Near-Death Experience

This afternoon I experienced my worst nightmare.

Try not to laugh. My husband couldn't help himself though, even when he realized the seriousness of the situation.

Have I previously mentioned my extreme arachnophobia? Well. I'm generally a rather brave person. Blood, vomit, dirty diapers? No problem. Bring it! Skydiving, marathoning, parasailing? Yes, please. Even my other deep-seated, slightly irrational fear of serial killers has nothing on this. I have convinced myself that I would fight back using the mad skills I learned from self-defense classes, kickboxing, and Oprah specials (oh, yes). However, there is no fighting spiders. Something to do with all the legs. *shivers*

My big fear? Having a spider crawl on or in front of me while driving.

(Are you laughing yet? Pfft.)

The problem is, when it comes to spiders, I become a completely irrational, screeching, jumping freak. It's like a nerve damage problem. No matter how much I try to control the flailing and screaming, put an eight-legged monster in front of me, and I lose control. I've always been afraid that if a spider got to me in a car, I might cause a freeway pileup.

So there I was, minding my own business, chatting to my husband on my (hands-free!) cell, when a spider appeared on the INSIDE of my windshield. Cue MAJOR panic attack. Thankfully, I was sitting at a stop light, so I didn't crash into anyone. There was a gas station just before the light, so I was praying the spider wouldn't move before I could get to it and jump out. No such luck. The fat little beasty started opening and closing it's mouth at me in an attempt to hiss (spiders DO hiss, don't argue!), and then started crawling up the windshield closer to my face. At this point I'm sure all my husband heard on the other end of the line was high pitched squealing and hyperventilation. Luckily, the light changed, so I drove with my head cocked to the side and as far back as possible. Just in case. Pulled into a no parking zone, jumped out and proceeded to scream and flail, before removing my sandal and dealing the hideous monster a death blow. (Followed, of course, by more squealing.)

Husband's biggest concern during this interaction? That I would make a fool of myself. Ha! Not scared of that, clearly. Done and done! (Psh. Called my sister while still shaking afterward since her irrational fear of moths makes her much more sympathetic!)

I survived this round. However, husband has a major spider hunting task in my car tonight, as I may not be so lucky next time.

EURGH!

Recovery

After a surge in posting, things have been quiet on here lately.

I'm in recovery mode.

I took my laptop to Apple two weeks ago to fix a few minor things: the case had developed two cracks--after being fixed a year before--and after that repair, my screen also developed an annoying and persistent flicker. Although my warranty ran out, Apple kindly agreed to fix these problems free of charge. I was delighted...until I went to pick up my laptop.

Apparently Apple's policy is to fix any problems that they find, regardless of the scheduled repairs, so it leaves Apple with their stamp of approval. A commendable policy. Unless, of course, they replace the hard drive without alerting you, dispose of it, and you lose everything.

*sigh*

I did a partial backup before the repairs. I saved my novel, of course, and some other stories, but I lost loads of research and music, and other files because I didn't have time or space to back up. Lesson learned for the future! Invest in a $40 flash disk, even if you only have a minor repair. It will save a lot of time and tears.

Thankfully, I found an old flash disk with an older backup version of my writing file, so I recovered some of the files I was fretting over. Now I'm trying to find all my old bookmarks--agents, writing friends and websites: all gone--and slowly setting up my laptop again.

It may be quiet around here as I continue to revamp and personalize my laptop.

The Horror

...and some nice things.

We really know how to live it up here. We spent a wild and crazy Saturday night attempting to pull two ticks from Drew's belly. Unsuccessfully. Eurgh! It's no secret that I have severe arachnophobia, and that includes all the other nasty critters with creepy wiggly legs. I was a very brave mama holding the Drewser while Husband attempted the impossible feat, and I was bitten at least five times for it! (By Drew, not the critters!) If only Drew knew how much I love him in order to actually look at those nasty beasties. I nearly jumped out of my skin. *Shudders*
First thing Sunday morning we visited the vet, who pulled the buggers out and tested for Lyme Disease. All clear, thank goodness.


