If you're reading here you've probably noticed that I haven't blogged very much lately. The truth is, I'm rarely online here on WDC. My freelance writing keeps me busy and I move in different circles now thanks to my other blog, The Writer's Round-About (http://www.writersroundabout.com)

That blog is going stronger than ever but since I spend so little time here I've decided to let my Premium account revert to Free when my current membership runs out in February. So, alas, that means this blog is going to poof into the clouds of WDC heaven. I'll delete it closer to the deadline.

I have exported and then weeded out my portfolio. So the content left behind is all that will remain after I'm reverted to a free membership.

PLEASE don't gift me a membership or gift points to buy one. Honestly, I don't spend enough time here to justify the cost of membership and I will be happy to have a free account. I'll still be able to visit those I talk to regularly, you can still email me, and if you'd like my non-WDC email, social media (myspace, stumbleupon,digg,del.icio.us, etc.) or Yahoo/MSN ID drop me an email.

All the best to my loyal readers. Don't forget you can follow me at The Writer's Round-About. I will probably create a new personal version of Mental Meanderings on MySpace.

 

I really enjoyed the five facts PlaidEarthworm covered at Squiggle (http://plaidearthworm.blogspot.com/2007/12/in-orbit.html) so I thought I'd tag myself for the meme and see what I learn (and share) about myself with some little tidbit facts about me.

Link to the tagger and post these rules on your blog. Share five facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.

Random Fact: When I was a child I learnt to figure skate (rollerskates) with the four star program. I was really good at it despite always being a chubby child. I also loved it. In my teen years we moved further away from the rink where my family skated so much so I gave it up. My knees were continuing to cause problems anyway so I didn't do much sport in school but I really missed skating. Now my kids are old enough I've signed them and myself up for figure skating lessons again. I'm a three-star figure skater with two more tests to past. I still love it but must admit that I'm not as young and flexible as I used to be.

Weird Fact: I have occult believes, am a trained Past Life Regressionist and Reiki II Practitioner. I can also read Astrology and Tarot although I'm still practicing these. I'm also a medium and can see dead people. I've forced these 'gifts' to the depth of my consciousness because being able to 'see' has always made me feel uncomfortable and weird.

Factoid: I can say the alphabet backwards and forwards. I might have mentioned this before but I'm too lazy to search and check. I learnt to say the alphabet backwards in primary school because it was printed on the footpath inside giant footprints. My sister and I would walk to and from school hopping from footprint to fooprint saying the alphabet. Forwards from school and backwards too school. It's a fantastic way to learn and sometimes I wish we had multiplications presented in the same way.

Fact-a-chick-boom: I'm bisexual and prefer to watch naked women instead of naked men. I've always appreciated the female body and feel like the male body is rather haphazardly put together, awkward and functional rather than beautiful. I'm also turned on by erotic language and reading. Words have an amazing power over me. More so than most people.

Factling: I had a speech impediment as a child. Because I sucked my thumb until I was twelve years of age I have an overbite that caused me to have trouble saying words with the letter "s". The speech therapist taught me "to always keep the snake in the cage". That means, when you say the letter "s" keep your tongue behind your teeth. I learnt to do that and can now speak normally (although my online friends all find my accent cute).

Well, there you go. More than you ever really needed to know about me and perhaps way more than I should share on a medium where prospective employers might stumble upon me. *blushes*

I'm not going to tag anyone but if you found the Meme as interesting and inspiring as I did I hope you'll join in. Be sure to leave a comment to point out your Meme so I can check it out.

 

Well it's been a long time since I regaled you all with useless tidbits of semi-reliable information but I figured you're all long overdue for an intriguing update. So, without further ado I present another captivating Libra Odd Spots episode, brought to you by Rebecca Laffar-Smith:

# 295 - A lobster's kidneys are in its forehead and its teeth are in its stomach.
Ok, anyone else have trouble with this image? Straight mouth to gut going on here. I guess lobsters must get pretty hungry sometimes. Still, I picture the cute little crayfish with its google eyes and can't picture it's mouth on its stomach. Where do these 'facts' come from? Can anyone verify the anatomy of a lobster?

