Category Archives: Life in Random

11-11-2020

eBay Sales: lint shaver, McDonald’s Toy

Craft Projects Completed: 0, but several rows of knitting got done

#MilWordy Update: 89,590 words (3,107 words/day to complete)

NanoWriMo Update: 10,682 (1966 words/day to complete on time)

I uttered words I hope I never have to say again. “It tastes like a petting zoo.” I mean that quite seriously. I got tacos as a treat today and it was bad. Bad. It had the deep earthiness of dirt and the overtones of the dust with manure flavor that catches in the back of your throat when you’re petting a flock – school – herd of goats and alpacas. I really don’t mind it when it’s the smell, but as a steak flavoring? No. Not good at all.

Anyway, moving on from that. It’s been a day of rain and dullness and grey and it’s not been the best for my productivity. I’ve gotten nothing written, but I’ve watched a lot of youtube videos. That’s something I suppose.

I’m supposed to be doing my coursework for my PMP today. Especially because I want to finish the test in December, but oy. I just have not been able to concentrate. A note for those who are working on their PMP certifications — the test changes in JANUARY of 2021. So, if you’re studying Version 6, you’ll need to do your test by the end of January or start with new books and new classwork to get you up to speed. All of the PM’s I’ve worked with recommend doing a one week bootcamp: 4 days of studying and pass the test on the 5th day. I’m just doing that on my own with on-line coursework rather than sitting in a classroom. Because I really don’t want to be sitting in a classroom with strangers right now. It feels contraindicated and scary.

Most of Project Management in a nutshell is common sense, but you need to know what things are actually called. I’ve been doing long-term projects for ages; for my businesses and for other businesses. It doesn’t surprise me, but hey, I’ll get the piece of paper at the end that makes people more comfortable and I’ll have something else I can sign at the end of my name.

It’s been a strange November for me. I blinked and suddenly it was Rememberance Day. I mean, Veteran’s Day. My brain is looking for poppies, but then, I haven’t actually been out and around to buy one this year. It’s been a tradition for my entire life to pick one up from the VFW or one of the street vendors who are selling them. A quick donation and a poppy to wear on my button. I broke down and ordered a metal and enamel one on-line. It didn’t make it in time, but I’ll have it for next year.

Quickly, for the kids who may not have heard: 11-11-11 (That’s 1911) is considered the last day of World War I. This is why it is Remembrance Day. The poppies thing comes from a poem “In Flander’s Fields”. (LINK HERE)

The “War to End All Wars” did not. It was a glorious thought, but it didn’t come to pass.

And here is where I become slightly soppy and send out a thankful heart to all the veterans in my life. Including my own father who served in Vietnam. He has been active in reaching out to his fellow veterans when we’re out. Shaking hands and welcoming his fellow Vietnam Vets home. It meant the world to him a few years ago when a bellhop at Old Key West down in Disney organized a small Welcome Home event for him. We have the signed poster hanging in the library to remind him that people actually do care and remember his service. He didn’t have that when he came back. And it wasn’t until a few years ago that he actually expressed that it hurt. (Any of you who are my age, with parents who were in that conflict know that admitting to emotions is probably the last thing that our fathers have ever wanted to do.) I’m glad that there was a little healing there.

So, to the veterans: “Thank you for your Service.”

To the Vietnam Vets: “Welcome Home.”

And to the Korean and WWII veterans: “We’ll fight the good fight for freedom and democracy. We haven’t forgotten you.”

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11-09-2020

eBay Sales: book

Craft Projects Completed: 0, but I managed 2 rows on my scarf before my hands went “oh hell no”

#MilWordy Update: 89,233 words (3,077 words/day to complete on time)

#NaNoWriMo Update: 10,682 words (1787 words/day to complete on time)

Ended up not getting much done today beyond a good dinner. I got to use up a bunch of things from the freezer: Fried rice, brussel sprouts, and pot stickers. It’s a family goal to try to eat out of the freezer rather than eating out.

I also boiled up some elderberry syrup. We picked it up at a craft show last year and I just got around to boiling it and mixing it up with some honey. It’s supposed to be an immune booster, but even without that, it works really nicely as a sweetener in your tea or a nice topping for pancakes or waffles. (Some of those are in the freezer too. I always wrap up pancakes when we make too many.)

Tried to balance my checkbook today, but I need a new register. I have a tendency to use PayPal often, and I need extra lines/ registers compared to the numbers of actual checks I use. (They have 1950s pin-up girls on them right now. They used to have some chibi-goth illustrations. I was sad to see those go.) It’s okay. I buy the registers in bulk. I used to use them as sub-savings accounts in my checking. Now, I just transfer into my savings account and remind myself that in times of emergency, I can actually *use* that money. That’s what it’s for. For things like the time my tire had a slow leak or the urgent care visit in Florida. That sort of thing. Or even, “damn, I need to pay for a certification test.” (AKA — you need the cert to keep your job. So you do it.)

I suppose that’s enough of me rambling for today. It’s been one of those weird days when I don’t feel as though I accomplished anything, but I’ve still knocked things off of my to do list.

