All it takes is for my wife to get sick, and suddenly life becomes a less fun place to live. Of course, some of this might be because I think I'm getting sick as well (headache, gunk in throat--all that fun stuff you'd rather I didn't post about. Though I guess I just did.) But still, when all at once I'm expected not just to work, mow the lawn, and stack the wood but ALSO make dinner and clean up, take care of the kids and my wife--that can be quite the strain. Not that I'm complaining. (Well, I am--but more about me being sick than anything else). I just want her to get feeling better.
In other news, I got a raise today. This will make my pocketbook that much happier, and I keep staring at the paycheck to remind myself how great it's going to be. Not that the raise was hugungous, but believe you me, it's gonna help.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Wood and Bugs (Not Wooden Bugs)
Got our first cord of wood this afternoon. We've been wanting to get it for some time, but that whole European trip really put a wrench into our wood scheduling, so we're behind. Such is life. We payed something like . . . $185 a cord, cut split and delivered. A second cord is on its way tonight or tomorrow. We'll probably get 2-3 more in addition to that, so if any of you out there in the Maine area read that price and winced for us, knowing of a better place for us to buy wood, speak up, dang it! Still, some of the places we called were asking upward of $250, so we feel like we're not totally getting ripped off.
Guess who's going to be stacking wood tonight? (And mowing the lawn, and going to a Ward Mission meeting, and . . . just being generally busy)
In other news, we have Mosquitoes. Lots of mosquitoes. Like, if Neo from the Matrix was in a blank white room and said, "I need mosquitoes. Lots of mosquitoes," he'd been whisked off to our backyard, at which point he would start swatting at his neck and arms, shortly before he was sucked into a bloodless carcass. To combat this foe, we are going to install an outdoor electrical outlet, then zap the little buggers to death. Mwa ha ha ha! You gotta love retaliation (as long as the mosquitoes never get opposable thumbs and dynamite, at least). Last year it was exploding mice stomachs, this year it's electrical mosquito fireworks. Maine has made me into a real bloodthirsty guy, what can I say?
Watched Clear and Present Danger last night. Not as good as Patriot Games, but still three stars. I miss the days when any Harrison Ford movie you went to was going to be good. Once he got that darned earring, it was all downhill for a while. Come on, Indy. An earring? Han Solo wouldn't wear no earring.
Guess who's going to be stacking wood tonight? (And mowing the lawn, and going to a Ward Mission meeting, and . . . just being generally busy)
In other news, we have Mosquitoes. Lots of mosquitoes. Like, if Neo from the Matrix was in a blank white room and said, "I need mosquitoes. Lots of mosquitoes," he'd been whisked off to our backyard, at which point he would start swatting at his neck and arms, shortly before he was sucked into a bloodless carcass. To combat this foe, we are going to install an outdoor electrical outlet, then zap the little buggers to death. Mwa ha ha ha! You gotta love retaliation (as long as the mosquitoes never get opposable thumbs and dynamite, at least). Last year it was exploding mice stomachs, this year it's electrical mosquito fireworks. Maine has made me into a real bloodthirsty guy, what can I say?
Watched Clear and Present Danger last night. Not as good as Patriot Games, but still three stars. I miss the days when any Harrison Ford movie you went to was going to be good. Once he got that darned earring, it was all downhill for a while. Come on, Indy. An earring? Han Solo wouldn't wear no earring.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Criticism
So I'm in a bit of a quandary today. You see, I finished reading a book last night, and I was left rather disappointed. It was Middle Grade fantasy, and so much of it came across as contrived and stupid. Characters make dumb decisions, the magic is introduced as it's necessary to advance the plot, there are several (hopefully unintentional) racist sections . . . So what should I do? Should I tell the world what book this is and encourage them to avoid it, or should I bite my tongue and keep silent.
If this book had come up in my writing group, I would have gone in with both guns blazing, saying just what I thought. The plot is contrived and predictable, the characters are flat, the point of view uninspired. But should I--as a hopeful one-day author--be spending effort discouraging people from reading a particular book? Then again, as a librarian, I evaluate books all the time. If I were a children's librarian, there's no way I'd pay for this book. And then again (again), if this were a movie, I'd give it my one or two stars out of four (the magic was very original, even if it was rather convenient at times), and move on.
In the end, I think I'm going to bite my tongue. I have my personal opinions, and just like I wouldn't go blabbing what I think about this person or that person online, I'm not going to be criticizing authors, either. Part of me feels like I'm worrying too much about it--people will pick apart whatever they want, so authors better get used to it. But at the same time, this author is a friend of a friend, and there's such a thing as courtesy.
So let's leave it at that. The book was lousy, and it shouldn't have gotten printed (in my oh-so-valuable estimation). But that's how it goes sometimes. What do you all think? Should I have identified the book and author by name? Or am I actually (for once) making a tactful decision?
On a positive note, I watched Patriot Games last night while DKC was off groceryizing, and I enjoyed it quite a bit. Good action, plausible reactions, nice acting, good plot--a solid three stars. Not as good as Hunt for Red October was (the first of the Jack Ryan movies), but still a great entry in the series.
If this book had come up in my writing group, I would have gone in with both guns blazing, saying just what I thought. The plot is contrived and predictable, the characters are flat, the point of view uninspired. But should I--as a hopeful one-day author--be spending effort discouraging people from reading a particular book? Then again, as a librarian, I evaluate books all the time. If I were a children's librarian, there's no way I'd pay for this book. And then again (again), if this were a movie, I'd give it my one or two stars out of four (the magic was very original, even if it was rather convenient at times), and move on.
In the end, I think I'm going to bite my tongue. I have my personal opinions, and just like I wouldn't go blabbing what I think about this person or that person online, I'm not going to be criticizing authors, either. Part of me feels like I'm worrying too much about it--people will pick apart whatever they want, so authors better get used to it. But at the same time, this author is a friend of a friend, and there's such a thing as courtesy.
So let's leave it at that. The book was lousy, and it shouldn't have gotten printed (in my oh-so-valuable estimation). But that's how it goes sometimes. What do you all think? Should I have identified the book and author by name? Or am I actually (for once) making a tactful decision?
On a positive note, I watched Patriot Games last night while DKC was off groceryizing, and I enjoyed it quite a bit. Good action, plausible reactions, nice acting, good plot--a solid three stars. Not as good as Hunt for Red October was (the first of the Jack Ryan movies), but still a great entry in the series.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Weekends
Hello and welcome to another week of my life. For those of you counting, I'm on week number 1,558 right now, which I'm sure will be just super. Because, you know, it's . . . even. What did I do with the tail end of week 1,557? I went to the Strawberry Festival in Farmington, Maine, of course. A few points:
In addition, my Saturday was filled with the following: writing 1,000 words, mowing the lawn, fixing the lawn mower, painting a bird house pole, putting up a bird house, getting two mosquito bites, cleaning the garage, making Almond Joy ice cream, getting sunburned and watching the Yankees beat the Red Sox. All in all, a very productive, good day.