# 147 - The highest rating that can be given to a top quality diamond is D-Flawless.
Remember this one boys! When you're shopping for diamonds only the best will do. Take note: D-Flawless. Nothing but a D-Flawless diamond, the size of a baseball field will be enough for your woman.

# 346 - Buckingham Palace has 600 rooms.
And I'm suddenly glad I don't live in a palace. Imagine having to keep that monster dust and dirt free? Of course, it has its upsides. It must be easy to avoid the in-laws when they visit for Christmas.

# 4 - Elephants and short-tailed shrews get only two hours of sleep each day.
*sighs* If it's good enough for Elephants and Shrews I wish it were good enough for us. Imagine how much more we could accomplish with six extra hours a day/night. Some people call me a Shrew, maybe I'm sleeping too much. Of course, I'm more of a Shrew when I don't get enough sleep. *ponders* Maybe that's where the name comes from? Shrews act like little Shrews because they never get enough sleep.

# 305 - The initials M.G. on the famous cars stand for Morris Garage.
Ok, no idea what Morris Garage is. Obviously I dance to closely to the poverty line to be knowledgeable about such cars. Would be a nice Christmas present if someone rich is looking to know what's on my list.

# 86 - Xerophargy refers to a diet of bread and water.
ICK! Remind me never to try Xerophargy. Much as I like bread and water (it must make one lose weight fast) it can't be healthy to have such a limited diet and it's sure to be pretty boring.

# 235 - To simply walk you use 200 muscles.
Great exercise! I can also claim massive fatigue if I walk from the bed to the couch! Great fact on all accounts.

# 122 - A cheetah's stride is seven to eight meters in length. It completes four strides per second.
Wow, that's 100k/m's an hour! (assuming I did my maths right). Forget the car I'll drive a cheetah around town. Cheaper to fuel, just let it eat a frail pedestrian.

# 307 - In ancient times, vinegar was the strongest acid known.
And they put it to much better use than spicing onions.

# 83 - Perspiration is odorless. Bacteria on the skin creates the odor.
*ponders* Well I beg to differ. A hot, sweaty man smells pretty good right after a workout. I'll agree he needs to shower before the sweat goes stale but those pheromones could send women wild!

# 368 - Figs have the highest dietary fiber content of any common fruit, nut or vegetable.
So beware, they're more lethal than plums/prunes. Tasty alternative. Perhaps we should all take up fig juice drinking instead of cranberries.

# 290 - A ballet enthusiast is called a "balletomane".
*sighs* Why'd they give it such a weird name. I don't want to be a balletomane so I guess I'll have to stop being enthusiastic about ballet.

# 211 - A Boeing 747 plane holds about 213,846 liters of fuel.
Note to terrorists: They make a pretty big explosion if the gas tanks catch on fire.

# 114 - Flamingos live up to 80 years.
*chuckles* The libra strip has a picture of a decrepit looking flamingo with a walking cane and glasses. It's an image isn't it? I wonder if old pink flamingos go grey...

# 98 - A guinea pig can run three hours after being born.
Poor little guys. Three hours after they're born they can begin to be tortured with the hamster wheel of doom that never goes anywhere. What a miserable life.

# 37 - The Pac Man video arcade game featured colored ghosts named Inky, Blinky, Pinky and Clyde.
Hands up if you think Clyde must have been one of the designers? *raises hand* What a cool way to leave a legacy.

# 269 - The average loaf of bread is more than a third water.
Wet bread. It gets even wetter when you soak it in water. It also absorbed a mixture of egg and milk then fries up real nice for French Toast. mmm

# 314 - Artichokes are flower buds.
Does that mean they can't technically be considered a vegetable?

# 187 - 24 frames per second are projected in most animated films.
Another reason I always hated the idea of becoming a cartoonist. Think about it, a feature film is what? An hour and a half long? Again, if I did my maths right that means ONE FILM requires 7,776,000 drawings of minute movements. Did you see that number correctly? Almost 8 million drawings per movie!

# 265 - The largest eggs in the world are laid by sharks.
That's post-dinosaur of course because dinosaur eggs were HUGE! Still, can't be too fun being a female shark. I wonder if their eggs are bigger than human babies. Maybe these egg laying creatures have a good deal.

