tintin travesty

Ack. Somewhat swamped today. NaNoWriMo update: 42,959 words written, 7,041 words to go.

Parki told me that the comic book character TinTin is going to be turned into a movie. This could be SOOOOO bad. Parki's comment made me laugh:


"I wanna be a real boy."
"But you are."
"No I'm not, I'm a cartoon boy."
"No, you're a movie person, portraying a real boy."
"Like Pinocchio?"
"No, Tintin."
"But Tintin's not a real boy."
"Yes he is."
"No he's not, he's French."
"Belgian."
"See what I mean?"
"No."
"I wanna be a real boy."
...

Oh ya, this is gonna be *brilliant*.


Links/News:

One year ago, I took Annie to a concert.

Three years ago, Jeff and I went to the Mowat Hall Crawl.

Four years ago, I was invited to be a speaker at the Surrey Writer's Conference in B.C. I also discovered than Ben & Jerry's was available in my local supermarket!

Five years ago, I wasn't crazy about Starship Troopers. I liked it better when Jeff and I saw it again earlier this year.

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Today's Blatherpics:

A sign at the movie theatre that Mark & I visited on the weekend. Is it like this at all U.S. theatres?? Before entering the theatre, I had to remove my purchases from my shopping bag and get rid of the shopping bag (actually, the guy told me to hide it so security wouldn't see it). There were several security police around the lobby area. Kinda scary, really.

Almost all guitarists I know are much more experienced/skilled than I am. So whenever I visit with one of them, I always try to make a point of learning something new from them. I guess you could call me a sort of like a guitarist brain vampire. This photo is of me learning a blues guitar riff pattern that Mark taught me. Next step: to write a song incorporating this riff; I've found that this is the best way for me to integrate new guitar knowledge.

pets

I've updated my Blatherings from Saturday and Sunday. Today's entry is based on photos from my visit with Mark Osier.

The photo at the top of the page is of Gulliver, one of Mark's and Kathy's five pets. I remember Gulliver from a previous visit to their house. Very cute for a turtle. He gets pretty excited when he sees people. Mark says it's because he's hoping to get worms. On Saturday morning I went downstairs to say hi to him, and as soon as I got anywhere near his aquarium, he started frantically pawing the glass:





I never did see Henrietta, their land turtle. She spent the whole time hiding. I did see Mark put food in her cage, though, which kind of grossed me out. Crickets!! Eugh:



This is Moriarty, their guinea pig, who is 9 years old:



I've mentioned Mandy in a previous Blathering:



Kathy took their cockatiel, Poindexter, with her to Phoenix, apparently because Poindexter hates Mark and Mark hates Poindexter. :-D

I've had all kinds of pets, but I think my favourite are dogs. (Debbie ducks as the cat people out there start throwing things) Cats are interesting, but I find a lot of them way too independent to be satisfying pets, plus I'm allergic to them. I do admire their feline chutzpah, but I do find the somewhat mindless adoration of dogs kind of cute. Though Mandy's adoration was a tad overwhelming at times. :-D

Guinea pigs are cute and fluffy, but too passive. They just sit there looking like a nice snack for some predator. Birds can be fascinating to watch, but they make way too much mess. Fish are incredibly boring, plus cleaning aquariums is gross.

As you can tell, I'm just not cut out to be a pet owner.

I'll be posting some more highlights and photos from my visit over time. Many thanks to Mark for letting me invade his home! I hope to get out there again sometime next year, perhaps with Allison and Jodi, and hopefully Kathy will be around (missed you, Kathy!).

NaNoWriMo update: 41,327 words written, 8,673 to go. I have until Saturday! Between NaNo, two other writing deadlines this week, and coming home to find a big pile of e-mail that needs to be answered, it's going to be a busy week. If you've e-mailed and I haven't replied yet, I'd appreciate your patience, thanks.

I received an e-mail from Chatelaine apologizing for the delay in letting me know what's happening with my article, by the way. Apparently the editor who was supposed to be handling my piece has left the magazine :-(, and the new one hasn't had a chance to catch up on stuff yet. Please keep your fingers crossed for me, thanks.

And now a final photo from Syracuse: here's a close-up of the t-shirt that Mark was wearing yesterday:





This is so Mark. :-)

Links/News:

Amanda Snyder has a spankin' new Livejournal! Please do drop by and say hi.