I’ll talk to you tomorrow and hopefully it will be something a little more focused.

Love, Laughter, and Pumpkins, my sibs.

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11-8-2020

eBay Sales: alarm clock, action figure, earrings, computer disk

Craft Projects Completed: 0

#MilWordy Update: 87,169 words (3074 word/day to complete)

#Nano Update: 9042/50,000 (1781 words/day to complete on time)

I was taking my very relaxing Sunday bath, when I looked at the clock and thought, “Oh! It’s almost 745. I need to get out so that my father can go to bed.”

Thing is, it turns out that the clock in the bathroom with the good tub and not just a shower, has not been set back for Daylight Savings. So, bugger. I got out an hour earlier than I needed to. I feel cheated.

On the other hand, I’ve been able to decide that I don’t like the brand of bath bombs I’ve got right now and I need to go back to the other ones. This brand has too many essential oils in it and it leaves me feeling as though I have a slight film on my skin. Ah, well. I will work through the stash of them I have and then move on to the previous brand.

My rent is going up, in order to try to stymie my father’s insistence that we need to refinance the house again. Seriously, he’ll be dead. I’ll have no choice but to sell it, and the likelihood that that will end up with me being upside right on the property is low. So, seriously, he needs to let me take on something more of the bills. Okay, that’s just a general whine at this point, so we’ll see how things go when Mom and I put our minds to the task of actually getting a functional budget going. Enveloping is the way to go at this point, I think.

I’m trying to find all the little things I’ve already picked up for people’s Christmas presents and get them packed and ready to ship. “Grandmother Express” is not going to be a functional model this year. I’ll have to ship directly to the different families. Luckily, my cousins and I have never actually exchanged gifts, and the aunts & uncles have quietly agreed that 18 is the cut off date for giving gifts to the kids. And yes, I’m sorry for talking about Christmas before we’ve even hit Thanksgiving, but it’s important to get these things sorted before the shipping madness of the holiday hits the USPS.

Well, while I have an extra hour I wasn’t planning on this evening, I’d best go work on Nano.

TTFN – Ta Ta For Now!

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11-4-2020

eBay Update: lot of mugs

Craft Projects completed: 0 Progress made on a mixed-media piece

#MilWordy Update: 83,699 words (3,044 words/day to complete)

#Nano update: 5800/50,000

There’s an elephant in the room and I don’t plan to address it.

So, let’s talk Nano and eBay and submerging myself in the practice and the love of writing. I’m getting to know a new character and it’s so much fun because she is so very different from me. And I am getting to know, if not the antagonist, the instigators of some things. I’m seeing where the character and the magic system are going to intersect in this book.

The magic in this universe is small and not public. It interacts differently with different people and they don’t compare notes, so no one is noticing that it exists anymore than someone today would believe you if you started talking about a book who unwrites itself or using a cantrip to fix a torn suitcoat.

People don’t talk about magic or miracles because they don’t want a handful of pills and a nice self-hugging jacket. Or if they do, it’s only with a small handful of people that they trust and they know will not commit them. So magic gets missed or ignored or assigned to coincidence.

It opens up the questions: What sort of wonders are you ignoring? What miracle happened that you didn’t notice?

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11-1-2020

eBay Sales: None

Craft Projects Complete: 0 — but do I count integrating a piece of furniture here?

#MilWordy Update: 80,046 words (3036 words/day to complete on time)

#NanoWriMo Update: 2420 words on Changeling Sunrise

I have actually finished my Nano words for the day, but I’m still behind for my MilWordy words. I still need another good 600 words before I’m done for that goal.

If you’ve never heard of NanoWriMo it’s goal is this: write 50,000 words in one month on a new project. Some folks do novels. (Like me.) Some do short story collections. Some use it for screenplays. No matter. The goal is the same.

Are these the best words you’ll ever write? Maybe. Maybe not. But one thing is true, if you don’t set an outrageous goal, you’ll never know. And if you do work at the goal, even if you don’t achieve it, you’ll be further ahead than if you never started at all.

If you want to join in, most of the events will be virtual this year. NanoWriMo.org is the happening website and you’ll be able to find folks in your general environment to work with, cheer on, and generally find a community with. The writer friends I’ve made with Nano are now some of my best friends.

I’ll talk more about Nano on and off through the month, but I do encourage you to give it a try. Maybe you’ll find out something about yourself you never knew.

A crazy goal. A crazy month. And lots of fun.

Off to sprint and finish off my goals for today.

TTFN!

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10-30-20

eBay Sales: piece of Fandom stuff

Craft Projects Completed: None and No progress on any of the open projects

#MilWordy Update: 77,243 (3,016 words/day to complete)

The entire day was slow and attenuated.

I tried Death Wish Cold Coffee. My heart can’t take that level of caffeine. It was good, mind, but I think I need to save it for, say, The Night of Writing Dangerously or something. Any time I really, really need to be awake at three a.m. or something.

Lit incense for the first time in a long while and I’m trying to remember why I haven’t done it more often. The fan is moving the smoke around the room as though it’s wrapping the room in scent. It’s lovely and soft like a hug.

