Tales from the Raven

I think this may be the longest I’ve ever neglected my blog–nearly two weeks!  But, at least I have a really, really good excuse.  I got an— !!!

No, I can’t say it.  Not even as a joke.  Somebody would be sure to believe me and then word would spread and pretty soon everyone would hate me for having been nonsensical about that which is clearly not a joking matter.  So, no agent.  But, I did get some requests over the break and I’ve also decided to excercise greater patience about the fulls still out.  This despite the fact that it’s nearly Christmas and what I’d really like Santa to bring me is an agent!  :P

In the meantime and as a most excellent distraction, we visited friends in northern Virginia over Thanksgiving, and even managed to fight our way through the crowds to see the Smithsonian museums on Thanksgiving day.  Back when we used to live in the DC ‘burbs, I’d take the kids to the museums whenever I could and we discovered years ago that Thanksgiving day was a fantastic time to hit the museums.  Everything was peaceful, parking was plentiful, and the museums were ours for the taking.

Well, somebody must have let that particular secret out of the bag in the intervening years.  It wasn’t quite so bad as the summer time rush but it was still pretty busy.  On the up side, the train and fairyland exhibit opened just in time for us to see it while we were in town.  All the buildings that went up with the train exhibit (including mini-monuments, fairy houses, and presidential homes) are made from natural material and collected bits of plants. Further proof that the Botanical Gardens rock!

Take a look at these pics, and tell me they don’t make you wish you were half an inch tall!  Here we have a fairy mansion, with just a glimpse of the magically inspired decor inside.

A close up of a different room comes complete with a tiny organ.  Can you hear the music?  I can!

And finally we have a porcupine house and a giraffe house.

Can you tell which is which?

Aren’t they just the most lovely things you’ve ever seen?  You know, in the same way that all lovely and creative things get a ‘most’ categorization?  They remind me of my pine cone people, who inhabit a special garden of wild magic in 13 Demon Days.  So much fun!

Which makes me wonder what it is with tiny people we find so fascinating.  I’ve never understood that.  I mean, sure, I feel it too.  But, why, I wonder?  Any thoughts?

Most of you are doing this:

Or, some variation thereof.  After all, Thanksgiving is next week and there are menus to write, food to cook, and guests/travel to plan for.

I, on the other hand, have been doing this,

and this,

which is me setting up my winter village and making winter/Christmas crafts.  As I mentioned on FB, we celebrated Thanksgiving early his year and have moved on to Christmas.  And you know what?  It feels way too liberating!  I must have a rebel streak a mile wide.  Except, you know, inverted into a tightly wound helix that’s NOT a mile wide, cause I haven’t even had any holiday treats yet and can still fit into my skinny jeans!

So, here’s me gloating over all of you while I listen to my Christmas music, but there’s a chance for you to get me back.  The Cabinet (which just posted a hilarious note from Becca Fitzpatrick which will make your travel packing seem a dream) is taking me hostage on Tuesday and hooking me up to a lie detector test for their interview.  Leave your questions here, or stop by Tuesday, and maybe you’ll get the skinny on my deepest darkest secrets.  Then you can gloat.

When people talk about Veterans Day, the image that comes to mind is often something like this:

And that’s a beautiful example and a fine tribute.  Today, however, my thoughts are a little closer to home as I think of my Grandpa and my brother, Jake.  I see each of them standing tall and proud in their uniforms, one Air Force and the other Army.  The picture of Grandpa is an old black and white photo, while my brother’s is in color and has a glossy sheen.  Overlaid across the pictures and scribbled around the images are memories.

Grandpa and me, walking down that dirt road from his house to the farm, carrying milk buckets and looking at the stars.  He’d tell me about the constellations, and I’d mix them up, but I’d remember the sense of discovery and wonder in his voice, and the knowledge that he loved me. 

My brother, fresh home from his second tour, showing me pictures of buddies in uniform, the little cat they adopted, the desert and sand and something burning in the night.  Holding other pictures back, knowing they were too raw, too violent.  His understanding that I couldn’t look at them even though he lived them.

Grandpa, his voice a little gravely as he reads us a story he’s written.  It’s about a little mountain goat and though it hasn’t got any spaceships or magic, I feel myself go still as I listen.