So why is it that at the end of the weekend, I felt like I had squandered it?
The problem lies in the point of view. Seen from a reasonable person's point of view, I was the model of efficiency. Seen from a 16 year old boy's point of view, I totally missed the opportunity of playing video games and eating Twinkies all weekend. The very definition of Utter Waste.
As most of you know, I write young adult fantasy. Why do I write young adult fantasy? Because my protagonists somehow all turn out that way. Why is that? Probably because I have way too much of a 16 year old boy point of view kicking around inside me. Hence the dichotomy between the reasonable part of me thinking I had a good weekend, and the other part of me screaming that I should resubscribe to World of Warcraft.
Such is my curse. :-)
- There are no strawberries in Maine right now
- Eating frozen strawberries does not warrant the need for a festival
- If such a festival is to be held, it really should be called Frozen Strawberry Festival
- Despite my qualms with the naming of said festival (which didn't even have that many frozen strawberries present, either), a Fun Time Was Had By All
In addition, my Saturday was filled with the following: writing 1,000 words, mowing the lawn, fixing the lawn mower, painting a bird house pole, putting up a bird house, getting two mosquito bites, cleaning the garage, making Almond Joy ice cream, getting sunburned and watching the Yankees beat the Red Sox. All in all, a very productive, good day.
So why is it that at the end of the weekend, I felt like I had squandered it?
The problem lies in the point of view. Seen from a reasonable person's point of view, I was the model of efficiency. Seen from a 16 year old boy's point of view, I totally missed the opportunity of playing video games and eating Twinkies all weekend. The very definition of Utter Waste.
As most of you know, I write young adult fantasy. Why do I write young adult fantasy? Because my protagonists somehow all turn out that way. Why is that? Probably because I have way too much of a 16 year old boy point of view kicking around inside me. Hence the dichotomy between the reasonable part of me thinking I had a good weekend, and the other part of me screaming that I should resubscribe to World of Warcraft.
Such is my curse. :-)
Friday, July 25, 2008
Vocal Chord Stress
My voice is killing me. I've used it far too much over the past week or so. Usually this is due to me going to sporting events and yelling myself silly. In this case, it's due to me lecturing too much. Part of my job--not me telling my wife and kids what to do. Anyway, it could use a break, and for some reason, typing right now makes me feel tired. :-)
But before I go, I have a question for you that none of you can really answer, most likely. Why don't people read blogs? I mean, you don't know--you're reading a blog right now. But there are people I give my blog address to, who seem to genuinely want to know about what I'm doing in my life, etc.--but they refuse to read it. Not that I'm mad at them or anything, but they usually give me the excuse of "I don't read anyone's blogs," which to me is sort of like when my son takes one look at dinner and says, "I don't like that." I don't mind if you don't want to read my blog. Really. But if you're casually sniffing at an entire emerging medium just because you're too lazy to try it or whatever . . . well that seems a little close minded. At least give it a shot.
Enough preaching to the choir. It's Friday. I'm outta here.
But before I go, I have a question for you that none of you can really answer, most likely. Why don't people read blogs? I mean, you don't know--you're reading a blog right now. But there are people I give my blog address to, who seem to genuinely want to know about what I'm doing in my life, etc.--but they refuse to read it. Not that I'm mad at them or anything, but they usually give me the excuse of "I don't read anyone's blogs," which to me is sort of like when my son takes one look at dinner and says, "I don't like that." I don't mind if you don't want to read my blog. Really. But if you're casually sniffing at an entire emerging medium just because you're too lazy to try it or whatever . . . well that seems a little close minded. At least give it a shot.
Enough preaching to the choir. It's Friday. I'm outta here.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Early to Bed
Maybe this whole go to bed earlier thing and wake up earlier thing is going to work. I got to bed around 10:30 last night, woke up at 5:55 again. That whole shower first thing worked wonders, and I got in a solid 1000 words before I had to eat breakfast and whisk myself off to work. The book is going well, although I've been surprised by how much I've had to change. I think the original was about 48,000 words, and the revision/recasting of it is now over 62,000--and I still have some more new scenes to add. I estimate the final will be between 65,000 and 70,000 (MS Word wordcount--more if you count words the traditional way). This is about where I wanted the book to end up, so I'm pleased. Really, over all I feel very good about the book. Of course, this may change once my alpha readers get through with it, but at the very least, I've had a good time writing it.
Meanwhile, there's a tornado watch here. I wonder if I'll meet Toto.
Meanwhile, there's a tornado watch here. I wonder if I'll meet Toto.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Fatigue and Writing (Not Writing Fatigue)
So now that I'm back from my trip and into the swing of things at work again, I really miss how much time I had to get writing done for that month. Going from 3000 words a day to 500 is a big cut back, and I'm trying to take steps to soften that a bit. And for this reason, I've now started to get up at 5:55 to write instead of 6:25. (Confession: I've got some slight OCD tendencies. I feel better about myself if I get up at a time that ends with 5, 5 being (of course) my favorite number since elementary school--since my first name has 5 letters. So really, 5:55 should be a very lucky time for me to get up, and I'm happy to see all those 5's every time I open my eyes.) This new approach has had some ups for me: I'm certainly getting more writing done, and I have time when I'm alone and it's quiet, so I can focus. However, I'm not really awake yet, and I struggle going to bed early enough to make me coherent when I wake up that early. And--
Flash of inspiration.
You're going to make fun of me, but it just occurred to me to take my shower first when I get up instead of after I've written. This should help with the "know what year it is and who I am" level of alertness, and it'll give me some good time to think about my writing.
Huh.
I had been planning on writing a Complaining About Early Arisals Post, and instead I wrote a Solution To My Problem post.
Blogging really CAN help you. :-)
Flash of inspiration.
You're going to make fun of me, but it just occurred to me to take my shower first when I get up instead of after I've written. This should help with the "know what year it is and who I am" level of alertness, and it'll give me some good time to think about my writing.
Huh.
I had been planning on writing a Complaining About Early Arisals Post, and instead I wrote a Solution To My Problem post.
