Katherine Nabity's Blog, page 255
June 10, 2011
Friday Summary: Reading, Disc
Two posts over at Reading Notes this week, one on Natalie Goldberg's Wild Mind and the other about Karen Elizabeth Gordon's Torn Wings and Faux Pas. I joined #ToBeReMo, but my number of books finished will be inflated due to my way of reading. I have the habit of working through several books at once. I was probably 75% done with Wild Mind when I signed up, and 50% done with Gordon's book. Currently, my reading set up is like this: two hours in the morning to read twenty pages of I, Asimov, a chapter of a grammar book (probably will finish Sin and Syntax), write morning pages, and whatever is left over to read some other book (probably Moneyball by Michael Lewis or Joe Hill's Horns). I'm on Goodreads, btw.
Unfortunately, if I don't get writing work done, I might need to curtail my reading time.
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Had a great couple of games of disc, Wednesday and yesterday. Wednesday disc made it feel like I was finally getting back to my regular routine. Didn't play especially well (I continued to try flicks into the cross wind), but felt pretty good. I woke up yesterday to achy hands and feet. I taped up and ibuprofen-ed up and felt fine by women's league time. I still have the frustrating tendency of looking off open women because they don't look open to me. I'm working on that. My D was good. We won. When this teams shows up, we play pretty well. It would be nice to win next week too and have a(nother) rematch with the green team.
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Been thinking about love versus fun, but I'll write about that some other day.
Unfortunately, if I don't get writing work done, I might need to curtail my reading time.
---###---
Had a great couple of games of disc, Wednesday and yesterday. Wednesday disc made it feel like I was finally getting back to my regular routine. Didn't play especially well (I continued to try flicks into the cross wind), but felt pretty good. I woke up yesterday to achy hands and feet. I taped up and ibuprofen-ed up and felt fine by women's league time. I still have the frustrating tendency of looking off open women because they don't look open to me. I'm working on that. My D was good. We won. When this teams shows up, we play pretty well. It would be nice to win next week too and have a(nother) rematch with the green team.
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Been thinking about love versus fun, but I'll write about that some other day.
June 8, 2011
RoW80 - June 8th Check In
Wrote the scene Eric and I talked about. Two days to write 700-ish words is far from blazing fast, but this is me, back on the horse with a sore bum. The scene needs an ending tweak, then I'll insert it into the manuscript. I brought myself back up to speed on Divine Fire revisions and possibly figured a way around a pacing problem I was having. I still have two new scenes to write plus a transitional addition. And the other 220 pages of clean-up. Since my two-week deadline is pretty close to the end of this Round of Words, I'm going to work on Divine Fire, its revision and maybe its submission, until the end. And then I'll move back to Luck for Hire. I don't plan on taking a break. I just had a break. I have a tendency to slow down during the summer and really, I can't afford to move slower than I already am. Third round should get me through the summer.
Among Oma's jewelry was a bracelet of jade and silver shamrocks and this turtle charm. He doesn't quite go with the bracelet, but there's kind of the suggestion of a turtle crashing and blundering through foliage in that determined way turtles have. Okay, that might be me reading into things. Neither Mom nor I remember Oma wearing it, so it was probably a QVC purchase (or set of purchases) that didn't quite work out but didn't get sent back either. But turtles are kind of my thing. To anthropomorphize, they're stoic, but enthusiastic about the things they love. They are the poster animal for the forward grind, persist and prevail. They're also seen as hermits, but ones that carry home and safety with them on their backs. I like that. I needed to be reminded of these things as I move forward through the summer and through this writing career.
Click to go to Mr. Linky
Among Oma's jewelry was a bracelet of jade and silver shamrocks and this turtle charm. He doesn't quite go with the bracelet, but there's kind of the suggestion of a turtle crashing and blundering through foliage in that determined way turtles have. Okay, that might be me reading into things. Neither Mom nor I remember Oma wearing it, so it was probably a QVC purchase (or set of purchases) that didn't quite work out but didn't get sent back either. But turtles are kind of my thing. To anthropomorphize, they're stoic, but enthusiastic about the things they love. They are the poster animal for the forward grind, persist and prevail. They're also seen as hermits, but ones that carry home and safety with them on their backs. I like that. I needed to be reminded of these things as I move forward through the summer and through this writing career. Click to go to Mr. Linky
June 5, 2011
#RoW80 - June 5th PG-13 Check In
Last brief update, I swear! Tons of work will be done by Wednesday.
