Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Hangover

Photo by Andif

Well, that was a fun political binge!

What's hanging over your head? Me, I sent my manuscript to my editor on September 1 and haven't heard a word yet, except from an assistant editor who claims to love it, but who won't say anything more until my editor, his boss, is ready to talk about it. Meanwhile, I started the book to follow, but I don't want to write much on it until I know whether or not it's approved to BE my next book, and I can't get that approval on it until I get approval on the manuscript that I sent to my editor on. . .

This is what passes for normal in my publishing life.

What passes for normal in your life?

32 comments:

Nancy P said...

And the wifi is still not operating. Yet another nice Time-Warner man is coming to look at it. They try to blame it on my new Mac laptop. Please. The Mac worked fine with the wireless for two months, and the other two computers, one of them a PC, have the same problem with the wifi, and suddenly it's the new computer's fault?

I should ask a Time-WArner man to marry me.

Larry Kollar said...

Ick. Is the wifi box built into your cable modem, or is it separate? One possible "fix" is to find the reset button on the back of the box — it might be recessed a little so you'll have to poke it with a toothpick — and hold it down for 10 seconds. That performs a "reset to factory defaults" on some boxes, which clears it right down to the state it was in when they got it off the truck.

What's normal in my life? Procrastinating sending out some short stories.

Anonymous said...

Not so normal for me any more - planning to fly to CA tomorrow (Thursday) for a week. Trying to get excited about it - yes, I know vacations are supposed to be fun. Just not quite in the mood. This is a "good for me" trip.

Back in a week, but will check in along the way. Good luck with the editor AND Mr. TW, Nancy!

Happy rest of the week to everyone to come.

Nicola Slade said...

I'm married to Mr Spock so when my computer makes a funny noise or spits at me, I just yell for help. Works so far...
Normal? Currently it's wailing that I only have 28k words to go and why can't I wake up and find I've written it in my sleep?
And procrastination - yes, that's the name of the game. Have received the best reason ever for not doing any work in the shape of this email just arrived:

'grandmar will you pic me up from scool 1 day? i am writing a book can you help me? i love you' (She's five! It runs in the family.)

Family Man said...

Good morning Nancy.

I've done what FAR suggested awhile back and it worked.

I'd say normal for me is getting in four naps a day. When I really want to excel I'll get six naps a day. :)

Hope everyone has a good day.

AndiF said...

I'm one-half of the second* most boring couple in the world so of course, so what passes for normal in my life is, well, normal.

Sorry for your wifi woes, Nancy.

I hope having a good time just sneaks up and gives you a big bearhug, Beth.

Morning Farf, FM, and Nicola (and hi Nicola's granddaughter).

*and who is the most boring couple everyone asks to which we answer no one knows.

Anonymous said...

Morning Andi--
Most Boring--Raising Hand.

Nancy, wifi woes.:o{

Waves to Mr. Fix-It Farf.

Beth, think fake it till you make it girl. Enjoy SF.

Nikki--the grandmother gig sounds so great.

Family Man-Naps are wasted on the young. That is what I miss during the school year.

Tremendous Thursday to All.

Maria Lima said...

Morning!

Normal is:
-- a busy, busy, busy work day at the day job, sometimes punctuated by a mandatory post-day dinner with the boss (actually, I adore my boss and my colleagues, so dinner was quite nice last night)
-- thinky, plan-y things on Book 3, which is beginning to take shape
-- thinking about promo on Book 2, the part I hate most about being a writer (I can do promo for other people, but when it comes to me, I'm not so hot at it).

Terrific Thursday, all!

Larry Kollar said...

Beth… isn't your entire life a vacation? ;-) Looking forward to hearing about your trip though!

Nicola, send your granddaughter here — we'll help her out, right??? 28K words… for Kelly, that's what, two weeks?

FM, replace "naps" with "meals" and I'd accuse you of being a hobbit.

Andi, your pix are anything *but* normal. Don't sell yourself short. If not for the constant drama all around us, I'd nominate Mrs. Fetched & myself as most boring.

Hey Lisa…

Maria, I ordered Bargain from my favorite indie bookstore last night! The peeps at the counter (one high school girl, the other an older lady) got interested and wanted to know more. I have a feeling I might get my book pre-read. :-) I didn't tell 'em you modeled for your own book covers so they wouldn't be jealous.

Working at home, time to go take some pix with a borrowed camera. We'll see how *that* goes.

Larry Kollar said...

I know the celebration was yesterday, but couldn't resist sharing this.

Anonymous said...

Thanks, andi and Lisa. I will pretend to be having fun, and hopefully it'll happen without my expecting it. Great advice, Lisa.

If this is a vacation, Farf, I want a refund. My life used to feel like a vacation - now it feels like - something else.

Have a great week, everyone. I'll check in as I can.

Jen said...

What passes for normal in my life is my firmly entrenched second class citizenship. Now it's extra constitutionally entrenched in many states, including my home state, the state I just moved from, and the state I just moved to. I am completely devastated and cannot stop crying.

Nancy P said...

If I were you, I wouldn't be able to stop crying, either, Jen. I keep thinking of California; it has taken a while for it to sink in that it was only one of several states that did this mean and bitter thing.

I read a wonderful quote today, but it made me wonder when it will be able to apply to you. It was: Rosa Parks sat in 1955. Martin Luther King walked in 1963. Barack Obama ran in 2008. That our children might fly. When do gay and lesbian children get to fly? How long do you have to endure being told to be "patient"? And worse yet, to be told that by people who claim to love you. Shudder. Who needs hate when there's love like that?

I'm distressed for all of us, not only for you.

Nancy P said...

But mostly for you, because of course you're the one who has to bear the immediate burdens.

Anonymous said...