Blogging really CAN help you. :-)
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
I'm Batman
No. Not really. But I did just finish watching Batman Begins and The Dark Knight in the past 24 hours. Batman begins was a fun movie, and it held up to the second viewing well. I'm a Batman fan--not a rabid one, but I enjoy the storyline and the villains, etc. I liked the reboot of the series. A good three stars, easy. But The Dark Knight was supposed to be something really special, from what I've heard. I mean, IMDB had it listed as the #1 movie of all time--beating out The Godfather for that position. And any time you see something get THAT hyped . . . you're pretty much begging for disappointment. Begging for it, I say. Well, I wasn't disappointed. I'm torn between three and a half stars and four. I think if I were watching it at home, it would have got four stars, but in the theater, where you can't take a break now and then, it was a three and a half, mainly because there were a couple of times I got a tad restless. And a perfect four star shouldn't leave you wondering how much longer it's going to last. Don't get me wrong--I loved it, but there were a few too many "everything you thought you knew was wrong" moments--too many climaxes. Then again, maybe that's just because I hadn't eaten in a while and was hungry. In any case. Great movie--you should see it.
Oh--and I wanted to give a shout out to my good pal Tom, who was worried I'd blog about him jingling his change throughout the movie. Don't worry, Tom. You didn't kick my seat or make obnoxious noises throughout the movie--and you didn't answer your cell phone, and you didn't have a screaming baby with you. I'll take a change jingle now and then over the rest of that any day.
Oh--and I wanted to give a shout out to my good pal Tom, who was worried I'd blog about him jingling his change throughout the movie. Don't worry, Tom. You didn't kick my seat or make obnoxious noises throughout the movie--and you didn't answer your cell phone, and you didn't have a screaming baby with you. I'll take a change jingle now and then over the rest of that any day.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Wii Aches and WALL-E
I did a stupid thing Saturday. Not that that's irregular for me, but I'm still paying for that stupid thing today. I played Wii Fit and got carried away. My stomach muscles are still mad at me, poor things. They're used to eating, not doing crunches. Well, that's just too bad. They're going to have to learn how to get along with Wii Fit. I've had it for a while now, and I really do enjoy it. I think it even has a chance of making me get into shape, something I've never really done. Already I've lost about 10 pounds through Wii Fit, and if it can get me down to 200 lbs again, it'll be a miracle and I'll sing its praises.
Even if my abs will be cursing it.
Really, I'm not so sure it's the exercises that Wii Fit presents me with that help me lose weight. It's more the fact that it graphs my weight and makes me look at it. When it goes up, I can see the blasted thing go up. And when it goes down, I feel really good about it. So far, thumbs up.
On another note, I took my son to go see WALL-E on Saturday as well (before Wii Fit, so I was still feeling good). We loved it. Pixar's been doing some amazing things, and this movie really blew me away. My only quibble was that seeing a kids' movie in the theaters can be difficult. Talking kids and people kicking your seat. Grr . . . But it was worth it to go with my son and see him enjoy it so much. He still gets frightened by loud noises and tense scenes, but he's starting to overcome that. Poor little guy was literally shaking a few times there, but he really got into it. Times like that are when it's great being a dad.
Even if my abs will be cursing it.
Really, I'm not so sure it's the exercises that Wii Fit presents me with that help me lose weight. It's more the fact that it graphs my weight and makes me look at it. When it goes up, I can see the blasted thing go up. And when it goes down, I feel really good about it. So far, thumbs up.
On another note, I took my son to go see WALL-E on Saturday as well (before Wii Fit, so I was still feeling good). We loved it. Pixar's been doing some amazing things, and this movie really blew me away. My only quibble was that seeing a kids' movie in the theaters can be difficult. Talking kids and people kicking your seat. Grr . . . But it was worth it to go with my son and see him enjoy it so much. He still gets frightened by loud noises and tense scenes, but he's starting to overcome that. Poor little guy was literally shaking a few times there, but he really got into it. Times like that are when it's great being a dad.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Ireland Pictures and More
And just so I don't get any complaints that my blog's gettin' too churchy for all y'all, here are some pictures of the family trip to Dublin on the way home from Slovakia. This was a fun trip, although everyone living in a small hotel room for four nights wasn't necessarily the easiest thing we've done. Our days there consisted of waking up in the morning, feeding the baby, letting her get a good nap in and then heading out around 11. We tried to be back around 6 for her to get another good nap in before she ate one last time and went to sleep. Where did we put her to bed? In one of the suitcases which we stuck in the bathroom. Yeah. It was well padded, no worries--and she fit it fine and was very happy, thank you very much. World traveling with small children can be challenging, but we made it work. In the evening, we all watched some movies and then went to bed for another day.
What did we see? The Book of Kells, Malahide Castle, Dublin Castle, The National Archaeological Museum, The Hundred Guilder Print (one of my favorite Rembrandt etchings, and the one used as the CD cover for my grandfather's oratorio The Redeemer), Christ Church Cathedral, Trinity College, Temple Bar, Stephen's Green, Iveagh Gardens and more, not to mention a huge playground, hordes of double decker buses, tourists galore and circus performers and other stuff I'm sure I'm forgetting. Good times. Check out the pictures, plus a few of where we were staying in Slovakia.
TRC gets goofy in front of a part of Dublin Castle
Me and the Fam in front of Malahide Castle
TRC runs to a tree in the park around Malahide Castle. It is so green. So. Green.
A pair of Dublin's famous Georgian doors. Loved this aspect of the city.
A pic from Slovakia. Well, actually the Czech Republic, in the village of Sidonia where we were staying. That little building in the middle at the left? That's the outhouse. Yeah.
And last but not least, a pic of the cottage in Sidonia.
What did we see? The Book of Kells, Malahide Castle, Dublin Castle, The National Archaeological Museum, The Hundred Guilder Print (one of my favorite Rembrandt etchings, and the one used as the CD cover for my grandfather's oratorio The Redeemer), Christ Church Cathedral, Trinity College, Temple Bar, Stephen's Green, Iveagh Gardens and more, not to mention a huge playground, hordes of double decker buses, tourists galore and circus performers and other stuff I'm sure I'm forgetting. Good times. Check out the pictures, plus a few of where we were staying in Slovakia.
TRC gets goofy in front of a part of Dublin Castle
Me and the Fam in front of Malahide Castle
TRC runs to a tree in the park around Malahide Castle. It is so green. So. Green.
A pair of Dublin's famous Georgian doors. Loved this aspect of the city.
A pic from Slovakia. Well, actually the Czech Republic, in the village of Sidonia where we were staying. That little building in the middle at the left? That's the outhouse. Yeah.
And last but not least, a pic of the cottage in Sidonia.
