Whaddaya MEAN You've Never Heard of Me?!?

Like most horror fans, Creepshow has always been high on my list of fave horror movies. I love the cast, the camp, the gruesomeness, and that hilarious dub where it's super obvious that Adrienne Barbeau called Emily Vanderbilt a cunt. Hahahaaha.

H and I watched an awesome documentary about it recently. Apparently, it was on the UK DVD reissue that never actually came to this side of the pond. That's bullshit, BTW. Because then I had to download it on the grey market. Shame on me!

I have always thought of the middle story, Something to Tide You Over as being about revenge zombies. Ted Danson "steals" Leslie Neilson's wife, so he buries them both in the sand up to their necks so they can drown slowly when the tide comes in. It really is masterful suspense and drama. Over-the-top performances make this essentially two-man piece (the chick is mainly a prop) a thrilling watch no matter how many times I see it.

So...In the documentary, Savini refers to these characters as "ghosts." I must say, it never occurred to me to even consider that these might be ghosts. That's probably because Creepshow is Romero and Savini, who are just naturally associated with zombies. Stephen King has done both zombie and ghost stuff (and in-between stuff like 'Salem's Lot, which is technically vampires--but ones that are highly shambly and zombie-like).
It is true that the zombies/ghosts suddenly appear on the other side of rooms, just behind the guy they're tormenting. That can suggest ghosts more than zombies. I had always presumed that revenge zombies are inherently magical, so they could just do stuff like that. Now I wonder if my willing suspension of disbelief is overactive. Probably not though, because watching the Arrowverse is one long exercise in repressing my inner cries of "Shenanigans!"

I ask you, horror fans and cineasts, are they zombies, or are they ghosts?
Do you have an immediate reaction to this that differs from your thoughtful one?
I hate the idea of disagreeing with Savini about his own work (which is funny, considering how often I want to tell Nicotero to go fuck himself), but I'm just not seeing what he's seeing.
What say you?

I'm bummed to admit that my new short story will not come together in time for the submission deadline. This sucks. I thought about that story for a really long time, and was quite taken with the concept. But it just never came together and was a horrific exercise in typing and deleting, typing and deleting, and wondering why I think I can even be a writer in the first place.
You know, the usual stuff.

Trying to find another new gig. Also going to be doing tarot readings via Skype or Google chat. That'll be fun and good brain exercise even if it's not especially lucrative. Do hit me up if you're interested. First timers get a full reading for only $10. After that, it's $20.

JoJo is still licking bald patches into his skin. There's no infection, and he eats a varied diet so I don't think it's a vitamin deficiency.

Also, I need to see a tax professional. Can anybody recommend a good one?

How come criminals don't use brightly colored, jet propelled knockout gas anymore? Life would be so much more whimsical. I'd much prefer that we all carried that instead of guns.

If you could ask something to a tour guide at Lizzy Borden Bed and Breakfast, what would you ask?

Been getting a lot of friend requests lately that feature a peeve of mine. I won't post pics as examples because I don't want to embarrass anyone, and because I think you'll all get me on this. But it's the artful, clever ways that fat women (men may do this too, but I don't see it nearly as much on the internets) attempt to hide their double chin. After all, double chin means *gasp* FAT!

There are lots of reasons people do this, many if not most of these have to do with embarrassment at being perceived as fat--with all that entails. They don't want people to see how fat they are, or how fat they've gotten (a girl who teased me mercilessly in school for being fat actually told me this), or my favorite--how fat they LOOK. Apparently they aren't fat, it just looks like they are. I'm as guilty of this as anyone, though I'm trying really hard to stop.
Obviously, the internet being what it is, a person can make and maintain long friendships, or even romantic relationships without other people having any idea what they look or sound like.

When you learn that a person you totally like and respect is say, fat, very skinny, acne-covered, or of a race or gender you weren't aware of--how does that affect your opinion of a person (assuming they haven't outright lied about anything)? Does it? Should it?