My brother, back when we were kids and I was the big sister he could always sucker into reading stories.  I loved the way he listened, the thrill of bringing the story to life with my voice.  We always took time for ‘just one more.’

Thank you to veterans, and to their families, and thank you to my veterans.  Your choice to protect this country is woven up in my story, and in my ability to tell stories.  I am grateful today–and every day.

I’m going to be trying something new on the blog–sharing projects we do around our little farm and garden.  Let me know if you like it, or if you’re bored to tears.  Preferably in the comments section, though I suppose lobbing a rotten pumpkin my way will also get the message across!

This latest project I’m particularly proud of, since we didn’t buy a thing to make it.  Kind of appropriate for a compost bin, don’t you think?  We started with a section of wire fencing that we no longer needed, a leftover garden stake, and empty bags of layer pellets.

Mmm, layer pellets.  The chickens have convinced our cats that layer pellets are the yummiest thing around, and are working on convincing us.  When they’ve finished their campaign, they plan to feed us and the cats their layer pellets and dine exclusively on cat food and table scraps.

But, I digress.  The empty bags were slit open, then used to line the wire fencing so our precious chicken poop won’t fall out.  I cut notches in the top and stapled the bags to themselves, to keep them in place.

When it was finished, we filled the bottom inch or two with leaves and closed the ‘door’.

Now it’s ready for–

Okay, maybe not the chicken, but that essential ingredient to compost she’s kind enough to supply–her poop!  Our thanks to Ember, shown above.  She’s a lovely little bantam Cochin who’s a great layer, has a sweet disposition, and is always happy to do her part in helping our vegetables grow!

Tonight I ventured out as Bellatrix Lestrange.  I knew the muggles wouldn’t notice me, as they were gorging themselves on candy and blinded by their masks.  They also spent a lot of time talking to pieces of plastic.  So typical of muggles!

It was distasteful to brush elbows with the muggles, but I had a bit of fun.  A cauldron full of spiders brought to life, here, a  child’s sword sharpened, there.  One lady thought she had a clever snack of little mummies and their mum–

I whispered a spell as I passed by, and the lady’s screams echoed through the mall.

My crowning mischief of the night I worked while riding my broomstick home.  Someone had left their carved pumpkin to watch over the fluffy little chicks.

Their mistake.

Really, these muggles don’t know the first thing about Halloween.  But I and my wand will teach them!

Happy Halloween, Muggles!

Yesterday we bought our pumpkins, and this weekend we carve them!  I’m super excited, but also a little nervous.  You see, in past years, however my pumpkin turned out, I was reasonably pleased with it and happy to have had fun.  I do always wish I had a few more to play with, but I can always promise myself that next year, our pumpkin patch will still be going strong on Halloween.

But this year, I’ve been inspired by a master, and don’t know what to do!  Check out these pumpkins, carved by Tim Trudeon at the state fair!

He did hour-long demonstrations, showing us how he finds the face within the pumpkin,

and brings it out by removing the pumpkin skin and pulp around it.  I don’t know if he usually names his carvings, but this fellow was dubbed Grumpy Guy by our family.  Isn’t he just so sad?

Now I have a big, beautiful pumpkin…and the burning desire to carve something spectacular.  Unfortunately, I suspect it takes more than a burning desire.  I suspect it takes skill.  Plus, it helps to have the right kind of pumpkin (Tim suggested sweet pumpkins, also called pie pumpkins, rather than the typical carving pumpkins) and the right kind of tools.  It also involves trusting myself and a willingness to make that first cut.

I guess if it looks really, really bad and so botched I can’t put it out on display, I can always feed it to the chickens!

It’s October, and the Thirteenth–what could possibly be cooler than that?  Well, maybe if you flipped those numbers around and made it the 31^st, so we could all get our fill of candy and costumes!  Of course, that would also mean the month was over, and I’d never hasten October on its way.  ‘Sides, I haven’t decided yet if I have the chutzpah to go through with my Halloween plans.  I’ll report in if I do.

In the mean time, stop by Jen Wylie’s blog for my guest post, Keep Your Demons Close.  But be ready for a kinda creepy piece of flash fiction I wrote while having an arachnophobic moment, courtesy of October’s spooks.  Help yourself to a few candy corns while you’re at it–I’ve got a ‘handful’ to spare!

