tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43033275710967913232024-02-07T16:28:29.031-08:00Bunny Rose BooksA Writer's BlogBunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.comBlogger46125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-86960387191887161992023-08-21T21:07:00.000-07:002023-08-21T21:07:40.622-07:00Just a Quick Update! And Tin Things<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHQrJxpoWiTHUyLfKt_rJWzan7SmbDF0qXXUzhwvsubOPuDY28mAUj5OFOKgrYFCqOOuq1WC7jjzQ8WkZufPabF_fVZ4bfNPnoFQ7iOSx11lowW0T1IUMwn9Dw14UTKKEhAr91gqn-VBFYjd9B8s7pJX4PWR5bS1yS30uP-i8o-jckfH1XAinvWJNAxp0/s3024/bunnybird.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2976" data-original-width="3024" height="630" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHQrJxpoWiTHUyLfKt_rJWzan7SmbDF0qXXUzhwvsubOPuDY28mAUj5OFOKgrYFCqOOuq1WC7jjzQ8WkZufPabF_fVZ4bfNPnoFQ7iOSx11lowW0T1IUMwn9Dw14UTKKEhAr91gqn-VBFYjd9B8s7pJX4PWR5bS1yS30uP-i8o-jckfH1XAinvWJNAxp0/w640-h630/bunnybird.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />Halo, Reader!<p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">This is just a warning regarding the status of my domain. Google has entered into an agreement with Squarespace and will be transferring domains to them. After a long hiatus, I have decided that a renewal of this domain name and the others is not necessary.<span></span></p><a name='more'></a>It's not necessarily because of the change, but I had been thinking about dropping it anyway. I'm currently considering a different platform, but, until then, the website will still be right here at Blogger, but with the "blogspot" plopped into the address: <span style="color: #b45f06;"><b>http://bunnyrosebooks.blogspot.com</b></span>. So, you can update your links to include the "blogspot." Just getting back to grassroots, so to speak. :-) So, no major changes just yet. <p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I tried to find some cute art that I did to use for my post, and, well, I was digging into last year when I gave up. Yes, I've painted this year, but nothing that just wowed me. Do you ever go through phases where you are relearning what you thought you already knew? That kind of feels like my life! So, instead of art this time, you get a photo from my kitchen. This is flea market original art (I am not positive if it is watercolor, markers, or a combination of both--there was so much yellow in the kitchen, and that spot was so <i>blah! </i>so I had to perk it up a bit with some other color), and flea market Fitz & Floyd bunny basket jar thing. I feel like I paid legit dollars for that bird, but he may have been thrifted, too! I find too much stuff when I shop. :) Don't laugh at the fake plant. According to our daily air quality readings, I should probably get a canary.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I'm pretty sure that I bought the copper canister new, and it just occurred to me that that might have been from the Mistletoe Marketplace sale we have every year and that it might have been from Apple Annie's booth (something keeps showing me picking it up from a rack at Apple Annie's and maybe a couple of small packages of something--tea or cider or herb mix???--so that must be it unless that was a different metal-related thing), which puts it around twenty years old, and I thought it was older than that. Someone on eBay has one in a lot worse shape, so they must have really abused it for it to look that old. I haven't exactly babied mine, but it's still together with the lid, and the inside is still mostly silver and smooth. The main issue with tins is if they are exposed to water, like sitting on the counter in a place that gets wet often (I'm the worst at getting the counter wet). One of my tins was under the sink, which sprung a few leaks. So, it's not food safe. I had some nice collectables, but I have a bad habit of taking the lids off so I can use the containers for paint brushes and other art supplies. I badly devalued vintage Hershey and Lipton tins that way when I lost the lids. We had started hanging onto things when we realized they were going to cardboard containers. I still let some things go, like the tin full of maple syrup where you can't get the syrup out because it's petrified. Somehow, I've managed to hang on to the Old Charter Kentucky Bourbon tin that was a special gift edition. Dad got the bottle of bourbon, and I got the tin for my spaghetti. Perfect fit!</p><p>Take care!</p><p><br /></p>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-80959339624147333122023-02-12T00:23:00.005-08:002023-02-12T00:25:19.818-08:00Why Am I Still Writing?<div style="text-align: justify;"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi61zcjPfMsiJQp0iXvP4kVqw85Xbqvrdz8DahPvtyNGlTi_lgM8vo3hGpTsUPK7LRGRm3u0dd4kbJWwDb1sJ4fLSDVSC322PLPP_KbKugtN5f4FkdwshSGBFraD4CIc3Tl4vKRM7dGcn8yloJ3UaeW2zFXNTnPxPCMVqAcm0Amc2qFsSBv5BicvqHl/s3220/Staffordshire.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3220" data-original-width="2415" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi61zcjPfMsiJQp0iXvP4kVqw85Xbqvrdz8DahPvtyNGlTi_lgM8vo3hGpTsUPK7LRGRm3u0dd4kbJWwDb1sJ4fLSDVSC322PLPP_KbKugtN5f4FkdwshSGBFraD4CIc3Tl4vKRM7dGcn8yloJ3UaeW2zFXNTnPxPCMVqAcm0Amc2qFsSBv5BicvqHl/w300-h400/Staffordshire.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Greetings, Fair Reader.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">I'm making some progress on the book and also focusing on art and organization at the same time. I finally broke down and ordered the Lexington cart (in blush) from Michael's, and I'm using it mainly for my watercolor materials. I have another cart that I have to put together. It has 5 drawers, although I wish I had gotten the 32" version. There are a couple of more pieces that I need to get and a few things to get rid of in order to make everything work. Hopefully, those will be the answers to my disorganized art room.<span><a name='more'></a></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">Meanwhile, I'm trying NOT to binge on <i>Yellowstone</i>, and I just started Season 3. I finished <i>Dark Winds</i>, which is an AMC series based on Tony Hillerman's books about the Navajo. Several years ago, I watched the PBS miniseries that combined his books <i>Skinwalkers, Coyote Waits</i>, and <i>A Thief of Time.</i> They kind of remind me of <i>Haunted Mesa</i> by Louis L'Amour, which is centered around the Anasazi civilization who vanished after inhabiting the Southwest for about 1,000 years. If you're interested in the mystery of the Anasazi, here's an <a href="https://www.npr.org/2007/07/12/11828089/tracking-a-vanished-civilization-in-the-southwest#:~:text=The%20Anasazi%20lived%20here%20for,It%27s%20a%20mystery." target="_blank">NPR article </a>about it, and <a href="https://youtu.be/Oq1krucVyYE" target="_blank">here is a YouTube video by Hill People Gear </a>where a group of fans of the book went to explore the area, called "In the field: Haunted Mesa Overland." Beautiful country.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">My dad introduced me to <i>Haunted Mesa</i>, and I have to say it's the
only Louis L'Amour book that I have read, but I did really enjoy it.
It's amazing that there is NO MOVIE based on this book. Hint! Hint! <br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">There were some differences in the characters between <i>Dark Winds</i> and the PBS miniseries. In the PBS version, the older detective Leaphorn had returned to the reservation after working in a major city (DC?) for years, and Chee was the younger detective on the reservation who was in training to become a shaman. Leaphorn is a non-believer in superstition, and Chee looks at all of the crimes through the lens of a believer. In <i>Dark Winds</i>, Leaphorn has remained on the reservation, and Chee is actually an FBI agent claiming that he wants to be placed elsewhere but it only working the case on the reservation as a favor to his superior. Chee was raised on the reservation, but he and his mother moved away after she was accused of being a witch. He is more of a "realist." Despite the character differences, the story is still compelling and mixes crime solving with some magic elements. <i>Dark Winds</i> is set in the late 70s and features all of those fun vintage elements from the metal kitchen chairs with vinyl padded seats to the first push-button phones.<br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I have watched a couple of episodes of <i>The Last of Us</i>, which seems interesting. I tried <i>The Mayfair Witches </i>on AMC. How do I put this delicately? It doesn't feel like Anne Rice wrote the script. Like, you can watch <i>A Game of Thrones</i> and get a feel for the mind of George R.R. Martin (except the last season—nobody can explain that at all). Same with Tolkien movies. You get a feel for who the author was. When you can take a book, make a movie or series out of it, and have no feel for the story's creator at all, it feels like you missed something. Anne Rice was a literary author, just like Alice Hoffman who wrote <i>Practical Magic</i>. Whereas the movie <i>Practical Magic </i>was a good translation of the book, I feel like the screenwriters and directors of TMW missed something. I noticed that Anne's name is listed as a producer, but I don't know how much she was involved in the actual creation of the series. They also did away with several main characters, but that was not the main crime, in my opinion. In a list of reviews that I found, most people who read the books gave the series one star, although my reasons are more about how the story is told than character changes.<br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">So, I've been working on writing the second book in my Gnome series for a long time. <span style="font-size: small;">Some of you may wonder why I'm still trying to finish this? </span><span style="font-size: small;">Why do I even care? </span></div><p style="text-align: justify;">In my defense, it took a long time for the first book and the one after that, too. They were published a little over a year apart, but both had been in the works for a long time. So, the length of time may not be apparent to others. I know I could have finished this one a lot sooner. At the same time, I feel like the stories need time to "cure." The book that I finish never looks exactly like the one I started. Often, there are major changes in plots, characters, etc. I've learned to be patient and to give the story time to reveal itself. If I rush to a pre-planned ending, it probably will not be the right story.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">There is a lot of pressure for writers today to put out new content continuously and rapidly, whereas, looking back at classic writers, many had fairly short bibliographies. Margaret Mitchell, who wrote <i>Gone With the Wind</i>, claimed to have only one book in her. She'd said all she had to say in that one book.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">In one of my favorite movies, <i>Wonder Boys</i>, Michael Douglas plays aging English Professor Grady Tripp, who was greatly esteemed for his first book, and he had spent years struggling with a follow-up. The movie has a <i>Big Chill</i> vibe to it, and includes Robert Downey Jr, Toby Maquire, Katie Holmes, Frances McDormand, and Richard Thomas. When his editor, played by Robert Downey Jr, comes to town to put pressure on him about the book, which is an ever-growing document that stands about a foot tall on Grady's desk, basically, Grady's life has already begun to unravel. I thought it was hilarious and one of the best academia-related movies in existence. Amazingly, few people have even heard of it.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I can totally relate to Grady, although maybe not the highly-esteemed part nor the recreational drug use. At the time I'm writing this, I have just surpassed 124,000 words, and the whole story hasn't been told yet. There are several place-holder chapters. You know....</p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>Chapter Fifty-Two</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">(Insert Chapter-Fifty Two Here)</span><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I realize that some of what I write will be pruned away. Sometimes, I put something in, then take it out again. Although the beginning is far more polished, and a lot of the ending hasn't even been written yet, nothing so far is set in stone. So, this word count may go down again (<span style="font-size: medium;">and up</span>... <span style="font-size: xx-small;">and down</span>... <span style="font-size: large;">and up</span>...). <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Lately, I've been thinking a lot about why I keep writing, and the reason is pretty simple. I do it to stay sane. Okay, maybe I should say to help hang onto the few remaining threads of sanity that I claim to possess. I write to entertain myself and to escape the "real world." If no one else ever read a word I wrote or published, I would continue to do so. It gives me a place to reflect and try on different ideas. Simply going through the process of choosing words and refining them is like a meditative process and helps me to remember things better.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">You may have heard of writers who use a template, which many do these days. I don't use a template, so my process is much more organic (i.e., if I mess up, I'm on my own 😹). I have tried to use one in the past, but it just wasn't working. If someone who believes strongly in the template format reads my stuff, they will think I don't know what I'm doing because I didn't follow the pattern. The template does seem to be more for commercial-style writing, and I've been told that I'm about 50/50 between literary and commercial, so perhaps that's why it's not working for me.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Just in case this sounds like I'm being all superior, I am not the best writer. I think my writing has its moments, and then there are areas that might not feel as strong. I make mistakes as both a human being and as a writer. I go over the story and reread and rewrite and do it all over again, trying to make it better and trying to get a little further along with each pass before I go back to the beginning. It's never going to be highly esteemed. I write fantasy, fairy tales, and about supernatural creatures. I doubt my werewolves are going to be considered profound material, although I do insert thoughtful nuggets here and there. I'm not hung up on desiring fame or immense wealth and trying to create a book that will get me all kinds of awards. In fact, I'd prefer to remain private as much as possible.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Writing provides me with a problem to mull over, but it's a "safe" problem that has no lasting impact on my real life. I have terrible insomnia, and I can choose a problem in the book that I am working on and try to solve it. This is often how I fall asleep at night. Usually, I fall asleep before I solve it, but the solution pops up later on. Still, it's a nice sleep tactic.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I never want for my writing to become a chore. When I find something "boring," it's my sign that I've missed something, and I need to rewrite it. I don't want to be so hung up on success and sales that I forget that I enjoy writing. So, while I have published books and am an author, I find it beneficial to think of myself as a writer and to once again try to become the person who first learned to love reading and desired to become a writer. It's just a little mental shift, an angle that starts small, but can be infinitely larger at the other end. While most writers hope to eventually obtain status as an author, that status comes with its own pressures, which can make you forget why you wanted to do it in the first place. If I'm stressed out writing about werewolves, I'm most likely doing something wrong.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">As a part of my campaign to not take myself so seriously, I hope to be sharing more thoughts on writing while I'm finishing this book (and the oodles of other stories in the works) and how I write (without using a template) in the future. </p>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-26730471989434678512022-07-04T14:09:00.000-07:002022-07-04T14:09:14.691-07:00First Post of 2022 - Falling Down the Rabbit Hole<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiibAeFeAXljrcHy5D5YNk6bbNiwi_-iGJ2DuB8ED9SUF_TX9_6oocgSmTY9_f81tK6H866zz-yzCC8oU_MjROhwj6BSlVkC9umeIo7c3fV1OnkovyH7NrJjfHbve1Iiw2BAizrXYetvjGN_Tw6R5vdAUFHFygu7frnHAYe_jBKJyVbDPaIjQIXV4uv/s4031/Bell1%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2577" data-original-width="4031" height="410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiibAeFeAXljrcHy5D5YNk6bbNiwi_-iGJ2DuB8ED9SUF_TX9_6oocgSmTY9_f81tK6H866zz-yzCC8oU_MjROhwj6BSlVkC9umeIo7c3fV1OnkovyH7NrJjfHbve1Iiw2BAizrXYetvjGN_Tw6R5vdAUFHFygu7frnHAYe_jBKJyVbDPaIjQIXV4uv/w640-h410/Bell1%20(2).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /> Dear Reader,<p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Happy Old Year!</p><p style="text-align: justify;"> By the time you get this message, the year will be half over. (I started to say that it will be the month of June, but it's now July, and, at this rate, <strike>summer</strike> autumn might be over, so maybe you should just disregard that first sentence or interpret it to mean that "an unknown but extremely large amount of time has passed.") I can't tell you how many times I have tried to start a post, but it didn't work out. So, I'll try to cover what I've been up and try not to ramble too much, although I do really enjoy a good rabbit trail.</p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Speaking of rabbits, I bought a dollhouse.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Now, before you get all judgmental, hear me out. There are many dollhouse collectors and miniaturists in the world, most of them adults and professionals. I didn't realize just how deep of a rabbit hole this was... until I fell in.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I had considered making one. Like, I had been thinking about it for a while, and I had started my dollhouse board on Pinterest a couple of years ago. Decades ago, I had the basic cottage kit until we moved and my husband's cousin put his foot through it. It wasn't really his fault, so I don't blame him, although, admittedly, I was miffed at first. He didn't do it on purpose. He was reaching up into the closet for a box, and took a step back to brace himself as the weight of the box on the shelf shifted. Just so happens, the little cottage was right under his back foot. So, that was the end of my miniaturist career.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">But, this time, although I had already been admiring dollhouses on Pinterest, it all really started when I ordered a garbage can for my birthday.... </p><p style="text-align: justify;">😹 Okay, allow me to explain. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">I've been looking at those Pioneer Woman trash cans for a while, but they were over $50, and I just couldn't. I mean, talk about throwing money away! (Shameless pun.) Well, after I joined Walmart+, I hopped onto the website one day looking for something, and I noticed they were advertising some exclusive discounts just for Walmart+ members. You can check periodically, but I haven't noticed such a sale since! I guess it was just an extreme blessing. So, there with the few electronics and gadgets were the PW trash cans, bundled with a mini-size one for the office or bathroom. They were about $25-30. My dad had given me some birthday money, and I felt that I could easily justify it since it was birthday money and half the price. So I jumped at it.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Okay, sorry, I said I would try not to ramble. This is me trying.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Anyway, so... I got the trashcan in the mail, and I still have the box it came in. That is a fantastic box. I just can't throw it away. It looks like just a cardboard box, but it's super stiff. And I keep thinking, "That there is a high quality item. That's dollhouse material right there." Upon closer inspection, the box has an extra layer of corrugation, so it is really thicker than a normal cardboard box.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">So, I was thinking about it, and I got to poking around on Pinterest to see what I liked and how I would want it done. I kept being attracted to the miniatures with little animals. Most of these were handmade and felted, but they were so cute. I loved the idea of a fairy tale type of dollhouse. I also saw a lot of Calico Critters. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">I had seen Calico Critters in Walmart when I was Christmas shopping for my grands. I just fell in love with them. A few years ago, I had been to a flea market where they had one of those stalls that contained mostly new stuff still in the box. I saw the "Cozy Cottage" dollhouse and grabbed it for $10. (At the time, I justified the purchase that it was for the kids, but I no longer pretend. I'm officially into toys.) That same dollhouse runs around $30 now. I had never messed with it beyond taking it out of the box and putting everything where it belongs. (Oh, and there was that time I spilled Coke on the end table, and the house was under the end table.) Anyway, they are made of durable stuff, and it's been sitting in one of the cubbies in the bookcase since not long after that. Fast forward to 2022. I saw that Amazon had the larger dollhouse on sale, and I got that. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Since then, I've been buying furniture and stuff for the house. I've learned there are so many different styles of houses they made, and there are about 35 years worth of Calico Critter items to explore. That's a LOT, although you won't find most of the items in stores. Some of the items in the series go for several hundred dollars. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">The CC items have amazing quality. They originally started in Japan (Sylvanian Families), so there's this somewhat kawaii sort of Hello Kitty appeal to them. There are knockoffs, but you can tell the difference. When I showed my mom the furniture, she said, "That is just as cute as can be!" I know what you're thinking. She's my mom, so naturally she would say that. No, I inherited my sentimental streak from my mom. :) I told her I got it honestly. And she laughed because she knows she doesn't have much of one. Mom says she's a "realist." (Seriously, it may sneak up on me sometimes, those sentimental feelings. Like someone will surprise me once every couple of decades, and I'll burst into tears. I remember it happened around 1989, 2001, and 2016, so I've got a few years before I'm due for another sentimental eruption again. I think we bottle everything up so much and lock everything down because we are so sensitive, and it comes out in sudden fits on occasion.) My sister said, "Those are cuute," when I showed her my Silk Cat family, and my niece said I was making her want one. :) So, they are all very supportive of my new insanity. The doors and drawers open on the furniture (although one vintage drawer refuses to open, and I don't want to destroy it). I have an old school TV that lights up. It's just crazy cute.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">It's no big secret that the reselling business has exploded in recent years. There are collectors everywhere, and some of these items go for big prices if you can't find them in stores. There are many channels about miniatures, dollhouses, and even nothing but Calico Critters/Sylvanian Families collections. The more I discover about the world of miniatures, the deeper the rabbit hole goes. I've learned so much that I'm overwhelmed.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I've accumulated about 9 rooms so far, and more are on the way. I had ordered one set "new" on eBay, as it was no longer in stores. The set was a reasonable $34 on eBay, whereas other sellers were selling for at least twice as much. The box never arrived. FedEx claimed to deliver, but I did not hear a truck, a beep, a knock, or anything, and the box never showed up. EBay refunded my money immediately, which was weird. I was disappointed, but I bought another item that I had wanted on Amazon to replace the lost building. However, the other day, I was on Walmart.com again, maybe checking out the new PW items, and I saw they were having a sale. Then, there was the same house I had ordered from eBay. Only $29.99. Even with 9 rooms, I was coming up short, so I decided to go ahead and get the house.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkFIlO-RP_w2bXHsz6Hd70Tjuo1pX0nKd2FHToIviWMHTKANd2VVvwL782PGB2cwCtOVlqqhnolxquCgfTtEDbi74vrx2jUgOwQEDadjMG4gd2-DBPmjCH2QnlJAnby3E5ORPD24_r--x9n9E3X0hKMxhlpecmzvp4lKemY96-jIOPGODC2UTbpDQJ/s4032/Bell3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkFIlO-RP_w2bXHsz6Hd70Tjuo1pX0nKd2FHToIviWMHTKANd2VVvwL782PGB2cwCtOVlqqhnolxquCgfTtEDbi74vrx2jUgOwQEDadjMG4gd2-DBPmjCH2QnlJAnby3E5ORPD24_r--x9n9E3X0hKMxhlpecmzvp4lKemY96-jIOPGODC2UTbpDQJ/w640-h480/Bell3.jpg" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhmhnz6BohPECNmTPBGEHmxtLRcfIiSjYGa5Nwcm4zt9pnExxM1-UuJ9F2ovTGteLxlSLqJtd-Kcqoj8YnF8Hur83eB-R85O_OS_G36Um6ppgLZ7axkh5BFqiFzJjvbAwVnzheN-Yp45dTlcTSXIXElSAYCI3bHqXS3Lh_xjkvlNQs3z7Yn5K4Dvka/s4032/dollhouse.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhmhnz6BohPECNmTPBGEHmxtLRcfIiSjYGa5Nwcm4zt9pnExxM1-UuJ9F2ovTGteLxlSLqJtd-Kcqoj8YnF8Hur83eB-R85O_OS_G36Um6ppgLZ7axkh5BFqiFzJjvbAwVnzheN-Yp45dTlcTSXIXElSAYCI3bHqXS3Lh_xjkvlNQs3z7Yn5K4Dvka/w640-h480/dollhouse.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">I mean, look at these. Is this not the cutest thing ever? Don't those donuts (doughnuts if you just can't deal) look great? She's got her little Kitchen-Aid mixer going. I was turned off by the chunky wooden dollhouse furniture in some other brands, but these are incredible. The kitchen items are the first pieces I received before the dollhouse was delivered. They're just sitting on my desk. The hutch is hard plastic. The porcelain is from another brand that sells miniatures on Amazon. The Hopscotch family Chocolate Rabbit character in the red dress is from my cottage, and I learned she is the younger non-baby sister named Bell. I believe Stella, who is in the Town series, is the older sister, apparently old enough to run a business. The toy store is an older Sylvanian Familes item from eBay (nowhere near as reasonably priced as the house mentioned above). The store is not as wide as the other buildings, so it will not be a compatible "room" for the house, whereas some of the new CC town buildings can be repurposed and may stack. These two characters, Snow White and Peter Pan, are two of the fairy tale costume "babies" sold in random mystery bags. They also have babies in Halloween and other costumes, as well.<br /></div><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p style="text-align: justify;">You can take different pieces and connect them, but not all of them will sit on top of each other. Some have to be on the bottom, and there are some that won't allow you to put anything on top because of the roof shape that is permanently attached. On Amazon and other places, you can see where some of the dollhouses are sold in bundles because you can connect them to make a mansion. I'm already up to about 13 cat and rabbit characters, with a mouse, chipmunk, and elephant thrown in.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p style="text-align: justify;">So, I did pick up a few "vintage" items in addition to the new ones. The scale is approximately 1:12, which is the same size as you see in Hobby Lobby. However, the scale isn't exact since you normally don't see human-size rabbits and squirrels wandering around. I have noticed that the CC beds are different sizes, with some being considered "children's furniture" and some for adults. So, if you are buying something like a bed, you'll need to make sure it will fit the intended character. Characters can be a bit tricky, too, because you have the "Mom" size characters, "older sister" sizes which are the size of the town girls, girl sizes, which is smaller, and at least two types of babies, one of which is not posable. I haven't ordered any of the non-posable ones nor the ones that come in baby beds and wrapped in cloth where I can't see if they have feet or not. :) <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">All that being said, I have still not given up on the idea of making one. Nor have I thrown away the box. Every time I start to toss it out, I think, "Man, that's a great box." I'm also not ruling out the idea of building one from a kit or a bookcase, which is always a great idea. I'm sure I have plenty of characters, and I have some other ideas, as well.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I was thinking about all the movies I have watched that feature a dollhouse. If you haven't seen the second season of Locke & Key on Netflix, there is a special dollhouse in it. It requires a special key, and whatever you do to the dollhouse happens in Key House. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Then there was the one in Bly Manor on Netflix's The Haunting of Bly Manor. After watching both The Haunting of Hill House and Bly Manor twice, I've decided I actually like Bly Manor even better. I am always a bit skeptical that a second season or a well-liked series will have the same impact. I loved it. Flora was my favorite character, and the dollhouse was cool. On the outside, it was intended to be a replica of Bly Manor, but, inside it was only one room deep. </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">Cliff Clavin fact: </span><span style="color: #bf9000;">The exterior shots for Bly Manor were at <a href="https://www.thornewoodcastle.com/" target="_blank">Thornewood Castle</a> in Washington, which was also used for the filming of Stephen King's Rose Red. I have also read that CGI was used in the creation of some of the shots, but it's really well done in that I didn't notice.<br /></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;">In the dollhouse, you could see where the ghosts were because Flora made dolls to represent them, and a ghost boy moved them around. But I'm pretty much a sucker for a gloomy old haunted house movie.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">Weird fact: I had already written a scene for my book involving a place called Blythe Manor before the second season of The Haunting of Hill House (The Haunting of Bly Manor) was released. I had no idea. I'm over rewriting stuff because of similarities, so the name stays. This is like the 3rd or 4th thing that has been an idea of mine before I found out about a movie or show.</span><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><span style="color: black;"><a href="https://www.vulture.com/2018/07/a-guide-to-delightful-and-sinister-pop-culture-dollhouses.html" target="_blank">Vulture.com did a whole article</a> on dollhouses in Movies and TV, and there are plenty more that weren't covered. They're certainly prevalent in horror movies. Like dolls, there's something a bit creepy about most dollhouses. Bly Manor and Locke & Key, which wasn't technically a horror movie series, were my favorites, though. </span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><span style="color: black;">Even as a kid, I had nightmares about my dolls coming to life, and there was one incident when a dollhouse fell over in the middle of the night. We discovered that it had been sitting on a spool of thread, although I don't know how the spool got there. It's not like we had random spools of thread in our bedroom when I was 9, so it seems that someone else tampered with it. I'll just keep telling myself that. </span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><span style="color: black;">Warning: Here thar be spoilers! <br /></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><span style="color: black;">I nearly forgot to mention that I recently watched <i>The Miniaturist</i>, which was a 2017 PBS Masterpiece movie in two parts about a young bride in Holland who was given a dollhouse as a wedding gift from her new husband. The dollhouse was grand and fascinating. Unfortunately, I found </span></span><span style="color: #bf9000;"><span style="color: black;">the "behind the scenes" type videos <i>about</i> the dollhouses used by adults during that time period to be actually more interesting than the story. I over books and movies with thin plots to frame political agendas (Deleted rabbit trail about this. You're welcome.).<br /></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><span style="color: black;">Another weird thing: I knew nothing about the novel this was based on, but I do have a bit in the book I'm writing about objects that "know things," very much like the objects that know things in this movie. It's not the same, but, apparently, there is that "trope," for lack of a better word. These days, it's really hard to avoid tropes, and I'm not sure how many times something has to be done, whether known or unknown, before it is a certified, card-carrying trope club member.</span></span><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">In the past month, my office has suffered an overflow of boxes as different
dollhouse pieces arrived. There's the dilemma of whether or not to save
the boxes new objects came in since they are "collector's items" or just
