Lessons Learned on a (blessedly) Silent Night
I was listening to Josh Groban's Christmas album but it was getting old. I've been listening to his newest album, Illumination in my car nonstop since I got it. Time for a change, I think. Just popped in David Lanz's Skyline Firedance (CD 1) in and it's making me all smiley. This isn't a CD I get out much but I love it so. Piano music at its finest!
Thankfully, I got most of my presents wrapped tonight. Decided not to wrap all my nephew's presents separately because he proved, today, to be a typical 8 month old and couldn't get past the blinking lights on the tree. We had fun watching him open the three he got to open and even had some fun playing with them. I can't wait until he's a bit older, though, and starts getting cool cars and legos and stuff!
Now to wait PATIENTLY for my Christmas! *grins* There will be a lot of people around next weekend (as everyone comes to help us celebrate since they don't have anywhere else to be) so I just hope I'm up for it. Two weekends of having to be "on" is tough for me, especially this time of year. I spent most of this afternoon on the couch while we were over at the "other" brother and sister's house with Zane. He was playing with his brother's new Leapster (it's a little old for him but he had fun just pushing at the screen) and I was reading my book and we were content to be away from the action although the NOISE LEVEL was so high... mostly because of adults. Just think what it would have been if I'd been participating?!??!?!
I love my family. Don't get me wrong. It's just hard for me to be "on" all week at work and then be "on" all weekend. Makes me all hermity in the evenings and whenever I can find the time.
There still so many things that have been left undone this weekend. My BIL and I haven't been able to sit down and watch Inception and I really want to watch it with him just to make sure that he'd understanding it all. As much as he understands English well, he misses things because of modern phrasing or because he doesn't get the right context. I don't want him NOT to like the movie.
And then there's the ham that is still in the fridge. Other Sister had some ham cooked at her house (although I was under the impression we were bringing it so I'm all confuzzled but her mom was there so I'm sure things got rearranged) so we brought this one back. The one that was already made was strangely fruity and I didn't like it at all. I WANT HAM! And for lunch, I had peanut butter and jelly because they were having taco soup and I can't bear the stuff any more. Last time I ate any, I got sick and while I'm positive it wasn't the soup, I don't really want to tempt fate. It combines three things I shouldn't have - tomatoes, cheese, excessive oil. Makes my stomach wish it had never been given to me.
I've been typing up Aster's Christmas present the last few days but it's slow going... and this is why I couldn't type up my NaNo story... because I am constantly EDITTING. I can't help myself. Writing in a notebook is completely different that typing because I don't think I'm as EXPRESSIVE on paper as I am when I'm typing it. The scene doesn't get bogged down in the shape of the letters but can be better expressed in complete thoughts. It's hard to explain but some of you know what I'm talking about. Anyway, I'm typing page 10 of the notebook and I am currently writing page 36. This is a MASSIVE story that takes place in another AU than the one we're writing in. I got this idea from a song on the Illuminations album (Love Only Knows) and it's a complete sort of idea so I knew it wouldn't be short but this is getting out of hand! I discovered something while typing up these early pages that I didn't pick up on before and I wonder if I've know this subconsciously this whole time but it took me by surprise. Guess I have more to my plot than I thought I did!
And the sgoc stories are still coming along. They're due... today. I'm still going because I think I can do some damage in the next week and that's nearly Christmas for everyone else! There are only a couple of people with requests that I can't really fill and I'll work on reccs or something for them. The rest... it's just a matter of getting the idea I got from their list into a document and fleshing a story around it. None of the stories I've written have been under 1000 which is not as much a surprise as it used to be. I think I like that I write short stories now instead of drabbles. It takes as much work to write a good drabble as a short story but short stories are ever so much more rewarding. I love DISCOVERING things that I didn't know before, whether about characters or plot or just word choices.
And with this horribly long post, I am off for another night of little sleep and lot of lazy!
Thankfully, I got most of my presents wrapped tonight. Decided not to wrap all my nephew's presents separately because he proved, today, to be a typical 8 month old and couldn't get past the blinking lights on the tree. We had fun watching him open the three he got to open and even had some fun playing with them. I can't wait until he's a bit older, though, and starts getting cool cars and legos and stuff!
Now to wait PATIENTLY for my Christmas! *grins* There will be a lot of people around next weekend (as everyone comes to help us celebrate since they don't have anywhere else to be) so I just hope I'm up for it. Two weekends of having to be "on" is tough for me, especially this time of year. I spent most of this afternoon on the couch while we were over at the "other" brother and sister's house with Zane. He was playing with his brother's new Leapster (it's a little old for him but he had fun just pushing at the screen) and I was reading my book and we were content to be away from the action although the NOISE LEVEL was so high... mostly because of adults. Just think what it would have been if I'd been participating?!??!?!
I love my family. Don't get me wrong. It's just hard for me to be "on" all week at work and then be "on" all weekend. Makes me all hermity in the evenings and whenever I can find the time.
There still so many things that have been left undone this weekend. My BIL and I haven't been able to sit down and watch Inception and I really want to watch it with him just to make sure that he'd understanding it all. As much as he understands English well, he misses things because of modern phrasing or because he doesn't get the right context. I don't want him NOT to like the movie.
And then there's the ham that is still in the fridge. Other Sister had some ham cooked at her house (although I was under the impression we were bringing it so I'm all confuzzled but her mom was there so I'm sure things got rearranged) so we brought this one back. The one that was already made was strangely fruity and I didn't like it at all. I WANT HAM! And for lunch, I had peanut butter and jelly because they were having taco soup and I can't bear the stuff any more. Last time I ate any, I got sick and while I'm positive it wasn't the soup, I don't really want to tempt fate. It combines three things I shouldn't have - tomatoes, cheese, excessive oil. Makes my stomach wish it had never been given to me.
I've been typing up Aster's Christmas present the last few days but it's slow going... and this is why I couldn't type up my NaNo story... because I am constantly EDITTING. I can't help myself. Writing in a notebook is completely different that typing because I don't think I'm as EXPRESSIVE on paper as I am when I'm typing it. The scene doesn't get bogged down in the shape of the letters but can be better expressed in complete thoughts. It's hard to explain but some of you know what I'm talking about. Anyway, I'm typing page 10 of the notebook and I am currently writing page 36. This is a MASSIVE story that takes place in another AU than the one we're writing in. I got this idea from a song on the Illuminations album (Love Only Knows) and it's a complete sort of idea so I knew it wouldn't be short but this is getting out of hand! I discovered something while typing up these early pages that I didn't pick up on before and I wonder if I've know this subconsciously this whole time but it took me by surprise. Guess I have more to my plot than I thought I did!
And the sgoc stories are still coming along. They're due... today. I'm still going because I think I can do some damage in the next week and that's nearly Christmas for everyone else! There are only a couple of people with requests that I can't really fill and I'll work on reccs or something for them. The rest... it's just a matter of getting the idea I got from their list into a document and fleshing a story around it. None of the stories I've written have been under 1000 which is not as much a surprise as it used to be. I think I like that I write short stories now instead of drabbles. It takes as much work to write a good drabble as a short story but short stories are ever so much more rewarding. I love DISCOVERING things that I didn't know before, whether about characters or plot or just word choices.
And with this horribly long post, I am off for another night of little sleep and lot of lazy!