No matter what can be said about politics or the economy, I have to say 2011 was a year of learning for me. I know we are always learning, but never have I been so aware of learning such major life changing truths, life-changing at least for me. The most important thing to me, that has affected my life more than anything, is that you can never know another person. Your perception of that person is what you think is knowledge of that person, but it has nothing to do with who that person is. And that is fine if you are comfortable with your perception and comfortable with your own take on who that person is. I think the reason it was such a big deal for me is that it involved a long term relationship I had that went by the wayside. I felt not that I didn't know who that person really was, but that she had no clue what so ever of where I was coming from or why I thought the things I thought or said. Forty years of fakery as far as I am concerned. Then, when I was pretty much through rebounding from that, the knowledge helped me get through a huge emotional upset in my immediate family. So now, I will just take it all with a grain of salt and not let it affect the way I live my life. Partly, that is easier because of the point I am at in my life. I would be on the shrink couch every day had this happened when I was 22.
Then, we went to take holiday pics of the new baby and her brother and I sat there the whole time thinking, what does that guy do for a living, why would she marry him much less breed with him, he looks like he has a bad smell, that baby is funny looking, they should wait and take his picture when or if he gets cuter, why didn't the mom fix that girl's hair first, gee, that kid's voice is loud and high pitched, why would you put that same hideous sweater on all of your kids for a life long memory of a holiday, my grandson is so f-ing handsome, mom better hurry up and give him the facts of life talk cuz they are gonna be all over him in a year or two, my granddaughter is so cute, even when she glowers, oh, my god they must hate my daughter, she is so pretty and her kids are the only cute ones here, and Cassie looks so cute in those jeans. Is this perception or reality? I no longer know. Or perhaps I don't trust my judgment anymore having made such huge mistakes about people throughout my life. I am doing some work on my third book and I wanted to get these two people together and I was having a heck of a time figuring it out. But now I figured it out. If you love someone, you just love them. Even if it's your deluded perception. That's why God invented that special kind of pain that goes with love.
I like the show Bones. More than I like the books. I suspend belief. The relationship between Booth and Bones is so cute. No, it is totally bizarre and unrealistic actually, but I love them. I am so glad they are together. And right the head of the lab would wear THAT dress to work in a path lab. But it is one of my favorite shows. I rent the dvds at the library. I play catch up on On-Demand. I tried to watch a new show with a similar theme. Forensic medicine is huge lately. I don't recall the name but Dana Delaney is in it and I heard it was good. Every single meaningful glance, "How will she respond to this?" "How should I respond to that?" went on a beat too long. The characters could have been computer generated. I hated it. And, who knows, maybe it is great. Maybe it is my perception. There was this actress. She was the Charlie girl, and then they tried to make her an actress, (I won't say her name). They even gave her her own series. One of those algorithms telling them where the money comes from I guess. Every word out of her mouth was a half a beat off. It drove me up the wall. I saw her in a little bit part on some police procedural drama, and she had improved. Or my perception had changed.
I got a great review that was just the kind of language I understand. "Crazy good read." Which is exactly what I write, y'know? And then I am nosing around today and someone on Apple gave me one star cuz it jumped all over the place. Umm, no. It is totally linear,time-wise, age-wise, story wise. And who cares,their loss, they missed the nursing scene and that great blizzard and some other good stuff. But I clicked to see what else they had reviewed and they had given five stars to the app for ordering pizza from Pizza Hut. So it is always nice to have your pride and conceit taken down a peg or two and realize the company you are in, who you are sharing that bookshelf with. At least I have to be glad it wasn't a three star pizza ordering app.
I think the only way you are going to get read is if your work gets to the people that perceive life in a way similar to yours. So far they are few and far between, but, God, how I love them. Cuz they get "me". My ex-friend didn't. My husband doesn't. But someone did. So now I don't have to die with my song still in me. Someone heard this little bird.
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Half a Beat
Labels:
Betsy Lerner,
Kindle,
Romance,
Sacred Sin,
Virginia Llorca
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
BLOG USE
Do not try that new Blogger interface. It is AWFUL. Stats are unfindable. It took hours to get back to the original which I found by accident by clicking that little gear picture. Panic. . .
Blog Hop
The boxing day blog hop is going on yet. Just scroll down a few entries to the links. It won't hurt. I will go back and check the ending days.