Speaking in Church
I'm giving a talk in church on Sunday. Part of the territory when you don't have a paid clergy is that the members of the congregation are regularly called upon to speak, teach lessons and the like. In fact, when I was in Slovakia, I talked twice in three weeks (fewer members = more frequent speaking duties). What am I going to talk about? Missionary work. Specifically, why I was surprised so many people in my church thought my new calling (Ward Mission Leader) was a bad one. I think sometimes members of the Mormon church look at the church's missionary efforts as something sort of like going to the dentist. They know they're supposed to be doing it, but it's uncomfortable and often painful. For those of you not in "the know," the Mormon church has a stated threefold mission:
Ideally, Mormons are Mormons because they believe in the doctrines of the church and have found that living by those doctrines helps them be happier. I think everyone I work with knows I'm a Mormon, and they have a general idea of some of the things I do at my church. If/when religion comes up, I'm happy to talk about it and share my beliefs. But did you see that word? Share. It's a two way street. I don't believe in me just spouting out about this that and the other and not letting other people get a word in edgewise. I'm interested in what other people believe. And I realize I'm getting on a soapbox now, and I really ought to shut up. Suffice it to say that I think the worst thing a Mormon could do is become friends with someone for the sole purpose of telling that someone about the Church.
I was born into this religion, but I'm still a part of this religion because I studied it, prayed about it and felt strongly it was true. It's made me a happier man and brought me a lot of joy. If other people want to know more, I'm happy to tell them more. I don't hide my religion from others, but I don't jam it down their throats, either. At least I hope I don't. Feel free to say if I do in the comments. :-)
Anyway--sorry about this rambling post. Just thoughts for my talk on Sunday. If you'd like to hear the full thing, come to the Mormon meeting house on Sunday morning at 10:00AM. :-)
Have a nice weekend.
- Perfect the Saints--meaning that the Church ought to be helping its members become better individuals. This is a mission I think most religions see no issue with and try to do as well. Nothing too noteworthy here.
- Proclaim the Gospel--meaning that the Church tries to inform people about what the church is, with the ultimate goal of having people join the Church. One of the missions of the Church that alarms other religions quite a bit and can come across as threatening to
- Redeem the Dead--Quite possibly the most unique mission of the Church. We believe that all people--living or dead--must be given the opportunity to choose whether or not to join the Church by being baptized. Thus, baptisms are performed by proxy for those who are dead. You might have read some news articles about this. The Church can sometimes land in hot water when boneheads get baptized for Hitler or some other asinine thing happens. Lots of members means that sooner or later, stupidity happens. I can discuss this mission of the church later, if people care to know more about it. No time right now.
Ideally, Mormons are Mormons because they believe in the doctrines of the church and have found that living by those doctrines helps them be happier. I think everyone I work with knows I'm a Mormon, and they have a general idea of some of the things I do at my church. If/when religion comes up, I'm happy to talk about it and share my beliefs. But did you see that word? Share. It's a two way street. I don't believe in me just spouting out about this that and the other and not letting other people get a word in edgewise. I'm interested in what other people believe. And I realize I'm getting on a soapbox now, and I really ought to shut up. Suffice it to say that I think the worst thing a Mormon could do is become friends with someone for the sole purpose of telling that someone about the Church.
I was born into this religion, but I'm still a part of this religion because I studied it, prayed about it and felt strongly it was true. It's made me a happier man and brought me a lot of joy. If other people want to know more, I'm happy to tell them more. I don't hide my religion from others, but I don't jam it down their throats, either. At least I hope I don't. Feel free to say if I do in the comments. :-)
Anyway--sorry about this rambling post. Just thoughts for my talk on Sunday. If you'd like to hear the full thing, come to the Mormon meeting house on Sunday morning at 10:00AM. :-)
Have a nice weekend.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
You Pay for Your Vacation
The longer you're away from work, the more work you have when you get back. Sorry, folks. Not a lot of time to post today. I managed to get 700 words written yesterday and 500 today . . . but I'm fighting for that time to write now. I knew it would happen . . . but I miss being able to churn out 3000 or 4000 words in a day. Hopefully once things settle down, that'll get better. In the meantime, what with work, church callings and house work, I'm a busy boy.
Oh--and speaking of paying. They filled up my heating oil today. Remember those halcyon days when heating oil was only $3.50 a gallon and we thought that was expensive? Yeah. Me, too. I paid $4.99 today. 108 gallons. You do the math. Not cool.
And since you're not reading a long blog entry, maybe you have time for an interesting look at how search engines are affecting our society. I found it fascinating, but maybe that's just because I'm a geeky tech librarian. No snide remarks, please.
Oh--and speaking of paying. They filled up my heating oil today. Remember those halcyon days when heating oil was only $3.50 a gallon and we thought that was expensive? Yeah. Me, too. I paid $4.99 today. 108 gallons. You do the math. Not cool.
And since you're not reading a long blog entry, maybe you have time for an interesting look at how search engines are affecting our society. I found it fascinating, but maybe that's just because I'm a geeky tech librarian. No snide remarks, please.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Returned
Back from Europe now. Time is rather short, but I just figured I'd poke my head in here to say howdy. Came home last night to find our house was well. Dustier and spidery-er than I anticipated. And the furnace was broken, but DKC has called and said most of that is already fixed, including the furnace. I have a slew of stuff to do at work, and I didn't write a word the whole time I was in Ireland (which was much fun--might post pics later if I remember to), so I need to catch up. Coming back from a long vacation is difficult, not because I wish I were still on vacation, but because I have so much to do. Sheesh.
And a shout out to my good, wonderful ol' buddy ol' pal Dan Wells. We're tight, right Dan? I mean--sure, I trounced you in some board games, but that's all water under the bridge, right? I'd tell the rest of you why I want to make sure I'm on Dan's Friends List, but I'm not allowed to. Just take it from me: you want to be on his friends list, too.
And a shout out to my good, wonderful ol' buddy ol' pal Dan Wells. We're tight, right Dan? I mean--sure, I trounced you in some board games, but that's all water under the bridge, right? I'd tell the rest of you why I want to make sure I'm on Dan's Friends List, but I'm not allowed to. Just take it from me: you want to be on his friends list, too.
Dear Europe,
I know that we've had our ups and downs. Yes, we had a few squabbles and some bickering, a couple of World Wars and the whole Freedom Fries debacle, but we've had our good times, too. And I know that you like to make fun of Americans these days because of our weight, or our president or whatever. But you know what? You ain't perfect, either. We both have our problems, and I'd just like to propose a contract. That's right. An agreement between us and you. Quid Pro Quo. We do some things, you do some things. And if we both fulfill our ends of the bargain, the world will be a happier place. Deal? So--here's what we'll do:
Love,
America
I know that we've had our ups and downs. Yes, we had a few squabbles and some bickering, a couple of World Wars and the whole Freedom Fries debacle, but we've had our good times, too. And I know that you like to make fun of Americans these days because of our weight, or our president or whatever. But you know what? You ain't perfect, either. We both have our problems, and I'd just like to propose a contract. That's right. An agreement between us and you. Quid Pro Quo. We do some things, you do some things. And if we both fulfill our ends of the bargain, the world will be a happier place. Deal? So--here's what we'll do:
- Stop eating so much crap. I know we're fat. We're working on it. Sorry.