let it go. I will have to let them go since there's no way I can keep all these. I have no closets! So, in a nutshell (a bigger than average nut), that's my dollhouse obsession aka hobby. Other than that... well, now that I've thought about it, what have I been doing?</p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p>I got into the habit of doing art at night after work until I realized that it was hyping me up too much so that I couldn't sleep. I can't do this on "school nights." :) In case you didn't know, art can be rejuvenating because it lets the logical left side of the brain rest while you are doing art. A lot of what I did was just practice and trying out the new colored pencils. This is my first time using them. Although you may not can see it in this photo, I messed up on the tree because I forgot to leave holes between the leaves for the sky, and going over the yellow with blue (or maybe it was the other way around) was hard. Who wants a green sky? I'm definitely better at bark than leaves. I also had not colored in the boats in the harbor when I took this picture. <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyFTevpSYstSslGvvKP4Dry3qeRUXX9k462WMG27fHQslYGH0R04qVEvo_j-5wdD_7s6T2k_T7gnZ9SDrD3_GbcNURT7vEzSUK_BwG54QCAv6OKWvot71GjJ-3_itALl9Apmkyie7zk9bEX8RglGnEHuB11YpR0oI_NjHXmE07z75VAEleYTHaAseF/s3442/IMG-9810%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3442" data-original-width="2991" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyFTevpSYstSslGvvKP4Dry3qeRUXX9k462WMG27fHQslYGH0R04qVEvo_j-5wdD_7s6T2k_T7gnZ9SDrD3_GbcNURT7vEzSUK_BwG54QCAv6OKWvot71GjJ-3_itALl9Apmkyie7zk9bEX8RglGnEHuB11YpR0oI_NjHXmE07z75VAEleYTHaAseF/s320/IMG-9810%20(2).jpg" width="278" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I found a great deal on the pencils, and they turned out to be the real deal (I also had a set that turned out to NOT be the real deal, and I was able to get a refund, no questions asked.). I had tried other pencils, but nothing as good. I stayed away from colored pencils because the good ones were expensive, and the others weren't worth it. I knew from college that Prismacolor was the standard for professional art. I was really impressed with how buttery and vibrant they are. I know that "buttery" it a term I've heard other artists use, and it's not an exaggeration. The core is softer than normal pencils, and, at time, it felt more like I was painting.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I also tinkered a bit with pastels. In case you didn't know, soft pastels are the purest medium, traditionally containing pure pigment and enough of a binder to hold them together. If there are other ingredients mixed in, they're not actually pastels. I think there are people who paint with mud, so if you want to pay outrageous amounts for your mud, that's up to you. <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">The oil pastel images below are some practice experiments copying work by other artists, using inexpensive oil pastels--NOT my favorite medium at all. They look kind of like crayons, and there are little peels of color all over the surface as you work, which I find to be the most annoying thing about them. It also smears on your hands and everything else. Between soft (chalk) pastel and oil pastel, I find the dust easier to work around. And I don't really like the crayon appearance of the art. However, you can create a somewhat painterly effect without the mess of dragging out wet paint, water, palettes, etc. So, that's a plus.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Still, because of the mess from both oil and soft pastel, I would NOT use either material while sitting on a bed. You need to prep an area and maybe lay down some newspaper. In art class, we used soft pastels with our paper vertical, and we had paper beneath it to catch the dust. It was also better for keeping the dust from flying everywhere. I do sometimes watercolor while sitting on the bed and watching TV. Nothing too expressive or paint slinging. :) </p><p style="text-align: justify;">The first is a "study" of work by Mark Hearld. His original incorporated collage with painting, so there was more texture in his. I was trying to be loose and more expressive here, and I was working a lot faster than normal. There was a lot of scraping when the color got too thick to put any more down because I was using paper that didn't have a lot of tooth. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgolZdV17zUARf1B6HwCFb6SZgs1fZfq0spKCycpJ4C5miZBNrQouoKaiyleoMPV7XQXQ-WLeAn8tAu46xOXmctmjoWLGsD2jffXTuOLG8uNwdNucpbOFyTT-ch5AgKzQ4RGCKovUpdrgAmXP8XufG6un30sbd-UTqeGXB8Ki-iUCbT-5zJAB_eHpfE/s4032/IMG-9705.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgolZdV17zUARf1B6HwCFb6SZgs1fZfq0spKCycpJ4C5miZBNrQouoKaiyleoMPV7XQXQ-WLeAn8tAu46xOXmctmjoWLGsD2jffXTuOLG8uNwdNucpbOFyTT-ch5AgKzQ4RGCKovUpdrgAmXP8XufG6un30sbd-UTqeGXB8Ki-iUCbT-5zJAB_eHpfE/s320/IMG-9705.jpg" width="320" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">For the second piece, I used a Margaret Owen painting as a reference. I definitely need to work on my patterns.<br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifZ579rlEpynZAyXYYMHTSg1nDOVUOnSW6cnEA3RsNnoEVzxSOI3w3FWvo0IM1_7R90NuNhO9dLzK8A3N17xECnCeTOF6hSTjf_xHJFaqpttgleQ-P2fJx9RpGwGHIvenDpND6mXdO-xsl5hhrRNF2x3UqeAsm3nzPhmSbFd9N90aR6at3ReDkrHF0/s3128/IMG-9708%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3128" data-original-width="2683" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifZ579rlEpynZAyXYYMHTSg1nDOVUOnSW6cnEA3RsNnoEVzxSOI3w3FWvo0IM1_7R90NuNhO9dLzK8A3N17xECnCeTOF6hSTjf_xHJFaqpttgleQ-P2fJx9RpGwGHIvenDpND6mXdO-xsl5hhrRNF2x3UqeAsm3nzPhmSbFd9N90aR6at3ReDkrHF0/s320/IMG-9708%20(2).jpg" width="274" /></a></div><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p></p><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I've created pastel paintings in the past (no pun intended) using traditional materials, but I didn't go through the trouble of pulling out the high-quality pastel paper. I was just playing around in my sketchbook and had no intention of hanging anything on a wall. I thought the paper I was using had enough "tooth" to hold a certain amount of color since it was very rough when I was using colored pencils, but you can only go so far with pastels. I was also trying out some less expensive soft pastels (non-oil kind), although I did supplement a little bit with Rembrandt pastels. My traditional work was created using Prismacolor (hard) Nupastels, and supplemented a bit with Rembrandt and Sennelier. The Rembrandt are soft, but the Sennelier is so incredibly soft that you can use them up in no time, so I save those for highlights. Since I wasn't using very toothy paper, it would not hold very many layers of color, but I didn't think the pastels themselves were bad. I was more impressed with the Ohuhu ones than the Master's Touch ones I got from Hobby Lobby. The Ohuhu seemed softer, although some colors are easier to work with than others. I have noticed that in Prismacolor Nupastels, as well. Some colors feel a bit weird and scratchy, particularly on the outside of the color. Maybe they have a coating, or maybe it's just the particular materials that that color is made from. I found that true with particular blues, very dark cool greens, and some reddish shades. The cheaper pastels had a nice range of colors. One thing I did find that was lacking were light shades of blue, pretty much across the board. I have some very pale blues in my Prismacolors that I use ALL the time, and I kept looking for those shades, which were absent.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Another great thing about professional items like Prismacolor and Sennelier (and maybe Rembrandt) is that you can buy a separate color if you use it up. I picked up some extra white the last time I visited an art store. <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">In this photo, the top and 3rd trays are Master's Touch from Hobby Lobby. The second tray is Rembrandt, and the bottom are Ohuhu from Amazon. I really didn't use the top tray but maybe once or twice, if at all. I didn't try to get the whole picture I was working on since it is incomplete. It takes longer for me to finish a soft pastel painting, usually several sessions of a few hours each. This was after one session, and I got much further along than I had expected.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheYfSxUKniFn6VPsNQ4Aq9yFoxJTbTJjkdqWObOEFdI6JrpjuLBWd8HYov7YiEkES9stOyCdjFLekqX3DBP2hIQErYHvUPKrYf3vrsiZGqE37FKfe3MRqXa_lfb_VvdlFt5bCuYYfmXbfMzVbuHZGQuFmDLtb1ClhJo3bCxCg35-5C3HCRjYqG0LI8/s3939/IMG-0088.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2500" data-original-width="3939" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheYfSxUKniFn6VPsNQ4Aq9yFoxJTbTJjkdqWObOEFdI6JrpjuLBWd8HYov7YiEkES9stOyCdjFLekqX3DBP2hIQErYHvUPKrYf3vrsiZGqE37FKfe3MRqXa_lfb_VvdlFt5bCuYYfmXbfMzVbuHZGQuFmDLtb1ClhJo3bCxCg35-5C3HCRjYqG0LI8/w400-h254/IMG-0088.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p></p><p>I forgot, while I was working on this, that I also had bought some more Conte a Paris pastel pencils. These are great for little details. Think of them like fine-tip markers compared to those with a broad tip. Like, signing your name gets a whole lot easier. Normally, I wrote my name on my watercolors with a pencil, but these make it possible to get a sharp point and write. I had about 20 leftover from around the time I was in college or shortly thereafter. Most of them were more muted, and I'm assuming that I bought them open stock. I honestly can't remember actually purchasing them. They either came from the school book store or the local art store turned frame shop. </p><p>I'm reading <i>The Companion </i>by young adult author Katie Alender. She writes a lot of ghost stories, including the <i>Bad Girls Don't Die</i> trilogy, <i>Marie Antoinette, Serial Killer, </i>and <i>The Dead Girls of Hysteria Hall.</i> It's a bit of a slow burner. As I realized it wasn't her normal ghost story (so far), I was thinking there has to be a bit of a struggle when you are writing something a little different. I mean, sometimes, as a reader, you expect every book to be different, original, and exciting, exactly like the other book. It's a bit weird, and I imagine it's hard for an author to decide if it's too risky to write something different. I really did enjoy her other books, so I decided to keep reading, despite the slow burn.<br /></p><p>I finally finished reading <i>Winter Rose</i> by Patricia A. McKillip, who is my favorite fantasy author. It was another slow burner where I kept waiting for something "fantastical" to happen, and it finally did, but it felt a long time coming. In looking up the details on the story, I saw a reference to a Scottish ballad of <i>Tam Lin</i>, which I didn't know. After reading the description of Tam Lin, I can see the parallels, and it seems clear that that was her point.<br /></p><p>So, that's some of what I've been up to. We also had family visit from out of state, so it has been an exciting week. I've been trying to pretty much avoid watching the news and keep myself distracted from the "real world" most of the time. My sister laughs at me when I tell her I know my neighbor probably gets tired of hearing me talk about those dang Calico Critters. But she gets it. When real life seems insane, we need a distraction. And things are definitely insane right now.</p>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-1928005888303514552021-12-30T20:01:00.013-08:002022-05-01T20:35:48.935-07:00How to Build an Escape Plan | Christmas Rewind | Nostalgia<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjGQDjZ8VaLxMWCbCkwTYBKSFkFTSXzGJhirUBBl5FVEd1oHYYiLHH-lM2HK2tOvpPiS4DCDlhUNRS2PmJvyVUBm93LoDQVCxsDeHfmKRmOodC6CMQYzfEZPUFL0-aoWrfFx1WRW_PeaMMX9LvPzNu9oGbCB3tqA5Gwqgv2Yb5rTi5YWzj2b9cXOnHQ=s3239" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3239" data-original-width="2681" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjGQDjZ8VaLxMWCbCkwTYBKSFkFTSXzGJhirUBBl5FVEd1oHYYiLHH-lM2HK2tOvpPiS4DCDlhUNRS2PmJvyVUBm93LoDQVCxsDeHfmKRmOodC6CMQYzfEZPUFL0-aoWrfFx1WRW_PeaMMX9LvPzNu9oGbCB3tqA5Gwqgv2Yb5rTi5YWzj2b9cXOnHQ=w331-h400" width="331" /></a></div><br /> Dear Reader,<p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Having deleted the previous two, this marks my third attempt to write this post, not counting the number of times I've wiped paragraphs or the whole page clean. As a writer, it's easy to find a theme and put a story into the perspective of the main character. Real life? Not so much. How does one describe the past year or two years or recent handful? Challenging? Depressing? Mind-boggling? Chaotic? Insane???<span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I can't speak for the world, but, as for me, it feels that I've been lingering in a state of limbo for the longest time, unsure whether I was waiting for peace or apocalypse. Overwhelmed, I remain frozen like a deer caught in the headlights, or Lot's wife as she turned to gaze at the destruction behind her. Seeking solace, I turn to things that make me happy and to <i>doing </i>things that make me happy, and it just so happens that my favorite things as a child are still my favorite things.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">So far, during the Christmas holidays, I have been visiting family, watching Christmas movies, playing games, and even putting together a Christmas puzzle. I meant to make some Christmas treats and even bought the Rice Krispies, but I ate those. So, I bought another box. I ate that one, too. Then I saw a box of Fruity Pebbles WITH marshmallows, which sounded like the best of three worlds. I'm now halfway through the box. I'm trying to cut back on Lucky Charms.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I finished the second season of <i>The Witcher</i>, which, after the first episode, comes across as political and focusing on racism. I wish that writers knew that these political agendas destroy good shows and lose fans. The first episode was very interesting with a Beauty-and-the-Beast character who has been cursed. While his magic is not explained (or, if it was, I missed it), it is humorous to watch him call for things that appear out of thin air and drop down around him. Until you find the reason for the curse at the end, he's a very likeable character. However, after that episode, there was very little about the show that was actually memorable. I would like to see more of the main character doing what he does best rather than being a platform for politics. I don't tune in to watch <i>The Witcher</i> to see elf refugees, elf discrimination, and war politics, however noble the agenda. I tune into fantasy shows for one reason and one reason only: escape and Henry Cavill. Aside from the first episode, the best moment is when he realizes Yennifer is alive and sees her again, except the series is so bogged down in politics that I had FORGOTTEN that he didn't know she was alive by then, much less remember that she didn't even know that HE was alive. (BTW, between this show and <i>Outlander</i>, the writers could figure out better reunion scenes. The payoff is a bit subtle.) Anyway, how many people playing the game would continue if they had to stop playing to listen to endless videos about clan politics? <i>Game of Thrones</i> and <i>Rise of Phoenixes</i> both made political machinations very interesting, but both of those series ended very badly, due to politics, so I'm just saying.... Fantasy + Politics = Unhappy Ending. There was no charm like the first season. The bard is bitter and angry. The Princess is a predictable, rebellious hero wannabee. The Witcher himself manages to murder a monster or two the whole season, but, unfortunately (thanks to the writers), he plays a background paper doll character while other characters keep interfering with the story that viewers really want to watch. The mages are still involuntarily entangled in politics that even they find boring, as do the viewers. 😩<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">As does the world.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Which makes me wonder, why does Hollywood write shows that only remind us of the problems we seek to escape? Did someone somewhere forget the definition of <i>escapism</i>? I'm a huge fan of escapism, but, if left up to the political powers that be, even that would be neutered and ineffective. Why does every "epic" fiction turn into chaotic destruction, courtesy of "real life" world politics? It's not thrilling. It's not engaging. It's grueling. Since when did entertainment seek to be grueling?<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">In AP English, we studied themes and metaphors, and in the earliest books I read about writing, I learned that it was bad writing to "preach" to readers because people resist, and it's boring. You have to wrap the point up in a story, like a fable. It's like tricking your dog to take his medicine by wrapping the pill up in meat. I mean, what child recognized <i>Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer</i> as a story about discrimination? These days, there's no story, and we watch a thinly disguised production of the same chaos we seek to escape. Sure, it's wearing fake glasses, but we still recognize that it's not a creative plot but just real life in a phony disguise. Where is the seduction to draw us in and guide us gently to accept the idea? With seduction being completely absent, it appears that the new device is to shock or scare viewers into accepting the lesson. So, basically, these days, theater has the finesse of a used car commercial during the news—the kind that screams so loud that you have to hit the mute button.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><blockquote><blockquote><div style="text-align: justify;"><blockquote><blockquote><span style="font-family: Special Elite;"><span style="color: #e06666;"><span style="font-size: large;">Bottom line: If you want a real escape plan, you're going to have to create it yourself, so gather up your imaginary friends and a glue stick.</span></span></span></blockquote></blockquote></div></blockquote></blockquote><p> </p><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">While being a bit of a rant about politics in the movies and everywhere, it kind of sums up how I feel about the past year or few in general. So, let's move on to the good stuff, shall we?</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I tried to watch the new <i>Home Alone</i> sequel, but only made it about five minutes into the story before being turned off by it. The first two movies were the best, so you're better off watching those over and over again than trying to recreate the same success in a post-apocalyptic version. I could tell just by the intro that the quality was not up to the standard of the first two movies. They've played with labels of who is good and who is bad, making them a lot more ambiguous (the victim is punished), and the rudeness has been turned up to a Category 5. If you enjoy watching undereducated millionaires argue on <i>Jerry Springer</i>, it might be the show for you.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I know. I said "good stuff." I'll try harder.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">However, I did actually enjoy <i>Cruella</i>. I had my doubts before seeing it, but it was actually very cute. It's less of a story about why she became a villain and more of an alternate retelling where no puppies were harmed. While I'm not sure if all of the technology used in the film was actually available in the late 60s, the movie had a decent, albeit anachronistic, soundtrack.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #7f6000;">Edit: I forgot to mention that I also enjoyed Netflix's <i>Love Hard</i>, a Christmas-themed romantic comedy about the mostly downs of internet dating. It stars <i>Vampire Diaries'</i> Nina Dobrev. Rated TV-MA, there is language, but I thought the show was hilarious.</span><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I watched a cute movie on Hallmark called <i>Next Stop, Christmas</i>. It's about a girl who goes back in time to Christmas ten years prior, and the cast includes Christopher Lloyd and Lea Thompson. Who knew Christopher Lloyd and Lea Thompson would ever star together in a movie about time travel, right?!? Didn't see that one coming. I also enjoyed <i>A Castle for Christmas</i> on Netflix, the new movie starring Brooke Shields and Cary Elwes. The two movies, both new this year, seem to demonstrate an emphasis on nostalgia.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Maybe it's the seriousness of these times or that the powers that be are just now publicly <i>admitting </i>that things really were better made in the past, but nostalgia is HUGE right now, whether it's in movies with our 80s celebs, remakes of vintage toys, or everything that was previously considered out of fashion being hawked on eBay, Etsy, and Mercari at rising prices. My favorite things are suddenly (and annoyingly) trendy, and they're even now making knockoffs of the remakes of classics that were made a century or two ago. The bad news is that the quality isn't there, but the price isn't any better than the antique. I noticed "Rock 'Em Sock 'Em" robots in Walmart the other day. The classic children's movies <i>Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer</i> and <i>Santa Claus is Coming to Town</i> have gone premium, being only available early on ABC (mostly in November) with near-Christmas broadcasts being only available to watch with a cable subscription if you don't purchase or rent them elsewhere.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">On a related topic, I do have a few regrets. These are things I wish I had done, but didn't think to do.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">1. I wish I had written down all of the stories my older relatives and neighbors told me about their pasts. I don't mean personal relationship disputes or anything; I mean about things that happened to them and things that were different about their lives compared to now. You will not always remember them. I must have heard my grandfather tell me the same stories over and over about 'possum hunting with his many brothers or riding the horse up into the school house during a town meeting, but you might not remember the details later. My parents' generation has been a witness to more change than any other before or after. They were born when most people didn't have a car and still used a horse and wagon for transportation, but now have hand-held mini computers. They saw the end of the Great Depression and a World War. Whether they tell you stories or just the mundane details about Christmas traditions or going shopping at a store that is no longer in business, write it down. I wish I had written down all of the things that my relatives said but are no longer around to repeat. Keep their recipes and the stories that go with them.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">2. I also regret that, when my children or I received a gift, whether it's Christmas or birthday or no-particular-reason, that I didn't write it down. I wish I had kept a gift journal: what it was, the occasion, the date, the person, etc. I have things that I have no idea when I got them or from where. If it's a gift, it's kind of an insult to the giver to not remember them. So, get a special notebook or journal and write it down. If you don't remember the giver, it's not a gift; it's just a thing occupying space and collecting dust. The most important thing about a gift is the giver.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">One of the travesties of commercialism is that things change for the sake of change. Old favorites are discarded by companies who want to give their line a fresh new look. I think that the emphasis on nostalgia is, ironically, a revolution against unnecessary change. A look back at happier times, finding magic in a plastic reindeer or a shopping expedition to Sears before there were malls, when the fragrance of the popcorn meant we were getting closer to the candy station where we always stopped. Then the malls came, and I remember shopping at the Swiss Colony stores in the mall, and Mom usually bought the liquor-flavored hard candy, which was kind of funny since Mom is a teetotaller. 😹But that candy was good! I think the gin was my favorite.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Along those same lines, I have noticed myself and others in my age bracket buying toys and things that we cherished when we were kids but lost. In an earlier post <a href="https://bunnyrosebooks.blogspot.com/2020/07/a-doll-story.html" target="_blank"><i>A Doll Story</i></a>, I wrote about the doll that was given by my grandmother and how I went looking for one like it recently. I have talked to others who have fond memories of things they had as children and were looking for a replacement. My sister recently bought a toy piano that reminded her of the ones we had as children. It's not just the things, but also the memories that come with them, whether these are the exact same objects, ones just like them, or something similar to the ones we had as children.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I have managed to get a little painting in so far, and I have been trying to work on other projects, as well. It's a strange year; although Christmas Day has past, our families have still not had Christmas yet. We'll be still celebrating in January. I went by one store on Monday, and they were already stocking for Saint Patrick's Day. I guess Valentine's Day is over already, too? Although December 25 was created in 325 AD as an immovable feast by Emperor Constantine, since we know it was not the actual birthday of Christ (I've seen where several say that it was September with some saying it was 9/11, some 9/23, and some on Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish Near Year, which is somewhat of a moveable feast, being based on the moon, not to mention various arguments about which calendar is correct), we feel free to celebrate as time allows due to expanding families placing a strain on the calendar.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Even so, there's this feeling of "overness" in regard to the holiday at home. The tree is still lit up and presents still waiting to be wrapped, but it feels as if the holiday is over. It's been a strange year. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Looking forward, I have a lot of plans, but I want to continue to emphasize the things that I love doing... reading, writing, making things, etc. I can't fix the world, but I can work on me, and I can make things. So, I plan to be more creative in the new year and to try to finish up some projects, as long as production is not a vibe killer. 😸 I finished the painting above last weekend, and I'm still working on other requested oil paintings for family. Hopefully, 2022 will bring more joys than 2021 and far less, um... things that aren't joyful. <br /></p>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-88112825051541374172021-11-13T02:00:00.248-08:002023-01-22T18:03:24.457-08:00Life Blog: Happy Holidays | Three Things Twilight Did Differently | Parental Guidance Suggested<p style="text-align: justify;"> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgpxkDlTuKFCJ6fY8Wo3cnTD6-ZODoIXbzdDs40WhKRjHoRzQsS9qtiCUHC_WVGY7KTVeWP3vMJ-69AigMTrL-iyMCAKT6SdDfcygvgDzAgUdt9EVjuI5zkjlxcc3-M2dUf0b91Y1-viefmrxI7BKpzTFCY8jt_v9TmyLUVPUjxPcdqES8A7DtqsiAc=s855" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="601" data-original-width="855" height="450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgpxkDlTuKFCJ6fY8Wo3cnTD6-ZODoIXbzdDs40WhKRjHoRzQsS9qtiCUHC_WVGY7KTVeWP3vMJ-69AigMTrL-iyMCAKT6SdDfcygvgDzAgUdt9EVjuI5zkjlxcc3-M2dUf0b91Y1-viefmrxI7BKpzTFCY8jt_v9TmyLUVPUjxPcdqES8A7DtqsiAc=w640-h450" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Dear Reader,</p><p style="text-align: justify;">The holidays are here again. I titled this post with "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas" for reasons that you'll understand below. However, in case I'm not available later, I want to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving and a Merry Christmas (and Happy New Year and Got MLK?).<span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">You may have noticed that I didn't post a Scary Edition media recommendation this year. Well, I started to, but then I realized that I had already mentioned many of the books/movies that would fall into that genre in recent blog posts, and I was on to bingeing less scary things.</p><h4 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">The Binge </span></h4><h4 style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">The Rise of Phoenixes (</span></span></i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">Netflix Original Series)</span></span><br /></h4><p style="text-align: justify;">For example, I finally finished a binge of <i>The Rise of Phoenixes</i> on Netflix. This is a 70-episode Chinese TV series. If you are interested, be prepared to read subtitles. I'm the most annoying subtitle watcher on the planet because I pause a lot. First, the pros.... This is a very well-made and grand series (2018) that follows the rise of a prince and a girl whose family has been reluctantly taken in by her uncle, who is an official in the palace. With nine sons, there are more people coveting the Emperor's seat than <i>Game of Thrones</i>. The Sixth Prince is released from prison and is plotting to avenge the death of his brother, the Third Prince, and his mother. From the moment they meet, the Sixth Prince and the girl are destined to either work together or get in each other's way. The series has grandeur of the palace life, political intrigue, fight scenes, great characterization, humor, and romance. The subtitles are very well translated, aside from where I read that "little raccoon" should have been "little leopard," so not exactly the same thing. I wouldn't have known that before I read an article while trying to figure out what happened to one character. </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><Spoilers>Now the cons... Despite the fact that this was a beautifully made show with tons of drama, the ending sucked. Royally. After finishing, I read criticism that the authors of the TV show deviated from the happier ending of the novel. Let me put it this way.... Remember <i>The Blacklist </i>and the irrational bender that Elizabeth Keen went on? She starts out being a smart, capable female who is the voice of reason and later turns into an insane woman who is manipulated by a family member she only just met and goes against the one person who has been there for her for years and saved her life numerous times? Well, apparently, one of the writers pulled an Elizabeth Keen on the female main character, which earns her the award for Misleading Actress. The show further infuriates me for making the "strong female lead" stupid and irrational, which is a slap-in-the-face trope of too many shows claiming to be supportive of women. If that wasn't enough, basically, the writers destroyed the lives of every single character on the show. You had your favorite characters who had all been on the same team all fighting against each other. What kind of a sick sadist writer does that to a movie/show that is intended to be "romantic"? A disgruntled ex-Hallmark employee?</Spoilers></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Like Avril says, "So much for my happy ending."<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">While the show was, generally speaking, very good and very well done, I had to give it a complete thumbs down because there is no way to be content with it ending the way it does, and it's not fair to an audience to endure such a thing. It's not unlike what happened to the "jump the shark" ending of <i>Game of Thrones</i>, where Sam tells Jon he has to assassinate someone, robs him of kingship, which Jon fully deserved, and then exiles him to The Wall as punishment for assassinating the person Sam encouraged him to assassinate! And then Sam is all smiley and happy because he finally got his wish of being a wise scholar. I wanted to send the writers of the season to The Wall. Many of the viewers were outraged by the show to the point where there were rumors suggesting that there might be a complete redo of the final season. Although one article assured viewers that it was never going to happen, it appears that the writers are not above capitalizing on what had been a success in the earlier seasons by writing a prequel to the show. <i>House of the Dragon</i> is in the works for 2022. I won't be a bit surprised if writers of TROP take the same option.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: #bf9000;">Happy Endings</span></b><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I feel like books, movies, and TV shows should come with a clear "happy ending" or "unhappy ending" label. I watched over fifty-two hours of film and expected an ending along the lines of <i>Memoirs of a Geisha</i>, where, after all of the trials and setbacks, the couple was finally together and got their wish. Apparently, TROP had a bitter writer who wanted to teach people that life ain't fair, women are stupid, and royals suck.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">This is the part where I actually have something good to say about <i>Twilight</i>, that is, besides the fact that the movies were loyal to the books, whereas I read that the TROP novel actually had a happier ending than the show. Why the writers deviated from the source material in favor of misery is just entirely evil, but I digress. Back to <i>Twilight</i>.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Let Stephen King say what he will about teen romance, but here are three things that made Stephenie Meyers’s series unique in mainstream fiction, aside from making vampires twinkle in the sunlight.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">1. The monster and the girl ended up together.</span> Unlike most monster-related books and movies, it was neither a tragedy nor a horror. No one fell off of a windmill, burst into flames, or was crushed to death by a collapsing castle.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">2. The story didn't stop at the altar.</span> For ages, the altar has been the end-all for fiction. Although, more recently, most Hallmark romances consider a confession of actually liking someone to be a climactic moment, and the altar is in no way guaranteed. I mean, you don't even know if the guy at least bought her dinner. Sure, watching Darcy walk across the field and confess to Elizabeth (after his initial proposal was denied) was climactic, but the ending was a post-marriage scene, which was nice, although I would have liked to see what a Pemberly-worthy wedding looks like. But I digress.... Finally, I was relieved to see at least one author willing to break this barrier and answer the age-old question: can there actually be happiness beyond the veil, or are the masters of fiction hiding some dark truth? Why did every story creator stop here as if everything after the altar was anticlimactic and goes downhill after that point? It doesn't have to be that way.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">3. The girl became the monster.</span> For centuries, the love of the girl has turned the boy from a monster to a prince. NOT the other way around. Even author Charlaine Harris guaranteed that heroine Sookie Stackhouse would never lose her humanity and become a vampire. This was one story that turned the trope on its head and the girl into the monster. I will admit that I was always curious what Sookie would be like as a vampire. <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Although the movie <i>Shrek</i>, which came out 4 years before the first <i>Twilight</i> book was released, had Fiona turn into an ogre, but it was the curse and it's resolution that changed her, not her conscious choice. Perhaps it was a choice on some level, but not what she expected. I noticed some parallels between Fiona and the bear in East of the Sun & West of the Moon, with the difference that the prince was a bear during the day and a man only at night and with no one able to see his true form, although I'm confused whether it was the wife looking at the prince at night by candlelight or the fact that she spilled tallow, which she had been warned not to do, that caused the prince to have to return to the witch. If the latter, then perhaps he should have been more forthcoming in his rules, like, WHEN you talk to your mother alone, which I had to have some sort of precognition since I knew things would take a turn for the worse after that, and WHEN she tells you to look at me with the candle and not to spill tallow, I'm telling you now, because this is important, <i>don't </i>spill tallow!!! Instead, just, "Don't talk to your mother." 🙄 Probably intentionally vague, like most curses and the law. <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">You could raise an argument that at least some of the barriers shouldn't have been crossed. I wouldn't want to become the Bride of Frankenstein, and I never understood the appeal of wanting to be a zombie, which has nothing of the beauty and superpowers that Meyer's vampires possess and sounds more like a death cult fantasy. While I agree that humans shouldn't become monsters, at least in non-fiction, I can't deny that author Stephenie Meyer accomplished something I had never seen other writers do. Also, happy ending. Check! ✅<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">So, I'm over drama for a while. I will now turn my focus to Hallmark and trite yet guaranteed happy ending, albeit often prematurely climactic, Fireplace with Christmas Music, Home Town, or Deadliest Catch. I will write clearly labeled horror and fairy tales. I will listen to Tony Bennett and Perry Como. I will wear Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer pajama pants and eat cookie dough. If I crave drama, I will watch the Weather Channel and track earthquakes and volcano eruptions. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Keeping with Asian films, I also watched <i>Love O2O The Movie</i> and <i>Empresses in the Palace</i>. <i> </i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><i>Love O2O </i>(Netflix)</span><i><br /></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i>Love O2O </i>is a modern fantasy (2016) where a girl and guy connect both in real life and in a fantasy RPG game. If you are seeing a flying horse on the commercial, that's the game part. :) There is no "magic" in the "real world" part, so don't be mislead into thinking it's <i>that </i>kind of fantasy. The show is very cute and seems to focus on being true to who you are and having self-esteem and virtues. The subtitles are clear enough to understand so that nothing is lost in the telling. It was pretty conservative, and I enjoyed it. They have both a movie and a series, each with different actors, and I watched the movie. <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><i>Empresses in the Palace</i> (Prime)</span><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i>Empresses in the Palace </i>could be described as <i>Game of Thrones </i>meets <i>The Bachelor. </i>I cannot remember anything specific about EITP subtitles. I was able to watch it and get the gist of what was being said, but, if I remember correctly, some translations might have been a tad awkward. Empresses was a six 90-minute episode series with a lot of political intrigue as each member of the harem schemes for power. Where the princes schemed for power in TROP, it was said in EITP that whoever ruled the harem ruled the country. The main takeaway is to stay far away from the courts and palaces and harems, at least IRL. You'll be happier or live longer. Perhaps both.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I will say that there was one particular hilarious moment in the show involving a CGI cat, clearly animated, which seemed in contrast to the rest of the show. You get a camera shot of a real Persian cat. The camera view changes to another character applying some makeup that has been secretly enhanced with feline-ferociousness-inducing flowers. The camera goes back to the cat, which is now animated. The cartoon cat growls and jumps on the girl. Despite the screaming, it's hard not to laugh.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">If you enjoy EITP, the follow-up series is Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace, where the Royal Mother is the victor in EITP as a younger generation of competing harem members include Ruyi, who has no interest in being in the harem. Both are based on books by Liu Lianzi. Our Western idea of a harem is women walking around dressed like <i>I Dream of Jeannie</i>, but that's nowhere near accurate. They're all considered wives and treated like princesses, except the main wife, the Queen. <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><i>The Rebel Princess </i>(Prime, Viki)</span><i> </i><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I also started watching <i>The Rebel Princess</i> on Prime, but Prime only has 9 episodes. If you watch on Viki, you can see 68 episodes, which makes more sense since the Prime version ended before even fulfilling what the very general synopsis of the show stated, which was confusing. I'm pleased to see there are more episodes available to watch on other sources. This show has Zhang Ziyi, the leading actress from <i>Memoirs of a Geisha</i>. Update: I have watched the show in its entirety, and it was very enjoyable.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: #bf9000;">Parental Guidance Suggested: Please Keep all Body Parts Inside the Vehicle when Traveling to Other Worlds</span></b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><i>Locke & Key </i>(Netflix Orignal Series) </span><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I also watched the second season of <i>Locke & Key</i>, also on Netflix. Despite the main characters being children themselves, I feel that the show doesn't quite achieve the status of "family film." I won't go into detail, but some include drugs, alcohol, and a high school kid hooking up with a 30-year-old stranger. And that's not even touching on violence, basically dying when you use a specific key, or what happens when you shove the wrong person through a portal to another dimension. Parents might want to preview the show first. My main pet peeve with the show is that super-annoying "I forgot to tell you the one thing that might save the world" bit. Or, "your bit of info is critical, so can you tell me when it's too late because I'm too busy now???" Or when the mom catches her daughter's BF with blood on his hands and neglects to bring it up. <i>Gee, thanks for looking out for me there, Mom.</i> Out of all of the concerns to dismiss about your daughter's bf, anything involving blood certainly falls within a different category. Basically, if people communicated better and listened, this "save the world" stuff would be totally unnecessary. It would never even come up.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">However, this "dumb mom moment" falls under the extreme theory that modern moms should do
their best to stay out of their kids' ways, since kids are smarter.