Self Censorship
I didn't cave into a censor. I considered his remarks and decided he was right, that the Christmas cartoon might seem in bad taste to many, so it is gone. Still, folks, remember. I am really tired of hearing that Yes, Virginia joke.
Monday, December 26, 2011
RETURN to UPSY DOWNY LAND
Bad start to the day with emotional interchange about visiting my grandson. He's here and all is fine. Then:
Four star review from Barnes and Noble: "Crazy good read".
Four star review from Barnes and Noble: "Crazy good read".
Bipolar overload
Jenny is one bipolar crazy woman. She climbs into her best friend Barney's window as a young teen and begs for him to teach her about sex but it leads to a connection that neither of them can ever let go of even through marriages and children. While Jenny will always love Barney, she loves her actor husband Daniel too and they all have to learn to live with her actions and her condition. Crazy good read but after 600+ pages, the ending seemed kind of abrupt.
That's 600 Nook pages, guys, so don't worry. Sort of a series And everything works out for all my guys so better keep reading!!. I couldn't be happier with this person's choice of words.
Labels:
Amazon.com,
Barnes and Noble,
David Chin,
John Locke,
Sacred Sin,
Smashwords. Betsy Lerner,
Virginia Llorca
BOXING DAY BLOG HOP
Here are the links for the BOXING DAY BLOGHOP. You should find the link to the next one at each site. There are puzzles and giveaways. My giveaway link is posted at the bottom of this list. I am a novice at this so I hope it works out well for all of you and I hope you had a wonderful Holiday. Thanks for stopping by.
1. www.karenlowe.co.uk
2. http://graceelliot-author.blogspot.com
1. www.karenlowe.co.uk
2. http://graceelliot-author.blogspot.com
4. www.hamgee.co.uk/blog
5. http://lexirevellian.blogspot.com/
6. http://theaatkinson.wordpress.com
7. www.mhairisimpson.com
8. http://rubybarnes.blogspot.com
9. http://murderimpossible.blogspot.com
10. http://jimthewriterb.wordpress.com
11. http://dittymac.blogspot.com
12. http://vernonjbaker.blogspot.com
13. www.renaspromise.com
14. http://bullprotettoremurdermysteries.blo...
I am giving away a free download of SACRED SIN. It is available until January 15, 2012.
Here is the link!
http://smashwords.com/books/view/85160
This is a modern love story with some explicit content.
5. http://lexirevellian.blogspot.com/
6. http://theaatkinson.wordpress.com
7. www.mhairisimpson.com
8. http://rubybarnes.blogspot.com
9. http://murderimpossible.blogspot.com
10. http://jimthewriterb.wordpress.com
11. http://dittymac.blogspot.com
12. http://vernonjbaker.blogspot.com
13. www.renaspromise.com
14. http://bullprotettoremurdermysteries.blo...
I am giving away a free download of SACRED SIN. It is available until January 15, 2012.
Here is the link!
http://smashwords.com/books/view/85160
This is a modern love story with some explicit content.
Labels:
BOXING DAY BLOGHOP,
Sacred Sin,
Virginia Llorca
Saturday, December 24, 2011
HAPPY HOLIDAYS
MAY 2012 BRING THIS MUCH JOY AND BEAUTY TO ALL OF US.
MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY HANUKKAH, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JESUS.
MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY HANUKKAH, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JESUS.
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Indie Publishing--an Analogy
(Loudly blowing horn. . .)
I'm an "Indie Publisher". That covers a lot of ground: self-published, Kindle, Smashwords, Indie Press and others. It was a combination of impatience and snobbery that led me down that path. I don't even fit the amorphous indie model. I write street language, infidelity, God dropping in for an occasional remark or two. But it's good. It's light, fast, fun, irreverent, sexy and not dirty. I don't think a good BJ scene has to be dirty, with a lot of slobbering, romantic over-the-top description of the penis, submissive behavior, and a bossy guy to be realistic or good or sexy. I'm probably one of a very few that can write a sexy BJ scene that is nice. Lora Leigh's are f-ing scary. Rate 'em.
And then when the rejection letters came filled with poor grammar, misspellings, missing words, (fill in the blank in their form letters where they could not bother to fill in the blank) and obvious signs that they never looked at the work, well, I love you, Betsy, but fuck 'em.
