A.J. Lauer's Blog, page 12
July 2, 2014
IWSG - July
This post is part of the Insecure Writer's Support Group, a bloghop dedicated to writers supporting one another through this crazy thing called 'being a writer'. So... Haven't blogged since last month's IWSG.. Yeah.. C'est la vie en ete.
My little IWSG contribution is a moment of being glad for things like IWSG and Blog Blitz, and WRiTE CLUB (click on newer posts to read the first couple bouts! Good stuff!) because they help me feel like I'm still connected to the writing community even when I don't have the time or energy to be actively working on my current WsIP (is that the correct pluralization of WIP? help me out folks!).
Most of my writing activity during the last month has been about reading. I read a LOT during the summer and I figure that devouring books is a good way to work on my skillz, right? Right.
How about y'all? How are your summer writing/reading projects going?
June 4, 2014
IWSG - June
This post is part of the Insecure Writer's Support Group, a bloghop dedicated to writers supporting one another through this crazy thing called 'being a writer'. Just a quick IWSG today before I get going on work... This is my busy season at my Day Job so I tend to spend a lot of time just daydreaming about writing rather than actually doing it. Word and creativity output become very difficult when I'm working 60 hour weeks, ya know? (though I'm sure there are those of you who do it and I bow in awe your willpower. My brain is just too fried to do any more). As I'm seeing my WIP 'last update' date disappear from the rearview mirror, I find myself daydreaming of a different way of life.
For those of you with Day Jobs, do you ever think about what it would be like to just quit and write full-time? Or, write and be a stay at home parent, or write and maybe go back to school? That's kind of part of the dream, right? To be able to live off the writing that we love doing. It's kind-of scary too though. For those of you who have done it, how did you make the leap? Did you wait until you hit a certain income from your writing before quitting your Day Job, or was it a realization that you couldn't achieve a workable writing income while spending 40+ hours per week doing something else?
Don't get me wrong - I love my Day Job. But during busy season, I really miss being able to write, to blog, to read others' posts. I find myself in a place of 'figuring things out' this summer. There's definitely part of me that wants to make a leap, but I also love what I do here. Is there a way to balance it all?
May 5, 2014
A to Z Reflections!
April 2014.. What a month! What a month...
Y'all, life decided it was not going to be put on hold for April A-Z! Between a cold, travel for work, a 1,500 person event to run, and my whole family descending on us for the last week of April, it's been... a bit nuts. I'll be honest - there were a couple days I wasn't sure I was going to make it through A-Z, even though I was a co-host. But I did! Z was realllly late, but it all got written, all the emails were answered, and I survived.
Some thoughts..
* There is this beautiful thing called CTRL+F or APPLE+F that allows you to find things (hence, F) on a webpage. After a month of answering the A-Z info email, I feel like this advice should be blinking on every co-host's forehead, blog header, post, etc. My amusement with how many times I was asked how to find someone on the list brought my husband to start suggesting A-Z blog post titles: "Awesome! Ctrl+F lets me find myself on the list!" "Boy, oh boy that ctrl+F sure is useful!" "Ctrl +F - your best friend", etc. Lookout folks, it just might happen next year!
* Being a co-host is a BUSY thing to do! But it's also pretty awesome and totally worth it. The co-host team (as you probably know by now) is full of some rockin' people, with cool ideas and great blog content. It's been fun to be a part of the team.
* As a sub-note to the being busy part (and also the life-chaos part), I didn't get to visit as many people as I wanted to this year. I'm hoping to remedy that a bit with the Road Trip and visiting some Reflections posts this week.
* It's fun to teach people how to use Twitter chats! I had a great time chatting with everyone, especially our regulars. Much cake and caffeine were had by all :)
* My wHooligans were absolutely essential to my survival this month! They were my boots on the ground when life got crazy, so thank you so much to Tamara, Shilpa, Elsie, LuAnn, Kripali, and Helen!