# 220 - Spider silk is a very strong material and its on-weight bases has proven to be stronger than steel.
I wonder why developers don't take this into consideration. We get silk made from the cocoons of silk worms, why don't we use spider silk to manufacture? I could provide for at least a dozen manufacturers with all the spiders that call my house, home.

# 14 - every living thing on Earth contains carbon.
Yes, earthlings are all carbon based life-forms. I wonder how many carbon based non-earthlings there are.

# 74 - It takes over 20,000 litres of water to produce one kilogram of beef.
How does water translate into beef?

# 276 - On an average day, an adult spends 77 minutes eating.
I'm sure obese people spend way more time then that. I know it takes me 30 minutes to eat breakfast, about 30 for lunch and another 30 for dinner. Morning tea, afternoon tea and an evening snack are optional but add to that time. Thus, we prove that the 'fact' should say, "On an average day, an average adult spends 77 minutes eating." I don't mind being special.

# 172 - A person living to 75 years of age will have slept almost 23 years of their life - or about 220,000 hours.
My dream is to be a 75 year old who has slept 40 years of her life.

# 93 - A "buccula" is the name given to a person's double chin.
Ok then...

# 27 - Male monkeys go bald in the same way men do.
It's all that testosterone and sex. If you take estrogen shots boys you'll maintain your hair. Of course you'll also probably develop breasts and mood swings. Probably not a fair trade off.

So, there you go. More useless things you didn't need to know. Do you dispute any of these facts? Have something else to add to my rather lame commentary? Come on, lets lighten the day up with some humor!

 

I really enjoyed the idea of this meme that Michele posted in her blog Writing the Cyber Highway (http://writingthecyberhighway.blogspot.com/2007/12/weekend-fun-with-alphabet.htm... so I thought I'd give it a try. I'm looking forward to seeing what I come up with each letter. Here are the rules:

List a word that describes you for every letter of the alphabet. Offer as much or as little explanation as you wish. Please keep the words positive (for example, don’t use “fat” for F or “lame” for L), and feel free to get creative. Tag as many or as few people as you wish. Link back to your tagger and forward to your taggees.

A is for Articulate - I love to talk and I can be very chatty. Sometimes I talk too fast and when I'm nervous recording my voice (singing or poetry readings) or DJing I have to be reminded to slow down and include more pauses.

B is for Beautiful - Ok, I've denied it in the past but today I'm feeling it. I really AM beautiful and I'm trying not to sound conceited when I say that. Trust me, after 25 years of feeling fat and ugly it is a huge breakthrough to look in the mirror and feel it and say it, "Wow you're looking beautiful today, Becca."

B is also for Bipolar - I'm not my mental health but I do live with my condition every single day. I'm feeling much better since I began medication and am discovering a remarkably different world then the one ruled by my moodswings. I'm hoping this wonderful feeling of 'normal' will continue. I'm optimistic and motivated for an incredible future.

C is for Creative - My stock in trade. I love my creativity. As a writer it's a huge part of my being.

D is for Distant - I'm a very long way away from all my closest friends. I know I need to make some friends closer to home but I truly cherish the ones I've made all around the world.

E is for Energetic - On my good days I'm very energetic. I walk a lot and am always willing to put skates on my feet, dance around the living room, or kick around a ball with the kids. This energy also means I have to seriously remind myself to go to bed by midnight and reign myself in if I'm doing more than I should.

F is for Fear - I know we're not supposed to mention negative aspects but I'm trying not to see fear in bad light. Fear is a huge part of who I am at the moment but it is also a part of what gives me strength and helps me grow. I face my fears and conquer them. Sometimes Fear wins small battles but I always regroup and turn to fight them when I'm more prepared.

G is for Gaming - I'm a gamer girl and proud of it! Yes, you guessed it. That means I'm into video games and role-playing games. D&D, White Wolf, Mage, and anything else in similar vein that I come across. Gaming allows me to explore my creativity and develop rich, rewarding characters and worlds. The only time I get bored with a video game is when I've reached the point where I've already explored everything. I'm an adventurer at heart.

