November Lessons

• Oral infections = NO. GOOD. Never wait to get antibiotics in that case—human mouths are bacterial playgrounds, and that sh*t can get out of hand right quick.
• Dentists in the process of relocating their offices are impossible to track down. Getting those much needed x-rays of said infected area will also be confounded in the process.
• Money. Money is important when one does not have dental coverage.
• On a bright note, Patrick Rothfuss's The Name of the Wind (Book One in the Kingkiller Chronicle) will distract readers from all the trials of day-to-day living. I can vouch for the addictive qualities of this book and, while I have come across no queer content and few female characters throughout the work, I would still support this book via this blog.
• Reading the 2011 Giller Prize long-list (17 books this time around) will make readers want to run screaming from all other Canadian-authored books. Serious, we need to do something about all the historical fiction up in these parts, otherwise I might just rupture my spleen.
• Planning a baptism requires more work than expected—and more sandwiches, oddly enough.

Reasons to Grin on a Monday

• The return of the Christmas season = the return of stunning clementines in all grocery stores. Ohh, little spheres of sunshine....
• I have three mornings free to sleep this week. Sweet goodness, the bliss.
• Two weekend shifts have renewed my hope in the younger generation and their reading habits. Met one woman with a Christmas list that included book pub dates, all of which was written out by her ten-year-old daughter. Also encountered a nine-year-old girl who picked up four books in, oh... two minutes? I think she could have bought the store if she had access to income.
• Started in on an H.P. Lovecraft anthology, and whoa mercy -- intense speculative horror stories, indeed.
• Finished Kathleen Winter's Annabel last week, and got to cross the book off THREE literary awards reading lists.
• Knowing that lists will always save me when it comes to steady content.

HUZZAH.

NaBloPo--NO!!

NO. Nonononono -- I was in bed at 12:10 AM when it hit me:

I MISSED A POST.

I MISSED A POST FOR NABLOPOMO.

.... and then I rolled over and went to sleep.

***

Serious, though -- I was so close to creating content every day this November. But, the absence last night is nothing for me to cry over. I spent the evening in Toronto with two of the three gents I lived with while I was working on my undergrad. One, I have not seen in close to a year; the other lives in Bermuda, and I have not seen him since his graduation day in June 2008. So, um, I think it was a far better evening as a result. I never thought I'd see the day where we would be sitting around reminiscing about those undergraduate years. I suppose that's how it was with high school, too -- when you start realizing how much you pour over the details of those younger years, you understand just how much the world around you has changed even if your own character/perspectives have remained the same.

It also made me realize how much more I need to get out and find adventure. The last few months have been quiet ones despite the fact I am back in school. I'm quite still, and I need to shake up the world a bit. Hmm... much to mull over.

I am thinking I ought to write a deluge of posts to make up for the rather weak content in the past seven days. Maybe that could count toward NaBloPoMo? Hmm?

Oh, Sweet Distraction... (in List Format)

What I Am Yearning For When I Should Be Finishing Assignments:

• Sleepsleepsleepsleepsleep.... etc.
• Tucking into a massive anthology of H.P. Lovecraft stories (we are talking 800+ pages)
• Returning to the writing projects I started right before the crush of school work hit
• Also, doing the research I need for said writing projects....
• Plotting out an adventure for next year, even if I would be flying solo on that one.
• Did I mention sleeping? Another blitz of 5 AM shifts, whatwhat.

*Sigh, romantic drifting clouds*

Eeek

Yep.

This is not a good week for blogging.

I think I am failing at NaBloPoMo at this point.

Counting down the days until these assignments are finished, for better or for worse...

In Like A Lion, Out Like A Lazy Blogger

So, perhaps describing myself as a "lazy blogger" is a tad harsh -- I would love to blog in-depth, especially since I've got some ideas bubbling below the surface. How is it that, when faced with stacks of school work, I find myself more compelled than usual to launch into side projects? The stress energizes those creative vibes at the exact moment when I cannot use them for fear of letting the priority work slip.

Oh, and getting side tracked with increasing shifts from work tends to throw off my equilibrium as well.

Bah. I will end November on a light note, it appears...

Intense Marketing is INTENSE

So, the next two weeks are shaping up to be rather intense on both the school front and the part-time, retail job front.

Next week, I have three book proposals to finish. THREE. As in, I will help create three separate books from scratch with an entire marketing campaign embedded therein. I admit, it's a little bit jarring to advertise a book that does not exist beyond a basic outline.

We shall see. I am off in one hour to meet with the medical thriller commercial fiction group to finalize our budget/publicity plans. Oh, and I will also be reading more of Kathleen Winter's Annabel while I hover around the hot dog vendor that is our Summit Point. Huzzah.

I.O.U.

I.O.U. one stunning, silly post as I am:

• Tired
• Struggling through an assignment
• Did I mention I got four hours of sleep + a half hour nap?
• I am tired.

And Now It's Time For...

Good Idea: Getting jazzed up with a new fiction idea.

Bad Idea: Launching the project before creating a plot line, completing research, and determining the audience for the end product.

***

Good Idea: Cleaning up the mass amount of junk strewn across your bedroom floor.

Bad Idea: Allowing yourself to get sidetracked with the aforementioned fiction idea after piling the same junk into "neater" piles on the floor.

***

Good Idea: Singing because you enjoy it.

Bad Idea: Singing when it induces coughing attacks.

***

Good Idea: Relaxing with a hot mug of green tea and some chocolate while watching a choice bit of anime.

Bad Idea: Doing the above when you should have been researching or cleaning. And then blogging about it.

***

*Dusts hands* Well, I know how to be productive, I think. Cheers to another Monday.