just a cut away

I don't have much to talk about; I've been sick this week, sick enough that I stayed home and in bed all day yesterday. I watched the first four episodes of Jessica Jones, and holy hell will I be watching the rest of that. I can go more into detail, but I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't watched it yet. It's intense! If you want more detail, let me know, and I'll discuss at greater length.
But since I'm feeling better I'm trying to get a lot done tonight of course, so I can feel like I'm still on top of my week. I just did a bit of writing, and before that some housework and a few minutes on my clarinet. Next is some freelancing and some handwashing and making ramp pesto. Sometime in the next few days I should have a couple more books to talk about.
Has anybody listened to the new Beyonce album? Usually she's not my thing at all, but there are a couple tracks on this one that intrigue me.
Have I talked about my perfume obsession? Just one perfume company. Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, along with it's sister site, Black Phoenix Trading Post. Are any of you into their perfumes? I'm way down the rabbit hole with them at this point. I have several favorites; okay, I have eleven favorite perfumes. And five hair glosses. Go ahead and laugh if you want, but I'm really enjoying myself with this!
Anyway. Back to being productive. I just wanted to say hello, and happy Wednesday, and I hope you're all having a good week.
Blood and kisses!

i'm slipping under

I am Zombie-Lauren again today. That's right, sleeplessness struck again last night; I got around five broken hours of sleep is all. Everything's a little foggy, a little hazy around the edges. . . . I'm trying to ignore it and function as usual, but the lack of sleep does make things feel dreamlike.
I'm writing this while waiting for the subway to my polling place so I can vote. Another Tuesday evening, another packed subway platform. Then home to do some cooking and some freelance work. Exciting!
I finished a book the other day:
6) This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab. New YA!! So good! It's a fascinating take on dystopian American society, plus monsters. It's not released yet so I won't say anything more than that, but as always I really enjoyed V's world building, story, language, and pacing. Definitely recommended!
I have some more writing from friends that I need to load onto my Kindle and devour, which I'm looking forward to quite a bit. I'll report in as much as I can about those things!
I may be joining a second writing group. I know, I know, I was just talking about over commitment the other day. But I'm already trying to write regularly, they only meet once a month, and they're local VP grads. How could I not?? However, that means I need to throw together an audition story to send them, and in my sleepless fog, that feels a little daunting. I don't want to send them something from a while ago, or a MG thing, or a novel chunk. I want to send them something fresh. I know I've been improving. I guess I just have to hope the gods grant me a good night of sleep sometime soon with a good chunk of writing time directly following it.
Blood and kisses!

when you turn black

Today I want to talk about an issue that I think many of us struggle with: overcommitment.
For the last few years I've held myself to an impossible ideal of doing ALL THE THINGS every day. There are so many things that I enjoy doing, and so many things I feel like I ought to be doing, and so many things that I actually need to do; surely I can do them all every day, right?
Wrong.
I've come to this realization unwillingly and recently. I've restructured my weekly to-do list to be more feasible. But still, I somehow constantly feel overcommitted and behind on things. How do you deal with it? How do I deal with it going forward?
I want to be a good person. I want to cook healthy meals and make my own fermented foods and keep my house clean in an environmentally responsible fashion. I want to mend clothing that wears down, so I don't create so much trash. I want to spend quality time with my partner-in-crime and my cats and my friends, do a good job at work, make a little extra through freelancing, and write and make music regularly. But something in there, or maybe several somethings, need to give.
I suppose the point of this ramble is to ask you, readers: How do you streamline your lives? How do you simplify but still get everything done? Should I be eating fast food more often to cut down on cooking time? Let my house be dirty in order to have writing time? Sell my soul to some demon for the ability to get it all done? Steal Hermione's Time-Turner?
I'm open to suggestions.

colorful but passing out

Odd dreams the last couple nights. In one I lived happily in a small town, the kind with sweet little antique shops and bookstores and cafés lining Main Street. I was sitting out front at an open-air restaurant at a long time with a group of friends. It was an idyllic moment: good company, good conversation, good food, good wine.
Last night there were two. The first one I only remember a flash or two. I was visiting friends at a decrepit, moldy house with my oldest goddaughter. It felt dystopian somehow, like the whole world was just scraping by. Then later I was at a riverside house. I was wearing all dark shades of blue: sweater, skirt reminiscent of a tutu, two layers of tights, leg warmers. It was cold out. We had to leave for some reason, so I went out onto the riverfront deck am stripped off my tights so I could put my feet in the water. There was a floating railroad tie chained to the deck for people to hang on to while in the water; I tried to put my feet on it hit it kept floating away. And then the fey rose from the dark of the river, pale and bloated and mysterious in their gold crowns, begging me not to leave.
And then this morning I dreamed about a serial killer. At first I saw the crime scenes. Then I watched him in action. He was tall, almost absurdly so, and slender mop of blond hair, black close-fitting stretchy clothing like a dancer. He waited at an apartment door until the couple opened it to leave, then knocked out the man with a kick to the head. Then tied the woman to a chair and began tormenting her; not hurting her, it was clear that that was to come and he wanted her well and truly freaked out before he got to the physical part. The aesthetics of the apartment looked very '80s to me. The way the killer staged everything and treated his victim felt like a performance. So . . . murder as performance art. Strange. Thoughts, anyone?
I've also read a few books so far this year. Not as many as I'd like, of course, a few is better than none!
1) TD by KA. Not published, can't discuss!
2) BC by AJ. Also not published, can't discuss!
3) Borderline by Mishell Baker. This is a great book. Quality representation of disabled and mentally othered characters, plus fey folk! This is well written, interesting urban fantasy with a good story and interesting characters. I would have liked the climax and denouement to take a little longer, but that's my only quibble. If you're looking for an urban fantasy, give this a shot!
4) Friends with Boys by Faith Erin Hicks. I can't say much about this graphic novel without giving something away, but there's a lot here for people to relate to. A smart teenage girl, family issues, navigating new friendships and the aftermath of old, all with a nice paranormal layer on top.
5) Roses and Rot by Kat Howard. No spoilers, since this isn't out yet. It's about relationships, about the ties that bind, about the power of art and of magic, about how far some people will go for success. This book destroyed me and put me back together one bloody piece at a time. The language is beautiful and visceral, and there are some particular aspects to it that got me right in the belly, lungs, heart. I will come back to this book again and again.
That's all for me tonight. Time for some taxes and some writing.
Blood and kisses!