Sunday, October 31, 2010

Good effin' luck with that

In a few more hours, it will be November 1, and the beginning of NaNoWriMo 2011. I've participated several times, with varying degrees of success, but this year I am begging off.

My friend Aser said of my intentions to bail out--

Cheryl (...) refuses to do it. In fact, her slogan for the rest of us who do make the attempt is, "Good effin' luck with that."

I justify my decision thusly:

  • I complain constantly while I do it. Ask my husband.
  • I have never produced a first draft worthy of polishing into a real novel.
  • By the time December comes, I hate writing. Really, really hate it.
It's the last one, especially, that keeps convincing me that this is the right choice for me.

By now, though, I am completely accustomed to thinking of November as the month to take on a big and slightly crazy challenge. After weighing several ideas, I've decided that my official crazy challenge will be to knit a sweater in November. I've been eying Cafe Bastille Cables ever since I (re)started knitting, and even bought yarn for it a few years ago. Now, I think, is the time. I knit my gauge swatch this afternoon, and I should be ready to cast on tomorrow.

I won't be leaving writing behind completely. My friend K just received a response from an editor with specific ideas to incorporate in re-writing one of her novels. Because of this, she is ditching Nano and working on editing/rewrites. Since several of the things the editor mentioned are also observations I have made, I have appointed myself her drill sergeant. We are tentatively planning a writing retreat in a couple of weeks, and if the knitting is on schedule, I will try to take a writing break for myself.

Whether you are Nano-ing or setting yourself another challenge this month - Good effin' luck with that!

Saturday, October 30, 2010

Summer's last gasp


Roses
Originally uploaded by chaimann
It was blustery last week, and we even had a couple of light freezes. Apparently the house protected the little rose bush from the worst of the north wind. Yesterday afternoon, it was covered in blossoms.

Thursday, October 07, 2010

This week's excuse

I've whined here about how I should spend more time blogging and less time Facebooking, to little effect. Recently, though, Holly pointed out that October is National Blog Writing Month (or National Blog Posting Month, depending on which way you swing). She followed that up with a witty post where she infused a common daily activity with tons of drama. "I could do that," I thought.

First, I just needed to pop in to see the dentist about a mild toothache. It had been worse over the weekend (naturally, when every dentist office in town is closed), but was barely noticeable yesterday morning. I was expecting, "We need to replace that filling," or "It looks like you have a crack - have you been eating almonds again?" But no. To summarize his diagnosis, "That wisdom tooth needs to go, and that tooth next to it isn't looking so hot, either. Here's the number for the oral surgeon."

I wasn't all that surprised that the wisdom tooth - my sixth, and last - was the culprit. I knew it was sitting up there, impacted, and would probably have to go someday. I called the oral surgeon's office, expecting to get an appointment in a few days, but instead was told, "We can get you in at 1:00."

Five hours after my first appointment, I was minus two teeth and dropping off a prescription at the pharmacy, trying desperately not to look desperate for the meds. Then I went home and dipped into my good meds from a previous illness, and that helped me keep my cool for the rest of the day.

I'm doing better today. There isn't a lot of pain, but I'm sort of groggy. Apparently, I didn't sleep as well last night as I thought.

And that is why I didn't blog yesterday.