Lynn Flewelling's Blog, page 11
September 22, 2012
Today's Buddhist Quote
“If we learn to open our hearts, anyone, including the people who drive us crazy, can be our teacher.”
― Pema Chödrön
― Pema Chödrön
Yarn Therapy
No matter how crazy life gets, or perhaps because life is crazy, I've been sanity knitting every chance I get.
Got a beautiful lace scarf on the needles that's coming along slowly because I find fine lacework difficult not to screw up. But the yarn, String Theory's Caper Lace, is luscious, a teal/turquoise lace weight made of merino, and cashmere, and nylon. Got it at String Theory in Blue Hill, Maine. I highly recommend their hand dyed yarns! http://www.stringtheoryyarn.com/home.php?cat=7
But my current obsession is the "potato chip scarf". It's basically a spiral and requires very little brain power to do. It's a free pattern, so I'll pass it along here.
With worsted and a size 9 or 10 16" circular needle, cast on 20 stitches.
Knit 8. Turn and knit back.
Knit 6. Turn and knit back.
knit 4. Turn and knit back.
Knit across.
Repeat to desired length. For the short one, you'll need 200 yds. Or you can make it as long as you like!
Here are my short one, and the longer one in process. The short one was made with Malabrigo Rios "862 Piedras". The long one is in Wisdom Yarms Poems, color way #589.
Got a beautiful lace scarf on the needles that's coming along slowly because I find fine lacework difficult not to screw up. But the yarn, String Theory's Caper Lace, is luscious, a teal/turquoise lace weight made of merino, and cashmere, and nylon. Got it at String Theory in Blue Hill, Maine. I highly recommend their hand dyed yarns! http://www.stringtheoryyarn.com/home.php?cat=7
But my current obsession is the "potato chip scarf". It's basically a spiral and requires very little brain power to do. It's a free pattern, so I'll pass it along here.
With worsted and a size 9 or 10 16" circular needle, cast on 20 stitches.
Knit 8. Turn and knit back.
Knit 6. Turn and knit back.
knit 4. Turn and knit back.
Knit across.
Repeat to desired length. For the short one, you'll need 200 yds. Or you can make it as long as you like!
Here are my short one, and the longer one in process. The short one was made with Malabrigo Rios "862 Piedras". The long one is in Wisdom Yarms Poems, color way #589.
Radio Silence
Dear Friends,
Sorry to have been so quiet lately. As you might guess, I've been a bit overwhelmed by school, though in a very good way. But it's been a huge shift, and I'm trying to recalibrate to keep up with my old patterns, too.
I'm also having trouble finding things to write about. I'm awash in Freud, Jung, Rogers, and so many other theorists and schools of therapy. So far my favorite part of the program is the Process class, in which we actually practice therapy skills on each other. Between now and our next on campus segment, I have to conduct four "dyads", which is basically pairing off with another person under controlled conditions and spending 30 min. listening and reflecting back to then what you are hearing. It's a listening exercise, rather than therapy, but you still learn a lot about the other person. I've done one so far, and it's surprisingly difficult to listen without offering advice!
Meanwhile, Alec and Seregil are up to their old tricks on Kouros with the help of some familiar faces.
On the home front, the dogs are driving us crazy. Much pack behavior of barking and running. They've been hard on the furniture, too. Three is too many (there, I said it) but I love each of them too much to give away. *sigh*
Sorry to have been so quiet lately. As you might guess, I've been a bit overwhelmed by school, though in a very good way. But it's been a huge shift, and I'm trying to recalibrate to keep up with my old patterns, too.
I'm also having trouble finding things to write about. I'm awash in Freud, Jung, Rogers, and so many other theorists and schools of therapy. So far my favorite part of the program is the Process class, in which we actually practice therapy skills on each other. Between now and our next on campus segment, I have to conduct four "dyads", which is basically pairing off with another person under controlled conditions and spending 30 min. listening and reflecting back to then what you are hearing. It's a listening exercise, rather than therapy, but you still learn a lot about the other person. I've done one so far, and it's surprisingly difficult to listen without offering advice!
Meanwhile, Alec and Seregil are up to their old tricks on Kouros with the help of some familiar faces.
On the home front, the dogs are driving us crazy. Much pack behavior of barking and running. They've been hard on the furniture, too. Three is too many (there, I said it) but I love each of them too much to give away. *sigh*
September 9, 2012
First Day of School
It feels so weird to say "I'm starting school tomorrow" and not be on the teaching side of the equation. But here I am in the dorm, poring over the readings for tomorrows first class and wondering if I brought the right clothes.