I'm so so sorry, Jen. I thought of you as I watched the returns. And am so stunned at how cruel people can be. And incredibly stupid. Very, very stupid.

All I can offer is hugs, and the hope that one of these days folks will pull their heads out of their nether-regions and stop passing laws that hurt people. Freakin' amazing.

maryb said...

Hangover is a good way to describe this. And just like when I have a hangover I promise I'm NEVER drinking EVER again - right now I feel like I NEVER want to think about politics ever again. The idea of political blogs and blogging is just ... yuck ... right now.

But then I read what Jen wrote and realize that we can never stop being political because it touches every aspect of our lives. And we can't just sit around and hope that laws are or aren't passed, we have to stay active.

Jen said...

I've seen a paraphrase of that quote and repeated it several times already, Nancy, I think it is beautiful and it gives me a different sort of cry. Beth, thanks also for the support.

It's hard to say which thing is worse, really. In CA, existing rights that were just realized were voted away -- every single American should be hanging their head in shame over that, imo, but hardly anyone has noticed. Arkansas passed an adoption ban. Arizona and Florida both added bigotry to their state constitutions, bringing the number of states who've done so to somewhere between 26 and 30, more than half in any case. And in Florida, at least, (I haven't checked AZ yet) this was done in a fashion such as to outlaw civil union laws as well.

Nancy P said...

This "civil unions" things really gets me. What a sop they throw. Until you can marry JUST LIKE US you will never be "equal" in the eyes of society. Never. It would make me crazy, like black and white people not being able to marry each other, or women not being able to control our own property, or. . .on and on in the history of We're Morally and Every Other Way Superior to You and Don't You Forget It.

Nancy P said...

And the Bible Tells Us So.

Jen said...

Thanks so much Nancy. I know it can feel frustrating as an ally to have "mere words" but sometimes they are the only effective salve, and, just, thank you.

Anonymous said...

Jen, know there are SO many people out there who think this sucks. I hope that someday we're celebrating equal rights for EVERYONE.

Jenny Crusie sent her readers to a blog the other day (I still forget how to insert a link):

http://margaretandhelen.wordpress.com/

Helen is 82, and she has it figured out...thought you might enjoy it - or at least appreciate it.

Jen said...

Thanks {{Beth}}, for the sympathy and for the link. I will look at the latter later, and take the former offline with me now to go curl up a while. Hope you have a safe, fun trip that showers you with whatever good things you need the most right now.

Anonymous said...

Thanks, Jen. Be good to yourself. I guess time is all we can wish for anyone...hoping that it heals all ills.

Anonymous said...

Jen, Good people are good people.
That be you.
I don't put qualifiers on it.
Shame others can see beyond their fear and discomfort.

I was reading a test to one of my special ed students this morning. One of the selections was about the Japanese American Internment camps of WWII. The shame of that injustice. They also talked about how Italian Americans or German Americans weren't treated that way. If they look like us, ignore it. Hmmm.

We want to think we've made such great social strides. Hah.
I read your blog and heard about Grey's Anatomy, one of my favorite shows. I think that fear and discomfort of different snuck in there again.

Fixing selective moral blindness is tricky.
You have my vote, my support, my understanding. For what it's worth.

Kelly McCullough said...

{{{Jen}}} Nothing I can do is going to make the fact that California (and other places) voted for gross injustice any better. It hurts that people could do this to other people for the most bigoted of reasons. All I can really do is send my sympathies and condolences and keep fighting for and with you.

AndiF said...

Jen, adding my voice to all of those who offer love and support. And -- warning: rude venting to follow -- I cannot say how disgusted I am with people who not only vote to do harm to others but then congratulate themselves on their moral superiority. They should be buried up to their fucking eyeballs in flaming cesspools of malodorous shit because they don't deserve to share so much as one molecule of air with you.

Anonymous said...

Jen, that was a battle, the war is not over. And you know I will be putting on my marching shoes and shout from the mountain tops and stride into City Hall.

I am ashamed of this bigotry especially after hearin Obama say we are UNITED. This is not over. Not by a long shot.

Who else is just emotionally and physically exhausted? I am so relieved but I'm also so damn tired.

I will say one thing though, due to these past eight years I have found a strong citizen in me that I didn't know was there. My life has been simplified but for the better. I have lost some people in my life but only to hold on tightly to old friends and gain dear, friends in my life who I consider my true family. I think many of us have become stronger, better people. When or if my grandchildren read the history books or see some movie about this regime and their wars and disasters, and they ask, "what did you do once you knew?" I can look them in the eye and tell them. AND I can tell them to go ask their mother what she did because Danni ... to me... is a very heroic young citizen of this planet.

This was a historic election not just for the politicians but for many who were too young to vote but had written letters, protested, marched and asked many questions that for eight years went unanswered. They, too, were counted as they were also empowered by this blue wave. Voters weren't the only ones united and they aren't the only ones who have a lot of work ahead of them. I think it's Danni's and Wesley's generation who are the ones who can maybe feel the real HOPE and EMPOWERMENT.

Normal life? Are you kiddin' me doll? I live and breathe Abby Normal.

My love, and my exhaustion,.. to you all. And to (((((Jen)))))) I will never stop. Okay.

Conda Douglas said...

Normal for me? Being behind in my work. Why? Because I'm a creative person! And it's always been normal as my dad was an artist.

No matter how much you get done, there's always much more to do.

boran2 said...

Good luck with the manuscript, Nancy! I hope that you hear something soon.

Normal for my life is the daily 80 something mile roundtrip to and from work. Partly through the mountains. In sunshine, snow and rain. Ugh.

Nancy P said...

'Night, everybody.
Boran2, 80 miles a day? Wow.

Nancy P said...

Far, that's such a funny lolz!

Jen said...

Thanks, friends.