I won!!

I did it! I wrote in a 50,000 word novel in thirty days! Okay, so it's a 51, 277 word novel, I finished it on day 29, and I mostly hate it. But it is a complete work of fiction, I wrote every day for 29 days straight, and I feel good! Woo hoo! I printed out the certificate they give you, and although I have no idea why it has squirrels on it, it makes me feel like a winner!

Now, December is for revisions...

New Moon

I saw New Moon last night. Of course I had reread the book so I could bitch about the inconsistencies. But then I was pleasantly surprised. It was not perfect, but there were less glaring errors than I expected, and definitely less than I expected. It was actually pretty good. Of course, I still have issues with the casting...I think Jasper is the best. And I want to love Robert Pattinson as Edward, because I love Edward, and would love to have the right visual, but I just don't. He's not Edward.

I was not pleased by the audience...I know it's a teen girl flick, but I went on a Tuesday to avoid that, and it didn't work. I think I am getting older, because I have very little patience for teenagers these days.

So, grade for New Moon...B+.

ennui

I, like Kurt*, am filled with ennui.

I was really struck today, starting as soon as the alarm went off, with a sense of the mundanity of life. Actually, it probably started last night, when I realized the next day was Monday. Sunday nights suck.

My thoughts aren't new or unique, and I cycle all the time. I just think, sometimes, that we're doing it wrong. You get up, you go to work, you eat dinner, you go to bed. You shop, cook, do dishes, do laundry, clean the bathroom. You do it all again next week. Now and then, if you're lucky, you get a vacation. You try to fit all the fun in you can on evenings, weekends, random vacation. Then it's back to the grind again.

And it's not even the mundanity of my own particular life. I actually think I have one of the more exciting lives in my little circle. But it still has days like today, when I feel like a rat in the race who doesn't particularly see the point of getting out of bed.

Then I got home. I brought in the mail and the groceries I bought on the way. I fed the dog. I showered. I started dinner. I was about drowning in my lassitude. Then N got home. He thanked me for doing all the mundane things. He kissed me and called me beautiful. And I remembered how blessed I really am, rat race or not.


If you don't know to what I am referring, that means you are not watching Glee. And you should be. It's sublime.

D

I have this friend, D. I wrote about him recently, and I also gave him this blog address recently.

Let me tell you a little about D and me. We met in seventh grade. I and another friend used to bug the crap out if him in math class, just to be weird. Apparently he was into it, because we became friends. All through high school we were pretty tight. We sat on the phone together while watching MTV, did Spanish class dialogues together, went to the movies together the night of the junior prom, and actually went to senior prom together. Over the years, I had some confusing feelings for him. Mostly I pushed them down. But in college it really hit me, and I told him about it. He said he felt it too! Then nothing happened. As I wrote about before, he finally told me he was gay. The world made sense again.

So, we have a long and bizarre history. That's one point. The other point is that I love him. More than almost anyone, and in a way I love very few people. He's definitely on the short list. This is in spite of the fact that we live halfwat across the country from each other and hardly ever talk or see each other. We always pick up where we left off, which is one of the things I love about him. As a person who always feels guilty about being a bad friend and not keeping in touch with people, I really appreciate someone who doesn't let that get in the way. Other reasons I love him, I can't explain. He just wiggled his way into my heart years ago, and now he's there forever.

A few weeks ago, he shared a story with me about something that happened to him, and the aftermath. It was in an e-mail. It couldn't have been an easy story to tell. And I fear I handled that badly. I replied with a bit of a scolding tone. He hasn't written back. So maybe he's mad, or maybe he's just been busy. But the fact that I think it might be a reaction to what I said means I have some guilt over it. I should have just been supportive. It's just that his story hit too close to some fears I have for him. I'm such a worrier.

Sometimes it's hard to remember that other people play by different rules than I do. Even though he is a friend, I can't judge him by my criteria. And I don't want to judge him. He is one of the smartest people I know, and he doesn't need me to rub his nose in anything. So, D, I'm sorry. I love you. I hope you are okay.

EDIT 11/16: D e-mailed me today. Yay! He wasn't upset, just bad at keeping in touch like me.

sick day

19,053 words. I can't believe I even had that many words in me, let alone still have more to say.

Today was really weird. Last night I woke up several times with stomach pain. Nothing happened other than pain, thank God, but I was so exhausted when the alarm went off that I asked N for my cell and immediately called in to work. It's totally out of character for me to do that. I actually meant to call in late, just to give myself a few more hours of sleep, but when I woke up again at one o'clock I figured it was justifiable just to stay home. I dozed until 4, then N came home soon after and we went out to dinner and to the Timberwolves game. We ate at Murray's, a fantastic steak place with an early bird special. It was especially good, being my only food of the day. The game was sad, since the T-wolves didn't only lose, but lost by a lot.

I felt super guilty about going out after calling in sick, but it was already planned. And I guess I must have really needed the sleep. And I was worried about having time to get my writing done for the day after the game, but it worled out. Of course, now I probably won't be able to sleep tonight. Blah.

boring...

