possibly pointless blabbering

Pre-Thanksgiving Rambles

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This morning, for my weekly chat with bud Mary, I turned my folding desk around, so that my back was not to an off-white wall, but the rustic bookcase festooned with white fairy lights. Note to self: get more fairy lights. I had every intention of writing a “real” blog post (what is a real blog post, anyway?) but then after an extremely good chat that ended with online ornament shopping and discussion of the big epic novels/miniseries of the 1970s, aka high drama, it hit me that we are on Thanksgiving Eve, which means it’s basically a holiay, and I do need to set up my Christmas planner, because the day after Thanksgiving, is Black Friday, and it’s go, go, GO into Holiday Mode.

Photo by Element5 Digital on Pexels.com

We do have our tree to put up. This year, beyond the basic colored balls, we have a gorgeous Tudor rose ornament from Mary, and that means it is high time to have some more personalized ornaments on the tree. Cats, writing instruments, that sort of stuff. Can’t go into that unprepared and still face myself in the morning. Which will be Thanksgiving morning.

This year, we are going with a theme of “we tired,” and will be ordering in or getting takeout like the city dwellers we are. Pajamas all day if possible, relaxing, getting current on streaming backlog, reading, and hitting the ground running for full on holiday mode. I will be armed with lists, more lists, and lists of lists. No, I am not kidding on that one. I can take organization to meticulous levels when I have a mind to, and when I am all hopped up on visions of sugarplums and all that other good stuff, well, think of the logical outcome. All of that means that putting thought into a “real” post is not on my agenda.

One of the things I am list-ing is a somewhat loose TBR for the coming year, though I may not wait that long to get started. It all depends on what the library has in store. When I fell down the rabbit hole of V. C. Andrews analysis videos, I glommed hard on to the high drama factor, and what captures high drama than those big 70s epics I mentioned earlier? I was a bit young for those the first time around, but getting a taste for them now, so sprinkling them through the coming year might be something to add to my plans for 2022. Reading high drama fuels writing high drama and I do love my high drama. I know, big surprise on that one.

Anyway, the lure of a pillow fort and hand-knit afghan is calling, with a Kindle full of books, and a paperback Christmas historical romance anthology right there on the nightstand. I have a cuddly kitty and a plentiful tea supply. Also, my brain wants, very very strongly, to go back into fiction mode, and that pillow fort would put me verrrry near a lot of my pens. If you’ve been here longer than five minutes, you know all about me and pens. (Did I mention that I have started to see holiday pen gift sets popping up in stores? Have to say PaperMate is stepping it up this year.

What’s on tap for your holiday?)

Typing With Wet Paws: The Gravitational Pull of Afghans Edition

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Tails up, Storm Troopers! It’s a rainy day here in Albany, the leaves are falling in tons of colors, Papa is currently taking a nap under a hand knitted (by Aunt Linda) afghan, and Mama Anna is having a good writing week. She and Papa had delivery for lunch, which I did not touch because I am a kitty and kitties eat kitty food, not people food. That’s an important distinction, and Mama D taught me that early on when I was still a baby kitten.

Anyway, this is the kind of autumn day Mama Anna loves best. Later in the day, she and Aunt Linda will go hunting for groceries, including cat food, but after I am done with this post, she needs the keyboard so that she can write.

The current working setup; photo by Mama Anna

Last night, she had her weekly meeting online with a local writer friend, which is one day after her weekly talk with Aunt Mary, so she does tend to get charged during the latter half of the week, because talking. She is also drinking a lot of tea. These are good signs. On Wednesday, she walked all around the lake in the park when she went to take out the trash. I did not authorize that trip, and complained to Aunt Linda until Mama Anna got back. Oh, and I ran to the computer when I saw Mama Anna was talking to Aunt Mary. They both liked that a lot. I do aim to please.

Right now, the gravitational pull of the pillows, afghan, real paper book and freshly brewed cinnamon tea is very strong. Add in me and Papa also on the bed, not to mention Mama Anna’s catchall notebook and pens, so she can even do some writing there. This sounds like good napping time for me.

photo by Mama Anna

Papa wanted to get a good picture of me in Mama Anna’s desk chair, facing the computer, but I was at such a position he couldn’t get a good angle. He will, later, though, so a greatest hits picture for now. Mama Anna says he and I need a photoshoot, so she can have a reserve of pictures. That’s not a bad idea. I am rather gorgeous.

