The Myth of Fingerprints
12 years ago
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
she was a light in our lives
A little over two years ago, my partner-in-crime and I lost a very close friend here in New York. He reminded me a little while ago that today was her birthday. She would've been thirty-eight today, I think. Two years already . . . How does the time go by so fast? I miss her at odd moments. I know my partner-in-crime does, too; losing her was harder for him, as they were closer. He doesn't talk about it much. We're still close with her kids and with her partner, and for that I'm grateful. She was a great friend, and we're blessed to have known her, and I hope that wherever she is, she's happy and healthy and loved.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
grey would be the color
My work computer is dead. I still feel busy-busy all the time. And lately, I've just been frustated by my life. Lack of time, lack of money, lack of space, everything. I'm trying to ignore it and just get things done so I can feel less stressed. One day at a time, one task at a time, and eventually I'll feel like I'm in control of my life again.
Without further ado, here are the next three books I've read this year:
6) The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N. K. Jemisin. This book took me by surprise. I'm not as into epic fantasy as I used to be. In fact, it's safe to say that these days I prefer fantasy of the urban variety. So the fact that this book just sucked me in and kept me enthralled until the end was pretty exciting. I like the characters, the court intrigue, and the religion, and the descriptive language is lush and well done. I will recommend this to anybody who likes fantasy books, or just good writing. A keeper, for sure, and I'm looking forward to the next one!
7) Foiled by Jane Yolen. This is a cute graphic novel about a girl who doesn't really fit in at school. She's a talented fencer, and spends most of her time outside school at practice for that. But over the course of the story learns that faery folk exist and she's been chosen as a Protector. I enjoyed this, and if it's the start of a series I'll read the rest, but I don't think it's a keeper for me.
8) Heat Wave by Richard Castle. This book was SO MUCH FUN. It reads like a long episode of Castle, which I also adore, so I had a great time with this and can't wait to get my hands on the next one. Definitely a keeper, and definitely recommended to everybody!
Anyway. Time to move on to the next thing on my work to-do list. Hopefully by the end of this week I'll have things under control again. Blogging may be pretty intermittent as I deal with computer issues at work and lack of consistent internet at home, but I'll try to be back soon. I've got a post about the writing life percolating in the back of my brain.
Happy Tuesday!
Without further ado, here are the next three books I've read this year:
6) The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N. K. Jemisin. This book took me by surprise. I'm not as into epic fantasy as I used to be. In fact, it's safe to say that these days I prefer fantasy of the urban variety. So the fact that this book just sucked me in and kept me enthralled until the end was pretty exciting. I like the characters, the court intrigue, and the religion, and the descriptive language is lush and well done. I will recommend this to anybody who likes fantasy books, or just good writing. A keeper, for sure, and I'm looking forward to the next one!
7) Foiled by Jane Yolen. This is a cute graphic novel about a girl who doesn't really fit in at school. She's a talented fencer, and spends most of her time outside school at practice for that. But over the course of the story learns that faery folk exist and she's been chosen as a Protector. I enjoyed this, and if it's the start of a series I'll read the rest, but I don't think it's a keeper for me.
8) Heat Wave by Richard Castle. This book was SO MUCH FUN. It reads like a long episode of Castle, which I also adore, so I had a great time with this and can't wait to get my hands on the next one. Definitely a keeper, and definitely recommended to everybody!
Anyway. Time to move on to the next thing on my work to-do list. Hopefully by the end of this week I'll have things under control again. Blogging may be pretty intermittent as I deal with computer issues at work and lack of consistent internet at home, but I'll try to be back soon. I've got a post about the writing life percolating in the back of my brain.
Happy Tuesday!
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
she's got a lot on her mind
As promised in my last entry, I now present to you the third, fourth, and fifth books I read this year!
3) The Devil in the White City by Erik Larsen. This book was really intriguing; it's about the Chicago World's Fair and the serial killer who operated around it. It's a really strange dichotomy, the hope and progress and beauty of the fair set against the horrible desires of one man. I don't often get into history books, but this one is well written with a good narrative voice and enough personification of the historical figures discussed that I felt like I actually got to know them a bit.
4) Raised by Wolves by Jennifer Lynn Barnes. This one had a slow start for me, but once things picked up thirty or forty pages in, I was hooked. I like that this isn't a typical werewolf book in any sense. I had some minor qualms with a couple of specific moments, but overall, I really enjoyed this a lot. Good, empathetic characters, interesting choices, plenty of action. There is also plenty of material here for an in-depth conversation on what family is, how it's defined, if there are different kindso f family, etc. Definitely a keeper!
