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Author Archives: margaritagakis
It’s that Time of Year Again….
Father’s Day ads popping up all over.
Le Sigh.
I mean, it’s not like I don’t think of Dad at other times of the year – his birthday, Christmas, or just random times throughout the year [usually right after Jenge has done something very dad-like]. But Father’s day still kind of sticks out. And it’s not like we really celebrated it hugely when he was alive, but after he died, it really became not so much Father’s Day as HEY HERE IS A BIG DAY DEDICATED TO YOU NOTICING YOUR DAD IS DEAD.
Only they don’t make a card that says that.
I guess I get the most bummed out on how much I feel like he missed. Or rather, how much I’ve missed not having him here. I do believe in an afterlife and I have this notion that he’s kept up with us all, but I feel bummed out and cheated on behalf of ME not getting to have him around.
The family that doesn’t really fight together?
My sister and I consider ourselves pretty funny. Okay, we consider ourselves REALLY funny. We sometimes joke that we should have our own reality show – the problem is, it would be 98% complete and utter boredom rounded off with 2% comedic brilliance.
We don’t exactly DO a lot of stuff.
And when those WACKY shenanigans DO happen, we’re sometimes too dry and nonplussed for what would be considered DRAMATIC REALITY TV. We also don’t really fight with each other. Or rather, if we do fight, it’s a cold war – everyone knows there are nukes, but no one is quite willing to be the one to set them off.
But mostly, we just get along. Even when things go pear-shaped
Take for example my burned fingers on Tuesday of last week. I burned them BADLY on the lawnmower. If this was a reality show, there would have been TEARS. AUDIBLE SOBBING. FRANTIC TRIP TO THE ER. TENSE MUSIC. EMOTIONAL UPHEAVAL. WOULD I EVER PLAY THE CELLO AGAIN???? WHAT ABOUT MY WRITING CAREER? WOULD I NEVER BE ABLE TO GET A MEDICAL DEGREE AND JOIN DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS???
What happened instead was, I ran for the cold water, soaked it and then decided this was not helping Jenge mow the lawn, so I held a cold piece of rock-gravel against the burn while we finished mowing the lawn. Okay Jenge did the mowing. I watched and offered moral support, frantically dashing to get another rock when the one was holding wasn’t cold enough anymore. But I did help empty the bag! with my one good hand! We’d already started the lawn! It needed to be done! The next day was garbage day and I wanted to get that grass in there!.
Then we had a lackluster trip to the Shoppers Drug Mart for First Aid supplies [What about this one? No, I think that’s for sunburns. This one? Well, I think that’s just the no-name brand of this. Should we ask the pharmacist? IDK, that seems like a long line) and only when THAT didn’t to work, did we go to the Urgent Care center. Which is ANYTHING BUT URGENT. It was, like, 3 hrs of my sis and I sitting there on our phones for me to finally get called into the back and then for a nurse to finally say all they were going to do was put polysporin on it and send me home (REALLY WISH THEY’D SAID THAT WHEN I CHECKED IN). And then I STILL didn’t see a doctor! Actually that’s not true. One came in and said, “What have we here?” and I said “Burned fingers” and he said, “Are you Shelly?” and I said “No” and he left and I never saw another doctor again. After 3 hrs and then hearing the nurse say they would just bandage it and put poly on it, I checked myself out and had to sign an AMA [Against Medical Advice] form.
Then we went out to Jenge’s car and CLICK CLICK SPUTTER.
Again, in reality TV land, the car not starting at 10.30 at night after 3 hrs at Urgent care would be met with SHOUTING. CRIES OF OUTRAGE. SHOCKED FACES. WOULD WE NOT MAKE IT TO THE RANSOM DROP IN TIME? WAS SOMETHING RIGGED TO OUR CAR TO EXPLODE?
We turned and looked at each other. I shrugged. Jenge turned the key again and then she shrugged. She pushed the button on her radio. I pushed the button on the radio. She said, “I’ve been good to this car. Dammit. I took it for all it’s service appointments. I JUST GOT THE LETTER TODAY THAT SAID IT WAS PAID OFF.”
Me: Like, today-today?
Jenge: Like at 4pm today. I just opened it and was all happy it was finally paid off. It’s still sitting on the table. Figures. BASTARDS.