Speaking of gorgeous, there are a lot of gorgeous covers in the books Mama Anna has been reading this year. She is currently back on track with 77 books read out of 90, and she is reading a few at the same time, pretty much. Getting back into it. This kind of day is conducive to reading, so again, strong draw towards the reading nest.

Yesterday was a really good writing day, even working on Her Last First Kiss, and it didn’t feel forced. That is a very good sign. I have to believe my emotional suport goes a long way toward that, as well as Mama Anna increasing the amount of blabbering to other people that she has been doing. Snuggling with me and a book couldn’t hurt, though.

Headbonks!

Storm

Off-Center, Now With Fairy Lights

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Photo by lilartsy on Pexels.com

Yesterday was an organization and planning day. Normally, I like to do this while it’s the weekend, preferably Sunday, but that didn’t work out, so yesterday is good enough.sk moved somewhat on its own to its current position off-center of where it used to be, now bumping against the corner of my rustic crate bookcase. It’s a lot better to have a bookcase to look at while I work , rather than a blank wall (why did I ever think that was a good idea?) The white Chirstmas lights, aka fairy lights, though, those are intentional.

I’m not sure what it is about white fairy lights, but I love them. For Christmas trees, I like colored lights, either blinking or chasing, but white lights have a certain classy factor to them, and combined with the rustic wood of the bookcase, I am definitely feeling this. Also might end up putting some of the books from my post-birthday haul there, so I can get a glimpse of where I’d like to see my name in the very near future. Or present, for a copy of Chasing Prince Charming. Because I do that, too.

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See? My name. Also Melva’s.

I had snapped a shot of the current setup with the lights and all, but Amazon Photos is not cooperating, so here is Michael, one of my current Sims, who was on the screen when I took the photo

picture taken ingame, lots of ccfd, ReShade, etc

We’ll work on that later. The above screenshot is from my current Sims save, one where I wiped allll the premades and their houses, replaced with my own and painstakingly built my own world. Yes, that sounds a lot like writing. But with visuals. Plus I have to have my Sims living in houses built from real floorplans Yes, always. Except for apartments, which I can’t change, which is annoying, but fine.

I have been doing intense searches for custom content, checking decorating trends past and present, relying on color theory as only an artist’s kid can, and it has now spilled over into my actual life. Which is actually kind of fun, and conducive to writing with more comfort.

When I decorate a Sim’s environment, it matters what I choose for their “clutter” or decor, because it’s part of their story. As mine is part of mine. I do want to do an un-bagging of my birthday haul, so when I do that, I will have to do some rearranging of the bookshelves, which do not currently have actual books on them, as mine have been in storage. Probably rearrange the lights as well, and more than likely add to them, because I have met me, and those things are in stores everywhere. Also they are probably good for Real Life Romance Hero’s craving for more light in these dark months. (I, on the other hand, loooove the early nights. They are the best and fill me with joy.) More pictures coming then, which will give me more to talk aobut than mindless blabbering, but some of you are into that kind of thing, so this is your lucky day.

As it is mine, as now that I have a blog post down, I can go play Sims.

How’s your week going?

If The Ears are on, I’m Working

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It’s funny, the things we remember sometimes. This morning, when I set aside time to fully plan out my week (I hear the voice of an aunt in my head: “I don’t mind clutter, but I can’t stand chaos.” I may well be turning into my aunts, which is fine, because they were all awesome.) my brain informed me that the first time I knew (American) football was a fall sport was on my first day of maybe second or third grade, when a fall themed bulletin board included football imagery.

Photo by Jean-Daniel Francoeur on Pexels.com

The reason my brain thought I might like to know this was probably because I had laid down some autumn leaves scrapbook paper, because having an image on the page anchors my attention, making the actual planning a lot easier. Insomnia has been raging this past week, meaning that I do have some ground to recover, and planning is the way I figure out how that happens. Planning is also great for focusing on something that is creative but not storytelling creative, which gives that part of my brain some room to do its own thing without me in the way.

