Category: Misc

Five years later and George Clooney still hasn’t moved in

Once upon a time, I TP-ed George Clooney’s house. On paper–and not even toilet paper. I wrote a short story called TP-ing Casa de Clooney. When the Long and the Short of It review site posted it as their free read, I made mention of it here.

That resulted not so much in people reading the story (I think maybe three people have done that), but an avalanche of people searching for Mr. Clooney’s house. Amused by this, I wrote a post a month later about the impossibility of George Clooney living in my blog. I even included some photos of Mr. Clooney’s charming abodes.

This, as it turns out, was a mistake. The hits on that particular post, the one with the photos? Skyrocketed. It comes in waves, based, I assume, on spikes in celebrity gossip about Mr. Clooney. Does he have a new girlfriend? (I don’t know; it’s not my week to watch him.) Break up with said girlfriend because she used the word “marriage” in an interview? (You’d think they learn, no?)

So, just as I know when it’s high school book report season (hits on my review of Tamar by Mal Peet also skyrocket), I know when it’s open season on Mr. Clooney.

I suspect I’ll regret writing this blog post as well. Still, I’d like to make one thing clear:

It’s been five years and George Clooney still doesn’t live here.

Brainstorming time

Clock in Kings Cross railway station
Clock in Kings Cross railway station (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I hope to write up a recap of the Betsy-Tacy convention in a few days. In short: a good time was had by all.

In the meantime, I’m working on a project and as part of that, I want to come up with as many sayings about time as I possibly can. For instance:

  • Time is money
  • Time Flies
  • Time is on my side

And so on. So if you have time on your mind, feel free to leave the saying in the comments section. If what I’m working on comes to fruition, I’ll be sure to let you know. Thanks!

You can find anything at Macy’s

The other day I was strolling through Macy’s*, enjoying the (Frango) mint-scented air, when the woman in front of me stopped so suddenly, I nearly crashed into her.

She stared at the display bed. I stared at her. For a moment, I couldn’t tell the two apart. The pattern on her dress matched the one on the display bed’s comforter almost exactly, right down to the same flowered print and the colors.

The woman gave the bed a withering glare, then continued on. Curious, I peeked at the price tag. Let’s just say I have electronics that cost much, much less. To be fair, the set did include sheets, comforter, pillowcases, bed skirt, and enough pillows to outfit a brigade.

Really, I was beginning to think it was one of those credit card commercial moments: Coordinating your wardrobe and bedroom? Priceless. For everything else (like the Frango Mints) there’s MasterCard.

It was a very nice bed set. I’m not sure the woman’s glare should’ve been quite so withering.

No Frango Mints on the sample table however?

Now that’s worth a glare. Or at least a harrumph.

*By “strolling” I mean cutting through Macy’s on my way back to work in hopes that they were handing out samples of Frango Mints.

Musical interlude: Ode to Kindle Fire (with apologies to Bruce Springsteen)

I’m browsing on the ‘net, I click on the Add to Cart
I think I should delete, but this is just the start
I say I won’t like it, but you know I’m a liar
‘Cause when we surf
Hmmm, fire

Well late at night, I’m tapping your screen
Well you say I wanna an app, I say free Angry Birds is just mean
I say I don’t love you, but l can’t hide my desire
And when we surf
Ohhh, fire, fire

You had a hold on me right from the start
It’s a grip so tight I couldn’t tear it apart
My nerves all jumpin’ actin’ like a fool
Your graphics they burn, but your case stays cool

Romeo and Juliet, Samson and Delilah
But Kindle you can bet their love they didn’t deny
My words say quit, but my words they lie
‘Cause when we surf
Hmmm, fire, fire

Burnin’ in my soul, my Kindle’s out of control
Fire

So. Do I love my Kindle Fire? Yes, yes I do. I wasn’t sure I was going to like the back-lit e-reader vs. e-ink, but so far I think I’ve actually been reading more, not less. Of course, being able to adjust the brightness helps.

Oh, and streaming content? Yes, please. Right now, I’m working through all of Ken Burns’s documentaries. (Civil War first to complement the War Through the Generations reading challenge.)

And I can check my email, go on Facebook, and, and, and …

And … check out the book between Pasta and Tina Fey. Could it be Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay? Why, yes. I think it is. See, even the 2009 Debs are on fire.

Oh, the weather outside is frightful

It really is, at least here. It’s all of one miserly degree, plus it’s snowing. Not big, pretty snowflakes, but small, sharp, mean-spirited ones–and the wind is blowing them all around for good measure.

Yeah. It’s a good day to stay inside. In fact, I’m glad it’s a federal holiday. That way, I don’t have to traipse out to the mailbox this afternoon to get the mail–although I do have to venture out in a bit to pick up Kyra from a New Year’s Eve sleepover. I will make my first prediction of 2011. I predict a nap is in someone’s future.

In any case, it’s a good day to curl up in a chair, make plans for 2011, maybe do some reading, or perhaps a little writing. One activity I started last year that I want to carry into this year is volunteer script reading for one of our local theaters, Park Square Theatre.

Essentially, they send me a script, I read it, fill out an evaluation, then mail that (and the script) back to them. Not only is it fun, but from a writer’s perspective, it’s a great exercise for studying character, plot, and structure.

Speaking of which, I’ll be reading this today:

He’s a Canadian playwright, but that really matches our weather today. I don’t know if maybe I should be reading something more tropical on a day like today, but I’m going to brew a big pot of tea and dive in.

Nerd news

Around the web this week, in case you missed it:

Great blog post by literary agent Nathan Bransford on the television show Lost and the High Narrative Price of WTF. And if that title doesn’t tempt you, I don’t know what will. Good message for writers–good message for all of us.

In Nerd News: Remember Windows 3.1? Or maybe you’ve never even seen Windows 3.1 (!). Why not take a stroll down virtual memory lane with the Windows 3.1 online emulator. Prepare yourself for a visual shock, and while you’re there, you can even play Mine Sweeper. (Go on, click through. You know you want to.)

And what post would be complete without a YouTube video. From the fine, fine people who brought us Do You Wanna Date My Avator comes this new music video:

All Right, Stop. Collaborate and Listen

Around the web this week, in case you missed it:

Have you ever wondered what the sparkly Edward Cullen did before he met his Bella Swan? Of course you have. And have you wondered, in particular, what he was doing during the 1980s? Certainly, as he is +100 years old, the dude was around, right?

Over at QUERYPOLITAN, they may have stumbled upon the answer. In fact, I think their proof is indisputable. Have a read (and for those of you of a certain age, I apologize in advance for the ear worm that has plagued me ever since reading this entry).

And from SlushPile Hell, which is the literary equivalent of Glamour’s “Fashion Don’ts,” we have the results of the Twitter contest: THE WORST SELF-HELP BOOK…EVER. Love self-help books? Love to hate them? Either way, you’ll love this post.