Me: That’s shitty. [clutches gauze to my fingertips – they still aren’t bandaged because I was going to do that AT HOME]
Jenge: [presses overhead light that won’t turn off now]: ugh. Do you have AMA?”
ME: [presses same light that jenge just pressed] No but I can sign you up online right now.
Jenge: Yeah.
Me: Well, we’ll call Darren [our bro in law], I guess.
Jenge: [shrugged again]: “Yeah. I guess so.”
So we called him. And he came out. There was no hollering. No shouting. No, “YOU BETTER GET HERE AND HELP US.” No GNASHING OF TEETH. The conversation was sorta like
Me: Um, Darren? You up?
Darren: Yeah, what’s up?
ME: We’re at the urgent care center and Jenge’s car won’t start. Can you come down?
Darren: Yep.
Me: We’re not sure what it is. Maybe we just need a boost. OR should we call AMA?
Darren: I’ll come down and take a look and then we’ll see. Be about ten minutes.
Me: Thanks, man.
Pretty anticlimactic.
So maybe we DON’T deserve our own reality show. At least, not on network TV. PBS? Can you only get a reality show if you fight desperately and meanly with your family?
Stupid is as stupid does
So. A night spent at the urgent care centre when nothing really seems urgent.
I burnt two of my fingertips bad. Real bad. Bad enough that I had to cancel cello. And yes your fingertips are full of all kinds of nerve endings so it hurts like a mofo.
It happened on the lawn mower. Ugh. I just feel dumb. This is three hours of my life down the drain waiting for someone to check if I need a tetanus shot.
Le sigh.
Jane Eyre Readalong – Jane as a child
As I mentioned in my previous post, I quite often forget the beginning of Jane Eyre when she is a child, focusing mostly on her time at Thornfield when I think about the book.
However, the beginning of the book, as told from Jane’s younger self, is very powerful. I think we get a better sense of Jane and her surroundings because of her youth. Maybe it’s because we assume children are more truthful, or lack the artifice and intelligence to dupe us. But there is definitely something more tangible about how Jane suffers emotionally and physically during her life with the Reeds. In particular, I was struck by this sentence:
“For me, the watches of that long night passed in ghastly wakefulness; strained by dread: such dread as children only can feel.”
That sentence really stuck with me. I regularly have nightmares and always have and while there are some from my adult dreaming life that scare the crap out of me, I don’t know that any of them have stuck with me as much as those from my childhood. There was something different about being afraid as a child – maybe it’s because you’re smaller and less able to protect yourself and lack the reasoning that’s often required to pull you out of your fright.
Jane Eyre – Readalong!
Gentle Reader, I have started reading Jane Eyre again.
Jane Eyre was, is and will always be my favorite book. I love it. I love reading it, I love thinking about it, I love to stare at it. I love to own a paper copy and an e-copy. I even own a copy in French. I don’t know why. I just… had to have it. I thought I would blog about it as I read it, and I invite anyone that wishes to do the same to join me.
Though I’ve read it many times, I’m always surprised when I start reading it again that I’ve forgotten exactly where it begins. I suppose I expect it to begin sometime at Lowood, the school where Jane is sent. But of course, the narrative starts before that so we can see Jane’s life living with her aunt, Mrs. Reed. We learn so much about Jane’s surroundings from this introduction. Her isolation, her fiery spirit and the constant onslaught of abuse from her cousin. I’m immediately sympathetic to Jane from this beginning. I think the thing that hits me the hardest is how matter-of-fact the entire set of characters seems to be about Jane’s treatment. The servants and the family think this is all fine and acceptable and that leaves me, as the reader, wanting to rally even more FOR Jane.
Reading this book again is always like coming home after a long day, putting on my most warm and comforting sweater and curling up in a corner next to a window. Outside there is a grey sky and I’m warm and safe, with a hot cup of coffee. That’s the feeling this book gives me.
If you’ve never read Jane Eyre, I cannot recommend it enough. If you HAVE read it, I invite you to join me and read it again!
Calgary Comic Expo!