There’s also the fact that I can see my week laid out, mark the family days (two per week) that I will have a full house (not the tv show) so those are very unlikely to have writing time unless I leave the house. This is one reason I look forward to having a dedicated office, with a door I can close, in our next apartment, but we will be here for a while. Not at all complaining about that. I will make do with cat ear headphones. If the ears are on, leave me alone. This actually works because if eyes are on me, then I know I have to actually produce something.

For those who may be wondering, this post has nothing at all to do with football. I neither watch nor play, so it doesn’t affect me in any way I can relate. Why did it show up on my mental feed, then? I am not sure. Maybe because I am training myself to get back into writer mode, after being in survivor mode for so long. There is executive dysfunction, which is basically “I need to do the thing. I want to do the thing. I know how to do the thing. I have the stuff I need to do the thing. It is right over there. I should do the thing,” and then….not doing the thing. Gets annoying after a while, by which I mean immediately, and every time.

The only way through this kind of executive dysfunction with writing is to actually do the writing. Which means writing bad pages. Knowing that I am writing bad pages. Write bad pages until I write good pages. Lather, rinse, repeat. Feels like I have been doing that a lot lately. Probably boring and/or annoying people, because geez, get on with it, woman. Not always that easy, but there is indeed a path through. Insert the maxim about not comparing someone else’s chapter thirty to one’s own chapter five. Even if chapter five seems really long. It happens.

The point of al of this? Eh. An item off my list. Seeing things on a list, especially a visually appealing list, makes the Big Scary Task look and feel a lot more palatable. So. It’s here. So am I. I call that a win. Planner open at the ready, now off to Google Docs and some time with my imaginary friends.

How does your week look?

Anna

Typing With Wet Paws: Second Adopotiversary Edition

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Tails up, Storm Troopers! I’m Storm, you’re awesome, and this is Typing With Wet Paws. This is a very special month, because it has a bunch of super fun stuff in it. Most importantly, though, this week sees my second adoptiversary, meaning I have completed two whole years of living with these guys. Before that, I was with my first mom, who did an amazing job of raising me as a happy, healthy kitty. I know she still loves me, and I still love her. She can see my pictures on Instagram, so she knows I am safe and happy.

pictures like this brighten anybody’s day

While that year long camping trip we went on to celebrate my adoption had its highlights, this week also means we start our second year of living in this apartment, and apartment living is definitely better. Even if the property manager, Mr. Kurt, did outsource pest control. Okay maybe it was the owner of the buildings, but still, am I a joke to them? Look at these teeth. Look at these claws. They don’t call them murder mittens for nothing. If there were a mouse in the house, I would have found it and brought it to Aunt Anna, whom I will now be calling Mama Anna (my first mom will be Mama D) because I love bringing her presents. Then again, the other apartments in our building don’t have cats, just dogs, so that could be part of it.

Anyway, since this is such a special week, Mama Anna said that I can talk about whatever I want. I don’t see how that is much different from every other week, because hey, I am a cat. That’s kind of how it works. For those of you who are wondering if I am calling the other humans anything different, Uncle Rheuben is now Papa and Aunt Linda is still Aunt Linda. I am not allowed outside, so I cant get them anything I would normally get. I don’t know what to do with stairs, anyway, and I can’t open doors that close all the way, so I do what I can.

I have to give the pest control human some props, because he did Psspsspss me. Of course I ignored him and went under the bed. He comes into my house and questions how I do my job? No thank you. He did recognize me as an Organic Pest Control Expert. I should give him some sort of professional courtesy. Though Aunt Linda now has to get a plastic container to put my dry food into. They sell that kind of thing where she works, which means it’s happening. If you think I am already thinking about ways I can open the lid, you are right. I like a challenge.

Mama Anna is occupying herself pretty well this week. She could do better on the reading front (mainly because if she does it on her tablet at night, in bed, I can sit on her shoulder and read along) but the writing is going well, and she is doing a stationery makeover/inventory/overhaul, which will include a…gasp…cull. I love this because that means there is more stationery laid out for me to lie on, especially when that is the particular thing she most especially needs. Speaking of which….

Headbonks!