This clearly flawed "theory," is the catalyst behind most plots and
life-risking misadventures. Then again, if parents did their jobs, most fiction books would not exist since they usually answer the intended-to-be-rhetorical question, "What could possibly go wrong?"</p><p style="text-align: justify;">(I could ramble further into this debate about moms staying out of the way, but I'll spare you and move on.)</p><p style="text-align: justify;">All that being said, Locke & Key is interesting and answers most of the questions that arose in the first season, and there is a whole new cliffhanger that sets up the next story arc for a potential Season Three.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">The concept behind Locke & Key is not unique. <i>The Lost Room</i> was probably the first time I really noticed the concept being used, and it had several different objects originating from a missing hotel room and having various magical properties. If you haven't seen it, I believe the show was a Syfy channel original miniseries, and it was definitely bingeworthy. Most everyone I know who watched it eventually purchased the DVDs. On a similar note, in middle-grade books, <i>100 Cupboards</i> by N.D. Wilson involved an attic room that had tiny cupboards that were like windows to different worlds or different places in another world or a combination of the two. There was a dial that could be set to the desired cupboard number, and that location could be accessed by going downstairs and through the portal in the parents' bedroom. The problem was when someone changed the dial upstairs after another person had gone through the portal downstairs, which is usually an issue when you have kids traveling to other worlds without parental supervision (refer to paragraph about the necessity of keeping parents in the dark above). <i>House of Dark Shadows</i>, first in the <i>Dreamhouse Kings</i> series by Robert Liparulo,<i> </i>was another middle-grade book with a concept involving doors and portals to other places. Likewise, in <i>The Books of Elsewhere </i>by Jacqueline West, the main character is able to travel within the paintings of an old house by using magical spectacles, so the paintings operate as portals. In all of the cases, there is a Wonderland appeal to the portals, yet they are also traps with unknown dangers from which the innocent must attempt to escape, which is an old, old story. It could be argued that this appeal/danger could be a metaphor for the lure and risks of carnal pleasures, which was far less ambiguous in books like Ray Bradbury's <i>Something Wicked This Way Comes</i>. (Thank you, Mr. Bradbury, for your transparency.) And if that metaphor doesn't work for you, please refer to the deception that took place in the Garden of Eden.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Final warning to unwitting characters: please tell your parents so they know where to look for your body.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">On that note, the authors of Locke & Key (whether the show or the original graphic novel by Joe Hill, son of Stephen King) cast an extra spell that prevented adults from remembering magic, which basically rendered them useless in helping the children to get out of the fixes they found themselves in. That is, unless they used a special magic key to unlock their memory. (Or the recovering alcoholic mom relapses, which enables her to witness magic and remember it, so, naturally, the kids want her to stop drinking. 🙄 She's onto us, man. Let's convince her she's just drunk.)<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">And, on yet another note, I was browsing for the perfect fireplace video on various platforms and finally found one that featured a nice fire with instrumental holiday music. Oddly enough, it was rated PG. 😑<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-56885166600594075152021-10-02T21:43:00.018-07:002023-01-22T18:20:54.017-08:00Life Blog: October | Asian Film | Zombie Etiquette<p style="text-align: justify;"> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg49YSTMn4vouXF5K_DAwa5wvdqPc-tytrawZ0vLJJIsqd7TuqHcxSbu6oQukjCwONzll74ewEx2OHbP5WHPjRYdt3-PjNXwVVUbCc0vGJLPYEU4WDzhn74Wb2DWk2pmhLk83p9ZQqoHtg/s3891/IMG_8294.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2600" data-original-width="3891" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg49YSTMn4vouXF5K_DAwa5wvdqPc-tytrawZ0vLJJIsqd7TuqHcxSbu6oQukjCwONzll74ewEx2OHbP5WHPjRYdt3-PjNXwVVUbCc0vGJLPYEU4WDzhn74Wb2DWk2pmhLk83p9ZQqoHtg/w640-h428/IMG_8294.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Dear Reader,</p><p style="text-align: justify;">By the time this blog post reaches you, the calendar will have turned another page, and it will be October. And so it begins... the thing that has infiltrated our lives. It's everywhere, and you won't escape it. By now, most everyone has already chosen sides in a highly controversial topic. You either love it or hate it. You know what I'm talking about.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Pumpkin Spice vs The World.<span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Yes, it's that time again. I know there are some hardcore pumpkin spice haters out there, but I am not among them. I have already purchased my first bag of Dunkin's Pumpkin Spice coffee, and I texted my daughter a photo of said bag with the enthusiastic caption, "I'm ready!!!" The response was, "I'm already on my third bag." </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Millennials. So hard to impress.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="400" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/V8Wgs6mi14Q" width="680" youtube-src-id="V8Wgs6mi14Q"></iframe></div><br /><p style="text-align: justify;">Every year, my Mom, sister, and I go to an attic sale fundraiser for a church in the area. Nothing is priced, but you don't have to be afraid to ask. Like, I found the hog killin' painting above. I asked how much, and they countered with how much do I think it's worth? I asked if they would be willing to take $10, and she said, "I'd be willing to take $5!" I told her, "You can tell that I totally suck at this negotiating thing." 😹</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I really love the painting. When I got home, I opened it up to look for a signature. There isn't one. If there was, it has been cut off, but I don't think it was. Anyway, it is an original, and it's on watercolor paper. I would say that the artist is self-taught. I love the Grandma Moses folk-art style, and it tells a story. There are so many details that were carefully added. It was in excellent shape, and I'm pretty sure that it is fairly recent, not just because of the foam-board, but that it was very clean. I wish I knew the artist's name, but I still love it. I think it belongs in the kitchen (too morbid for the bedroom, and the living room is full), so I have to decide what I'm going to move around to make room for it. The colors are right for the kitchen. BTW, I totally missed the whole "old white guy sitting down watching the other folks work." 😹 I thought the painting was set in the Twentieth Century! I figured he was just a nosy neighbor. My grandfather used to sit wherever something was going on so he could be a part of it. No, I'm not going to stick apologetic sticky notes on my paintings for when the maintenance guy pops in.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">Fun Fact (because the donkey in the picture made me think of it): Did you know that all mules are female? My daughter learned that at the Ag Museum. She officially knows more about livestock than I do. IMO, they should call them femules.</span><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I also lucked up on a box of paint. To lots of people, it was just a wooden box with some contraptions attached (the easel part), and I didn't really need another box. I pulled out the drawer and found it full of oil paint, most of the tubes barely used. The colors all appeared to be artist grade. So, although my niece snatched up a great frame in my style before I had a chance to get to the pictures and frame room, I wasn't too upset. Then we all went to eat at the buffet that serves southern fried food and barbecue. It was my sister and niece's first time at Mama Hamil's, but my daughter informed them that it was going to be the best day of their lives. It was a good time for everyone.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Along that same line, Dad sent me a photo of the chickens we gave him for Father's Day. Hey, that's what he wanted. :) He wanted a special breed, so we had to mail order them. They came from Missouri, so I told Dad they were "show me" chickens. The woman at the post office was so excited about them when we went to pick them up. She said it wasn't the first time livestock had come through the mail. Out of the 15 chickens we bought Dad, he ended up with THREE hens. What are the odds?<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I was wanting to talk about movies in this post. So, I recently finished watching <i>Kingdom </i>on Netflix. It's a Korean zombie movie, and it's dubbed over if you don't like reading subtitles. I watch with subtitles on all the time because I tend to be slow of hearing, and people talk too fast, or the movie volume range is too dynamic to catch every word without blasting every house on the block. I first fell in love with Asian films with <i>Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon</i>. After that came <i>House of Flying Daggers</i> and <i>Memoirs of a Geisha</i>. So, subtitles don't bother me at all. I have watched many foreign movies from other countries, both dubbed and subtitled. I love the romance, the choreography, and the emotion of the films.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">It's not my first zombie movie. However, the problem I have with zombies is that they're like those people who get something off the buffet, take a bite, and then go back for more. (FYI, I only made one trip to the buffet, and my plate was not spilling over.) If zombies cleaned their plates, there would be no zombie apocalypse, because the would-be zombie would be digested and unable to rise as a zombie. Food generally doesn't come back to life after it's been eaten. It doesn't seem logical that they would take down one person, have their food on the ground before them, but jump right back up and run after another dish like they have zombie ADHD. If you're really craving food, you'll eat what's lying still in front of you. In wildlife documentaries, when a lion takes down a gazelle, they stay with the kill. They don't try to see how many more they can remove from the herd. They don't have freezers or Ziploc bags for food storage. In some movies, they have the monsters evolving and getting smarter, but this disrespect for food is completely self-defeating since growing numbers of people not being eaten is resulting in more zombies and lack of food sources. It just seems like, if they knew enough to be able to hunt a human, then they would have the ability to work this out: uneaten food becomes another zombie competing for your food. So, IMO, it seems that any zombie apocalypse is simply a result of bad table manners.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: #fcff01;"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Afterthought: So, this leads me to think that the motivation for a zombie apocalypse isn't hunger for brains, but destruction itself. </span></span><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">For some reason, watching shows like this is oddly comforting. For one thing, the setting was over 400 years ago, which means we survived. :) For another, it makes you appreciate that you don't have to get busy chopping trees and constructing a zombie defense system. At the same time, I was a tad disappointed in the ending of the show. There was a glimpse of "life after" with the main characters, which was somewhat satisfying, and a hint of trouble to come, despite the otherwise idealistic ending. It is just two seasons with about six episodes each. The episodes are less than an hour long, so it's not a very long show at all.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I did like the way the story flowed for the series. You had good characters and devious characters, and there was a bit of "Game of Thrones" type of political drama thrown in. It's one of the few zombie shows with a setting that takes place at some point in the past, which adds a certain amount of glamour and romantic nostalgia that modern-day zombie movies and series miss out on with their technology and excess junk. It was a very enjoyable series, and, although it was thrilling, it wasn't scary. If you like Zombie movies, you should check it out.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Also, another Korean zombie production is the movie <i>Train to Busan</i>. It's a modern-day story, but very well-done and very thrilling.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">In non-zombie viewing but still Asian film, I also watched <i>The Yin-Yang Master </i>and <i>The Yin-Yang Master: Dream of Eternity</i>. The two movies were released around the same time (I believe for the Chinese New Year) and are based on the same character, but they include different actors and have different plots. Although the former had cute CGI animal characters that were very well done, the story didn't flow as well. The characters were thinly developed, and there was a disconnect for me there. The latter movie had intriguing characters with a really good mystery that the viewer could speculate on. The characters were strongly developed and likable. The CGI was great, and both shows had beautiful settings and costumes.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">We're in the downhill part of the year. It will be 2022 before you can turn around. From October on, the weekends rush by with one event after the other, and there is little time to just be. But I hope to take things slower this year. Y'all take care.<br /></p>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-30113204126493421782021-09-18T12:26:00.008-07:002021-09-18T12:26:00.211-07:00The Book Two Posts: Ep. 13, The Pop Culture Conundrum<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjqzrnbHgWzlzKxhuG_FU6zrVDdmr1fbp_SinSOcCV8tqGyUsCD0RlNSfqTeqJMRT6qvdz5DhuWHb7SDWXfXWz-c2nFScwhQONLEYtcZTjfjloWOxmPHHlLFO4VQYRohnXianzJKEUTqw/s1280/elvis-presley-1482026_1280.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjqzrnbHgWzlzKxhuG_FU6zrVDdmr1fbp_SinSOcCV8tqGyUsCD0RlNSfqTeqJMRT6qvdz5DhuWHb7SDWXfXWz-c2nFScwhQONLEYtcZTjfjloWOxmPHHlLFO4VQYRohnXianzJKEUTqw/w640-h360/elvis-presley-1482026_1280.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /> Okay, dear readers, I'm just going to be real here.<p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I have been on the outs with my writing as of late. It was going really, really great. Really. I was on about Chapter 20 of the edits and re-calibrating my trajectory as I edited my way through. There were some major plot changes, but it was still going pretty well, and I felt that what I had so far was SOLID. Like, granite solid. I was pretty certain that any other changes to those chapters would be very minor. I could see the checkered flag waving in the distance. But then, something happened in the real world. Something that sent my writing into an out-of-control spin, hurtling through the air with the grace of a broken toilet seat.<span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Pressing pause so you can observe the full glory of this toilet seat flying through the air. <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Notice the bewildered, bug-eyed wonder of the driver of this toilet seat craft. I'm not going to give you the impression that I have everything under control. I'm not going to pretend that unicorn poop has not hit the fan. I'm not going to turn this into a perky how-to-adapt-to-unicorn-poop-hitting-the-fan blog post. Honestly, I'm handling it better that I would have expected. I haven't had a meltdown that involved throwing things. Yet.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Not that that's how I normally handle things.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Resuming toilet seat visual as the driver clenches teeth and braces for impact, then skids, bouncing over rocky terrain, jarring teeth with each bump, until thrown clear of the craft and landing in a heap in deep grass.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">But seriously, folks.... I love pop culture references, and my contemporary writing is full of them. Often it's a movie that many have seen, but sometimes, it's just a song. It's the music playing in the club or on the car radio or that little radio/CD player in the corner of the kitchen at Rosewood. It's a thin, silver thread from the real world to the magical world of Gnome. However, lately, it's been very brutal trying to separate music and politics in the real world. I want my stories to be an escape from this world and for the reader to be able to momentarily push back the worries and hectic pace and go somewhere else. I don't want the threads from the real world to be ones that bring real politics into my creation and rain toxic waste all over my imaginary parade.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">It's hard. It can be very upsetting. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">It's a lot like growing up, which kind of sucks, if you ask me. If I had my way, I'd have never grown up. My family and loved ones would still be right there. I'd have never gotten my heart broken. Santa would still be real, and, every year, I would relive the best Christmas ever, when I received my first easel and set of oil paints. My hardest chore would be making up my bed every day, and I wouldn't have to do it alone. Life would be a series of trips to the grocery store in a Pontiac Grand Safari and comic books and paper dolls. The world would still be small, ending just beyond the places we traveled on a regular basis with occasional, temporary extensions for those road trip vacations where Dad never stopped driving for any reason. I would never have needed to create a portal to an imaginary world. Although, even at that age, the world had already sank a talon in me and gnawed away part of my childhood, proving that there was no age during which monsters did not exist.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I probably don't have to explain how much of a role that state of mind and emotions play in my writing. It's probably true for lots of writers, in varying degrees. I'm not going to say all because some authors may actually be cyborgs or robots or aliens or people who have somehow managed to sever the task-oriented part of their brain from their feelings (which sounds painful, btw) in order to get the job done. However, I am one of those writers who can be, at their best, fairly awesome, and at their worst, a total nightmare, which might work for horror, but not if they can't finish anything.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Along that same vein, I may have mentioned previously that I planned to make changes to Book One before re-releasing. There were some choices that I made, based on someone else's advice, and I'm going to remake those choices. If only we could do this in the real world, right? In addition to those choice changes, I'm overwhelmed with the number of pop culture references in that book. So I'm wondering, how far do I go in extracting toxic pop culture? How important is it to have everything unique and not found in the real world, isolated and impartial? I'm imagining the black and white "no frills" store brands next to the fancy packaging. The music would be basically generic, no frills music. There would be little point in movie references to fake movies that no one would get. Is it just certain references, or do I have to be completely unbiased and ruthlessly eliminate all of them? I've been going through the twelve-step
program with anger, acceptance, denial.... Did I put those in the right
order? IDK. Anyway, right now, I'm in full-on procrastination mode
because I've only barely accepted this change and am still analyzing and
brainstorming how to do this with a few bouts of ranting thrown in here
and there. <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I would have to
recreate some things from the ground up, which would take some
creative off-roading before I can get back on this writing Interstate.
Naturally, I'm dreading it. Hence, the procrastination frustration. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">All that being said, I've been coping with painting and movies. Specifically, I watched a movie with a Swedish giraffe deity and an Irish movie (or a movie SET in Ireland) called <i>Without Name</i>. This is where it gets kind of weird....</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I know. You thought the giraffe god was weird. Surprisingly, not the weirder of the two.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I'm honestly still not sure what the plot was, but the takeaway was this: if you take enough hallucinogenic drugs, the theory was that you could understand trees, which I suppose... in some reality somewhere... might be helpful?? Please don't try this at home. It's just a movie, but that's not even the weird part. (<i>It's not???</i>)<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">First, as a little background to put this into context. If you read my earlier blogs, such as the Scary Edition one, you may recall that I liked the video game <i>Rhiannon The Curse of the Four Branches</i>, which was a 2008 point-and-click adventure game that blended Welsh mythology with various other topics, such as trees, kirlian photography, history that the place had been used as a commune for activists in the 60s, elements, in addition to other topics? Wellllll.... keep reading. (The game got a bit of flack for seeming outdated, but I am finding that's part of the charm. What ground games have gained in smooth graphic technology, they seem to have lost in atmosphere.)<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">The first weird thing is when the main character arrives at the cottage provided by his client. The exterior reminded me of the cottage in the game <i>Rhiannon</i>. The game <i>Rhiannon </i>was based on Welsh mythology and set in Wales. This firm was set in Ireland, which isn't that far off, only a handful times wider than the English Channel. But I was surprised that it looked like the same house, to me, anyway.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I'm including some pretty low-quality, cropped images from the movie and the game. Hopefully, the size and quality of the photos used for reference here will not result in any copyright strikes. I just wanted to show you a bit of what I saw for the sake of comparison. I had to brighten up the shots from the movie because it was so dark.<br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">House, <i>Without Name</i>:<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtzZDpXSNPF8LWMuE3w2fuvwxvYNlCJq-viwn01WhsldB8EwXa0piHfOtZzN4IZVUejmSrW2aiR4ZuLmaLC62xQqwHkyGqO1i-F_tfuZnYs0HyB9iBy2_LqXl83_yhp5LJiw6jdGve1WI/s2249/IMG_8227.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1187" data-original-width="2249" height="169" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtzZDpXSNPF8LWMuE3w2fuvwxvYNlCJq-viwn01WhsldB8EwXa0piHfOtZzN4IZVUejmSrW2aiR4ZuLmaLC62xQqwHkyGqO1i-F_tfuZnYs0HyB9iBy2_LqXl83_yhp5LJiw6jdGve1WI/s320/IMG_8227.jpg" width="320" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">House, <i>Rhiannon</i>: <br /></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2o9O5GXw7OpRJUPzzxLKrsCXEbCDN5-acf54jpdaENka1_fYWG2WQKyKsNWxnsj_mdhJrzmKTi86ML8CKAFhxYIzBvCZzGrCMIBeypA0lAwsJ2HlehW8rxzHHVZ8XZ1Y2t0bDll7veC0/s1063/IMG_8228.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="867" data-original-width="1063" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2o9O5GXw7OpRJUPzzxLKrsCXEbCDN5-acf54jpdaENka1_fYWG2WQKyKsNWxnsj_mdhJrzmKTi86ML8CKAFhxYIzBvCZzGrCMIBeypA0lAwsJ2HlehW8rxzHHVZ8XZ1Y2t0bDll7veC0/s320/IMG_8228.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Then, there was a shelf of books, and I was reminded of the bookcase in the video game. A book fell off of the shelf in the movie, and, as the main character stooped to pick it up, I said, I'm going to laugh if that book is about trees.</p><p style="text-align: center;">Tree book, <i>Rhiannon</i>: <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw2nu17JfAzjqXjJonz5shQuY5YPWYdk4GuaAnrMJuZZWljsyWjYE0Nwwnhhtijb7KMMr6B-4p4kjfu3UO8NSxt1kimjsMQHgxv9NE4nOQqDnwCocLK5ryjUaoqd_z0dRO0J6mgHWiU1A/s2073/IMG_8230.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1258" data-original-width="2073" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw2nu17JfAzjqXjJonz5shQuY5YPWYdk4GuaAnrMJuZZWljsyWjYE0Nwwnhhtijb7KMMr6B-4p4kjfu3UO8NSxt1kimjsMQHgxv9NE4nOQqDnwCocLK5ryjUaoqd_z0dRO0J6mgHWiU1A/s320/IMG_8230.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">You guessed it. Trees. </p><p style="text-align: center;">Tree book, <i>Without Name</i>: <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5ek5nQy7nH8p5ilb-4NvvEtk5OG_w7SRRPueI10nERcLKvwtDuAxnoE7gPn0Zvt6xd8642wxijQck0MFWxl4f2P4JWIgy3jhLC3SKxbAcUY_uzvoWUHORtfTXjpHpbNXTsKpr8Hht_8Q/s1986/IMG_8231.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1199" data-original-width="1986" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5ek5nQy7nH8p5ilb-4NvvEtk5OG_w7SRRPueI10nERcLKvwtDuAxnoE7gPn0Zvt6xd8642wxijQck0MFWxl4f2P4JWIgy3jhLC3SKxbAcUY_uzvoWUHORtfTXjpHpbNXTsKpr8Hht_8Q/s320/IMG_8231.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />Okay, the house could be easily explained as the style of that time and culture and general location, and, although curious, even the tree book could be a coincidence.<br /><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Finally, there is a room in the game where the owner experimented with Kirlian photography, which is using a special camera to take pictures of the auras of objects. </p><p style="text-align: center;">Kirlian Photography, <i>Rhiannon</i>: <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwJeNsNUyEOtrkhreyxH-dHIGmFv0cR0gI7zIHR7Lr1WQ0kCEy0EKVruch2AzozYfrkzetAJE4hqHXZ2BVyFzP6MHcl7ycUfWVwkLclYKgsXyDIhxHK5PX2ZaU4ed-4uQckVmbOS2yfPE/s2321/IMG_8229.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1332" data-original-width="2321" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwJeNsNUyEOtrkhreyxH-dHIGmFv0cR0gI7zIHR7Lr1WQ0kCEy0EKVruch2AzozYfrkzetAJE4hqHXZ2BVyFzP6MHcl7ycUfWVwkLclYKgsXyDIhxHK5PX2ZaU4ed-4uQckVmbOS2yfPE/s320/IMG_8229.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p>Well, you've probably guessed... in the movie, there's a dark room, and the author of the tree book took pictures of the auras of things.</p><p style="text-align: center;">Kirlian Photography, <i>Without Name</i>: <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgytyxBe5uOjxZ3lut6Q696rvLuvhP8WB6t5189XA4dssmYAiWDinT6Mn6MXBVbi7DMmIZs03DGpFtXvhfpYsqdha0TkI30SxISm3LQ0R7yumjIeHpXknuEa8mowtiKnG2nBIeocwrBwJo/s2431/IMG_8226.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1355" data-original-width="2431" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgytyxBe5uOjxZ3lut6Q696rvLuvhP8WB6t5189XA4dssmYAiWDinT6Mn6MXBVbi7DMmIZs03DGpFtXvhfpYsqdha0TkI30SxISm3LQ0R7yumjIeHpXknuEa8mowtiKnG2nBIeocwrBwJo/s320/IMG_8226.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">At this point, I was wondering if the creator of the movie ever played the game or heard about the game or was in any way inspired by the game. The game is from 2008, and the movie is from 2016. I just found that bizarre, although I admit that I have found surprising similarities between my work and the work of others, including characters and plots, when I had no knowledge of the other work before I wrote mine. So, odds are that this is just one of those crazy wild coincidences, but still funny to me.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Sadly, the movie didn't have any of the mythology that was used in the video game, and events played out in a vague series of flashing scenes that are not recommended for anyone prone to seizures.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">In a nutshell, you had this comparison between people who often used hallucinogenic drugs and a person who tried hallucinogenic drugs while researching trees. As it turned out, trees could really mess you up. So, if you go walking through the woods or the park, or even if you have your own little oasis in the back yard, beware.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-39007995165889560982021-08-07T10:11:00.408-07:002021-09-15T14:03:52.682-07:00Thoughts on Horror | Midsommar | Why I Hated the Fear Street Movie | Is the Metaphor Dead?<div style="text-align: justify;"></div><p style="text-align: left;">Warning: Here thar be spoilers! Arg!<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">In addition to a few others, I watched the movie <i>Midsommar </i>this weekend. It has been on my list for a while, and it's one of those movies that you can't really get a feel for by watching the trailer. I was interested in the concept of the midsummer festival and how they were going to use that material in a horror movie. I really had no idea what to expect.<span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Wikipedia calls it a "folk horror" movie, a term I haven't heard before. It definitely had an indie feel to it without an obvious soundtrack and low-key (not inferior in any way, but understated and not overly dramatic. It felt genuine.) acting. That being said, it was actually well-acted. I think that this type of acting works sometimes works better for the genre because the viewer doesn't really know exactly what the individual is thinking, and their inner thoughts seem hidden. It adds another layer of mystery. I tried to watch a handful of other movies this weekend and was pretty annoyed with the bad acting or bad writing and had to turn them off. The acting in this movie felt authentic to me, and it didn't come across as acting. I felt like I was watching real people going through some pretty traumatic stuff. I would say it was like a reality show, but it was better than that.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">The movie was about Americans in Sweden, I think, so I do think that part of the horror did play on the "foreign" element.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">Foreign can be a different country, different culture, different language, different species, or aliens from space. It's just the horror you feel by being in a strange place where things are unpredictable and people may exhibit different behaviors from what you think is normal. None of us ever really know what normal is. We think our behavior is normal and we marry normal people and then realize that <i>their </i>normal is not <i>our </i>normal. It's like assuming that being in London will be just like home because we both speak English. You don't know all of the contrasts that will pop up until you do.<br /></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;">
</p><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">In
science fiction, the foreigners are aliens from outer space. We became
entranced by Japanese horror, I think, largely due to the foreign element.
