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Full Moon Madness
Nov. 2nd, 2009 10:08 amHappy full moon, everyone. It's ironic, really. I have been really terrible about keeping this blog up-to-date, but one day I did.... someone was listening. I got an email from a reporter from the PIONEER PRESS on Friday asking if s/he could excerpt part of my Wednesday post for an article s/he is doing on local bloggers. So look for it in a Sunday entertainment edition coming up at some point.
I think I should be grateful I wasn't nattering on about my fish that day.
In other news, I got an e-mail from my papa who is currently teaching in Wales. Apparently, the travel gods literally threw trees in his path... or rather onto the railroad tracks. Everyone is fine, but there were lots of delays getting to where he was going, I guess. Those travel gods can be very fickle. That's why Shawn and I always carry the "travel stone" whenever we go anywhere. It's really just a piece of gravel I picked up from an alley in Minneapolis, but it's now been all over the world and much of the United States.
What happened was that I wanted to go to the Powderhorn Art Fair many, many moons ago when Shawn and I still lived in Uptown. I figured it would be easier to walk there, given the parking situation. We started out, but it was hot and Shawn decided she'd rather go home. Shawn, if you don't know, has a TERRIBLE sense of direction, which is one of the reasons that I usually drive. I really wanted to keep going, but she was really set on going back. But she was worried she'd get lost. So, I picked up a piece of gravel and handed it to her. She looked at me like I was crazy and said, "What's this?" I said, "It's magic. You can't get lost as long as you have it."
And she made it home, so we figured it did have a bit of magic in it, and we've taken it on every trip we've gone on since.
Sometimes if we're really worried about the wrath of the travel gods (like the one time we landed in Gatwick and the fire trucks came out on to the tarmack to greet us because the landing gear light was stuck in the "not deployed" mode. It turned out to be one of the smoothest landings ever, but I can't remember being more scared when the captain came on the intercom to tell us that we might not have wheels. We might just have to do a belly flop. Not cool!) Anyway, when we're nervous, we will sometimes send postcards home with notes like, "Hi, Lyda, Hi Shawn, glad you made it back home safely! What a pleasant trip! Everything was on time. No delays!"
Mason's reading camp went really well. Did I tell you about this? I actually thought Mason was making this up because it seemed so much like a dream come true for him. He told his mama (whom he has been known to pull the wool over with things like "mining lab") that his first grade class was going to have reading camp last Friday where everyone got to bring a sleeping bag, a stuffed animal, and books to read ALL DAY LONG. I thought, "No way! That's just too awesome." Turns out, it was what they did. They had breaks where they made bookmarks and had guest readers (I was one of them), but otherwise it was reading. Mason took THE HOBBIT, which he's been enjoying re-reading. I think he's read it three times already.
My attempt as guest reader was pretty... uh, interesting, as we say here in Minnesota. Alas, the teacher decided that while I read she'd prepare the s'mores and have kids come up and get them in waves. Suffice to say, the attention was NOT on me and "Hallow-Weiner" by Dav Plinkey (author of CAPTAIN UNDERPANTS). But, you know, having taught six to ten year olds Cartooning as part of "college for kids," I was at least prepared for the countless screaming Argonauts that is a distracted first grade classroom.
Oops, it looks like it's time for me to get ready to go. Today is the day I go to the coffeeshop and write with a number of the Wyrdsmiths. And, yes, my friends, I will be working on RESURRECTION CODE. It's my intention to focus on that book until the end of the year. I really hope to have it done and off to the publisher by Christmas. Wish me luck!
I think I should be grateful I wasn't nattering on about my fish that day.
In other news, I got an e-mail from my papa who is currently teaching in Wales. Apparently, the travel gods literally threw trees in his path... or rather onto the railroad tracks. Everyone is fine, but there were lots of delays getting to where he was going, I guess. Those travel gods can be very fickle. That's why Shawn and I always carry the "travel stone" whenever we go anywhere. It's really just a piece of gravel I picked up from an alley in Minneapolis, but it's now been all over the world and much of the United States.
What happened was that I wanted to go to the Powderhorn Art Fair many, many moons ago when Shawn and I still lived in Uptown. I figured it would be easier to walk there, given the parking situation. We started out, but it was hot and Shawn decided she'd rather go home. Shawn, if you don't know, has a TERRIBLE sense of direction, which is one of the reasons that I usually drive. I really wanted to keep going, but she was really set on going back. But she was worried she'd get lost. So, I picked up a piece of gravel and handed it to her. She looked at me like I was crazy and said, "What's this?" I said, "It's magic. You can't get lost as long as you have it."
And she made it home, so we figured it did have a bit of magic in it, and we've taken it on every trip we've gone on since.
Sometimes if we're really worried about the wrath of the travel gods (like the one time we landed in Gatwick and the fire trucks came out on to the tarmack to greet us because the landing gear light was stuck in the "not deployed" mode. It turned out to be one of the smoothest landings ever, but I can't remember being more scared when the captain came on the intercom to tell us that we might not have wheels. We might just have to do a belly flop. Not cool!) Anyway, when we're nervous, we will sometimes send postcards home with notes like, "Hi, Lyda, Hi Shawn, glad you made it back home safely! What a pleasant trip! Everything was on time. No delays!"
Mason's reading camp went really well. Did I tell you about this? I actually thought Mason was making this up because it seemed so much like a dream come true for him. He told his mama (whom he has been known to pull the wool over with things like "mining lab") that his first grade class was going to have reading camp last Friday where everyone got to bring a sleeping bag, a stuffed animal, and books to read ALL DAY LONG. I thought, "No way! That's just too awesome." Turns out, it was what they did. They had breaks where they made bookmarks and had guest readers (I was one of them), but otherwise it was reading. Mason took THE HOBBIT, which he's been enjoying re-reading. I think he's read it three times already.
My attempt as guest reader was pretty... uh, interesting, as we say here in Minnesota. Alas, the teacher decided that while I read she'd prepare the s'mores and have kids come up and get them in waves. Suffice to say, the attention was NOT on me and "Hallow-Weiner" by Dav Plinkey (author of CAPTAIN UNDERPANTS). But, you know, having taught six to ten year olds Cartooning as part of "college for kids," I was at least prepared for the countless screaming Argonauts that is a distracted first grade classroom.
Oops, it looks like it's time for me to get ready to go. Today is the day I go to the coffeeshop and write with a number of the Wyrdsmiths. And, yes, my friends, I will be working on RESURRECTION CODE. It's my intention to focus on that book until the end of the year. I really hope to have it done and off to the publisher by Christmas. Wish me luck!