I’ve gotten myself some new writing software. It’s for timelines and world-building and keeping track of characters. I’m planning to use it more for universes rather than stories. I’ve got several series in the works and I need something to hold onto all the details of the worlds.

One of the teams at work dressed up as MIBs. It was amusing. It was costume day at work. I was planning to wear the Evil Queen dress I’d picked up for Halloween, but the sleeves were just so painfully itchy that I couldn’t even handle wearing it long enough to get out of the house. I ended up in one of my Halloween dresses instead. It was nice to see the site getting into the actual spirit of spirit week. However, I did not participate in the photographs. There are just some things that I avoid when I can. Group photos is one of them. No one in my immediate family circle really enjoys those. However, I have been forcing selfies on my parents when we’re on vacation. Family fun will be enforced, damn it!

Well, I’m going to sign off with the exhortation to VOTE. VOTE. VOTE. Time to make your voice heard. You want change? You want things to stay the same? Now is when you decide. Here. At the polls. VOTE.

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10-29-2020

eBay sales: 4 decorative plates

Craft Projects completed: 0

#MilWordy Update: 77,090 words (3006 words/day to complete on time)

Another sort of bland day.

I miss Shabu Shabu. The restaurant near me is still closed for obvious reasons. And obviously, there’s no way of doing delivery of that experience. Ah well. That’s life, I suppose. We adapt. And maybe, maybe, I get the nerve to try making it on my own at home.

I am contemplating running a partial “estate” auction in the next month or so. I just need to collect everything. Catalog and get it ready for the site and get the lots set up. And decide if I want to actually try that in November. What with Nano and all. *wrinkles nose* I don’t know if that’s actually wise or not.

Ah well, there’s time to make that decision.

Talk to you all tomorrow. Night!

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10-28-20

eBay sales: doll, figurine, and deck of cards

Craft Projects Completed: 0. No progress at all.

#MilWordy Update: 74,944 words (3,013 words/day to complete)

It’s been a day of just meetings. Lots and lots of meetings and hauling my butt all around the compound today. It’s been long and pretty boring, to be honest.

Though I did have a wonderful lunch of homemade chicken curry.

That’s about it. Night y’all.

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10-27-2020

eBay Sales: Large ornament, book, mini-fig, and a plate

Craft Projects Completed: 0, but I got a good four rows on my scarf. I’m starting to see the end. And moved my loom so I can work on the shawl that was supposed to be a Christmas present years ago.

#MilWordy Update: 74,323 words (2996 words/day to complete)

It’s been a day of very little being done. I’ve not written anything beyond an email and I’ve not finished much in terms of my to do list. There were a few things I managed to knock off: I used the 2 domes which have been sitting in the parlor waiting for me to put something into; hung two pictures for Mom; helped change the sheets in Mom’s room; carried down a tub of stuff for eBay down to the eBay staging area; and helped Dad change the lights in the front lamp.

Huh, that was more than I expected once it’s all been written out.

I’m looking to integrate Ko-Fi onto the site. It’s a tip jar basically. In case you like one of the short stories I post and want to kick in a couple of cents. I am working towards making writing my career, but that’s a little ways down the road. I need to kill off a couple of credit card bills first. And secure a nice place to live out my golden years, as the phrase goes. Maybe a nice apartment in New Orleans? Or a small house further south in Virginia. It will depend on where my social network ends up, I think. I don’t have any siblings, so it becomes much more important to have a good circle of friends.

Well, that’s depressing. Let’s look at something else.

GO VOTE!

Well, that’s that topic taken care of. I could go on about things, but that will raise my blood pressure, and probably yours, so I’m not going to. I AM going to say that if you don’t vote, you are disappointing the men and women who have died to first, give us the right to vote on our government, and second those who fight to protect that right. Our men and women in uniform fight for our way of life. That way of life includes democracy.

Democracy means you need to vote. Make your voice heard.

Vote early if you can. Vote on the day if you need to. If you need an emergency absentee ballot due to health reasons — that might be an option. In Virginia, there is a curbside option. This was a blessing when my folks and I went to vote. It’s a great option for people with mobility issues.

I guess I did have more to say on the topic. I will sum it up here for my generation and younger: VOTE and post your “voted selfie” on Facebook or Instagram. It’s just the done thing now, and I love it! Those selfies are how I learned about early voting being an option in my state.

Well, I’ll step down off my little soapbox now.

Love, Luck, and Crunchy leaves on your way to the voting box, darlings!

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10-25-20

eBay Sales: 2 books, 1 doll, vintage cards, PC game

Craft Projects Completed: the base of my twine tree for Xmas

#MilWordy Update: 73,040 words (2,981 words/day to complete)

It’s been a day of errands mostly. Grocery shopping. That sort of thing. Didn’t get much done in terms of writing, or even the paperwork I need to get done by the end of the month.

I’m just trying not to let myself get out of the habit of writing here.

Hopefully I’ll have something more interesting for you tomorrow.

TTFN

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