- Stop shooting and blowing stuff up all the time. So we have an anger management issue or two. We're going to counseling.
- Stop being such obnoxious tourists. I apologize about the matching T-shirts, really I do. I don't know what some of my countrymen are thinking sometimes.
- Stop smoking so much. Yeah--you. The mom lighting up while she's holding her baby. Quit it.
- Be nicer to tourists. I'm sorry we're always running around and taking pictures of stuff. But lighten up.
- Stop bagging on our politicians. Yeah, some of them stink. But they're OUR politicians. I don't make fun of your politicians. True, that's because I don't know who they are. But still . . .
Love,
America
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Packing
And so it begins. We've spent the day packing, running last minute errands and checking the status of Dublin airport. It appears like everything there is fixed--delays abound, but at least there are no cancellations today. Let's hope the same holds true for tomorrow. I'd post some pictures . . . but I've already packed the camera and the cables. So sorry. We leave tomorrow at 5:20 for a flight at 9:50. Anyone who wants to see us off at Bratislava airport better be there at 7:50, because that'll be your one chance. :-)
Writing update: I discovered a few days ago that I had made a major plotting error about 10,000 words back. One of the difficulties of this book has been adapting the original into a new setting and all with new characters. As I've mentioned before, some of these characters just refuse to behave the same way as the original (something which I take to be a good sign). Anyway, I was writing at a fast clip, and then the next thing I knew, I hit a brick wall. Nothing felt right. I tried four or five different approaches to keep going, but they all felt flat. So I took a while and looked at the book as a whole to try and figure out what was going wrong. In the end I found the mistake, along with a few other fairly major ones. I have since reworked the material, and it feels like I can now progress.
It's funny. Sometimes writing a book feels to me like doing a maze. There are dead ends in your plot, you take wrong turns with actions or characters and have to do some retracing until you're back on the right path. The more complex the book and the more characters you have, the more chances you have for mistakes. One of the criticisms of the original was that the characters felt too much like pawns at times, doing things so that the plot could advance rather than doing things that they would logically do. I didn't see it at the time, but that's been very apparent during this revision. Hopefully I'm doing a better job of it now.
Watched Curse of the Jade Scorpion two nights ago. I'm a Woody Allen fan, and this one is no exception for me. No, it's no Annie Hall, and it's not as memorable to me as Bullets Over Broadway or one of my other favorites, The Purple Rose of Cairo. But it's got fun characters, snappy dialogue and is just an overall good time. Of course, like almost all of Allen's films, if you can't stand a little risque humor (or a lot), you're best steering clear. In any case, three stars for me, and I'm happy because it's one of the Allen films DKC likes, too.
Writing update: I discovered a few days ago that I had made a major plotting error about 10,000 words back. One of the difficulties of this book has been adapting the original into a new setting and all with new characters. As I've mentioned before, some of these characters just refuse to behave the same way as the original (something which I take to be a good sign). Anyway, I was writing at a fast clip, and then the next thing I knew, I hit a brick wall. Nothing felt right. I tried four or five different approaches to keep going, but they all felt flat. So I took a while and looked at the book as a whole to try and figure out what was going wrong. In the end I found the mistake, along with a few other fairly major ones. I have since reworked the material, and it feels like I can now progress.
It's funny. Sometimes writing a book feels to me like doing a maze. There are dead ends in your plot, you take wrong turns with actions or characters and have to do some retracing until you're back on the right path. The more complex the book and the more characters you have, the more chances you have for mistakes. One of the criticisms of the original was that the characters felt too much like pawns at times, doing things so that the plot could advance rather than doing things that they would logically do. I didn't see it at the time, but that's been very apparent during this revision. Hopefully I'm doing a better job of it now.
Watched Curse of the Jade Scorpion two nights ago. I'm a Woody Allen fan, and this one is no exception for me. No, it's no Annie Hall, and it's not as memorable to me as Bullets Over Broadway or one of my other favorites, The Purple Rose of Cairo. But it's got fun characters, snappy dialogue and is just an overall good time. Of course, like almost all of Allen's films, if you can't stand a little risque humor (or a lot), you're best steering clear. In any case, three stars for me, and I'm happy because it's one of the Allen films DKC likes, too.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Air Travel
Hi. Remember me? I'm the one who hates flying. Yeah. Well, despite my loathing of air travel, I've still been on my fair share of planes, and I thought I'd seen most everything when it came to delays. Then I read this. Where am I flying on Friday? Dublin. So . . . maybe things will be disrupted with the Dublin trip. I wait with bated breath. Sorry--I just don't have the heart to post anything more right now.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
To Be Brief
Dentist appointment come and gone. Teeth appear good. And there was much rejoicing.
Writing is going well, although there are times that I'm not so sure of that. Times like these are when I wish I had a writing group. Instead, I just read it outloud to DKC and hope for the best.
Went to a Slovak mall today. Like an American one, but smaller. Took about twenty minutes to check the whole thing out.
Not much else to report--gearing up for the Ireland trip. Just as a warning, I don't think I'll be able to blog in Ireland. I know you're all crying about that, but don't worry. I'll update when I'm back in the states.
Watched A Beautiful Mind last night. (Did I mention I watched Cinderella Man over the weekend? I did. Loved it as much as I did the first time. Three and a half stars.) Russell Crowe is a diverse actor, I'll give him that. I loved Mind the first time, but the second time it lost some of its oomph. Any time a movie packs a big twist into it, it risks its rewatchability. Sixth Sense worked, Mind . . . not as well. I hate giving things away, though, so I'll leave it at that. I enjoyed it, but not as much as the first time. First time, three and a half stars. Second time, three. Did it deserve it's best picture Oscar? I won't say no to that, although I still am bummed Fellowship of the Ring lost that one. Some have criticized Mind, calling it overrated. I think Howard's use of POV and the way he adapted Nash's problems to the screen are remarkable and redeem some of the flaws I see in the film now, so I wouldn't call it overrated. (And I disagree with most of that list, anyway. Just linked it for reference.)
Writing is going well, although there are times that I'm not so sure of that. Times like these are when I wish I had a writing group. Instead, I just read it outloud to DKC and hope for the best.
Went to a Slovak mall today. Like an American one, but smaller. Took about twenty minutes to check the whole thing out.
Not much else to report--gearing up for the Ireland trip. Just as a warning, I don't think I'll be able to blog in Ireland. I know you're all crying about that, but don't worry. I'll update when I'm back in the states.
