Went to the local convenience store for eggs this morning, making up a breakfast for me and the boy. Paid no heed to any sort of grooming, other than attempting to wet down the strange animal which has curled up on my head and called itself hair. My comfy jacket (with it's frayed sleeves) over a comfy sweater (with ketchup on the zipper). Sunny day, only 100 yards or so away from the house. Passing by two people on their way to work.
"Hey, that lady married me!" says the gent, waving and smiling at me. A groom, I remember the wedding well, he and his bride were beautiful, I was considerably better dressed. I grin back and wave, frayed sleeve held aloft, likely crumbs on my face from a piece of pre-breakfast toast I'd been excited about. Possibly a blob of marmalade between my teeth.
Walking away I thought, really shouldn't leave the house looking so disheveled. I've officiated ceremonies for enough people that running into them here and there is becoming more common. I mean, I will leave the house looking pre-rumpled, possibly in a house coat now and again, but I really, really shouldn't.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Writing on the go
I have four half written short stories and two manuscripts to flesh out. I've had them for a while now. While they are outside my head stories and so almost real, they need work and my work habits need a bit of a make over.
For years I've wanted a laptop. I do have one, an elderly beast which must remain hooked up to life support to maintain signs of it's slow and plodding life. I call her Ethel, and am unsure of the integrity of the data she keeps. She's also an unwieldy girl who doesn't travel well. I've wanted a lighter, faster and portable laptop. Something to write in coffee shops in, or in parks. I used a Palm lifedrive for awhile, but it's had a stroke recently and prognosis is not good for a useful recovery. I'd nearly had myself convinced that a netbook would be an economical option before a friend (who knows me well and is fortunately unburdened with tact) told me on no uncertain terms that I was being an idiot. Laptops are expensive and out of range for my current income, but settling on tech isn't something I'm going to have long term patience with.
I think the reason I write better in coffee shops is a lack of discipline on my part. The chaos of the environment is external to me, none of my business. This forces me to focus on the page and story before me. At home all the chaos is my business, very distracting, this and that to do. Not a lot of writing gets done. Becoming a more disciplined person is harder than spending money on a solution, but of more long term benefit. I'm going to have to make a greater effort toward that at the home office.
And for the coffee shop writing which I seem to need? I have a lot of paper, and nicked a well made pen.
For years I've wanted a laptop. I do have one, an elderly beast which must remain hooked up to life support to maintain signs of it's slow and plodding life. I call her Ethel, and am unsure of the integrity of the data she keeps. She's also an unwieldy girl who doesn't travel well. I've wanted a lighter, faster and portable laptop. Something to write in coffee shops in, or in parks. I used a Palm lifedrive for awhile, but it's had a stroke recently and prognosis is not good for a useful recovery. I'd nearly had myself convinced that a netbook would be an economical option before a friend (who knows me well and is fortunately unburdened with tact) told me on no uncertain terms that I was being an idiot. Laptops are expensive and out of range for my current income, but settling on tech isn't something I'm going to have long term patience with.
I think the reason I write better in coffee shops is a lack of discipline on my part. The chaos of the environment is external to me, none of my business. This forces me to focus on the page and story before me. At home all the chaos is my business, very distracting, this and that to do. Not a lot of writing gets done. Becoming a more disciplined person is harder than spending money on a solution, but of more long term benefit. I'm going to have to make a greater effort toward that at the home office.
And for the coffee shop writing which I seem to need? I have a lot of paper, and nicked a well made pen.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Celebrating Internatoinal Museum Day
Apparently it's International Museum Day and it's also Victoria Day. Which means a lot of museums are closed. Here's some ideas of how to celebrate anyway:
1) Go to your nearest museum. If it's open, go in. If it's not, stare at the outside for a while and take a picture. If it's the ROM, marvel at the crystal entity that's crashed to earth and is slowly devouring the building.
2) Walk around your house and observe your own possessions from the stand point of a museum goer. Keep you hands behind your back and don't touch the objects. Mutter their histories aloud, marvel at their shapes and purposes. Appreciate their beauty.
3) For extra self curator fun, select a few items of particular interest, arrange them esthetically to catch the light and write place cards describing their real or imagined history. For example:
"EXHIBIT A: This Cuisinart coffee maker is a replica of a model which dated back to 2004, when it was purchased from the Hudsons Bay Company by persons traveling from a same sex wedding at the King Edward Hotel in downtown Toronto. The original coffee maker was lost in the great grounds backlog of 2007, and this replica was purchased using primarily empty beer bottles, the traditional form of Canadian currency. The Hudson's Bay Company is the department store which founded Canada. Same Sex weddings have been legal in Canada since 2003. The couple in question that day later went on to purchase Puma shoes. Not the chain, just two sets of sneakers. One of the party of travelers urinated in the correct receptacle of the King Edward Hotel following the ceremony."
Invite friends over to stare at the artifacts with you. Encourage them to take pictures.
4) If you find nothing about your house that's interesting, visit a friend. Or a neighbour you don't know very well. Point at their possessions and ask them "Tell me about this piece", nod and say "that's very interesting" in response to whatever they say. If they are able to guess that you're celebrating International Museum Day, give them a cookie.
1) Go to your nearest museum. If it's open, go in. If it's not, stare at the outside for a while and take a picture. If it's the ROM, marvel at the crystal entity that's crashed to earth and is slowly devouring the building.
2) Walk around your house and observe your own possessions from the stand point of a museum goer. Keep you hands behind your back and don't touch the objects. Mutter their histories aloud, marvel at their shapes and purposes. Appreciate their beauty.
3) For extra self curator fun, select a few items of particular interest, arrange them esthetically to catch the light and write place cards describing their real or imagined history. For example:
"EXHIBIT A: This Cuisinart coffee maker is a replica of a model which dated back to 2004, when it was purchased from the Hudsons Bay Company by persons traveling from a same sex wedding at the King Edward Hotel in downtown Toronto. The original coffee maker was lost in the great grounds backlog of 2007, and this replica was purchased using primarily empty beer bottles, the traditional form of Canadian currency. The Hudson's Bay Company is the department store which founded Canada. Same Sex weddings have been legal in Canada since 2003. The couple in question that day later went on to purchase Puma shoes. Not the chain, just two sets of sneakers. One of the party of travelers urinated in the correct receptacle of the King Edward Hotel following the ceremony."
Invite friends over to stare at the artifacts with you. Encourage them to take pictures.
4) If you find nothing about your house that's interesting, visit a friend. Or a neighbour you don't know very well. Point at their possessions and ask them "Tell me about this piece", nod and say "that's very interesting" in response to whatever they say. If they are able to guess that you're celebrating International Museum Day, give them a cookie.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)