I'm still working to find a good balance between novel writing and student work. Both are pretty demanding and I need to partition my time. And be less of a Type A perfectionist over achiever, says Doug, the college professor who knows me all too well.
A friend of mine posted this to FB today. I like it a lot.
"A good life is when you assume nothing, do more, need less, smile often, dream big, laugh a lot and realize how blessed you are."
I'm still working to find a good balance between novel writing and student work. Both are pretty demanding and I need to partition my time. And be less of a Type A perfectionist over achiever, says Doug, the college professor who knows me all too well.
A friend of mine posted this to FB today. I like it a lot.
"A good life is when you assume nothing, do more, need less, smile often, dream big, laugh a lot and realize how blessed you are."
September 7, 2012
Guest Blogger: Morgan Keyes
Many thanks to Lynn, for allowing me to visit and tell you about my middle grade fantasy novel, Darkbeast. Due to the generosity of my publisher, Simon & Schuster, I will give away a copy of Darkbeast to one commenter chosen at random from all the comments made to this post by 11:59 p.m. EDT tomorrow night.
In Darkbeast, twelve-year-old Keara runs away from home rather than sacrifice Caw, the raven darkbeast that she has been magically bound to all her life. Pursued by Inquisitors who would punish her for heresy, Keara joins a performing troupe of Travelers and tries to find a safe haven for herself and her companion.
Darkbeast, the novel, has its roots in a short story that I wrote for an anthology edited by Julie Czerneda. The rules for the anthology were fairly wide open – the only requirement was that every fantasy story had to have a child and an animal. It didn't take me long to meet Caw, to invite him into Keara's story, and to build the world where Darkbeast now transpires.
But as I wrote the more complex novel, I started to think a lot about darkbeasts. I understood what they were, how they functioned. I knew that they took on the evil thoughts and bad deeds of their companions, that children brought their mistakes to their darkbeasts. In exchange for confession, the children were forgiven, sent back into the world with a figurative clean slate.
Darkbeasts are, by definition, charismatic – they have a unique charm that pulls their children to them. They inspire their humans to divulge deep secrets, to share great shames. They embody a psychic bond. Caw, an attractive raven, fit that description perfectly.
And yet, most children are eager to be shed of their darkbeasts. They want to forget the mistakes they've made, the various ways that they have stumbled amid society's expectations. Keara is special because she loves her darkbeast.
I started to consider what other animals would serve as darkbeasts. What creatures would best reflect the negative emotions passed on by their humans? What beasts would embody all those bad feelings and thoughts? What animals were most likely to be pressed into service for the role of "scapegoat"?
Spiders. Lizards. Toads. Snakes.
Before long, I had carved out literary space for over a dozen darkbeasts – each one more disliked than the last. The animals' inherent lack of charisma drove home their religious function. The children's distaste for their animals made even more sense. The novel allowed me to be more subtle, more complex than I could be in the short story.
When Keara spares Caw, she sets herself on a new journey, traveling literal and figurative paths that she's never crossed before. As part of her growth, she finds herself meeting other darkbeasts, grappling with her some instinctive dislike or – in the case of snakes, for example – outright revulsion. Her story is, in part, a recounting of how she deals with those emotions.
What about you? You can discover your darkbeast here:
http://www.morgankeyes.com/?page_id=17
What do you think of your animal companion?
Morgan can be found online at:
http://www.morgankeyes.com
http://www.facebook.com/morgan.keyes.author
Darkbeast is for sale in bricks-and-mortar and online bookstores, including: Amazon | B & N | Indiebound
Morgan Keyes grew up in California, Texas, Georgia, and Minnesota, accompanied by parents, a brother, a dog, and a cat. Also, there were books. Lots and lots of books. Morgan now lives near Washington, D.C. In between trips to the Natural History Museum and the National Gallery of Art, she reads, travels, reads, writes, reads, cooks, reads, wrestles with cats, and reads. Because there are still books. Lots and lots of books.
In Darkbeast, twelve-year-old Keara runs away from home rather than sacrifice Caw, the raven darkbeast that she has been magically bound to all her life. Pursued by Inquisitors who would punish her for heresy, Keara joins a performing troupe of Travelers and tries to find a safe haven for herself and her companion.