Today I’m off to the Calgary Comic Expo. I’ll be attending with my bro-in-law and my nephews. For those of you that may be in attendance, here are some thoughts:
Don’t be a Dick! – People cosplay for fun! for their OWN fun and the fun of their friends. Some people are HELLA good at it. Some aren’t. But everyone is there for FUN. Don’t be a dick.
I repeat, don’t be a dick – a lot of cosplay costumes may be skimpy. Most [if not all] female cosplayers AREN’T DOING IT FOR YOU. They’re doing it because they like to dress up. and LET’S BE REAL – the cos play options for women has a lot of issues. A lot of female character costumes are ridiculous. Don’t be a dick and sexually harass someone who’s there to enjoy their time.
RULE 63 – – an internet adage which states that for every fictional character, there exists an opposite-gender counterpart. WHAT IT MEANS FOR YOU – it means you may see Female!Batman, NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH BATGIRL. Female!IronMan, Female!Hulk [again, not to be confused with she!hulk]. Not to be confused with RULE 34, which, let’s face it is probably the most real rule out there.
Stay hydrated – the cement floors will SUCK THE MOISTURE from your body. That and you’ll be walking around and probably forget to stop and drink. Stay Hydrated folks!
Don’t go broke! – ZOMG so much SHINY. So many things you must own! Stay frosty, kids, stay frosty and save your pennies only for the best!
Have Fun out there!
My Writing Process!
Hello lovelies!
Bill Blume, a fellow author at Fable Press, has tagged me as part of a blog tour for various authors to talk about, you guessed it, Our Writing process. As part of the tour, I’ll answer four questions, and then tag three other authors I know to do the same.
What questions? I’M SO GLAD YOU ASKED!
1. What am I working on?
2. How does my work differ from others of its genre?
3. Why do I write what I do?
4. How does my writing process work?
SO! Let’s get down to business!
1. What am I working on?
I’ve just turned in the Final-Final draft of book two of my Covencraft series, titled Counter-Hex. I’m currently plotting out book 3 in the series, which I tentatively have a title for but don’t know if I’m willing to share it yet! I’m also working on a Fanfic that’s a WIP – work in progress, meaning I’m posting it as I go. this has been a REAL change for me as I normally don’t post stuff until it’s finished. It’s a little scary putting stuff out there and having it just be… there – unable to change it as I go along! I also just finished a short story for Jade and Paris [from Covencraft] and am plotting out another short story, possibly set in the same world but about a different character, Yvonne. She can raise the dead. It’s not as cool as it sounds.
2. How does my work differ from others of its genre?
This one’s tough because I like a lot of works in my genre and I don’t want to sound like I’m speaking badly of them. I have noticed that in a lot of books in my genre [urban fantasy] there can be real division from the female lead from other female characters, as though the female protagonist has to bring herself up by putting other women down (she gets noted as not being like ‘other’ women, or is only surrounded by men). There also seems to be a lack of women in strong roles AROUND the heroine. I’m hoping that in my work, I bring a more balanced gender representation. Jade has friends of both sexes, and interacts with men and women. In my short story, about Jade meeting the Werewolves, I specifically made my Alpha werewolf a woman because I hadn’t personally read that before! I also hope that I bring my own quirky sense of humor to my work!
3. Why do I write what I do?
You know, writing can be a lonely business. I write what I do because I like it. I write the story I want to tell and I want to read. I try to please myself first. That way if everyone else hates it, at least I can guarantee one person is happy – ME! I also like playing around and making up new and interesting rules or mashing up genres. Urban Fantasy has a lot of leeway to play with and so I feel very free and open to bust in and have at it.