I love George Lopez, but Lopez Tonight is not quite right. He has weird timing, or something. Conan, on the other hand, is cracking me up.

Over 17,000 words. Yay!

I really want to blog every day, but after writing for a few hours and before folding a load of laundry, I have no inspiration. Sorry I suck. I'll try to come up with something good tomorrow.

The Full Monty

I'm over 15,000 words, right on target. I can't believe I'm still keeping up. I know I'm only nine days in, but I'm still excited that I've been getting my words in every day. Woot!

On Saturday night we saw The Full Monty, and it was awesome! The adaptation to a musical was done really well. The actors were all great, the songs were fun, everything was great. Except that during the scene when...SPOILER ALERT - if you haven't seen the movie, you may not want to read about this...

During the scene when two of the guys realize they are attracted to each other, I noticed a certain tension in the audience. I thought it was so strange! First, we're in the Twin Cities - a liberal area. Second, it's the theater, and a musical at that. You'd think the audience would be down with a little homoerotica. But maybe it's just me.

As I'm writing this, I'm watching Will and Grace. Hee hee.

High school survey

I did this survey in June, 2006. I found it when looking for something from MySpace to repost here.

The high school senior year survey

Your senior year in High School is supposed to be "the best year of your life." Let's see how much you remember. I know for some it might be hard for you to go back that far!

1. Who was your best friend? A, L and D,of course

2. What sports did you play? Marching Band....and anyone who says it's not a sport has never done it.

3. What kind of car did you drive? 1985 gold honda accord

4. It's Friday night, where were you? football game or raising hell with the clan

5. Were you a party animal? in my own way, yeah

6. Were you in the "In Crowd"? ummm,not even close

7. Ever skip school? lots of mornings

8. Ever smoke? that's when I started

9. Were you a nerd? more of a geek

10. Did you get suspended/expelled? never

11. Can you sing the Alma Mater? no

12. Who was your favorite teacher? Jenks...a freshman teacher,but always the favorite

13. Favorite class? AP European History...we had some good times

14. What was your schools full name? Dennis-Yarmouth Regional High School

15. School mascot? Dolphins

16. Did you go to Prom? yeah, but I probably should have skipped like I did junior year...I had three different pictures taken with different friends, others in my class thought I was drunk because I acted like myself in front of them for the first time (I was a good Mormon at the time), and then I got in a fight with my best friends over drinking. All in all, I should have skipped it.

17. If you could go back and do it over, would you? I see no reason to

18. What do you remember most about graduation? making up with A (though the fight started again soon after), candy leis from Elvis' family, and thinking about it being the first time in four years that I wasn't playing Pomp and Circumstance.

19. Favorite memory of your Senior Year? there are a lot of great memories with the clan that would be better not to be published anywhere.

20. Were you ever posted up on the senior wall? no idea what this is

21. Did you have a job your senior year? babysitting and the shoe store

22. Who did you date? J and I broke up in February, there was no one serious after that until college. But R and R happened senior year.

23. Where did you go most often for lunch? cafeteria. we couldn't leave

24. Have you gained weight since then? yeah

25. What did you do after graduation? I went to Ripon College, met A....then I moved Minnesota and went to school again (which I just finished), married N

Widgets

Okay, so I really wanted to put a Nanowrimo widget on my site, and I finally figured out how to do it! Yay! Although, it's not the one I wanted, but the one I wanted did not have my accurate wordcount for some reason. Boo.

I had breakfast with a friend this morning. She used to work with me, but she quit. Boo again. Anyway, it was super fun to see her again. And I brought home a Pina Colada muffin for N, which he loved.

Tonight we're going to the Ordway to see The Full Monty. I can't wait!

Ex files

Today is Friday, and N has to work late, which is such a bummer. Of course, I'm still at work and it's almost six, but he probably won't be home until after ten. Boo!



I don't have any words in yet today, since I'm still at work. And I want to try and coordinate dinner with N, so I hope I actually do get them in today...



Comebacknikki told a funny ex story, and it made me wonder if I had any good ones. The thing is, I don't have a lot of exes. There are two people I was in actual relationships with that I didn't end up married to.



One was my high school boyfriend, J, who I still talk to every now and then. We have mutual friends, plus he's a pretty cool guy in general. N has hung out with several times, and it seems that the idea of hanging out with the guy who took my virginity makes him not even a little bit uncomfortable.



Then there's M, who I have written about before. I just realized it wasn't here, but on MySpace, so I'll go get it...Okay, here it is.


