26 Random Facts

It’s been a while since I’ve played a blogging game, (they all start to look the same after a while, don’t they?), but 26 Facts A to Z looked like fun. I spotted it on Paula Acton’s blog and if you want to see her list you can find it here.

A- Age: I’m hurdling toward 40, but I feel like I’m still a kid in many respects. I still love Disney movies and coloring.

B- Biggest fears: Drowning, someone breaking into the house, and failure. However, snakes literally paralyze me. I have no idea why as snakes have never given me a reason to fear them.

C- Current time: 3:19 p.m. It’s a beautiful Sunday afternoon. Clouds are in the sky and it’s a warm 70 degrees.

D- Drink you last had: Tall Cafe Mocha – I’m still enjoying it, actually!

E- Every day starts with: Feeding my furkids. I’m not allowed sleep past 5:00 a.m. Ever.

F- Favourite song: At the moment, I love Life Support by Sam Smith, Coldplay’s new album A Head Full of Dreams, and the soundtrack for Cinderella (the live action version, 2015).

G- Ghosts, are they real?: Not sure. Haven’t met one, yet.

H- Hometown: That’s a tough question. I’ve lived in a lot of places, so I’ll go with my favorite: Land O’ Lakes, WI. It’s a tiny town in Northern Wisconsin (not the Minnesota town that makes the butter). My best childhood memories live in thick forests and beautiful lakes.

I- In love with: My husband, Edward Cullen (even after 8 years), Jim Halpert (it’s been longer for him!), and Charlie Cox a.k.a Matt Murdock a.k.a Daredevil, (my newest love)

J- Jealous of: Anyone with a literary agent. It’s been a long stretch of rejection! However, it’s not a bitter jealousy.

K- Killed someone?: I killed a character in my first novel. Does that count?

L- Last time you cried: Today. One of my furkids is struggling. He’s elderly and near the end of the line – it’s not easy knowing I’m going to lose him and soon.

M- Middle name: Nope. That’s my secret.

N- Number of siblings: One younger sister. I love her dearly.

O- One wish: At the moment, I just want more time to knit. Of late, it seems life is invading my precious crafting time!

P- Person you last called: My mom.

Q- Question you’re always asked: Are you ever going to have kids? No.

R- Reason to smile: Even with hardship and loss, life is beautiful. I just have to look out the window or give my furkids a hug to know how lucky and happy I am to have this life.

S- Song last sung: I don’t sing. Trust me, I’m doing the world a favor.

T- Time you woke up: 5:00 a.m. As always.

U- Underwear colour: Today, it’s blue.

V- Vacation destination: My most recent adventure was in Portland, Oregon. This year, I’m not sure I’ll be going anywhere. My husband is currently in night school, which means someone needs to be home with the furkids.

W- Worst habit: Compulsive chocolate eating. It’s wildly out of control and is likely to get worse with Valentine’s Day around the corner.

X- X-Rays you’ve had: Just my teeth. I’ve been lucky on the medical front, so far.

Y- Your favourite food: Chocolate. Much to my peril, I can’t leave it alone.

Z- Zoos visited: Out of Africa, Phoenix Zoo, Chicago Zoo, Payson Petting Zoo (this is barely a zoo, but we had fun).

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Feel free to play along and post your link in the comments! 🙂

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c.b.w. 2016

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Poem A Day Challenge: April 7-8

I hope you’re digging National Poetry Month as I’ll be posting quite a bit of poetry this week. Thanks to the April Poem A Day Challenge, I have several poems backlogged that are ready to be seen beyond the comment section of Poetic Asides.

April 7, 2014
Prompt: Write a self-portrait poem.

A fashion moron,
addicted to jeans
Knitting is my thing,
but forget crochet
Grew up as a nerd,
proudly still called one
From comic book stacks
to Twihard status
A dork to the core,
you’ll never change me
Nose stuck in a book,
classics and mainstream
Pages turn each night,
a cat sleeps on my lap
Never a mother,
except for furkids
Teenagers, I teach
they’ll never scare me
When they learn, I smile,
my day is worthwhile
After a good run,
I search for my muse
She keeps my words safe,
while I find a pen

Inspiration: Me. Every word is true.

