Some thoughts at random:
- I read the headline “Quakes kill at least three on Indonesian island” too quickly, and I thought, “But the Quakers have always been a nonviolent people.” And what are Quakers doing in Indonesia anyway?
- Repeal Day, the anniversary of the repeal of Prohibition in the U.S., is coming on December 5, so I’m on the hunt for some spicy ginger beer with which to make Presbyterians. If you know where can I get some in western PA, please email or leave me a comment.
- I find that music from soundtracks provides good background while I’m writing. Today I listened to the soundtrack to “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.” I didn’t feel inclined to introduce any new pirate characters, but I may set an upcoming chapter on an island. Tomorrow I will try the soundtrack to “Amadeus,” because I want some character to play piano. Or wear a white wig.
DrawMo update: Still running behind. One winning strategy at this point would be to do very simple drawings, to save time. Instead, I just spent about forty-five minutes drawing a leaf. But it’s pretty, so that’s OK. You can expect simpler drawings in the coming days though.
NaNoWriMo update: I nearly gave up today. I’m working hard, and obviously making much better progress the last few days, but the holiday weekend is just about gone and this next week will be tough. The final week of any month is the busiest for us at work. So as I looked at the little quota graph there in the sidebar, and thought about the time I’d need to find in each day this week, I felt a pang of despair.
But then I read Julie’s super-encouraging comment to yesterday’s post. How could I give up when I have the chance to be “the stuff of legend”? I must go on.
Oh my! It’s fun to see how your drawing has progressed. That leaf is beautiful!
And the Quaker tidbit is hilarious.
I would think that Quakers would be trying to score oats for the Quaker Oats’ man, but since Indonesia’s main crop is rice that doesn’t really work…
Rachel: Thanks on both counts!
Woy: Maybe the Quakers are trying to expand from oats into the puffed rice cereal market. To diversify, the better to withstand market fluctuations. Or maybe they’re tired of being the butt of jokes, and they’re sending a signal to us all.
But it’s a beautiful leaf…
Lemme ask you about this Presbyterian thing. The Wife loves a cocktail called an Amaretto Presbyterian, made with equal amounts of amaretto, tonic and ginger ale (she thinks that’s a bit too sweet, so she usually substitutes soda for the ginger ale). It’s rare to come across a bartender who’s heard of this one. Are you thinking of something similar?
Uncle Crappy, actually a traditional Presbyterian is whiskey (or bourbon, whisky, or Scotch) with ginger ale and soda. No tonic.
I can imagine that tonic and ginger ale together would be awfully sweet, but it’s interesting that your wife chose to sub in the (traditional) soda water for the ginger ale instead of the tonic. I rather think that Amaretto would go better with ginger ale than tonic too.
I’d be interested to hear if she liked the Amaretto-ginger ale-soda water variant.
Why don’t all the NANO writers ask for the month to be changed to October? November is too hard.
October just has Halloween and it’s easy to get ready for it. Just a thought.
and BYW I didn’t know you could draw. Pretty good.
This strikes me as an old image of us Presbyterians. We no longer have to get drunk to make more Presbyterians!
Uh, though come to think of it, you probably would have to get us drunk to get us out on a Saturday morning knocking on people’s doors asking “Have you found Jesus?”
Anyway, we’re pretty sure all the figures for the manger scene are still up in the attic. There’s no need to search the neighborhood.
Jennifer: The big benefit of November over October, at least for Americans, is the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. A whole lot of words hit the page during those four days.
As for the drawing, one of the revelations on making a drawing every day is discovering that you — that everyone — can draw. You should take a look at the many drawings by the others on the DrawMo site and see the variety. In any case, before November 1, 2006, when I first tried DrawMo last year, I didn’t Know I could draw either.
Rob: I thought the joke of the Presbyterian cocktail is that it is just like a traditional Highball, which is whiskey and ginger ale, but the ginger ale has been diluted with soda water. The whiskey, on the other hand, is left at full strength.
I’m considering switching from catholicism to Presbyterianism to join ELPC. My idea of a good cocktail is still whatever is on special at the bar.
I like the leaf. It’s really vibrant.
Hey Cindy! 1st time (back) to your blog this month, but am so psyched to see that you are NANO-ing again…EPIC! You can achieve greatness yet again…how many hours of PlayStation did you play the week before your thesis was turned in? See! Empirical evidence for my enthusiasm…good luck!
Miko: Did I really play Playstation when I should have been writing my thesis? I don’t remember, but that sounds exactly like what I would do, so I know it’s true.
Thanks for your confidence! I need it in this, my hour of need. Or my week of need, but it’s quickly boiling down to the last hour.
I write exclusively to soundtracks. They are the best background, and provide an epic edge when you need it. And “POTC: Curse of the Black Pearl” is totally on my Christmas wishlist!
“Batman Begins” and “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” are also excellent, depending on what flavor you’re looking for.
Great tips, Rachel! I’ve underestimated the power of soundtracks in the past I think. I’d previously meant the current novel to have more of a “High Fidelity” feel, but since I’ve listened to POTC and Amadeus they have more adventure and intrigue in them. Must think how to harness this best.
Might try a little “Fight Club” tonight, and see where that takes the characters and the plot.
The only ginger beer I’ve ever had is a spicier version of ginger ale and isn’t really beer at all. The last place I saw it was Trader Joe’s, but I’m pretty sure you could also get it somewhere like the Giant Eagle Market District or maybe even Whole Foods. It’s usually imported from Jamaica.