I know what people are afraid of. It's the same reason people go on crazy diets and have elective surgeries--because they live in a world where they're told absolutely ANYTHING is better than being fat. I won't bother linking to that famous poll of 5th grade girls who said they'd rather be in a wheelchair than fat. Getting things off your chest is good. Being honest is good. Fighting bigotry, bullying, and shaming is good. Coming Out is good.

So, here's what I propose:

I hear a lot about people who "drop the bombshell" about this or that at Thanksgiving. The whole family is together, so it's the perfect time to let it be known that a family member is gay, pregnant, joining the military, voting Republican, or whatever else they've been neglecting to come clean about.

I propose that we all Come Out as ourselves this holiday season. I move that we post unretouched, unshopped, candid photos of ourselves without any artful cropping of this or that "unflattering" body part. Some of us are fat. We're still smart, articulate, creative, and all the other wonderful things that make us, us. I think people should know that, or be reminded of that, or at the very least, know that not everyone agrees that fat people are ugly, lazy, should be hidden, etc etc etc.

Guess what? People you know in your life see you just as you are. Don't you think it's time everyone did? Even if you're one of those shy types who doesn't actually believe they are beautiful--if you EVER leave the house, you could (and should, IMO) at least embrace the idea that you are NOT too hideous to be seen by sunlight (or a camera flash).

This is not really as articulate as I intended to make it, but if you read my "Fat" tag often, you'll know that I have a ton to say on this topic. Maybe you know a woman or young girl who needs to hear about this and participate. So you know, spread the word.

Having one of those days when I'm feeling really sad and angry. As you know, I'm pretty forthcoming when it comes to openly discussing my life on the Internets. I really don't care who knows the majority of my personal business. But there is a short list of things I simply don't discuss, mainly because it involves either a relationship or a history with another person with whom I'd like to maintain at least some semblance of a relationship. Well, some of those things are bothering me extra muchly today, and I don't have my usual outlet of telling you fine people about it, or basking in your loving, supportive, and honest feedback.

So there's that.

I'm also on a super tight deadline for a short story. If my pants were as tight as this deadline, I'd buy a new fucking pair already. Of course I should be writing right now; but I'm not because I have to get some of this nervous anger energy out of my system before this story becomes an Ajaesque bloodbath. That's not really what this anthology is looking for. I know I complain often that I'm not famous enough yet and I want to quit my day job and have every horror fan on earth know who I am and what I do. And I know I can't remotely reach that goal by sitting around NOT writing. But damn, deadlines stress me the hell out. Because I know the morning after I submit I'll remember some really amazing thing I forgot to put in that I now can't edit and will totally ruin the story for me emotionally.

*sigh*

A while back, I was talking about my unsightly forehead scar. I've had it pretty much forever...but wait! Because it wasn't always huge and dark and blotchy like it is now. I didn't actually realize that until I was looking at old pictures. I was talking about it on the Facebook, and a few people said I should get it looked at. It's of an irregular size and shape, with non-uniform edges. It's changing both color and shape over time, and contains several different colors. Plus, according to what I know about my family history, we are a cancerous people.
Some half-assed internet research leads me to believe that it is indeed, Cancer. Luckily, most skin cancer is not the deadly kind, but if one does happen to get the deadly kind--it is aptly named, because you are pretty much fucked. Now that I realize that my attractive portal of love and light is actually a hideous cancer, my first impulse is to start covering it up with makeups. I feel embarrassed and ashamed by it now. I am not quite clear on the emotional process that's making me feel that way, but it's there. I'm waiting to hear back from the PHClinic to see if I have to come in before they can give me a referral to a dermatologist or whatever. I'm hoping I can avoid racking up a bunch of giant co-pays. But if what I've heard is true, even minor cancers are goddamn expensive to deal with.

As of today, I vow the following:

--I will finish this new zombie book before I shuffle off this mortal coil (yes, that is a premature declaration because I have NO IDEA what kind of cancer this is or what could potentially happen) even if I have to quit my day-job to do it.

--If I have to end up with a forehead scar, I'm gonna go full-out Harry Potter with it. That's just how I roll...

--If I *do* have cancer, you are ALL expressly forbidden to refer to me as "brave." You may, however, refer to me as awesome, witty, beautiful, hilarious, delightful, or the most exciting horror writer of our times.

