irrelevant (and sometimes questionable) ramblings

Well, folks, you won’t see me for a day or two (perhaps. Unless I need a break and post on the blog for a change of pace…) because not only do I have my edits to work on for Lovely, I also have revisions to work on for Higher Learning.

As the title says… Hoo, boy.

But I am hoping that the HL revisions will result in a sale — so stay tuned and I’ll keep you posted on how things transpire! 2010 is definitely shaping up in a way that I like…at least, thus far. Just gotta keep the momentum going!

Amongst all the happiness and chaos surrounding the upcoming appearance of the Junior Peanut, there is some sadness.

At the beginning of May, the lease on Yours Truly’s kick-butt Starrmobile is up and the keys must be handed back (along with the vehicle, of course) to the dealership.

Am I sad about this fact? Yes and no. Yes, because I have enjoyed having my car. She was a fun gal to bomb around in…and no, because having her has been an extra financial strain that has really required pennypinching to maintain.

Does this mean that Clan Starr will be a one-car family evermore?

Not necessarily. It’ll depend on a few things:

• Will we be able to function on one car? Many, many families do. B.E. is able to carpool quite a bit and (weather permitting) ride his bike to work. Will we have conflicts? You betcha. It’ll require creative planning on those occasions when we both need to go in different directions, but it’s not impossible.
• Could we afford another car? Maybe. It would depend on a steady, significant increase in income for me to be able to comfortably cover car payment, insurance and fuel and repairs. But it’s also not impossible, if we look at a smaller, used car with a lower price point.

Rest assured, should the need arise, we will revisit the second car issue. I admit to a bit of selfishness on my part — I’ve had a car of my own for years, and I’ve gotten quite used to that fact. But dropping to one car will also help financially, which will also help allow Yours Truly to remain duly self-employed and continue to bring you tales that titillate. Heh.

Unless I manage NYT bestsellers that give me a six-figure income. Then all bets are off and we’re going car shopping. Woo!

We here in Northern Canuckland (and it actually appears to be a North American entity, I think) have a great little thrift store chain called Value Village. It runs along the same lines as Goodwill and other places like that. People drop off their unwanted goods and said goods are then sold to raise money for whichever charity the company supports. (Honestly, I’m not sure what those are, I suppose I could investigate more thoroughly but I’m not inclined to do so at the moment.)

Anyhoo. I never used to be a fan of thrift store shopping, and honestly, the idea was slightly repugnant. (Ick. People’s used stuff? No thanks.) But the time came when I was rapidly losing weight and I didn’t want to pay retail prices for clothing that I might end up only wearing for a short period of time. (The same went for when I put some weight back on, too.) That, and there were months that were leaner financially than others, which meant that I needed to be creative with spending.

Subsequently, this became a foray into thrift store shopping. And frankly, I kind of like the treasure-hunt appeal to it all. Because it’s like any other kind of second-hand shopping (yard sales, etc.) — you usually need to dig for a while before you hit the buried treasure. Today, I discovered that our store has a “handicrafts” section and I was able to get a pair of seemingly new knitting needles for cheap. I also picked up some t-shirts to be used for crafting purposes, and I found a kitchen fruit/veggie chopper thingy still in its original box. Pretty darned cool. There was a cool purse I spotted that still had its retail store tag attached to it, and was only $6, but I refrained. (Good of me, huh?)

I can understand, too, why some teenagers also dig thrifting. All sorts of brand name labels can be found for a fraction of retail price, if you dig hard enough. Aeropostale, American Eagle, Gap, Old Navy, you name it.

So does that mean everything is a gem? Nope, not in the least. That’s why it’s considered digging — because for every diamond you find, you’ve got to paw through dozens of chunks of rock. My only complaint is our one store is on the other side of town, a good 25-30-minute drive from home. Obviously I can’t justify running there on a regular basis, but when I do go, I usually have pretty good luck.

Do you have a hidden treasure near you?

I had a chiropractor appointment today, because Junior Peanut is seeing fit to throw me all out of whack. Whatta kid. I felt rather good afterward, even though I was a touch tender where she heavily manipulated some spots. The claim also is that this sort of preparation will help for delivery — if the spine and all relevant parts are all properly aligned, Miz J.P. will pop right outta there in record time.

Well, we can hope.

In the meantime, we have company coming to Chez Starr, so my time over the next couple of days will be filled with cleaning and attempting to make our wee abode habitable for guests.

Not much else new in the pipeline, I’m afraid. Unless you want to hear about Miz Peanut’s seemingly unhealthy fascination with kicking my bladder.

And there are still almost four months to go. We are not amused.

Blech.

The weather outside is really crappy. Blustery, snowy and cold. I don’t want to go anywhere today, except that I’ve got to get groceries and the Offspring has swimming tonight. Oh, it’s fine once the car’s warm and being inside is great…it’s just those outside bits that make life miserable. I’m guessing if the old saw is true, March should go out like a lamb. Let’s hope so. I can’t wait for spring — pollen, bugs and all.

Today is a mishmash of errands, some crafty-type activities (I’m going to attempt an applique over a hole in a pair of the Offspring’s pants, plus do a little more on a couple of projects I’ve started), laundry and whatever else comes up through the course of the day.

The weekend will include some fun. B.E. has a curling bonspiel he’s participating in, and I’m going out Saturday night with some of the girls. The Offspring gets a sleepover at her g’parents’ house. Whee!

Next week I’ll have more information about my release with Carina Press, so hopefully I can share some bits with you all. I guess one of these days I’ll need to get my (essentially non-existent) newsletter up and running, too. Promo? What’s that?? *sigh* Oh, well. Day by day is the way to go.

Have a good one, gang, and I’ll catch you on the flip side!

…dream.

The last two nights have caused me to wake up in the morning thinking, WTF? Vivid, disturbing nocturnal adventures, whose feelings of dread and confusion carry over into the waking hours.

Bleah. I hate bad dreams. I realize the Junior Peanut has something to do with it all — the excess hormones currently rampaging this poor bod — but it’s not her fault. I just wish they could be happier dreams. Or funnier. Or sexier. Or somethin’.

Faceless strangers pouring gasoline into my car and lighting it on fire just doesn’t make for an uplifting morning, y’know?

Well. Seems my daily routine has gone all akimbo. It’s time to settle in again and work on a project–any project, really–and keep production up.

Unfortunately, today is a bit of a wash as there’s a midwife’s appointment and some running around to be done. So Wednesday it is. Back to routine and flexing the writing muscles.

I just hope I don’t get a cramp. Heh.

YES!!

Ladies and Gentlemen, I just spoke with the amazing Angela James at Carina Press. She called to let me know that they would like to acquire my historical erotic novella, “Lovely”!!

W00T! W00T!

Further details will be made public when possible, but for now — pop open this virtual bottle of champers with me and celebrate as I happy Snoopy dance around the house!

Yep. Happy Friday TO ME!

Well. Enough of the sobering melancholy of yesterday, right? Time for a laugh — perfect for a Friday morning.

Go here to see the colourful cast of characters who might just be patronizing your local Wal-Mart establishment.

(Seriously. Do none of these people do any sort of reality check? Or did they all bounce??)

This was forwarded to me via email. It’s a supremely graphic anti-drinking and driving video from Australia. Perhaps if more people watched this our incidences of alcohol- and drug-related accidents and fatalities would drop.

Maybe.

Not suitable for all viewers. And be prepared to deal with the post-weeping headache like I am.