H is for Healthy - I am for the most part and very glad of that fact. I've learnt to rest when I get sick. Deliberately staying in bed for a full 24 hours straight and drinking lots of water tends to make me recover quickly. I'm not a fan of doctors so I'll only go when I desperately need to but for the most part I'm pretty well and healthy.

I is for Imagination - Mine is vast and continues to expand. I love tapping into my imagination. It can take me anywhere through time and space.

J is for Jugular - I've been known to go for the throat when I'm having a bad day. Again, it's semi-negative but I think it shows an inner strength that is positive. This same ability helps me go for the things I really want and to stand strong against adversity. I just have to be careful to give my friends some distance so I don't bite their heads off accidentally.

J is also for *J..... - The first letter of my baby boy's name. It's a name I adore and always attached to the hot looking guys when I was in school. I imagine *J....'s as being outgoing and high achievers. I wanted my boy to have those traits as well. Of course, I've no idea about the name other than my own childhood memories of multiple boys with that name. *chuckles* Thinking about it now my ex mightn't be thrilled if he'd known that's why I liked the name. *J.... also has my ex's first name as his middle name. I like the idea of this kind of family tradition.

K is for *K..... - The first letter of my daughters name. I named her after my middle name which also begins with K. When I named her I thought I was being clever and original but days after we took her home from the hospital I met three other people with her name spelt in various different ways. So far, the spelling I gave it is unique.

*I'm not going to say their names here because I prefer to keep my kids names off the internet.

L is for Loving - I've a big heart, perhaps too big. I've learnt to be careful with my love but I have a rich compassion for everyone and everything. I also deeply love my children. The "I love you more" game is one we play multiple times a day. I've been learning to say I love you to others I love. It's something I've struggled with in the past along with other forms of closeness. I only hug the people that are incredibly close to me. I'm trying to break down my barriers so I can grow closer to my friends and family.

M is for Mother - I'm a single mother of two beautiful children. They enrich my life and I cherish them both dearly. (Even if they do send me broke over Christmas.)

M is also for Money - Something I wish I had more of but then again who doesn't. It's also something I'm rather careless with but also very giving. If I can help someone, financially or otherwise I'm usually happy to. I'm working hard at the moment to try and earn enough money from the freelance writing I do so that I'm no longer dependant on child maintence and the pension. I want to feel in control of my income so I can set aside the fear that it will stop coming.

N is for Nosey - Ok, I admit it. I'm curious! I don't think this is a bad thing because in my experience if someone doesn't want to share something they won't. I'm not pushy about being nosey. If you don't want to get into it, say so and I'll back off. But I am naturally curious and I want to know everything. I want details. I crave information.

N is also for Nature - I love nature and all things natural. I'm a natural blonde, at least I was. These days it's more like a mousey, dirty blonde / very light brown. I love animals and plants. Wildlife, birds, even insects some of the time. I write poetry to honor the sun and the sky and the sea. I cherish nature. I take sky pictures. I have a fascination with cloud formations and light especially at sunrise and sunset. I love crystals and strongly believe in the life energy of all natural things.

O is for Opinionated - I have strong opinions and I love to debate them with others. When I debate I believe in holding my own beliefs but I'm also listening for reasons to change them. If you're debating against me I WANT you to convince me of your point of view and if you can't I'll work hard to convince you of mine. This can sometimes seem closed minded. The truth is, I do change my opinions to suit the facts and beliefs I gain, even from others. But I'm also often very certain of the opinions I already hold. I find the challenge of debates envigorating and could debate for hours with intelligent respondants.

P is for Possibility - I believe in unlimited possibility. I picture the multiverse like a giant pocket, a vaccuum from which anything and everything was created. Pulled from the pocket of possibility into existance. Anything that doesn't currently exist could, or could have done in the past. This is aided and aids my imagination. This belief gives me the resources I need to believe that anything is possible. I hope it also allows me to create vivid, believable stories that can be wild and seemingly impossible but while reading the story I want readers to believe in magic, believe in fairies, believe in the impossible, believe in unlimited possibility.

