The Learned Stars
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| Sunday, December 6th, 2009 |
ysabetwordsmith
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9:37a |
Gifts for the Jaguar
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) haikujaguar has posted her Christmas gift list. It has some ideas that you may find inspiring for yourself or other folks too. That reminds me that I still need to touch up my own Amazon.com wishlist and include a few other ideas. It's on my list of things to do. Today is Common Grounds and Year-and-a-Day Class, though. Eh, maybe this week sometime. Current Mood:  busy |
ysabetwordsmith
|
9:33a |
Woodpecker for the Win!
I just saw a downy woodpecker on my birdfeeder. Ironically it's on the hopper feeder (not a type favored by woodpeckers) rather than the suet cage (explicitly provided for the woodpeckers). But it seemed to be very happy picking out the seeds from one corner, so that's fine. I also found a giant suction cup (intended to hang heavy wreaths) that after 4-5 attempts actually stayed stuck to the window, so I hung a birdseed bell from that. I may pick up another one or two of those suction cups to attach birdfeeders to other windows. The more I have, the more places the birds have to eat when the cats are skulking around the hopper. I want to get a large over-the-branch hook and some rope to see if I can devise a better way to hang the big fly-through feeder. It's currently secured between two branches with string, and not as secure as I would like. Current Mood:  pleased |
manifest_now
|
9:51a |
Happy Birthday Diane!! (cazul_blue)
Woo hoo! (okay so I am a day late! boo!) If You Were Born December 5 You are a true visionary with the intelligence and creativity to back it up. You are truly ahead of your time. You are resourceful and very quick to take care of the things that need to be done. Freedom-loving always, you don't appreciate being confined or stereotyped whatsoever. You are very sharp and witty, sometimes surprising others with your astute perceptions and quips. You value loyalty in others most. You can sometimes be a little hard on others, as you do expect honesty and integrity and become quite impatient with anything less. Famous people born today: Walt Disney, Little Richard, Jose Maria Carreras, Margaret Cho, Nick Stahl, Frankie Muniz. Born December 5 - Your Year Ahead Stabilizing elements in your social life and with your finances help to keep you grounded and on track. There are times, however, when you overestimate your energy levels, so that pacing yourself is necessary. Major restructuring of your life will help you to clear your head and to get your priorities straight. More at http://www.cafeastrology.com/birthday/december509.html |
manifest_now
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9:26a |
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haikujaguar
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7:38a |
Christmas Wishlist
Since I got a few requests, I cleaned up both my Art Supply Wishlist and my Amazon.Com Wishlist. I'm finding the Amazon Universal Wish List thing awesome... you could use that to browse Stardancer and tag images you want as prints! I love Web 2.0. Anyway, if you want to buy me a brush, please don't be worried that I might already have received it. I rip through brushes: it's typical for me to have to replace my entire set two or three times a year. If twelve people buy me a size 2 brush, trust me, I will use all twelve and sing hallelujahs that I don't have to buy them myself every time I uncap a new one. The most abused sizes tend to be 0, 1, 2, 4 and 6, but all of them get destroyed regularly. Somewhere, mama brushes are telling stories to baby brushes about me coming for them if they misbehave. I am the brush monster under the bed. :P Nevertheless, having linked all that... I really don't like receiving Stuff so much anymore, other than things I use up, like brushes. If you want to give me a gift, here are some things I really love: 1. Recipes. I really enjoy cooking and baking, so if you've got a holiday recipe, a family recipe or just something you've perfected or pioneered that you think of as yours, I'd love to see it! I may or may not be able to use it due to dietary restrictions, or I may only be able to use it once in a while, but I'll still enjoy reading it. 1a. Related: Food. I have received sweets, jam and breads from folks before, and I love them even if I can't eat a lot of them at once. I also love regional oddities, foods that can only be found around where you live, honey from your own bees, that sort of thing. 2. Reviews. If you've read any of my books, I'd love Amazon reviews. Yes, even if you were lukewarm about them. The reviews I've gotten on Shell, The Admonishments and The Aphorisms have all been very important to me. While I also love standalone reviews, it's very handy from a marketing perspective to have them on Amazon so don't think a quick "This was a great book!" there wouldn't help. 2a. Related: Links! Talk about my art or link to me or tweet about something you liked that I did (if you liked something)! If you check my images near the titles at the top, you'll notice a "Blog This!" link that you can use to get some cut-and-paste code so you can get a thumbnail and link for your convenience. 