More Random Thoughts of an Exhausted Writer

Why does garlic taste so good but smell so bad?

I don’t care that the Daily Show made fun of it, the post office ads are kinda right: hand-written letters are pretty much amazing. (Much loff to the Tank!)

I’m trying to decide if I’m an introvert or an extrovert. Maybe I’m a freaky combination of BOTH. I AM ROVERT-ENSTEIN!

But I’m not sure it’s important either way.

We’re officially at the point in Japan where my fingers are only warm when I’m in horrendously overheated supermarkets. This is not conducive to working on books.

However, hot soup on a freezing day is like heaven.

I don’t understand how hair waves naturally. Doesn’t hair come from dead cells? Or is that fingernails? I know it’s dust, definitely.

WHAT IF WHAT IF the next cat you saw stared at you for FIVE MINUTES. Do you think it’d be Professor McGonnagal?

I’d like to see the viewing statistics on the State of the Union address. Also, when was the last time a President said the State of the Union is not-so-very good chums, sorry? Probably not since television. Which is why I kinda appreciated the Republican rebuttal, in a “Wow, you’re depressing me” way.

Today I stayed at school until 7pm (a little over two hours past the end of my workday). I told the teachers it was because I had a lot of work, which is true, though usually I do that work at home or at the Culture Hall. Mostly I stayed two hours past school because I don’t have to pay for the heating when I’m there.

I’m tempted to fall asleep under my kotatsu. Can’t spread out that far. Decisions, decisions.

No, SERIOUSLY, my hands are so crazy cold.

Gonna make meat pies this weekend. Pretty excited about it.

I have no idea how to make meat pies. I assume I grill up some meat with some veggies/potatoes and stick it in a calzone-esque pie crust? No?

I guess I could google it.

I’m trying to decide if ALBATROSS needs beta readers. The problem is two-fold. 1) I hoped to send this to Agent Sara in the beginning of February, which means I’d need it read in a week, which is just not gonna work for most folks. 2) I hope beta readers say, “YEAH, THIS IS FABULOUS YOU ARE FAB 2, 4 SHO.” Which means they’ll actually say “…it still needs work,” and this will be my face:

Ah, Arrested Development. I look forward to being disappointed by your movie.

But of course I’ll fix things. That’s not the point.

The point is, I’m cold right now. And I’m a sleepy bear ’cause it’s past my bedtime.

Maybe I should just take a day off from editing? Right! BACK TO STUDYING.

I’VE GOT IT. I’ll send it to my mom? No. I think she’s busy. Hum.

Anywho.

Gads, I want to eat the chocolate orange on my kotatsu, but I already brushed my teeth for the night. Gosh, my life is hard.

Any random thoughts, Minions? Some things that have been stumping you lately? I taught my students why the sky is blue this week. It’s fun trying to explain physics in English to folks who don’t really speak English. Maybe it worked?

Serious <3

“…in Iran, we think democracy means comfort, when in fact freedom means having to bear responsibility, which is difficult.”
-Farhadi, director of the Iranian film, A Separation

I spent most of today doing nothing (i.e., watching YouTube videos of kittens) because of some serious study burn-out, then after the usual Friday Night Hangout with the other foreign English teachers on the island, I sat down to read this week’s issue of the Christian Science Monitor.

Holy gad zooks.

1. I want to see this movie.
2. I want to learn more about the escalating aggressive relations between Iran and the US, because that is some scary shizz, and,
3. DEMOCRACY LOVE.

It’s like my favorite quote from The American President. “America isn’t easy. America is advanced citizenship. You gotta want it bad, ’cause it’s gonna put up a fight.” But better because it comes from the citizen of a country that is constantly derided by Americans for being anti-democratic.

And now I’m SO PUMPED to study again.

How’re your weekends looking, minions? Has anyone seen or heard of this movie? It was up for an award at the Golden Globes.

U.S.A.

“We may be beaten by the English;
it is the chance of war;
but behold an army which they can never conquer.”

-George Washington

Officially taking the foreign service officer exam in February. Time to get my study on.

On the Delight of Family and Ovens

I’ve been back in America for about two weeks now. Less than one week before I return to Japan. This is hard for me to believe. The time has flown by…but that’s probably because, as most folks who return home after a long sojourn abroad know, you pretty much want to do everything you can’t do while in your expated country.

For me, the first one was baking.

My mother was shocked that I could decorate cookies like this. Makes me wonder what the last ones she saw looked like.

2012 Resolutions: If you don’t make ‘em, you can’t break ‘em.

Last year, I made a huge, GINORMOUS list of resolutions. And despite failing on a number of them, it worked out pretty well. (Highlights? I got an agent, raised nearly $7000 for charity: water, and finished one book. But I didn’t exercise often enough, nor read a book a week, and I forgot completely about entering a photo contest. HAHAHAH. )

This year I’ve decided to simplify things.

2012 NEW YEAR RESOLUTIONS

I will be having bubbly whilst watching BoB live this year.

1. Having realized that I am a one-book-a-year gal, I will write, and polish, a new novel.
2. Because I want to be financially solvent, I will pay off my student loans. Completely. That includes the Perkins, dag nabbit.
3. Also related to the above, I will put at least $100 each months into savings, barring some type of actual emergency.
4. I will take the foreign service exam.
5. As last year, I will donate at least $25 a month to charity: water or another charity, should circumstances warrant,
6. and I will also host a clearer, more organized, and more awesomer Crits for Water.
7. In the interest of both exercise and using something I spent a fair deal of money on, I will ride my bike at least every Saturday morning, when I am at home.
8. I will read at least 50 books.
9. I will make a concerted effort to stay connected to my friends, say, by emailing at least once a week, because they rock my socks off.
10. I will survive the 2012 Apocalypse. HUZZAH.

All right, minions, what do you think? Any advice? Also: if you participated in Crits for Water 2011, do you have any suggestions or ideas on how to improve it? Feel like sharing any of your resolutions? If you made a blog post, just add a link and I’ll put it at the top of this post. MUTUAL SHARING = ACCOUNTABILITY. …right?