It's no secret that I haven't been writing lately. Not that I haven't wanted to, but usually by the typical writing hour at night, I am either fast asleep (snoring according to DH) or bleary eyed.

So today while being a whirling dirvish around the home throwing out as much crap as possible to make room for all the lovely new baby stuff, I came across my "writing box". Not that there was much in there except for five or six started notebooks. Then I decided to check out my "writing notebooks"...and that is when I made the worst discovery.

Apparently, I never printed out my 2007 NANO novel, which was one of my favorites. I must have been too busy puking or reeling from my discovery that I was pregnant. I did find out the good news three-quarters into the month. Problem is....the novel is on the desk top's hard drive, the desk top that died two months ago. Yes, my friends, not only did I write what I considered to be a good first draft of a novel....it is lost in hard drive hell.

So, if you'd be so kind....if you know how to recover it off the Nano website, that would be awesome, if that is possible at all.

And if you can't advise there....please...do share what it takes to get yourselves writing again.

Fondly,
The Grim Weaping Writer

1. Pharmaceutical companies have dumped waste into the US water supply exposing wild life and us to numerous drugs, some of which have caused deformities in fish and other animals. Infertility has also been a problem.

2. British researchers have declared that cell phones could kill more people than smoking and asbestos. Brain cancer anyone?

3. High school drop-out rates on are the rise, especially in urban areas. 24% of high school students in Detroit, Michigan graduate.

4. Teenager from Boca Raton Florida dies during plastic surgery for breast enchancement.

5. The US is more than 9 trillion dollars in debt to foreign countries. No wonder Corzine wants to sell off the NJ Turnpike.

6. Oil is over $105.00 per barrel.

7. Gas Company executives still believe that their companies are entitled to 18 million dollars in tax breaks.


Sure there will be more scary stuff this week too....

I was devastated to learn that Sir Arthur C. Clarke passed away today. Just last month I was sharing my love of science fiction with my students by teaching them "The Fun They Had", which I followed up with pictures of a Kindle to prove that Clarke was truly a visionary.

The writing world has lost one of its greats today.

Mmmmmm, I sense a trend here.
But today I'm a writing this post to expose Comcast's criminal activities here in east Bumblefuck NJ, which I love dearly. We pay $60.15 per month for Basic Cable Extended Plus so we can watch Sci Fi, History, AMC, and a few other cable channels. No premium channels. We pay this much because of where we live.

Today I got home and turned on History Channel to see an annoying scroll running across the screen stating that as of March 27th, History Channel will only be seen in digital television. This is not the first channel that we've been paying for that has moved to digital. That was TCM, which upset me.

So around dinner I get an annoying phone call about whom to call to ensure our service isn't disrupted. It turns out that Comcast is not just removing History Channel, but AMC and Cartoon Network are going too. Customer service assures me that I will not be paying more per month for my cable, but I will have to pay $4.00 extra per month for the required converters. HELLO? Won't I be paying more per month then?

I flew into a rage. Here's the condensed version. It's bullshit that our area's only cable company is moving channels to digital to "encourage" us to make the move one year before the nation's television signal is converted. BULLSHIT! At a time when so many people are having problems paying their bills, foreclosure rates are at an all time high and oil is flirting with $105.00 per barrel (because the dollar is so weak globally), how the hell does a company get off increasing their rates like this?

Yes, it's only a $4.00 difference. But that's not the point. The point is that Comcast is getting richer off their customers. You figure that if the average household doesn't have digital television and has two tvs and each household will be paying an extra $4.00.....do the math. Comcast is making a shit load of money.

So we're doing what I swore we wouldn't. A buttugly dish will be on our balcony by the end of this month. With Digital TV we'll get 100 channels, as opposed to the thirty-five we have now, and a DVR recorder for $45.00 per month. HD won't be an issue. DH and I figured we'd give it a try. At the very least we'll be saving money.

So beware of criminal cable companies. Spread the word about the bullshit. 'Nuff said.

For all you who think that the brain fog that comes with pregnancy is a farce, let me assure you that you are wrong.

Today I got to work and thought that I didn't have my cellphone. No big deal, but these little things make me neurotic lately. So I ran home and proceeded to tear about the house looking for the damn phone. Yes, I called it, but I had happened to turn it off. After pulling apart the bedroom for at least two hours, I tackled DH when he came through the front door with "Did you take my cell phone?"

Good for DH to recognize prego rage, yes there is that too, when he saw it. After assuring me that he didn't abscond my phone as some sick joke, I decided to call Verizon to see if anyone had made any calls today.

Yes, I admit it. I thought that maybe one of my little monsters at work swiped it and was gleefully making phone calls to China. This cute customer service guy (just because I'm married and knocked up doesn't mean I'm dead) assured me that no one had made any calls, but offered to suspend my service just in case. This pleased me very much, almost as much as when he said he would move up the date I can upgrade the phone if the phone was indeed stollen.