3. Art of any kind—online. I really love seeing beautiful art and reading great work. Post some of yours or inspire someone else to post theirs and tell me how to find it. 3a. Related: Tip Jars/Donate Buttons. If you post any kind of art or useful stuff online (how-tos, recipes, whatever) and don't feel weird about accepting money for your efforts, I'd love to see a tip jar or donate button somewhere I can find it: your profile, your website, whatever. When I use something or see/read something that really speaks to me, I often like to show my appreciation with monetary recompense. When I can't find a way to do that, I feel... strange, like some part of the circle has broken: you've given me something of value but I have no way of reciprocating. So if you've been on the fence about making it possible for people to tip you for the things you offer for free online, please consider this a gentle "yes, please." :) Also, this is probably the right time of year to link to my post about Underrated Gift Ideas, in case you're brainstorming for gift ideas in general. And that's the whole list...! I feel strange having posted it, but there it is. :) Stardancer Home. Current Mood:  working |
tourmalina
|
7:28a |
To My Friends
I'm not joking. Why am I being stalked by my neighbor? I don't know how to explain this in a way that sounds calm because I'm not calm. I have a neighbor who stalks me. I just lost it a few minutes ago. She asked "how are you doing," or something like that. And I said, "Well, not very good considering your housemate." She then said, "what do you mean?" And, Jesus Christ, she's GD well knows what I mean. She lives (or was living) with a total creep. Okay, I LOST IT. I SCREAMED AT HER, "GET OUT OF MY LIFE!" I'm freaking tired of this. I've written about this before in my Livejournal entries. I'm not kidding and I'm not insane. http://tourmalina.livejournal.com/2009/10/27/http://tourmalina.livejournal.com/2009/10/06/I'm leaving this entry "public" because I am not the guilty party. I'm fed up with the tricks and stress I endure from Jodi and Regina. Girls, get out of my life. |
| Saturday, December 5th, 2009 |
ysabetwordsmith
|
5:50p |
Log Boxes
One obscure thing about me: I love tiny little boxes and drawers and doors. I love cabinets and jewelry cases with a bunch of divisions in them that I can open and close and play with and use to organize things. So I was delighted by this post about carved log jewelry boxes. Look at all the cute little drawers! My fingers itch to play with them. Current Mood: busy |
mystical_art
[ fefa_koroleva ]
|
10:04p |
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ysabetwordsmith
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12:23p |
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ysabetwordsmith
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11:49a |
Texas Accidentally Bans All Marriages
I was direly amused by this article. We did warn people that attacks on gay marriage undermine all marriages. I think the goddesses of matrimony are getting pissed. That's not a good thing for mortals. Current Mood:  amused |
rupted
|
11:19a |
Ugh, I keep missing calls cuz I never know where my stupid phone is. Oh wait, this isn't facebook. Damn, now I feel obligated to write a longer post. I'm not going to though. |
| Friday, December 4th, 2009 |
ysabetwordsmith
|
10:06p |
Generally Sponsored Poetry Poll for December 2009
The general fund currently has $5 in it. You may spend this on the last $5 poem, "The Festival of Lights," or you may direct it toward either of the microfunded poems, "Choralia" or "Warning Sine." I also forgot to post the extra freebie poem, since we had several new prompters. I'm letting you choose from several $10 poems for this. EDIT 12/5/09: Ignore "Stepchild Wit" on this poll; I forgot that it's already been published. Oops. The poll is below. I will leave it open at least until Saturday evening, longer if necessary. Poll #1494727 Generally Sponsored Poetry Poll for December 2009
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 11 How do you want to spend the $5 in the general fund? Which of the following do you want as the extra freebie poem? Current Mood: busy |
ysabetwordsmith
|
9:53p |
Fighting Loneliness, Part 3: Friendship Tips for Introverts
After the original loneliness post and the basic socializing tips, naamah_darling observed: Introverts like me have an extra layer of difficulty with this sort of thing, as does anyone with a disability or mental illness. Friendships and support networks can be really hard to build and maintain if social contact itself makes you uncomfortable or nervous, and if you are periodically (or perpetually) needy. Or if you are the sort of person who is only comfortable having a couple of close friendships. So let's consider how introverts can have a healthy, enjoyable social life. Know YourselfFirst, understand where you fall on the introvert-extrovert scale. If you sometimes function in introvert mode and other times in extrovert mode, try to identify the circumstances for each and whether there are any switches you can throw on purpose. Next, understand that both introversion and extroversion can be healthy. Your social orientation is only a problem if it makes you unhappy and/or prevents you from doing things you want or need to do, in which case you can work on shifting it. If you're comfortable with it, leave it as it is and work on finding other folks who will accept you as you are. Second, consider your wants and needs in the social field. What kind of friends would you like to have? How many? How often would you like to see them? What kind of things would you like to do together? Is your family life the way you want it? If not, what's missing? Can you fill in the gaps by boosting some existing relationships, or do you need to find/create new ones? How many social activities would you like in a month? How long can you be around people