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April 8, 2014
Prompt: Two for Tuesday – Write a violence and/or peace poem.

Pastel petals,
innocent face
Elegant curves,
long and slender
The siren calls,
baiting the trap

Thorns lay hidden,
ready to strike
Bloodthirsty fangs,
aching to bite
To eat her fill,
Venus must lie

Inspiration: My first thought was a Venus Flytrap, so I ran with it!  Such a pretty little plant, but also quite deadly to those that fall for the trap. What a perfect incarnate of the prompt!

Venus Flytrap Photo: Wikipedia Commons

 

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Happy poeming!

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c.b.w. 2014

Every Love Story Is A Ghost Story

The first comprehensive biography of David Foster Wallace traces the life of a very complicated man with both honesty and respect. Rather than utilize a dry timeline, D.T. Max relies on the words Wallace left behind. Everything from early poems to college essays to letters to works of fiction are aligned as a means to recount Wallace’s life. This refreshing approach offers amazing personal insight into a man that left a distinctive mark on the literary landscape.

Wallace had a personality that oscillated between a buoyant, confident individual to one crippled by self-consciousness and depression, all of which was evident in his unique style of writing. Everything in his life went into his writing and influenced his perspective and philosophy. Family, friends, roommates, and co-workers were all fair game for characters as were his surroundings whether it be the Midwest, rehab, or a college campus. He let life inspire him, even when it seemed to be his mortal enemy.

With the kind of brutal honesty Wallace would appreciate, Max shows no fear in showcasing personal flaws that run the gamut of arrogance and self doubt. Through drug and alcohol addiction, writer’s block, volatile relationships, and severe bouts of depression, Max lets Wallace speak through his letters to friends and family. Despite recurrences of darkness, it was interesting to see Wallace’s trademark humor lived in more than just his books.  He was sharp, witty, and unrelenting in his observations about the world and himself. Much like his books, Wallace was always trying to find the ultimate truth of existence.

I’ve always believed David Foster Wallace saw the world the way it needed to be seen. He eyed it with the curiosity of a child, but through the lens of a playfully cynical adult.  He had his demons and they haunted him from a very young age. Try as he may to fight them, he could not win against the “bad thing” that devoured him.

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c.b.w. 2012

A Road Trip With David Foster Wallace

Although Of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself: A Road Trip with David Foster Wallace by David Lipsky offers incredible insight into the mind of David Foster Wallace.  Lipsky foregoes organizing his book like a standard biography and instead creates a running transcript of conversations he had with Wallace about his life, work, and other random topics.

Over the course of five days, Lipsky tags along at the tail end of the promotional tour for Wallace’s masterpiece Infinite Jest.  He keeps the tape recorder running and catches every word of conversation.  While the transcript format is a little disjointed and sometimes hard to follow, the choice to maintain straight conversation from start to finish proves to be the perfect method for showcasing the talent and personality of Wallace. As expected, Wallace is quirky, unnervingly intelligent, funny, and incredibly honest. He makes no excuses for his mistakes, nor does he flinch from the truth.  Seeing these traits in such a raw format only confirms that Wallace put all he was into his work, right down to obscurely used 15-syllable words and  dry humor.

In addition, Lipsky digs into the darker, troubled Wallace – the one who was plagued by his own demons and insecurities.  His pain is heartbreaking, but it makes his resilience and ability to inspire others all the more remarkable.  Wallace lived for the work of writing, even when it threatened to kill him more than once. He was a man desperate to understand himself, everyone else, and the world around him, yet I’d wager he had a better understanding of all those things than most people could ever hope to achieve. I’ve always believed Wallace sees the world the way it needs to be seen. After spending five days with him in airports, a rental car, and in his home with his dogs I’ve never been more convinced of that belief.

For any David Foster Wallace fan, Although Of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself: A Road Trip with David Foster Wallace is a must read. Not only for a unique perspective on the man, but also for a little insight on all that went into his work.

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c.b.w. 2012