Joey, don't ever call me on that phone

Today's pet peeve is brought to you by the Men's Room. It bothers me to have people talking on cell phones while using the bathroom - I'd rather have quiet time than loud distractions. At home, there's a lock on the door for a reason!

Also, it seems disrespectful to the person on the other end, they know where you are - there are flushing sounds (and maybe worse) No one should be subjected to that.

Yesterday, a guy was in a stall, talking to his SO and arguing with her, trying to tell her that this girl he had a project with wasn't the girl the SO thought she was. Since he used a last name, I know exactly who the one girl is and I have a pretty good idea who the girlfriend thought it was (and she's right to worry about him working with her after hours) I don't want to know this! And certainly not in the bathroom!

Use your cellphone for private things, like instant messaging and Tiny Tower.

For some statistical fun with men's urinals, read here:

xkcd on optimal urinal choice

Excited utterance

I wonder how many people respond to this prompt with "I'm excited to be done with this 30 day blog challenge!"

I'm excited about writing again. I'm making small strides forward, but it's some progress as opposed to none. Yesterday, I expanded my original scene by around 300 words and I've set the stage for the next scene, which I'll start writing tonight. Should be exciting - the hero gets tested!

I'm also excited to get a new disc in the mail, probably by Friday.

Weird Wider Wired Idrew

5 Weird Things That I Like

1. When I play an online game like World of Warcraft, I like to play a female character. I think it's more fun. 
2. I like to make anagrams out of words when I get bored. However, names are usually too much to play with. For those, I use the Internet Anagram Server.
3. Rap Music. Most people who say they like all kinds of music usually put a disclaimer (except Rap, or, cRap, the C is silent, etc.) For me, it has to either be fun and jaunty (like Will Smith) or have really catchy lyrics (Eminem, Run DMC) I tend to like old-school back before it was all about gangsta life and how rich I am and all that. 
4. MUDding, a text-only online game (where my main character is not female, ha!) Been doing it off and on for over 20 years. 
5. Wendy's Macaroni and Cheese. I am totally addicted!

5 Weird Things that I don't like, but everyone else does

1. Ranch dressing. Oddly, I do like what they're calling Southwest dressing, a mix of Ranch Dressing and salsa. Go figure.
2. Cheesecake. Again, I like Key Lime Pie, but not cheesecake. (It's different! Somehow.)
3. Sweet Potatoes. I don't know why. I try some every couple of years, still don't like it.
4. Tall Roller Coasters. 'Nuff said.
5. The smell of coffee 

Writing Update: 473 words yesterday. Rolling along.

A nice place to visit

If I were going to move to a new city, I'd prefer a warmer climate. I could easily imagine living in Texas. The people are very pleasant and there's some good eatin' too. I could also imagine living in Arizona, although it's a bit more desert-y than I like. I do have a fond memory of picking grapefruit off a tree in January there, though.
I'm not big on travel, but I suspect it's because of the transportation hassles. Air travel is more convenient but a bother. Driving in a new place can also be stressful. (GPS navigation is a must!)
Places I'd like to visit, either for the first time, or again:

Portland, OR




It's really an interesting culture there. Lots of people with dogs, bicycles. Powell's Books. Burgerville. The Rose Garden. Yeah, I'd like to go back.


Venice, Italy

I spent some of my early years living in Cocoa Beach, FL. The house I was living in backed up to a canal, with small boats often there. I remember fishing off of a dock in the backyard. I'm sure it has impacted my desire to visit a city where EVERYONE has a canal. It just sounds so awesome to boat down the "street" instead of drive.

Australia

I've always wanted to visit Australia, but I have to admit, I was recently influenced by a House Hunters International that showed off some beautiful beaches. Oh yeah, I'm there. *********************************


Writing update: +276 words for the weekend. Added an interlude that I'd been thinking about, not sure whether I'll end up keeping it in the end product.

Quoth the Page man : Evermore!

This is an easy one : a quote I try to live by: "Nothing ever goes as planned" -- Styx, song of same title You can make all the plans you want, try to cover every expected outcome and something will always happen to throw a wrench into it. You may still achieve the original goal, but it will probably not happen the way you wanted it to. Life is chaos. With some providence and effort, you can impose some amount of control on the chaos of your own life. You can't really maintain the closed system of yourself without going way off the grid. It's ok, though. I don't think humans are meant to be solitary creatures. Some people actually seem to enjoy the spontaneity of interacting with other people. Like, you open your door and find a bottle of your favorite juice, or you get back to your desk at work and someone has left you a chocolate and a note of appreciation. These are better than waking up, bleary-eyed, and stepping in cat vomit.

Kickstart Writing Month

I'm ignoring the suggested topic for today because it looks depressing. Instead, I'm announcing my participation in Julie Bellon's writing month.

Here's her page for the first day:

Julie Bellon's Writing Month June 2012



My goal is 30 minutes of writing a day, 6 days a week.

I've reviewed my WIP and I'm at around 4600 words, maybe 25 pages. Let's see where I'm at when we get to the end of the month. Hopefully more than 5000 words! (no, I did the math correctly there)

I'll include a word count at the end of my blogs for the rest of the 30-day challenge, and maybe comment on my writing challenges for the rest of the month.