before it stops being fun and starts to bother you? Also check to see whether you have too much going on in this part of your life. If you feel overloaded, what can you reduce? Here's a list of graceful ways to say "no" so as to avoid overloading yourself further. Third, consider your talents, skills, and virtues. What are you good at doing? What do you enjoy doing? Where are some areas that your endurance is higher than other people's is? What do you enjoy doing, or at least not mind doing, that other people dislike? What do you take pride in? When X happens, people turn to you -- fill in that blank. Also think about things you can't do yet, but would like to learn; you can keep an eye out for opportunities. Don't Use a Screwdriver to Pound NailsModern American culture tends to favor the extrovert mode. That doesn't make it better than the introvert mode, just more popular here and now. Trying to make an introvert act like an extrovert is like using a screwdriver to pound nails: it might eventually get the job done, but not very efficiently and you're likely to smack your thumb or scratch the wood in the process. The trick to building a happy social life for an introvert is to find ways to play to your strengths, not your weaknesses. Understand that you're a jolly fine screwdriver, and there are plenty of screws out there. Not everything is a nail in need of a hammer, so don't try to be a hammer. Be yourself. Show, don't tell. Many social events are intended to "tell" people that they are loved and appreciated. There are lots of ways you can "show" people instead, which may make them less insistent about dragging you into a busy event. Many introverts are good at "fading into the woodwork," which makes it easy to observe people and learn what they like and care about. You can then make their favorite food, play music they enjoy, surprise them with the perfect gift, etc. This is a great way to contribute something to a relationship or community, to balance whatever you get out of it. Do solitary tasks. Some careers necessitate spending lots of time by yourself; these are better done by introverts than by extroverts who would be miserable. Some events require setup tasks that would bore an extrovert -- somebody has to make the cake, fill the balloons, hang the streamers, plan the menu, etc. This is a way to take part in an occasion that's important to you, without getting swamped by a crowd. In a well-balanced group, someone at the event will pass the word as to who did which of the cool setup bits, then pipe the feedback to you later. Another example is community theatre -- not everyone is an actor, and the people who make the costumes and the sets lend a great deal of magic to the final performance. Some introverts become quietly famous "behind the scenes" for making things happen in their community, and are valued accordingly. Be a good listener. This is not a common skill in modern America, but it's an extremely valuable one. Some introverts are perfectly okay with people as long as they don't have to do the talking themselves; these often make great listeners. A good listener is a good friend. Even if people make you nervous, you can use listening skills to lighten the load by getting them to talk about themselves so don't have to be there and talk. Practice companionable silences. Extroverts are great if you want to talk, but sometimes you think, "ZOMG if I get asked about this one more time I'm gonna scream." Then it's time to hang out with your introvert friends who will not pester you. Also, some activities lend themselves well to companionable silences, such as quiet walks through the woods or along a beach. Some people enjoy doing crafts together and don't feel compelled to fill the air with words the whole time. These are good choices for introverts who are friends with each other. Explore quiet groups. Not all activities are boisterous ones. An introvert who feels over-stimulated by a party might feel comfortable in a class of yoga, meditation, T'ai Chi. A birdwatching group might begin with a few minutes of greeting and discussion followed by several hours of relatively quiet hiking because you're trying not to scare all the birds away. Also, if you don't want individual friends bugging you constantly, it can be very effective to socialize at defined times and places on a weekly or monthly schedule. Communicate clearly. This can be challenging for introverts, but it usually pays off, because misunderstandings so often cause tension. Most of the time, you'll get better results from telling someone "I can be there for X hours" than just showing up and then trying to get loose early. If possible, you should let your friends know that you are indeed an introvert, so they'll understand when you say, "It's been fun, but I'm getting all peopled out now so I need to go home." They're less likely to get upset if they understand that they haven't bored or offended you, it's just a matter of your internal limits. This also applies to limiting the number or size of your social engagements, as well as the length. Offer alternatives. People often want to include folks they care about, but they may not understand your strengths and weaknesses. If they suggest something that would be unworkable for you, say something like, "I can't do X, but I could do Y instead." Learn what kind of things you do that other folks find helpful, so that you've got a ready list of alternatives. Maintain long-distance relationships. If you're not comfortable having friends underfoot all the time, but you want to maintain some connections, try doing it at arm's reach. The Internet is your friend, and your path to making as many friends as you want, who will not show up on your doorstep because they live halfway across the country. You can share to the degree that feels right to you; most social networks have tools especially designed to help you control who can access which information. Similarly, keep touch with distant relatives by exchanging cards, gifts, and personal news rather than frequent visits. What are some other ways you have found, either as an introvert yourself or an extrovert who knows introverts, to use this mode of interaction for fun healthy socializing? Current Mood: busy |