Now if I haven't already scared you away with my nasty tale, I do have something more positive to share. A "Love Ya" blog award from Aspiring Writer, Joanne. Here's a description of the award:

"These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers."

I don't feel like I deserve an award since I've been neglecting my blog lately, but I'm thankful for the acknowledgment, so this award means a lot to me. Cheers!

Like Joanne, I'm going to pass this award on to three lovely writing bloggers:

JJ over at Tea Stains has the most excellent taste in brew and is a lovely, supportive friend too. (Oh, I rhymed!)

Marmite & Tea has blogged about books for some time, but began the novel-writing journey last year and is a cheerful and enthusiastic blog chum.

I began blogging around the same time as Yvonne at It Had Better Be Good and we've been buds ever since. She recently finished the second draft of her first novel and is always an inspiration.

Love ya, ladies!

February Ups and Downs

Lately I've been feeling a bit down, but I'm chalking it up to the February Blues. This is my least favorite month. It's cold without the benefit of Christmas or New Years, and with the dreaded Valentine's Day thrown in, it always seems to go awry. Thankfully it will be over soon.

I tend to blog less during these periods because I hate writing depressing posts. In fact, I think I'll add pictures from my recent trip to Maui to cheer things up:
Top Left: Chang Beach in Wailea, the site of the wedding. Top Right: Sunset from Haleakala. (Incidentally, the temperature dropped 40 degrees as we drove up Haleakala, which is at 10,000 feet elevation.) Bottom Left: A Humpback Whale slapping its tail, as seen on our snorkeling cruise. Bottom Right: Entrance to the Bamboo Forest where we hiked on the road to Hana.

Anyway, the editing has been a roller coaster ride lately. Some days I inch along and feel like my book will never meet it's full potential, while other days I'm excited about my story and get pages and pages done. I think I pulled myself out of the dumps by creating a new 'plan' for the second draft completion, although it doesn't scare all the bad editing days away. I shy away from announcing my goals so loudly, but I think it might motivate me if I share it with you. I'm aiming to complete the second draft on April 3rd, which just happens to be the day after my birthday. Hopefully I'll be celebrating double that weekend. I am planning a third draft, but hopefully it won't take nearly as long as the first or second.

On another note, I still have slots open for the Pay It Forward gesture and would love to have people participate. The first three who agree to 'pay it forward' and sign up in the comments on that post will receive a gift from me.

Why?

I'm trying to stress less and stop being such a worrywart, but what's a 4-cup-a-day-girl to do when her coffeemaker goes on the fritz?

I only discovered that coffeemakers require 'descaling' a few weeks ago when my espresso machine began sputtering and I turned to the user's manual to find the answers. I grew up in a soft-water area, so this ultra-hard-water nonsense is frustrating.

I'm currently "running" descaling solution through both the espresso maker and the coffeepot, unfortunately my 12-cup coffeemaker has only made it halfway to the 10-cup line in an hour.
(A kind Starbucks barrista took pity on my decaff-induced glassy eyes and gave me a packet of solution this morning when I left the apartment to purchase a cup.)

It might be a slight understatement to say that panic has set in.

Life in Silicon Valley: Random Thoughts

It has its advantages: cutting edge technology, job growth, good schools, warm weather. But these advantages go hand-in-hand with a big disadvantage: the cutting edge cost of living. Apparently San Jose is the fourth worst city to rent and the number one city for home sellers, but on the bright side, we're high on the 'recession proof' list.
The bay area regularly leads the nation in everything from rental rates to housing costs to the price of gas. Before Memorial Day we were among the first in the nation to pay over $4 a gallon for regular gas. Yesterday I noticed that the 'cheap' gas station down the street had reached $4.25. It rose $0.25 a gallon in two weeks! Soon I won't be able to leave my over-priced condo because the cost will be too prohibitive. Alert the bank, I'll need a loan to fill up this weekend. I suppose I have a lot of 'gas light' days to look forward to.
I wonder whether the cost of commuting will begin to figure into people's job decisions?

