because it's pretty...

saturday snapshots...

I have a thing about stairways--this one is found at Bear Trap Ranch in the mountains above Colorado Springs.

why I don't shop on black friday...

Today is the biggest shopping day of the year.  And I won't be participating.  I have several good reasons.

1. I prefer to sleep.  I haven't found a sale yet worth getting up early for.  Sleep is a precious commodity and I like to invest in it--especially in the early hours of the morning.

2. I hate crowds.  I'm an introvert.  Crowds, especially crazy mobs, are a total turn off.

3. I work retail.  Yes, I have to work on Friday.  I have to get up at the crack of dawn (when I should be sleeping, see #1) and be at work at absurd hours so that crazy, frantic, cranky (they didn't get enough sleep, either), rude, impatient people can spend a few less dollars.  After working one season of retail on a Black Friday, I swore that even if I was tempted, I wasn't going to ever shop on Black Friday.

To all of you who ARE going out today--please please please remember to be nice to the people who are working.  Smile.  Don't raise your voice.  Be patient.  Understand you are the 500th person to ask the same question, and our voice is slipping away from answering.  Do not get snippy with us, do not get huffy when we point to the back of the line half a block away.  You made the choice to shop on this hellish day, you could have been smart and stayed home.  I'm sure the few dollars you save would be worth your sanity.  I know it's worth mine.

finished!

So on Saturday night I trudged to Panera and made myself sit there until I passed the 50K mark. Not only did I pass the mark, but I wrapped up the novel. That's rare for me to wrap it up so quickly, but this year, I had to really stretch the final bit to get enough words.

In order to help out the Colorado Springs regional word count (we are hovering between 50th and 55th place), I'm going to explore a few of the scenes from other view points. My entire novel is written in first person POV. Tabitha, my main character, is sixteen. So I'm interested in seeing how some of the events play out in someone else's mind.

I can't verify the novel until later today...but soon I shall have a purple bar on the NaNo site. I live for the purple bar!

saturday snapshot...

This is a shot of my "current project" board from summer 2007--I'm glad to say that some of these projects are finished--the others, well, they are on the back burners now!

can't say no...

I don't know how many of you have ever used eHarmony, but I found this a bit shocking. Apparently, businesses no longer have a right to refuse service to somebody. Apparently, if you get upset, you can force a business to serve you, even if it goes against everything they stand for.

I'm tired of groups wanting equality and wanting everyone to be accepting, and then those same groups turn around and are unaccepting of those who are different than them. Perhaps we need to start a revolution that shouts for freedom to be ourselves, to not have our beliefs questioned, to be able to do what WE want.

I know one thing, if I were still a member of eHarmony, I would cancel over this. Just because I think it's weak to give in when refusing to provide a service is something that we should be able to do under the name of freedom.

I wonder when this nation will realize that we are in a handbasket that is flying down a road paved with good intentions...

Monday, Monday...

For the first time in a long time, I got to sleep in. I've been fighting allergies and a cough that just wouldn't go away.

I'm almost to 40,000 words. This is pretty early, but my story just seems to write itself. I love writing in first person, it just comes out easier, and I think it's more fun to read.

I have things to get done today, so I suppose I should get to it. But it's been nice taking it easy this morning.

How is your Monday going? Off to a good start? Tell me about it!

saturday snapshot...

A shot of Yellowstone Lake, taken several years ago when we visited on our annual summer trip to Wyoming. I just like how the whole picture is blue--but there is so much color and depth!

I find it a bit hypocritical...

that the same people who have spent a majority of the last eight years whining, complaining, protesting against our government, smack talking and so on are the same people who now say we should all unify.

I have no desire to unify with any group that is only interested in being unified under their rules, under their leader. I guess it shouldn't come as a surprise. These are the same people who want to celebrate diversity as long as that doesn't include the right wing, gun owners and Christians.

I love them because they are human, but I sure don't like they way they think.

the reasons I hate love November...

November is a great time of year. Fall has arrived (in Colorado, that means snow, usually), Thanksgiving produces lots of leftovers, and I get to write a novel.

But with that, there comes a whole slew of other factors, some of which make life more difficult. Last year, I was starting a new job (not to mention the one I started in October!). This year, I'm house-sitting for over half the month. Throw in the fact that my family shows no appreciation for my non-financially rewarding pursuit, and things can get a bit stressful.

I am thankful for having a wonderful group of writers this year--not only are they writing like the lean mean NaNoWriMo machines that I knew they could be, but they show up for write-ins and they say thank you. It's heart-warming.

And my dearest and best friend (the one NOT doing NaNo this year), Dara, did ask about how my novel was going. All the way from Ghana. It means the world to me that she remembers such things, even though she's half a world away and trying to finish up her Peace Corps service.

And since you asked (or you would, if we were face to face now), I'm doing very well on my novel. Yesterday I netted 6,000 words. That might be a personal one day best! My total word count is 27,000. That puts me well past the halfway mark--and it's not even the 15th yet!

Okay, I have some writing to do. So do you. Leave me a comment. What do YOU love about November?

saturday snapshot...

I caught this storm coming in over the mountain at the beginning of October...

quiz oh quizical...

Because Holly said I had to consider myself tagged if I read hers...

wine OR beer: neither--mixed drinks!
coffee OR tea: tea
night gown OR pajamas: pj's
bath OR shower: mostly shower, with an occasional bubble bath
lefty OR righty: mostly righty but I can do a lot with my left hand...
cake OR pie: pie, but not a huge fan of either
pumpkin pie OR pecan pie: pecan
one story OR two story: why can't I have lots of stories?
dog OR cat: cat, don't have one, but want one. Not so much a dog person
early bird OR night owl: night owl baby
sport utility OR car: drive a car, want a Jeep
vanilla OR chocolate: mint?
scrambled OR over-easy: depends on my mood
dress OR pants: pants, usually
mustard OR ketchup: mustard, not a big fan of ketchup
red OR green: green
laptop OR desktop: lappy
coke OR pepsi: coke
flats OR high heels: flats
fiction OR non-fiction: fiction, hands down
pulp OR no pulp: no pulp
hugs OR kisses: um, going with hugs for now
will YOU play along OR won't you?

I will tag Miss Pottenger, because I know she can't resist--and Aimee, because I know she updates her blog on a regular basis :P

woeful wednesday...

I'm sad. Not just because of the elections (though that plays a part), but because there is nothing wacky going on in my world. So you get a screen shot of my current word count:

I can safely say I've never been so far along on in just four days of writing. I haven't even done my words for today. My goal is to be over 12,500 by the time I go to bed. Maybe I should challenge myself and shoot for 15,000. I could do it. If I wanted...

the toss up...

I have some choices as to what to do tonight after I get off my shift at the mall. I could come home and watch the election coverage. Or there is House marathon. Then there is the Panera choice--a write-in!

Seeing as I hate watching coverage of most anything on tv (because let's face it, there is only so much you can say about the same piece of information, and I get tired of sweet nothings fast), that brings me to two options. As much as I adore House (and oh, I do adore him!), I have a novel to write.

So I'm going to spend election night at Panera with other people who are more focused on writing a work of fiction than watching one unfold on tv :P .

Happy writing--and go vote!

avoiding the bust...

It's November. And that means 50,000 words. We started off the month with a twelve hour write-in at Panera. Over 21 Colorado Springs writers came out to join us. It was a blast. I got just over 5,000 words on Saturday. And I added another 2,000 some yesterday. So I'm sitting pretty at 7,275. Not bad.

I should be writing right now.

saturday snapshot...

Maybe this view is in our near future?