told_tales
[ richlayers ]
|
6:00p |
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ysabetwordsmith
|
1:56p |
Fighting Loneliness, Part 2: Very Basic Steps
The previous discussion about fighting loneliness included tips for people with average to expert social skills. Then mdlbear said this: Terrific post; there's a lot of good stuff here. And some good suggestions: "Restore our support of people who are doing the hard work of sustaining others."... "Practice and teach social skills." "Build the biggest, strongest social network that you can."
Trouble is, these are all aimed at people like you who know what they're doing, and using it to help people who don't. I'm one of those people who never learned what I needed; I'm trying to learn it now, and I'm finding it tough going. Especially now that I'm also trying to help people. So I'm going to add a very basic layer of tips for folks who may not have learned about self-care and socializing from their family while growing up. In addition to all the stuff here, you can also read about these topics and skills. Hunt around until you find something that seems applicable for you. Taking Care of YourselfWhen you take good care of yourself, you are showing love and respect for yourself. This puts you in a stable position to help other people. First check your physical needs. You should have nourishing food to eat, comfortable clothes to wear, a secure residence, and enough sleep. Skimping on those tends to reduce your energy level and makes it more likely that you will get sick. Pay close attention to signals from your body because it will tell you if it needs something special. If you aren't sleeping well, you may need a different bed or a darker room. If eating wheat upsets your digestion, you may need to remove it from your diet. If your background included people telling you to ignore such things, or that you weren't really feeling what you felt, then you'll need to get rid of that interference so you can understand yourself clearly. Next check your emotional needs. People benefit from having a least a few, and preferably more, people who love them. This can be your parents, sibling(s), spouse(s), child(ren), friend(s), or whatever. They should be people who say nice things to you, support your successes, sympathize with your setbacks, exchange favors, and otherwise share your life. If the people around you are nasty, they can undercut your progress, and you should consider replacing them with more wholesome relationships. Ideally, contemporary relationships span both local (facetime) and distant (cyberspace) venues. But if you haven't yet found local relationships that are supportive, you can practice your social skills in cyberspace until you do find local connections. Consider the difference between need and want. Modern American society actively tries to blur this line, which is a very destructive thing to do. Needs are things which cause harm if not met, and in some cases can be fatal. You need an adequate supply of safe, healthy food; if you don't get that, you might lose or gain too much weight or suffer from deficiency diseases -- or even starve to death. Wants are things that may make you happy or unhappy based on whether or not you get them. Furthermore, wants belong in the middle ground: it's bad for you if you never get anything you want, but it's also bad for you if you get everything you want. If it's cold, you may need a sweater. You might want a fancy angora sweater, but a plain wool sweater would keep you just as warm. You should never feel ashamed of meeting your own needs. Aim to meet some of your wants. Exploring YourselfIf you didn't get enough opportunities to learn about yourself while growing up, you can do it now. For physical needs, start with the standard human baseline unless you've already discovered some differences. So for instance, most humans need about 8 hours of sleep. (Our society doesn't make that easy to get, which causes many problems.) If you don't get enough sleep, you'll feel tired; but if you get too much, you'll also feel tired! So, try to get a few days when you can sleep for 8 hours. Note how you feel. Then try 7 hours, and then 9 hours, again taking notes. Compare results. Most folks will find their optimum sleep time around that range, but you can go wider if necessary. It may not be possible for you to arrange your life to give you the right amount of sleep immediately, but sometimes it is; and if nothing else you'll know what to aim for. Now transfer that basic process to other situations. Exploring yourself means choosing a topic to investigate, looking at some different options, and trying on different ones. Then you compare the results and aim for the one that suits you best. If you're used to taking guidance from other people, so that you freeze in situations where you have to pick something yourself, there are ways around that. The most straightforward is to pick a guide that is not a person. For instance, you might pick something