Serious Cereal Thoughts

I'm panicking. I stopped at five separate stores to pick up my crack in a box favorite cereal, and not one had a supply. It's one thing when there's a label on the shelf and they've just run out; it's another thing entirely when they simply don't stock it. Four of the stores usually carry it, and I checked the fifth to be safe, but to no avail.
I haven't bought my favorite morning treat in weeks. It was on a good sale so I figured I better hoard a stash, though at $4 a gallon I think driving to five separate stores may have cut my savings a bit.
I’m concerned that without my usual morning fix breakfast, my writing will go downhill fast. Husband has already witnessed the depressive effects of these fruitless store runs. This drug cereal is so good that occasionally I get excited at bedtime because I know I get to wake up and enjoy it the next morning. I’m crossing my fingers (and toes) that the company hasn’t decided to discontinue the product for some crazy reason. I don’t want to suffer a cereal breakdown.

Writing tip of the day, courtesy of Glimmertrain:

"Writing first drafts is the experience of not knowing how to do something and persisting at it until it begins to feel right." –Charles Baxter

(So it's not just me then?)

"Hi my name is Angie..."

I spent the first half of the morning researching our current phone and internet services and comparing them to the services I (accidentally) signed up for yesterday. Then I spent the second half on the phone with various customer service reps (after s.l.o.w.l.y t.a.l.k.i.n.g my way through the many automated options) before finally sorting out that mess.

I am so proud of myself that I think I shall treat myself to a yummy latte. (You must understand how very much I loathe talking on the phone. [Not to my dear friends, of course.] I will do almost anything to avoid it, which stems in part from my lovely mom handling all the difficult business for me when I was young--and also maybe the days on end I spent gabbing when I was in junior high...).

In case you're interested (and you must be or you would have stopped reading by now!), I went with the new service after all. Part of the reason I let the salesman talk me into signing up in the first place--besides my weak resolve--was the fact that husband and I had discussed looking into new services because t'internet 'round here can be a bit testy, such as when the microwave is on, or the phone rings, or you know, you just make it angry. (Shh, we don't want it to hear and shut me down for insolence...) Hopefully the new service will route any panic-inducing moments when the internet shuts down. ("Hi, my name is Angie and I'm an internetaholic.")

Bloody Salesmen

I just lost 45 minutes of good writing time to the cable guy.

Hmm, that didn't sound quite right.

What I mean is that the cable company sent workers door to door to try to sign up customers for their 'bundle' package of TV, internet, and phone, and even though I actually said no three times in a row, the pushy kid kept insisting that I sign up and that I would have two weeks to change my mind. So what did I do? Rather than deal with continued confrontation--which I hate--I agreed and allowed him to come in and sign me up for a deal I don't want. Hmph. After 45 minutes and a phone call with one of those automated voice machines where you have to say things V-E-R-Y S-L-O-W-L-Y A-N-D C-L-E-A-R-L-Y in order to be understood, I took my receipt and noticed that he signed me up for the bloody Spanish Language Package. When I asked him about it, he said, "Oh, it's the same, you just get more channels." Do I look like I care if I have 15 extra Spanish channels? Salesmen! Normally I send them packing without a problem, but for some reason my resolve was weak today. And now I will have to deal with one of my other favorite things: talking with salespeople on the phone in order to cancel the package. Bugger.

Housing Fantasies

Since I no longer allow myself to look for jobs online, I developed another bad habit: searching for houses online. *sigh*
The prices in the bay area are still far too prohibitive for us to afford a 'real' house, but that certainly doesn't stop me from looking.
I also tend to search in cities where we could live in the future, even if it's only the slightest possibility.
And.
I found my perfect house today. In a city hundreds of miles away. *sob* It costs less than our silly one-bedroom condo, has no homeowner fees, AND it has a lot of character and charm (i.e., it's not a track home that was built in the recent housing boom). It's even brick, which can be fairly difficult to come by in the US, and it's a beautiful 1920s cottage.
I think I'll go mope in peace. Or do what I should be doing, which is writing. *dramatic sigh*

Oh no, I just found another one that has a library(!), fairytale staircase(!!), and I kid you not, a white picket fence! (I know, know, off I go...)

