Catch-up Sunday

Things to get done before Wednesday-

update chapter website for contest that starts next month
update chapter website Bookshelf
write letter to judges for contest
write book review (just one! And it's not even late!)
finish phrasing out the last 5 chapters of Krissy's story
stop eating the now 1/3 empty bag of Reese's Peanut Butter minicups that I sat behind my desk to keep it safe from the kids til Halloween. Ha, who was I kidding? I should have asked them to hide it to keep it safe from me. Hope the trick-or-treaters don't mind if they end up getting granola bars and raison boxes this year.

More You've got Mail

I love checking my email - you never know what's going to be there for you.

This morning, it was a email from an editor asking for revisions. My first revision request!

The editor had two things she'd like me to change to make the story what she'd be looking for. Basically, it comes down to writing a few more scenes, this time from the hero's POV.

So yay! All I've got to do is find the time to write the scenes.
**************

Today I'm supposed to take Samantha to a Halloween party at The Corner (where the two beach towns meet). We had a lot of rain overnight and it's still pretty dreary looking, but should be clearing by noon. This is the first year Montgomery hasn't gone - it's going to feel a bit odd, not having his costumed ghoulishness with me. But he decided he's too old for trick-or-treating this year, and even wants to stay home to do candy duty while I take Samantha out on Tuesday.

Then, he decided he was old enough for haunted houses. Real ones - like Universal's "Halloween Horror Nights". Last night he and Sean went down and were properly terrified by chainsaws, splatters of unknown warm fluids (supposed to simulate blood, but just water Sean assured me when I had my own horrific vision of doing laundry), screams and spiders and haunted houses. I think they lasted about 30 minutes before they fled for the relative quiet of Islands of Adventure and did a few theraputic Spiderman rides. I haven't talked to them yet today... wonder how late he was awake with visions of chainsaws in his head.

The Montgomery genes carry on

Driving home tonight, the conversation in our car.

Hubby : You're Little Miss Attitude tonight.
Daughter (with the full I'm-four-and-I'm-the-princess-scorn): I am NOT Little Miss Attitude.
Me : Samantha, say "I am NOT Little Miss Attitude" again.
Daughter : "I am NOT little Miss Attitude Again."

It took four years, but there it is - proof that no matter how far from the Montgomery family dinner table I take her, she is still my grandfather's great-granddaughter. And my fathers granddaughter. And, I say with pride, my daughter. 100%.

Very Short Stories

This link is going 'round the blogs, but I was laughing out loud at some of these so I just had to share.

Very Short Stories - actually, 6 word stories.

Such as :
"Longed for him. Got him. Shit.
- Margaret Atwood"
and
"TIME MACHINE REACHES FUTURE!!! … nobody there …
- Harry Harrison"

Follow the link if you're entertained enough to want more.

The kids are off school tomorrow - weather make-up day, for those hurricanes we didn't get this year - so it's feeling a bit like Friday around here. A busy one - my desk is still buried. I can see the piles much more clearly than usual, since I'm sitting on an excercise ball and my eyes are about 6 inches higher than the desk surface. Will let you know tomorrow if this really helped my back. I think I'm going to need a shorter desk if it does.

Listening to : Nirvana - Nevermind

Halloween music

Is there really any Halloween music? I don't mean the cheesey cassettes of creaking doors, wolves howling, and high-pitched screaming that you pick up on the endcap for $4.99. But actual songs about Halloween, with music and lyrics and such.

I can't find any. So I'm listening to other holiday music.

Someone go pick my mom up off the floor, she probably just passed out reading that it's still October and I've got the Christmas cd's playing.

Sis, "Oh, Holy Night" never sounded so good.

Just like Daddy

Some days I look at her, and it's just like looking at her daddy.

Who are you?

Mom often mixes up her kids. We just didn't know she did it in writing too.
(Thanks to Mike for saving this visual until he could show us what we've done to our parents.)

On Fence Building

Today is supposed to be day three of fence building. We're down to the last bit - three more 8 foot sections, which means 4 more holes to dig. I write "supposed" because it is raining right now - just a drizzle. Hoping it's not enough to stop us, since we're already overdue getting the equipment back and if it's not back by noon today there will be even more of a charge.

Woke up at 4am. Was dreaming that the neighbors came over, looked at the fence, and kicked it down. Not our real neighbors, but fictional dream neighbors three doors down the hill. We don't even live on a hill. We don't, as far as I know, have neighbors that will kick over our new fence either. And I really hope the new fence can't actually be kicked over by a few irrate teenagers and one pissed off soccer mom.

Sean is in bed, aching and sore. I'm up, but very sore - my knees have taken the worst of it, from carrying lumber and from the up and down of getting down on the ground to clear bushes and standing up to put it in the trash.

More later - hopefully, the fence will be DONE.