So a new track ball on the desktop pc, a new laptop, and an illness have kept me away from my creative endeavors and I have been watching movies. Last night I fell asleep watching Teeth which was about vagina dentata and sucked, which I realize is an oxymoron. But, when I woke, I was wide awake and it was quite late so I surfed Starz On Demand, and started to watch The Cleaner. Did you ever hear of it? I haven't. Samuel L. Jackson, who has been in some turkeys, but was doing an excellent job of being Samuel L. Jackson, always his best role. That beautifully aging fox, Ed Harris. Complex plot. Little straggling octopus threads grabbing you right off. Good subplot with Jackson's daughter, not thrown in, important, interesting. You know how in Transporter Jason Statham goes up to the wrought iron gate of the manse and it's what's her name --Amber Valletta?-- and it rates him a huge cardboard statue in the theater lobby? Well, Jackson goes up to the wrought iron gate and it is Eva Mendez doing her usual wooden Barbie thing, but being very beautiful and just interesting to watch, but no cardboard statue for Jackson. Alicia Silverstone as Jackson's office manager looking better than she ever did, (needed a little more of her acerbic commentary here).
So here's my point. They have algorithms. And Alvin and the Chipmunks gets the play, the licensing, the press. Pirates of the Caribbean--you see how much those fucking Legos cost. Cleaner gets shit. Probably went straight to Video.
I write The Cleaner of love stories. Lora Leigh writes the Alvin and the Chipmunks or The Transporter of love stories. Harlequin Press has its algorithms, probably constructed by the same programmer that said Alvin and the Chipmunks would make millions. I walked the walk. Alvin didn't. We can't fit any agent's algorithm. Too bad for them. A couple of four star reviews by strangers that indicate they actually got what I was writing tell me I did good. Maybe not for the fans of The Tortured Love of the Troubled Duke or Alvin, but good enough to appeal to the same people that surf for a good movie to watch--and occasionally find one. Maybe not great, but good. And enjoyable. I got more than 900 downloads from Barnes and Noble for my Lawman freebie and 21 of those people bothered to rate it so far, and some were four stars. I can still walk the walk. Pay attention to my name.
I am feeling waaay better, and I told you you were gonna get it.
I'm an "Indie Publisher". That covers a lot of ground: self-published, Kindle, Smashwords, Indie Press and others. It was a combination of impatience and snobbery that led me down that path. I don't even fit the amorphous indie model. I write street language, infidelity, God dropping in for an occasional remark or two. But it's good. It's light, fast, fun, irreverent, sexy and not dirty. I don't think a good BJ scene has to be dirty, with a lot of slobbering, romantic over-the-top description of the penis, submissive behavior, and a bossy guy to be realistic or good or sexy. I'm probably one of a very few that can write a sexy BJ scene that is nice. Lora Leigh's are f-ing scary. Rate 'em.
And then when the rejection letters came filled with poor grammar, misspellings, missing words, (fill in the blank in their form letters where they could not bother to fill in the blank) and obvious signs that they never looked at the work, well, I love you, Betsy, but fuck 'em.
So a new track ball on the desktop pc, a new laptop, and an illness have kept me away from my creative endeavors and I have been watching movies. Last night I fell asleep watching Teeth which was about vagina dentata and sucked, which I realize is an oxymoron. But, when I woke, I was wide awake and it was quite late so I surfed Starz On Demand, and started to watch The Cleaner. Did you ever hear of it? I haven't. Samuel L. Jackson, who has been in some turkeys, but was doing an excellent job of being Samuel L. Jackson, always his best role. That beautifully aging fox, Ed Harris. Complex plot. Little straggling octopus threads grabbing you right off. Good subplot with Jackson's daughter, not thrown in, important, interesting. You know how in Transporter Jason Statham goes up to the wrought iron gate of the manse and it's what's her name --Amber Valletta?-- and it rates him a huge cardboard statue in the theater lobby? Well, Jackson goes up to the wrought iron gate and it is Eva Mendez doing her usual wooden Barbie thing, but being very beautiful and just interesting to watch, but no cardboard statue for Jackson. Alicia Silverstone as Jackson's office manager looking better than she ever did, (needed a little more of her acerbic commentary here).
So here's my point. They have algorithms. And Alvin and the Chipmunks gets the play, the licensing, the press. Pirates of the Caribbean--you see how much those fucking Legos cost. Cleaner gets shit. Probably went straight to Video.
