Short Stories

I'm reading a book of short stories compiled by Larry McMurtry, set in the American West from 1950-2000. While I once wrote shorts for various publication, all romances or scifi, I'd forgotten the allure of the art form. Within a short space, say ten pages, the reader learns something important to the hero of the story in each of the ones I've read so far. The writing is colorful, sensual, and filled with dialogue I would kill to mimic. Yet each story contains a hard, unyielding truth that jumps out of the page because it's undiluted. No stable of secondary characters, no intertwined plot lines, no foolin' around. At the end of each story, I just go "aahhh," and reel back, feeling as if I've hit the jackpot.

It's time to relearn the form. Going to give it a try, shake up the writing routine.

January is a long month

It's been too long, mostly because of family emergencies that kept me out of town and away. All is well now, I'm home and watching football. I can't remember the last time I vegged out watching football on TV (unless it's VaTech, natch). There's plenty to do, but I just don't want to. Not a good habit to develop, LOL.

I've just had a battle royale to get my web hosting company to go away. Beware of Lunarpages - they dig in their claws, and even if you repeatedly tell them you don't want their services any longer, they refuse to believe you. Even when you've declined every offer to extend the contract, they try to charge your credit card for another year's hosting. So people, run if you don't want to get stuck with a web hosting company that can't take "no" for an answer. I will never understand why, since they were emailing me at the address they had on file, and I answered from that same address, they didn't believe I was the person they said I had to be. It's a long story....

Ah, another rant - I feel it coming on. Know-it-alls. She who thinks the only way is her way. She-who-insists-you-must-do-it-her-way. Even if the recipient of all this advice and dire warning doesn't want the advice and warning, and hasn't requested it. Even if the recipient has told this know-it-all to cease and desist. Sigh. How hard it must be for some people to keep opinions to themselves. I'm not the person in the middle of this mess, just a sideliner, but boy howdy. It's hard to sit on one's hands and not let loose a scathing retort or two when you see someone being bullied. I keep reminding myself it's those with eyes and hearts already closed and locked shut who miss out on the most marvelous surprises. Being open to the new, the innovative, the different is one of the true joys of life. Can't do that if you already know it all.

Counting the days until the Daytona 500. Fingernails are almost down to the quick. Need my racing fix - just a whiff of exhaust, the slightest of rumbles, a flash of gaudy colors on a track - and I'll be able to survive until the Big Day, Feb. 14. No, not Valentine's Day, LOL.

So much for that . . .

The Sony e-reader was a big disappointment. As an owner of the first Rocket e-reader, I was expecting an easy path to putting books in the e-library, and clear reading. Not so. First of all, you have to enter a CC to even set up the library, even if you don't buy anything from the Sony store. That ticked me off. If I never bought a book from Sony, they'd still have all my financial info floating around. Then I began reading about how people couldn't access books they'd purchased, and I began to worry. Tried the screen in daylight, and it didn't even come close to being readable.

The end result is that the Sony no longer lives here. Major bummer. I hope someone invents a screen you can read in the car in daylight. And that they allow you to set up a library without a credit card, since you can't operate the reader without a library. I don't mind entering cc info when I'm purchasing a book, but to require one just to set the reader up? Nope, not this chicky.

The office clean-up is in the chaos stage. Pulled files out, dumped drawers, and generally created a mess just so I'll have to weed through it before putting it back somewhere. The question so far is: where? Ah, that's the rub. I'm determined to be less of a paper-hoarder, but it's hard to break a lifetime love affair with paper.

If you haven't seen THE BLIND SIDE, go. It's the best movie I've seen so far this season. Characters you care about. How unusual....

The Day After

Sounds like a post-nuclear bomb story, huh? Not that bad, just the post-Christmas explosion of wrapping paper and ribbons that means Christmas is over and it's time to clean up. I'm big on getting all the decorations put away right after the Big Day, because it's over, right? But this year, the tree has been up only a week, so I may have to relent and let it reign in all its sparkly glory a while longer. The house always looks naked after the decorations return to the attic, anyway. Kinda sad.

