Tag: blog life

It’s My WordPress Anniversary!

Today marks my 7th year on WordPress. It’s been a long journey from zero readers to more than 200. I’ve met some fantastic people through this site and discovered some incredibly insightful and fascinating blogs. I am so thankful for having this outlet that brings so many different voices and points of view together!

I know I said I would have something on stop-motion animation today, but I couldn’t get it together in time due to some work stuff going on. The tl;dr is that it’s good news, all of it, but it means I will have to be way more involved in my job and travel quite a bit, which bites into my watching movies and TV, writing, working out, and cooking time. So I will DO MY BEST to keep coming up with articles that are at the least entertaining, if not informative.

So happy Friday to you! I hope you’re heading into a weekend full of fun and relaxing things. See you next week!

Come On Baby, Hold Together

Since the future is looking kind of bleak, I’m resolved to do my best not to be part of the problem.

So although it’s only December, I have decided to make a New Year’s Resolution, and put it into practice now. I barely blogged at all in November; partly it was exhaustion, partly I was busy doing other things*, and partly the existential despair into which I plunged while watching a cabal of goblins gather to undo the Good Work of the past eight years.

My New Year’s resolution is this: I will blog at least once a week, on Fridays. If it isn’t about movies, it will be something interesting. No, I won’t just ramble about how I am doing, but I will review some new book/product/whatever that I am exploring, as I am always checking some new thing out. I will do my best to be entertaining, informative, and fair, and bring a bright spot of interest to your week.

Since the future is looking kind of bleak, I’m resolved to do my best not to be part of the problem. After all, we’re in this together now!

So, stay tuned for tomorrow’s blog entry, which is about my John Clare cosplay/Halloween costume!

And this weekend is Spooky Empire, which was rescheduled due to Hurricane Matthew! I’ll get to meet THE Elvira, and be in the same room as the Stranger Things cast! I’ve been looking forward to it most of the summer; originally I was going to wear my costume but since it’s kind of a pain to put on, I think I will skip that and just wear my favorite Hannibal T-shirt.

So keep an eye on your inbox, and have a great day!

*In no particular order, I:

  • Volunteered on a Saturday to help sew festive holiday pillowcases for the leukemia ward of a children’s hospital
  • Edited my novel some more
  • Had Thanksgiving dinner with my sister and her family, including a homemade 12-lb turkey, which I brined and roasted, homemade mashed potatoes, green bean casserole from scratch, and handmade cheese and herb monkey bread
  • Knitted my Mom some yoga socks, then worried they were too big and started another pair because that’s how I roll
  • Experimented with new hair care products
  • Read like 5 books
  • Donated to the food drive at work
  • Participated in the work potluck
  • Purchased, assembled, and painted two wooden picnic tables for my backyard. They are bright purple and I keep forgetting to take a photo
  • Cook healthy meals at home and go to the gym at least twice a week
  • Spent time with friends and family

A Tiny Hiatus!

Hi folks!

Thank you for following my blog – I appreciate each and every one of you, from the folks who don’t say much to the ones who chat all the time. Blogging is so much fun and I’ve met some of the nicest, most intelligent and passionate folks through this medium. I’m so glad I’m part of this community, and I’m glad most of all that people think enough of my posts to follow my blog. Thank you so much for spending a few minutes listening to me!

I’m slowing down on the film reviews lately and it’s because I’ve been working on fiction a lot more. I still watch movies and TV, but I don’t always have something insightful or interesting to say and I’d rather say something useful or interesting than just say ‘I watched this’ for the sake of keeping active.

I’m continuing with my Game of Thoughts coverage, because those are WAY fun to write and live-watching the show with everyone is such a hoot. We’re all in this together, to the bitter, bitter end!

Other than Game of Thoughts, I’m going to take the next two weeks off from writing posts – I’ll still comment and read other people’s posts, but going to take a small break from blogging. I’m volunteering at MegaCon 2016, I joined a local speculative fiction critique group, I’m knitting a blanket for a baby shower, I’m writing, cooking, and working out more, and I have some major deadlines coming up for my job.

So please, forgive a bit of slacking on my part! I hope you stick around for the new content, and take care of yourself in the meantime.

See you in a few weeks!

tinypotato
Tiny Potato believes in my Tiny Hiatus

 

Flash Fiction

Over on his blog Terrible Minds, published horror author and cool person Chuck Wendig put up a Flash Fiction challenge. There are some AWESOME stories up already. Inspired, I decided to see what I could come up with.

The Rules:

I want you to write a story in five sentences.

No more than 100 words.

You can view it, if you’d like, as:

Sentence 1: Beginning / Inciting Incident

Sentence 2: Middle

Sentence 3: Middle peak, act turn or pivot

Sentence 4: Climactic turn or twist

Sentence 5: Resolution

That is not a strict map, but rather, a reminder that a story is a story, not a snapshot: it has a beginning, a middle and an end.

I posted it over there in the comments, but I’m also posting it here because I has a proud, however small.

At The End Of The Day

I roll over just before the door opens, and lie still as steps cross the room.

Pressure on the mattress, and then two thumps as heavy work boots land on the floor.

A familiar sigh, and then a person-shaped coldness lies down and stretches out next to me. A hand like a glove left out in the snow touches my face.

“You knew I’d be back,” he says.

“Yes.” I close my eyes, eager for his smell of bay rum and old flannel. I only smell the formaldehyde, and wonder if it was worth it.