I write The Cleaner of love stories. Lora Leigh writes the Alvin and the Chipmunks or The Transporter of love stories. Harlequin Press has its algorithms, probably constructed by the same programmer that said Alvin and the Chipmunks would make millions. I walked the walk. Alvin didn't. We can't fit any agent's algorithm. Too bad for them. A couple of four star reviews by strangers that indicate they actually got what I was writing tell me I did good. Maybe not for the fans of The Tortured Love of the Troubled Duke or Alvin, but good enough to appeal to the same people that surf for a good movie to watch--and occasionally find one. Maybe not great, but good. And enjoyable. I got more than 900 downloads from Barnes and Noble for my Lawman freebie and 21 of those people bothered to rate it so far, and some were four stars. I can still walk the walk. Pay attention to my name.
I am feeling waaay better, and I told you you were gonna get it.
Labels:
Barnes and Noble,
Betsy Lerner,
David Chin,
John Locke,
Kindle Press,
LAWMAN,
Sacred Sin,
Smashwords,
Virginia Llorca
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Stuck in the Middle
Just don't forget, guys. Lawman doing well on Barnes & Noble and Sony. Inching along on Amazon, but still alive. SACRED SIN doing great with freebie at Smashwords. I wish I knew something about marketing trends.
The Maze is for sale at Amazon, but I am working on an edited edition. Can't put links as I am not home. Hang in there with me okay?
The Maze is for sale at Amazon, but I am working on an edited edition. Can't put links as I am not home. Hang in there with me okay?
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Grrrrrr
Louie bought me a laptop computer for Christmas. Louie bought me a laptop computer for Christmas last year. We could not get on the internet or do any thing with it, so it was all "blamed" on the local wi-fi connections and the router we were using and it went back to the store. It was unusable. So THIS YEAR he bought me the exact same one Cassie bought because she took it out of the box and got everything up and working in about ten minutes. We were not home when she did that. That is, I was not home, and, more importantly, LOUIE was not at home. A zillion years ago Louie's profession was going into banks and putting all their operations on computer. Mind you, at that time, the computer took up a whole room and had to have a special humidity and temperature controlled environment. Sort of like back to the Jurassic period computer-wise. Therefore, he considers himself the know all end all of computer operation. This can be visualized as the guy in the phone kiosk at the mall explaining an Android app to Alexander Graham Bell. So, he has been sitting at the dining room table for one and a half hours and he just gave up, saying it had sent him into outer space and he didn't know what to do now. No. We will not PAY the geek squad to come and help us. It will go back to the store.
My only option will be to buy one on the QT and sneak it in the house when he is not home and have Cassie take it out of the box and set it up for me. Meanwhile, I am doing fine on this old HP. Just now he asked if the first part of our phone number was 265. Jesus save me.
Think I will rustle up my vintage housewife pic.
My only option will be to buy one on the QT and sneak it in the house when he is not home and have Cassie take it out of the box and set it up for me. Meanwhile, I am doing fine on this old HP. Just now he asked if the first part of our phone number was 265. Jesus save me.
Think I will rustle up my vintage housewife pic.
Friday, December 09, 2011
Free download.
Another Freebie
This can be downloaded to any device or to your PC.
The free download of LAWMAN is over now.
Getting Noticed
Wednesday, December 07, 2011
Thunder
I am thunderstruck. My world has tilted on its axis. This is partially due to the shit load of codeine that I am ingesting and partially due to the fact that I discovered something today called the affiliate sales site on Smashwords. God bless Barnes and Noble. Long may they prosper. I have a new outlook on life, on my work, on me.
I hope I still have it when the antibiotics and the codeine are gone.
Tuesday, December 06, 2011
Giving In To the System
I gave in and went to the dr. and got antibiotics and some lovely, dreamy, special cough syrup. I know I was being stubborn but I have had enough lectures on "It's a virus. Antibiotics won't help it." Actually I set the galleys on that book for Contemporary Press. So I waited the whole twelve days. Viruses are supposed to go away in ten. So in a couple of days you are going to get it from me big time, and I'm not talking about my cold. The thing is, you slack off a few days and the attention just fades away. What is wrong with you? Where do your loyalties lie? When I am needing you the most, where are you? You know how bad this was? Louie folded my laundry for me. Forty seven years that took. Please. A cool cloth and a few There, there's is all I ask. I've been so good to you. Well, except for that little fire I started on Mises. That did distract me a bit. They know about loyalty at least.