from a list by starting with the first item on the list, and then next time try the second item. Alphabetical order, left-right order, and chronological order can also be useful. After you've worked your way through a list once or more, you may discover that you like some things better than others, so you can pick those more often. Or you might decide that just working your way through a list is comfortable for you. Some good things to explore early include colors, foods, clothing styles, home decoration, and entertainment. (If you got pushed into a particular career, religion, family life, etc. by other people then you may need to revisit those choices -- but those are a lot more serious and complex, so learn your self-awareness and decision-making skills first.) In addition to the try-it-on methods described above, you might also find it useful to explore some personal analysis tools. There are some very heavy-duty ones such as the Myers-Briggs or astrology, for which it's best to consult a professional, but you can find approximations elsewhere. There are also many quizzes online and in print that can tell you fun things about yourself; they are not necessarily "reliable" but they can give you things to think about whether you agree or disagree with the results. SocializingMost humans come equipped with some very fancy wetware that facilitates or even automatically performs such functions as face/name recognition, language acquisition, and social interaction analysis. If you didn't get the whole standard bundle, or your upbringing overwrote it with malware, or you got a different bundle, then that will make your life harder. It is often possible to fix some or all of the problems by cobbling up something in your head that will do most or all of that work. And if you have the standard bundle but lacked opportunities to use it fully, some of the same basic steps will help expand usage. First, in order to socialize, you need other people. At least some of them should be healthy decent people. If you can handle diversity, that's a good thing, so try to find different kinds of people to be around. It's okay to be around nasty people some of the time; they have their uses too. If you don't already have people to be with, look for some who will share your interests -- so if you like reading, hang out in libraries or bookstores; if you like sports, go to sporting events or supply shops. Most communities have some kind of free or cheap classes on various topics offered at a community center, park, store, library, etc. There are also community events such as fairs or picnics that attract plenty of people; worth a try if you're okay in a crowd. People are easier to approach when you have a common interest or other icebreaker. If you see someone holding a book you've read, you can talk about the book. If you see someone with a dog on a leash, you can talk about the dog. If you are both at an event, you can ask someone what booths or panels they have visited. In some areas, especially big cities, people try to tune each other out most of the time so it's harder to make new friends unless you're in a venue that really lends itself to that -- which is why those places tend to have "singles dances" and "friend parties" and so forth. In towns or rural areas, people are often more open to chatting with whoever is nearby. Observe other people. What are they doing that works? What are they doing that doesn't work? What makes you feel good when they do it? What makes you feel bad when they do it? Many social interactions are essentially rote scripts that can be memorized; that can be very useful for smoothing casual interactions. If you have quirks that make people react funny, try different approaches and explanations until you find some that lower the tension; that's better than avoiding people altogether. Certain things can go a long way towards facilitating social interactions: chief among these are smiles, "please," and "thank you." It's hard to overuse those. In particular, it helps to have some people in your life who are happy and functional, and some who are not. Whenever you find someone you admire whose life is working, you can observe that person and try to copy what they do. Then keep any of those habits or practices that seem to work for you. We often admire people who are manifesting what our own strengths would or will be when fully developed, so this can be a step in the right direction. Whenever you find someone who is obnoxious and annoying, with a life that doesn't work very well, you have a bad example. They will show you all kinds of things not to do. That's really useful information if you find people shying away from you but don't know why. Most folks are aggravated by people who have the same kind of flaws they do. So if you have a hard time seeing your own flaws clearly, the people who are most annoying to you will probably be good mirrors. Helping OthersIf you're just getting started helping other people, and especially if you're still trying to get a handle on your own personality and processes, keep it simple. Check for physical needs first if someone comes to you upset about anything. If someone is hungry, feed them, and try to make it nourishing comfort food. If someone is cold, warm them up. If they are tired, encourage them to take a nap or sleep over. It's amazing how often people don't take good care of themselves -- and how big an improvement it can make once the basic needs are met. Listen for expressed needs and wants that you could meet. Sometimes a situation is really complicated, but other times all someone needs is a ride