Watched A Beautiful Mind last night. (Did I mention I watched Cinderella Man over the weekend? I did. Loved it as much as I did the first time. Three and a half stars.) Russell Crowe is a diverse actor, I'll give him that. I loved Mind the first time, but the second time it lost some of its oomph. Any time a movie packs a big twist into it, it risks its rewatchability. Sixth Sense worked, Mind . . . not as well. I hate giving things away, though, so I'll leave it at that. I enjoyed it, but not as much as the first time. First time, three and a half stars. Second time, three. Did it deserve it's best picture Oscar? I won't say no to that, although I still am bummed Fellowship of the Ring lost that one. Some have criticized Mind, calling it overrated. I think Howard's use of POV and the way he adapted Nash's problems to the screen are remarkable and redeem some of the flaws I see in the film now, so I wouldn't call it overrated. (And I disagree with most of that list, anyway. Just linked it for reference.)
Monday, July 7, 2008
Rain
More rain today. We had quite the busy weekend. On Saturday we went to this floating parade sort of a thing. Not really sure how to describe it, really. They had a bunch of home made boats with different themes, and then they launched them on the river and had to float around collecting money and trying to sink each other. This sounds intriguing, but the real deal was somewhat less than exciting, due in large part to the fact that the thing was supposed to start at 10:00, and started at noon, instead. Too bad we showed up at 10:15 for it. Lots of standing, little action. Although I did get to see a Slovak rendition of the Jamaican bobsled team, complete with Slovaks in blackface. PC in Europe only refers to computers, I'm afraid.
Yesterday we had church, followed by two visits, one to some of DKC's church friends and the other to some of her high school friends. I ate a ton at the first place, not having been told we were eating at the second. Showed up to the second and there was dessert. I thought, "How nice. Dessert twice in one day." So I had three servings. Very tasty. Then they brought out the appetizer trays. Now I thought, "How odd. Dessert first, then appetizers. That's kind of backward, but I'd better eat liberally so as not to offend anyone." After that, I was pretty much stuffed to overflowing. That's when they started building a fire in a barbeque. Yeah. The main course was barbequed chicken with salad and rolls. Once again, so as not to offend I ate. And ate. And ate.
I'm about recovered now, thanks for wondering.
I've been offered wine multiple times on this trip, and each time I've naturally declined for religious reasons. It's interesting---quite a few people have said that they wish they could say the same thing when people offered them alcohol. In Slovakia (and Germany, for that matter), not offering someone something to drink can be considered a fairly big insult in some areas. Not accepting that drink is also an insult. Since I keep insulting people by not drinking their wine, I have to do my best to show my appreciation for the food. The sacrifices I make. :-)
Today we went into Trencin and had a tour of the castle, followed by lunch at a pizzeria. European pizza is different than American pizza. Lighter, with different toppings. Mind had red peppers, Polish sausage and ham lunch meat. It was highly tasty.
Tomorrow we're going back to the dentist, since DKC's root canaled tooth is now hurting her. That really ought not to be happening, right? Since the nerve should be technically dead? If I never see a dentist again, it'll be too soon.
Yesterday we had church, followed by two visits, one to some of DKC's church friends and the other to some of her high school friends. I ate a ton at the first place, not having been told we were eating at the second. Showed up to the second and there was dessert. I thought, "How nice. Dessert twice in one day." So I had three servings. Very tasty. Then they brought out the appetizer trays. Now I thought, "How odd. Dessert first, then appetizers. That's kind of backward, but I'd better eat liberally so as not to offend anyone." After that, I was pretty much stuffed to overflowing. That's when they started building a fire in a barbeque. Yeah. The main course was barbequed chicken with salad and rolls. Once again, so as not to offend I ate. And ate. And ate.
I'm about recovered now, thanks for wondering.
I've been offered wine multiple times on this trip, and each time I've naturally declined for religious reasons. It's interesting---quite a few people have said that they wish they could say the same thing when people offered them alcohol. In Slovakia (and Germany, for that matter), not offering someone something to drink can be considered a fairly big insult in some areas. Not accepting that drink is also an insult. Since I keep insulting people by not drinking their wine, I have to do my best to show my appreciation for the food. The sacrifices I make. :-)
Today we went into Trencin and had a tour of the castle, followed by lunch at a pizzeria. European pizza is different than American pizza. Lighter, with different toppings. Mind had red peppers, Polish sausage and ham lunch meat. It was highly tasty.
Tomorrow we're going back to the dentist, since DKC's root canaled tooth is now hurting her. That really ought not to be happening, right? Since the nerve should be technically dead? If I never see a dentist again, it'll be too soon.
Friday, July 4, 2008
Rainy Days and Adaptation
Little to update you on today. The plan had been to go visit a castle in the Czech Republic. Rain and car trouble put an end to that, so I've just been at the cottage, writing and playing with TRC. DKC and I watched Cold Comfort Farm again last night, and I really can't recommend this movie enough to all of you. If you haven't seen it, you should go out and buy it today. Don't bother renting--you'll want to own this puppy. Great acting by an early Kate Beckinsale as well as Ian McKellen and Refus Sewell, directed by John Schlesinger. I really can't believe this was a made for TV movie over in England. Quirky, layered and as fun to watch the tenth time as it was the first. It's based on a novel by Stella Gibbons, which I also heartily recommend.
This brings up something that I wanted to say about adaptations in general. So many times people gripe about a movie being worse than its source material, but I think a large part of this is due to the fact that people often only pay attention to the fact that they're watching an adaptation if they're already familiar with the original. This sets them up for disappointment, largely due to the simple reason that the experience of watching a movie is (surprise surprise) different than the experience of reading a book. If you've read a book and enjoyed it, then go to a film of that book expecting to have the same "feel," chances are you won't. For one thing, someone else (say . . . the director) might have had a different "feel" when they read the book, and thus portrayed something you didn't see. This is one of the big obstacles in adapting any book with layered nuances and themes. There are so many things to choose from as an adaptor--if you're adapting Huck Finn, do you go for the adventure boy book or the slavery themes or the familial tensions or what? As soon as you make a choice from these selections, you anger some of your potential audience, because you've eliminated their favorite part of the source material.
However, if you approach adaptations from a different angle--looking for your favorite movies and then seeing which ones are adaptations, you get a different insight into the process. I don't suggest this in the hope that you'll start saying "the movie was better than the book," but rather that more people will start recognizing the two things are separate. How do I say that an apple was better than an orange? Yes, I might dislike all oranges, and so any apple will be an improvement, and I might be able to say that there was an awful orange and a wonderful apple, so that one can be considered superior, but if you try to argue that the apple was better than the orange because the orange didn't taste enough like an apple . . .
You get the drift. At some point in the future (when I'm not in Slovakia), I might expand on this little thought and turn it into more of a refined essay. Do any of you have any points to make about it before I do? Agreements? Disagreements? Feel free to make yourself heard.