Labels:
Amazon.com,
bitterness,
LAWMAN,
Mises.org,
Sacred Sin,
Virginia Llorca
Thursday, December 01, 2011
Another Freebie
SACRED SIN is available for free download from Smashwords until 1/15/12. It is a modern love story, somewhat racy.
The free download of LAWMAN is over now.
The free download of LAWMAN is over now.
Monday, November 28, 2011
Philosophical fun with the flu
I'm sick. I will be better before I get to read through ALL your messages of sympathy so don't send one. Buy my book instead. But I have never been so philosophical about illness and I wonder if it is age-related or what.
Last week I felt like every muscle in my body was complaining as though I'd gotten/I got out of a risen I rose from a wheelchair and ran a marathon. And, no, that is not politically incorrect cuz if I didn't have surgery eight years ago, I would be in a wheelchair. Then Thanksgiving was its usual depressing downer and I woke up Friday feeling sick. I mentioned to my daughter that it would be interesting to know what the germ does in your body to make you feel this way and she offered me her Pathophysiology text. Okay, I am not that interested.
So I've just been sleeping and reading a lot and taking so much medicine. Benadryl and guiafenesin and aspirin or ibuprofen plus the usual daily six pack (not beer, for God's sake.) And I would have an English muffin (which I fork-split) just because I thought my stomach could not bear the chemical assault, but then I would feel like I was going to lose that, small wonder the chemical stew in there. And my mind feels fine, but is really racing, more than usual. I think the pressure from the sinuses causes this. I offer myself as test subject. And today Fran wanted to do secret shopping for the kiddos and I wanted so much to go along and look at toys and play with the Fisher-Price pianos and stuff. So we go Panera and Toys r us and she swings through the ATM lane which is half way back to my house and I said, maybe you should take me home cuz I don't feel so good. I get out of her car and I STAGGERED. You know how people always use that word and really what does it mean? I staggered over and leaned on a tree then staggered to the porch and leaned on the door and got the door open and leaned on the wall and slowly staggered up the six stairs. I am sure the neighbors think I had a three martini lunch.
What is being "sick"? It doesn't hurt. It's just like weirdness and a different feeling in every cell. I don't even have a fever. And they say 'that song is sick' and it could mean it is great or horrible. "You sick bastard!" is definitely negative but frequently said with a laugh. Well, it's a good reason to rest up and slack off and make people go buy you popsicles. And I am almost finished with a little mystery book that popped out of the bookcase at me that was published in 1968 and is actually pretty good. There's a right moment for everything. So, back to my book. I'll be fine tomorrow. Which is what I thought last night.
I was dabbling with the Kindle last night or afternoon, it is all a blur to me, and I was reading my own book, which I do all the time, and I noticed I use the word GOT an awful lot.
Today's CTA: what is your favorite flavor popsicle?
Last week I felt like every muscle in my body was complaining as though
So I've just been sleeping and reading a lot and taking so much medicine. Benadryl and guiafenesin and aspirin or ibuprofen plus the usual daily six pack (not beer, for God's sake.) And I would have an English muffin (which I fork-split) just because I thought my stomach could not bear the chemical assault, but then I would feel like I was going to lose that, small wonder the chemical stew in there. And my mind feels fine, but is really racing, more than usual. I think the pressure from the sinuses causes this. I offer myself as test subject. And today Fran wanted to do secret shopping for the kiddos and I wanted so much to go along and look at toys and play with the Fisher-Price pianos and stuff. So we go Panera and Toys r us and she swings through the ATM lane which is half way back to my house and I said, maybe you should take me home cuz I don't feel so good. I get out of her car and I STAGGERED. You know how people always use that word and really what does it mean? I staggered over and leaned on a tree then staggered to the porch and leaned on the door and got the door open and leaned on the wall and slowly staggered up the six stairs. I am sure the neighbors think I had a three martini lunch.
What is being "sick"? It doesn't hurt. It's just like weirdness and a different feeling in every cell. I don't even have a fever. And they say 'that song is sick' and it could mean it is great or horrible. "You sick bastard!" is definitely negative but frequently said with a laugh. Well, it's a good reason to rest up and slack off and make people go buy you popsicles. And I am almost finished with a little mystery book that popped out of the bookcase at me that was published in 1968 and is actually pretty good. There's a right moment for everything. So, back to my book. I'll be fine tomorrow. Which is what I thought last night.