--This year's birthday bash is going to be really, super badass. Some of you faraway types might want to consider making the trip to MI. It's the Saturday after thanksgiving.

Alright, back to the writing I go...

Tonight my cakes I bake
Tonight my beer I make
But tomorrow, tomorrow, tomoooooooorrow
The Queen's little baby I take Ha HA!
Lucky I go
Lucky I game
For Rumplestilskin is my name!!!

For some reason, I've had that song in my head for two days now. It's from some cheesy production of Rumplestilskin I saw on TV or at school or something when I was a wee Wednes. That guy really did get a raw deal, I always thought, until someone explained to me that he intended to eat the baby. Ew.


Anywhoo, the Vampire Ball is tomorrow. The last time I put this much planning into an event, I ended up married at the end of it. Put the bookmarks together last night, and watched a vid about fitting my fangs but haven't cast them yet. I'm very amused at the products marketed to goth kids nowadays. I would have loved to have a stark white powder compact in high school. I just put baby powder into my cheap, CG compact and it used to spill all over myself and my purse. Wheee.
Never discovered who sent the mystery package of sparkle pens and silver sharpies. I tried on my velvety blue and silver cape yesterday and it looks pretty awesome with my black dress and wedding tiara. I must be the Vampire Queen of Michigan or something.

Is it okay for a Vampire to wear glasses? I kind of need to see.

Missed my radio thing from Wednesday? That sucks. But fret not, for you can watch the streaming vid of the show, and hear my dulcet tones informing the good people of Flint that they can buy my books at the Vampire Ball. I also explained who Voltaire is to host Ryan Eashoo, who did not seem to know. I don't come on till about 10 minutes into the second half. I also had to talk to some city council chick who was trying to sound all in-the-know.

Not really loving this Bella Morte music I've been listening to. They're okay, but their whole deal just strikes me as...very labored. I like it better when people do their thing rather that trying to shove their thing into a marketable mold. Anyway, I'll post a pic of me in my fangs once I get them cast and into my gob.

Whelp, the Monterey Bay Aquarium is once again ringing the mystery out of life and the wildlife out of sharks by displaying yet another juvenile white shark. Let's hope they get this one back into the ocean before it dies. She's pretty!

H and I were watching Jurassic Park yesterday. We were struck by the fact that they fed the carnivores live prey. I used to feed my snake live mice (or rats, depending on what was on sale) but I've never seen this happen in a zoo. Are there zoos that feed with live animals? I guess I'm torn on that whole thing. It seems kinda...ew. But it's not so bad compared to what happens in the wild.

Was trying to find some iron-on rhinestone letters in order to make myself the snappiest version yet of a "No Fat Chicks" shirt. Turns out, rhinestone letters more than one inch in height cannot be found online for less than $2.95 each. Times that by ten, plus shipping, plus the price of the shirt and the time involved, you're looking at a $60 T-shirt which kind of defeats the whole purpose of T-shirts in the first place. Ultimately, I found some sparkly letters in a retro 70's font that I think will do nicely. They are supposed to work well on dark colored shirts, so we shall see.

My new Nike's got here today. For some reason, the FedEx guy left them in the furnace closet down the hall from me. Anyway, they look nice, fit well and are comfy.

H made me a hilarious new ringtone of Steve Smith from American Dad. For those of you not in-the-know, American Dad is by basically the same team as Family Guy. It's just as funny, tends to be more political, and has a lot more jokes specifically related to vaginas. Steve is the teenage son, who is sort of a spoof on those kids in bad 80's movies that scream all of their dialogue.


Have a listen!

I've come to a realization recently, and I think it's only appropriate that I share it with all of you. I did not come upon this decision lightly, nor did I want to oversell it. I wanted to weigh the options carefully in order to fully commit to my choice in this matter. I have done so, and it now can be announced:

James Purefoy is the sexiest man in the history of human existence.


I'm declaring it.

( Don't believe me? Here's some super sexy pics! )

I mean seriously. He has like, cartoonish super good-lookingness...ridiculously so.