Got back to AZ last Wednesday. Haven't done much. Or really, anything. I'm on vacation, dammit.
Eric had an idea for a new Divine Fire scene. That novel is the second Weordan book and needs more world intro. I tweaked the placement and it's a go. Will be written tomorrow. That might kind of put me behind, but I'm not freaking out. I am relaxing. Dammit.
Been reading. Against all judgement, I joined ToBeReMo. Not quite as intense as NaNoWriMo, but still, I want to push to get some reading done. Been playing quite a bit of EQ2. Today, went to see X-Men: First Class, which is passable if you cover your ears every time they mention anything marginally scientific. Good cameos.
Click to go to Mr. Linky
Got back to AZ last Wednesday. Haven't done much. Or really, anything. I'm on vacation, dammit.
Eric had an idea for a new Divine Fire scene. That novel is the second Weordan book and needs more world intro. I tweaked the placement and it's a go. Will be written tomorrow. That might kind of put me behind, but I'm not freaking out. I am relaxing. Dammit.
Been reading. Against all judgement, I joined ToBeReMo. Not quite as intense as NaNoWriMo, but still, I want to push to get some reading done. Been playing quite a bit of EQ2. Today, went to see X-Men: First Class, which is passable if you cover your ears every time they mention anything marginally scientific. Good cameos.
Click to go to Mr. Linky
June 3, 2011
Friday's Fave Five
Where am I on the web this week? No where! It's been a quiet week.
Instead of the usual, I think I will take part in Friday's Fave Five .
Movies - Watched two while I was in Omaha. As is our tradition, my sister and I went out to a movie. Unimpressed with the choice of current releases, we headed to the second run to see Paul . While not as good as Shaun of the Dead or Hot Fuzz, it was funny, very geeky, and rather British despite its southwestern US setting. Also saw The Sorcerer's Apprentice . If you're following along at home, this is the movie Eric saw last summer when I went to see Inception. He claimed it would turn out to be the better movie. While I don't entirely agree (I maintain that the first half of Inception is pretty darn good), The Sorcerer's Apprentice is fun, uncomplicated, and has really good action sequences. And both movies were comedies. Laughing is good.Food - Had a good food day on Tuesday. Eric and I went to Imperial Palace Express, the last Omaha vestige of the chain. I had Princess Chicken. Not quite as spicy as it could have been, but still tasty. That evening, we went to Maria's. We being Mom, Dad, Eric, me and...my grandpa. While I think he has eaten some Mexican food in the past, he's not big fan. But he gamely ate a couple of Maria's bready-shelled tacos. He might even have liked them. Bonus: My mother-in-law's German chocolate cake. It was good on the first day. By the seventh, dense and rich.Air Planes - The flight back to AZ was uncomplicated. I love the feel of when the air plane takes off and lands, and when we encounter turbulence. It's exhilarating. In between, I read. Just like I do in all public transportation. There are worse ways to spend a couple hours.Coffee Pots - More specifically, my uncomplicated coffee pot. Because it's mine. Mine, at home. It makes coffee. It doesn't make cappucino or hot chocolate or fancy 5oz coffees. It makes hot, good coffee in a large quantity. And like my hard bed, it's mine. Mine, at home.Disc - Women's league was last night. I hadn't played since May 16th and had only run once while I was in Nebraska. My throws were lousy. Maybe if I would have been throwing to 6ft.+ guys with a decent ape indexes and/or good jumping ability, it wouldn't have been so bad, but our team was short and short-handed. Half of our ladies last night had less than a year of experience and we were playing against a team of athletic college girls. We lost 15-2. Yet! Disc is better than no disc, nearly any day of the week. It was good to run and throw and be away from most things.
Instead of the usual, I think I will take part in Friday's Fave Five .