Well, he turned out to be a good luck charm. I took one last tour of the bedroom, dumped all the crap out of my purse, then proceeded to tear apart my tote bag, even thought I had checked these things at least ten times since I arrived home. Wouldn't you know that the phone was stuck in a side pocket?

So I had to call Verizon again. This time I got a female customer service rep (And no, I don't flirt with these...not my thing). She got a huge kick out of "Prego Brain" and said to wait until I got older. I don't think she was that much older than myself, but who knows? After another five minutes, my service was restored, even though the stupid suspend icon remains on the phone.

Yeesh....what a crazy night. Might as well chalk it up to the lunar eclipse.

LOL

I can't remember a time when I have attended more wakes and funeral in two months. And today, a deeply personal tragedy: my good friend who was my mentor, friend, colleague, and surrogate parent lost her battle with pancreatic cancer, which is a cruel twist of fate since my mom died of the disease in '96.

This friend published me first in an SFRA review, took me to my first science fiction/fantasy/horror convention, picked out my wedding gown, and was looking forward to being a "great aunt" to our first bundle of joy. She was often my first reader and truly believed that I "had it in me" to write.

Even though I knew this day was coming, I'm devastated.

What's worse is that so many people I know have been to as least as many funerals, wakes, and memorials as me. This has got to make you wonder.......

I've been swamped at work, backlogged by projects, papers, quizzes. I just couldn't seem to get my head above water, which was really bugging me, not to mention depleting any kind of creative juices. So I brought home sixty end of marking period projects, which I dreaded correcting since a quick glance revealed that most were horrible, and quite a few students didn't even bother to hand them in despite the fact the project was worth a double grade.

So I begged a colleague for a plastic bag at 3:35 last Friday afternoon, which is late for me to be still hangin' in our hallowed halls on a Friday. I stuffed the offensive projects in the bag and brought them home.

Yesterday was the GSHW meeting, so I took them out of my tote and packed it with my writing things. I didn't think anything of leaving the plastic bag full of projects on the floor....until today.

You see, I have this skittish cat that is terrified of people. He is also a bit emotional...and DH hasn't cleaned out the litter box regularly enough for him lately. Can you guess where this is going?

I picked up the bag this morning and was suprised to find it wet. Yes, wet. Then I got a sniff. HOLY SHIT! Have you ever heard of the dog eating the homework? Well my cat pissed on the bag of crappy projects! ROFLOL!

Do you think that my students will believe me?

Luckily, only a few were "damaged". I graded them anyway with plastic gloves. I'm just hoping that the students don't recognize the smell when I give them back tomorrow. By the way....it did take three hours to grade them. UGH...and I wanted to do nothing today!

Oh well.

Hey, let me preface this by saying I am entirely grateful for this experience. Here is a brief humorous summary of the first thirteen and a half weeks.

Things people have said.
1. "Gee, you're looking chubby."
2. "Wow, I was wondering if you two couldn't figure out how to do it."
3. When trying to find clothes..."You're a large petite? Isn't that a contradiction?"
4. At the doctor's office..."You can turn around when you're on the scale if you want so you don't see your weight." "You know that at your age you really should have an amnio done." "Don't eat cold cuts, fish, caffeine........."
5. At work..."Do you know that you are starting to waddle?" "Wow, you popped early."
6. At the pharmacist after seeing the doctor because I couldn't breathe at night..."You can't take this. You shouldn't take anything. You just have to suffer."

Funny things I've done or that have happened.
1. Waking up at midnight, or some time shortly after, NEEDING to eat.
2. Pulling out my cell phone instead of my keys and can't figure out why my car door won't unlock.
3. Scratching belly, boobs, etc..looking like a monkey...after I put on the "miracle" anti-stretch mark cream.
4. Too tired to read....or write.
5. Wicked mood swings that have me screaming at DH one moment, laughing the next, and crying at the third.
6. Did I mention how tired I am?
8. Being woken up with a major pain in the ass, both sides. Welcome to the world of sciatica.
9. Calling my mother-in-law for the first time in seven years of marriage to keep her updated since DH doesn't find it that important.
10.Feeling my abdomen stretch and imagining a little alien pushing its way around.
11.DH calls the baby "tenant". "How is the tenant doing today?" "Hello tenant."
12.Said mother-in-law already has a crib ready. Guess she forgot Baby won't arrive until July. Then said MIL says, "Are you going to have another one?" YEESH!
13. Being continually reminded that I am AMA, or advanced maternal age.

LOL ROFLOL

Cloverfield. Okay, so I know that some of you found the story cheesy or incomplete and the monster somewhat ridiculous, but one must appreciate, or should appreciate, the use of point of view.