This brings up something that I wanted to say about adaptations in general. So many times people gripe about a movie being worse than its source material, but I think a large part of this is due to the fact that people often only pay attention to the fact that they're watching an adaptation if they're already familiar with the original. This sets them up for disappointment, largely due to the simple reason that the experience of watching a movie is (surprise surprise) different than the experience of reading a book. If you've read a book and enjoyed it, then go to a film of that book expecting to have the same "feel," chances are you won't. For one thing, someone else (say . . . the director) might have had a different "feel" when they read the book, and thus portrayed something you didn't see. This is one of the big obstacles in adapting any book with layered nuances and themes. There are so many things to choose from as an adaptor--if you're adapting Huck Finn, do you go for the adventure boy book or the slavery themes or the familial tensions or what? As soon as you make a choice from these selections, you anger some of your potential audience, because you've eliminated their favorite part of the source material.
However, if you approach adaptations from a different angle--looking for your favorite movies and then seeing which ones are adaptations, you get a different insight into the process. I don't suggest this in the hope that you'll start saying "the movie was better than the book," but rather that more people will start recognizing the two things are separate. How do I say that an apple was better than an orange? Yes, I might dislike all oranges, and so any apple will be an improvement, and I might be able to say that there was an awful orange and a wonderful apple, so that one can be considered superior, but if you try to argue that the apple was better than the orange because the orange didn't taste enough like an apple . . .
You get the drift. At some point in the future (when I'm not in Slovakia), I might expand on this little thought and turn it into more of a refined essay. Do any of you have any points to make about it before I do? Agreements? Disagreements? Feel free to make yourself heard.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Berry Picking
Spent the day today picking berries in the garden for canning later on. It's hot today, and there's nowhere for me to escape to to cool off. In America, if it gets too bad, I can always take a ride in the car or go to Walmart or something. The land of no AC isn't always very spiffy.
DKC and I watched Spiderman 3 last night. One star out of four. The movie's a classic example of lots of things going right, but everything playing wrong together so that it all falls apart. Really, if it weren't for the SFX and the score, I might have rated this a turkey or a half star. What was wrong? The biggest problem I had with it was that by the end I truly didn't care about the characters. They weren't behaving in any way I thought realistic people would--they felt too much like pawns being moved into position in a plot, rather than living people who were making decisions on their own. For example, Sandman is presented at first as a misunderstood con. He never meant to kill anyone. Honest. But as soon as the cops are after him and he turns into the Sandman, he starts killing people left and right without a care in the world. And then at the end we're supposed to feel bad for him again? Please. And Green Goblin goes from evil to good to evil to good like a yo-yo out of control. And Mary Jane takes Parker back at the end like nothing . . . fuhgeddabouddit. If a story can't make me care about the characters, then what's the use of watching?
Anyway--I'm going to go drink something cool before I melt. Have a good one.
DKC and I watched Spiderman 3 last night. One star out of four. The movie's a classic example of lots of things going right, but everything playing wrong together so that it all falls apart. Really, if it weren't for the SFX and the score, I might have rated this a turkey or a half star. What was wrong? The biggest problem I had with it was that by the end I truly didn't care about the characters. They weren't behaving in any way I thought realistic people would--they felt too much like pawns being moved into position in a plot, rather than living people who were making decisions on their own. For example, Sandman is presented at first as a misunderstood con. He never meant to kill anyone. Honest. But as soon as the cops are after him and he turns into the Sandman, he starts killing people left and right without a care in the world. And then at the end we're supposed to feel bad for him again? Please. And Green Goblin goes from evil to good to evil to good like a yo-yo out of control. And Mary Jane takes Parker back at the end like nothing . . . fuhgeddabouddit. If a story can't make me care about the characters, then what's the use of watching?
Anyway--I'm going to go drink something cool before I melt. Have a good one.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Picture Post
Been a few days since I posted some pics, and they're building up on the computer, so it's time to put some more up. Today we took a trip into Trencin to go shopping. I'm not a big shopper at home, and being in Europe doesn't necessarily improve upon the experience. There's just too much standing around involved, although clothes shopping is the worst, and there was none of that today, thank goodness. I do most of my gift shopping online, where I can poke around to find opinions about products and reviews. It's hard for me to go into a store and be presented with a finite number of choices, then be forced to take the store owner's word about the relative quality. But anyway.
Went into another bookstore. No, Brandon--didn't find your book. Actually, I was frustrated by the organization of the store, so I had my wife go inquire about how it was arranged. She asked the clerk, and he said, "Of course it's arranged. Over there are the novels, there are the travel books, the non-fiction's over there and so forth."
"What about within the novel section?" she asked. "How is it arranged there?"
"It isn't."
You read that right. It isn't. All the novels are just sort of jumbled together however they happened to come off the truck. Westerns, romance, sci-fi, thrillers, mysteries--even works by the same author aren't together. I. Am. Never. Going. Into. Another. Bookstore. In. Slovakia. Not until there's a particular thing I want to buy, at least. Far too frustrating. Joshua, I know you don't read my blog, but if you did--and you were over in Slovakia--and you spoke Slovak--I'd like to buy a ticket to hear you give the clerks a piece of your mind. Pass the word along, Brandon.
Watched The Magnificent Seven yesterday. This actually presents a good contrast to The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, and not just because they both have Eli Wallach in them. Seven is a classic Western. it's not trying to do anything different. Not trying to rock the boat. It succeeds by being an excellent rendition of a kind of movie that had already been done numerous times. Ugly is driven by twisting the classic formula any which way it could, turning things upside down. There are no real heroes in Ugly--morality is very mixed up in general. Not so in Seven. Sure, the good guy wears a black hat, but that's about as genre bending as the movie gets. They're both great Westerns, though they succeed in different ways.
(Of course, Seven itself is a remake of Seven Samurai, Kurosawa's masterpiece. Studying the changes that were made to adapt the culture and conflict from Japan to Mexico and America would be an interesting exercise in and of itself.)
In any case, this contrast lead me to think about writing and creativity in general. It seems to me that the success artists have depends on how they utilize these two approaches: fidelity and infidelity, if you will. Sometimes you choose to remain faithful to the genre you're writing in--but try to do the best job of that genre that you can. At others, you decide to depart from the genre and do something new and different. Most works end up being a mixture of these two approaches--or at least the worthwhile ones are. Thinking about it some more, I see the same principle at work in music (whether classical or modern). I'm no expert on painting, architecture or sculpure, but I imagine this extends to that, as well.
Not really sure what else to say about it. I don't often go off on a tangent like this on my blog, so excuse me if I bored you. I just wanted to get some thoughts down on virtual paper.
In any case--on to the pictures.