Movies - Watched two while I was in Omaha. As is our tradition, my sister and I went out to a movie. Unimpressed with the choice of current releases, we headed to the second run to see Paul . While not as good as Shaun of the Dead or Hot Fuzz, it was funny, very geeky, and rather British despite its southwestern US setting. Also saw The Sorcerer's Apprentice . If you're following along at home, this is the movie Eric saw last summer when I went to see Inception. He claimed it would turn out to be the better movie. While I don't entirely agree (I maintain that the first half of Inception is pretty darn good), The Sorcerer's Apprentice is fun, uncomplicated, and has really good action sequences. And both movies were comedies. Laughing is good.Food - Had a good food day on Tuesday. Eric and I went to Imperial Palace Express, the last Omaha vestige of the chain. I had Princess Chicken. Not quite as spicy as it could have been, but still tasty. That evening, we went to Maria's. We being Mom, Dad, Eric, me and...my grandpa. While I think he has eaten some Mexican food in the past, he's not big fan. But he gamely ate a couple of Maria's bready-shelled tacos. He might even have liked them. Bonus: My mother-in-law's German chocolate cake. It was good on the first day. By the seventh, dense and rich.Air Planes - The flight back to AZ was uncomplicated. I love the feel of when the air plane takes off and lands, and when we encounter turbulence. It's exhilarating. In between, I read. Just like I do in all public transportation. There are worse ways to spend a couple hours.Coffee Pots - More specifically, my uncomplicated coffee pot. Because it's mine. Mine, at home. It makes coffee. It doesn't make cappucino or hot chocolate or fancy 5oz coffees. It makes hot, good coffee in a large quantity. And like my hard bed, it's mine. Mine, at home.Disc - Women's league was last night. I hadn't played since May 16th and had only run once while I was in Nebraska. My throws were lousy. Maybe if I would have been throwing to 6ft.+ guys with a decent ape indexes and/or good jumping ability, it wouldn't have been so bad, but our team was short and short-handed. Half of our ladies last night had less than a year of experience and we were playing against a team of athletic college girls. We lost 15-2. Yet! Disc is better than no disc, nearly any day of the week. It was good to run and throw and be away from most things.
June 1, 2011
RoW80: June 1st Check In
I update because it's update day, not because there's much to report.
Have done morning pages every day this week. Did some work on the short story. Sent Model Species out to a couple agents; bringing my submission total for May to five. There are two short story markets that have reading periods in June; it will just be a matter of getting those stories out the door.
Mantra: I have two weeks to finish up work on Divine Fire. There is a tad bit more to RoW80 than that. I'm not behind, but I'm not ahead either.
Also, sorting through Tessa's website and in order to set up a non-Flash version. She's using a hosting site that helps you build uber-spiffy Flash sites...that can't be viewed on Apple mobile products. Not a great situation for a budding entrepreneur.
Heading back to AZ today. It will be good to be back home. Somehow, I need to avoid becoming over-whelmed by things that need to be done. The trick is to keep breathing.
Have done morning pages every day this week. Did some work on the short story. Sent Model Species out to a couple agents; bringing my submission total for May to five. There are two short story markets that have reading periods in June; it will just be a matter of getting those stories out the door.
Mantra: I have two weeks to finish up work on Divine Fire. There is a tad bit more to RoW80 than that. I'm not behind, but I'm not ahead either.
Also, sorting through Tessa's website and in order to set up a non-Flash version. She's using a hosting site that helps you build uber-spiffy Flash sites...that can't be viewed on Apple mobile products. Not a great situation for a budding entrepreneur.
Heading back to AZ today. It will be good to be back home. Somehow, I need to avoid becoming over-whelmed by things that need to be done. The trick is to keep breathing.
May 29, 2011
RoW80: May 29th Check In
Shorty-short update:
Did some research for a short story I might write for an anthology.
Did morning pages today. I intend to do them every day this week.
Also intend to get some submissions out this week. I do believe I have all the necessary documents on my flash drive.
None of these is exactly RoW80 goals. It's not a good excuse, but I'm on other people's computers and it's been a really disconcerting few weeks. Itching to finish work on Divine Fire and get back to work on Luck for Hire. I'll get back to AZ Wednesday evening.
Catch up with other RoW80ers via Mr. Linky!
Did some research for a short story I might write for an anthology.
Did morning pages today. I intend to do them every day this week.
Also intend to get some submissions out this week. I do believe I have all the necessary documents on my flash drive.
None of these is exactly RoW80 goals. It's not a good excuse, but I'm on other people's computers and it's been a really disconcerting few weeks. Itching to finish work on Divine Fire and get back to work on Luck for Hire. I'll get back to AZ Wednesday evening.
Catch up with other RoW80ers via Mr. Linky!
May 27, 2011
Friday Summary
Where am I?
Pas de Chat finished posting this past Sunday. Still undecided on whether I want to spend time cleaning it up. My sister Tessa is willing to help out with cover art (and new cover art for Lucinda at the Window), but I haven't touched base with her since Wednesday. She's working on establishing a photography business, but is willing to provide a family discount. (And I might help set up a better website for her.)My thoughts on two of the Nebula nominated novellas, including the winner, over at Reading Notes.What else am I up to?