4. How does my writing process work?
I usually keep a notebook in my purse – just a small Moleskine thing that’s light and doesn’t add too much bulk. I make notes as I think of things – scenes, snippets of dialogue, that sort of thing. Then I actually found a 10 step outline that I really like and lately, I’ve been trying to stick to it! The outline is actually how to write a one page synopsis – I found it while trying to do exactly what the title says for Trial by Fire! I was pretty happy to find out, I’d followed the outline without knowing it. For book 2, Counter-Hex, I stuck to it and found it really kept me focused. Then, in my notebook, I journal things that I’m having a hard time with – Plot holes, character development, reasoning. I find if I just sit there and ‘think’ about it, I don’t really get it done. But if I write it out, journal style, I usually come up with a solution! I try to know how the book ends before I start. I may not know how I get there, but I at least know the destination. I also try to have one or two sentences be my ‘focus’ – my answer to “What is this book about?” and I also try to have a solid idea of where my characters are coming from emotionally. That may not always come across in the book, but I feel that knowing it helps me drive it. In Trial by Fire I knew the focus was Jade finding out about her power and wondering if she belonged. At the same time, Paris was learning more about his own past and his Coven [by finding out that someone wanted to steal Jade’s power]. So I saw their ‘arc’s as almost intersecting but opposite – She’s learning about the Coven and deciding if she should join. He’s learning about the Coven and not liking what he finds out. In book two, Counter-Hex, there will be a continuation of that. Jade continues to learn about the Coven and her feelings of belonging [or not] are being fleshed out. Paris is learning there’s more to being a witch than he thought.
And now! Some authors to tag!
First, I’m tagging Tereasa Maillie. Tereasa and I used to work together [some days, could we REALLY call it working, T? lol] and she has a real passion for history and writing! She’s written several plays, most notably an adaption of Jane Austen’s Emma that was put on by Gas and Light Production here in Calgary, and I believe she also did an adaptation of Lady Windermere’s Fan!
Gas and Light Productions
Next! I’m tagging Laurie Lyons, author of the Feather Trilogy.
 Laurie Lyons |
 Book 1 in the Feather Trilogy |
Laurie and I have known each other since high-school [we won’t say how long ago that was!] and used to write longhand in scribblers/notebooks and swap stories. Now we meet up for coffee with our laptops and try to help each other push through the ugly bits of writing – usually edits! The last book of the Feather trilogy, Faith, was just released, so if you’re the type that likes to read all the books of a series all at once, you’re in luck!
And! I’m tagging Sarah Madison, author of numerous works, but most recently, The Boys of Summer.
 Sarah Madison |
 The Boys of Summer |
Sarah and I met on some online forums and we’re fortunate enough to be able to get together with some of our other online friends about once a year and hole up in a room with our laptops and some wine. She just finished the sequel to Unspeakable Words [Dreamspinner] and I believe she’s working on a third installment in that series as well [Am I correct, Sarah?]. Perhaps she’ll talk about it in the follow up to this tag!
What Makes a Strong Female Character?
My Brain is Open!
I like to learn new things. I like the process of figuring stuff out and I like the ego boost it gives me to know something I didn’t know before. I also like how learning new things reminds me that I’m not always good at stuff. When you’re learning something, it’s can be hard! As an adult, we tend to do things that we’re good at and not try stuff we aren’t. At the same time, we push the kids in our lives to try stuff out and let them know it’s okay to fail.
So why don’t we follow our own advice?
But, I find as an adult, it’s REALLY HARD to find classes. Sure, there are beginner classes for stuff. Learn to Swim. Learn to Skate. Learn to Paint. And yes, there is of course the requisite number of classes for things that are ‘in vogue’ – Yoga, Pilates, Insert-New-Thing-of-the-Week-Here.
But it’s HARD to find CONTINUING classes. Yes, I know I can go to my university for continuing ed, but what if I just want to take one physics class? I don’t want to pursue a degree, I just want to learn more about WIMPs and MACHOS. And the Discovery Channel only whets my appetite.
My cello teacher is rare in that she continually takes on adult students. A lot of cello teachers won’t – they want to cultivate prodigies and ‘grow’ a musician. I love my cello lessons.
But now, I’d like to learn how to inline skate better. There’s a 2 hr learn to skate class but I know HOW to skate. I just want to do it better. I want to show up weekly and have someone point out what I’m doing wrong. While I was looking for classes I was just really disappointed in the offerings in my area for adults. I specifically stated I wanted Adult classes and 95% of the results I got from programs was “Parent and Tot” things. I have no tot. I will never have a Tot. And even if I did, does that immediately mean I can’t want to learn for myself and am only there to be a lifesize plaything for my tot to learn? I somehow doubt in the Parent and Tot learn to swim that the parent is doing any learning about themselves.
But this got me thinking – if we say as a society that we value education, but then mostly stop education after University, do we really value learning? or do we just value learning “enough to get by”?