Q is for Quotes - I love to collect quotes, particularly about writing. In fact I'm a little obsessive about it. Whenever I stumble across a good comment or quote I snip it and add it to my ever increasing quotes files. I used to have a file of gaming quotes that had over 500 quotes in it. They rotated on the pages of the gaming website I used to host and visitors would spend ages refreshing the pages to read the quotes. I have random quotes on my Writer's Round-About blog and my Rebecca Laffar-Smith domain too but the file that is online at the moment is only small. My to-do list includes updating it with the 100+ writing quotes I currently have filed elsewhere.

R is for Rebecca - Well that's pretty obvious. That's me. I like my name. I used to hate it because when I was younger there were three Rebecca's in my class so I got called Rebecca P, Pricey, or Pricetag (my name in primary school was Rebecca Price). These days I cherish my name. It has connotations of rather exceptional people and I feel it suits me well. I AM Rebecca. Some of my friends call me Bec or Becca. I even have an Italian friend who calls me Reba. Just don't ever call me Becky.

S is for Stargate - I'm a Stargate fan. In fact I love most sci-fi and fantasy. I tend to avoid reading science fiction books because sometimes the words and technologies can be confusion. On TV we don't need to know what it's called to have a clear picture of what it looks like and what it does. I didn't care that Doc's time machine needed a flux capacitor, it was a flashy Y but it meant Marty could go back in time. I also love occultish programs. I used to be addicted to X-Files. These days I don't really watch much TV but I do own boxsets of Charmed, Dark Angel and I plan to get box sets of Stargate SG1 and Stargate Atlantis.

T is for Torque - A character and part of the title of my current work in progress. I've been working on this book for a year as of next Wednesday. I'm actually a little disappointed to still be writing the first draft. I'm over half way but I keep running slam into writer's block walls caused by my own issues. I'm currently in another lull that I'm trying to talk myself out of so I can get back to the book and finally finish the first draft. I love this story and the characters and really believe it deserves to be told. I'm determined to finish, I just wish each step wasn't so challenging.

U is for Unique - Aren't we all? I don't feel like I'm any more unique than anyone else but I do feel pretty special.

V is for Vocabulary - I have a moderate vocabulary. I'm well-spoken and fairly literate. I'm trying to improve my vocabulary but I've found doing it manually, word by word, just doesn't help me. I suppose I need to absorb more language. When I come across a word I don't know or go to use one but can't be certain I'm using it correctly I always look it up. I'm a word hound so it's always an adventure to find new words and explore their meanings and usage.

W is for Writer - Yes, that's me again. It's a huge part of who I am. I write every day in various ways and I love to explore writing and the written word. I collect books about writing. I recently had to find a new place to keep them because my shelf was overflowing and I know I'll be getting more over Christmas. I haven't read all of the books I own yet (spend too much time reading online to keep up with offline books) but I plan to devour them and I book review my favorites on The Writer's Round-About.

X is for Xavier - I LOVE this name. I don't know why but I think it's a beautiful, courageous name. I picture royal knights or handsome honor fighters, paladin's, warriors and priests when I hear it. I might have to solidify my Xavier and have him star in a book I'll write.

Y is for Years - I'm 25 years old and I feel that the years of our life are significant milestones. I like to look back over the years. Especially in December when we can reflect on what the present year has brought our way. What did you accomplish this year? What opportunities did you take, what did you turn down? Do you feel enriched by your choices this year? What do you look ahead to and plan for 2008?

Z is for Zygote - Another word I love and use from time to time. For those of you who don't know, a Zygote is the cell produced when a female ovum (egg) and male sperm unite. A Zygote is a fertile egg which will turn into an embryo which grows into a fetus. There you go, a new Z word for you, Zygote. It's much more interesting then Zero, Zebra, and Zoolander.

So there you go. More than 26 new things you might not have known about me from A-Z. Now it's your turn. I'm not going to name names but if you decide to take up the challenge then please leave a comment with a link so I can check out your own answers. I'd love to know more about YOU!