Oma's memorial was Wednesday morning. It was less painful than I expected. Pastor Tim provided a lovely homily, my sis provided a beautiful photo for the service, and Elvis's music had me bawling. Aunts Eileen and Leona, Cousins Tim and Mike, and Mike's daughter came in *for the day* from northern Minnesota, North Dakota and Iowa. They were a comfort to my grandfather. Currently, I'm doing okay, but I'm not sure if the ramifications of Oma being gone have entirely sunk in. While walking through Gordmans today I thought that I should report back on the interesting lawn ornaments, that Oma might want to check them out. And then caught myself.
Haven't gotten back to work yet. I'm spending today at my in-law's house. Eric and I took a trip to Ted & Wally's and we're going out to dinner with my sister-in-law and her family tonight, but mostly my potential work day has been spent catching up on a few things. Getting closer to normal. It's been chilly and rainy here, weather I generally like. Yet, I find myself wishing for the heat and the dry. I'm sure I'll regret that about five minutes after we touch down in AZ.
My mom gave me her Sony eReader. I've been having some fun with that, but it makes me want a tablet PC more.
Pas de Chat finished posting this past Sunday. Still undecided on whether I want to spend time cleaning it up. My sister Tessa is willing to help out with cover art (and new cover art for Lucinda at the Window), but I haven't touched base with her since Wednesday. She's working on establishing a photography business, but is willing to provide a family discount. (And I might help set up a better website for her.)My thoughts on two of the Nebula nominated novellas, including the winner, over at Reading Notes.What else am I up to?
Oma's memorial was Wednesday morning. It was less painful than I expected. Pastor Tim provided a lovely homily, my sis provided a beautiful photo for the service, and Elvis's music had me bawling. Aunts Eileen and Leona, Cousins Tim and Mike, and Mike's daughter came in *for the day* from northern Minnesota, North Dakota and Iowa. They were a comfort to my grandfather. Currently, I'm doing okay, but I'm not sure if the ramifications of Oma being gone have entirely sunk in. While walking through Gordmans today I thought that I should report back on the interesting lawn ornaments, that Oma might want to check them out. And then caught myself.
Haven't gotten back to work yet. I'm spending today at my in-law's house. Eric and I took a trip to Ted & Wally's and we're going out to dinner with my sister-in-law and her family tonight, but mostly my potential work day has been spent catching up on a few things. Getting closer to normal. It's been chilly and rainy here, weather I generally like. Yet, I find myself wishing for the heat and the dry. I'm sure I'll regret that about five minutes after we touch down in AZ.
My mom gave me her Sony eReader. I've been having some fun with that, but it makes me want a tablet PC more.
May 26, 2011
RoW80: May 25th Check In
Still in Omaha. No progress on Divine Fire. I did take a look at an old short story and can see how I can improve it. Which I might do eventually.
The last week has been exhausting. I feel like I could sleep for a year, except that I can't seem to sleep more than about five hours. Eventually, maybe tonight, everything will catch up with me and I'll pass out.
Catch up with other RoW80 participants via Mr. Linky!
The last week has been exhausting. I feel like I could sleep for a year, except that I can't seem to sleep more than about five hours. Eventually, maybe tonight, everything will catch up with me and I'll pass out.
Catch up with other RoW80 participants via Mr. Linky!
May 22, 2011
katen @ 2011-05-22T14:22:00
Let me tell you about my grandmother.
First of all, it's Oma, not "grandmother." It's also not "Hon" as the hospice nurse was informed on Thursday. Even though her voice was hoarse and her breath was shallow, Oma clearly and quite loudly told the nurse, "I am Hildegard."
Her favorite musical artists were Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, and Elvis Presley. In fact, I think the only reason she ever bought a video disc player, and later upgraded to VHS and DVD, was so she could watch Elvis movies when she wanted. To this day, I have a soft spot for Elvis movies. She also loved polka, I taste I never developed.
She adored Patrick Swayze. One of our numerous late evening movie expeditions to the Park 4 theater was to see Point Break. She didn't care for it as much because Swayze was the bad guy.
She was an avid QVC shopper. Or at least an avid QVC orderer. The standard procedure was to order something, evaluate it a couple of days, and send it back. Still, her cupboards are full of gadgets and her jewelry box is a trove of diamonique.