My beloved gave me a Sony ereader! Can't wait to start playing with it. It's going to be interesting to see what-all it will do. The screen is incredibly clear, that's for sure. I love being able to adjust the font size. Now, if we'd just get some sunshine, I'll check it out in daylight. It's been pouring rain here nonstop, which made for crummy weather. On the up side, most of the snow is gone. It was getting old and dirty-looking, not very white-Christmas.

Think I'll hit my New Year's resolutions early this year and see if I can shovel out the desk and office. Then it'll be time to buckle down to the writing again, hurrah! While I love the holidays, it sure puts a crimp in my computer time with the book.

BTW, only 50 days until the Daytona 500!! I can feel it comin', the stands shakin', the crowd roaring. . . .

Again, apologies

It's been ages, and I have no excuse other than Christmas, two birthdays (the 4th and the 20th) and the usual baking, cleaning, decorating, etc. You'd think I'd have enough experience under my belt to be organized. Harumph. I wish. The need to change it up always strikes, and that means starting from square one. I wish I could put the same decorations outside on the house year after year, and be done with it. But no, I have to rethink the scheme every year. And the house theme. Sigh. At least I like it, LOL. My poor husband has to come up with ways to make things work, shine, sparkle, etc., and so far he has never failed me. I still remember the year I had him drill holes in the Douglas fir and insert more branches to make the tree look fuller. He used glue and wire, and it worked.

The rains have been coming and coming, and then coming some more. Our yard looks like a swamp on one side and a lake on the other. I know we should be grateful for this surfeit of wet, but enough is enough. I have no idea how people live in the Pacific Northwest. I would turn into a lunatic with 350 days of rainfall.

I finished the first No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency - and have no idea why I didn't read it before. Charming. I'm surprised how faithful the first of the HBO series was to the book. Jill Scott is the perfect Mma Ramotose. Where's the third season, may I ask? I'm waiting. . . .

I'm terribly tempted with a new e-reader. The Nook looks cool, as does the Kindle. However, having been burned with the first e-reader, years ago ($500!), I'm taking my time. I LOVED that e-reader, which could take HTML content, but which is alas, now useless and gathering dust in a closet somewhere.

If I don't get back before Christmas, have a merry one. Be filled with joy and may your new year be one of constant blessings.

This and That

Can't believe it's been so long since my last post. Will have to try to make up for my laziness. Well, not laziness. Just been too busy. Now that the leftovers are in the ice box and I'm too wired from running full tilt boogie to sleep, I can take a break and do some writing. This is a good place to start.

So, Jimmie Johnson (who gives a male child the name of 'Jimmie'?) has taken his fourth Cup title in a row, a new record. Give the guy (and especially his crew chief, Chad Knaus) major kudos, and then figure out how to beat him. Let's see hard, hard racing next year, not this cruising around making points to get into the Chase, the only ten races that really count.

The Christmas rush isn't going to be such a rush, if retailers are correct in their predictions. About time. Let's cut out all this uber-gift giving mania. As a child with a November birthday, I remember hoarding every birthday cash gift so I could buy gifts for Christmas. Never bought myself a present. It was the whole idea of giving that I loved. No gift was very expensive, because I didn't have the means, but each was lovingly chosen, and I'd augment them with something homemade. If I'm not making a Christmas gift, it just isn't Christmas for me. I was bereft when my children outgrew their American Girl dolls, and I wasn't stitching up doll dresses on Christmas eve.

I'm re-reading Tony Hillerman and catching up on some James Lee Burke I missed. How I'll miss Tony Hillerman. And Kate Duffy, who really cared about books and their authors.

Now, it's back to work. The house is quiet, everyone will sleep late, and the book is half-done.

'Dega!

OH my stars. What was Nascar thinking, telling the drivers how to drive at Dega? Cut their power with the restrictor plate, cut it even more, and the disaster was bound to happen. The disaster was Newman on Harvick's roof, then his own, and the final smash-up at the white flag. Congrats to McMurray, kudos to Kahne for pulling himself up to 9th place in the Chase, and thank goodness the fall Dega race is over.

The change in time has dark settling at 5 p.m. Bummer. Time for hibernation and more writing.