to the supermarket or someone to water their plants. Quite frequently, all they need is someone to listen. Whatever social skills you're developing, learn that one, because listening gives you the most bang for your buck. Whenever someone does something nice, say "Thank you." It takes two seconds, you can memorize lots of situations if you don't have an auto-prompt for this, and it's hard to go wrong with this. It makes people feel great to be noticed and appreciated. You can thank people for favors done for you, or for things done for other people. If you want to make a big impression, get a carton of paper thank-you notes and send those when someone does something special. This used to be routine but is now rare, so paper cards get you extra credit. Watch for occasions when the help needed is simple and obvious. The classic example is opening a door for someone whose hands are full, but there are plenty of other opportunities. (If you're not sure help would be welcome, you can ask, "Would you like me to ...?") This is the kind of social glue that helps hold a society together, but is getting rare. You can improve that. Watch for people drifting to the corners of an event or activity. You don't necessarily have to pull them into the middle, but it will help if you just acknowledge their presence. Say "Hi" or something like that. Some people purposely migrate to the fringes because they don't really want to be there; they'll try to shoo you away, and that's okay. But some people wind up on the fringes because they don't know what else to do, and sometimes they are really eager to talk and make friends, if somebody else makes the first move. Then there's a third group: some folks know that their best match in most groups will be someone else on the fringes. These people nab a corner or a wall and watch for each other. You can see them scanning the room and they'll usually nod to each other when they make eye contact. All you have to do to get into this loop is follow the same pattern: move to a wall or corner and sweep your gaze across the other people who have done the same. People who don't want to be noticed usually keep their eyes down or aside. People who want to be noticed will also be scanning the fringes, and they'll hold eye contact for a few seconds. Then you just work your way around the edge of the group until you're standing or sitting next to that person, and you can start talking. Smile. Unless you're at a funeral or other solemn occasion, you pretty much can't go wrong with this one either. Seeing someone else smile helps lift a person's spirits -- and it does the same thing for you. It's not a cure-all but it's a nice little boost, and it's free. Current Mood: busy |
ysabetwordsmith
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12:10p |
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haikujaguar
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1:06p |
A Thing Long Expected, Part 2
I got an early Christmas gift today when I read that Createspace had announced expanded distribution channels, which means that at long last you can walk into a physical bookstore, request a copy of one of my books and get it. Likewise, libraries and academic institutions can now request copies, and independent retailers. With great excitement, I went to my account to Make It So because at last here's the final piece of my dream: to be available in a bookstore. Maybe not on the shelf, but at least over the counter. The Kherishdar books have a problem: they're not an industry-standard trim size for bookstores, so I can't enable their distribution there. But Shell is elgible for all three channels. I tick three boxes and just sit in my chair a moment, basking. Then, crass businesswoman that I am, I look down at my royalty rates. I'm used to making around a couple of dollars a book, depending on whether people buy directly from Createspace or if they go through Amazon, so I'm expecting it to be somewhat less. And it is. Exactly thirty-three cents. Thirty-three cents. Per book! And then I start laughing. For a couple of reasons: 1. When I first started submitting to major publishers, I was told the royalty rate I could expect as a nobody-newbie author was 10-20 cents a book. 33 cents should sound pretty good... but not after earning several dollars a book for over a year. 2. Having realized my dream of being available from a bookstore, I am now considering whether it's a good business decision to be available from a bookstore...! Talk about the things long expected taking the form of the unexpected when they come! I never expected to be wondering whether I should bother making my work available through multiple distribution channels. But thirty cents won't even buy you coffee these days. I'm still thinking of this as an early Christmas present... but rather than a "dream come true" gift where I get to walk into Barnes & Noble and order one of my novels, it's more like a "God wants you to giggle" gift where I get to put this in perspective, really question the value of a brick-and-mortar presence. If you're really married to the idea of ordering my work from a bookstore, now would be the time to tell me! Also, librarians and folks at universities? I'd love to hear your input too, if you think it's worth it to make the books available to you directly. Stardancer Home. Current Mood: amused |
told_tales
[ isabellerose23 ]
|
12:02p |
Alice
Thought some of you might want to watch this. This looks interesting. http://www.syfy.com/alice/December 6th on the Sci Fi Channel at 9pm. :D I hope it's actually good. |
rhfay
|
11:38a |
The Monsters Next Door Dead?