You're in a place you've never been, and they have different histories. It's
not xenophobia; it's just not what you're used to, like your first night
sleeping in a really old house. Or when people who your parents swear are relatives
come to visit, and the old aunt with the long nose and chin and gray frizzy
hair who looks like a witch has to sleep in the other twin bed in your room at
night. I mean, you’re just a kid and you have to sleep in the same room with a
scary STRANGER! Not that that really ever happened.... The Ring, The Eye, and
The Grudge were all very scary, and I have to wonder how scary they would have
been if they were originally American material. Would they have lost some of
the horror effect to the American audience? I think so. At the same time,
that's only one facet of what makes them good horror movies. I also think that
the Japanese are fantastic at compelling emotions, whether the subject is
horror, anime, or romance. In fact I wouldn't be the least bit surprised to
learn that they had a word for it, for which there is no translation in
English. Is there a word for words that have no English translation? Is it
English or a foreign word?</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">One of the things that stood out to me was the contrast with other horror movies that relied on darkness and other devices to set the mood. It was summer in this movie, and flowers were blooming everywhere. It wasn't the typical setting that screamed horror movie. They didn't use a filter that grayed out the bright colors while highlighting the color red, so none of the usual tricks. That's not to say that the movie had no special effects. In fact, it did have a few, and it did them very well. For example, when the camera pans over the dining table, there's enough of a distortion to make you wonder if the distortion is implying drug use, the heat from the bright sun, primitive magic, or that perhaps the blurred out food on the table is actually human remains. You lean in to get a closer look. The fact that you wonder and that the answer is never stated explicitly adds another layer of horror to the film.<br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">And yet the movie is able to circumvent typical horror implements and leave you feeling raw. Without going into too many details, I'll just say that there is nothing paranormal about the movie. Everything that happened is something that humans do to themselves or others.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">That's probably the scariest thing about the movie.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">You had a handful of new adults who were totally okay with taking recreational drugs going to a festival where there were other varieties of drugs for ceremonial use, and this is just one example of how badly that could go.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">At the same time, there are enough religious elements in the movie to suggest witchcraft and to make you think that the behavior of these people would have to be influenced by some supernatural force. It's like in the movie, The VVitch (AKA The Witch). One critic suggested that all of the paranormal elements in that movie were just metaphors for what this oppressed young woman was going through and shouldn't be taken literally. In this case, while on the surface, it all appears to be non-paranormal, I want to lean the other way and say that there was witchcraft involved.<br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">At the onset, we have the main character who is totally vulnerable and coming unraveled prior to the trip. We see the awful horror she has already dealt with (also a result of bad human choices), and then she decides that going on this trip with a boyfriend who really wants to break up with her is a good idea. So, there is a lot of psychological horror going on with the movie. There is also a good bit of gore, which is my least favorite type of horror. However, at the start, I had pity for this character, and I was roped in. I knew this was going to be a train wreck, but I had to see how it unfolded.</div><p style="text-align: justify;">I thought it was pretty funny that, in the beginning when the emails flashed up on the screen, there were two previous emails where her sister shared YouTube videos. I paused the screen to look them up. Then I found comments below like, "I just came here because of Midsommar." And, "I thought I was the only one who looked this up." There was a weird sort of camaraderie between like minds.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">One review that I read compared <i>Midsommar </i>to the 1970s movie <i>The Wicker Man</i>. I was able to find it on Prime Video and watched it. Years ago, I watched the more modern Nicholas Cage version of it where they attempted to remake it for modern times but changed the setting from an island off the coast of Scotland, which I think was a mistake and deprived the movie of some of the original mystique. At that time, I don't think I had even heard about it being a remake. This was probably the Blockbuster Video years when you had limited choices and no "on demand" access and you had to wrestle dinosaurs for the latest releases. Lately, I've become somewhat interested in older movies, and I wanted to see what the older, more hyped version of <i>TWM </i>was like.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">First of all, I can see why they compared <i>Midsommar </i>and <i>TWM</i>. Both movies had the the bright summer setting, pagan ceremonies, and an isolated group of villagers (AKA cult) who seemed to enjoy setting things on fire. To describe <i>TWM </i>even further, it's basically a mystery/thriller with music and dancing. Definitely R-rated material. But the contrast between a mystery/thriller and the singing and dancing is kind of mind-blowing and appropriately strange.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Still on an old-movie kick, I'm now watching the 1960s show <i>Dark Shadows</i>. I remember that they had a new one in the 90s, I think, but this is the old version and not in color. I think later seasons might be in color. It's a bit strange to watch because the film quality appears older than the 60s, and it appears that the film might have been digitally altered because there's a pronounced backlighting effect around people, like they have a dark aura or some evil, oppressive, parasitic shadow has attached itself to cast members and is in the process of leeching their life force. However, it's interesting to see how storytelling and effects have changed since then.<br /></p><div style="text-align: justify;">I also watched the first of the three <i>Fear Street </i>movies, <i>1994</i>, so here is why I hated it.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">Well, hate might be a rather strong word, but.... Nope, can't think of a better word. Hate pretty much covers it.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">The writer spent far too much time focusing on politics. I didn't think that it reflected the spirit of <i>Fear</i> <i>Street </i>at all. The language, drug use, and sex were not things that were in the books. Besides not being loyal to the source material, there was a love scene--with <i>MINORS</i>--that was allowed to go on far too long.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">Keep in mind that most people who read Fear Street were probably in the extremely shallow end of the "young adult" pool AKA early-to-mid middle school. So, here is the target audience of the R-rated Fear Street movie.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;">However, the thing I found the most horrifying about the Fear Street movie was that the unlikable "protagonist" BULLIED her ex into having a relationship. If this had been a guy-girl relationship, this would NOT have been okay. The main character was basically a horrible, selfish person with zero redeeming qualities who abused her ex until she gave in. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I actually really enjoyed the <i>Goosebumps </i>series and <i>The Haunting Hour</i>, both creations from R.L. Stine. I believe that the writers of the FS movie crossed <strike>a line</strike> several lines and that the material is inappropriate for the target age group. Had this been a movie featuring only adults, it would have mainly just been guilty of bad writing and promoting abusive relationships, but this movie seeks to normalize abusive relationships for minors. It sends a message, not that you should be who you want to be, but that your desires don't matter. "You should be who I want you to be." That seems to be the terrifying message behind this horror film.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #a64d79;">Fun Fact: The Rob Zombie song, "More Human than Human," used in the <i>1994 </i>scene where the main character's little brother played video games, wasn't released until 1995.</span></span><br /></div><div><p style="text-align: justify;">I'm disappointed because I had been looking forward to the movies, which I won't be watching. Knowing how they can now take a good thing and warp the crap out of it, I'm not looking forward to ANY movie at this point. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVyZItaYWSjO6fZFor4z9gM4Zdl-exHUY4m_qsupRBYizANVSyWoNNQ-Co5Hoj4NrstM2w2AUCMzi7aIKVgDzc7bArMnjIW_GugVHZcBtLHtChznB5019LF5zIVbnlzhPvTLZYugnRAjA/s244/rat.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="124" data-original-width="244" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVyZItaYWSjO6fZFor4z9gM4Zdl-exHUY4m_qsupRBYizANVSyWoNNQ-Co5Hoj4NrstM2w2AUCMzi7aIKVgDzc7bArMnjIW_GugVHZcBtLHtChznB5019LF5zIVbnlzhPvTLZYugnRAjA/w400-h203/rat.gif" width="400" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"></p>I take that back. I'm still looking forward to the next <i>John Wick</i>. </div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">When I was learning to write, I was told over and over not to preach. This current trend of overt agendas seems to be in complete contradiction of that rule. In the past, the monsters were metaphors for evil or bad humans or misunderstood humans or outcast humans. These days, the monsters are monsters and the humans are bad, misunderstood, or outcast humans. It seems that the metaphor, for all intents and purposes, is dead.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the past, the story was the fable that subconsciously imparted the lesson. The message was embedded into an interesting story for the reader to discover. Now the story has been deconstructed and is only loosely suggested as a framework while the lesson is pounded into people. We pull the brake on the story to bring you this important news bulletin of what you must accept as being true. In the past, the story was like a sleek vehicle, taking the curves of the lesson without being jostled around a bit. In most cases these days, the story is barely a go-cart dragging a two-ton lesson with a frayed rope. Did readers suddenly lose the ability to understand the implied meaning of the text, or did the writers suddenly get lazy? I'm going to go with B, unless the writers were formerly part of group A, in which case, the answer could be C, all of the above.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">So, writers, if you want to draw on the nostalgic past of a children's book series to get your quick buck, you might want to take a few lessons from the past. Respect the genre. Respect the source material. Don't broadcast your agendas like signs on the wall: "Big Brother Is Watching." And, please, pull up your pants!</div>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-59849803137652942952021-07-17T17:14:00.351-07:002021-09-15T14:03:09.580-07:00The Book Two Posts: Episode 12: Magic Moments and Changing Characters<p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSFnH-q8rc9WZBw02Ba1Ii7qVL0IDhkm8gjL5fgrfk5nJnwydvlKovaGFkNRlaL1rLXOdY4K38LkJky-KM9osoqFzo5GTQuE9mDYnNAufR1vlVhyphenhyphenmHEZwNITzWkk3AUiVxbHSHLser8dI/s1393/gnome.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="878" data-original-width="1393" height="404" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSFnH-q8rc9WZBw02Ba1Ii7qVL0IDhkm8gjL5fgrfk5nJnwydvlKovaGFkNRlaL1rLXOdY4K38LkJky-KM9osoqFzo5GTQuE9mDYnNAufR1vlVhyphenhyphenmHEZwNITzWkk3AUiVxbHSHLser8dI/w640-h404/gnome.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />Dear Readers,<p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">First, I finally finished the EverMerge Gnome challenge, so here is my "Duck Duck Gnome"! I felt that the Gnome challenge was very fitting since I'm still writing the <i>Gnome Sweet Gnome</i> series. I realize that not everyone will be impressed. 😸 <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">It has been a strange time since I published my last book. There has been every type of distraction you can think of (a pandemic, for Pete's sake!), and I'm an easily distractible person. I had a lot of things tripping me up about the current work in progress, but I finally determined that I want it finished! Don't get me wrong. I'm actually really enjoying the writing at this point. My brain is really happy with the task and living in this other world. I mean, of course, we could ALL use a vacation from the real world right now, right? So this is the best possible scenario at this point! <span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: #bf9000;">Magic Moments </span></b><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I have most of the book written, and I'm mostly tying up loose ends and problem-solving at this point. A lot of writers might say that this is the point where the magic happens. You can add things that make the story go from good to better. I've already had so many magical writing moments. And, to be honest, I'm going to miss writing this particular book. I'm already having that feeling like the kids are getting ready to leave the nest. 😿</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I'm not ready to leave this world, but, fortunately, I don't have to. There is another book to write after this one. Maybe more--I'm not ruling that out! There's always a bit of a white page/screen/canvas syndrome at first, and working with something that's already there is always easier than working with nothing, which is why I will definitely miss this writing. But there is more of this world to be explored and people to meet in the next book. I feel better knowing that I already have a few ideas to work with, but I expect it to feel a little cold at first, like the first day back at school. It will take a while to get back to that comfortable zone where the world feels real again.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I'm extremely happy right now because I'm at this point where I've been racking my brain for, IDK, <i>years???</i> trying to figure out how to make something happen. And I start working on something next to it, and suddenly it's all right there. The answer. It's kind of like faith; sometimes you don't know the answer until you start heading in the direction as if you already do. And the way it falls into place creates a lovely twist. I'd like to say brilliant, but it doesn't even feel like it's my idea, but as if someone whispered it in my ear at just the right moment.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">One day, I want to make a list of all of the crazy things I have researched in writing this book. I won't tell you now because I don't want to give any spoilers, but you would be surprised! For example (and I may have mentioned this before), in writing <i>Winterborn, </i>I had to research how old was the pet door (Chaucer wrote about a pet hole in <i>Miller's Tale</i> in the 1300s), and I learned that a woman invented the ironing board (I don't remember why I needed to know that! 😹). But it's fun to be working on something, pulling information from multiple disciplines and tying it all together and explaining things about Book One that I didn't know when I was writing Book One. Everything is coming together.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I've heard a lot of writers say they never reread their books after being published or that they waited years. I am not one of those people. I have reread my book many times, and when it's been a while since I've worked on it, I will go back through the first story just to get myself back into the flow of things. The series has a high-energy feel to me. Even if they are in a conversation, it feels fast-paced to me. I will read the written book and also upload the converted mobi file to my Kindle to listen to how it flows. After the reread, I'm ready to jump back into Evie's world. So, I enjoy the the world, the characters, the story, and being able to balance the heartbreak with humor. I'm especially excited about the new things that this particular book brings including revelations and characters.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">One of the interesting things about this journey is that this book has very little in common with how it began. I thought it was going to end one way, but it didn't. My initial ideas were a jumping off point for the story, but it didn't stay like that. I don't think I would ever be able to use a template for writing; my brain just doesn't work that way. And there is so much going on. I tried to plot it on a whiteboard, and, wow, it took the entire board. There is just so much happening.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I think one of the main things that has bothered me is that, for one, the book has to build up to the main problem, but there are so many other problems faced during the build-up that I've actually been worried that the main problem, the main plot, will feel like a random tangent. I considered separating the plots for perhaps two different books, but they just seem to fall apart on their own. They are co-dependent. So, I do worry that it will feel a tad schizophrenic, like the book that couldn't decide what it wanted to be. If it goes badly, that will suck, but I'm hoping that it's more of a good wow and not a bad wow. Let me just say that, for the record, the next book will also feel like two stories in one. However, whereas this one is like a story within a story, the next one will feel more like Part I and Part II. I'm just sayin'....</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: #bf9000;">Changing Characters</span></b><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I have struggled with this book in ways I didn't anticipate. I was
having a difficult time with the romance plot. I had to have a
heart-to-heart talk with myself and maybe some psychoanalytical therapy
and medication (jk! 😸), but I figured it out, and I feel like I'm on
the right track. Sometimes you have to go out searching for the right
inspiration. Most of my questions now have answers. It's mostly a matter
of plugging things in and shifting a few things around. In one spot, I
changed the scene's POV, and had to look closely at this particular
character arc. The character felt flatter than the others, and I needed
this character to metaphorically pull an ace out of his/her pocket. So,
we did some soul-searching and made a few developments. Then, when
researching some of my original ideas for the series, I stumbled upon an
answer. I went with that and did more research, and realized that the
solution to this problem was also the answer to a problem in the next
book. I got so excited thinking, "That's how they do it! That's what
they use! Problem solved!!!"</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #f1c232;">Edit: Since writing this post, I've had other such <i>Eureka! </i>moments where the details contain the answers to the bigger questions if I study them. The book is starting to feel somewhat epic. My main concern at this point is whether the ending will do it all justice. </span><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Another struggle I faced was that, once again, one of my ideas was duplicated in a major TV show. I try hard <i>not </i>to copy any other work. Yes, there are often similarities within genres. When working with certain character types such as monsters or witches, writers often turn to fairy tales and myths and other things written on the subject that define this particular type of creature. Of course, you make it your own, but I do know I've read books by different authors that you just <i>know </i>that the second author did some shopping in the book of the first author.<i> </i>As someone who is virtually unknown, my original idea would not seem original if someone saw the same idea on a TV show, no matter how much I swore I had never watched the show before I wrote that character. Even if I could show in my viewing history the first time I watched the show, no one would believe me. And this was that same type of idea... same sex, same race, same disability, and same gift. There's no way they'd believe that idea was mine. So, I realized that either they stole my idea (I still feel that this is extremely unlikely) OR it's just a common idea. Maybe it wasn't that unique after all. Maybe it was good that they used it, so I can go back to the drawing board and do some character remodeling. It was just one of those characters that popped into my head fully formed, and after seeing another character just like her on TV that checked all of the same basic description boxes, I was floored. I couldn't believe what I was seeing, but the more I think about it, we had to have gotten the idea from somewhere. I started searching my memory for where I might have read about a similar character, but I didn't know. It makes me paranoid that I may be duplicating things that I'm not aware of.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">The memory is very tricky like that. We're so influenced by things we read when we are younger and don't even realize where the ideas come from. When I wrote <i>Winterborn</i>, I knew that, only in the most general sense, I was inspired, in part, by a classic book that I had read forty years ago. It wasn't the same story, but you might see shades here and there. While I don't try to reinvent a classic, like I wouldn't write <i>Lord of the Rings</i> <i>in Space</i> or anything, there are bits and pieces of things I have absorbed over a lifetime in my writing, whether I recognize it or not.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div style="text-align: justify;">I did decide on another character. I made her prettier
and more charming. I changed her history and gave her a good story that
went well with what I already had. Even better than my first idea. I'm still writing her parts, so I'm not sure exactly how much more the character will evolve before I'm done.<br /></div><p style="text-align: justify;">But this is the best I have felt about this book so far. Not that it was ever bad, but I was stuck in plot quicksand. </p><br />Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-47335450013865863682021-05-09T03:00:00.042-07:002021-05-09T03:00:00.216-07:00The Book Two Posts: Episode 11 - Plot Twists<p style="text-align: justify;">If you have read my earlier posts, you know that I've been organizing my office. It was also part of a huge effort to reclaim my creative space from work, which takes up far too much mental real estate, for health benefits, to take back control of my life and space, and to get back to doing what I love.<span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Recently, I hung a few items in the office that I plan to use as writing tools (a white board, chalkboard calendar, and bulletin board). I know that I said this blog post is about Book Two. I'm getting there. 😸<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">The whiteboard is for pure brainstorming. It has questions on it that I'm asking myself about the book and trying to work out character arcs when it feels like I'm missing something or the character is too stagnant. It helps me figure out plot holes. Sometimes I'll come up with an idea, but it's like just pulling out onto a road and having no idea where it goes. It is a glass white board with a white backing, just like my desk. I like how the writing "floats" on top of the white and gives it dimension. It's very sleek. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">The bulletin board is a standard board that I got ages ago. I really don't even remember when or what for. :) At that time, there were no fancy boards, but I was really wanting one with a frame. Now you can buy some with a frame, but they are very expensive. I ended up just covering it with a pretty fabric and stapling it down. It isn't perfect, but it's doable. For the longest time, I couldn't use it since I moved in. I think, with all of the humidity, the push pins had rusted into it. I couldn't get them out. They were stuck. When I started working on getting organized, I was able to pull them out by twisting them with pliers. To hang it vertically, I had to add new hooks on one end. I use the bulletin board for index cards. Under each plot line, I can have a column of events in whatever order. It helps me figure out if I need to move things around. I did try plotting the entire book on a 24x30 whiteboard. It's very complicated. Almost every inch of space was covered.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">When I saw the blank chalkboard at Wally, I knew it would be perfect for my writing. Because I have a werewolf character, having a calendar is absolutely necessary. It is also important because this book is a continuation of the last one, and events were centered around the upcoming return to university. I had been using a printed one, but it's a bit hard to move things around. This will help me to see the amount of time between the beginning of the story and the end date, and to figure out how much time passes between events. The chalk board calendar is undated, of course. It came with some chalk pencils, but I couldn't really see the marks on the board. They were too faint and small. So, I ordered some of the chalk markers from Amazon. Those were great! After playing with the board a bit and illustrating it and some of the events, I was getting inspired.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p style="text-align: justify;">So, after spending months without a computer and then weeks organizing in the office, I decided to actually work on a little plotting. I developed my blurb for the book (to be revealed at a later time), and then, while writing notes about my new characters and making notes about some plot developments, I had one of those serendipitous moments where several things just come together at one time. That is so awesome when that happens. It's like you get this super-unique idea and it explains something about another part of the book that you weren't even working on! This has happened multiple times in the writing of this book. I can't explain it. There's no ritual or anything. It's simply research, following rabbit trails where one thought leads to the next, and then it happens. It's amazing when things come together, and it feels like it's more of a discovery or revealing than creating. But the ideas and the plot are so complex, and it's taking a really long time to finish. At the same time, it's getting better and better. And there's still so much to do!</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I am also using Notion to organize some of my research and notes about the book. So, I've been working with that document when I was able to make several connections. What's really cool is that these are major plot revelations and will set up the next book! When I started this book, I had a vague idea of what would be in Book Three. Like, I had a certain idea how this book might end. That didn't happen. Or, it hasn't happened yet. I decided that I didn't like the idea, so I'm working on something much more positive. There are at least three plot lines in this story that feed into the next book. So, now I'm wondering how far do I go in this book in order for it to feel natural? Also, is this something for the next book or one after that? So, plotting a series can be pretty complicated as I try to figure out where to leave off on each thread and have the reader satisfied and not mad. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">I'm holding steady around 400 pages so far. I deleted about six pages of content that I felt slowed everything down, but I ended up adding more in other places. That will continue until I feel like the book is where it needs to be. I'm a tiny bit shy of 115K right now. There are scenes that go into a lot of detail, and I'm wondering if it's better to trim those down. Some readers want longer books, but I don't want to put them to sleep. I'm also compiling notes I've taken over the past several months and looking at the whole of the plot to see what needs to be moved, deleted, or postponed. A book never really turns out the way you first imagine. It's better than that. At least, it is to me, so I hope it is to others. We see most of the characters in the previous book and are introduce to others--including one very special one--as Evie's knowledge of her new environment grows. There are even more new characters coming in Book Three, which I have not started on. It's just there in the back of my mind. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">I think that my major concern is that the main problem of the plot doesn't really come up until about Chapter Eighteen. The rest is a series of events that lead up to it. It's all connected, but, looking at the story objectively, it may appear to be trying to be everything at once. So, I really need my Beta readers.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">So, it has been a successful brainstorming period, and I'm happy with my writing tools. I feel bad that I can't show photos of the tools in use because they have notes on them, but hopefully I've given you something to inspire you here. For now, I'm pretty drained. I've been climbing over boxes and trying to find a frame that might fit the bulletin board, but such a thing does not exist. I'm in the process of heating my chicken and taco shells for dinner, which I'll eat with cheese, salad mix, sliced avocado, and just a bit of avocado ranch dressing to add a tiny bit of spice. I don't really season my meat, and, if I do, it's only very lightly. I have a hard time with spicy foods and tomatoes lately. So, my tacos are pretty basic, but healthy. :)</p><p style="text-align: justify;">And I think I'll go binge a little Blacklist before the weekend is over. I haven't watched in at least a week, and I've been worried about Red and wondering what he's up to. Elizabeth is still being... you know. 