 

A friend of mine posted up some weekend fun and I thought I'd share it with my friends here. Apparently I'm ***A Good Friend Because I'm Supportive*** Do you want to know what kind of friend you are? Check out this interesting quiz: http://www.blogthings.com/whatmakesyouagoodfriendquiz/ What's your result? Do you think yours is accurate? Do you think mine is? Any idea how these quizes work or is it all just hocus pocus?

What being a supportive friend means according to blogthings:

You are almost like a life coach for your best friends.
You give them help when they need it... but you also know when to give them a push.

People tend to rely on you for moral support and advice.
You've probably always been mature for your age, so this is a role that's you're comfortable with.

A friend like you is one of the rarest kinds.
You are both a good mentor and companion.

Your friends need you most when: They are confused or worried

You really can't be friends with: Someone who only wants to complain

Your friendship quote: "The only way to have a friend is to be one."

What Makes You a Good Friend?
http://www.blogthings.com/whatmakesyouagoodfriendquiz/

 

Do you ever deal with fear when it comes to your writing? I wanted to share this one with my friends at WDC as well as those that frequent The Writer's Round-About. I'd love your feedback. How do you deal with fear and do you ever experience it like this? Let me know your thoughts (either here or join the conversation on the main blog!)

http://www.writersroundabout.com/2007/11/facing-fear-and-the-heart-of-truth.html...

 

*chuckles* Another much delayed Meme response thanks to Michele (http://writingthecyberhighway.blogspot.com) who seems to be the only one who has been tagging me lately.

8 things I'm passionate about:
1. Writing and Reading (and the world's literacy)
2. Education (and the people's right to learn)
3. My Kids / Family
4. Creative Growth
5. Spiritual Growth (and our right to individual beliefs)
6. Animal Rights
7. Human Individuality and Diversity
8. Friends and Community (both online and off)

8 things I want to do before I die:
1. Visit the USA
2. Visit Ireland
3. See my name on the cover of books in bookstores.
4. Watch my children grow old and have children of their own.
5. Reach my ideal weight (55kgs) and stay there.
6. Establish a writer's retreat for aspiring authors who couldn't otherwise afford it.
7. Put aside a solid nest egg that will become a family inheritance for generations of my descendants.
8. Have a happy and fulfilling marriage.

8 things I say often:
1. I should be writing
2. Go to sleep!
3. Tidy up! / Clean up!
4. Time for dinner
5. Hands up if you're cute/sexy/beautiful/clever/smart
6. I love YOU more.
7. I'm not feeling well can you get it yourself hun?
8. Are you ready for school?

8 books I've recently read:
1. Hooked by Les Edgerton
2. Writer Mama by Christina Katz
3. Write by Sarah Quigley
4. Word Work by Bruce Holland Rogers
5. Various Mills and Boon Romance Novels
6. Eragon and Eldest by Christopher Paolini
7. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
8. Shadow by K.J. Parker

8 songs I could listen to over and over:
1. My Immortal - Evanescence
2. You - Evanescence
3. Someone's Watching Over Me - Hilary Duff
4. Everytime We Touch - Cascada
5. Anything at all by Josh Groban
6. Anything at all by Enya
7. In My Daughter's Eyes - Martina McBride
8. I Love This Bar - Toby Keith

8 things that attract me to my best friends:
1. A passion, optimism and enthusiasm for life.
2. A warm heart and the ability to accept me, faults and all.
3. The ability to see beauty in the world.
4. Belief in me and a willingness to encourage my dreams.
5. A unique perspective that is open to the ideas of others.
6. An aptitude with language and a willingness to communicate
7. Honesty, integrity and a love of truth.
8. Dreams and ambitions coupled with faith and humanity.

8 people I think should do Crazy 8s:
1. Hermione - http://www.writing.com/main/books/item_id/1175344
2. Anyea - http://www.writing.com/main/books/item_id/1311239
3. Ger - http://www.writing.com/main/books/item_id/1173176
4. Sweets - http://www.writing.com/main/books/item_id/1167405
5. Lisa K - http://www.writing.com/main/books/item_id/1260406
6. Tirzah - http://www.writing.com/main/books/item_id/1133339
7. Rain - http://www.writing.com/main/books/item_id/1180193
8. Forge - http://www.writing.com/main/view_item/user_id/forgeaus

Well there you go. Another Meme over and done with. I hope you enjoyed it and hunt up those books and songs.