Storm

Typing With Wet Paws: Pre-Home-i-Versary Edition

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Tails up Storm Troopers! I’m Storm, you’re awesome, and this is Typing With Wet Paws. In case you were wondering where I was last week, have you noticed that I am a cat? That’s kind of our thing. I was probably in a box, or in Aunt Linda’s window. I’m here now, and isn’t that all that really matters?

Photo by Rheuben Bowling

On October first, we will officially begin our second year in this apartment. Technically, we moved in a week before that, but I’m too comfy to check the calendar or ask Aunt Anna for the exact date. October also means coming up on my adoptiversary, when I first came to live with these guys, which was a year before that. I have asked for a red dot for my present. I love red dot, especially at night. Aunt Anna agrees I need more toys, though honestly, I’m good with midnight parkour. Not going to say no to toys, though. I love toys. They are fun, and also nice to have around when I want to give Aunt Anna a present, since I am an indoor only girl.

October is also Aunt Anna’s birthday (closer to the end. Um, of the month, not of her) and then Halloween one week later. After that, it’s straight into the holidays, with Thanksgiving prep (the humans are doing ham this year. I will be getting tuna.) then it’s Christmas and Boxing Day (which kind of does have something to do with boxes) and New Year’s Day and Valentine’s Day and then after that comes the ugh weather and Aunt Anna may go underground again until September. Okay, not that extreme, but she really does prefer the autumn and winter, and those superpowers are very much kicking into gear.

I totally get how Aunt Anna is only snow really relaxing and settling in; I was the same way when I graduated from First Mom’s house and came to these guys. The first couple days, I stayed in my adventure cave and taking their measure. When I figured out they love me and are okay, I draped myself over a sleeping Aunt Anna, and well, here we are. It’s pretty nice.

One thing Aunt Anna is doing to make sure she can be at her best level right now is to make sure she stays in touch with her human friends. That means an increasing amount of video chats, which means more chances for me to crash said video chats. I love when humans in the glowy box tell me I am beautiful. They are right. Still never hurts to hear it. Fall is also good for snuggling with tea and blanket and lots of pillows and a good book. Most importantly of all, a kitty. By which I mean me. Aunt Anna can drink tea with on hand and then rub my belly with the other. Hm. Maybe she should consider an audiobook in that case.

It’s been pretty interesting around here as of late, as Aunt Anna gets back into writing gear, and all of the humans are talking about moving things in from storage and that kind of thing. What I take from all of that is “more boxes,” which is a a very happy ending for me.

How’s your week?

Headbonks!

photo by Rheuben Bowling

Storm

Anniversaries (not the romantic kind) and Other Stories

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Yesterday was my and my friend Mary’s 20th friendiversary. It was four days after 9/11. We weren’t sure if the event where we would meet in person for the first time, an American Revolutionary War reenactment, was still happening. It was. I brought Housemate, she brought her hubby and then six-year-old son, who is now a firefighter and a fiancé. It’s been that long. Right away, I knew that this was found family for life. I am glad to see that I was right. Real Life Romance Hero was working that day, but when he was able to meet them in person, he blended in seamlessly. To say we have been through a lot together is an understatement.

Mary and I had our weekly everything and nothing talk. I cannot say how much good one of those chats with a good friend can do. Thankfully, I have a lot of such friends. I know I have been remiss in staying in contact of late, but it’s been, well, a lot in the last couple of years. Things are getting better now. We are coming up on another important anniversary, that of moving into our current home. We are already renewed for another year. It’s time to let out the breath we didn’t know we’d been holding (phrase used ironically) and relax.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com

That means reading. That means writing. That means having my special things around me; gargoyle pencil holder, CORW awards, Elaine Duillo print that I need to reframe, and my and Melva’s first book cover together, that needs framing itself. My secretary desk, with all of its cubbyholes, my favorite classic historical romance novels in the bookcase my father built from scratch when I was a baby. It means reading the first paperback I bought in two years because it’s safe to do so. It means Walking through the park and looking for waterfowl, always my favorite neighbors. It means cutting myself some freaking slack because :gestures at last few years: Yeah. That stuff.

Which brings us back to :deep breath: writing. Specifically writing fiction. Specifically writing commercial fiction. Which means walking in that direction even if it feels wooden and rote for a little while. Crappy first drafts, even if those are crappy second drafts. To quote a friend with whom I do need to reconnect, “you’ll suck at first and then you’ll get better.” Wise words, and ones I am more than happy to tell to others.