I confess that I was one of those Blair Witch fans who enjoyed the bouncing camera and the limited point of view, which is probably why I enjoyed Cloverfield so much. The audience is thrust into a visceral experience by the limited use of a handheld camera. You run with the four friends and try to catch their breath as they do. You experience the claustrophobic twists and turns of an apartment building that rests against a sister high rise as they make their way up and down stairs that might collapse at any moment. You feel the fear as you too look down and watch the rats run between your feet away from the unknown foe in the dark. You watch the four friends try to survive in a world upside down all the while listening to that nagging feeling in your gut that Hope doesn't live here.

It's an experience that differs from most films because you are no longer an outsider looking in, you are one of the characters.

Is the story great? Not really. Are the characters likable? Somewhat. Is the ending fullfilling...I'd like to call it somewhat disturbing. But the use of point of view is unique from most of the films found in the theatres these days, and for that reason, for being unique, it's worth to see.

Best wishes for a very Merry Christmas and happy New Year to all of you! Hope Santa brings you something good! DH and I already received ours!

There has been a lot of chatter about Pullman’s His Dark Materials series since The Golden Compass hit the big screen earlier this month. The first time I saw the trailer I was intrigued. The scenery was vast and sprawling. The characters, dressed in mildly outlandish costume, spoke in their British accents further removing the American viewer from the ordinary. The storyline resonated with earlier grand epic fantasies, reminding me of childhood escapism. But being intrigued was not enough to brave the idiotic crowds that so often travel en masse to the movies.

Then we received an email from our church advising us not to see The Golden Compass because it advocated the destruction of the church and God.

Now I wanted to see it. I yanked the book from my classroom library to read.

A week later I was stunned when I learned that the book had been eliminated from a statewide reading program and that some schools were considering pulling it from their school libraries.

It amazes me how in the twenty-first century people believe that books have the power to corrupt the faithful and stir the masses into some kind of social revolt. And usually the furor begins with some one preaching the ills of a text who has not read the text themselves. We’ve seen this before with most recently, The Da Vinci Code, and earlier, Fahrenheit 451 and Brave New World.

This is a problem of literacy. To be literate today means more than having just the ability to read and write. In today’s shrinking world, a literate person must be able to distinguish the verity of a source, and identify an author’s purpose. A reader must consider an author’s view point, not adopt it blindly.

Censorship is a slippery slope. If a group condemns a text for its content, it either incites an audience, or promotes fear from its masses. What terrifies me is how often the later occurs. One would hope that a reader would derive pleasure from spending time with a text and consider the author’s viewpoint, even if it may be antithetical to his own.

This does not mean that reading a book, such as The Golden Compass would corrupt my sense of faith, or incite me to riot against the “establishment”. Only I have the power to do that, unless, of course, I was like the lemmings who follow their leader off a cliff to their death.
When we condemn one text, we cannot help but condemn others. Soon approved texts will be homogenous extensions of the current popular belief. There will be no expression of differences, examinations of cultures, and belief systems. People may lose their desire to question and grow. Even if we don’t agree with something found within the lines of words and phrases, we need to allow others access to it. Everyone has the right to be literate. Everyone has the right to make up their minds for themselves.

So I guess that The Golden Compass will stand next to Harry Potter in some minds. And across from them will stand last year’s lauded Chronicles of Narnia. I hope that readers from both sides will dare to take a step towards the other and open their minds to grander possibilities.

It's official, I just can't figure out how to download the logo. I COMPLETED NANOWRIMO! WHOO HOOOOOOO. Best of luck to my fellow writers!

Just wanted to wish all my reading and writing buddies a very happy Thanksgiving. Hope you enjoyed your turkey, stuffing, cranberries, and pie, as well as a little time to read or write! Beware of all those crazies running to retail tomorrow!

It's going to be a crazy week, one that illustrates my dual identity as writer and educator. I've been plugging away at my Nano and doing well, until tonight. Yesterday I reached 18500. It's a bit after nine and I just don't want to do it. Maybe it has something to do with going back to school.

School....this week includes calculating grades, preparing for conferences on Thursday while trying to get ready for the NCTE convention in NYC this weekend. I confess that I am cityphobic and the thought of driving in terrifies me, but I don't have too much of a choice. I paid, and that other group paid, good money for me to go. It's bad enough that I can't go on Thursday because I couldn't get the day off and it's conference night. That leaves me with Friday/Saturday/Sunday. The conference does extend till Tuesday, but I knew I'd never be able to get the time off.

