All's Fair...

I just finished a stint of volunteering at our county fair. It went...well? I'm just really glad that there's a whole year before I have to do it again. Between the heat, the insanity, and a stack of speakers right next to the building I was in, things could have been better. Although, between the heat, the insanity, and the massive amount of attendees, it could have been much worse. There is a lot to be said for the interaction factor. I've been stuck on a particular scene involving a particular age group that I managed to break through thanks to the real life examples walking around. I forget how valuable people-watching can be. Lol.

The past few months have sucked. Too much drama, too much chaos, and too many losses.

I'm sorry so many of my friends and family are hurting. I pray that hearts are mended and that the wounds heal as quickly as possible. You're not alone and you can call on me any time, day or night.

I love you.

~Me

Stupor-fied.

I've spent the last few weeks in a medically-induced stupor. Not even the good kind where I'd get to see pretty colors; the lame kind where my brain is about as useful as a skull full of pudding. Oh, and to add insult to injury, the side-effects have turned back the clock to my moody teenage years. Yay! :/

The blank pages are driving me insane. I wonder if it's worth the risk of writing like my 16-year-old self. *shudder* I might try it. Worst-case scenario I could always pitch it to a YA market. :D

Karaoke and Impact.

I started following this guy on Twitter. His name is Juan and he does karaoke covers of various rock and metal songs. If that's your thing, I highly recommend checking his stuff out.

One of the songs he covers is Iron Maiden's Run to the Hills. It's a back and forth perspective of their interpretation of Native and government interactions al la conquest and war. Also, one of my favorite songs. :)

Now I mention all of this for a reason (aside from sharing the awesome-ness of a singer); there is a part in a verse that always got me thinking about impact. One of the lines of the song has the original version, as well as a radio edit. The third verse talks about how the soldiers think that "the only good injuns are tame." I've heard the version where the last word of that line is "dead," rather than "tame." I don't know which is the original and which is the edit, but the changing in either case fascinates me.

Which word has more impact? Which version illustrates the point of the work best? Yeah, dead could be argued to be the ultimate in impact. After all, there's nothing with quite as much omph as death. But, in the confines of the piece, is it really the worst thing? To me, at least, it isn't. The usage of tame gives me the idea of domestication and loss of freedom. Taken into consideration with the story the song sings, a much more powerful sentiment than death.

Of course, that may just be my background talking.

I wonder if the songwriter meant to evoke this thought process? Hell, maybe they were only looking for a decent rhyme. I'd like to think that the construction of the verse a little more complicated than that.

No Excuses.

I've fallen out of a lot of good habits. By a lot, I mean nearly every damned one of them.

Writing everyday has fallen by the wayside.

The weekly blog took a bit hit.

Online community participation? Ha!

My attempts at being tidy and organized have imploded and created a rather amazing chaos across the house (think interior design by a category 3 hurricane).

Anything remotely artistic has gathered so much dust that it's not funny.

I can't even remember where my workout clothes have managed to hide, let alone what they look like anymore.

And has anyone seen the dog? We had four, right? Why am I only finding three? (Okay, that last bit about the dogs isn't true, but still.)

It's so easy to let things slip away from you. Especially when it concerns the daily grind of a writing project. Even to the most devoted of writers, when faced with the necessities of daily living, getting that extra hour, or even that extra hundred words, can be a monumental difficulty.

Seeing everything listed helps map out what I need to work on. Posting it for you all to see gives me extra incentive to work harder (NaNo mindset much?).

I have plenty of excuses for my bad habits, my goal is to have none.

:D

Prevent Zombies, Cover Your Mouth.

The running joke amongst my family and friends is that (on most days) I pray for the zombie apocalypse. I sometimes categorize people by their usefulness after the said zombie-fication of society. A few weeks ago, a friend said that she had seen something and immediately thought of me-a semi-automatic shotgun. Naturally, I was flattered. :)

Why do I mention my preoccupation with the undead? Well, I've been thinking a lot over the last few days about the particulars of the spread of a zombie plague. Why the past few days? I've just had a lot of time on my hands due to the fact that someone gave me a nasty cold. Weird, huh?

The manner of transmission is what really irks me: uncovered coughing and sneezing. Seriously? If we can't be bothered to cover our mouths with the common cold, how bad is it going to be with something far more serious? Get into practice now, people. You'll be thankful when you're not coughing up a lung (or your brain isn't being eaten).

*Rant off*

Story Killers.

I recently added the family room gaming console to my Netflix account. It's fun and I don't have to worry about taking DVDs orders when there are a ton of streaming titles available. Of course, it's wreaking havoc with my recommendations, but it's kind of fun in a weird way.

Anyhoo, one of my recommendations (before the havoc) was an indie art house-type film called Valhalla Rising. I had to watch it in two parts. The first reason was because of the sheer amount of very realistic violence and gore, the second was because of a fifteen second (at most) scene of sexual violence. Even now, a few days later, I'm still bothered by the movie. On its artistic merits, I cannot fault; the movie was, well, good. Sure it was artsy and kind of experimental, but it was, technically, good. But I still rated it a " did not like" because of the sexual violence scene. It ruined the whole thing for me. Even though all the disturbing aspects of the movie fit, I cannot and will not abide certain things in my entertainment choices.

Now, playing Devil's Advocate, sometimes a story requires ugliness in order to be told, especially in reference to ugly topics. Bringing things into the light in order to deal with and bring awareness of said ugly thing is good, but waylaying a reader (or movie-watcher) with a disturbing scene strikes me as unfair. Impact is one thing, an ambush is entirely different.

The range of issues people have when it comes to their entertainment is as varied the target demographic themselves. In my own house, one of my family members will not tolerate irreverent humor in any form (think Monty Python); another can't stand any denigration of marriage or monogamy; and still another can't stand anything that challenges masculine identity (again, think Monty Python).

Personal preferences in entertainment isn't a bad thing (unless it's against the fellas in my Monty Python). I think that it's an aspect that some writers aren't prepared for sometimes. Sometimes you will write about something that irks a person, group, hell, maybe even an entire country. Not everyone will love your work and that's okay.