One year ago, I thought Robert Redford looked worn out. Posted one of my favourite photos of Parki, me & Jeff.

Five years ago, I grumbled about spam.

train Blathering

I've updated yesterday's Blathering with photos.

So I'm typing this on the train from Syracuse to Toronto. The trip home today is supposed to take over eight hours, including customs-related stops at Niagara Falls (U.S. side) and at the border for Customs inspection.

If it wasn't for the time factor, I'd say I'd easily prefer travelling by train than by plane and by bus. Less hassle at the border; we don't even have to get out of our seat to go through customs. Not as claustrophobic as a bus or plane. Cheaper than flying.

In the train I was on, there was a lounge car where you could sit at a big table on cushier seats than in coach while you munched on overpriced train fare. But best of all, I had a power outlet beside my seat both parts of the trip! Woohoo!

Spent my train ride working on my NaNoWriMo novel, snoozing, watching Lord of the Rings on DVD, listening to MP3s on my laptop, reading, chatting with the guy running the food car. The ride home was rougher, with my laptop screen shaking so much it was nearly impossible to write. Couldn't read because of motion sickness. Had to type this Blathering over several hours because I kept feeling sick.





As you might have been able to tell from Mark's Guest Blathering yesterday, I had fun. And ate way too much. The roast beef sandwiches in Clarke's Ale House were to die for. And Mark's already mentioned that he took me to three (3!!!) great chocolate shops. Two of them kept insisting on giving me free samples. It would have been rude to refuse, of course.

More tomorrow.





Links/News:

One year ago, I was an obsessed geeky fangirl.

Two years ago, I took a week off from Xlibris. Unstated: I was close to being burned out at work.

One of the reasons I sold Inkspot was because I was stretched too thin, knew I needed help in specific roles. I had originally been verbally promised (I have since learned the value of a verbal promise in the corporate world) that I'd be spending my first month interviewing and hiring approximately 12-15 people for these roles. In the six months I worked for Xlibris, I only got to do one interview specifically for an Inkspot staff position, was told that my opinion would matter the most, recommended that the person NOT be hired for my team, and they hired him the next day. I found out when I arrived at work in the morning, ran into this guy and his friend in senior management who told me the "great news". I was furious, of course, but was told to try him out, and that if he didn't work out, I could hire someone else. One of the first things the new hiree did was to schedule a meeting to plan the future of Inkspot with the rest of my team, and told me I could attend if I wanted to.

Yes, I raised a stink. No, things did not get much better.

Four years ago, I talked about Internet awards.

Five years ago, I hadn't started Christmas shopping.

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Today's Blatherpics:

	I try out MarkO's cool electric guitar.
	Mandy, trying to tell me with her eyes that she hasn't been fed in weeks and is wasting away and would I please give her some food, for pity's sake?
	Mark plays one of his songs on the piano.

guest blather: mark osier

Wow! I get to do a guest blathering! My 15 minutes of fame - is my hair OK? Oh, wait... you can't see my hair online. Good, 'cuz it's awful. :)

Well, I've been bugging Debbie to come visit me in Syracuse for some time now, based on three important things to do in Syracuse:

1) A mall with THREE gourmet chocolate shops
2) The Dinosaur Barbeque - a genuine honky tonk rib joint (FANTASTIC food)
3) Clark's Ale House - home of the world's BEST roast beef sandwich

So finally, this weekend, she made the long and perilous journey from Toronto (kinda like Sam & Frodo trekking through the mountains in those movies that Debbie is so rabid about) to come visit me. Of course, with Kathy away in Arizona dealing with family matters, it was up to me to keep her entertained. I think I've succeeded. And Jeff is gonna KILL me....

I picked her up Friday and we went to the Dinosaur. For those of you who haven't ever been to Syracuse, this place alone is worth the trip. It's a biker bar with some of the most fantastic BBQ that you'll ever eat, and an IMPRESSIVE selection of beers. And MAN, can Debbie DRINK! Oh wait... that was me.



After eating, we went back to my place, where she met the current assortment of pets, and just kinda hung out for the night. Did some music, watched some TV (Powerpuff Girls ROCK! And has anyone but me noticed the similarities between Urban Tapestry and the Powerpuff Girls?), then crashed for the night.