Story time:
I have this ex-boyfriend, let's call him M. (Because that's his name.) And I have been trying, in an on-again, off-again sort of way, to get back in touch with him for a number of years. See, we dated before I got back together with A and ultimately married him. He and A didn't get along. It wasn't really to do with me, but it became my issue because A was my husband...anyway, we lost touch. Then, after A died, I did talk to him a few times, but then he suddenly stopped talking to me again. In the interest of baring all here, I think he thought that I was getting back in touch so I could sleep with him. He acted like he was offended because I hadn't talked to him in so long, but I don't think he actually cares about talking to me. Because I actually did not want to sleep with him...I wanted to get back in touch with a friend. Before we dated, we were friends, and I still miss him sometimes. The M that I was friends with, that is. M the boyfriend was ..... difficult.
Okay, so here's another part. There was one time while I was in nursing school and I on-again tried to e-mail him because we were studying the illness he had in college. He didn't get back to me. I thought, Okay, maybe that's offensive or something. But then a little over a year ago I tried again, for a more amusing reason.
Backstory: D is a friend I have had most of my life. He is totally one of the best people in the world, and I love him. At certain times in my life, I have thought I was in love with him. No, I was in love with him for sure. And at one point, he said he might be in love with me too. At the time, I was dating M. Nothing happened, but there it is. When M I broke up, we talked about all this, and he sort of gave D and I his blessing, so to speak. (they had met, they got along.) But then D and I didn't end up getting together. At the time I wasn't sure why, but nothing happened the rest of that summer, and then D went to spend the semester in Spain and I went back to A. I heard, from a mutual friend, that M was upset when he heard I did not get together with D. That may not be true, but that's what the friend said.
Christmas 2006, N and I are out East, hanging out with my friends, one of whom is D, of course. All of a sudden, D decided to come out to us. I was overjoyed! He's gay! Years of wondering what exactly the deal was...and here was the answer. Cool. I thought a million things and asked a million questions. Down the road, I one day thought of M and thought that he would find it hilarious! But. No current contact info, and no one seems to know how to track him down.
So here I am, blogging about it. I don't know why it came up tonight, except that I have not been blogging lately and I needed a good story. I doubt M cares enough to know I have a blog, but I guess there's chance he could see this. Maybe I'm even hoping he will. Anyway, it's funny.

So there you go, my random ex story for the night. What's funny is that I recently gave D the address of my blog, so maybe he'll see this story. Everything's connected...

Pickles

Over 8,000 words. I'm getting pumped.

We're watching Dick and Jane. I love Jim Carrey, but for some reason this movie never appealed to me. I'm surprised, though, because it's actually pretty funny so far. I still don't like Tea Leoni. There's something weird about her.

Off to eat some pickles.

I love seniors!

7,199 words. Woot!


Another story about sports and music:

Last week, N and I went to the Timberwolves' season opener. It was fun to see the new players, and they looked better than last years' team already. They won at the buzzer too, which always makes for a good time. But the best part happened during one of the time outs.

They always have these little performances planned for the longer time outs. And one group that night was called The Timberwolves Senior Dancers. They were women in their fifties and sixties, wearing black pants and white Timberwolves sweatshirts. They danced in formation with multicolored feather boas to Danke Schoen for a few minutes. This was adorable of course. But then it got even better. The dropped the boas, took new poses and suddenly they were doing the dance to Beyonce's Single Ladies. And they were good! I was laughing out loud and cheering.

While I in no way agree with Kanye that Beyonce had the best video, EVAR, I do like to watch people imitate it. But really, if such an array of people can do such a good job doing your steps (including Justin Timberlake in drag) then how good could the original really be?

MN fun

Before I went to bed last night I got up to over 3400 words, so I'm on target after day 2. They say to write more in the first week, to make it easier later in the month, but I only had 897 the first day, so it was a lot to catch up last night.

This weekend we went to a Gophers game at the new stadium. It was really fun, although cold. I had on a long sleeve shirt, a sweatshirt, a fleece vest and my windbreaker. Then I was thinking about how 40 degrees is totally different in October than in April. Next spring, when it hits 40 degress, I'll probably be in short sleeves.

Anyway, it was fun to see the Gophers win, and to learn all the little audience participation stuff that the NFL doesn't have. Each time the Gophers scores, the crowd yells "M - I - N - N - E - S - O - T - A! Minnesota! Minnesota! Ya-a-a-ay, Gophers!" Hee hee. And I still have no idea what Ski-u mah means*, but okay. :) It's all part of the "Minnesota Rouser," which has its own entry on Wikipedia.

The best part, of course, was the marching band. They were awesome. And of course, as an old band geek, I was trying to find something to criticize. There wasn't much. They did a Halloween half time show (since it was on Halloween), and they played the theme from Ghostbusters, The Time Warp, and Thriller. During Thriller they put down their instruments and did the dance. So cute!

*I actually do, because I read the entry after I wrote that sentence. :)

November

Thanks to everyone for the comments about my surgery. My scars are almost healed, and then hopefully the whole thing will be behind me for good.



I am finally participating in Nanowrimo! I have no idea how it will work, but I did get started yesterday. Yay!

I wanted to do NaBloPoMo as well, but I forgot yesterday, so it's not an official thing this year. :(

Strangely, Monday Night Football is a good writing background. Who knew?