I was dabbling with the Kindle last night or afternoon, it is all a blur to me, and I was reading my own book, which I do all the time, and I noticed I use the word GOT an awful lot.
Today's CTA: what is your favorite flavor popsicle?
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Thanksgiving Oatmeal
WARNING!! This is a complete downer.
I have these pictures when Fran was about three and it is my dining room on Elmwood and this long dining table and this huge turkey and this beautiful tablecloth and Lou and Fran and me. My parents were in Florida having their Turkey dinner at the rec hall and enjoying the hell out of it and you didn't have to wash dishes unless your state was on the social committee that month which happened every 52 plus months because a lot of the people lived in Canada. And everyone else in my family and in Louie's family had something better do to. Actually, they don't like us.
So this year I took the leaf out of the table and the dining room is a little smaller on Hazelwood and it will be Lou and me and my dad, because after my mom died, my dad didn't have anyone to have Thanksgiving dinner with and Fran married into this huge close knit family and we are like the wrinkly old people that scare the little kids. I bought the smallest Turkey in the case and I was invited somewhere by someone nice, but I got this terrible haircut and kind of didn't know what to do with my dad, and Cassie doesn't know if she will be home in time to sit with us and I thought Louie had to work, but he doesn't, so at least he will be there, otherwise it would be me and my dad. How fucking pitiful is that?
But the one that sticks in my mind as the quintessential Thanksgiving day celebration was the year that I gave birth to a six pound stillborn baby boy on November eighteenth and was told I had to buck up and go to auntie's in Glenview for Thanksgiving dinner. And in those days no one acknowledged that you might be feeling grief or sadness and God forbid you should show it and it was cold and drizzly and we are driving out there, me bleeding and breasts aching, and we see this horrible seven car pile up on the Interstate and they are shoveling bodies into ambulances and we get to Auntie's and I get a big hug and "How are you?" Seriously, auntie, what the fuck do you think? I commented that I wasn't feeling too well yet (faux pas in those days) and we saw this horrible accident on the highway and she says, "Oh, today, you have to remember all that you are thankful for." No. I don't want to. And I really should get over it but that is the clincher, like the only parade you will ever remember is when the huge balloon broke free and killed that little boy.
So, you know Google Plus and how it is a huge pain in the neck? Well, I think it saved my life today. They had this riff from The Oatmeal about Thanksgiving and I laughed out loud about four times. Thank you Francesca for cluing me into The Oatmeal. And , everyone, have a happy Holiday. I love turkey and I make the best gravy in the whole fucking world. Your loss.
I have these pictures when Fran was about three and it is my dining room on Elmwood and this long dining table and this huge turkey and this beautiful tablecloth and Lou and Fran and me. My parents were in Florida having their Turkey dinner at the rec hall and enjoying the hell out of it and you didn't have to wash dishes unless your state was on the social committee that month which happened every 52 plus months because a lot of the people lived in Canada. And everyone else in my family and in Louie's family had something better do to. Actually, they don't like us.
So this year I took the leaf out of the table and the dining room is a little smaller on Hazelwood and it will be Lou and me and my dad, because after my mom died, my dad didn't have anyone to have Thanksgiving dinner with and Fran married into this huge close knit family and we are like the wrinkly old people that scare the little kids. I bought the smallest Turkey in the case and I was invited somewhere by someone nice, but I got this terrible haircut and kind of didn't know what to do with my dad, and Cassie doesn't know if she will be home in time to sit with us and I thought Louie had to work, but he doesn't, so at least he will be there, otherwise it would be me and my dad. How fucking pitiful is that?
But the one that sticks in my mind as the quintessential Thanksgiving day celebration was the year that I gave birth to a six pound stillborn baby boy on November eighteenth and was told I had to buck up and go to auntie's in Glenview for Thanksgiving dinner. And in those days no one acknowledged that you might be feeling grief or sadness and God forbid you should show it and it was cold and drizzly and we are driving out there, me bleeding and breasts aching, and we see this horrible seven car pile up on the Interstate and they are shoveling bodies into ambulances and we get to Auntie's and I get a big hug and "How are you?" Seriously, auntie, what the fuck do you think? I commented that I wasn't feeling too well yet (faux pas in those days) and we saw this horrible accident on the highway and she says, "Oh, today, you have to remember all that you are thankful for." No. I don't want to. And I really should get over it but that is the clincher, like the only parade you will ever remember is when the huge balloon broke free and killed that little boy.
