Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Whatever Wednesdays and a Good Quote

Today I'm not in a ranty mood. Here's how I'm feeling, and if someone finds the emoticon for all these things let me know!

Nervous, because this weekend I'm taking my daughter's troop on a big campout and I'm not what you'd call the woodsy type. The upside? A weekend with dirt, bugs and marginal food. Probably mixed together. Whoa, my brightside-enator wasn't set right. Ummm, okay here goes: it'll be a weekend spending quality time with my daughter in the glorious bosom of Mother Earth.

Tired, because I'm always tired. My children wake at around five every morning but today they wanted to test the capacity of my unconditional love, so they woke up at four-thirty. What a difference half an hour makes! On the upside, more time to run around on the internet. (Does there have to be an upside to everything, Diana? Really??)

Aggravated, because the one-year-old keeps banging on the answering machine even though I'm telling him not to, and due to furniture and complicated child-safety devices it's not something easily unpluggable, which means I can't stick it on top of the bookcase like I do with other noisy items he bangs. I'm ready to yank it out of the wall though. Then he'll scream. Dilemma, dilemma. Is it worth the work of unplugging it, and will the screams bother me more than the banging? (Still working out the upside. Maybe some things just suck).

Happy, because if I tell myself I'm happy I usually start to believe me. Plus, it's another day and, as cheeseball as it sounds, life is good :) 

Lastly, because it's my whatever day, here's something I found that's really great and I wanted to share with you all. It's from Brandon Sanderson's keynote address at the Book Academy conference last week (Brandon Sanderson, fantasy author chosen to complete Rigney's Wheel of Time series in case you're name-challenged like me), and it's called "Ten Things I Had to learn Before I Could Sell a Book." I did not attend the conference, but Angie at Notes From the Writing Chair did and she was kind enough to post about it HERE at her blog. My favorite is number six:

"To begin is human. To finish is divine. To revise is hell. But you have to do it. Great writers are even better revisers."

I also liked numbers 1, 4, 5, and 8... okay, they're all really good. If you get the chance to check out these Ten Things, let us know which points resonate with you the most!

13 comments:

  1. Have fun camping!
    And that's a great quote. I'll have to go and look at the others.

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  2. Thanks for the link, Diana! I really loved his speech. In fact, I recorded it so I can listen to it whenever I need some motivation. Good luck camping. I love camping. I also love your positive outlook on life, and can completely relate to having a one-year old, though mine will be two next week.

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  3. Have fun camping, and thanks for the link. that quote is brilliant!! and your so positive (like the complete opposite of my blog which is primarily used to vent lol).

    I liked numbers 1, 5,6,7

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  4. I like how positive you are. I'm trying to be positive too. I have you beat - woke at 4am with a dog that is terrified of thunderstorms.

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  5. Gapyeargirl- Hi Alison! Thanks for coming over :) I think I am going to have fun camping. At least, I'm going to try!! And I'm glad you liked the quote, I found them all to be very uplifting.

    Angie- Hello there :) The link was my very great pleasure. I love reading about conference experiences, and the speech seems like such a highlight. I must have re-read it ten times now, and I love how positive he is. Thank you for sharing that. And thanks for the luck with camping...I'm going to really need it. It's for my daughter, and what wouldn't I do for her :)

    Emily- Hi, thanks for stopping in :) I suppose since you AND Alison think I should have fun, I guess I will have to doubley try. As for being positive, it's all through conscious effort, I promise!

    Mary- Hi Mary :) I at least try to be positive, but my success fluctuates :) Wow, 4am?!! It would take A LOT of caramel coffee for me to be positive that early in the morning!

    Scobberlotcher- Hi and welcome! Thanks for commenting on my blog. Your book looks great, I look forward to picking up a copy and reading something out of my usual genre :)

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  6. Awesome post and link. I wandered on over there for the full edification.

    I would rather eat paint than spend time in the glorious bosom of mother earth... for the record. Shudder. Dirt is so dirty.

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  7. Ahh, Wendy, thanks. You understand my problem with the outdoors so well. The scout leader thing happened... don't ask me how, it's all a blur. My daughter couldn't be happier though, and since the children are my raison d'etre I guess I'm in it for good. I told the coleaders I'm more in favor of a Troop Beverly Hills approach--manicures, indoor slumber parties, ha ha, we shall see.

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  8. Have fun camping!!! Who knows, maybe nature will inspire you? =]

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  9. Hi Natalie! Great point :) Nature is pretty, I just usually like to leave it outside at the end of the day. Still, I have the opportunity to try something I wouldn't normally do, which can often be a good thing despite initial discomfort (or so they say). Who knows...maybe I've been missing something all this time and fall totally in love with camping :)

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  10. Oh Diana...hahahahaha....sigh...I remember when my son was so young back then...I am SO glad that he is 8 years old now, and can...you know...get his own self a drink of water and give his own self a bath! hahaha! I feel for you right now...

    but...always remember the faeries with pixie dust nearby...a little pixie dust is all it takes...and everything will be okay! ;-)

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  11. Hi C, thanks for the understanding :) I know these baby years will go by before I know it and I do try and enjoy the little angels-- even when they are driving me crazy!

    Yes, my eldest will be eight this month and she is becoming so low-maintenance... of course, the teenage years loom ahead :)

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  12. I'd have another baby if I could skip the one-year-old stage! Great post :)

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