 

Ok, this Meme looks remarkably familiar. Michele (http://writingthecyberhighway.blogspot.com/) tagged me with "8 Things That Make Me, Me" last month so I guess this Meme is doing the rounds. I'll see if I can come up with seven more things you mightn't have known about me.

1. My bloodgroup is B Positive. This is a medical fact that I've always loved about myself. Even my blood is filled with unshakable optimism. Speaking of blood and facts I'm having a blood workup done tomorrow morning. I have to fast for it.

2. The first poem I ever wrote is still one of my favorites. I wrote it when I was five and it's four short lines remind me of the shy little girl I used to be and still am today. I should print this poem on pretty paper and hang it near my desk to help counter my fears.

I'm not specifically going to tag anyone. It's a busy world and I don't want anyone to feel obliged to join in but if you DO want to join the fun link to your entry so I can follow along.

Michele of Writing The Cyber Highway (http://writingthecyberhighway.blogspot.com) has been tagging me for these meme's but I keep putting them off. No longer! I must respond and challenge my other blogger friends to reciprocate.

First, "If you had an extra hour each day, what would you write?"

I honestly don't know. I DO have an hour in the day I could dedicate to writing something specific but I don't. *hangs head* There are so many projects I'd like to make more progress with and there never seems like enough hours in the day to accomplish all I set out to do.

I suppose if I wanted to focus on my primary writing goal it would be:
Finish writing The Flight of Torque (and its sequels)
Having said that, why aren't I dedicating more time to finishing this book? I joined Nano *plays Doom music* because the 50,000 word challenge is just right to round off this book. I've already written almost 50,000 and am about half way. It's taken me almost a year. If I round out November by writing the last half I'll have written the first draft in a year. A shockingly long time to write something I could have finished months ago.

What else might I write? I might put the daily time toward freelance articles. The kind I can make money from. That would be nice. But unfortunately, if I had time to WRITE these articles I still need time to research markets and submit them.

I might dedicate this time to blog entries. That would be a fantastic way to spend an hour each day writing. I already do write entries most days (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday) Each entry takes about an hour to write and another hour to polish, link up, HTML decorate and post.

With an extra hour I could dedicate time to writing more poetry. I haven't written a poem in months and I miss having a creative outlet expanding my archives. I've been putting together Nature's Sonnets and I'd love to add another ten to fifteen sonnets to this collection. I could definitely put an hour a day to this task.

Looks like I need an extra dozen hours in a day for all of these projects I'd like to focus on. These are after all just writing projects. I haven't included the other things I'd like to get done each week like reading and commenting on blogs, researching markets, submitting, client searching, editing, emails, reading books, taking courses, joining group events and online discussions... The list really could go on and on.

So, now I ask you, "If you had an extra hour each day, what would you write?"

 

I hate teeth. Some days I wish I could have them all ripped out and replaced with everlasting plastic alternatives or something. Maybe I should go gums and eat through a straw the rest of my life instead. Ok, I don't really, most of the time I'm very happy with my teeth, but today I have a toothache.

This side of my jaw has bothered me on and off for a while now. It's not debilitating but it's getting frustrating enough and at the moment it's hurting my tongue as well. Of course I can't actually get to the dentist today, that will probably have to wait until Friday.

What's worse is after nine months of waiting on the waiting list for a regular dental appointment so I can be part of the regular patients list on Medicare subsidized dental care instead of full price private care I didn't get my form back to them in time. So, basically I'm no longer on their list. That means I'll have to go in as an emergency dental, wait in the waiting room probably an hour or so for them to fit me in (first come first served style) they'll fix the problem tooth up and it'll be covered 75% on Medicare and I'll end up back at the end of that darn waiting list again.

I guess I shouldn't complain. I mean I tend to only want to see a dentist when there is a problem. Besides, it's my own fault for not brushing often enough.

Oh well, I guess I'll live on asprin for a few days and try to remember not to rub my tongue against the broken tooth.