I was pretty impressed with the posts this year. They made me laugh, taught me things, that took me to new worlds, and a few that made me tear up a bit. I think that's the best thing about A-Z: finding folks that make you think in a new way, even if for just one letter. It's an inspirational Hop to be a part of!
How about you all, do you have any feedback for us? Did you write a post with reflections on A-Z? Check out the sign-up page and add your link to the list if you wrote a Reflection post! We love your feedback :)
Thanks for a great month everyone!
April 30, 2014
A to Z Challenge: Zzzzzz....
This post is part of the April A-Z Blogging Challenge. This year my theme is simply, "things I know." Some posts will be informational, some about life lessons, some about things I've learned as an author/blogger.
Zzzzz..... Getting enough sleep is SO important! And between A-Z and everything else this April has (most helpfully) thrown my way, I haven't been doing much sleeping. Eek. But now we're finished! May starts tomorrow, and I'm off work for the rest of the week as my family is visiting. A lovely reward for surviving April :)
For those of you who finished with me, make sure to visit the A-Z Blogging homepage to get your sweet survivor badge!
And on that note, I bid this year's April A-Z adieu! Thanks for playing everyone :) I'm so glad to have met so many of you. It's been an awesome ride as a co-host but you can hear more about that during May 5th's Reflections post!
Goodnight! ZZZzzzzzzz......
Zzzzz..... Getting enough sleep is SO important! And between A-Z and everything else this April has (most helpfully) thrown my way, I haven't been doing much sleeping. Eek. But now we're finished! May starts tomorrow, and I'm off work for the rest of the week as my family is visiting. A lovely reward for surviving April :)
For those of you who finished with me, make sure to visit the A-Z Blogging homepage to get your sweet survivor badge!
And on that note, I bid this year's April A-Z adieu! Thanks for playing everyone :) I'm so glad to have met so many of you. It's been an awesome ride as a co-host but you can hear more about that during May 5th's Reflections post!
Goodnight! ZZZzzzzzzz......
April 29, 2014
A to Z Challenge: Yogurt!
This post is part of the April A-Z Blogging Challenge. This year my theme is simply, "things I know." Some posts will be informational, some about life lessons, some about things I've learned as an author/blogger.
It's been a couple days since a food post!
Yogurt is one of the best creations in the world. And, cultures (haha, ha) from all over the world have their own kinds of yogurt, which makes it not only wonderful, but also universal. I believe that everyone should find some kind of yogurt that they enjoy. It's great for your gut and tasty in many contexts - plain with pb and raisins, in cucumber dressing, baked into muffins... Mmm...
Is there a food you believe everyone should eat?
It's been a couple days since a food post!
Yogurt is one of the best creations in the world. And, cultures (haha, ha) from all over the world have their own kinds of yogurt, which makes it not only wonderful, but also universal. I believe that everyone should find some kind of yogurt that they enjoy. It's great for your gut and tasty in many contexts - plain with pb and raisins, in cucumber dressing, baked into muffins... Mmm...
Is there a food you believe everyone should eat?
April 28, 2014
A to Z Challenge: X-mas
This post is part of the April A-Z Blogging Challenge. This year my theme is simply, "things I know." Some posts will be informational, some about life lessons, some about things I've learned as an author/blogger.
A mini-rant for you, because it's the end of A-Z, and I'm kind of tired, and this is something that really bothers me.
X-mas is a perfectly ok abbreviation for Christmas.When I use it, it's not in an effort to take Christ out of Christmas, or to impose some atheist/secular beliefs on others (you have to have them to impose them on others), or to participate in the "War on Christmas." It's mostly because I'm lazy. But also, this qualifies in my 'things I know' category because actually, Xmas started as an abbreviation used BY Christians. The X represents the Greek letter chi, which is the first part of Christ's name when written in Greek. So, ha. In the game of semantics, I win.
I could say that that's why I use it, but really, really people, it's because I'm lazy. And I think that's why most people do it. So please let's stop arguing about it! The effort to explain this negates the energy I saved by being lazy and not typing out the whole beginning of the word in the first place.