And the best news of all? He's got a new show coming out on NBC!!! So now I have something to keep me occupied whilst I wait for a copy of Solomon Kane to become available to me. Woot.



On a completely unrelated topic, truthiness is a word now. So why doesn't MS Word's dictionary know that? How does one update it, other than adding it manually?

Maybe this makes me a terrible person, but I found a fair amount of funny in this.

Discuss.

I'm not feeling especially well today, but dragged myself into work anyway. I have a terrible schedule this week, three opens! Ick! Tonight though, I get to go home and watch the finale of BattleStar Galactica with H. It's gonna be so awesome--they have a lot of 'splainin to do!
Work is already a bummer. I had to take care of the weekend voicemails, which is my most hated of all mails. Plus no one checked it on Saturday so that means even more work for me. Some guy left a 10 minute message complaining about our website. What a maroon!

So I was talking to H about his computer. His set-up is pretty sweet. I said "Hey man, your set-up it sweet!"

"Set up?" He asks?

"Yeah, your computer and everything. There's no real word for that."

"No, but there should be." he says. And he's right.

How come we don't have any cool, slang expressions for someone's slick computer setup or laptop? I think we should think of some. Kids, I'm all ears!!

That's right kids, I'm getting much more serious about book promotion. There is one thing, however, that I cannot do for myself. Actually there's two things I need other people to do for me. And they are:

1. Amazon book reviews.

2. A Wikipedia Entry.

Several of you have left me wonderful reviews over on Amazon. Some of you have read one or more books and haven't had a chance to leave a review. I cannot implore you strongly enough to please leave one.

As for the Wiki, you are not allowed to build or edit your own Wiki. Somebody has to do it for you. So...who wants to build my Wiki for me? It can be absolutely anyone, and I can totally help in terms of information. I just really, really need for someone to get an article on Wednesday Lee Friday started.

I know, I ask a lot of you guys. I'll remember you all when I'm famous, or at least reasonably well-known.

I need to discover some new music, which I will download for free...

Somebody recommend something good.

Alternative, Indie, Rock N Roll, Rap, even country if it's really, really good.

I want wicked beats, intelligent lyrics, smooth voices, stuff that will really knock my socks off.

Failing that, just tell me what you're listening to.

My "orange" cranberry bread does not taste or smell like orange at all. This is despite using almost a teaspoon of extract for one 2 pound loaf. How much should I be using? I wish I had some zest, but I'm not going out into a blizzard to get some. Maybe I'll just add vanilla and cinnamon and a little more extract and hope that the next one is more flavorful.

Plus, the bags I got to put the bread in are too small. Now I have to cut all the loaves in half.

I kind of need to know who all is planning to come to my New Years Eve party. I have to plan some kind of menu (which we will be doing on the cheap). So do respond to this post if you're planning to come.
We will commence at 8pm and finish sometime around 2am, I should think. I'm hoping to have a new xbox game we can all play, but who knows?

[Poll #1316502]

I honestly cannot understand how anyone could be an "undecided voter" at this point. How could a person seriously not know whether they favor a pair of right-wing religious extremist who long to continue the current regime, or a liberal intellectual bringing substantial change? I could understand (kinda) someone disagreeing with my stance on things...but being undecided? I just don't get it. I know a few people who support McCain, and while I can't stand to discuss it for fear of punching them in the face, I respect that they have the right to vote for who they want. Any undecided voters out there? I'd be very curious to know what's holding you up.

It seems to me, more in this election than past ones, that the Reds pretend to support things like stopping gay marriage and an anti-choice agenda so they can trick fundies into supporting things they would never support otherwise, like huge kickbacks for oil companies and rebuilding foreign countries before tending to our own. I don't wanna angry up my blood this early, but I wanted to say that.

Off to work this morning, I have a ton of work to do. It'll be a short week though since I'm going on a writers weekend to Clare, MI with absinthofheart this Friday. Gonna work on my serial killer since I finished editing it over 2 days at work. Well, not finished really, but edited enough that I can get in there and continue writing. I've been in kind of a slump with this story, but I'll get it. It's too scary and good to not finish.