😾 Why do writers create a "strong female lead" and then make her stupid? It's insulting. Like, how many times does this character have to jump to conclusions and then realize she was wrong? How many times do her stupid decisions nearly get him killed? I felt the same way about Murphy in Dresden Files. How many times did she hire Harry to help solve a murder and then accuse him of committing that same murder? And John Wick 3... Hally Berry goes ballistic and starts killing people and then blames John for causing trouble. The list goes on. So, I really want to know... why are "strong" females so dang stupid? Whatev. I'm just in it for James Spader anyway. And John Wick. 😼</p><br />Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-76927428538595707252021-05-02T03:00:00.019-07:002021-05-02T03:00:00.204-07:00Planning Episode 1: Erin Condren Surprise<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLdChP6CnO8V0Mqqi67cVzgX5_k9hNuyEXA7DufFWR6tCdviPOjZMMVqrw3SETg1MPsUa2IjFQAr12KCZ4txQuCEVpI-3f0ASQCFs7PrkfHgqXnfY6Flb-7YBrcz9pPDXA9aiDFz09ghs/s2001/IMG_7307.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1125" data-original-width="2001" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLdChP6CnO8V0Mqqi67cVzgX5_k9hNuyEXA7DufFWR6tCdviPOjZMMVqrw3SETg1MPsUa2IjFQAr12KCZ4txQuCEVpI-3f0ASQCFs7PrkfHgqXnfY6Flb-7YBrcz9pPDXA9aiDFz09ghs/w640-h360/IMG_7307.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: justify;">Recently, Erin Condren ran a sale on their website, and I was able to use a first-time user coupon. I'd been admiring the gold and acrylic stapler for a long time, so I got it at a really nice discount, even with having to pay shipping.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">When I got the order, it came in a huge box for a stapler. This happens sometimes. I've gotten large boxes with nothing in them but a tiny bottle of essential oil, so I didn't think too much of it until I opened the box. I was surprised at what I found!<span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">At first I was confused and thought maybe they mixed up my order with someone else's. But, no, they had sent me a welcome box! In the photo below, you can see the items after I had opened them. I really like my stapler. It's so pretty. They also sent some lined pages, productivity pages, a focus journal, and a small binder.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKyv6t0NyhYf7bHwmF-VlmYeNkoGNb3q5dqYLWoRz7okkLVPju1ygmo_l27lhU7KkfNdjcFoa8QgnB7oSWyBXZDkYsZOl-BAq5fn4nPFxjvFJ89olnCrUjdhNtR2aFWpc3_MBJL3UM1xU/s4030/IMG_7313.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4030" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKyv6t0NyhYf7bHwmF-VlmYeNkoGNb3q5dqYLWoRz7okkLVPju1ygmo_l27lhU7KkfNdjcFoa8QgnB7oSWyBXZDkYsZOl-BAq5fn4nPFxjvFJ89olnCrUjdhNtR2aFWpc3_MBJL3UM1xU/w400-h300/IMG_7313.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: justify;">A few months ago, I picked up some small notebooks from Amazon. They are 5x8, a tad smaller than size A5. They are saddle stitched, so I knew that they would go into the type of binder that has the elastic bands that you run through the middle of them. That's what this Erin Condren binder is. The color in the photo is not accurate, It's really more of a burgundy.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7fqgwvFLWhvgyLR8HwPe5zjc75uMxCINufa5cqQsvR65Pmk5g9uPC11vEN7rXb5LOHSf3hj0y7x4PRrNtR3WsfOysmDiW6t7ICgJGh4SJ-xQWz8xRDf48QE1XQeXL5KTXBrzS4H7vVV0/s3024/IMG_7315.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2456" data-original-width="3024" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7fqgwvFLWhvgyLR8HwPe5zjc75uMxCINufa5cqQsvR65Pmk5g9uPC11vEN7rXb5LOHSf3hj0y7x4PRrNtR3WsfOysmDiW6t7ICgJGh4SJ-xQWz8xRDf48QE1XQeXL5KTXBrzS4H7vVV0/s320/IMG_7315.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">This is really good if you have different notebooks for different subjects. In my case, it could be different book projects that I'm working on, or you might have different types of journals such as health, a diary, or a Bible study. So, this is pretty useful and was actually on my list of things to get.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTw70B3ZBFIbAmIafXXkpN6RSp0inMOQ3k1tFEi3RNQyWmx5czN4wQuzr3UvaVSfmTmWIvJCyUoo1OP3FqRIWB5WocmIzvJofwQiLTYHvfsbqNMfkJZa081zlAFQ2ckmmyVO7yDGMMyPE/s3455/IMG_7316.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3455" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTw70B3ZBFIbAmIafXXkpN6RSp0inMOQ3k1tFEi3RNQyWmx5czN4wQuzr3UvaVSfmTmWIvJCyUoo1OP3FqRIWB5WocmIzvJofwQiLTYHvfsbqNMfkJZa081zlAFQ2ckmmyVO7yDGMMyPE/w350-h400/IMG_7316.jpg" width="350" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>They also sent a Focus Planner. I thought it was black, but I think it's actually dark blue. It definitely looks blue in the photos. It is a blank planner that you can start in any month. <div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWjnUuVoUj1_QCoNzNZPFoBZU6hzpLHSOWFyItbzACl1ihpubuD17yy2pnzPTFD6ovKHsyoqqOd0nW-axM6ClBEBqwJPQt1uGlG6THg08xYtU42AO63KvAJTxZev9fkIOsOguiAj_7ylo/s3622/IMG_7317.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3622" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWjnUuVoUj1_QCoNzNZPFoBZU6hzpLHSOWFyItbzACl1ihpubuD17yy2pnzPTFD6ovKHsyoqqOd0nW-axM6ClBEBqwJPQt1uGlG6THg08xYtU42AO63KvAJTxZev9fkIOsOguiAj_7ylo/w334-h400/IMG_7317.jpg" width="334" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWviGKdxNyNVUaV-fj0G70SDBp-0lzOLhVm2g4sFeKsg78dZ6wUO_Bm8HPFrRMPT9D3A1aiCqYQzZCzLLQJHVEypyh_sQKJeRdqxTTeikaTG7KSyQN4WUB5rm3L3CI33tH8GqwT7fhvuw/s3042/IMG_7318.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3042" data-original-width="2714" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWviGKdxNyNVUaV-fj0G70SDBp-0lzOLhVm2g4sFeKsg78dZ6wUO_Bm8HPFrRMPT9D3A1aiCqYQzZCzLLQJHVEypyh_sQKJeRdqxTTeikaTG7KSyQN4WUB5rm3L3CI33tH8GqwT7fhvuw/s320/IMG_7318.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">At the beginning of the book, you can write down your goals and intentions. I've already started my list of ideas for next Christmas.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLEq3Da8RAsctCQIGKwUhaxNoBv4t9wWQqOk_Xp-1jjVcrUZjKQfzKGliVMlDjMMo-49Z_6exoS1Zl5IlI-zc31nvQgW0ivweXrotnTsPURIKkNIUeML_yqvVJsu5QVHMYomhPyIO7XsQ/s3074/IMG_7320.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2906" data-original-width="3074" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLEq3Da8RAsctCQIGKwUhaxNoBv4t9wWQqOk_Xp-1jjVcrUZjKQfzKGliVMlDjMMo-49Z_6exoS1Zl5IlI-zc31nvQgW0ivweXrotnTsPURIKkNIUeML_yqvVJsu5QVHMYomhPyIO7XsQ/s320/IMG_7320.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Then there is a blank monthly calendar.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBt0XRjQcEF9oNCHhBGtfpALEuxRgXl_EJ9Rp0-W4TUde0pjPAJQxqw7KK_QoY9pDPw3mKK_aAawG2UHeOFNFHpevy-YosKVz_paw5MBXxPqLbsJiO9CIPcM9zHeYeu84qvDmyGFGL9Ug/s3798/IMG_7321.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2790" data-original-width="3798" height="294" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBt0XRjQcEF9oNCHhBGtfpALEuxRgXl_EJ9Rp0-W4TUde0pjPAJQxqw7KK_QoY9pDPw3mKK_aAawG2UHeOFNFHpevy-YosKVz_paw5MBXxPqLbsJiO9CIPcM9zHeYeu84qvDmyGFGL9Ug/w400-h294/IMG_7321.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">After each monthly calendar is a two-page "Week Of" spread that just has room for notes, lists, and a bullet journal page.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRNu7poOdATpPWSSWKtw9hwuYkmAdLADwAOdTAHYwpBgLJ5n8QBWBXfjIMDywLh6XdFghvQ-P9NfNHPi7rdJYnwLHOnCjTnu3qN_RBK3c9IbcbE-tPK8HBnS4oP5G-zMKetzitdenfW38/s2993/IMG_7322.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2306" data-original-width="2993" height="309" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRNu7poOdATpPWSSWKtw9hwuYkmAdLADwAOdTAHYwpBgLJ5n8QBWBXfjIMDywLh6XdFghvQ-P9NfNHPi7rdJYnwLHOnCjTnu3qN_RBK3c9IbcbE-tPK8HBnS4oP5G-zMKetzitdenfW38/w400-h309/IMG_7322.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Then you have the two-page spread for the days of the week. There are about five of these before the next calendar, and there are at least 12 months.<br /><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbt6MCS-kjA6MQnk3MpTt3TB9GSRW-zxnbO3Kt5He6Nuvl4sTPaS8Wo0xJfOx6wbw3udECuQm3gC-nFJWG_yJI8hdYPtvuL0nj2MOHmM90e5q47-VI9errg5NqD0pQOseKdhn43bnFZnY/s3838/IMG_7323.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2893" data-original-width="3838" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbt6MCS-kjA6MQnk3MpTt3TB9GSRW-zxnbO3Kt5He6Nuvl4sTPaS8Wo0xJfOx6wbw3udECuQm3gC-nFJWG_yJI8hdYPtvuL0nj2MOHmM90e5q47-VI9errg5NqD0pQOseKdhn43bnFZnY/w400-h301/IMG_7323.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>Then you have a few pages of lined paper...</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX3PnoWXIakDbuWcwjRfNUyeiWpOEprQibTqpURWPThGLNPJ6NgFuWvMA0d9mr0i98D_4OXlrix7aL2d818ojnnnO40kTcLei6sGRBLZkTn5JJAurmvtOgh_itqitGBEaF-_WL2pFOJ5g/s3014/IMG_7324.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1905" data-original-width="3014" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX3PnoWXIakDbuWcwjRfNUyeiWpOEprQibTqpURWPThGLNPJ6NgFuWvMA0d9mr0i98D_4OXlrix7aL2d818ojnnnO40kTcLei6sGRBLZkTn5JJAurmvtOgh_itqitGBEaF-_WL2pFOJ5g/w400-h253/IMG_7324.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">...and a few pages of bullet journal paper...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBJ5JVmL_XM7fF6D8U5uJJAMB53H6TFvpxxolZTtuVIyVztLx0zjlYiHel4kw5NVRi8vp2KR__UIA603KJ_c761hcuWKVFLfZcfb293vulGRZO3wE1GliuloyL71ZQgHH34VXKGCthZqc/s4032/IMG_7325.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBJ5JVmL_XM7fF6D8U5uJJAMB53H6TFvpxxolZTtuVIyVztLx0zjlYiHel4kw5NVRi8vp2KR__UIA603KJ_c761hcuWKVFLfZcfb293vulGRZO3wE1GliuloyL71ZQgHH34VXKGCthZqc/w400-h300/IMG_7325.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">...and, finally, a single page for contacts, front side only.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT9Eqn1yKqhumQ5SQ3oUuocI_vBlk0A-8NztBMgiGPxUaAx7OzppxSaUxPSh34oh5TyUPFgDy5sgIqZiFZ-RGftQdwmGcT6Ph_a3yVlz3GBdEcUhjX5FnQNk7cs6ALI0u3qBnZ-VfuHo8/s3489/IMG_7326.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2440" data-original-width="3489" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT9Eqn1yKqhumQ5SQ3oUuocI_vBlk0A-8NztBMgiGPxUaAx7OzppxSaUxPSh34oh5TyUPFgDy5sgIqZiFZ-RGftQdwmGcT6Ph_a3yVlz3GBdEcUhjX5FnQNk7cs6ALI0u3qBnZ-VfuHo8/w400-h280/IMG_7326.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Then, I also received two packages of printed pages. In terms of size, these are the same width as the Classic Happy Planner pages, but a tad shorter. They are already hole-punched for an Erin Condren binder with rings.</div></div><div><br /></div><div>The first was a package of Classic Lined Pages...</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhjsMevAgKX-IV8FCVmzywIs83y9uWBs9vhLdhVjT4bGE9Xbhj7bAzc1Spy2CSNP-vp3FvsGkCVHr2zHy8Xi8BVzdWofZ1gvQQ9f0ooRpGqBDdeXqa0thky5olQbqhrU0N4etL95Fn65Y/s4032/IMG_7330.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhjsMevAgKX-IV8FCVmzywIs83y9uWBs9vhLdhVjT4bGE9Xbhj7bAzc1Spy2CSNP-vp3FvsGkCVHr2zHy8Xi8BVzdWofZ1gvQQ9f0ooRpGqBDdeXqa0thky5olQbqhrU0N4etL95Fn65Y/w300-h400/IMG_7330.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGAohpQDiVW3Arbc2OGp5Vv1ruHMOVjG066MvDtV8wi-IPwqCrj0MvshymSU6jtwegGCcfaXQNop77qfhSyAjF5KYfRE1GwrfE9pNlbBjHyLTmhb2w3E6kQp-DScz5qJ4Ufl1urk8tw-c/s4030/IMG_7329.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2432" data-original-width="4030" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGAohpQDiVW3Arbc2OGp5Vv1ruHMOVjG066MvDtV8wi-IPwqCrj0MvshymSU6jtwegGCcfaXQNop77qfhSyAjF5KYfRE1GwrfE9pNlbBjHyLTmhb2w3E6kQp-DScz5qJ4Ufl1urk8tw-c/w400-h241/IMG_7329.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>...and a package of Productivity Pages...</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Bxndl6nO09l_fCwIuyjQGf-YWU-ksbUt6Gn9skhyXYeN0DpvfJFNj0janS7iv8HXPVb8A94lJ1L7jXR1BAyshaL3HW3wyIgfoSAc6c1Vg_sVVKGfzcN9JsOi3FAo5eONnVmZAmpuxcc/s3707/IMG_7327.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3707" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Bxndl6nO09l_fCwIuyjQGf-YWU-ksbUt6Gn9skhyXYeN0DpvfJFNj0janS7iv8HXPVb8A94lJ1L7jXR1BAyshaL3HW3wyIgfoSAc6c1Vg_sVVKGfzcN9JsOi3FAo5eONnVmZAmpuxcc/w326-h400/IMG_7327.jpg" width="326" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">...with pages that look just like the lined pages on the left (or the B Side), and a page with a checklist column on the right (or A Side). The B side looks just like the Classic Lined Pages, except the icon is in color, and the lines are lighter. You could use these as a two-page spread in a planner binder or you could use each sheet individually and still have both parts.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipdtyGFGVAl05fz4A9tqDz_gM6etaQ-s515gInN1xwm6TQ63qJJmuDlV74RcYdy9RPm7cGwpQgj-mX4UDKRuOZtw9MSm0TV1MtxqR8BPiCPXtPwV3-uNxKXBLjHDQMsgrwtaGE9QmKD5A/s4030/IMG_7328.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2506" data-original-width="4030" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipdtyGFGVAl05fz4A9tqDz_gM6etaQ-s515gInN1xwm6TQ63qJJmuDlV74RcYdy9RPm7cGwpQgj-mX4UDKRuOZtw9MSm0TV1MtxqR8BPiCPXtPwV3-uNxKXBLjHDQMsgrwtaGE9QmKD5A/w640-h398/IMG_7328.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Besides that, there were some labels n the box with a welcome note from the company.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I was pretty overwhelmed and excited about the order. I like how the products seem easy to customize for your own personal use. So, a huge thank you to Erin Condren for the welcome package!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Planning is not really my strong point. Oh, I make lists all the time, but I'm trying to take myself a bit more seriously and plan better. My problem is that my tasks and to-dos and projects aren't really set inside a time window, so there's no calendar associated with them at this time. I hope to get to a point where I can change that. Lately, I've simply been making lists and checking stuff off.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Anyway, I'm hoping to get to a point where I can use a daily planner and somehow be more productive. I have also accumulated a few other planner things recently, but I'll save those for my next planner episode as I try to figure out the best plans that work for me.</div><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p></div>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-12589898254061162342021-04-25T03:00:00.102-07:002021-04-25T03:00:00.243-07:00Organizing Update No. 3: Prepping for Creating & the Struggle to Stay Positive<div style="text-align: justify;"></div><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfaZVVvS4JcQBqREMYDL1kp2PuXpSvLsF2sk4Vq_p2MiHkl84qOB1PEDgJPeYhBljU6erOSx10Ru-2hxlrW1SEIhRC8eras2Wd2pl6UvIgWiqosSv-MEw-GeTZCRxnEHKsfzt6Aa7JwUc/s3711/IMG_7299.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2302" data-original-width="3711" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfaZVVvS4JcQBqREMYDL1kp2PuXpSvLsF2sk4Vq_p2MiHkl84qOB1PEDgJPeYhBljU6erOSx10Ru-2hxlrW1SEIhRC8eras2Wd2pl6UvIgWiqosSv-MEw-GeTZCRxnEHKsfzt6Aa7JwUc/w640-h398/IMG_7299.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;">Things are coming along. I got a few things done last week in spite of myself. As I've mentioned in previous posts, I've been working on getting organized, and, recently, I've been focusing on my office-slash-art studio.</span></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I covered in my last post, <a href="https://bunnyrosebooks.blogspot.com/2021/03/life-update-organizing.html" target="_blank">Life Update: Organizing</a>, that when I bought my desk and drafting table a little over a year ago, it wasn't with the thought that I'd ever have to work from home. Working from home seemed like a good thing, but it's been an eye-opener just how much bringing home work impacts my attitude and health. That being said, I've been focusing on bringing the positive and a healthy attitude back and reclaiming my personal space.<span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">So, looking back over the progress I've made, a little over a year ago, I had very little in the way of furniture. When I moved in with my mom over a decade ago, I had to part with most of my furniture that I never got back. I've had to start over from almost nothing about three times. My first apartment after I moved out was a nightmare, and I got flooded more than once. Then I moved here. When I moved in, I just had a bedframe, a TV, a couple of dressers, my armoire, a mirrored cabinet, a tiny writing desk, two old French <span class="aCOpRe"><span>bergères</span></span>, and my old work table here in the "office." That was it. When I changed my phone service, I got a gift card that I used to buy a bed, and, until about a year ago, that was all the progress that I had made before buying the desk and drafting table.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7GZZW2-AxLpPWMtgulge69VEiGgR-7DCkkFGkhG6_2K4oRUvCzjN88WdGlgarwIrxI24Re4LJV-zwHDaVAVXtha2RscR99ID3y_bHocgVF6guiLiGULCIxRwFZ6hcMcaZ2qSsi1kZ4Xk/s3577/IMG_7301.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2532" data-original-width="3577" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7GZZW2-AxLpPWMtgulge69VEiGgR-7DCkkFGkhG6_2K4oRUvCzjN88WdGlgarwIrxI24Re4LJV-zwHDaVAVXtha2RscR99ID3y_bHocgVF6guiLiGULCIxRwFZ6hcMcaZ2qSsi1kZ4Xk/w400-h284/IMG_7301.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">A lot of the holdup was indecision, trying to decide how to best use my space, finding out what the options were, and trying to work out the logistics, such as delivery options. Once I decided on the best way and how much I was willing to give for those options, things started falling into place (thank God!).<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Last April, I finally decided on a couch. Around that time, work suddenly got worse, and I've been steadily growing more depressed. The feelings had already been settling in, but I had been trying to work past it. After struggling for a few years, I finally gave up and started taking my antidepressants again. 😿 I was trying to follow my bliss, but sometimes it was so hard to find that I wasn't even sure that it existed. Sometimes, it's not just a matter of attitude but a toxic situation that seems impossible to escape, and hopelessness sinks its claws in. People may think I'm a spoiled princess without ever knowing my real struggles or what I have to deal with on my own on a daily basis. But what can you do? Truth is, haters gonna hate. It doesn't matter what you do.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">So I set my focus on creating a more positive environment. I believe this is the reason I enjoy writing and painting so much. It's the best kind of escape. Outside of spending time with my family, it's better than parties or travel. And, I'm thankful that there have been some major positive things that have come along in the past year, as if to balance out the negativity. Things that I couldn't have possibly anticipated. Things that help me to think outside of this dark cloud.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8pqObLkAKoGbneUWXZOve4PlKnpVssX6wsRHV41bPBULXLmxVmKzJfeIVqS9WsaMDhxaEE1z_UryD6-gIe_jmIif_QwEtT9yl6FsVYF8yC8ZC0CktEa99ofu-TAsL2QvR6E52_aznlx4/s4032/IMG_7261.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8pqObLkAKoGbneUWXZOve4PlKnpVssX6wsRHV41bPBULXLmxVmKzJfeIVqS9WsaMDhxaEE1z_UryD6-gIe_jmIif_QwEtT9yl6FsVYF8yC8ZC0CktEa99ofu-TAsL2QvR6E52_aznlx4/w400-h300/IMG_7261.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">In an effort to move toward my personal goals, I focused on organization and finding a place for everything. About a month ago, I got the dresser and bookcase <span class="aCOpRe"><span>étagère</span></span>. They were made by different companies, but everything matched, aside from the handles on the dresser. It only took less than a couple of hours to put the <span class="aCOpRe"><span>étagère
together in one evening, but I worked on the dresser for about eight
hours. It turned out perfectly. The handles were plastic, so I bought
some brass replacement handles and plan to finish putting those on this
weekend. I'm a knob snob. 😹 I worked so hard on the dresser that my
carpal tunnel has still not calmed down, and I've had to wear my brace again when I sleep. Still, I wake up with my hand buzzing so hard that it
hurts. So, I'm just babying that for a while and praying that it calms down soon.
</span></span>My plan was to use the dresser like a credenza for all of my notebooks and paper. I haven't finished going through boxes and putting everything where it belongs. I have filled three drawers with art paper, and I still don't even know what all I own. I just finished untangling a Griswoldesque ball of cables and cords that were in a box that I've been lugging around for a decade or more. There is some ancient technology in that box that I have no idea what it could have been for. I found Game Boy cartridges from the 90s! I found my N-Gage and my Ogo. Man, I loved that thing. I was so sad after AT&T discontinued the Ogo service. I could text, email, and chat with my friends. :) It was pretty great... but, I digress.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdZyPfvX6DiCI0nSK-2O7gJcPMz8Df3gq6T8SwBMuyhaEF27YNBs-u9k-RcHn9JaLV_t6fFduLvPT8627AueHZnNFlD3hVV59WffJmY7C_gryqqfoy0c7-kCM71MhshgQXYEO2_5CloEM/s3439/IMG_7297.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3439" data-original-width="2692" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdZyPfvX6DiCI0nSK-2O7gJcPMz8Df3gq6T8SwBMuyhaEF27YNBs-u9k-RcHn9JaLV_t6fFduLvPT8627AueHZnNFlD3hVV59WffJmY7C_gryqqfoy0c7-kCM71MhshgQXYEO2_5CloEM/w313-h400/IMG_7297.jpg" width="313" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span>I got a new task chair that is a little higher. It's white!!! 😻 It was already an inch or so taller than my desk chair, but then I upgraded the casters because they didn't roll that well. (I guess I'm a caster snob, too. 😼) That brought it up another inch or more. So now it's a pretty comfortable height for the drafting table.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span>I finally put together the file cabinet. I don't recommend it, and I will leave it at that. It's basically origami with sheet metal. I replaced the handles (of course), and I was afraid it would fall face forward from the weight of them. However, it serves to hold tools and computer and device cables (not the ones in the box), so those are in a place where they belong.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7Nm-uNFWcwlfyJnvOPyA7pMbz9GFOJt2I3W0omY9NQ5Z78EHWUq1YUnJOOog5ltRDNlPvThiF652QEUif-vv_X5h3PqleqEnlRFmtNPfo-tFfrbSQiXbcI_JMsVgeWxOxn5yZSdHHcMc/s3617/IMG_7284.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2269" data-original-width="3617" height="402" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7Nm-uNFWcwlfyJnvOPyA7pMbz9GFOJt2I3W0omY9NQ5Z78EHWUq1YUnJOOog5ltRDNlPvThiF652QEUif-vv_X5h3PqleqEnlRFmtNPfo-tFfrbSQiXbcI_JMsVgeWxOxn5yZSdHHcMc/w640-h402/IMG_7284.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span>I don't know if I mentioned that my laptop got murdered in November with an update. I had already restored it twice, but the third time was definitely not a charm. I just got it back after having my brother do a clean install on it. In the meantime, I received a new gaming laptop. It is wonderful! One item on my wish list was a new monitor, either 32 or 34 inches. I was blessed with a 34-inch, and it's great. I can see five full-size pages of my novel side by side. This is going to help editing so much! My old monitor is a 22", but it has a great picture. I still need it to run my games because they are so skewed on the ultrawide screen. On Wednesday, I worked on setting everything up the best way. I had hoped to use the old laptop for my writing, but I am cramped for space on the desk with three monitors and two laptops already. I'm planning to put my printer on top of the file cabinet, so perhaps I can put the old laptop on top of that. Correction: printer is a no-go. I'm still getting that cartridge error, so the printer and unusable cables will probably go out on the street for the garbage or anyone who has hopes of reanimating a printer. I'm over fighting with it. (Funny development: My daughter told me that she went over to her Dad's recently--I think she said it was that same day!--and found his printer in pieces in the middle of the floor where he had thrown it. I asked if it was the same brand as mine. She said yes. 😹 That's hysterical.) Seriously, I'm thinking I should send mine over to the son-in-law's for target practice. He can even stick turkey feathers on it.<br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span>I got the curtains hung. There is a new gold curtain rod with glass finials. I have gold curtain rings holding up the curtains and the lace panel behind it. I installed tiebacks that are also gold with "crystal" knobs. I really don't know what material they are made of, whether they are glass or acrylic.<br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR5DhxHx1MUSvJZ0L7rat0U9cdTXUiwKOp-Zel16roVzfsROC9s905TPf6bUVrOq8P2bSNAAhZcJLeGNupLj17wRrnz4zntQXRiym7mvcA05bLHImCyoafbVDXVpot0ODG6R0_jshj2_Q/s3385/IMG_7255.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3385" data-original-width="2916" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR5DhxHx1MUSvJZ0L7rat0U9cdTXUiwKOp-Zel16roVzfsROC9s905TPf6bUVrOq8P2bSNAAhZcJLeGNupLj17wRrnz4zntQXRiym7mvcA05bLHImCyoafbVDXVpot0ODG6R0_jshj2_Q/w345-h400/IMG_7255.jpg" width="345" /></a></div></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span>Today, I finally got around to hanging up my bulletin board, the last grids, and my chalkboard calendar. The bulletin board is for my index cards to move things around when plotting my project. I can write snippets of scenes and rearrange them because it is better than printing a 400-page novel every time I want to analyze the flow and make changes. The wall grid was meant to hold art supplies, but I can also use it to pin lists on, such as wish lists, needs lists, task lists, etc. since there are four other wall grids next to the whiteboard. I found the blank calendar chalkboard at Walmart the other day. I intend to use it for my timeline. Most of my story takes place during one month. I had printed and filled in calendars on paper, but with the chalkboard, I can move things around and keep up with what happens when. It's just a good visual without having to rewrite everything in ink and keep up with pieces of paper. I have a very detailed spreadsheet timeline, but this is more of an "at a glance" calendar for the book with real days of the week. The chalkboard, grid, and bulletin board are all behind the door of my office. There's a bit of wall there that is the side of my closet in the bedroom. I am running out of wall to hang stuff. (I'd be willing to accept donations of extra walls and possibly a couple of walk-in closets. This one and a quarter, non-walk-in closet deal is pretty lame. Doh, there I go complaining again. Sorry!) It's pretty high up, but I can take the chalk board down to look at it closer and make changes. It came with a chalk pencil, but it's very pale. So I got some of those liquid chalk markers, and those are amazing! <br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span>I still have to hang my Kanban board, which I plan to put behind the work table. The work table is for messy projects that require glue or for a table top easel for oil painting or pastel. Currently, the messy project table is a total mess. I also have my white board over the dresser, and it will be used for brainstorming and working out plot holes. I had been brainstorming my novel and trying to work out some plot issues on the fridge with dry-erase markers, and the property manager came in while I was out of town. I'm sure he's confused about the notations about murder and witches on the fridge. 😸 Sure, it seems funny now, but I was upset when I heard they were coming inside while I was out of town and unable to do anything to prepare. My sister informed me that the fridge was known as the "hillbilly whiteboard" on some TV show she saw. Or maybe it was the "redneck whiteboard." So... yeah.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnaAuVrTEahC8CP9itP2wCSiUp-qfhjpaZFHy4m_sMEGPNxBdFNTxFzAPVLq687N0uZ0gnstAdKBqqs_xmccqCn0PRPpfpnqmBo2SiIDOlRy9Ma9A8INKaQPUK8_1OLWV0J3YCRW6jhfM/s3277/IMG_7247.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2659" data-original-width="3277" height="325" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnaAuVrTEahC8CP9itP2wCSiUp-qfhjpaZFHy4m_sMEGPNxBdFNTxFzAPVLq687N0uZ0gnstAdKBqqs_xmccqCn0PRPpfpnqmBo2SiIDOlRy9Ma9A8INKaQPUK8_1OLWV0J3YCRW6jhfM/w400-h325/IMG_7247.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span>Now my main issue in here is to clean off the work table and figure out how to hang my unused frames. I would like some long hooks, several inches long, that will hold about three open back frames each. I would rather not have to hang each frame up like it's a piece of art, although they really are. I've mostly been goofing off today, arranging flowers and my rock collection, because that's what I do when faced with insurmountable goals such as organizing. Rock collecting kind of runs in the family. The "crystal ball" is actually a photography accessory for taking photos of reflections. I think the base is even made to screw onto a tripod or something. I just like shiny things. These won't stay like this, because I'm sure I'll be putting more practical stuff on the dresser.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmH4UCWqMN4KM3v6wAFE5VQV317ZSZdIPrXkQ6QOWlyuTfS3B6gSNQ1EvzsWTgVMF44WqKo0GKxJ4FqHXjLQ3x_Nmeoz2WimMpJFh4_qw-oviY19ISqgdFQYtR0y4GK89KQFADM0lvTBY/s4032/IMG_7259.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmH4UCWqMN4KM3v6wAFE5VQV317ZSZdIPrXkQ6QOWlyuTfS3B6gSNQ1EvzsWTgVMF44WqKo0GKxJ4FqHXjLQ3x_Nmeoz2WimMpJFh4_qw-oviY19ISqgdFQYtR0y4GK89KQFADM0lvTBY/w400-h300/IMG_7259.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /></span></span><span class="aCOpRe"><span>And
you wouldn't believe how many things I've spilled over there while
"trying to be so extra careful" with the essential oil thingy and not make a mess on the nice, new furniture. ("Let me
move this out of the way." *knocks it clear off the dresser and all over
the electric cords, surge protector, and a stack of unused canvases*
*shaking drops of oil into cup, not realizing that the plastic dropper
insert is still attached to the lid, and dumps 95% of the oil in there*
🙀 I'm still smelling the oil. If I'm not uplifted now, it ain't never
gonna happen with that one! All I have to do for the next two+ months is add water.