So there's my mini-rant. I'll come up with something nicer for Y tomorrow :)
What are you feeling rant'y about?
A mini-rant for you, because it's the end of A-Z, and I'm kind of tired, and this is something that really bothers me.
X-mas is a perfectly ok abbreviation for Christmas.When I use it, it's not in an effort to take Christ out of Christmas, or to impose some atheist/secular beliefs on others (you have to have them to impose them on others), or to participate in the "War on Christmas." It's mostly because I'm lazy. But also, this qualifies in my 'things I know' category because actually, Xmas started as an abbreviation used BY Christians. The X represents the Greek letter chi, which is the first part of Christ's name when written in Greek. So, ha. In the game of semantics, I win.
I could say that that's why I use it, but really, really people, it's because I'm lazy. And I think that's why most people do it. So please let's stop arguing about it! The effort to explain this negates the energy I saved by being lazy and not typing out the whole beginning of the word in the first place.
So there's my mini-rant. I'll come up with something nicer for Y tomorrow :)
What are you feeling rant'y about?
April 26, 2014
A to Z Challenge: William's Wedding!
This post is part of the April A-Z Blogging Challenge. This year my theme is simply, "things I know." Some posts will be informational, some about life lessons, some about things I've learned as an author/blogger.
I was so excited when I saw that W fell on today! Today my big brother's best friend, William, is getting married! Billy is one of those awesome guys to have as a big bro's best friend. He always actually treated me like a real person/sister and even (very kindly, and almost certainly at the behest of our parents) took me to Homecoming my sophomore year of high school.
Me: geekily excited. Billy: very proper.
Tim and Tracy just look nice hah
I am a firm believer in that there should be a little bit of embarrassment on your wedding day, so here is a picture of us (the couple on the left) and my big bro and his date on that Homecoming so many years ago.
Congratulations, Billy! And all our love and best wishes on your special day!
I was so excited when I saw that W fell on today! Today my big brother's best friend, William, is getting married! Billy is one of those awesome guys to have as a big bro's best friend. He always actually treated me like a real person/sister and even (very kindly, and almost certainly at the behest of our parents) took me to Homecoming my sophomore year of high school.
Me: geekily excited. Billy: very proper. Tim and Tracy just look nice hah
I am a firm believer in that there should be a little bit of embarrassment on your wedding day, so here is a picture of us (the couple on the left) and my big bro and his date on that Homecoming so many years ago.
Congratulations, Billy! And all our love and best wishes on your special day!
April 25, 2014
A to Z Challenge: Visitors
This post is part of the April A-Z Blogging Challenge. This year my theme is simply, "things I know." Some posts will be informational, some about life lessons, some about things I've learned as an author/blogger.
The purpose of having visitors is to get the house clean.This is what mom used to tell us about having friends come to stay. We'd whine about the cleaning necessary to prepare the house for their arrival, and she'd say, "My mom always told us that the purpose of having visitors is to get the house clean!" And we'd whine and whine, but we'd do it. I think we were afraid that if we didn't get it clean enough we wouldn't get to have the visitors.
Now, as a home owner (and an adult?) I have come to pretty thoroughly appreciate this sentiment. Having the house clean is soothing to me, and when we make sure to clean top to bottom before having people over the cleanliness of the house is one less thing to worry about. It lets me enjoy our visitors without fretting about the house.
My whole family is coming to visit next week, so guess what we're doing this weekend? Yuuup... Cleaning ALL the things!
What are y'all doing this weekend?
The purpose of having visitors is to get the house clean.This is what mom used to tell us about having friends come to stay. We'd whine about the cleaning necessary to prepare the house for their arrival, and she'd say, "My mom always told us that the purpose of having visitors is to get the house clean!" And we'd whine and whine, but we'd do it. I think we were afraid that if we didn't get it clean enough we wouldn't get to have the visitors.
