Give me something to write about!

I want to write. I've been feeling the urge to write for a couple of days now. I don't really have a lot of time available for writing, but I know that I could make some time. I feel this need to produce fiction of some sort.

But I don't know what to write.

I seriously don't have any ideas in my head right now. None. I suppose I could go back and work on re-writes/edits for Happily Ever After or Partners, but I want to write something new.

It's like there's something sitting in the back of my brain - just a little tiny spark of an idea. It's there. I know it's there. But it doesn't want to come out and play yet. I don't know what to do to get it out, to get it to a point where it's not a seed of an idea but a real idea.

*sigh*

Maybe it'll come to me in a dream.

Still alive, really!

You know, this whole not having to blog every night thing has made me not blog every night. Huh.

But things are crazy, so I have barely had time to check my email, much less do anything on the computer. I'm hoping things will calm down a bit as the month wraps up, although I won't hold my breath. If nothing else, I should get a little more time for writing.

And on that front, it seems that, as long as I don't earn more than $2k/year, I can write and get paid for it without any interference with my work visa, so YAY! What does that mean? It means I can actually enter contests and stuff, and submit work to magazines and stuff. It also means that I no longer have any excuse to put off writing.

Still waiting to see if I can write novel-length works and possibly get them published without visa issues. We'll just have to be patient.

Also, in unrelated news, GO SAINTS!!

Random observation

When it gets cold out (i.e. below freezing), and I breathe through my nose, there's a part of my palate (the roof of the mouth) that gets REALLY cold. The rest of my mouth is a normal temperature, but that one spot in the middle of the roof of my mouth is noticeably colder. I'm sure it has something to do with the way the nasal passages fill the bones above that part of the mouth, but still... it's kind of cool, and it's something that I never really paid attention to before.

Note to self:

Just because there aren't any cookies left on the cookie sheet, it doesn't mean that the metal has cooled down enough to be touched with bare hands.

Just sayin'.

YARN!!

I went yarn shopping today! Hooray for Christmas gift certificates! Hooray for yarn!

*scurries off to knit and crochet*

That was weird

It's been two whole days without blogging, and it feels weird! But it's been nice, too. I've been back at the theatre, so it's been nice not to have to stay up even later. At the same time, I feel like I've been neglecting a friend.

I'll try to get some more posting done - I want to write about Meliora again, and I'd like to see where "Take Five" goes. Of course, I also have two baby blankets, two hats, and a sweater to finish... we'll see how it goes!

New Year, New Plans (recycled title)

Last year, I made some resolutions. Let's see how that panned out!

- Blog every day. And on the days that I don't have internet access, I will write offline and publish as soon as I get access again, even if it means saving to a thumb drive and stealing a spot at a computer at work on my lunch hour.

- I think I almost managed this. There appears to be one day missing, but it's close enough for my purposes! I am satisfied with my results on Resolution 1.

- Finish at least two craft projects before I start on a new one. Once I'm caught up with everything but the two large afghans I'm working on, I can start one new project at a time.

- It was a nice try. It was a good idea. The problem is, I've got a bunch of long-term projects (things like blankets and afghans) that don't have recipients, and don't have any good reason to be rushed. However, I've been much better at finishing the projects I started, so I'm going to go ahead and say I'm satisfied with my results on Resolution 2.

- Lose 20 lb. I'm not huge by any stretch of the imagination, but I'm not fitting into my pants as comfortably as I was this time last year.

- *sigh* No. But I did manage not to gain any more weight, so that's a start.

- Get in better shape. This goes hand in hand with the previous one, but it's more about lifestyle than size. I need to feel more fit, and I need to be more active.

- *sigh* No.

- Read more. I've signed up for a group whose goal is to have all the members read 52 books this year (about a book a week, but you can average it out as needed). I miss reading. I need to read more.

- Yes! A resounding yes! I gave up on that group (it was kind of irritating and useless), but I have definitely been reading more. I've started reading on my lunch break at work, and I've been finishing a book every week or two (depending on how complicated my meals are). I've also read at the airport, and in the evenings, although I'm still not at the insane levels that I used to read back when I was in high school. Of course, I have a full-time job, and I'm back into the theatre, and I'm doing all this knitting/crochet/jewelry making, so I don't have quite as much down time to be filled.

So three out of five is not bad at all! I'm happy with this.

Now the big question: What about this year?

In 2010, I resolve to:

- Keep writing in my blogs. I'm not going to insist that I write every day, but I've really enjoyed it. It's generally the last thing I do before bed, and it's a nice part of my routine. However, I have this blog and my craft blog and my 'Take Five' blog, and I'd like to spread out the time between the three a little bit more.

- Finish editing 'Happily Ever After.' I finished the story. It has an ending. However, it needs work. I'm thinking of signing up for a course on editing your own novel, because I really feel that this story has potential. I've pitched it to a couple of girls who fall into my target audience, and they're really excited about reading it (go alpha-readers!). I want to edit, send out to readers, and re-edit, then start looking more seriously at potential agents/publishers.

- Lose 20 lbs. I know, I know, I failed at this one last year. But I'm going to keep trying, dammit, because I'm just not comfortable in my body right now. I've already started keeping track of what I'm eating, and that alone tends to help me. Back when I was doing Weight Watchers, I found that part helped more than anything else. So I'm giving it another try. I've got a really cute pair of jeans that I want to wear again.

- Get together with Mooselings. For the past several years, my NaNo group here has said, "Yeah, we'll totally get together outside of November!" and failed miserably. I'm going to make it happen this year!

Once again, a fairly reasonable set of resolutions. I think I can manage this!