So, you know Google Plus and how it is a huge pain in the neck? Well, I think it saved my life today. They had this riff from The Oatmeal about Thanksgiving and I laughed out loud about four times. Thank you Francesca for cluing me into The Oatmeal. And , everyone, have a happy Holiday. I love turkey and I make the best gravy in the whole fucking world. Your loss.
Labels:
grief,
Thanksgiving,
The Oatmeal,
Virginia Llorca
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Friday, November 18, 2011
Obviously
I have the Style Guide thing all worked out and I figured out how to load non Amazon stuff on my Kindle. No. I didn't figure it out. I figured out how to follow someones perfectly explicit and clear directions. So, obviously, I have no more barriers in the way of my getting on with publishing my book and a half, and, obviously, my head is spinning with thoughts that need to pour out. You can't stop me from pouring them out. Just don't read them if you don't like them. If it will make the inside of your head feel better, you can even delete them. But, I am warning you, that would be a mistake. Anyway, this whole rant is a stall and a waste of everyones time.
The theme of today's discussion is tattling. If you were ever a mom, you know the painful dichotomy of trying to teach your kids not to be a tattle tale and having the burden of knowing they are aware of something horrible going on that they are afraid of telling because they don't want to be a tattle tale. These bits of knowledge may run the gamut from Joey taking that dime that you left on the dryer after it fell out of someones jeans, or he let that horrible little boy down the street ride his bike and that is why it is broken, but after all, he will man up and take the blame because you already told him not to let that creature ride the brand new bike, and he cannot possibly tattle on the horrible creature. First of all it would be tattling, and foremost, the horrible child would maim him for life. Somewhere along the line, most children learn to determine that it is a necessity to tell your mommy that you saw Mr. Jorgenson burying his wife under the birdbath and you should just keep quiet about the fact that your sister puts lipstick on as soon as she is half way down the block.
But not everyone gets to this place in their life. I was standing at the service desk in WalMart, waiting to send the latest multi thousand dollar money order to my lover that lives on a small Greek Island when a woman came in and CUT in line, her mission was so important. She gave the description and license numbers of several cars in the parking lot that had ignored and/or disobeyed the handicap sign regulations and she demanded that the service desk commander, already stressed because she was alone and eight people were already waiting in line, call the local police immediately to come and cite these people for their malfeasance.
The service desk person began to look about for the telephone book, muttering how she didn't have the number at hand and couldn't this wait while she took care of the other people ahead of her, and the parking space troll said it had to be done immediately in case the people breaking this law left before they were properly chastised and made to give up a portion of their time and their personal fortune because of their sin and "the number is written right here on your desk blotter because I saw it there yesterday". This is the woman's hobby.
Before I got my new prosthetic knees and it still hurt to walk, I nudged a shopping cart up a little with my car so I could fit into a space closer to the store and the shopping cart rolled into the corral for carts that was directly in front of the space I had chosen. A woman saw this and circumnavigated the lot so she could drive all the way back to tell me she didn't think I should do that because the cart corral deserved that space also. By this time I had left the car and was walking toward the store and exaggerating my crippled hobble for her benefit. I said, "Call the police." and went into the store. She may have been the Wal Mart parking lot troll and I just caught her at shank's end of her daily forays.
My neighbor's children raised a few chickens, maybe five, for a 4-H project. They built a maze type structure for the chickens to play in which extended into my yard. One of our more observant neighbors reported us. The police showed up at my house. I blurted, "but they are Miller's chickens". The Millers, eleven years later, still refer to this as me reporting them to the police. At least they are being facetious. I hope.
I made a half joking remark on a thread that I didn't need to be on, one never does need to be on a thread actually, about how I had cheated on the NaNoWriMo contest (if you don't know what that is, leave well enough alone cuz it is stupid) by posting a novel I had finished writing months before. I was called out for my moral turpitude and lectured on how that would destroy my character and tarnish my legacy, if I was not already beyond hope, which they pointedly remarked, I must already be.