I'm tired of the flavor already, and sometimes I'm pretty sure that I
can feel it on my eyeballs just by the stuff being in the air. Maybe it's good for removing cataracts.)</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span> </span></span><span class="aCOpRe"><span> <br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aCOpRe"><span>So it's been pretty busy, and there is still so much left to do! I feel like I'm gradually making progress. I know it will get better. It sometimes feels like it never will, but then I look at how much has changed in a year's time. </span></span>I am really grateful for all the good things that have some my way. For now, I'll keep reminding myself of the good things while I attempt to organize and design a positive environment. </div><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwK2_IEXRAz0aYIoxctYwwy2CPnUYH4iyW5xXA8u64C25740W1R3nlT7IyO6hb8Upxk4PBar8OMEdyzMIS07XYGIbX7eCeDUKxZIyY7-m_0C5f2vqpxVbreS6eLDq_VtyqH-x81ZrrTbk/s3272/IMG_7305.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3272" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwK2_IEXRAz0aYIoxctYwwy2CPnUYH4iyW5xXA8u64C25740W1R3nlT7IyO6hb8Upxk4PBar8OMEdyzMIS07XYGIbX7eCeDUKxZIyY7-m_0C5f2vqpxVbreS6eLDq_VtyqH-x81ZrrTbk/w370-h400/IMG_7305.jpg" width="370" /></a></div><br /> <br /><p></p>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-54173277303425285322021-03-28T20:13:00.005-07:002021-03-28T20:13:59.636-07:00Life Update: Organizing<p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLHaeQ1TX9nUloz1gtx4P1pKmBvW8KZyYzW7ckOJPvWVViY-i1x6cSrXLPvTkApiHFhJQa65beLfIihtamQmrD3lG7OnbCb8yqbF-6PwbicioZIJHpnsXnFNa4ZG0Js1fa9sNqFYlK0i0/s3024/IMG_7058.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2171" data-original-width="3024" height="461" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLHaeQ1TX9nUloz1gtx4P1pKmBvW8KZyYzW7ckOJPvWVViY-i1x6cSrXLPvTkApiHFhJQa65beLfIihtamQmrD3lG7OnbCb8yqbF-6PwbicioZIJHpnsXnFNa4ZG0Js1fa9sNqFYlK0i0/w640-h461/IMG_7058.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I've been laying pretty low this weekend. I spent about three days last week putting together furniture in the office. My second bedroom has been pretty much storage for three years. I only have one and a half closets, so I have really procrastinated working on the room. Last year, I had just started clearing the room, and I bought an L-shaped glass desk and a glass drafting table. Then, Covid and work-from-home. When I bought my desk, it wasn't with the plan that my day job would take over my creative space. It is a bit of a catch-22. I like being in my own environment, but I don't really like being invaded by work. So, I really need to find a solution where work isn't taking up so much space and casting such a dismal shadow upon my creative space.<span><a name='more'></a></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ6BFWNv3QZMiJeNNDqztb3KgpDv1YoFfu1njwxWVLoQXi4og5tdA5-OpjT6mEK5ThW-eSPryYYd1xTXi-d8He4eUkY28H6Qt6z166YvJqqYRQp336arMx8ygtrtEy0m5Dvmg1SG4ZQEU/s3456/IMG_7055.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="2851" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ6BFWNv3QZMiJeNNDqztb3KgpDv1YoFfu1njwxWVLoQXi4og5tdA5-OpjT6mEK5ThW-eSPryYYd1xTXi-d8He4eUkY28H6Qt6z166YvJqqYRQp336arMx8ygtrtEy0m5Dvmg1SG4ZQEU/w330-h400/IMG_7055.jpg" width="330" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">So, in my continuing efforts to get organized, I bought a dresser to use as a credenza and a book case for my supplies. It took me just a couple of hours to put together the book case, but it took me at least 8 hours to put together the dresser. It has eight drawers. I'm kind of proud of my work. It came out perfect. The drawers glide smoothly, and it looks really nice. I went with white because I wanted the room to be light and colorful. The other rooms in the house are pretty dark, and I wanted lots of light in here. This is the east side, whereas the other rooms face west, so I use the black-out curtains on those to keep the electric bill down in the summer.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I got the file cabinet the day after I put together the dresser, but I was pretty spent by that time. I have been resting and relaxing this weekend and haven't made a lot of progress. I was pretty depleted after the dresser, and when I'm physically exhausted, it affects my moods and everything. However, it's inspiring to see it put together and feel that sense of progress. I had also hung the white board a day or two before putting together furniture, and that was very heavy and involved a lot of physical strain, standing on one leg on a step ladder and trying to balance the heavy glass and mark holes. It was a huge task. I'm resting up before I continue working on the file cabinet.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglEXb6Z7I_HaF0l9koPoU4ox_z1Lwiz3r4AierIE64XK0QXdk43DZR-LZi-B0coFVIQa19xD1lzS5ijEnFU-CzIVtIsoYxgPVKM2T-dAlfOVpGtSr181WgVrO7D27MuEAQoug3I8V6fj4/s3037/IMG_7056.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3037" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglEXb6Z7I_HaF0l9koPoU4ox_z1Lwiz3r4AierIE64XK0QXdk43DZR-LZi-B0coFVIQa19xD1lzS5ijEnFU-CzIVtIsoYxgPVKM2T-dAlfOVpGtSr181WgVrO7D27MuEAQoug3I8V6fj4/w399-h400/IMG_7056.jpg" width="399" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">I recently got a salt lamp, and, while I have no idea if there really are any benefits to having one, it casts a warm glow over the white furniture, pictures, flowers, and wall. It feels very cozy and happy. I still have to hang a curtain rod and iron and hang the curtains I bought. There's so much to do, not to mention sort through boxes of stuff and put it away in the drawers. I am also trying to figure out whether or not I want to use any other type of shelving for collectables or games, and I have art to hang. Then there are the many frames. Do I want to hang those and how? I also have two more grids to hang, and I need more binder clips to hang oil paint tubes.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjsRCF91DcjRqHq84FX1TeoanVm8-CohdQSOLwwI-zGP3s593JxBVXurENyXfkVAETw8PQE2cN85rjLSePV8i-ycIKQcHX50W2Da5f0512QVYweAMbwIoS2WmEUzsTocSkRUaSiZY9MH0/s4029/IMG_7057.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4029" data-original-width="2577" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjsRCF91DcjRqHq84FX1TeoanVm8-CohdQSOLwwI-zGP3s593JxBVXurENyXfkVAETw8PQE2cN85rjLSePV8i-ycIKQcHX50W2Da5f0512QVYweAMbwIoS2WmEUzsTocSkRUaSiZY9MH0/w410-h640/IMG_7057.jpg" width="410" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">While I've been really tired this weekend, I also feel so immensely blessed. I'm so thankful for the new furniture, and it looks great. I'm still binge-watching The Blacklist. I've spent the last season feeling really put out with Elizabeth, and I'm ready for things to improve. I think I have just one more season after this one before I run out of Netflix seasons. I finished reading Darcy Coates's <i>The House Next Door</i>, and I'm now working on <i>The Folcroft Ghosts.</i></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Hopefully, I'll finish organizing sometime this year. :-| It feels like it takes forever. I destroyed three rooms while working on this one. But I have hope that, eventually, it will happen.</p>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-34550284756240945252021-02-15T22:00:00.002-08:002021-02-15T22:06:25.230-08:00Organizing: Tiny, Vintage, Artsy KitchenOne of my goals this year is getting organized. Although 2020 sucked in many ways, I did accomplish a lot. In 2019, my living room had two end tables, two French bergeres, two book cases, a piano, and a black French provincial dresser with a TV on it. There was more art hanging on the wall than furniture sitting on the floor. In 2020, I was able to add a sofa, a coffee table, a rug, and curtains. They’re not my favorite drapes, but they look better than the blackout liners. I also got a desk and a drafting table. I have yet to organize the office, but the living and kitchen are looking pretty good.<span><a name='more'></a></span><p style="text-align: justify;">Since the new year, I ordered a small cabinet for the kitchen, I just didn’t have enough storage. It was the hardest thing I’ve put together so far, in regard to complexity. I was able to store food and mixing bowls in it and leave the other cabinet for mostly dishes. Then I set about decorating to make the kitchen cute. A couple of years ago, I bought a cornice to go over my window. When my son visited, we forgot to hang it, so I ended up standing on the sink and doing it myself. I used to have excellent balance, which is good because I've lost a large percentage of that. I'd hate to know what it would be like if I hadn't spent so much time practicing standing on one leg. The shelf/cornice is pretty heavy, and there was zero tolerance on nail placement. I barely managed to not lose my religion. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">In the photo below, you can see the cornice. The curtains are just tucked in. I was just trying to decide whether I liked them before I cut the fabric. My sister said that it's her favorite thing in the kitchen, but, for me, the jury is still out on those curtains. If I can find the perfect pattern, I'll replace them. <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">On the right is the cabinet I bought. I lost one door under the sink that I hardly ever open and one drawer that only held a handful of wash cloths. However, I gained two larger drawers in the cabinet, so it was worth it. Teal is NOT my favorite color, but it is what it is until I get the urge to refinish it. I need to put something in that planter/bowl thingy on top of the cabinet, but I have no idea what.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF21rHyCei1Cw6TEwRLpv5dKTlq__r6A86u82jWvX1qoCjCpn7ICBMKKXGcN1OMy1Qzu3SPuC3jn3VTLFhlA6pB-yTYtxtta_apUhEL-em9m059GjkVza0NZXtQ-LN7Usc6faHSzWrDus/s3794/IMG_6654.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3794" data-original-width="2846" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF21rHyCei1Cw6TEwRLpv5dKTlq__r6A86u82jWvX1qoCjCpn7ICBMKKXGcN1OMy1Qzu3SPuC3jn3VTLFhlA6pB-yTYtxtta_apUhEL-em9m059GjkVza0NZXtQ-LN7Usc6faHSzWrDus/s320/IMG_6654.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">In the photo above, I had not yet changed the ceramic mold (to the right of the window) with the painting. In the one below, you can see my folk art painting. Yes, it’s a fall painting, but I liked it, and the colors worked. I did this one in the early 90s. I think it's the first painting I ever did outside of school, and I was really proud of it. It hasn't been hung in a long time. It got creased somewhere along the way, but it isn't obvious. I couldn’t find the perfect frame until I stumbled across this one that looks like carved oak leaves. The painting is on canvas pad and needed support, so I glued it to the ugly print that was in the frame. Please don’t tell me that print was an expensive one and that I could have retired if I’d sold it. I bought the antique spice rack around that time, too. I have still not labeled and filled the bottles. I was going to print my own, and the labels are stuck in one of the living room drawers.<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBvXTLGUPUndo_oTYz2oLO0zGCbmimfQF0fgUvr6lT8PsUNtExVvSg45GmwdHbZk9MRyAWGOqNDRZPckabSpkhIEq_TjTyvH5LcfMItDfDfYd5ATCYZVE4swKoHSs5LKgHHV0mu3I1IEQ/s4032/IMG_6696.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBvXTLGUPUndo_oTYz2oLO0zGCbmimfQF0fgUvr6lT8PsUNtExVvSg45GmwdHbZk9MRyAWGOqNDRZPckabSpkhIEq_TjTyvH5LcfMItDfDfYd5ATCYZVE4swKoHSs5LKgHHV0mu3I1IEQ/s320/IMG_6696.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">In the photo below, you see the pot rack and the rooster painting I got as an art party gift. I am not a big rooster fan, but I do have three roosters, a chicken or two, and a few birds in the kitchen. You can’t really see much in this photo, but I hung the paternal ancestors on the other side of the fridge. I've since hung the maternal ancestors on the wall opposite the pot rack. They are a set of ornate gold 5x7 frames with black and white photos from my great-great-grandfather down to my mom as a toddler standing next to a wagon. I didn't show it because the rest of the wall is pretty boring. It has a hot water heater closet, a stacked washer and dryer, and a tiny counter/cabinet with far too many appliances. I use most of them, and I have no place to store them right now. (If I could get a shelf built over the hot water heater or had a cabinet over the fridge, that would be perfect. But the rooster does look nice up there.) There isn't even color or room for pretty stuff over there. I can't plug anything in anywhere else, so there it stays.<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">On the left (above the cabinet that holds most of my spices in their ugly containers), you can see another painting that I rescued at a flea market. It's funny that I tried to introduce so much blue into the kitchen to temper the yellow, but I keep adding warm colors. I'm not a fan of yellow, but it looks good in the right situation, such as a hickory tree in the fall. And complementary colors make each other "pop." Without the yellow, the blue would be too cold. Without the blue, the yellow would seem too warm. And my aunt once told me that every kitchen needed a bit of red.<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">There is another painting on the opposite wall, but I am considering reframing it once I find the right frame. It is hanging above the very unattractive electric panel. I rescued the painting at a flea market, and the mat is too wide and makes the painting seem too insignificant, but it's a really nice painting of a yellow porch with wicker furniture. Most acrylic and oil paintings are on canvas and not matted, so I suspect that this one is also on canvas pad that isn't on stretchers. I haven't taken it apart to see what's underneath.<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn-sfxGeOsjFzrkwYVUH7Klv3ZNSby2y-DENBPAAeKhK8V-83Mig9o2d3PvuC8mEuNtoh4hPxvAzxS5IeHOFpjJiyY6837NQX9WzCvANZY14nkjGB42AJzXjg_vvcbkknXSpDLToNg-AE/s3808/IMG_6678.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2856" data-original-width="3808" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn-sfxGeOsjFzrkwYVUH7Klv3ZNSby2y-DENBPAAeKhK8V-83Mig9o2d3PvuC8mEuNtoh4hPxvAzxS5IeHOFpjJiyY6837NQX9WzCvANZY14nkjGB42AJzXjg_vvcbkknXSpDLToNg-AE/s320/IMG_6678.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Here is a shot from below the single cabinet to the left of the window. It needed a splash of color, and I remembered this watercolor that I rescued at yet another flea market. Isn't that a bright frame? Of course, I’ve moved a few things since then. I keep moving things around. I have a number of fake plants because I need to see something that looks alive, and I can't seem to keep anything alive. I think it might be the water. I brought my terrarium home after it was in the office for five years. It had gone months without water and looked so healthy when I went to pick it up. It died within a couple of months of bringing it home. My mom blames the water. I used to have a flower garden and a fascination with plants, but I barely even have a back stoop now. I have to find a substitute for a garden, so I have a lot of fake plants and paintings of live, growing things. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">I think this orchid came in a tiny little pot under a cloche from Kirkland's years ago. I bought this bird at yet another flea market and tucked it into some Styrofoam that I covered with moss. When I bought the hyacinth in one of the photos below, I was telling the woman about the fake orchid I had bought for my late mother-in-law. I said she thought it was real and watered it for a year before she figured it out. The woman noticed that the hyacinth was a bit dusty and said it just needed to be cleaned. I told her I would put some water on it, and it would perk right up. She has a great sense of humor and laughed.<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoRoMT8M5eqXR49ZhN-gdYG-QLmsWG00VM8xfAo_FaE4-hAej0wjafWvFPheQ5_cDreK3h_FkA4Qtu9xWu__E-hmMYedrt16H-ODx1G7rCdxrhkDz-lIYzvPWk_689Q_VW3_cRJBODR5U/s4032/IMG_6669.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoRoMT8M5eqXR49ZhN-gdYG-QLmsWG00VM8xfAo_FaE4-hAej0wjafWvFPheQ5_cDreK3h_FkA4Qtu9xWu__E-hmMYedrt16H-ODx1G7rCdxrhkDz-lIYzvPWk_689Q_VW3_cRJBODR5U/s320/IMG_6669.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Here is a closeup of the painting and my copper molds. It has taken me three and a half years to decide how to hang them. I started with a set of copper gelatin molds, and I ended up not even hanging them. These were better quality, and I loved the different types of fish. The bottom one is a bunny.<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdHCX6ZU3CacNrXxu6xamsCBvHyhBkOwqpPhoWZcDpgCMTsa4HL4pOq8K9zZBnCp0Zbml-6FqNAGxmSxKVAQhdjB1zm3FL20c1Z6TS3b6XjGom_CvOXLiY-eUYMIbdOR1ae07l2t1vNkY/s2001/IMG_6716.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2001" data-original-width="1125" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdHCX6ZU3CacNrXxu6xamsCBvHyhBkOwqpPhoWZcDpgCMTsa4HL4pOq8K9zZBnCp0Zbml-6FqNAGxmSxKVAQhdjB1zm3FL20c1Z6TS3b6XjGom_CvOXLiY-eUYMIbdOR1ae07l2t1vNkY/s320/IMG_6716.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">And, lastly, here is a closeup after I moved the plants. With the bunnies and flowers, it looks like I’m ready for Easter, but these aren’t Easter decorations. :-) Some of the hanging gadgets are antiques given to me by my aunt, and some have just been picked up here and there.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnbi7kWq6xrvsUHRuMny86vM0Mk05WjIK98IrfyP7BvY3-_0j0hRNcTbYau_1h6brZWnnDKv5w2vPnjQX7D0y-zGvM-yC2OBub5f9eFvEErWPv5kSuDSqCOrBVP-n1VU_qWE9r45rVC6s/s2870/IMG_6695.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1494" data-original-width="2870" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnbi7kWq6xrvsUHRuMny86vM0Mk05WjIK98IrfyP7BvY3-_0j0hRNcTbYau_1h6brZWnnDKv5w2vPnjQX7D0y-zGvM-yC2OBub5f9eFvEErWPv5kSuDSqCOrBVP-n1VU_qWE9r45rVC6s/s320/IMG_6695.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">I’m sure I’ll continue to move things around, but it’s looking pretty cute. This kitchen is not the most user-friendly kitchen. You have this unattractive fridge and a stove just free-standing on a blank wall. I added the cart to fill the gap, add work space, and make the appliances seem connected, but before I got the cabinet, that tiny cart was the only thing on that wall besides a stove and fridge. It just looked so dysfunctional. I put the shelf over the stove to hold my salt, pepper, and olive oil that I use all the time in cooking. The Old Charter Kentucky bourbon tin is where I store my spaghetti. :) My father had received it as a Christmas gift (with the bourbon in it) ages ago, and I had a fit over the tin with the farm on it. I can't remember how many years that has been (over thirty, more than likely), but it's just perfect for spaghetti. Here's one like it on <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/773195778/vintage-old-charter-kentucky-bourbon-tin" target="_blank">Etsy</a>, but I can assure you that mine is not from the 1960s.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The good news is that, thanks to a leaky hot water heater upstairs, I'll be getting a new kitchen floor soon! I think the kitchen floor is one of my top five least favorite things about my apartment. Unfortunately, I don't get to pick it out, so it will be something neutral and very boring. However, it won't be these awful peel and stick tiles that are all chipped around the corners and make creepy clicking noises when I walk across it like there's someone right behind me. So, I'm looking forward to that. Anyway, that's the tour of my kitchen--a bit shabby chic farmhouse, a bit French flea market, and a bit something else. :) </div></div>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-68898585531808415702020-10-16T20:09:00.023-07:002020-11-07T18:58:54.171-08:00Scary Edition 2020<p style="text-align: justify;">Originally, I had intended to title this post "Hello October," but we have officially passed the midpoint of the month. Halloween will be here in two weeks, followed by, well, everything else. That being said, I wanted to share how I've been spending the spookiest month of the year.<span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Firstly, I have been heavily brainstorming on Book Two and what needs to be fixed in the edits. I've also been making a list of all of my projects (too many to count) before they leak out of my brain forever.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">In true October fashion, I have binged on Vincent Price movies and finished reading the latest vampire novel. For more ideas on October activities, keep reading.</p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">Streaming Video or Rental</span><br /></h4><p style="text-align: justify;">As I mentioned, I've been watching Vincent Price, the King of horror actors. I watched <i>The Fall of the House of Usher</i>, <i>Tomb of Ligeia</i>, <i>Haunted Palace</i>, and <i>The Bat</i>. The first two are based on stories by Edgar Allan Poe. If you have never taken the time to appreciate classic movies, the special effects of hand-rendered lightning and the magnified normal fire burning behind a mansion are absolutely spectacular. Did I mention "in color"?! My favorite so far was <i>Tomb of Ligeia</i>, and I wasn't sure if his ramble on the way to the tomb with Christopher was written by the screenwriter or literally in the literature. It was like Broadway acting. Haunted Palace takes the name of one of Poe's poems, and, although it references the poem with one quote near the beginning and the completion of that stanza at the end, that is as far as the "based on" goes with regard to Poe. The story is based on H. P. Lovecraft's story of Charles Dexter Ward, with Price playing Charles. It was fun to watch Price slip between the characters of Ward and his ancestor Curwen. <i>The Bat </i>is based on a tale by Mary Roberts Rinehart, and there are no supernatural elements to the plot. I hate to spoil it for you, but no hand-drawn lightning or fire at the end of that one, either. Try the others.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">If ghost stories and creepy old mansions (<i>sans </i>Vincent Price) are more your thing, you have several options. <i>The Haunting of Hill House</i> by the late Shirley Jackson was deemed by some to be the
best ghost story ever. I bought the original movie, <i>The Haunting</i>, in lovely black and white, on Vudu. You can also stream the more modern version, which stars Owen Wilson and Catherine Zeta-Jones, among others. That version is very loyal to the first version, but it's in color. :) Then, if you want more of a retelling, there's the series that is "based
on" but not necessarily loyal to the book of the same name by the late
Shirley Jackson. In true modern style, we are presented with a group of dysfunctional adults (ala Stephen King's <i>IT</i>) following the horrors of their childhood living in Hill House. There's more melodrama than horror, but there is still some nice creep factor here and there. The staging of Hill House is magnificent. This year, Netflix follows with <i>The Haunting of Bly Manor</i>, based on "the work of Henry James," author of <i>The Turn of the Screw </i>according to the credits. (Side note: I did not have the strongest education in classical literature, and I tend to get <i>The Turn of the Screw </i>and <i>The Taming of the Shrew </i>confused, as any normal person would, right?) I was skeptical, but I watched the first episode of Bly Manor (which, I'm intentionally ignoring, is similar to the name of a location in my book, but not exactly), and I was impressed. I don't want to give any spoilers, but LOOK BEHIND the characters in the house!!! That's straight-up Halloween.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Along a similar vein of inviting an odd mix of people to a haunted house is <i>House on Haunted Hill </i>(1959, same year that Shirley
Jackson's <i>The Haunting of Hill House</i> was released), which I watched last
year and which also stars Vincent Price. In 1963, <i>The Haunting</i> came out, based on Shirley Jackson's book, and ten years later came <i>The Legend of Hell House</i>, based on the book <i>Hell House </i>by Richard Matheson, author of other things you've probably heard of: <i>I Am Legend, Somewhere in Time, A Stir of Echoes, What Dreams May Come, </i>and many others, including episodes of <i>Twilight Zone. </i><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I also watched the series <i>A Discovery of Witches</i>, a series that I would describe as <i>Twilight </i>meets <i>Outlander,</i> which takes a more
open-minded, politically correct view of witches. The short streaming video series
covers the first book and is completely void of vampire yoga.</p><div style="text-align: justify;">I could keep going, listing all of the favorites I've seen and some I plan to watch, but let's move on.<br /></div><div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">Books</span></h4><p style="text-align: justify;">In books, as I mentioned, I just finished Laurell K Hamilton's <i>Sucker Punch</i>, an Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, book without any vampires. Still, I think most readers will be relieved at the end. I know I was. I started reading a book that I haven't read since second grade, <i>Little Witch</i>, by Anna Elizabeth Bennett, and realized some of the character similarities between her character and mine in <i>Winterborn</i>. Aside from a few very basic things, which are probably common tropes these days and which I won't mention so as not to provide any spoilers, the plot and personalities are completely different. Of course, <i>Winterborn </i>has flavors of other books, as well, including <i>The Velveteen Rabbit</i>. Again, completely different plot and not a retelling.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">After reading this one, I may read <i>The Doll in the Graveyard</i> by Mary Downing Hahn. I really enjoyed her story <i>Wait Til Helen Comes</i>, and I love that she's writing this genre for middle grade. That's where my love of ghost stories started. Or maybe it was when I got a book of real ghost stories from our scholastic book order forms at school in the second grade. Anyway, I picked up TDITG at a flea market over the Labor Day weekend, along with a few others, including <i>Through the Woods</i>, a graphic book of short stories (not really a graphic novel) by Emily Carroll. I've read through most of the stories. Some of the drawings are extremely horrific.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I also got the omnibus edition of the first four <i>Fear Street</i> books and learned that there is a movie in the works. Back in the 90s, I read a lot of <i>Fear Street</i> books, which inspired me to write my first novel. Actually, that wasn't my first, but it was my first serious attempt to make stuff up. I think I tossed it after I spent too much time rereading it years later and laughing at my overly melodramatic writing.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Finally, aside from a couple of Nancy Drew graphic novels by Papercut, I have been reading, Mark Z. Danielewski's <i>House of Leaves</i>, but I won't admit how long it's been sitting on my desk next to the bed. I love the concept, but it's a massive book. <i>House of Leaves</i> is a horror novel told from the point of view of a young man who seems somewhat philosophical, apparently possessing an in-depth knowledge of literature while not being entirely grammatically correct, and, yet, is all too familiar with the more seedy aspects of city culture. The writing style is that snappy Good Will Hunting type of tale where they quickly ramble, but I look forward to the parts about the actual horror--a house that isn't the same on the inside and the people who became obsessed with it.</p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">Games </span><br /></h4><p style="text-align: justify;">At last... games. Specifically, I'm a Big Fish Games enthusiast, and I'll let you know my favorites and why. After an introduction to Nintendo and shooting ducks, we bought our first computer. Then we learned about <i>Doom</i>, which used to scare the pants off of me. Then, after PlayStation came along, there was <i>Twisted Metal</i>, which was scary in the same sense that you wanted to survive. Also, there were scary characters like the creepy clown Sweet Tooth and the dark diesel truck Darkside. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">My first Big Fish Game was in the Grim Tales series, and I loved how the original games had the classic horror elements with roses and skulls and knives. Every year, there are at least two series, <i>Halloween Chronicles</i> and <i>Halloween Stories</i>, released on the website, and you get to try something new. But if you want to know what is in the archives, here are some of my favorites, probably less scary than thrilling, but they evoke the appropriate mood.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">Note: All of these games can be downloaded digitally on Big Fish (with exception of <i>Midnight in Salem</i>). You could also look at Steam or, in hard copy, through Amazon, Walmart, eBay, etc. There's nothing wrong with shopping around. :) Unfortunately, not everything was released in hard copy.</span><br /></p><p><i><b>Haunted Hotel: Charles Dexter Ward</b></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;">This is one of the original point-and-click hidden object games from 2012, which seems to have been an awesome year for games of this genre, maybe because I bought my first game that year, and many of my favorites were released that year. This game is based on the same Lovecraft story as the Vincent Price movie <i>Haunted Palace</i> mentioned above. Although it's quite old and not nearly as "smooth" as newer games, meaning it was probably rendered at a lower resolution as befitting the devices of that time, it's still not bad to look at. Just think "classic." The atmosphere is nice, and there's a good story to it. This is, by far, my favorite in the <i>Haunted Hotel</i> series.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/a-Y27JsdkOE" width="320" youtube-src-id="a-Y27JsdkOE"></iframe></div><br /> <i><b>Mystery Case Files: Return to Ravenhearst</b></i><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">This was my intro to the Ravenhearst series, where a master detective investigates various cases on behalf of the Queen. In these cases, he investigates the estate Ravenhearst and tries to stop the insane Dalimars. The first in the series was very pixelated and simply had a list with a picture to click on, but the second in the series set a standard for all games. It had complex puzzles and, for the first time, live actors. I didn't even play the first. I tried it, but it wasn't the same. The third installment, <i>Escape from Ravenhearst</i>, was more grotesque in nature, but <i>Return </i>was definitely my favorite. You have the falling rain and all of the lovely tropes of the creepy house, ravens, dolls, etc. <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gUTlwx9VOSM" width="320" youtube-src-id="gUTlwx9VOSM"></iframe></div><p><i><b>Mystery Case Files: The 13th Skull</b></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;">This is probably my favorite game in the entire MCF series. Set in Louisiana, the main setting is a crumbling old mansion draped in Spanish moss hanging from live oaks. Your investigate leads you to the owner of a voodoo shop and pirates. If you like pirates, check out <a href="https://www.bigfishgames.com/games/7193/nightmares-from-the-deep-the-cursed-heart-ce/?pc" target="_blank">Nightmares of the Deep: A Cursed Heart</a>.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YuU1l0j-gpE" width="320" youtube-src-id="YuU1l0j-gpE"></iframe></div><br /><p><i><b>Nancy Drew: The Ghost of Thornton Hall</b></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Nancy Drew isn't for pansies. :) It's a lot harder than you'd think. There is no hint button. There is usually no strategy guide built in, and some of those puzzles are really challenging. These are not hidden object games. They are point-and-click adventures, but they've developed a following, male and female alike, who welcome the challenge. The setting on this one is similar to The 13th Skull, but the story is way different. <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/05ClvYZqgRI" width="320" youtube-src-id="05ClvYZqgRI"></iframe></div><p style="text-align: justify;">There are more spooky Nancy Drew games where that came from, including the recent <i>Midnight in Salem</i> (not to be confused with <i>Midnight Mysteries: Salem Witch Trials</i>).</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><b>The Cabinets of Doctor Arcana</b></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;">This is actually a recent release (April of this year), and the first couple of reviews were people who clearly didn't get it. This game is a new game made in the style of an old game. That's the beauty of it. With the advent of engines and templates, some developers are relying on recycled work and not pure creation. People are tired of templates and puzzles just like the one in the last game. I mean, not even with different artwork; it's the <i>same </i>puzzle! But this one was puzzle after puzzle, some of them really challenging and different, and a totally lousy hint button that won't tell you anything, unless you want to skip a puzzle (which I did by accident, looking for where I could find the next unsolved puzzle). All that being said, it's moody, it's gothic, it has pipe organs playing, it has art of various monsters and mythical creatures, and it has a snarky wizard ready to watch you die if you fail. <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YIHPN1ij69w" width="320" youtube-src-id="YIHPN1ij69w"></iframe></div><br /><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p><i><b>Rhiannon: Curse of the Four Branches </b></i><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Recently, I played this game—I may have mentioned it in a prior post—and I just absolutely loved it. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">This game is based on Welsh mythology, and you read about it as you go through the game. There's the haunted house, the rituals to be discovered, and puzzles that really make you think. I think I had to google a tutorial for it. It really makes you think. I tried to find a decent review of the game, and this video does NOT give you a great impression, but the game is so much better. This music does not play all the way through the game. It's actually pretty funny, like, if you don't feed the cat, he'll bring mice, and you can flush them down the toilet. You never actually see the cat, but you hear the flap opening and shutting, and you have to feed the cat or get mice. There are some rooms where you think they could have done more here, but the story is great. I didn't want it to end. I wanted the company to make more, but due to the EU laws, they were having a lot of issues and shut down. I hope that they get back together and make more games. This was one that included many different disciplines, it's so multifaceted, and you actually learn while playing. I really loved it and can't say enough about it. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">The basic story is that a family's daughter Rhiannon is being haunted. They think she is going crazy, so they take her away from the house for a while. Meanwhile, you show up, invited, and investigate. The game has a classic moody atmosphere, and I fell in love with Wales playing it. If you play it, let me know what you think! I'd love to hear about it! :) <br /></p><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/E7hzNDu2enM" width="320" youtube-src-id="E7hzNDu2enM"></iframe></div><br />There are so many others I could name, some seriously creepy, such as