We went to Crossroads and Westroads malls often. Not really to shop, but more to walk and see things. The Afternoon was always a favorite with their eclectic kitchenware. Long before World Market came to Nebraska, Oma would buy German candies from Brandeis when they had them: white confections with hazelnuts in the middle and chocolates that were cool like ice on the tongue.
I grew up a couple houses away from my grandparents, and therefore, always had an alternate dinner choice available to me. I always loved her roudaden and spaetzle and German pancakes with applesauce, but it wasn't until I moved away that I gained appreciation for lentil soup and red cabbage and spinach over potatoes with an egg on top.
She bought the Star more for the crossword puzzle than the celebrity gossip. We were doing crossword puzzles at the kitchen table the night Princess Diana died. We spent winter nights doing jigsaw puzzles, Dr. Zhivago on in the kitchen where we were working, and my grandpa watching a bowl game in the other room even though he wasn't a football fan. Sometimes, she would stay up all night finishing a puzzle.
Through more persistence than green-thumb, she planted beautiful flower beds. Two attendants from the funeral home came today, a big burly guy and a petite but strong woman, both younger than me. As my mom and grandpa where saying their last goodbyes to Oma, the woman asked about the flower beds. "There's so many pretty things," she said.
I want to remember all the pretty things and not the last year. And I wish you all would have known Oma so you would remember her too.
First of all, it's Oma, not "grandmother." It's also not "Hon" as the hospice nurse was informed on Thursday. Even though her voice was hoarse and her breath was shallow, Oma clearly and quite loudly told the nurse, "I am Hildegard."
Her favorite musical artists were Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, and Elvis Presley. In fact, I think the only reason she ever bought a video disc player, and later upgraded to VHS and DVD, was so she could watch Elvis movies when she wanted. To this day, I have a soft spot for Elvis movies. She also loved polka, I taste I never developed.
She adored Patrick Swayze. One of our numerous late evening movie expeditions to the Park 4 theater was to see Point Break. She didn't care for it as much because Swayze was the bad guy.
She was an avid QVC shopper. Or at least an avid QVC orderer. The standard procedure was to order something, evaluate it a couple of days, and send it back. Still, her cupboards are full of gadgets and her jewelry box is a trove of diamonique.
We went to Crossroads and Westroads malls often. Not really to shop, but more to walk and see things. The Afternoon was always a favorite with their eclectic kitchenware. Long before World Market came to Nebraska, Oma would buy German candies from Brandeis when they had them: white confections with hazelnuts in the middle and chocolates that were cool like ice on the tongue.
I grew up a couple houses away from my grandparents, and therefore, always had an alternate dinner choice available to me. I always loved her roudaden and spaetzle and German pancakes with applesauce, but it wasn't until I moved away that I gained appreciation for lentil soup and red cabbage and spinach over potatoes with an egg on top.
She bought the Star more for the crossword puzzle than the celebrity gossip. We were doing crossword puzzles at the kitchen table the night Princess Diana died. We spent winter nights doing jigsaw puzzles, Dr. Zhivago on in the kitchen where we were working, and my grandpa watching a bowl game in the other room even though he wasn't a football fan. Sometimes, she would stay up all night finishing a puzzle.
Through more persistence than green-thumb, she planted beautiful flower beds. Two attendants from the funeral home came today, a big burly guy and a petite but strong woman, both younger than me. As my mom and grandpa where saying their last goodbyes to Oma, the woman asked about the flower beds. "There's so many pretty things," she said.
I want to remember all the pretty things and not the last year. And I wish you all would have known Oma so you would remember her too.
May 18, 2011
#RoW80 - May 18th Check In
My grandmother's health has deteriorated rapidly in the last week and a half. I moved my trip to Omaha from next Wednesday to yesterday (Tues, 5/17). I spent Monday and Tuesday morning cleaning, packing, and generally getting my ducks in row. (Eric was a big help in the duck organization. He called Southwest twice(!) to get our tickets straightened out. He'll be up next week.) The rest of Tuesday was spent traveling and seeing family. I narrowly averted a suitcase catastrophe and had my first backscatter x-ray at the airport. The TSA officer still had to fondle my pony-tail to make sure I wasn't packing heat in my frizz.
So, no writing progress since last week. I've brought stuff along, but the notion of getting something done is optimistic. I'd really like to get back to Luck for Hire after this Round of Words, and that should be doable since my goal is to finish this bunch of edits in two weeks and I'll have three weeks between getting back to Tempe and the end of the round. Still, I'm antsy.
And anxious and sad and a few other things.
Have a good week of writing, folks. Make it count.