Travelin' days

Seems like Sean is barely back home, and now I'm going to be taking off. I think my trip will be a lot more fun than his - I get to go see my big sis, my lil' sis, my big little brother, my other big little brother (why'd he have to ruin what was a good thing by getting big?), Mom, Dad, one brother-in-law, one sister-in-law, two nephews, two uncles, two aunts, two cousins, one cousin once removed, one boyfriend-of-cousin, and a partridge in a pear tree. Or some Bluejays in pine trees at least.

Even though many of these people are from Alabama, and even more of them have once lived there but have since fled the state, all of them are people I'd be happy to call friends even if they weren't related to me. Even the republicans in the bunch.

Tonight is laundry, and packing, and baking, and saying goodbye (again) to the hubby. And drinking a bottle of Shiraz that I decided not to take after I noticed it had a screw on cap. (Wine snob? Not me. I just prefer to travel with corked wine.)

And come tomorrow, I'll be on the road again.

What are you reading?

I haven't had tons of time to read the last week - a few pages here and there between the house sanitizing and the carpool and the work and the writing - yay, the writing has been happening again! But I've got about 20 books in my "books I really want to read" pile, another 100 or so in the TBR, and three I checked out from the library a week ago and haven't touched yet. Something I do way too often - check out books I know I don't have time to read. But they look so good! Like a big fat juicy peach sitting on the shelf begging me to come along and take a nibble, and I just can't pass it up. Tasty.

Right now I've got "Dusk" by Tim Lebbon sitting at by my bed waiting to be picked up and devoured. My hand keeps wandering to pick it up, and I'm promising myself as soon as I finish this short story I can do it. So it's sort of a carrot and stick thing. Finish writing my story and I'll let myself read it. Since I usually have very little self control, we'll see if I can actually hold out until it's done.

Read any good books lately?

Goodbye friends

It's so hard to say goodbye before heading off to school.

Cleanliness

I've done a lot of cleaning the last 10 days - office, bedroom, and my car especailly. Those three spots are the hardest for me to maintain with any sense of order. The office because it's really the hub of our house, with it's three workdesks, tv, laundry area, and huge floor space Samantha spreads her dolls out in most days. The bedroom because if Sean is home, he's usually stretched out in there with food and drink working in bed (maybe because he can't see the surface of his desk to work there?). The car because Montgomery eats breakfast in there five days a week - bad habit, but most days he'd just skip it instead of giving up that extra 10 minutes of sleep - and Samantha brings along whatever she's playing with when it's time to go somewhere and then abandons it when we get back home. Since most days average 2 hours and 4 trips in the car for her, she ends up abandoning a whole lotta "crap".

It's so much easier to clean with Sean gone. My main cleaning method involves a very big garbage can and disposable cleaning wipes. Throw everything you can away, straighten what's left (ideally, nothing), and wipe off the surface you know will stay clear of clutter for less time than it takes the dog to sniff out a trespassing cat.

The one spot I can't touch is Sean's desk. The last time I did, he couldn't find anything for weeks. Somehow, he knows exactly where everything on his desk is. My brain locks up just looking at it, so I try real hard not to.



The car, there's really no excuse for. I told the kids they're going to have to get neater, or stop taking things with them. Let's see if the threat of no food and no toys can keep them neat for a while.

If not, they can start riding with their dad.

One of the many reasons ...

... that I love my husband is that he never even asked if we could name our child ESPN.

Note to any parents who think you are being unique by doing this - you aren't. At least 4 other parents have beat you to it.

Happy birthday Laura

My sister-in-law's birthday was yesterday - I'm sure she wouldn't want me sharing a number with you, but it comes after the 35th and before the 40th >G<. She was stranded part of the day in airports, but made it back in time to meet the family for a drink at Shelby's Coffee House. Much fun while we listened to the music of a live performer (although I've got a feeling most of this guys music came off the cd player buried in his equipment and not off his actual playing of the instruments). The sun set, the full moon rose, and the kids (young, and young at heart) danced to their hearts content.

We finally had to say goodnight after two sets. Then Laura and Tim headed out for a night with their friends, Jim and Ali took Madison home, and me and my two headed to our own quiet house.

It's always so quiet with Sean gone.

He'll be back from his 10 day west coast trip tomorrow night though. Counting the hours!

Little Bronco Fan

Peeking out of my cave here...
One of the dozen ways I've fallen behind the past month is putting up pictures. And once I fall behind, it becomes "Ugh - I'm so far behind - I'll do it tomorrow...."
And then tomorrow becomes next week, and next thing you know it's been a month with no pictures. Grrr!

I know I'll have many, many pictures to put up when I get back from my trip next weekend, so I'm trying to get caught up before I go. So here's one from a few weeks ago to show you I'm trying!

I've also got three websites to update, a newsletter to publish, a short story to finish, and a months worth of invoicing sitting on my desk waiting to be done.

Sounds to me like a very good time to go snuggle with the Bronco Fan and read "The Missing Piece Meets The Big O".