Blue Monday?

Yesterday was supposed to be the worst day of the year. What do you reckon, did it live up to all the hype? Today sure started off with a crash, so to speak, with the stock market continuing to drop and the delayed action of the fed slashing interest rates. I don't know if yesterday was the worst day of the year for me--there have only been 21 so far--but I certainly felt under the weather literally (it's quite drippy here) and figuratively. I know the quality of my blog has been suffering of late due to my somewhat exhausted and uninspired mood. I exert most of my energy during the day attempting to get words onto paper, and by the end of the day all I feel up for is a session in front of the TV, which by the way, has been playing nothing but the Australian Open lately. (For Christmas I gave husband a Tivo--he loves tennis but always misses the majors because they play at odd hours here, so now he's recording every match and watching endless tennis. He even enjoys watching the boring matches in fast forward. I like tennis, but I'm ready for the finals already! I did use the Tivo to squeeze in two Jane Austen adaptations this weekend since PBS is airing the complete Jane Austen.) Anyway, back to blue and drippy Mondays. This weekend I found out my grandma was admitted to the hospital for elevated blood pressure and heart problems--she's a long-long term smoker with a history of heart and lung disease, unfortunately. After that, Monday didn't seem quite so bad, though I'm about ready to take a sick day just to catch up on rest!
In an attempt to cheer up, I'm making some small visual changes to the blog just for fun, and I also wanted to share a website a friend recently introduced to me. It's called Good Reads and it's like myspace/facebook for readers. You can share the books you've read, are reading, or are planning to read and give reviews, share quotes and view the books that friends recommend. Anyone that fancies a look can check out my books on Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/profile/angielondon

Unpredictable

Just so readers don't get too jealous of the beautiful sunshiny weather from last week, here is a picture outside my front door from five minutes ago:


It's supposed to rain 2-4 inches today and the flooding you see around that sidewalk (yes, there is a sidewalk there: the v-shaped gray smudge) has already accumulated and it's barely 11am. The rain is lashing down with heavy wind, and the trees are being blown like crazy. We've had a few power flashes already, so I may be going offline for awhile. I really hope we don't lose power. It's difficult on my eyes to write in the dark. Plus, how will I drink tea, people, and keep warm, and entertain myself? Stupid boasty sunshiny pictures backfired. Pfft.

Bleurgh

So.

There's this thing I've planned on applying to for months. I even reorganized my writing/editing schedule to accommodate the application process.

But.

Now I'm panicking. I don't want to apply anymore. Yet I promised myself I would, just in cases. But that's the thing about it: I'm not sure whether this application is a safety net or whether it is in fact a very well-veiled avoidance tactic. It is a writerly thing to be sure, but I'm not even certain if I want to do it. I don't want to break the promise to myself and have all that work be for nothing (especially the lovely help contributed by friends), but I don't want to apply either. Now I'm running out of time. The application is due at the end of the month. I have three small things to complete before I can send it in, but two of them are very scary (for me).

*Paces* What to do, what to do?

I must decide this weekend.

*sighs*

Sorry for not sharing more, but I don't want to disclose the exact details in public.

Words written today: 476 (pfft!)

Dash of Spelling, anyone?

Oh the horror, the horror:

Should We Simplify Spelling?

Being a spelling nut, I can barely understand any of Ms. Bell's writing. I agree with all the commentors and Prof Cook's arguments. Leave it alone. For one thing, English is far too widespread to go changing it now, and for another it is part of the history of our language. Changing it at will erases the beauty of the foundations of our language. You can still see the Germanic, French, and Latin influences on our language, and I for one love that. Her spelling is also aimed at a certain accent, which creates a problem when you're revising the spelling based on how it sounds. Like a commenter, I kept reading her change of spelling from "only" into "onely" as won-lee! If we need to help slow readers, do it by improving education, not by changing spelling to the lowest common denominator!