In computer news, this 2-finger scroll thing is awesome now that I'm getting used to it.

Lunch with my Aunt/Godmother on Wednesday. It's making a bit nervous, mostly because I've put on so much weight since she has seen me last. I don't think she will judge me over it, but she may worry. As a fat person, having loved ones "worry" about me is worse than having them judge me. I hate to think I'm making anyone worry about my health; it's too guilt-inducing.

I'm in the midst of a major depressive episode. It's taking a lot out of me, and I have to be back to work on Monday, ready or not. Fie!!! I hate being a nut job sometimes...

I picked out my new phone and will be ordering it this week.
Anybody have any experience with Sony pink phones? The reviews are pretty good, and sony seems like a trustworthy enough name, but who knows how they are for phones. A 2 megapixel camera sounds pretty good for a phone.

Today is my mom's birthday. I thought about calling, but why ruin her day?

I'm looking at new computers, and refurbished Apples. I could use some guidance about some things to make sure I get, and things to avoid. Is the Applecare really worth it? Do I need it if I get a new computer?
Why is the coolest MacBook the black one, and why is it so much more expensive than the ugly white ones?
I'm looking toward 2mb of ram, at least 80 gig hard drive, CD burner, and isight.
I need also to be able to build websites because I'm long overdue on having my own site.

Will I need to buy my software again, or can I transfer it from one computer to another? I have one of those casings to put a spare hard drive in, maybe I can use that? I don't want to have to buy office and photoshop and dreamweaver all over again. it's bad enough I have to buy Final Draft.

I'm in an idea stealing mood this week...
ladyteal posted a six word story that was just delightful.
It intrigues me because I think I can write one too:

Hammers are my tool of persuasion.

Let's have it kids...spin me a tale in just six words.



Okay one more:

Wednes wants love and potato chips.

I forgot how much I enjoy this user pic. It is of me, of course, being stalked by the zombies from Night of the Living Dead. I made it myself from a pic taken by nate101000 or however that number goes. Anyway, it's the pic that Amazon has of me, so people interested in my book can check it out to see how cute I am. I forgot I uploaded it until klynnfrost found it and reminded me that it was there.

Authors of MySpace is doing a feature on me this week. It was supposed to be next week but they moved it up. On May 8th, I'll be appearing on Paranormal Women Radio, hosted by the amazing kissdbyagnome. So the book publicity is coming right along. I have a lot more pitching to do after I actually get some books in my hands.

Today is my only weekend day off. I was supposed to go out with Cindy. She wanted a tarot reading, then we were going to go out to lunch. I actually was going to tell her that I can't read for her for a while. She seems to be getting really dependent on the cards. She told me she wanted to move to a new apartment, but didn't want to move until she asked the cards first. I'm not sure why, but that seems off to me, especially since this will be her third reading this month. Does that seem like a lot? I have trouble knowing my limits with this sort of thing. Input is certainly appreciated. Anyway, it's kind of a moot point right now, as Cindy appears to be blowing me off without calling AGAIN. I don't mind telling you that my patience is wearing thin with that crap. I mean, I cleared my entire afternoon for her. She doesn't even tell me she's blowing me off, she just doesn't pick up her phone and I have to guess.

H made me some sweet bookmarks, but I can't post them because I only have them as pdfs. They are in Illustrator format with linked files, so it doesn't load properly on my computer. Believe me when I say though, that they are really nice. The front has the book cover and some info about my upcoming books (September and October, kids). The back has an excerpt from Chapter One. If you preordered your book, you'll get one as an extra special bonus gift from me.

Not one single comment in a whole freakin' week?

What? You people find me boring or something?

As you must know by now, I'm answering questions this week.
You all still have time to ask me anything about anything and get an honest response.

My dear friend lickingtoad wanteed to know the following:

1. What's your personal favorite recipie?

This is a tough one because I don't really cook with recipes. I tend to follow a basic method and then improvise depending upon my mood, who it's for, and what I have in the house. I have though, taken some Alton Brown recipes and made them my own, most notably the Puffy cookie, Waffles, and the honey cake. I tend to get pretty excited whenever I make something new and it turns out.