5) The Good Spell Book by Gillian Kemp. This is a fun little book of Romany spells and folklore. I read it in research for my witch series, and while most of it doesn't apply to the approach I'm taking in my books, it was still an amusing read. Some of it resonated with me, some of it didn't, but I'm keeping it. For ideas, for reference, for fun.
Aside from that . . . my work computer is dying a slow death. I'm getting a new one in a couple weeks and frankly, it can't come fast enough! In the meantime I'll do a minimum of Internet at work. That seems to sit better with this poor machine.
Slowly making forward progress on writing things. I'm going to start the last round of edits on Superheroes tonight. I've got one short from last year typed, so I can print it to edit. One radio play episode should be wrapped up within the next couple of days, I'm thinking. And I've been getting things done at home, so the stress level there is going down.
There's plenty more to talk about, like dreams, and potential ideas for books, and yoga, and such, but I'll leave you with a couple of things:
New York City got more snow in January 2011 than any January in recorded history. Over 36 inches, at least. That's a LOT of snow.
Happy Imbolc, everybody! This is the holiday when we celebrate the coming of spring. It's a time of purification and dedication.
Wish me luck with my computer woes, and I'll be back soon.
3) The Devil in the White City by Erik Larsen. This book was really intriguing; it's about the Chicago World's Fair and the serial killer who operated around it. It's a really strange dichotomy, the hope and progress and beauty of the fair set against the horrible desires of one man. I don't often get into history books, but this one is well written with a good narrative voice and enough personification of the historical figures discussed that I felt like I actually got to know them a bit.
4) Raised by Wolves by Jennifer Lynn Barnes. This one had a slow start for me, but once things picked up thirty or forty pages in, I was hooked. I like that this isn't a typical werewolf book in any sense. I had some minor qualms with a couple of specific moments, but overall, I really enjoyed this a lot. Good, empathetic characters, interesting choices, plenty of action. There is also plenty of material here for an in-depth conversation on what family is, how it's defined, if there are different kindso f family, etc. Definitely a keeper!
5) The Good Spell Book by Gillian Kemp. This is a fun little book of Romany spells and folklore. I read it in research for my witch series, and while most of it doesn't apply to the approach I'm taking in my books, it was still an amusing read. Some of it resonated with me, some of it didn't, but I'm keeping it. For ideas, for reference, for fun.
Aside from that . . . my work computer is dying a slow death. I'm getting a new one in a couple weeks and frankly, it can't come fast enough! In the meantime I'll do a minimum of Internet at work. That seems to sit better with this poor machine.
Slowly making forward progress on writing things. I'm going to start the last round of edits on Superheroes tonight. I've got one short from last year typed, so I can print it to edit. One radio play episode should be wrapped up within the next couple of days, I'm thinking. And I've been getting things done at home, so the stress level there is going down.
There's plenty more to talk about, like dreams, and potential ideas for books, and yoga, and such, but I'll leave you with a couple of things:
New York City got more snow in January 2011 than any January in recorded history. Over 36 inches, at least. That's a LOT of snow.
Happy Imbolc, everybody! This is the holiday when we celebrate the coming of spring. It's a time of purification and dedication.
Wish me luck with my computer woes, and I'll be back soon.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
it's snowing again
Another six to ten inches tonight. That's snow once or twice a week since Christmas. Pretty impressive! I don't mind having snow around for a month or two straight. I love snow. But I wish we wouldn't end up with those frozen-solid mounds of it on the sidewalks that you will either slip on or break your toes on. Am I the only one fearful of encounters with the wild snowmounds of NYC?
Anyway. I feel like I should be working on something. A radio play episode. Finish typing that short story. Clean out the fridge. Make a dent in the bag of clothing I have to handwash. But so far, all I've manage to bring myself to do is type a little. Is that such a bad thing? I've got three hours still until bedtime. That's so much time! I could move mountains in three hours! . . . Or, well, I could maybe knock out some sit-ups, get the fridge cleaned out, and stare at the radio play episode for a bit. Maybe that's more reasonable. And at some point I'll go sit in the falling snow with a warm coat on and a glass of red wine in hand. Because that sounds nice.
Tune in next time for a brief discussion on the third book I've read this year. In the meantime, stay warm, talk hard, and enjoy the snow!
Anyway. I feel like I should be working on something. A radio play episode. Finish typing that short story. Clean out the fridge. Make a dent in the bag of clothing I have to handwash. But so far, all I've manage to bring myself to do is type a little. Is that such a bad thing? I've got three hours still until bedtime. That's so much time! I could move mountains in three hours! . . . Or, well, I could maybe knock out some sit-ups, get the fridge cleaned out, and stare at the radio play episode for a bit. Maybe that's more reasonable. And at some point I'll go sit in the falling snow with a warm coat on and a glass of red wine in hand. Because that sounds nice.