The castle at night during the show. Kind of blurry--sorry. You try taking an action shot at night. It was Romans vs. Germanic tribes. There was a battle in Trencin between those two factions back in like 179 AD. Reenactment was quite entertaining.
DKC, TRC and DC at a Gothic castle that was originally built in the 1400s, then renovated to Rennaisance style, then to the English Tudor style today. It's owned by three different people, so a third of it is a museum, a third is a hotel, and a third is . . . a perpetual work in progress.
DKC and DC relax at the spa town from a few days ago. The screaming would commence about an hour from when this picture was taken. Screaming only lasted for a half hour, but it was a very long half hour, indeed.
DKC and TRC stand in the entryway to the apartment DKC grew up in. I moved around a lot when I was little. I certainly never stayed in one place until I was 17. She did. I think that would be an eerie experience--to go back to a house you stayed so long in and now have it belong to someone else. It would be too depressing.
Went into another bookstore. No, Brandon--didn't find your book. Actually, I was frustrated by the organization of the store, so I had my wife go inquire about how it was arranged. She asked the clerk, and he said, "Of course it's arranged. Over there are the novels, there are the travel books, the non-fiction's over there and so forth."
"What about within the novel section?" she asked. "How is it arranged there?"
"It isn't."
You read that right. It isn't. All the novels are just sort of jumbled together however they happened to come off the truck. Westerns, romance, sci-fi, thrillers, mysteries--even works by the same author aren't together. I. Am. Never. Going. Into. Another. Bookstore. In. Slovakia. Not until there's a particular thing I want to buy, at least. Far too frustrating. Joshua, I know you don't read my blog, but if you did--and you were over in Slovakia--and you spoke Slovak--I'd like to buy a ticket to hear you give the clerks a piece of your mind. Pass the word along, Brandon.
Watched The Magnificent Seven yesterday. This actually presents a good contrast to The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, and not just because they both have Eli Wallach in them. Seven is a classic Western. it's not trying to do anything different. Not trying to rock the boat. It succeeds by being an excellent rendition of a kind of movie that had already been done numerous times. Ugly is driven by twisting the classic formula any which way it could, turning things upside down. There are no real heroes in Ugly--morality is very mixed up in general. Not so in Seven. Sure, the good guy wears a black hat, but that's about as genre bending as the movie gets. They're both great Westerns, though they succeed in different ways.
(Of course, Seven itself is a remake of Seven Samurai, Kurosawa's masterpiece. Studying the changes that were made to adapt the culture and conflict from Japan to Mexico and America would be an interesting exercise in and of itself.)
In any case, this contrast lead me to think about writing and creativity in general. It seems to me that the success artists have depends on how they utilize these two approaches: fidelity and infidelity, if you will. Sometimes you choose to remain faithful to the genre you're writing in--but try to do the best job of that genre that you can. At others, you decide to depart from the genre and do something new and different. Most works end up being a mixture of these two approaches--or at least the worthwhile ones are. Thinking about it some more, I see the same principle at work in music (whether classical or modern). I'm no expert on painting, architecture or sculpure, but I imagine this extends to that, as well.
Not really sure what else to say about it. I don't often go off on a tangent like this on my blog, so excuse me if I bored you. I just wanted to get some thoughts down on virtual paper.
In any case--on to the pictures.
The castle at night during the show. Kind of blurry--sorry. You try taking an action shot at night. It was Romans vs. Germanic tribes. There was a battle in Trencin between those two factions back in like 179 AD. Reenactment was quite entertaining.
DKC, TRC and DC at a Gothic castle that was originally built in the 1400s, then renovated to Rennaisance style, then to the English Tudor style today. It's owned by three different people, so a third of it is a museum, a third is a hotel, and a third is . . . a perpetual work in progress.
DKC and DC relax at the spa town from a few days ago. The screaming would commence about an hour from when this picture was taken. Screaming only lasted for a half hour, but it was a very long half hour, indeed.
DKC and TRC stand in the entryway to the apartment DKC grew up in. I moved around a lot when I was little. I certainly never stayed in one place until I was 17. She did. I think that would be an eerie experience--to go back to a house you stayed so long in and now have it belong to someone else. It would be too depressing.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Vacationing with a Babywise Baby
I'm a big believer in Babywise. I've posted about it before on my blog, and I feel that a lot of the success my kids have had can be attributed to its parent-centric methods. Both of my kids get regular comments about how well behaved they are, and while I'd love to attribute it to my superior genes, something tells me I can't take full credit for that. In any case, my kids are very schedule-oriented, particularly at a young age. This makes for a very nice time at home, but when we're out and about, this can backfire. Kids who aren't on a schedule can roll with the punches more easily. They adapt to new places and new things. Look at it this way: my kids don't need to be rocked or cuddled to sleep. You put them down in their bed, and they go to sleep. Other kids get rocked or cuddled and then go to bed after much coaxing. I like it like this, but DC doesn't know how to fall asleep in someone's arms. TRC was the same way. On our first trip to Slovakia, he didn't sleep more than 15 minutes the whole trip. DC did better, but she still has struggled now and then with sleeping.
Why do I bring this up? Because today we took DC with us on our trek. It didn't end well. We saw a beautiful Gothic castle, as well as a lovely spa town, but the ride home consisted of DC screaming. I'm not used to my kids screaming, and I'm not used to driving stick. TRC was upset, DKC was upset, mother in law was upset . . . not so fun.
But we're all back at the cottage and recovering nicely now. Thanks for wondering.
Oh--and yesterday I wrote almost 3,000 words. Already got 1,100 done today. Writing still goes very well. I've got about 25,000 words done on this book so far. Super speedy.
And Tom, I don't know if you're reading this blog still or not (since you never comment), but can I just tell you that Color-Rado Haribo stuff is freaking hard to find in Slovakia? I've looked at every lousy store I've stopped at. Nada. So if I come up empty on the Color-Rado, what's your number two and three choice? And good luck with comp support for the next two weeks. :-)
Why do I bring this up? Because today we took DC with us on our trek. It didn't end well. We saw a beautiful Gothic castle, as well as a lovely spa town, but the ride home consisted of DC screaming. I'm not used to my kids screaming, and I'm not used to driving stick. TRC was upset, DKC was upset, mother in law was upset . . . not so fun.
But we're all back at the cottage and recovering nicely now. Thanks for wondering.
Oh--and yesterday I wrote almost 3,000 words. Already got 1,100 done today. Writing still goes very well. I've got about 25,000 words done on this book so far. Super speedy.
And Tom, I don't know if you're reading this blog still or not (since you never comment), but can I just tell you that Color-Rado Haribo stuff is freaking hard to find in Slovakia? I've looked at every lousy store I've stopped at. Nada. So if I come up empty on the Color-Rado, what's your number two and three choice? And good luck with comp support for the next two weeks. :-)
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