Ellie Di Julio's Blog, page 24

What a right angle says about me

Looking around the house trying to find something to match the “diagonals” prompt for today, I realized my life is comprised largely of right angles and parallel lines. I had to remove some books from the shelf to get the above slanted look.

This probably wouldn’t mean anything to normal people. But I’m (unfortunately or fortunately) not a normal person. I’m looking for meaning in everything.

Does the subconscious insistence on right angles reflect my need for control? Does the lack of diagonal...

Is that a fork in your pocket?

As I edge nearer to the end of Transmigration of Cora Riley‘s first draft, it’s harder to write. I noticed my tendency to seize up and shy away from endings with chapters – wanting to end it on the right note – but it hadn’t occurred to me it could be a larger stuckness. It’s not that I’m afraid to finish. It’s that when the time comes to close a loop, wherever that may be, I’m overcome with the same delicious tension that strikes when I’m caught up in a good story. The same irresistible ener...

Fingers crossed

It’s been almost a year since the meltdown. Things have been hard. Things have been easy. Things have been. As we approach that anniversary, I’m wrestling with doubt and fear and paranoia. I want love to win. I’m just not sure I believe it always does.

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This post is part of Susannah Conway’s August Break 2013, a month-long, themed community photography project. I’ll attempt to keep up with the photos, but I’m mainly focusing on micro-blogging. Find out more and join t...

The reflection in the yellow mirror

Mom bought this mirror for me as a surprise the year she and I lived together after her third divorce. It hung over the couch, and I never quite trusted that it wouldn’t leap from the wall and squash me flat one night while we were watching Ghost Hunters. It’s heavy, awkward, and matches nothing any sane person would decorate their living room with. So of course it fit right in at our place.

It’s a few years later, now, and the mirror’s made the journey with me from St. Louis to Buffalo to Ham...

Spinning me around in circles, again

Between server downtime and all the writing angst I had this morning, I didn’t come up with anything witty to say about today’s prompt. I did, however, get a horrific earworm that’s been bugging me all day, which I will now pass on to you. I seriously can’t think of the phrase “around in circles” without hearing this song. You’re welcome.

Circles – Strong Bad

Circles

She’s spinning me around in circles

Again

Oh, that skinny blonde girl

Something about the ages

(Stop it, stop it!)

I failed college alg...

August Break 02: Circles

Between server downtime and all the writing angst I had this morning, I didn’t come up with anything witty to say about today’s prompt. I did, however, get a horrific earworm that’s been bugging me all day, which I will now pass on to you. I seriously can’t think of the phrase “around in circles” without hearing this song. You’re welcome.

Circles – Strong Bad

Circles

She’s spinning me around in circles

Again

Oh, that skinny blonde girl

Something about the ages

(Stop it, stop it!)

I failed college alg...

Breakfast and I are relative strangers

I hardly ever eat breakfast, a habit I’m convinced I picked up from my non-breakfast-eating parents despite their being divorced since I was five. If I do deign to take the most important meal of the day, meaning consuming something more than a caffeinated beverage the size of my skull, it’s almost always in situations where food could be scarce, whether as a result of time, money, or my own scarred psyche. Conventions, travelling, an empty bank account, visiting relatives. Then I cram my gul...

August Break 01: Breakfast

I hardly ever eat breakfast, a habit I’m convinced I picked up from my non-breakfast-eating parents despite their being divorced since I was five. If I do deign to take the most important meal of the day, meaning consuming something more than a caffeinated beverage the size of my skull, it’s almost always in situations where food could be scarce, whether as a result of time, money, or my own scarred psyche. Conventions, travelling, an empty bank account, visiting relatives. Then I cram my gul...

Pay all the bills! A massive sale to buy Ellie’s love

This isn’t a normal sale. Bear with me for a moment while I tell you a little story.

You may recall that Lino generously took over my student loan payments earlier this year so that I could quit my dayjob and focus on writing books full time.

You may also recall that I had reconstructive hip surgery two months ago requiring special equipment and preparations.

You probably saw I had to replace my computer of five years – the source of all my writing adventures – after it went supernova last week....

A body is not a lifestyle

I saw this on Facebook earlier this week, and at first I dismissed it, but the more I think about it, the more pissed off I am.

As someone who deals in words, the caption on the picture is annoying because “lifestyle” is such a vague, loose term so as to mean nothing . As an average human who processes images with incredible speed, as well as possesses higher-level functions that analyze meaning, the picture is disturbing.

On the surface, it’s like, “Yeah, okay, that’s true. My body reflects th...