the <i>Maze </i>series (which even comes with a <b><span style="color: red;">warning </span></b>for psychological horror), I could go on and on, but I just don't have the time and room to go into it
here. Like, in the <i>Riddles of Fate </i>series, starting with <i>Wild Hunt</i>, you get to help Death, because, you know, he's such a good guy. Then, there's <i>Hallowed Legends: Samhain. Mystery of the Ancients: Lockwood Manor, Dreadful Tales, Paranormal Files, Gravely Silent, Dracula.... </i><br /><p></p><p>So, there you go, my multi-media list of Halloweenish entertainment. Now, I'm off to watch Bly Manor, unless I decide it's too late and too dark outside to watch. :)<br /></p><p>xo <br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p></div>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-84661839772265788302020-08-09T20:59:00.002-07:002020-08-10T14:30:42.192-07:00The Book Two Posts, Episode 10: Fixing Broken Chapters<p style="text-align: justify;">As I've pointed out in previous blogs, I've been having issues with one of my plot lines. For one thing, I just didn't enjoy reading Chapter Eight at all. It was almost painful to read, and I wasn't sure why. When I would reread what I had written to get back into the flow and reached Chapter Eight, I felt like, "Oh, that chapter. Not again." I just hated it for some reason.<span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">When I am dealing with a block like that, usually there is a logical reason, but I can't always discern what it is. In one book, I became extremely bored on certain chapters. Finally, I decided that it was time to "re-imagine" those chapters. Unable to decide what was the problem, I started from scratch on that plot line.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">First: I asked myself what this plot line was about. What was the summary of events for that plot line throughout the novel, and how did it tie into the overall story?</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Second: I asked myself what had to happen in that particular scene that I was working on. I made a list of things that this scene needed to accomplish, such as, we learn more of the background on X, and multiple reasons why Y is sad are revealed. I also asked myself if Y had to be the one telling that bit of the story. Why did Y have to tell that story, and why couldn't A or B tell the story? What advantage did Y have as a storyteller? Consider all possibilities. When drafting, we often get married to our first ideas. The first idea may be the best, or it's just a stepping stone to a better idea.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Third: Now that I knew what I had to do, I made a short outline of the series of events in that scene.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Fourth: As I rewrote the scene, I added more observations of the five senses. How did something smell, feel, or sound? Adding the senses made it more compelling. I also added more humor and description. Sometimes, in writing, we're only trying to map out the events, but we aren't really being descriptive. We get focused on momentum, and we don't want something petty like description to get in the way. The problem with that is that description is a major aspect of reading and writing. A person could argue that, in many cases, description is tied to character and character development, because what the character notices tells you something about that character. Some of my favorite passages to read have description in them. When I read a book where an author has eliminated most description, it feels incomplete like the author only wrote the framework of the novel. When you skip description, your writing and your characters feel very generic.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">In working on Chapter Eight, I asked myself whose story this was. Why did it have to be that person's story in this scene? Why couldn't the other person tell the story. Why did the person telling the story come off as being unlikable? I needed this person to be likable.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">For the sake of the experiment, I imagined the scene from the other person's POV. In doing so, something magical happened. When writing as the other character, suddenly the stakes became important, and they went way, way up. The chapter no long felt like, "Insert boring stuff here." In the rewrite of Chapter Eight, I discovered more about the second character telling it. I discovered why the first character was important and was able to introduce another facet of their story. In the end, I decided that the one reason the first character had to tell the story could be moved to a later part in the book. In doing so, the stuff that the first character knew or thought that person knew, would become a mystery. Now, rather than having a chapter that says, "Oh, yeah, and X has a new skill," I was able to add more drama and mystery to that chapter. <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I have finished the rewrite of Chapter Eight. Now I have at least two more chapters to complete since I broke up those sections. When I get those done, I'll be ready to continue editing what I've already written.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Sometimes the blocks have to do with the story being told better from a different angle. I have also learned that sometimes, the problem has to do with logic. I don't realize that I've made these events happen when something about it didn't make sense. Sometimes, it's from not being descriptive enough.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">At this point, I'm over 104K words, but there is the original chapter that will get eliminated when I've finished this second. So that word count will go down, at least until I write the later chapters in the book where I overly summarized on the first draft.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I'm happy with the way the chapter played out. Sure, it may get edited more later, but I'm satisfied with the change in POV. We're making headway!</p><p style="text-align: justify;">TTFN<br /></p>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-90621788529146329632020-08-02T23:37:00.003-07:002020-08-02T23:41:31.766-07:00The Book Two Posts: Ep. 9: Over 100,000 Words and Counting<div style="text-align: justify;">I managed to nail down the beginning of the first chapter. For months, I wasn't entirely thrilled with it. I would take it apart and rewrite it, and still didn't feel like it was right. I started deconstructing again and added another paragraph that I feel is somewhat foreboding and sufficiently sets the tone for the story. I finally had that moment where I felt like this is it. <span><a name='more'></a></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I ended up breaking the chapters down a bit more to end in places that I felt were a tad more cliffhangery and kept things moving. I don't mind having some really brief chapters. I prefer to not have any overly long chapters, and I start getting a little antsy over 20 pages. If possible, I try to figure out how to break it up. Sometimes there is a way to insert a bit to create a cliffhanger moment, and in doing so, it may also give me an idea for adding a new facet to the story. Nothing huge. Not another whole subplot or anything. Just an added layer of flavor that adds to the complexity of the overall work. Sometimes, in rereading, I'll think of a bigger thought and try to tuck it in.<br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Also, in rereading with fresh eyes, I'm thinking that it would be logical to question whether or not X was involved in this since X might be associated with Y, who would have that ability. I started adding comments to remind myself to add this part when I get there, so I know that I'll have to go back through the comments and fix anything I've flagged. These are the kinds of things I think about after I've had time to distance myself from the story. Questions and suspicions are great since it's a mystery. The more questions to be figured out, the better.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The book has evolved so much since I started, as did the first book. I had some general ideas in the beginning, but it's like going on a road trip. You may know that you plan to stop in Nashville, but you don't know exactly what's going to happen there or during the trip. There were characters introduced that I didn't even know when I started the book. And some characters... you don't know if you're going to save them or kill them. You think it's going to be one, and it turns out to be the other.<br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I was also able to add a bit more humor. There has always been humor in the stories, but it's welcome to keep the main character from seeming too angsty and overly dramatic. As usual, I am loving the connection between Evie and Daniel and Ben. They always talk so easily. It's always a little more awkward where other characters are concerned. I think that the Evie-Ben-Daniel friendship is one of the things that draws me back to this world. When I'm feeling disappointed with the real world, this is the place I want to go back to. <br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In rewriting, I felt so comfortable with Evie, Ben, and Daniel, but then I got to the chapter with this other character. And I suddenly just don't feel happy about it. I don't know why. I don't know what's going on. There is something about this chapter that is really bothering me. I feel like I need to go to therapy and figure it out. This is the whole reason I'm having issues with this story. It's not just this chapter. It's the character. It's the whole subplotline.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I think it's time to deconstruct this subplot and re-imagine it. Maybe I need to change the POV of this chapter to be Evie. Maybe I can come back to the one thing I needed to see from the other character's POV later, after enough time has passed for her to question what happened in that moment. I'll try rewriting it from her POV, and maybe that exercise will knock something loose.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Throughout the story, this subplot is like the elephant in the room. Everything seems to be flowing really well AROUND that one. I could almost write the entire story around the subplot and shy away when I come too close. I'm not sure why I don't want to go there, but I think that it's time that I broke down and re-imagined that entire subplot. In the end, it's a necessary subplot. It has to be there. I think I've just been too afraid to poke at it.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">However, the rest of the story is moving along. The dialogue is great, and I've added several fresh ideas. I know that there are great things in store for the other subplot. It will happen.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The good news in all of this is that, as I go along, I can sense which parts need work. I'm finding fewer and fewer parts. I've labeled this post as both draft and rewrite because different parts of the book are in different phases. I have been fussing over the beginning so long that it's very polished. At the same time, there are latter chapters that are barely there. I'm 50 pages into the rewrite, and so far, I have 377 pages, but some of that is front and back matter. I can easily see adding 5K more words to the book. <br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">THEN I can start tightening it up. I don't want to overtighten, though. I like the way the details help to paint the world in brighter colors rather than having an ambiguous character in Anytown, USA. I have read stories where it seemed that authors were being intentionally vague about their characters, afraid to offend anyone or because some person might not be able to relate to someone with blonde hair. I have characters with green, blue, and brown eyes. All different kinds of hair. I like all of them. They are all important.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">When I used to read a famous author's books--and not saying I won't read those any more because I might--I thought this person did not seem to like his characters very well. He seemed very judgmental of them. I wanted to write about people I liked. Even though some of my characters may be annoying to the main characters, I can see that person's point of view. I do have at least one evil character in the story. Not a hundred percent evil, and still fun to write.<br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-25225209761483086082020-07-19T23:04:00.011-07:002020-08-02T23:39:18.818-07:00Vintage Heart Rabbit: A Doll Story<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGmobBVVVGkCbezRksRdzzVsd6X4fy7jURLnHVz1M88k6082C100_1a8HYJuTLCDTga2fkoDu5OV_ktJ5MU__HKQyobZRl4FfR4UJL1uAHCqE3tRpEgDjTOAIgsd8KGoVT_QMeeMwMrtU/s2048/Sweet+Sue.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGmobBVVVGkCbezRksRdzzVsd6X4fy7jURLnHVz1M88k6082C100_1a8HYJuTLCDTga2fkoDu5OV_ktJ5MU__HKQyobZRl4FfR4UJL1uAHCqE3tRpEgDjTOAIgsd8KGoVT_QMeeMwMrtU/w300-h400/Sweet+Sue.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
When my sister and I were small, our grandmother gave "us" a doll. The doll's story went that my aunt had traded a little girl a handful of candy for it. We figure that this took place some time during the Fifties. This aunt was the youngest of my dad's sisters.<br />
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Many people talk about being privileged, but my family was not. Both of my grandfathers worked at a lumber mill and earned 50 cents per day. Even my own mother dragged a bag of cotton behind herself until it was full for 25 cents. Not every family had a car, and I have a framed photo of my mom as a toddler standing in front of the wagon that was being pulled by a mule. It's staggering to think how much has changed in less than a hundred years. I highly doubt that any other single generation has witnessed, or been affected by, as much change as that of my parents. </div>
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Anyway, my <b>point<i> </i></b>is that candy was a real treat, and Mom told me a story about some of her family walking to the store to get candy. Her great-grandmother opened up the candy bar, looked at it and saw that it was brown, said that it had gone bad, and tossed it into the creek. They'd never had chocolate before. True story. </div>
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According to Google Maps, the creek is called Funny Yockana Creek. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Funny_Yockana_Creek" target="_blank">Wikipedia</a> says that means "Squirrel Country" Creek in Choctaw language. (The town of Choctaw and reservation is only a short distance away.) Below is a photo of said creek, courtesy of Google Maps. Wikipedia calls it a "stream."<a href="https://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-stream-and-vs-creek/" target="_blank"> IDK.</a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhngFsWlV_i8hyphenhyphenOwPaSJx8T1fzSVHitVOqGqz2U_84JMxmmdhk5fhDGyVyWrpUVA3VjdA_srBBAZ9Nk6ocpAINCJw3j0EObyYfEEGExJJ4ax_LQYS_9WmL6X1o6I0_gHbkzkge44SIBnQ/s2048/YOCKANA.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhngFsWlV_i8hyphenhyphenOwPaSJx8T1fzSVHitVOqGqz2U_84JMxmmdhk5fhDGyVyWrpUVA3VjdA_srBBAZ9Nk6ocpAINCJw3j0EObyYfEEGExJJ4ax_LQYS_9WmL6X1o6I0_gHbkzkge44SIBnQ/s320/YOCKANA.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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But I digress. Apparently, my aunt's friend decided candy was more valuable than her doll and traded it. The doll was a prized possession, and the last time I saw it in my sister's home, it was on its own shelf in one of the corner cabinets in the hallway. Below is the original doll in a photo that my sister sent me as a reference.</div>
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Out of curiosity, recently, I set out to find one like it online. I don't know why I didn't think to look sooner.</div>
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I think it may be because I had found a tiny doll at a flea market. I asked the woman how much the small dolls were in the basket. She said four dollars. I went through and pulled out this one. The price went up to $5. The little doll is around 7 or so inches. I was trying to figure out what happened to her arm and realized that one had been replaced with a plastic arm. The other arm was made of composite, like the rest of her body. (Composite is like MDF. It's a composite of sawdust and a binder. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Composition_doll" target="_blank">Composition dolls</a> were
the new "indestructible" doll, after the porcelain dolls. However, like
MDF, over time, the material breaks down and cracks. There are cracks on her feet and
legs. Composite dolls were replaced with hard plastic in the late 1940s.) Before I researched it, I had no idea what composition dolls were and thought that meant they had a theme or something, but moving right along....<br />
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The arm was literally glued to the dress. I pulled her dress away and made a hook with some wire and threaded a rubber band through to reattach her arms to her body. Learning what composite meant made me wonder about the old doll my sister had and what it was made out of.</div>
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Suddenly, I felt compelled to learn more about it and see if I could find another one.</div>
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After getting photos and comparing with oodles of old dolls on eBay, I finally decided to buy this one (the one in the photo at the top). We think it's about the same age, either from the late 40s or 50s. The last time we met up at Mom's house, we compared them side by side. Hers has a slightly different face, but it's hard to tell. I think mine is a 17" Sweet Sue made by the American Doll Company. It is not marked, but there are many types of Sweet Sues online, and the face matches. I am not sure which company made hers. I haven't been able to find one exactly like it, but I'm thinking it may be an Arranbee Nanette Walker Doll. Although they are not the same doll, I felt satisfied with my purchase. (Looking at the photos, they seem to have our personalities. I can see her doll in the background, the one who drags the other one out of water that's too deep and keeps her thoughts to herself when we're confronted with a show off.) I even tried on her doll's dresses. My grandmother had made several.</div>
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In the top photo, my doll is wearing a petticoat that my grandmother made for the doll my sister has. For years, I had it on a black rabbit that my eldest aunt had made (Sadly, all of my aunts have passed.) My grandmother loved sewing. (It's a little wonky, but it works.) Everyone in the family is creative and expresses themselves in different ways. The particular aunt who traded the candy for the doll embroidered and made a little dress for my daughter. My eldest aunt made quilts (as did my grandmother) and sewed everything from quilted teddy bears to ruffled chair cushions. The third aunt did all sorts of things, including embroidery and making christening gowns for many of the women in her church. They all loved gardening and were pretty much experts at making something out of nothing.</div>
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I went on to buy a couple of more dolls, including what I believe is an Effanbee Honey Walker Doll and another that is either a <a href="https://dollreference.com/images/valentine_luann14simms_usa.jpg" target="_blank">Valentine Doll Company LuAnn Simms</a> or a <a href="https://dollreference.com/images2/roberta14ann_madeusapatpend.jpg" target="_blank">Roberta Ann</a> (According to Dollreference.com, the Roberta Doll Company used the Made in USA mark like lots of other companies, and this one does have Made in USA marked on her back.), before being satisfied and deciding I didn't need any more. </div>
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Our fascination with dolls started early. After receiving baby dolls for years, for the Christmas of 1975, we received our first non-baby doll.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrANcfCQomTDXNqKQdIQL6jRqmV3tzaICOuYWBIxTwJUQIiaRiVEJIS3A5-CjVhTwjPOAAinN3d2l5j7aoX5B0zHjVaE3Gv78GRjF3aAQIbk0_M4Tw0IHW5awc_QBVif9RH5LnC-uLyg4/s960/1975+My+first+collectable_..+Antoinette%252C+upper+left+hand+corner.+Our+Bahamian+guest+%2528my+room+always+became+the+guest+room%2529+marked+all+over+her+face.+I+had+nightmares+about+her+being+haunted.+Ah%252C+the+good+ol%2527+days.-1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="710" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrANcfCQomTDXNqKQdIQL6jRqmV3tzaICOuYWBIxTwJUQIiaRiVEJIS3A5-CjVhTwjPOAAinN3d2l5j7aoX5B0zHjVaE3Gv78GRjF3aAQIbk0_M4Tw0IHW5awc_QBVif9RH5LnC-uLyg4/s320/1975+My+first+collectable_..+Antoinette%252C+upper+left+hand+corner.+Our+Bahamian+guest+%2528my+room+always+became+the+guest+room%2529+marked+all+over+her+face.+I+had+nightmares+about+her+being+haunted.+Ah%252C+the+good+ol%2527+days.-1.jpg" /></a></div>
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This is a page from the Sears catalog in 1975. My doll is the first one, Antoinette, and I think she was the smallest. My sister has Number Three, Rita, the one with the red hat. I still have Antoinette, although we are missing socks and shoes. I remember having nightmares about the doll. She was walking toward me across my bed and her eyes were fluttering open and closed repeatedly. I don't know what brought that on, but it's interesting that, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doll" target="_blank">originally, dolls weren't considered to be toys.</a></div><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doll" target="_blank">
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There was an unfortunate moment that occurred during a visit from a cousin who lived in the Bahamas. She brought along a guest and a young girl, possibly her daughter or granddaughter or niece. So, I'm not exactly sure whether or not she was a Bahama Mama. *Bass drum beat, cymbal crash* 😹 Sorry. Couldn't resist.</div>
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During their visit, I had to sleep with my sister so they could have my room. (My room was almost always the "guest room" after the extra room off the porch was taken.) The woman told me that the little girl used markers and wrote all over my doll's face. I don't think I was ever able to get all of it off. The woman was very kind and had a lovely accent. I don't know if it was more German because of the German settlements in the Bahamas or if it was more like the Caribbean accents in Jamaica and Haiti. Yes, there is probably a whole lot of difference, but this was a very long time ago, and I simply don't remember. She felt very bad about what the little girl had done and, when they went home, she left some money behind for me, and I still have it to this day.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkl1zSA5lpMCh5ggv3yMqVyUUwCixS1pqUvhe8qE1maHmTUx6dKGJ45tWw8bIsmWvycXEkmPMrW9e6MuUROQVVUVL5SykDW8Tv6_D_jhqt5HdFtrxbAB3jyxZehLUWxo2tJd7zdPa_au0/s2000/Bahama.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1501" data-original-width="2000" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkl1zSA5lpMCh5ggv3yMqVyUUwCixS1pqUvhe8qE1maHmTUx6dKGJ45tWw8bIsmWvycXEkmPMrW9e6MuUROQVVUVL5SykDW8Tv6_D_jhqt5HdFtrxbAB3jyxZehLUWxo2tJd7zdPa_au0/s320/Bahama.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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For now, while Antoinette and the other dolls are still packed away in boxes, Honey is on the piano, Roberta Ann is sitting on a book shelf next to the black rabbit that my aunt made, and Sweet Sue sits atop the jewelry box on the dresser. She looks really good for her age, being around 70. Sometimes, it looks like her eyes slid ever so slightly to one side to see what I'm up to because it's like she's looking at me, but maybe that's just a trick of the light, right? Sometimes her head is slightly turned, and I think it's just because I bumped her, and, being a walker, her head turns when you move her arms or legs. That's what I keep saying, anyway.</div>
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Although there were many dolls and many more stories around them, that's where I'll end this doll story. </div>
Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-13613859898397469992020-06-27T14:28:00.005-07:002021-02-15T23:13:26.817-08:00Vintage Heart Rabbit: Antique? Painting & Antique? Frame<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV95mBILPycir2FZxLMuQQyOISXAnh35jccXi881X3iNYrEGTluGd4njDjb2muUC50WDE8w41tk_aQ72_J6KKC7E3ZfjSWRE9ni912cdG7bbHA3Fk5ZH5q5gnQe7grO-iLtIEzLSBSd4Q/s2046/paintinginframe.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2046" data-original-width="1748" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV95mBILPycir2FZxLMuQQyOISXAnh35jccXi881X3iNYrEGTluGd4njDjb2muUC50WDE8w41tk_aQ72_J6KKC7E3ZfjSWRE9ni912cdG7bbHA3Fk5ZH5q5gnQe7grO-iLtIEzLSBSd4Q/w426-h500/paintinginframe.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>I will be your night in shining armor, riding across the desert<br />on a fine Arab charger... </i>(The Rolling Stones "Emotional Rescue")<i><br /></i></td></tr></tbody></table><div></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I'm a collector of things both old and new, from Skylanders and Sailor Moon to paintings and cameras. Some of the things may have value; some of them I just think look pretty neat.<span><a name='more'></a></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Recently, I found an old frame at a consignment shop. It was labeled antique, but I'm not really great at dating frames. I look for nice embellishments and molding. This one had two layers of carved molding that I really liked. It was made for a 16"x20" frame. I measured to be sure because some frames are custom made with odd sizes. You can eyeball it, but you might be wrong if it's a custom job. Same with canvases.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdqyvNuX5dv7ATW_R9sNumg_bC5J_CC16R42zVlVKUVNhnRYmNxRbiW7LYG4JWZOPnG5y2TpJw5xIVia8JwfEefCMYmSHrhKDvZR4T-rECNn0XA-o5csKv7R-3Y5xppZUaFbxaWovCzk0/s4032/oldframe.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdqyvNuX5dv7ATW_R9sNumg_bC5J_CC16R42zVlVKUVNhnRYmNxRbiW7LYG4JWZOPnG5y2TpJw5xIVia8JwfEefCMYmSHrhKDvZR4T-rECNn0XA-o5csKv7R-3Y5xppZUaFbxaWovCzk0/w375-h500/oldframe.jpg" width="375" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">This was a pretty good deal. Because it had been in the store for most of the year and overlooked, I got about thirty percent off the asking price. I don't have a photo of the back of the frame itself. All of the different borders are different pieces of wood, and some of them have little gaps you can see if you hold it at a certain angle, kind of like a door on an old house that has been worn down by time and exposed to changes in temperature and humidity. <br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">This is not the only old frame I have. I have several in a stack, some with broken bits, but I love them anyway. Many are for smaller paintings that I don't have to fill them yet. They're waiting for the perfect moment. Just so happened, while I was out last week, I found such a painting.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-Am7WJNfwh4Q9e8-80axBfb4_wV3kQ9k68f6CDG_chNUgfRpbW50fasy8XNNTyNv_nqxaIzPksy8B6tojhvxJXup6bmicrrxnm5go6dl9u5soQzvp6lgRFmuocrhe7YCGNqES5BLWyYQ/s4032/unframedpainting.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-Am7WJNfwh4Q9e8-80axBfb4_wV3kQ9k68f6CDG_chNUgfRpbW50fasy8XNNTyNv_nqxaIzPksy8B6tojhvxJXup6bmicrrxnm5go6dl9u5soQzvp6lgRFmuocrhe7YCGNqES5BLWyYQ/w375-h500/unframedpainting.jpg" width="375" /><br /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I almost didn't get it. The asking price was more than I normally spend on a single object. Usually, I start whittling down what I have in my cart and try to pick out only the stuff I like the most because it's too easy to get carried away. Sometimes I pick something up and tell my sister, "Okay, talk me out of this." Sometimes she shakes her head, like, "Keep that one."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The painting was labeled "Antique Painting" and shows a man on an Arabian Stallion. It's a very peaceful painting, and he's carrying what looks like a horn. It looks like there's a story there. It's old. There's no clear signature. It's obviously in rough shape, like the frame I planned to put it in. My gut told me to get it. <br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLSwHyTQbPQUN6nxj0dqO5mR23TnDFw4BX_3BpTc_LDeMXNk_5gTuBUXFLeEyNGYJT4JA3Fi5rc9-67mg4PNOgODFt51Cn3uJ2RvuxcY0QtU38N93597U9PYX1zuIKVq0rffzMBNLYnMM/s4032/backofpainting.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLSwHyTQbPQUN6nxj0dqO5mR23TnDFw4BX_3BpTc_LDeMXNk_5gTuBUXFLeEyNGYJT4JA3Fi5rc9-67mg4PNOgODFt51Cn3uJ2RvuxcY0QtU38N93597U9PYX1zuIKVq0rffzMBNLYnMM/w375-h500/backofpainting.jpg" width="375" /><br /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: justify;">The last time I bought a painting, I
could tell it was old by looking at the back. The canvas was dark. I was
thinking that it might be the color of the fabric used. Maybe it was
linen and not canvas. Maybe the gesso or whatever she had used to
prepare the canvas had soaked through. But I knew it was old because the
paint was flaking off. It wasn't even my favorite color, but it had a
few nice qualities about it. So I got it. I put it in my kitchen because
it matched that room the best in color and subject matter.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div>When
I flipped this canvas over, I saw another dark canvas. Some places
seemed stained or dirty. There were pinpoints of light peeping through.