Darkbeast, the novel, has its roots in a short story that I wrote for an anthology edited by Julie Czerneda. The rules for the anthology were fairly wide open – the only requirement was that every fantasy story had to have a child and an animal. It didn't take me long to meet Caw, to invite him into Keara's story, and to build the world where Darkbeast now transpires.
But as I wrote the more complex novel, I started to think a lot about darkbeasts. I understood what they were, how they functioned. I knew that they took on the evil thoughts and bad deeds of their companions, that children brought their mistakes to their darkbeasts. In exchange for confession, the children were forgiven, sent back into the world with a figurative clean slate.
Darkbeasts are, by definition, charismatic – they have a unique charm that pulls their children to them. They inspire their humans to divulge deep secrets, to share great shames. They embody a psychic bond. Caw, an attractive raven, fit that description perfectly.
And yet, most children are eager to be shed of their darkbeasts. They want to forget the mistakes they've made, the various ways that they have stumbled amid society's expectations. Keara is special because she loves her darkbeast.
I started to consider what other animals would serve as darkbeasts. What creatures would best reflect the negative emotions passed on by their humans? What beasts would embody all those bad feelings and thoughts? What animals were most likely to be pressed into service for the role of "scapegoat"?
Spiders. Lizards. Toads. Snakes.
Before long, I had carved out literary space for over a dozen darkbeasts – each one more disliked than the last. The animals' inherent lack of charisma drove home their religious function. The children's distaste for their animals made even more sense. The novel allowed me to be more subtle, more complex than I could be in the short story.
When Keara spares Caw, she sets herself on a new journey, traveling literal and figurative paths that she's never crossed before. As part of her growth, she finds herself meeting other darkbeasts, grappling with her some instinctive dislike or – in the case of snakes, for example – outright revulsion. Her story is, in part, a recounting of how she deals with those emotions.
What about you? You can discover your darkbeast here:
http://www.morgankeyes.com/?page_id=17
What do you think of your animal companion?
Morgan can be found online at:
http://www.morgankeyes.com
http://www.facebook.com/morgan.keyes.author
Darkbeast is for sale in bricks-and-mortar and online bookstores, including: Amazon | B & N | Indiebound
Morgan Keyes grew up in California, Texas, Georgia, and Minnesota, accompanied by parents, a brother, a dog, and a cat. Also, there were books. Lots and lots of books. Morgan now lives near Washington, D.C. In between trips to the Natural History Museum and the National Gallery of Art, she reads, travels, reads, writes, reads, cooks, reads, wrestles with cats, and reads. Because there are still books. Lots and lots of books.
August 10, 2012
Today's Best Typo
When they were finished and had taken the bowls and spoons back, they found themselves at noose ends.
I really need a hot weather icon
It's 107F and we have black clouds, thunder, and a spattering of rain, plus sudden bursts of strong wind that pass as abruptly as they appear. May have been micro bursts. We now know that Zoe is freaked out by thunder, though not badly.
Spent a little while outdoors and that was quite enough. Plays havoc with my asthma, which on top of my lung thing that I'm on antibiotics for, not a good thing.
I have the AC set to a higher temp due to the flex alert, but remembered that we bought a nice fan last year and dug it out of the garage. Jackson highly approves (and makes a darn good windbreak too!)
Today's work tea is ice water!
Spent a little while outdoors and that was quite enough. Plays havoc with my asthma, which on top of my lung thing that I'm on antibiotics for, not a good thing.
I have the AC set to a higher temp due to the flex alert, but remembered that we bought a nice fan last year and dug it out of the garage. Jackson highly approves (and makes a darn good windbreak too!)
Today's work tea is ice water!
Heat Continues
No end in sight to triple digit heat, according to my iPhone weather app. The state has issued a flex alert: turn off all unnecessary lights, don't use any appliances until after 6 pm, set thermostat to 78F. ANd I've given the power company the ability to turn off my AC remotely when things get too bad.
Looks like a Panera work day. They keep that place like a refrigerator. Sometimes I wonder if they do that to keep people from lingering too long. HA! i haz sweater!
Looks like a Panera work day. They keep that place like a refrigerator. Sometimes I wonder if they do that to keep people from lingering too long. HA! i haz sweater!
Another Meme
Color of the pants you have on + last thing you ate = band name.
Mine is currently "No Pants Coffee"
Mine is currently "No Pants Coffee"
Me Math Major Not
I am totally baffled. Any math whizzes here?