Today (Saturday, for those playing the home game), we went to the mall with the 3 chocolate shops, and Debbie proceeded to buy more chocolate than should be legal. You see, every time she got a free sample of something, it was SOOOOOOOOOO good that she HAD to buy some, for herself and people she knows. Or so she says - I think she's gonna eat it all herself, but don't tell her I said so. *blink* After a while, people were offering her free samples every time she entered a chocolate shop. And make no mistake - these are HIGH QUALITY chocolates. Gertrude Hawk, Godiva, and Lindt all have shops in this mall. And we visited all of them at least once - some TWICE! We also saw a movie (Die Another Day - good flick, for those who like action), then went to eat at Clark's. I can't say for certain, but I think Debbie had a profound spiritual experience when eating the roast beef sandwich there. And ask her about the ring on a string game. :)

I don't know how many of you have had the pleasure of hosting Debbie for a weekend, but she's a HOOT! Though she's kind of demanding - ice cream now, chocolate later, food here and there. And BOY, can she DRINK! Oh wait... that's me again....



So to summarize, I should state a few important things.

1) Jeff, I'm really sorry about the 45 pounds Debbie will have gained this weekend from all the chocolate and ice cream. Truly. Honestly. Now please, put down the gun....

2) Allison and Jodi - next time, YOU guys need to come down as well! So there! :P

3) BOY, can that girl DRINK! Oh wait... that's me again. :)

MarkO

winnipeg memories

So I recently read in Allison's journal that she received some Lord of the Rings posters from Dave Clement in Winnipeg. We love Dave. Not because of the posters he sends us, but because he's one of the sweetest guys you could possibly hope to meet. Beloved by the filk community, Dave is best known for his benevolent, generous nature and his incredible voice. Holy cow, I could listen to Dave sing forever. He has the type of voice you almost feel like you can wrap around you like a hug, rich and velvety and chocolatey.

You can see a picture of Dave on the Dandelion Wine site, where you can also hear samples of the group performances. Dave's on the left, Tom's on the right. Hold your mouse pointer over the photo to see a surprise sketch by me :-). I could go on about Tom Jeffers, too, but then again I already did in the song I wrote for him. :-)





Anyway, Dave sent me Lord of the Rings posters, too! I called Dave in Winnipeg to thank him; it was SO great to hear his voice again. Then Tom walked in and I got to chat with him as well as with Al Thomson, who recently moved into the Bhigg House with Dave and the clan, and who was partially responsible for getting the LOTR posters. Dave, Tom and Al perform together as Curraugh. You can see a picture of them playing together on the Curraugh page. Al also plays with a group called Marty's Party. Dave and Tom, of course, perform as Dandelion Wine.

Talking to those guys brought back all kinds of wonderful memories from previous visits out to Winnipeg. Really miss them. I'm going to start keeping my eye out for seat sales out in that direction, hopefully for a trip sometime next year.





Speaking of visiting, I'm off to catch a train to Syracuse this morning to visit with Mark Osier. Looks like Kathy Cogswell won't be around because she went to Phoenix to visit her father, who is seriously ill. :-( In any case, I am going to try convincing Mark to do a Guest Blathering sometime during the weekend, else I'll catch up when I get back to Toronto.

Links/News:

According to The New York Post, J.K. Rowling is auctioning off an index card with 93 words at a Sotheby auction in London next month. The words apparently hint at the plot of the next Harry Potter book and is expected to sell for approx. $9,500. (pause) Am I the only one who finds this completely and utterly insane? She's auctioning an INDEX CARD?!? With exactly NINETY-THREE (93) WORDS? Rowling, by the way, has still not named a publication date for the next book.

One year ago, I compared e-mail to snailmail.

Four years ago, Allison had a housefilk.





Today's Blatherpics:

These photos were taken when Allison, Jodi and I flew out to Winnipeg courtesy the Winnipeg Musicians' Hat Fund (and Dave Clement) a while back.

	Tom Jeffers, Al Thompson, and Dave Clement. Pretty hunky shot of all three of them, don't you think?
	Allison, Jodi and I draped over Tom, just before he interviews us for his radio show.
	Al gives me a lesson on the Northumbrian Pipes, to the amusement of onlookers at the Bhigg House.
	Drinking a toast of Dandelion Wine in the Bhigg House.