In some places the canvas was worn down.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyV5e4TvTlpvzJNt1sytxazPILS7y_LIXA95N98Ku_l5tSt99I6rUy2ijwq1uRz-wfrh4xc4MAb8rB8k4x_FwFEqeC2Nmb8op5VMVm7ZPV2BTwJ8I9ZYKQwsbPsREOzdvJzORQuKQmRTI/s4032/stretcherjointsnotmitered.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyV5e4TvTlpvzJNt1sytxazPILS7y_LIXA95N98Ku_l5tSt99I6rUy2ijwq1uRz-wfrh4xc4MAb8rB8k4x_FwFEqeC2Nmb8op5VMVm7ZPV2BTwJ8I9ZYKQwsbPsREOzdvJzORQuKQmRTI/w375-h500/stretcherjointsnotmitered.jpg" width="375" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">While I was examining the canvas, I noticed that the stretchers weren't even mitered, and I got a tad excited. When I was in art school, for one project we had to create our own custom canvas. It's not that hard. Basically, you went and bought the stretchers, which are the strips of wood that the canvas wraps around. The stretchers are mitered, meaning they ended in forty-five-degree angles, like a frame or crown molding. There would be innies and outties at the mitered ends where the pieces interlocked. After you put the stretchers together, you laid them on a piece of canvas, which you stretched around it, stapling first one side in the middle and stretching it tight to the opposite side and stapling. Then you did the middle of the other sides. After that you went around it stretching and straightening it until you had a nice taut canvas stapled all the way around. Then you trimmed the excess canvas away and had to prepare it for painting. It's like priming a wall. If you don't prime the wall first, you waste expensive paint because it soaks in and takes more to cover it. Art paint<i>, good </i>art paint, is really expensive. Historically, some were actually made from gems and minerals. (This reminds me of the movie <i>Girl with a Pearl Earring</i>. If you haven't seen it yet, it's a good film about the life of a classical artist. And it stars Colin Firth from somewhere around the <i>Bridget Jones's Diary </i>time.) Still, not all canvases were primed before painting.<br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">That being said, when I saw that the old painting was not mitered, I thought that must mean something. Either it was really old, or we had a do-it-yourself type guy who didn't have access to mitered stretchers. If you'll notice, on the bottom stretcher, at the end, the top half is cut away, about the width of the board itself. For the adjacent side, they did the same thing with the bottom half (or they also did the top and flipped the board over! Genius!!! 🙀). These two parts overlapped and were nailed together.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">About this time, I discovered <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/DrLoriV" target="_blank">Dr. Lori on YouTube</a>. She's an appraiser of antiques and just full of information. She is basically a one-woman Antiques Road Show and totally awesome! If you have anything collectable, she probably has a video on it. Dr. Lori mentioned several things I had already noticed about my painting on one of her videos.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY0eyaJaaMLlGCr8wBG-x6gVoTtN_fR_AvgUvgN_ByZx6dyJDBaNruGS-v8t7Op04xi-cohoe1bv6H7YP5olvea59Y_nRqLdR-2A7ay4T1d2gFQNEFYK9Z6Z4BtBzZRYYF4a0pgPEzlOQ/s4032/smalltacksnotstaples.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY0eyaJaaMLlGCr8wBG-x6gVoTtN_fR_AvgUvgN_ByZx6dyJDBaNruGS-v8t7Op04xi-cohoe1bv6H7YP5olvea59Y_nRqLdR-2A7ay4T1d2gFQNEFYK9Z6Z4BtBzZRYYF4a0pgPEzlOQ/w375-h500/smalltacksnotstaples.jpg" width="375" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Then Dr. Lori mentioned staples. Staples usually mean 1955 and onward. My canvas wasn't stapled. It's tacked. She also mentioned that not mitered meant European. Okay, it's getting interesting.<br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">So, here I have an old painting, at least pre-1955, European, and possibly 1800s if the dark wood stretchers and dark canvas are any indication. Exactly how old, I have no idea. At this point, I'm thinking the tag "Antique painting" might have been accurate. <br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">But I decided that my painting and frame belonged together. I
was going to paint the frame, but I decided to keep it in its current
state. If it is actually antique, I don't want to be responsible for
utterly destroying it. Altogether, it may not be worth much since they are both in rough shape, but they are still pretty neat. <br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">(I had originally scheduled the publication of this post for Wednesday, but it looks like the new Blogger post scheduling is not working. It remained in draft mode.)<br /></div>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-12600679490522264842020-05-28T21:43:00.004-07:002020-07-13T10:42:12.048-07:00Bunker Tour Post: Hostile Living Room Makeover<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTMsPFI0s-YFIZHZFO3OZRuMtANPg5_ArrizfiRwW5tC3DOLMqh8A9yL7bgGURizA1FO5rEduPoso-FPdQb8No8lFZ1Z-6IP_1SjK1oinWbmqDBQx-t_I3QbtyqVMMZgbh1JdNqq-xrq4/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1537" data-original-width="2404" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTMsPFI0s-YFIZHZFO3OZRuMtANPg5_ArrizfiRwW5tC3DOLMqh8A9yL7bgGURizA1FO5rEduPoso-FPdQb8No8lFZ1Z-6IP_1SjK1oinWbmqDBQx-t_I3QbtyqVMMZgbh1JdNqq-xrq4/s320/lr4.jpg" width="443" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">August will be my third anniversary living at this place, and I'm just now getting around to making it look like a home. It's difficult to buy big items when you don't have a truck or free labor, but I am figuring out ways around it. Hopefully, once I have everything in its place, I'll have enough white space in my head to start creating again.<span><a name='more'></a></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I mentioned in a previous post that I bought a new sofa. I apologize if the quality in this picture is subpar. I'm being forced to use the new blogger interface, and it doesn't appear to allow me to change the size. It was automatically downgraded when I attached the image. The original image that I attempted to import is very large and much better quality. But, I just have to work with it. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtndcLqWOYIwjdn0xB573Jx5vkHPgvVJOIgvBSnSzmyL1X5iHgQXu4MbRjXhOxrHFu7RpS8DjSLepmbYIq6bMKrUXGo_w0c0Y5uoGSYMOqLVe-2wjOsOwWsVgBoCV4HAg09eTe_vXf4X8/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2050" data-original-width="1537" height="492" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtndcLqWOYIwjdn0xB573Jx5vkHPgvVJOIgvBSnSzmyL1X5iHgQXu4MbRjXhOxrHFu7RpS8DjSLepmbYIq6bMKrUXGo_w0c0Y5uoGSYMOqLVe-2wjOsOwWsVgBoCV4HAg09eTe_vXf4X8/s320/LR3.jpg" width="369" /><br /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">So, in this photo you see the sofa in the background. It's pink velvet and not nearly as intense as this photo shows, but you get the idea. It's tufted. It's not a loveseat, but it runs small for a full-size sofa. The pillows are just shams on extra pillows that I had until I find some that I really like. <br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">I also mentioned that I had ordered a new coffee table. It came last week. I am getting to be a regular wiz with an Allen wrench. I had been looking for a large glass and gold coffee table. It's kind of funny because I've had this sort of thing in mind the whole time, but I'm suddenly seeing that many people are decorating with a similar style. I had looked all over, but most of the coffee tables that were gold and glass were either too small, or the gold was dull. It would be like calling a gray metal filing cabinet silver; they were that dull. I found this one at Home Depot. This was exactly what I was looking for.<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">This is a two-tiered coffee table. On the top, I have a mirrored tray, but I forget where I actually bought it years ago. Target, perhaps? There is an old vase with an oriental design on it that faces the sofa. Looking at my flowers, it's probably hard to tell that I actually took a flower arranging class ages ago. I also have a mercury glass bottle that came with little flashing colored lights inside. I love mercury glass, and I think that I bought this at Kirkland's a few years ago, most likely around Christmas. You can't see it, but there is a tiny silver napkin/business card holder that is an Arthur Court rabbit, and I use it to hold some crocheted heart-shaped coasters that my late aunt made. Then there is a rabbit that I picked up at either the flea market or a consignment shop. The blue candlestick is another flea market item. If the website I found is accurate, it's US Glass, pattern #310. I think it's a candlestick vase, because it's hollow. I wouldn't feel safe using it as a vase without something more substantial to stabilize it. If that website is correct, it's 100 years old.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">I went looking for ways that people had decorated the bottom tier of a two-tiered coffee table, but I couldn't find anything. I have everything on the top tier in a single tray so that I can easily remove it if I need to use the table for anything. On the bottom, I decided to put some of my collections in display boxes. I have a set of arrowheads that I found, some rocks from a beach in San Diego (I don't think you can see those in this picture), and various bits of shell and coral that I picked up around Key Largo. There is also a vintage drawer with a set of vintage dominoes inside. I may add other small games like cards to the box as I find them or get them. (<i>7/13: I've since decided it's a good place to put the Skylanders portal and remote. :) Oh, wow. Just saw what day it is. Reminds me of the Elton John song, "Yell Help." "I wish tonight wasn't Wednesday night. I wish it wasn't the thirteenth of July." Funky 70s song.)</i><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwQLR20rkA0R5rJyLlWSFXQcE7NdmfwHcE3XM6ESkghIGAlEkBafZYwq2p1pSpHA3XfBQgbKOQCBrBvKn1O1oRpmlVY_KYoq6C0q2TVQH_46A4ZZdH3i0u-KYYjrvIsY4ugyhdZ0cbEis/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="515" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwQLR20rkA0R5rJyLlWSFXQcE7NdmfwHcE3XM6ESkghIGAlEkBafZYwq2p1pSpHA3XfBQgbKOQCBrBvKn1O1oRpmlVY_KYoq6C0q2TVQH_46A4ZZdH3i0u-KYYjrvIsY4ugyhdZ0cbEis/s320/LR2.jpg" width="388" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">In the second photo, you can see the mirrored side table, also a Target find, a crystal basket that holds seashells and an angel ornament that a friend gave me. The chrome lamp is another flea find. There are also crystal coasters that I think came in a gift set from a friend. The wood end table serves as a kennel for Fraser the rocking horse. The gold tray is Pottery Barn. I think the rabbit was a consignment shop purchase. The silk is shattering on the old French bergere. I don't know exactly how old it is, but I have a pair of them. One day I'll have them recovered. I still haven't bought a rug or curtains, so you're looking at black-out liners here. Well, I did buy a temporary rug that I have to go pick up, but it's not really the living room colors. It will go in the bedroom or office when I find a suitable replacement.<br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnUuiU8gAmnOOlizan3YR0VBEFNxeqC1E314kP9p3VbYij4XfTj5sUwxg-6nk4l2UH0vvdmHALNEoIhvozKIH-R1NJLfAp3bOmcVYLRj_z1DIx2ZFClYLLPvdZDDI9_szvihTcD87KY3s/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="520" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnUuiU8gAmnOOlizan3YR0VBEFNxeqC1E314kP9p3VbYij4XfTj5sUwxg-6nk4l2UH0vvdmHALNEoIhvozKIH-R1NJLfAp3bOmcVYLRj_z1DIx2ZFClYLLPvdZDDI9_szvihTcD87KY3s/s320/Lr1.jpg" width="390" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">In the last photo, you see the bookcases with my basket collection on top. I have all sorts of small collections around the house. The cats in the bookcase came from a flea market. I thought they were funny since they reminded me of Dolores Umbridge in Harry Potter with all of her scary kitten china plates. <br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">So, it's starting to look more like someone actually lives here. As you can see, I'm very eclectic. I have traditional/old world styles mixed with glam and shabby chic. I'm hoping to find curtains that will tie everything together. Now I have to finish rehanging the art wall.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">TTFN</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">(updated 7/13/2020)<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div><br /></div>Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-30568516259183373872020-05-18T19:35:00.003-07:002020-05-18T19:35:39.338-07:00The Shelter Chronicles, Part II<div style="text-align: justify;">
What's up? I know it's been a while. I've been deep undercover here at the abode, working from home and thinking it's time to try a work-from-home hair color. 😸 Because it's the first time in my life that I've felt that it's acceptable. Seriously, a couple of decades ago, we were told at work that we were not allowed to have blue hair. I didn't have blue hair, but some did, and it was frowned upon. I will not have blue hair, and it will be much more subtle. Just dipping my toe into the river of unorthodox hair colors.<br />
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What else have I been up to? I bought a new sofa. Pink. I am officially into unconventional sofa color territory. I ordered a coffee table. That's about the extent of my decorating. I have to get the art wall rehung, which will be difficult because I have to balance sizes and frame colors. The question now is how to balance unchangeable wall color, sofa color, curtain color, and rug color. Rugs and curtains are a future problem to be worked out. </div>
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I finished playing a game that I really, <i>really, </i>enjoyed. It's an older game that I had read positive reviews on, <i>Rhiannon and the Curse of the Four Branches</i>. It's set in Wales and involves a lot of Welsh mythology. If you don't like to read or don't like challenging puzzles, it's probably not for you. The game is old, but it was very well done. After that game, I went searching for more point-and-click adventure games and ran across <i>The Cabinets of Doctor Arcana</i>. This is a fairly recent game made in the style of older games. It's more puzzle intensive. I really enjoyed it, and game has 65 5-star reviews. Now I'm about to attempt <i>Dark Fall: Lost Souls. </i>I usually play more hidden object games like Midnight Castle, but I've been doing the Midnight Castle Spring Event for well over a month, and I'm just needing to work on something else. :) I like Midnight Castle a lot, but the challenge was just really a lot of work, and I was getting burned out near the end.<br />
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I finally watched <i>The Girl with All the Gifts </i>on Netflix, and it was pretty good, although--again--zombies aren't really my thing. I felt like there was more that could have been done with the story. It had a lot more potential, and I did wonder about the message that it's okay to sacrifice the future of all humanity for the sake of something else not human. The resolution seemed rather selfishly destructive and somewhat unresolutionary. I also finally got to watch <i>John Wick 3</i>. Keanu is one of my favorites. :) So, sure, JW is violent, but it's self-defense, and he's not out to wipe out all of humanity.</div>
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I finished reading <i>Voices in the Snow, </i>the first book in Darcy Coates's <i>Black Winter</i> series. It was very good. She always has an unexpected twist, and although this particular sub-genre is not usually my thing, I think I'll read the next one. I'm in the last chapters of one of her older books, <i>House of Shadows (Ghosts and Shadows Book 1), </i>which I'm reading because I really like her style, and because I'm currently brainstorming a Gothic novel and wanted to make sure mine is not <i>too</i> similar, beyond the usual tropes of the genre. I've always been far more of a Bronte girl than an Austin girl, so I like the gloomy atmosphere. There have been times when <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpBFOJ3R0M4" target="_blank">"I'm Only Happy When It Rains"</a> has been my theme song and times when <a href="https://youtu.be/rl9FFZZnWWo" target="_blank">"Dance Monkey"</a> was my theme song. First, before I launch into writing the new gloomy Gothic novel, I must finish editing this one, which is approaching 99K words during edits. *<i>Le sigh* </i></div>
Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-79176422810406113362020-03-31T17:14:00.001-07:002020-04-01T16:13:06.788-07:00Gimme Shelter<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I had begun to wonder how much the world had changed since I've been in the bunker, and I was curious about venturing out further than the mailbox or the sidewalk to make the no-touch hand-off with the DoorDash or Uber Eats delivery person when I felt like splurging for a tempura bento box or Chili's chicken enchiladas. Gotta keep those restaurants going! We're in this together!</div>
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The neighborhood sounds just as busy as it did before and even more so. Even from the first announcement concerning social distancing, people were still out and about walking dogs with a friend or relative. It had stopped raining, and the weather was pleasant. Flowers were blooming in all of the yards. One cheermeister drove around the neighborhood singing, and the next day, she was joined by a small parade of singing, cheering women, all in their own cars, keeping their social distancing.</div>
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Yesterday, I had to run errands. This was the first time I had left the house since Friday, March 13, and it was somewhat surreal to see the kind of traffic you would only see at 3AM under normal conditions. At one location, we were advised to drop payments through the door slot. Someone had placed a box of envelopes next to the door, but I had scrounged up an envelope left from all of those Christmas cards I meant to send out years ago. When I went to pick up an order at Michael's, I was greeted by a girl holding an iPad in the foyer. Someone brought me my item, and I held out my identification to the iPad girl who craned her neck to see without actually stepping forward. Sam's and the grocery store weren't obviously different aside from being slightly less crowded and the long, empty toilet paper aisle. There was no green tomato, which was on my wish list, and no Lipton family-size PLAIN, ORIGINAL tea bags—only cold brew and pre-sweetened. 😿 I guess we all have to make sacrifices. </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">You can't make this stuff up.</span></div>
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So, life has been a little weird, and I was just informed that I might be having an April Fool's Day grandchild. Earlier than originally estimated. We aren't allowed to go to the hospital because of the threat of spreading germs. This is kind of par for the course in my family. My daughter was married during a hurricane (outside wedding, of course), and both of mine were born during a big snow or a deep freeze. It seems that every momentous occasion is marked by the weather.<br />
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TTYS </div>
Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-60589680079947545522020-03-20T02:30:00.000-07:002020-03-20T02:30:02.296-07:00March Madness: 7 Favorite Middle Grade Books<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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In a previous blog post, <a href="https://bunnyrosebooks.blogspot.com/2020/03/the-binge-review-ep-2-netflix-and-books.html" target="_blank">The Binge Review, Ep. 2: Netflix and Books</a>, I mentioned that I was reading <i>100 Cupboards</i> for the second time. Interestingly, <a href="https://youtu.be/8KIQRXqwL1A" target="_blank">author Shannon Kaper talked about the same book on her YouTube channel</a> in a vlog about Middle Grade March. I can promise you I was nearly finished with the book when I saw her video because I can't read that fast! 😹</div>
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Last week (I'm writing this in advance, so I finished the book around 3/3/2020), I finished that book and have since started the second book in the series, <i>Dandelion Fire. </i>I am reading this one for the first time. For some reason, the first time I read 100 Cupboards, I must have had a lot of books I wanted to read, so I didn't continue with the series at the time.</div>
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Middle grade literature has a special place for me because it's when I not only fell in love with reading, but also decided I wanted to one day be a writer (and I am). My book <i>Winterborn</i> is middle grade, and I'm also working on a few others, some of which blur into young adult, and some that are solidly middle grade.</div>
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I thought it might be fun to talk about some of my favorite middle grade children's books in this blog post and why they are so special to me. These are not ranked in any particular order, and I think that would be impossible for me to do. Nor is this list intended to be all-inclusive. So, if you are looking for something besides <i>Harry Potter</i>, then this list is for you.</div>
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<span style="color: #bf9000;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Howl's Moving Castle</i> by Diana Wynne Jones (1986)</span></span></div>
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Most of the time, a movie doesn't measure up to the book it's based on. This isn't exactly one of those times. The reason I say that is because both the author and Hayao Miyazaki have done phenomenal jobs with the main idea of the story. Mr. Miyazaki took a few creative liberties with the book, but I love all of his movies. The differences did not hurt the story, and it was a work of art in and of itself. On the other hand, reading the book after seeing the movie shouldn't be a chore at all because there is still so much to be discovered. I won't spoil the surprise by outlining any of those here, but I was very happy with it. This is one case where I say you must do both: read the book <i>and </i>watch the movie. In my case, I watched the movie first, and I wasn't disappointed in either one.</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><i>Theodosia and the Last Pharaoh </i>by R. L. LaFevers (2011)</span></span></div>
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I think most of us fell in love with archeology and Egyptology when we first saw <i>Raiders of the Lost Ark</i>. Then I became familiar with Barbara Michaels, whose paranormal mysteries often included a reference to Egyptology, one of her areas of interest. Then there was The Mummy with Brendan Fraser, and so on. In this short series, Theodosia's parents are archeologists, and they run a small museum in England. Theodosia is a very mature little girl who has a special gift and, along with her cat Isis, finds herself wrapped up in many mysteries. <i>The Last Pharaoh</i> is the fourth book in the series, and this time she is off to Egypt. It was just a lovely story. There were always rumors of a fifth book, but the author was working on other books, as well. Even if there are only ever four books, they're worth your time, but the fourth, this one, was my favorite.</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><i>The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane </i>by Kate DiCamillo (2006)</span></span></div>
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I discovered this one during my Children's Literature class while working on my Master's degree. First, in case I haven't told you, I have a thing about bunnies. According to a cousin, it's something passed through the blood on that side of the family. There are rabbits everywhere in my house, and, contrary to the belief of at least one individual, it is not some pagan fertility symbolism. Really. </div>
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Edward Tulane is the name of a toy rabbit, a very prideful rabbit who faces a number of challenges, beginning when he is thrown overboard a ship while crossing the Atlantic. It's probably more of a younger middle-grade level, but it's almost heartbreaking. Edward endures many hardships--being dressed as a girl and being homeless, just to name a couple--hardships that break him and change him, all while longing to be back in the house on Egypt Street (there's Egypt again) with the little girl who loved him.</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><i>The Thirteen Clocks </i>by James Thurber (1950)</span></span></div>
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My sister found this one in a classroom bookshelf. It's pretty old, and I'm surprised I had never heard of it. I feel like you almost have to be an adult to really appreciate this one. The prose is almost musical with series of similar-sounding words and calls to mind the works of Lewis Carroll. While it is a fairy tale, there is some humor, and the villain is very dark. He is overly attached to his niece, so when suitors come calling, he always has an impossible task for them in order to win her hand. You might recall <i>Many Moons</i>, which was more of a picture book about a sick princess who asked her father for the moon. Then there is <i>The White Deer</i>, also by Thurber. It has some really nice imagery, but this one was my favorite of his.</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><i>A Year Down Yonder</i> by Richard Peck (2000)</span></span></div>
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I mentioned this one in an earlier post. Set during the great depression, a young girl is sent to live with her bold, unpredictable, and a tad scary grandmother who is exceedingly resourceful when it comes to accomplishing her goals. Not only does it give the reader a better appreciation for what people went through during that time, but it's pretty funny, too. My favorite parts were the grandmother's exaggerations: "That girl is so skinny, she could rest in the shade of a clothesline!" 😹 The only question is whether Mary Alice, her teenage granddaughter, will die of embarrassment before the year is over.</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><i>Half Magic </i>by Edward Eager (1954)</span></span></div>
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I've always been a sucker for middle grade books about magic, and I discovered this one while helping my children to find AR books for school. If you were a fan of <i>The Chronicles of Narnia</i>, you might also appreciate these books about children dealing with magic by Eager and written around the same time. One boring summer, Jane and her siblings discover a magic coin that only grants <i>half</i> of a wish, but which half? As you can probably imagine, there are a lot of ways for things to go wrong. As the Amazon blurb says, "You must wish for <i>twice </i>as much as you want... What is half of twice a talking cat?" There is also <i>Seven-Day Magic</i>, <i>The Time Garden</i>, and others in the <i>Tales of Magic</i> series. </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #bf9000;"><i>Ender's Game</i> by Orson Scott Card (1985)</span></span></div>
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Lastly, although not necessarily a children's story, is <i>Ender's Game</i> by Orson Scott Card. As with most books, the movie doesn't really do it justice. I'll try to describe how I remember it. I'm not entirely sure if I have all of the details right. I believe it was originally a short story (1977) but later expanded to a novel. It was updated in 1991, which probably explains why the book feels more modern to me. The book details Ender's growth from the time he is accepted to Battle School at the age of 6. In a futuristic world where the number of children in a family is limited, the government is looking for exceptional individuals. Because Ender's older siblings were both intellectually promising but not quite right for the job, his parents were allowed to have a third. Ender's brother is too aggressive, and his sister isn't aggressive enough. In Battle School, students are separated into houses, not unlike Hogwarts, but teams battle against each other. There is hazing and bullying, and Ender must prove himself. While <i>Ender's Game</i> is not necessarily a children's book (the character continues to age, and the book talks about what becomes of his older siblings as adults), it has become a favorite for readers at this age and beyond. </div>
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I discovered all of these books as an adult and felt that they were worth keeping. Perhaps, at some point in the future, I will talk about the books I actually grew up on.</div>
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Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-71800671327781768712020-03-13T03:30:00.001-07:002021-02-15T23:28:03.866-08:00Inspiration, Part II<div style="text-align: justify;">
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On a recent YouTube video, self-published author Kristen Martin talked about <a href="https://youtu.be/iIyMgKWkCVM" target="_blank">falling back in love with life (+ writing)</a>. Since I had just written my blog post "<a href="https://bunnyrosebooks.blogspot.com/2020/02/time-and-inspiration.html" target="_blank">Time and Inspiration</a>" a couple of days earlier <span style="color: #bf9000;">(I'm writing this on February 24, and that blog post is scheduled for February 28, so we're time-traveling here)</span>, her video struck a chord in me. In that blog post, I talked about trying to organize my office/studio and placing paintings on my brand new drafting table to inspire me to get back to painting. This blog will be a reflection and response to Kristen's video, as well as a follow-up to my previous blog post.<br />
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Over the past few years, I have felt like I have been gradually slipping away from who I am/was as a person and the things that I liked about myself. Some of this was self-sabotage, and some of this was due to being around toxic people. Whatever the cause or reason, I felt like I wasn't living so much as existing. </div>
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When I was in college, I majored in art, and a few years ago, I started taking art lessons again. At the time, I felt strong. I
felt like I knew myself, and I had confidence in my abilities. Then I
changed mediums, and things quickly went sideways. I had painted with
watercolor, but my old, cheap paint had behaved differently, and my
subject matter had been different. Working with "real" materials such as expensive watercolor paper (the kind that comes in large sheets that are folded and torn into smaller sizes, not in pads or tablets) and expensive paint (a tiny set of professional grade 5 ml tubes, which is so small that it's almost like a joke, was almost $50) can be really intimidating. It's like when I buy really pretty journals, but I don't want to mess them up. I am so self-conscious about wasting materials that I lose confidence, and art comes from a place of confidence and practice. A loosely painted line may seem so casual and effortless, but you may practice making terrible lines for a year to get to the point where that single line seems effortless. So, I actually do so much better with "the cheap stuff," but the drawback is that it's made of "the cheap stuff" and isn't professional grade, archive quality. <br />
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In class, I struggled. I began to feel like a failure. The harder I tried, the worse it got, in my opinion. I felt lost, abandoned by what I had
always thought was talent. It really threw me and made me question a lot of things I
had taken for granted. I lost faith in my abilities and myself. Life has thrown a lot of curve balls my way,
calling to attention my many assumptions. So, after a year of struggling, I changed mediums again,
and things weren't exactly improving. Now I really felt screwed. This
wasn't good.<br />
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Not to mention, why wasn't I getting the same sense of
motivation and inspiration out of my adult class that I had felt in the
art department back in college? Was that excitement and creative high
something I would never feel again? Why was I depressed when I had been so excited on my first day back in art that I was trembling while trying to measure and cut a piece of pastel paper? I liked many of the people in my art class, so I wasn't sure why I wasn't feeling motivated by it.<br />
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Underneath all that were bigger questions. Were joy and freedom gone forever? Would I ever feel happy again? Why did excitement only seem tied to fleeting moments and things you later learned to stop believing?<br />
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I really felt so incredibly frustrated. I am not sure there are words to explain how at odds I felt with myself, my life, the things I had taken for granted, the things I had thought were true about life and about myself. <br />
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For months I struggled. I kept trying, but I was losing my joy in what I actually loved doing. I was tempted to compare myself to others. When people complimented my work, I didn't believe them. If I had been looking at someone else's art and thought it was pitiful, I would be really bad at pretending it's good. I just assumed that these people were better liars than I was.<br />
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So, I knew that there was only one thing wrong with my art. Me. Maybe it wasn't talent or ability, but where my head was at. I was getting fairly sick of myself, and I knew I needed to fix this... whatever... and get back to my happy place. At this point, I examine where I'm at, what isn't working, what I want, what I don't want. A lot of things I think of as problems aren't really that serious. It's mostly my attitude which colors absolutely everything. I really don't think that there's a tangible reason I feel this way. But the only way I know to turn it around is to focus on what I want and to start working on the things I like to do. Chiefly, writing and art.<br />
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There are many more things, but these two are the ones that always float on the surface of everything else. I had been so focused on "serious art" that I had lost the joy of it. And I had been telling myself for two and a half years that I was going to fix up my office/studio. It was actually just a second bedroom that was being used for storage, and I couldn't bear to open the door and look upon the horrible mess. I only have one and a half closets. The half closet is full of Christmas stuff, and the other holds my clothes and shoes. There is no walk-in closet. For two and a half years, I had been telling myself, "But..." "But I need..." "But, first..." And I was but-tired.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZP8us6SlHXp6DwV8Ejbf5MhkpyrVdDFncS-Pitlf1ngnhz7Pw6JszGpVbnkmiNF8lUJBXqzM4WbDHwRMNYVv_AO8ibuP3FLfc04y5WcvOSdIohBU2gWkQBScLZjJHM3WEvQvVSunXOHQ/s1600/20200308paint3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZP8us6SlHXp6DwV8Ejbf5MhkpyrVdDFncS-Pitlf1ngnhz7Pw6JszGpVbnkmiNF8lUJBXqzM4WbDHwRMNYVv_AO8ibuP3FLfc04y5WcvOSdIohBU2gWkQBScLZjJHM3WEvQvVSunXOHQ/s640/20200308paint3.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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So, I had been shopping around for a couch but couldn't make up my mind. I was about to click order on one that looked really nice when I saw the video that showed just how short it was. Either the girl was an Amazon, or that was a short couch. I hesitated, and, at the last minute, I decided not to order a couch but to order a desk and drafting table. It was impulsive, and that's something that was once true about me as a teenager. The older I got, the less spontaneous I was, the more I did the same thing over and over, and the less I trusted new things. Ordering the desk and drafting table felt like the perfect thing to do. I knew how much it meant to me, my creativity, and my sanity.</div>
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Two days later, the desk arrived, and then the drafting table arrived. It was a challenge to get them in the apartment (they left the 92-pound box on the front steps of the building), but putting them together was actually pretty simple. Then I spent days moving bookcases and books and other furniture. Although it was tiring, it felt good and right. This little project eventually began spilling over into other rooms. I rearranged furniture in those rooms, too. The whole place is looking better, and that makes me feel better.</div>
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In the aforementioned previous blog post, I said that I still had not initiated the drafting table but had placed some paintings on the drafting table to inspire me. It must have worked, because my first thought the next morning was that I was going to paint that day.</div>
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And I did. Ignoring the "real" art materials readily available, I used my relatively cheap paper and the $5.99 paint from Michael's. It was liberating. Throughout this blog post are pictures of my work in progress. I'm still puttering around, but I'm having fun.</div>
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Kristen's post about making changes and falling back in love with life really struck a chord because this is what I had been dealing with. There is a bucket list of things I've been putting off for one reason or another. Sure, I can't do everything all at once, and I may not can do some things right now, but I can make a plan and work toward those things.</div>
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It's not really a bad thing to not be able to do everything all at once. Sometimes, it's good to be forced to make decisions, prioritize, and give myself more time to think about future decisions. And it's all about the process, too, right? </div>
Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4303327571096791323.post-76336573871466111872020-03-06T01:30:00.000-08:002020-03-06T01:30:18.009-08:00The Binge Review, Ep. 2: Netflix and Books<div style="text-align: justify;">
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I thought I would talk about a few things I've watched on TV and read lately. In case you wonder, I'm writing this about two weeks in advance of posting.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Witcher</b> </span></div>
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It has probably been more than a month since I watched "The Witcher" on Netflix. I had been saving it to give myself something to look forward to and fill that post-Christmas void. I loved it. It's more magical and funnier than "Game of Thrones" but seems to satisfy the same need, if that makes any sense to you. Don't quote me on this, but I am thinking that the series might be inspired by a video game that was inspired by the books. I think. </div>
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The character of the Witcher--a magically mutated being whose sole purpose appears to be to defeat monsters--could have easily become some generic, stiff, concept character with no personality if played by the wrong actor, but it is executed very well. The story is told at different points in time, all leading up to when a princess finds the Witcher, a moment that is foretold to be their destiny. I've been told that it's easy to get lost, and they do mention that years have passed at certain points, but it's still not clear which scenes are in chronological order and which aren't, except for the major clues where someone is now alive who was dead earlier. In the story, a pesky bard decides to befriend the Witcher, who prefers to work alone, and this unwelcome union provides some humor and a soundtrack, some of it a tad anachronistic as it morphs from lute to electric guitar, but definitely a hit with fans since there are so many singers on YouTube doing covers of it. Along the same vein of "Outlander" and "Game of Thrones," this series includes adult material. I hope Netflix keeps "The Witcher" coming, and I can't wait for Season Two. <span style="color: #bf9000;"><b>Add this one to my growing list of Netflix shows where I'm waiting for the next season. 😸</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Horse Girl</b></span></div>
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I also watched the movie <i>Horse Girl</i>, which was about a craft store employee who is concerned that she may be dealing with the same sort of mental health issues that plagued her grandmother. She has a series of strange dreams where she wakes up next to strangers—people she later encounters in real life. The big question is whether the main character is completely unhinged or the victim of the paranormal. SNL alumni Molly Shannon plays a supporting role. Although the movie was quirky and interesting, I did get a bit lost near the end. Although I understood the main idea, I wasn't sure if everything either just wasn't handled neatly or if I had missed some connection. I thought the movie might pair better with wine, like <i>Velvet Buzzsaw. </i>If you watch it, let me know if everything made sense to you. As for my overall opinion, it was compelling enough to keep my interest, but has a very low-key, independent feel to it. If superheros and intense action movies are your thing, this one is probably not for you.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">October Faction </span></b></div>
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I tried to watch "October Faction" on Netflix, but I only watched the first episode before losing interest. The show clearly has a lot of potential, an interesting concept, a nice setting, and good main characters. However, I felt that the focus on political/social issues actually took over the story. <br />
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Think of the social/political message as the medicine you have to give your dog. You may have to be a little more sneaky than wrapping it up in a ball of ground beef, and you sure can't make him willingly swallow it without burying it in something. Or, think of the message as the bill that Congress gets passed by burying it deep inside an omnibus bill. It's the difference between a subliminal message to buy popcorn being displayed in a movie theater and a concession stand worker putting a gun to your head. You hear him cock the trigger, and he says, "You're thinking about buying popcorn right now." This movie was the latter of those two scenarios. <br />
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So, I wanted to like October Faction. It had good characters and a nice atmosphere. I heard this was based on a comic or something. Obviously, I haven't read it, so I don't have anything to compare this to. I just felt like they wrote a monster movie, but they're really using it to talk about politics. Most good writers don't explain their metaphors within the same work. Anyway, I am worried that the rest of the series is going to be more of the same.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Locke & Key</span></b></div>
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I also went through all of Netflix's new series "Locke & Key," which is based on a graphic novel by Joe Hill, son of Stephen King. I took a peek at the preview of the graphic novel, which doesn't have the same appeal for me, and the preview ended prior to the tragic or magical part that compels you to read or watch more. It seems that Netflix made a few changes and did a really good job with it. The premise of the story is that, having recently lost their father due to an act of senseless violence, three siblings and their mother (last name being Locke) move across country to his father's family home, known as Keyhouse. The siblings are two moody teenagers and a younger, playful, and spunky boy, although I'm not sure how old he is. Either elementary or very early middle school. The age of the main characters suggests that this is a family show, but the subject of drugs, sex, and alcohol probably indicates older children. Most of the drugs and sex references are in the first episode or so, and it is told that the mother is a recovering alcoholic. That being said, I'm sure that most of this is the same sort of material that might have been thrown into Steven Spielberg movies back in the 80s. It's difficult to put an age on because some parents might have had certain convos much earlier where other parents are waiting until the next life to start that. But I digress.... All that being said, all of the characters, with the exception of the villain(s), are actually likeable characters, and the magic provided by the keys is unique and fun. My main criticism of the show is in the storytelling... Why is it that people are conveniently disinterested in something truly magical JUST TO FURTHER A PLOT and make a really awkward situation? Why don't they ask questions? There were a couple of times when I'd have definitely said, "I need to try that," but the subject was conveniently dropped. Aside from ignoring magic in a way that makes no sense but furthers a plot, it was a good show, good enough that I watched all of the episodes as fast as I could and still be able to wake up the next day. The idea of magical keys reminds me of one of my own projects (maybe more on that in the future) and another book series.</div>
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Which brings me to what I'm reading now....<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">100 Cupboards </span></b></div>
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Watching "Locke & Key" reminded me of <i>100 Cupboards, </i>which is a middle-grade contemporary fantasy. I love middle-grade books because that's when I really discovered the joy of reading and writing. I happen to have Books 1-3 of the series, but I have only read the first one. Although I remembered different details about the story, I couldn't remember exactly how it went, so I am rereading it. The premise is that a boy spending the summer with his aunt and uncle on a farm in Kansas discovers a wall of tiny cupboards that lead to other places. One cupboard is a P.O. Box somewhere (maybe this universe, maybe a different world), and putting your hand through a certain cupboard will make it come out of the one directly above it. Some of them seem harmless, and some seem evil. What I like about this book so far is the vulnerable humor. The main character has lived a sheltered life, a bit too sheltered, and the difference between how he has been taught to do things and how others appear to have been taught makes him feel weird and alone. His aunt and uncle don't seem to over-parent, and his uncle doesn't even ask questions when he find the boy asleep on the ground outside next to a pile of plaster that he has chipped off of his bedroom wall to reveal the cupboards. The uncle is well-written in a way that makes him lovable and loving. He's optimistic, resilient, and looks at twists of fate with a sense of humor.<br />
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The characterization of the uncle reminded me of Grandma Dowdel in Newbery Award winner <i>A Year Down Yonder</i> by Richard Peck (hilarious if you've never read it), and <i>Missing May, </i>another Newbery winner<i> </i>by Cynthia Rylant that addressed a relationship between a young girl and her aging relatives with a raw, simple beauty. When I read <i>A Year Down Yonder</i>, the main character reminded me so much of my mother and the type of life she had lived that I told her to read it. She loved it and ended up reading bits of it to a woman while she was getting her chemo treatment. Really good books seem to take on a life of their own.</div>
Bunny Rose Bookshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569707650255671022noreply@blogger.com0