What's this? Ralan's is listing The Monsters Next Door as dead? And there is a message in The Monsters Next Door blog on MySpace stating that there will be no future issues. Oh no! This is tragic news; I thought this zine would be one to watch, one with a bright future, especially when the editor decided to switch to print instead of on-line publication. I actually contributed poetry to The Monsters Next Door several times (three poems published in Issue 3, three horrorku in Issue 4, the winning poem in the poetry portion of the "Through My Eyes" writing contest published in Issue 4.5, two poems published in Issue 6, six in the Scattered Verses, Moonlit Curses poetry anthology, and one published in the first print issue, Issue 8). I'm saddened by the loss of yet another zine, especially a horror one, and one concentrating on monsters to boot! Every death of a horror zine that published dark poetry hurts a dark poet like me. It makes me wonder if I should continue writing dark poetry, or if I should switch to lighter verse only. Is it even possible for me to do that? I don't know, I can't say, but I will say this - it's not always easy to find a home for horror verse. I want to thank L.B. Goddard for doing a fine job while The Monsters Next Door still lived. I was glad to have several poems in her publication. She was always a courteous and enthusiastic editor, and she really seemed to like my poetry! Current Mood:  sad |
lanternlady
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11:25a |
*giggles* -- Husband down
A husband and wife are shopping in their local Wal-Mart. The husband picks up a case of Budweiser and puts it in their cart. 'What do you think you're doing?' asks the wife. 'They're on sale, only $10 for 24 cans,' he replies. 'Put them back, we can't afford them,' demands the wife, and so they carry on shopping. A few aisles further on along the woman picks up a $20 jar of face cream and puts it in the basket. 'What do you think you're doing?' asks the husband. 'Its my face cream. It makes me look beautiful,' replies the wife. Her husband retorts: 'So does 24 cans of Budweiser and it's half the price.' On the PA system: 'Cleanup on aisle 25, we have a husband down.' |
told_tales
[ kimuro ]
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6:10a |
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ysabetwordsmith
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1:04a |
Poetry Fishbowl Report for Tuesday, December 1, 2009
This fishbowl began with a steady flow of prompts that lasted for a while before petering out. I worked from 11:30 AM to 12:30 AM, so about 11 hours allowing for lunch and supper breaks. I wrote 15 poems, almost all medium. There was only one epic and two short poems. Several form poems appeared along with the free verse ones. This month brought moderate participation. Please welcome new prompters natasiakith, my father Anthony Barrette, my partner Doug Edwards, and probably the anonymous person who mentioned "treppenwitz" too. (I just realized, I got so caught up in the fishbowl, I forgot to post a freebie poem! Oops. I think I'll let you pick it, to make up for being late.) I can put your options for that into the generally sponsored poetry poll. All told, there were 41 comments including mine. The following poems have been posted:"All the Sleeping Heroes""The Culture of the Earth""haikoan""History Returned""Stepchild Wit""The World We Made"Epic poem report:This month we're carrying over two poems, one epic and one long. Give a cheer for the cosponsors who are microfunding these! "Choralia" (began microfunding 11/3/09, $9 remaining) "Warning Sine" (began microfunding 11/5/09, $17 remaining) All currently sponsored poems have been posted, and I've sent the backchannel copies of the other poems to their respective prompters. I still need to write a donor perk-post. I also need to make up a poll for the generally sponsored poetry; you have $5 to spend and an extra freebie to pick out. December's donors are ellenmillion, nhpeacenik, and janetmiles. Slow month for donations, but I love you all. Donors make the CFC world go 'round. I also appreciate the folks who show up to give me ideas, and who assist with networking. The poetry fishbowl project has a permanent landing page. Current Mood: busy |
| Thursday, December 3rd, 2009 |
m_stiefvater
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9:34p |
How to Write, Part 1. And Also Parts 2-10,000.
