So I went to see Laurie Halse Anderson, Jay Asher, and Lauren Myracle on Friday at the same book store where I met Libba Bray and David Levithan. It obviously couldn't compare to that event, but it was still really awesome. The pictures I took are pretty craptastic, but I'll post some anyway.
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There's a firefly living in my room. That makes me happy.
The first time I noticed it, waking up disoriented in the middle of the night, it scared me. The room was completely dark and there was this glowing sphere moving in the room. I layed there petrified, trying to figure out what it was, for about 30 seconds. But then I figured that if it were to turn into a demon and attack me I could definitely crush it if I acted fast enough. I turned the light on and had to get really close to see that it was the tiniest bug on my wall. I felt stupid.
I noticed it again last night, and this time I just smiled and went back to sleep.
Dr. Google told me that this specific kind firefly is called a nimita around here. Nimita from a word for soul in Spanish (ánima) because some think them to be spirits. Cute.
I hope it doesn't die or go away soon. I like having it there.

I think I'm going to delete my LJ account. Mostly all I do is bitch on here; that's not very productive. Well, I'll think about it.

I finished all my papers!!! Just have to one left to revise for a portfolio, then as far as I'm concerned this semester is over. Busy work be damned.

Nothing's going on with my country boy. Kinda sad, but I've only seen him twice. Probably I will see him a little more in the coming weeks (hopefully). I got his demo last Friday so I could give it to a friend whose parents own a bar, and his songs have been perpetually stuck in my head. I wish he would get signed already so I can have more than six songs to listen to.

Any book that has to do with the creation, use, or results of Horcruxes. (Except for the Harry Potter books.)

Several months ago, Maureen Johnson http://www.maureenjohnsonbooks.com/index1.html lost a bet.
She had to face her fear of flying high on a trapeze.
Then she got swine flu and had to cancel.
But yesterday, Maureen met her fear. And her fear looked her in the eye and said, "Sucks to be you today, Maureen Johnson." Then it cracked its knuckles and said, "Boo-ya!" just for a little extra flavor. I love Maureen's fear. It's funny.

Lest you feel any pity for her, please remember that MJ made me do this at Christmas: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GRtNvvef08

Oh, I could watch this video all day long. Oh wait, I have watched this video all day long. I can feel your appendix, too, Maureen. It is screaming.

Please to enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvRoYH7T2aA

I love Junot Diaz.

I'd always loved his short stories and then, I fell in love with his novel, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. (Apparently, I wasn't the only one because it won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction last year.) But I really love him for this essay about how freaking HARD writing can be sometimes.

www.oprah.com/article/omagazine/200911-omag-junot-diaz-writing via www.robinwasserman.com/

I am trying to take his words to heart as I struggle through my new WIP which is starting to feel like a Pedro Almadovar-directed version of "Glee" meets "Lord of the Flies." (In the the immortal words of "Spinal Tap": "There's such a fine line between stupid and clever.") I feel like there is a spot on my wall that reads: Your Head Here.

Anyway, I love Junot Diaz for his honesty about how difficult writing his novel proved to be and especially for these words:

"Because, in truth, I didn't become a writer the first time I put pen to paper or when I finished my first book (easy) or second one (hard). You see, in my view a writer is a writer not because she writes well and easily, because she has amazing talent, because everything she does is golden. In my view a writer is a writer because even when there is no hope, even when nothing you do shows any sign of promise, you keep writing anyway."

Yeah. That. Thank you, Junot Diaz.
Back to it.