Where am I going with this? Nowhere, really. It’s a blog post and that’s what I intended. It’s also fair warning that if you haven’t heard from me for a while, it’s because :gestures at past few years: and I will probably be showing up soon. Which will mean taking my own pictures again, which I dearly miss. Taking stationery pictures means figuring out the stationery situation, probably a cull, and definitely some refining. That will be a journey in itself. Stationery isn’t “just” stationery. Few things are “just” anything, for that matter. At least for me.

How about you? What anniversaries do you mark, other than the romantic relationship kind?

Fall Cleaning And Other Stories

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Two years ago, yesterday, we left our last apartment, not knowing it would be over a year before we found a new one. 0/10, do not recommend. In two more weeks, we will celebrate -and that is absolutely the right word- our first full year in our new home. Lease renewal came yesterday, which I think is awesome timing. Tomorrow is both a state inspection for code on our building, and the first time I will have seen two of my cousins (who are mother and son) since I lived in CT. One is coming rom NJ, the other from AZ. There is a large age gap between me and my older cousin, as my mother was her mother’s baby sister, and adopted me in her forties.

Photo by RODNAE Productions on Pexels.com

This will be the first time I will have seen them without an older generation present. I am interested to see how this will go, how we interact as adult to adult. I look forward to getting current with them both, and introducing the to Real Life Romance Hero (who will be on Storm duty during the inspection; he’ll join us later) and Housemate. Introducing my family to my family. After that, it’s back to writing. Really, Okay, and planning on getting stuff out of storage and putting down some dang roots. I am excited to be reunited with my secretary desk in the very near future. Also my gargoyle pencil holder and collection of classic historical romance novels.

Today, apart from writing this blog post, I am on tidy the house duty, aka fall cleaning. Thankfully, that won’t take much, and I will have a decent amount of time at the end of the day to delve into my Sims and/or read. I could definitely do better with reading. Especially bundled in blankets, against the mountain of pillows on the big bed, with a cup of hot tea and feline companion Storm as near as feline-ly possible. I need a certain amount of relaxation to get into the type of read I prefer, and that hasn’t been the most prolific thing in the world for a while. Time to train myself into it again. That’s not a bad thing.

Fall has always been when my super powers return. I joke sometimes about having Seasonal Affective Disorder installed backwards, where fall and winter perk me and spring and summer have the opposite effect. That’s actually a thing. I have learned to lean into it. That works rather well for days lie today, when there are still chainsaws to juggle, but now they are the fun kind.

So, where am I going with this? Well, I have a blog entry now, and have a short break from the housework stuff, as well as a reminder that Many Writing Things lie ahead. I get to fuss and putter and put things where I want them to be, some sort of TV-ish thing playing in the background for added normality, though our TV is still in storage and will probably stay there. Streaming services fill that need quite nicely, and at my convenience. Still needs more survival dramas, though. Producers, please get on that. Thank you.

What are your plans for this week?

September

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The fans are off today, though the windows are still open. I have leggings and a sweatshirt on as well as one of RLRH’s oversize t-shirts. I am making hot tea. Bed is made and laundry put away. I have the first point on my list of edits for A Heart Most Errant running on my brain’s back burner as I do these things, and things I have stressed over since literally February, are falling naturally into place. This feels right.

On Tuesday, I had a wonderful four and a half hour “lunch” with an IRL friend who is now also a writer friend. We both spoke of wanting an in-person writing buddy to talk at(this is extremely important for extroverts, as talking and thinking often happen at the same time) and, well, we were in person, and we are both writers. We don’t exactly write the same sorts of stories, but close enough, and we obviously mesh well, so we are giving biweekly Zooms a try. That starts next week

On Wednesday, I had a three hour video chat with another bestie, Our conversations go allll over the place, and this was no exception. After that I crashed. Hard. Then Real Life Romance Hero came home and ordered delivery (meatball subs from a local establishment, which were amazing) and I spent some time playing Sims 4, then actual sleep. Nine hours. No fan, no earbuds. Also amazing.