Little side note, I managed to get coconut fish all over the inside of my oven yesterday by dropping it.
It sucked.

2. If you could invite any historical person to dinner, whom would it be?

This is an easy one. I pick Jesus. So many people walk around today talking like they know what Jesus thinks, what he would want, and soforth. I'd like to ask the man himself what he thinks on key issues like abortion, homosexuality, drug policy, and a host of other socio-political quandaries. I'd also be interested in knowing if he'd like The Decemberists as much as I do.





Work was fine today, I chatted it up with my secret work crush, which must be becoming less secret by now. I'm pretty obvious about such things. Anyway, he says he's getting married next Saturday. Small world. My sales were really good today too, I was stoked.

Speaking of me being stoked, I am so super geeked for Rob Zombie's Halloween I can hardly stand it. It's gonna be so brutal and horrifying...I can't wait. Even those of you out there who hate horror remakes must be at least a little excited, yes? And the cast? Awesome. Have you seen the trailer yet? Well feast your eyes:

madush69 wanted to know the following:

Why is life so challenging?

The simple answer is that if life were easy, everyone would excel at it and nothing would hold any real value. Everything worth getting is worth working for, and all that stuff gives you a sense of accomplishment in the end. If it doesn't, you're getting shafted, and it's time to re evaluate.

Do you think there is a point to all of this?

Oh my goodness, yes! Your job as a human is to figure out what kind of person you want to be, and strive each day to be that person. The "point" is to do as well as you can, and not give up because things don't go your way the first 20 or 30 times. If I'd given up looking for a job, I wouldn't have found this one. If I'd given up on men after dating an abusive drunk, I never would have met H. If I'd stopped trying to eat right and excersize because I'm already fat...well, you get the idea.






As for me, my work day was nice. My secret work-crush was most talkative today, so that was nice. I brought in cookies for the office, and they were much appreciated. I also wore a new dress to work, which one of the women kidded was "all virginal and white". I was like, "Yeah, it's white all right..."

Oh, and an old college chum just found me via Email. I love catching up with people.

More answers later...

Whoo freakin' whoo. Two whole days off for me.

Work is still pretty hard. Every time I go in there's some new thing I have to learn and I'm having some difficulty keeping it all straight. For those of you who are wondering, I have never--not once gone into work high or after smoking at all for at least 8 hours. It's just that there is a lot to know and my poor addled brain is having trouble. I always wanted a job that paid more money. It turns out you have to work harder and remember more stuff in order to get it.

All hell is breaking loose on Big Love and I wonder if anyone can be as dumb and short sighted as Nikki. Albee is getting so evil, as is Frank. I can't wait to see what happens in the season finale. Methinks Old Roman's life will be hanging by a thread. Oh, and Rhonda can fuck right off with her annoying little vibrato singing voice. I don't care if she is the girl from The Ring, she's a jerk!

So I guess Stephen King went to a bookstore in Australia and thought he'd sign a few books. Apparently they thought he was a vandal and tried to throw him out. I'm gonna try just nonchalantly walking into a bookstore and signing some books sometime. Maybe I'll wait until my own book comes out.
Speaking of which, it doesn't look like I'll be doing any book signings at Borders. They are too high falutin' to do signings from houses that do E-publishing. So I guess they are about as short sighted as Nikki, since E-books are only getting bigger. Besides, I was only gonna sign the paperbacks anyway. So I officially hate Borders now. Okay, I don't, but I'm miffed nonetheless.

Okay, because I love you all and I'm hard up for cool things to post about:
Ask me anything and I promise I'll answer honestly and in journal form (though it may be friends locked depending on content) That's right kids, it's your chance to ask me absolutely anything. Limit of two questions per person so I don't run out of honesty. Want to know how I got my scar? Why I'm so cute? What color eyes my latest crush has? Of course not, all those things are boring. I'm sure you all have REAL questions for me!

I am a Nigella What Flower Are You?