And I only have a hotel room for Friday night. So I'll probably crawl home exhausted some time on Saturday afternoon. Unlike writing cons, my first activity starts at 7:00 a.m. and my latest one ends at 7:00 p.m. What's really funny is the best part about NCTE is meeting the authors, who include Holly Black this year. There are quite a few other notables, but most of which don't write genre, except someone I think is called Pierce Ridley or Ridley Peirce...probably wrong on that one.

When will I write? Don't know.

Then I said I would go with friends to a SWFA event in NYC a week from tonight...very exciting, but I will still have to get up at an icky hour to get to school the next morning, the morning my grades are due. EEK. There are not too many things worse than teaching with no sleep. It makes me an especially cranky Evil English teacher.

Mmmm... it's 9:28. I only had five hours sleep last night and I still need to write. Maybe I shouldn't have spent those hours earlier grading papers. Oh well.

Happy writing to my fellow masochistic NaNoWriMos!

Oh how I wish I went. Seeing Mamatas' and Black's photos from WFC nearly brings tears to my eyes. I told a friend that he'd better have a good time! There are so many famous genre writers there!

I didn't go because I felt it was downright wrong to ask DH if he minded that I go when yesterday was our sixth wedding anniversary. He came to Necon and survived, but I didn't have the heart to drag him to NY state for WFC. And it is our anniversary weekend. Some things just have to stay sacred.

So it's Sunday afternoon and I'm doing the Irish/English wife trying to cook Italian thing. The gravy is steeping on the stove and in a few hours I'll stuff some pasta for him. Last night after a nice romantic dinner, we went to a game store to pick up something new. I came home with a new Tomb Raider and DH got a new samurai game. A tame night, but fun.

As for my friends at WFC, all I can say is I hope you've been writing if you're a NaNo. Yesterday I reached 5000 and change, the most I've written in three months. I'm rocking! Go me! Yeah!

So enough to the posts and time to make the fingers pry open my muse's cage. Hope everyone had a good weekend!

It's 8:15 and I'm sitting in school with my witch hat and my EVIL shirt from Necon. The catch phrase of the day is "What do you mean I'm dressed up? Every other day is Halloween for me!" We'll see if the students get it. So before I start a fun-filled day with sugar-juiced adolescents, I wanted to wish you all a very Happy Halloween. May you be frightened! May you ingest as much candy as you can...it is a day to be a kid again. And don't forget, for those of you feeling under the weather and stuck at home, Halloween 1,2,3,... is on AMC all day today, so ENJOY!
BOO!

So, do you like my new pic? Thought it kinda provocative myself. Hee hee hee.
Today I took the plunge and registered for the 2007 NaNoWriMo contest. Why would I want to write 50,000 words in a month? Is it because I am insane? Is it because I am into torture? No, it's because I hope to jump start my writing. I've been stuck in sludge for a while and the last time I did this I felt my muse was liberated. So here we go...the start is in four days. Four days to decide what I am going to write. Needless to say..you'll see less of me here. I'll be too busy with school, grad school, that other group, and NaNoWriMo! LOL. Let the masochistic experience begin!

Happy Halloween!

I love a horror movie that makes me jump, scream, or gasp. And it has been such a long time since I've seen one, especially one without gratuitous sex, blood, and violence. Okay, so 30 Days of Night does have blood and violence, but more importantly is has elements of what I guess good film-making should have.

First, I haven't read the comics, or the novelization. So I came to this blind, roped in the freaky trailors and the need for Velvetta. Velveeta it wasn't.

Color and its tints are used to convey encroaching horror in the beginning of the flick. We first learn a bit about the key characters and their own personal demons, which is done subtly against a back drop of discovering odd occurances. It reminded me of Pitch Black.

Once it does go dark, the violence is upgraded. We don't see what commits the heinous acts. Instead you see blurs and you hear silence, a unique technique that is carried through the film. When you expect blood curdling screams, explosions, or cries, there is only silence. It is in the quiet parts where the action moves purposefully that you hear blood curdling shreiks.

When you do discover that yes, these are vampires, they are just foreign enough for the audience to feel disjointed. And the characters don't recognize them for what they are. This is the beauty of the film. There are maybe two vampire jokes. But the audience is keenly aware that the characters do not recognize the danger before them because the don't believe in them.

Unlike most of the recent horror flicks, the audience witnesses the surviving characters' struggles with their everyday lives, which of course, is overshadowed by looming tragedy. Even if you don't grow to care for the characters, you do feel their suspense and you may just admire the hope that they have. If they can just live through thirty days of darkness....

And did I mention I jumped? And screamed....twice. Well worth the price of admission, as inflated as that was.

Today we got the news that Frodo is diabetic. Tomorrow he will go through his first glucose test and insulin injection. DH and I are very upset and nervous, but I know that many of you have sent us well wishes, which we greatly appreciate.

If you have any tips on dealing with a diabetic cat, we'd love to hear them.

Thanks