reach the moon?
I'd say fourteen. But I'd prefer that before we tested this theory...we asked the goats for their permission.
8. Where da muffin top at?
Yea...no. I don't even get this one..
9. Do you have nicknames?
I have a million of them. The one I hear the most frequently is Knee-Cap. Thank you, Elizabeth.
10. What the fudge were you thinking as you were doing this?
That Hancock is playing in the background, and Will Smith is smokin hot? A little bit of that, and he (Hancock) has some clear anger problems...I like him.
And now I hear this is the fun part. Getting to tag people. I think Ms. Bennett chose four people, so I will, too:
1) Ms. Marilyn Almodóvar @ Writing on the Sunny Side of the Street
2) Ms. Peggy Eddleman @ Will Write For Cookies
3) Ninja Girl @ Ninja Girl Reads
4) Ms. Becky Wallace @ What's Your Thought On That?
So there you have it. My first blog award.
Thanks again :) Sorry it took me so long to respond!
I honestly don't know how these things work....but it seems most people have posted the picture of the award or what not...so I guess I'll do that:
1. Are you a HOT rutabaga? Describe yourself in two words:
Pet friendly? I don't know....I don't really have anything to say here, but I do love pets...
2. When was the last time you ate lion meat?
Umm....In a past life probably. But I'm not so sure sea turtles are into that kind of thing...I know they eat weird crap...but lion meat? Really? Maybe not in a past life....
3. Upload a heartwarming picture that makes you smile.
This was in 2007...my sisters, all of them and I took a trip in Michigan to the other side of the state. It was amazing. I love all of them.
4. What songs would be playing when you go back in time to beat the crap out of someone, and who, may I ask, would be this someone unfortunate enough to be in your time traveling dimensional line?
Probably something by Rise Against, or Silverstein. They're pretty angry. Or something like..really silly. If you've ever seen that part in Dirty Work, the G SEVEEEENNNNN! Dude, you just pushed G8 "If you like pina coloadas, and getting caught in the rain". Yea...I could see that happening to me.
5. Name one habit you want to change in yourself because it makes people plot your demise.
I have a bit of a temper.....(Shh...don't tell anyone)
6. How many goats, stacked atop one another like Yertle's Turtles, would it take to reach the moon?
I'd say fourteen. But I'd prefer that before we tested this theory...we asked the goats for their permission.
8. Where da muffin top at?
Yea...no. I don't even get this one..
9. Do you have nicknames?
I have a million of them. The one I hear the most frequently is Knee-Cap. Thank you, Elizabeth.
10. What the fudge were you thinking as you were doing this?
That Hancock is playing in the background, and Will Smith is smokin hot? A little bit of that, and he (Hancock) has some clear anger problems...I like him.
And now I hear this is the fun part. Getting to tag people. I think Ms. Bennett chose four people, so I will, too:
1) Ms. Marilyn Almodóvar @ Writing on the Sunny Side of the Street
2) Ms. Peggy Eddleman @ Will Write For Cookies
3) Ninja Girl @ Ninja Girl Reads
4) Ms. Becky Wallace @ What's Your Thought On That?
So there you have it. My first blog award.
Thanks again :) Sorry it took me so long to respond!
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Celebrations!
I believe in half-birthdays. What is a half birthday, you may ask? A half birthday is 6 months from your real birthday. In example, my birthday is in April. My half birthday is in October. Those who know me well, will usually take me out to dinner or buy me some small trinket (lip gloss, shampoo once...etc). It's a reason to celebrate being alive, to get together with people. It's one extra day to be happy about an otherwise average day.
I believe in real birthdays. My sisters and I are pretty big on birthdays. We try to decorate, we try to surprise. The day you were born is pretty spectacular, no? Shouldn't the day you turn 10, 32, 86 be spectacular as well? We try to make it so people have good birthdays, memorable birthdays. My old roommate told me a year or so after we'd parted ways, "I wish I still lived with you. It was my birthday, and there were no decorations." Oh--this was also a boy calling to tell me this.
Outside of birthdays, what else to we have to celebrate? Holidays, family reunions (if you're into that kind of thing), births...The list isn't very long (feel free to chime in if you can think of anything else for this generic list).
During PNWA, someone said something that stuck with me ever since (I'm putting it in my own words because I have a terrible memory):
Writing is hard work. We get rejected, a lot. We get told our work isn't good enough for someone. Then...people say things like "I don't like this line" or some other disheartening thing. Mean friends and family members tell us to give up. Not only that, but we have to deal with the stresses of real life; finances, kids (if you have them), pets (if you have them), relationships....etc.
Life is hard. Tack on something where you're constantly told no, and our brains may explode.
So what do we do to counteract this negativity?
Find some friends, find someone, anyone to celebrate with. If you don't have anyone, treat yourself to dinner, even if it's a fast food chain (which is what I did yesterday :) ). Go to a movie, a concert, something you wouldn't typically do, because you deserve it.
You just finished your first draft? Sweet, get a drink. Don't drink? Get a soda, puppy, toy. Get something to commemorate what you've done. Get a partial request? Sure, it may get rejected in a few days, but live in the moment. You just got a REQUEST! Get excited, it's okay! Wrote ten pages? Give yourself a friggin pat on the back. Be proud of yourself for those little steps you take along the way.
It's the small things that keep you, keep us, going.
Go out, celebrate. This is your mission as a writer. And who knows? Maybe you'll find something else to write about during your adventure :)
(Also--sorry I haven't been updating too much this week. I slipped and fell on my porch last week and hurt my knee pretty badly. Haven't had a lot of time to think. Don't worry, I'm going to a specialist Monday! Wish me luck!)
I believe in real birthdays. My sisters and I are pretty big on birthdays. We try to decorate, we try to surprise. The day you were born is pretty spectacular, no? Shouldn't the day you turn 10, 32, 86 be spectacular as well? We try to make it so people have good birthdays, memorable birthdays. My old roommate told me a year or so after we'd parted ways, "I wish I still lived with you. It was my birthday, and there were no decorations." Oh--this was also a boy calling to tell me this.
Outside of birthdays, what else to we have to celebrate? Holidays, family reunions (if you're into that kind of thing), births...The list isn't very long (feel free to chime in if you can think of anything else for this generic list).
During PNWA, someone said something that stuck with me ever since (I'm putting it in my own words because I have a terrible memory):
Writing is hard work. We get rejected, a lot. We get told our work isn't good enough for someone. Then...people say things like "I don't like this line" or some other disheartening thing. Mean friends and family members tell us to give up. Not only that, but we have to deal with the stresses of real life; finances, kids (if you have them), pets (if you have them), relationships....etc.
Life is hard. Tack on something where you're constantly told no, and our brains may explode.
So what do we do to counteract this negativity?
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!CELEBRATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 |
| This is actually a picture from my birthday this year :) |
You just finished your first draft? Sweet, get a drink. Don't drink? Get a soda, puppy, toy. Get something to commemorate what you've done. Get a partial request? Sure, it may get rejected in a few days, but live in the moment. You just got a REQUEST! Get excited, it's okay! Wrote ten pages? Give yourself a friggin pat on the back. Be proud of yourself for those little steps you take along the way.
It's the small things that keep you, keep us, going.
Go out, celebrate. This is your mission as a writer. And who knows? Maybe you'll find something else to write about during your adventure :)
(Also--sorry I haven't been updating too much this week. I slipped and fell on my porch last week and hurt my knee pretty badly. Haven't had a lot of time to think. Don't worry, I'm going to a specialist Monday! Wish me luck!)
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