I was discussing the variety of resources one could access when making or buying cover art for their self-published works, and I mentioned that one image I used was gifted, three were purchased and one was stolen. I got the lecture about copyright law and how someone would come after me. What? Are they going to confiscate my royalties? Good luck with that.
Then there are the times when you (at least I) sit and mull about how you let so and so get away with such and such, and how one person you know sues anyone and everyone for anything and everything, and the only thing I can come up with is something my mom said. And I am not given to quoting bon mot from my mother because she was not too big on that, preferring the Martini as a coping mechanism; "Mend your own fences." Which, I will translate for you, my beloved readers, "Mend your own fucking fences, asshole."
Today's provocative, dialogue inducing question: Do you even have a fence?
The theme of today's discussion is tattling. If you were ever a mom, you know the painful dichotomy of trying to teach your kids not to be a tattle tale and having the burden of knowing they are aware of something horrible going on that they are afraid of telling because they don't want to be a tattle tale. These bits of knowledge may run the gamut from Joey taking that dime that you left on the dryer after it fell out of someones jeans, or he let that horrible little boy down the street ride his bike and that is why it is broken, but after all, he will man up and take the blame because you already told him not to let that creature ride the brand new bike, and he cannot possibly tattle on the horrible creature. First of all it would be tattling, and foremost, the horrible child would maim him for life. Somewhere along the line, most children learn to determine that it is a necessity to tell your mommy that you saw Mr. Jorgenson burying his wife under the birdbath and you should just keep quiet about the fact that your sister puts lipstick on as soon as she is half way down the block.
But not everyone gets to this place in their life. I was standing at the service desk in WalMart, waiting to send the latest multi thousand dollar money order to my lover that lives on a small Greek Island when a woman came in and CUT in line, her mission was so important. She gave the description and license numbers of several cars in the parking lot that had ignored and/or disobeyed the handicap sign regulations and she demanded that the service desk commander, already stressed because she was alone and eight people were already waiting in line, call the local police immediately to come and cite these people for their malfeasance.
The service desk person began to look about for the telephone book, muttering how she didn't have the number at hand and couldn't this wait while she took care of the other people ahead of her, and the parking space troll said it had to be done immediately in case the people breaking this law left before they were properly chastised and made to give up a portion of their time and their personal fortune because of their sin and "the number is written right here on your desk blotter because I saw it there yesterday". This is the woman's hobby.
Before I got my new prosthetic knees and it still hurt to walk, I nudged a shopping cart up a little with my car so I could fit into a space closer to the store and the shopping cart rolled into the corral for carts that was directly in front of the space I had chosen. A woman saw this and circumnavigated the lot so she could drive all the way back to tell me she didn't think I should do that because the cart corral deserved that space also. By this time I had left the car and was walking toward the store and exaggerating my crippled hobble for her benefit. I said, "Call the police." and went into the store. She may have been the Wal Mart parking lot troll and I just caught her at shank's end of her daily forays.
My neighbor's children raised a few chickens, maybe five, for a 4-H project. They built a maze type structure for the chickens to play in which extended into my yard. One of our more observant neighbors reported us. The police showed up at my house. I blurted, "but they are Miller's chickens". The Millers, eleven years later, still refer to this as me reporting them to the police. At least they are being facetious. I hope.
I made a half joking remark on a thread that I didn't need to be on, one never does need to be on a thread actually, about how I had cheated on the NaNoWriMo contest (if you don't know what that is, leave well enough alone cuz it is stupid) by posting a novel I had finished writing months before. I was called out for my moral turpitude and lectured on how that would destroy my character and tarnish my legacy, if I was not already beyond hope, which they pointedly remarked, I must already be.
I was discussing the variety of resources one could access when making or buying cover art for their self-published works, and I mentioned that one image I used was gifted, three were purchased and one was stolen. I got the lecture about copyright law and how someone would come after me. What? Are they going to confiscate my royalties? Good luck with that.
Then there are the times when you (at least I) sit and mull about how you let so and so get away with such and such, and how one person you know sues anyone and everyone for anything and everything, and the only thing I can come up with is something my mom said. And I am not given to quoting bon mot from my mother because she was not too big on that, preferring the Martini as a coping mechanism; "Mend your own fences." Which, I will translate for you, my beloved readers, "Mend your own fucking fences, asshole."
Today's provocative, dialogue inducing question: Do you even have a fence?
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