Which brings us to today. Not going to lie, I am thrilled that I can wear a sweatshirt (and I will need more as the season progresses.) Abovementioned bestie sent me a treasure trove of perfume samples, which I am wearing every day. We are coming up on the one year anniversary of moving into this apartment. That also means it will have been about two years since I had been presenting myself the way I would prefer to do. As in makeup, clothing, jewelry, hair, etc. That this happens at the same time spooky stuff is showing up in stores is not a bad thing by any means. Not that I plan to suddenly turn this into a style blog, but style is something I love. Being able to express it again is an absolute delight, especially when some areas mean basically starting from scratch.

Photo by Andrea Davis on Pexels.com

The blog I had planned for yesterday would have been about my fascination with survival dramas (Lost, Dark, The Rain, The Walking Dead universe, etc) and I still plan on doing that in the future, but the special thing about today is how regular it feels. I like that about today. I am already thinking of another cup of tea. Maybe. It’s not quite fall enough to start baking cookies but I think it is indeed getting there. I can get used to that. After dinner tonight, I have a date with a good book. Swell, more than one. Reading one on the front burner, letting the writing questions about others sort themselves out on the back burners.

No real point to this post, which is okay. Sometimes a stream of consciousness is what feels most authentic, so that’s what goes on the page.

How about you?

Mid-August Recalibration

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Welp, we are now officially past the halfway mark for August. Shelves are stocked with back to school supplies, which is pure heaven for us stationery aficionados. The fact that loving stationery and being a writer are not mutually exclusive makes this an especially delightful time of year. Well, ecept for the heat. It’s been brutal here in NY for the last while, and temperatures that are in the range of “do not kill the heat-sensitive” are extremely welcome.

August has not been the best month for productivity. Insomnia has been raging, with seven sleepless nights out of the first fourteen. My local RWA chapter voted this week to dissolve. That hit me hard. Harder, even than I would expect. It’s not entirely gone-gone, as there will be some sort of non-affiliated group, though not under the auspices of Romance Writers of America. I’m not sure what the future of the national organization will be, and that’s another big sad. I’m not even over the loss of Romantic Times magazine (the OG RT, not the RT Book Reviews it was at the end.) The thought that the organization that was The Thing back when I was but a wee princess could be floundering into nothingness sticks. A lot.

Melva and I also recieved news about our current submission that was less than we had expected. That doesn’t at all mean that nothing will happen with Drama King. On the contrary, we are meeting tonight to discuss our options. Whatever we choose, I am sure it will make Jack and Kelly’s book an even beteter one. I won’t say more until we have had a chance to talk between ourselves, but we are writers, and writers write.

Photo by lilartsy on Pexels.com

The same applies to historical romance. The best way to feel connected to it is to, well, connect with it. Read lots, and of the sort I want to produce, and then proceed to write horrible first drafts. Then turn those into slightly better second drafts.

There is still the part of me who set up a TV tray in my dad’s living room, propped an electronic typewirter (yes, that long ago) popping the soundtrack from Camelot on his hi-fi, and confidently pounding my way through a set number of pages, because that’s what one of my favorite writers of historical romance did. Easy peasy.

Only not. Part of me wants to stamp my foot and grumble about being here again, not exactly at the start of the road, but boy does it feel like it at times. There is only one way around that, and that’s to wite. Keep writing. Then write some more. Then more than that. Write pages that are steaming piles of poo, because piles of poo can be shaped, but blank pages can’t. For the extroverted writers like moiself, (yes, I know that’s not a word) staring, hands on hips, at the place where my RWA chapter used to be (well, on Zoom now) and tapping foot, this means going back out there into the wilds of other writerdom. Critique group/partner applications are now open. Must love historical romance, grit over fluff, and have a taste for the epic. I’m serious. Talking and thinking happen at the same time with this gal, and talking with other writers of historical romance is now a priority. We will see how that goes.

Well, then. This is the pat of the post where I sum things up in some sort of order and/or sense, but I have to be honest; I am thinking about how many episodes of The Walking Dead I can get in before conference time. I am about three episodes from the end of Season Ten. After that, I can go back to where I left off with Fear The Walking Dead, which isn’t the same, but close enough to scratch the itch. Maybe I can call it research for the post-plague medieval world of A Heart Most Errant. Yeah, we’lll go with that.