I went crazy online shopping for the wedding. I bought a few more cameras so we are sure to have enough, I ordered a collectible silver sixpence (which I need, because of the poem) that I can loan to klynnfrost if she'd like. I ordered a gift for one of my caterers and the gifts for all the men (who are all getting the same slick gift). I'm also looking at a few different kinds of lingerie for the "wedding night" as they call it. I'm not much into lingerie, but I do love shopping. I still have to buy the besom (if the color swatches ever get here), the toasting goblets, and all the food and drink and accoutrements therein. I can't believe we're still within the budget, our budget is so damn small.

Today we're getting our engagement pics taken if it can stop raining long enough for us to get outside. I imagine we'll do some B&W and some color, which probably means I'll have to change clothes halfway through. I'm having engagement announcements put in the A2 news, and in the city where my mom and her husband are so they can know I'm getting married. I'm still working on whether I'm sharing my happiness with them, or rubbing my happiness in their faces. Probably a little of both, which I think is okay.

Happy Beltane for all those who celebrate. Even if you don't recognize the cross quarter holidays, it's good to know that today is the mid point between the Vernal Equinox and the Summer Solstice. Get your gardens planted if you haven't already. Myself, I'm sharing space in a friend's garden so I get all the veggies and herbs with very little work--not that I mind gardening work.

Can I ask all you married types what you did for a wedding album? Did you do it yourself? Did your photographer do it? Is it a scrapbook or a photo album? Has anyone gotten the kind that you order already printed up? Do tell, for I need input. I'm leaning toward doing it myself.

Do people who work around airplanes...mechanics and stuff...do they have to get fingerprinted for their jobs? And if so, do those prints go into the same database that law enforcement uses?

Obviously, this is for the novel I'm working on, which is terrifying.

We watched Taledega Nights: Ricky Bobby Story tonight. It had some very funny moments but also dragged in places. I think the whole Wil Ferrell/Judd Apatow team could use some fresh blood...new writers or something. I daresay it's high time Wil Ferrell branched out into something besides juvenile comedy.

Battlestar Galactica was kind of a disappointment as well. How much longer are they going to tease us with promises of Baltar getting his due? I know there was supposed to be a death, but the way all that was handled was just...expected I think. I don't like to guess what's going to happen five minutes into an episode. Nor do I care for the whole "OMG It's YOOOOOOOU!!" reveal only to tell us jack shit. PS Please resolve this Dee/Starbuck/Apollo/Sam business. It's also getting tired as hell.

We're going to try yet again to go to Cobblestone Farms tomorrow to reserve our date. I still don't know where we're going to get our cake from. I don't want to spend more than $200 including delivery, and I want about 120 slices. I guess that's a little optimistic, but it must be possible. I guess I'll have to have an average sheet cake instead of a pretty one. H is being a really good sport considering he doesn't care square one about the wedding and is paying for everything.

Ooh, does anybody know where I can get a nice, festive besom for jumping over?

Sopranos on A&E is much better than you think it will be. A lot more chicks in lingerie than I remember, and everybody says "Freakin' this" and "Freakin' that". But it's such a good show that it loses very little in the translation.

Oh, and the new season of ROME kicks every kind of ass.
Last week's ep was terribly depressing though.
I don't think we're ever going to see the Vorena again. ;-[

Ms. Friday,

Thank you for your interest in BlahBlah.net Publishing. I believe that “A Stabbing for Sadie” would be a wonderful addition to our growing catalog. Please take a moment to review our Standard Publishing Agreement at BlahBlah.net/pubagreement.html. Once a copy is “signed”, I will assign your work to an editor and add it to our production schedule. Additionally, please take a moment to register for our forums at BlahBlah.net/forums. It is a great way to get to know your fellow authors, along with the readers of our titles. If you have any questions, please feel free to post them in the forums, or email me here. I look forward to receiving the full manuscript.


It is a very small house with a diverse catalog. They do both print and down loadable novels and will be paying based on what I sell, there's no advance. I find it a bit suspicious that they've only read the first five chaps and a synopsis and chapter summary. Is that odd? Or is it average for houses of this size who do E-publishing?


Check me, I'm getting less crazy, less drug addicted, I'm getting married, now I'm getting published.
That is some kinda crazy right there.