Mmm, yum!  Hehehe.

No treats come without tricks, though, so watch out for these little demon guardians.

They like their candy, and they’re not about to share!

Happy Monday!  Hope you had a great weekend.  I’m supposed to be looking into an insurance matter, so you can bet instead I’m playing with a list of Have Read and To Be Read books!  lol  I stole this list from Janet Sumner Johnson’s blog, and posted it here cause I’ve been meaning to see where the holes are in my reading.  Let me know what I’m missing, and which ones are your favorites!

But first–a disclaimer:  I didn’t come up with this ”Top YA” list, so it’s sure to be missing stuff and I can see it also includes plenty of books that are actually middle-grade or not YA at all.  If I had made the list, it would be perfect, of course!   It’s also true that some of the books I’ve read I only remember in fractured pieces, and some I’ve missed I know I really want to read.  So this list isn’t meant to be a recommended reading list, either!

Continue reading Read Any Good Books Lately?

Some days just feel like a continental slide.  You’re ready and willing to address the needs of the day, but those needs keep tilting and tripping all over one another.  Today would be one of those days–probably ’cause it’s bumping up against October and can feel our impatience to be on with the next month.  Personally, I’m hoping to pull out Halloween decorations this weekend, and maybe whip up some pumpkin pancakes, too!

But instead of having the high-energy work and cleaning day I planned for, I spent my morning in the doctor’s office listening to the lady who was taking my blood tell me how her mom and kids were at home puking.

Uhm.

She was wearing gloves, but I kinda wish she’d added a mask to that!  At least I got some meds that should take care of the nausea and ear pain I’ve been swimming through.  Remember my post a couple weeks back with the cute little girl sick in bed?  Yeah, it’s been that long, and I still haven’t kicked this.  But!  But, but, but!  Today is Friday, and I have faith in Fridays.

So, newsy bits and pieces for Friday:

• I entered my query for 13 Demon Days in Mystery Agent Inbox (entry #39) over at Mother. Write. Repeat.  If you go check it out, you’ll get a quick look at my first 250 words of immortal text, and feel very special for having been privileged with a glimpse, I’m sure!  Seriously, though, drop by and tell me what you think!
• I posted a blog on the Cabinet in which I touched on a few highlights from the SCBWI Carolinas Conference last weekend.  We also have an interview with Caleb Warnock available, which I’m tardy in mentioning.  But, Caleb’s insights are timeless, so no harm done!
• Lastly, congrats to fellow cabinet member Becca Fitzpatrick on the announcement of a fourth book in her Hush, Hush saga!  Woot, woot, goooo Becca!!!

So, that’s it for me.  Here’s hoping your fun and games for the weekend will be a monumental success, and your Friday only slides in the direction you’re trying to go!

Last night when I went in to do the dishes (at 11:00pm, the only decent hour for housework) the pile was so ugly and aggressively leering that I grabbed my camera and took a picture.  That way I’d be ready if some nasty beast crawled out and demanded I cook him an omelette.

Plus, I’ll always have proof that no matter how bad the kitchen looks, it could always be worse.  Because, you know, I like to keep it positive!

I thought about sharing the pic, but decided to shield your tender eyes–and my dignity.  Besides, the dishes are looking up.  After another round tonight, they’ll look even better.  By the time we leave tomorrow, the kitchen will probably have reached the transcendent state of semi-presentable.  Which is, you should know, my highest aspiration.  I learned a long time ago, back in the way beyond days when my house used to enjoy a state of spotlessness, that I could keep a clean house and be a Super Housekeeper complete with the Super Housekeeper badge and trophy…or I could be a great mom, a busy writer, and happy lady.  And when I really, really just gotta have a badge or spiffy-sized trophy?  I can make one for myself, out of cardboard and crayons, and stack them all in a row.

So, what will I be doing this weekend?  Straightening up, vacuuming, washing dishes, catching up laundry?  Ha!  I’ll be at SCBWI Carolinas writing conference, along with my hubby and kids, and loving every minute of it.  Let those dishes leer–they don’t scare me!