Now, as a home owner (and an adult?) I have come to pretty thoroughly appreciate this sentiment. Having the house clean is soothing to me, and when we make sure to clean top to bottom before having people over the cleanliness of the house is one less thing to worry about. It lets me enjoy our visitors without fretting about the house.
My whole family is coming to visit next week, so guess what we're doing this weekend? Yuuup... Cleaning ALL the things!
What are y'all doing this weekend?
April 24, 2014
A to Z Challenge: Underwear
This post is part of the April A-Z Blogging Challenge. This year my theme is simply, "things I know." Some posts will be informational, some about life lessons, some about things I've learned as an author/blogger.
Underwear should be sturdy.I am an active lady. Even when I'm not actually working out or playing outside, I'm moving around. Heck, even when I'm sitting in a meeting, I'm usually squirming a bit! So. Underwear should be something that I can put on in the morning and not think about for the rest of the day. Underwear should not go into cracks (either intentionally or not), slip down, shift, bunch, pinch, pull or sag. It should go on and stay where I put it. And to do that it needs to be a bit sturdy. If I should, for example, decide to go for a walk over lunch, I shouldn't have to think, "oh but I don't want my cheeks to rub on my pants in an uncomfortable manner." No. I want to think, "it's a beautiful day. Let's go!" It doesn't need to be granny undies, or boy shorts (though those tend to bunch, anyway. I've got curves, yo). Just something that is going to do its job. This is not to say that frilly, lacy things don't have their place. They do. I just don't need them in my everyday life.
And, please don't call them panties. :)
There you go, a bit of TMI for your Thursday.
Underwear should be sturdy.I am an active lady. Even when I'm not actually working out or playing outside, I'm moving around. Heck, even when I'm sitting in a meeting, I'm usually squirming a bit! So. Underwear should be something that I can put on in the morning and not think about for the rest of the day. Underwear should not go into cracks (either intentionally or not), slip down, shift, bunch, pinch, pull or sag. It should go on and stay where I put it. And to do that it needs to be a bit sturdy. If I should, for example, decide to go for a walk over lunch, I shouldn't have to think, "oh but I don't want my cheeks to rub on my pants in an uncomfortable manner." No. I want to think, "it's a beautiful day. Let's go!" It doesn't need to be granny undies, or boy shorts (though those tend to bunch, anyway. I've got curves, yo). Just something that is going to do its job. This is not to say that frilly, lacy things don't have their place. They do. I just don't need them in my everyday life.
And, please don't call them panties. :)
There you go, a bit of TMI for your Thursday.
April 23, 2014
A to Z Challenge: TED Talks
This post is part of the April A-Z Blogging Challenge. This year my theme is simply, "things I know." Some posts will be informational, some about life lessons, some about things I've learned as an author/blogger.
TED Talks are a great place to encounter new ideas, but shouldn't always be taken completely as fact. I love me a good TED Talk! Often these talks are sent around as, 'look at this awesome thing that must be totally true because it was spoken about by a really smart person!' but the thing is that one of the goals of TED Talks is also to be persuasive. And so, even though there might be some amazing information contained in the Talk, you still need to use your critical thinking skills to push away some of the persuasion.
That said, here are a couple of my favorite Talks:
BUGS! And Ann-Marie Slaughter, who wrote a great article about whether it is possible to "Have it all" as a woman. (hint: we can't)
Who are your favorite speakers?
TED Talks are a great place to encounter new ideas, but shouldn't always be taken completely as fact. I love me a good TED Talk! Often these talks are sent around as, 'look at this awesome thing that must be totally true because it was spoken about by a really smart person!' but the thing is that one of the goals of TED Talks is also to be persuasive. And so, even though there might be some amazing information contained in the Talk, you still need to use your critical thinking skills to push away some of the persuasion.
That said, here are a couple of my favorite Talks:
BUGS! And Ann-Marie Slaughter, who wrote a great article about whether it is possible to "Have it all" as a woman. (hint: we can't)
Who are your favorite speakers?