So I am not really altogether in my brain yet, because we just moved to a new house yesterday, and my life is a castle made of cardboard boxes. So I have only three things of value to say today. 1. If you're in the Charlottesville, VA area, I will be doing a signing at the Barnes & Noble there ( 1035 Emmet Street, Charlottesville, Virginia 22903 ) on Saturday, from 1-3 p.m. 2. I got asked again where folks could order signed copies of my books in time for Christmas. I've hooked up with my favorite local indie, Fountain Bookstore, and they ship those bad boys out wherever you so desire them. Here's the linkie. 3. One of the questions I get asked a lot in interviews is "how did you learn to write?" I always answer the same way, but this time, sitting in my brand-new office, I think a visual answer might do better. Mr. Darcy, bring up the photo booth and riddle us, oh Mac, riddle us. Rinse & repeat.  Current Music: Wye Oak - "Regret" |
haikujaguar
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7:18p |
Spots the Space Marine: Rescue, End Part 1
Spots the Space Marine is a twice-weekly crowd-sponsored serial. Find out more and read prior episodes.Flea. "****. We're gonna die." Scythe. "Can that **** and do your job." The crabs are streaming from both corridors and over the fallen wall. The team has its backs to one another, facing out. They expend their first-generation shields against the hail of alien needles.
The crabs keep coming.Spots. "Claws! Shield power?" Claws. "Zip." Spots. "Rewire from something else!" Claws. "There's nothing ****in' nonessential LEFT." The crabs keep coming until they're climbing over their dead and into Team Kitty's faces.Scythe. "****! Back up!" Hairball. "Got a wall here, boss!" Spots punches a final combination on her glove and shoves her way in front, slicing through the first three crabs with the edge of her shield.Claws. "****! Spots!" Spots. "Help. Me. NOW." Claws fumbles through the power shunt and jumps after her, clearing the crabs in front. Fang recovers first and shoots past the falling pieces.Claws. "****. ****. ****. ****." He nearly gets punctured by a crab pincer. "****!" Fang. "****, stay alive, you ****er, you're the only thing keeping us up!" Claws. "**** you!" Scythe. "KING!" Fang. "MINE!" She aims past Spots and Claws. "****, stop weaving!" Hairball grabs the back of her suit and pulls her. "Up!" Fang glances back, then jumps onto his knee and aims past the crabs Spots and Claws are killing. First shot: head explodes. Second shot: thorax explodes before the head has time to fall past it.Scythe, catching green marks on his HUD. "Watch your shots, we've got friendlies!" [ Company ] [ Peaches ] : Good plan, Sergeant.[ Company ] [ Flea ] : ****, if we're not happy to see you!Peaches and the relief cut away from the crabs from behind, Team Kitty from in front. They meet in the gore-soaked middle surrounded by mounds of crab parts.[ Company ] [ Scythe ] : It's good to see you, ma'am.[ Company ] [ Peaches ] : You all in one piece?[ Company ] [ Scythe ] : Yes, though we burned through our power cells. [ Company ] [ Peaches ] : Head on back, then. We'll mop up and take the rest of your shift.[ Company ] [ Scythe ] : Yes, ma'am. Switching to squad channel. "You heard her. Let's go." Fang. "Nothing left to do here anyway. Hey, Flea." Flea. "What?" Fang, grinning. "I'm waiting for your tally of headshots." Flea. Long pause. Then: "**** you!" ###Armory, six hours later. Peaches is unlocking her helmet when the Gunny shows up. She is exhausted, sweat streaking her hair to her temples."Ma'am?" She looks over. "What's up, Gunny?" "Priority message." She nods and steps outside the door, leaving the rest of the relief team to unsuit. Once there: "Let's have it, then." He hands her a tablet, which she scans... and then closes her eyes."They're coming...." She looks at him. "My God, Gunny, we got them. We got the company from Depot A! We're going to be reinforced! We might live through this assignment after all!" Gunny. "From your lips to God's ear, ma'am." ###And that concludes Part 1 of Spots the Space Marine! Part 2 will pick up next week when we meet the reinforcements from Naval Depot A and see how taking the attack to the crabs works out. I hope you've enjoyed reading so far! And thank you again for your patronage, which has fed me and allowed us to give back to the community through the charity donations. I'm having a great time and hope you are too. :)Stardancer Home. |
eternity_4_life
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6:11p |
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