Tune in next time for a brief discussion on the third book I've read this year. In the meantime, stay warm, talk hard, and enjoy the snow!
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Saturday, January 22, 2011
baby it's cold outside!
14 degrees right now, to be exact. At 10 am. Brrr. I'm cozy in the apartment with some sporadic space heater assistance for now, but I've got brunch plans at noon. And you know what? I'm going to walk all the way there and home again after. I'll bundle up. I love a freezing day with wide open blue skies and air so frigid that taking a breath is like a drink of ice-cold water.
I've got a lengthy to-do list for this weekend, as always. But I'm taking time out for me, too. I slept in this morning (until 9:20!), and will do it again tomorrow. I've got a freelance deadline Monday, so we'll see how that goes. But I'm enjoying the project, and looking forward to reading the rest of it.
Lately I've really been craving a simpler life. Just me, a small cottage, some wilderness, and a whole lot of creativity and art. Doesn't that sound lovely? And perfect? Sometimes I just want to crawl into the photos that Terri Windling posts on her blog. She lives in a cottage in Dartmoor. Rima Staines lives in her village. The Frouds and William Todd-Jones live somewhere nearby. It sounds like a dream world, a fantasy land brimming with everything I could ever ask for.
So how do I make that happen for myself? I'm not sure. Ironically, I don't feel like I can afford to live somewhere like that. Literally. I think that maybe the best thing I can do for now is to keep living and loving and creating and reaching out to other creative people. It's a tricky thing, this life we live.
It's time to be off. I do feel that a bigger web presence is important for me to have, but I've got to balance that with everything else. Besides, there's brunch ahead!
Bright blessings!
I've got a lengthy to-do list for this weekend, as always. But I'm taking time out for me, too. I slept in this morning (until 9:20!), and will do it again tomorrow. I've got a freelance deadline Monday, so we'll see how that goes. But I'm enjoying the project, and looking forward to reading the rest of it.
Lately I've really been craving a simpler life. Just me, a small cottage, some wilderness, and a whole lot of creativity and art. Doesn't that sound lovely? And perfect? Sometimes I just want to crawl into the photos that Terri Windling posts on her blog. She lives in a cottage in Dartmoor. Rima Staines lives in her village. The Frouds and William Todd-Jones live somewhere nearby. It sounds like a dream world, a fantasy land brimming with everything I could ever ask for.
So how do I make that happen for myself? I'm not sure. Ironically, I don't feel like I can afford to live somewhere like that. Literally. I think that maybe the best thing I can do for now is to keep living and loving and creating and reaching out to other creative people. It's a tricky thing, this life we live.
It's time to be off. I do feel that a bigger web presence is important for me to have, but I've got to balance that with everything else. Besides, there's brunch ahead!
Bright blessings!
Thursday, January 20, 2011
she's got no compassion for the action
January is positively flying by. Busy at work, busy at home, busy socially, just socially. I'm enjoying a rare night to myself, and thought I'd catch you up on what I've read so far.
First, I'm going to add one more book to 2010, to bring it to an even 70 books read. Gemini (draft) by my friend LG. It's dark women's fiction. First draft, so it had some spots that need work, but all in all, a good read and I hope she finds an agent with it!
On with the books for 2011. 1) and 2) are Changeless and Blameless by Gail Carriger from the Umbrella Protectorate series. I love these books! They're like a Victorian comedy of manners plus werewolves and vampires plus a lot of knowingly inappropriate moments. Go read them right now!!
I wish I had more exciting things to report, but the fact of the matter is, I'm just working my tail off between day job and freelancing and radio play right now. So that's that. Tonight we're expecting three to six more inches of snow in the city, which will be beautiful!
Good night!
First, I'm going to add one more book to 2010, to bring it to an even 70 books read. Gemini (draft) by my friend LG. It's dark women's fiction. First draft, so it had some spots that need work, but all in all, a good read and I hope she finds an agent with it!
On with the books for 2011. 1) and 2) are Changeless and Blameless by Gail Carriger from the Umbrella Protectorate series. I love these books! They're like a Victorian comedy of manners plus werewolves and vampires plus a lot of knowingly inappropriate moments. Go read them right now!!
I wish I had more exciting things to report, but the fact of the matter is, I'm just working my tail off between day job and freelancing and radio play right now. So that's that. Tonight we're expecting three to six more inches of snow in the city, which will be beautiful!
Good night!
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