Recovered King of Beasts Returns to his Home After Operation
Month: May 2005
bookmark_borderCleaning: Day One
Ugh. I be tired.
We first went through the crap in the Cat Room (pun not intended) and cleared out a corner. Then we moved in the boxes of books still awaiting a home since this all began a number of years ago. Then we moved all my computer parts and all my ham gear in and put them in the Cat Room too. Then we cleaned up. Don’t sound like much but it is. I am exhausted.
But I did get a chance to book cover surf.
As I sat in the Cat Room taking a break, I looked over the only two bookshelves that actually hold books. The titles varied:
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Walking America
The Frugal Gourmet Talks to American Immigrants
The Story of O
Alma Rose.
Eclectic readers? Yes. Avid readers? Yes. Good housekeepers? No.
At least I got to take breaks. Poor Lorna got worked hard! I ‘supervised’ a lot and she did all the lifting. To her credit, she took it all in stride and as far as I know, she threw nothing away that was off limits.
And what’s with the necessary ‘cleaning up’ after ‘cleaning up’?? We worked hard, moving stuff, sorting stuff, etc until it was all sorted and moved and etc. But then we had to move empty boxes, empty the trashcan, and sweep the foor.
If dust were valuable, we’d be rich. You know there’s too much dust when the dogs are sneezing and leaving the room.
So now I lay here with my woofer nearby, the hot water pump pad on my back and ice on my neck. Oh, and I am grudded doo. (drugged too)
I hope to get some editing in today although I doubt it. Maybe later when the drgus wears off.
bookmark_borderWordPress Update
Just did a relatively simple update of my WordPress installs (so far, I have three).
I encountered some problems but worked around them. Thought I’d share my process with others: WP Security Update – Blond Version
bookmark_borderQuotes
I have few true heroes, those I would want to follow as if they were an Apostle, those that, if I were to meet them, I would become a stuttering, drooling fool. Robin Williams is my topmost hero. If I were to ever meet him, I think I might faint.
Had I been born earlier or he be born later, I think even Mr. Williams would have been pushed aside for Samuel Clemens. My that man could play with words!
(From Bartleby’s)
QUOTATION: Lump the whole thing! Say that the Creator made Italy from designs by Michael Angelo!
ATTRIBUTION: Mark Twain [Samuel Langhorne Clemens] (1835–1910), U.S. author. Dan, in The Innocents Abroad, ch. 27 (1869).
Twain’s surfeit of and exasperation with Michelangelo during his visit to Rome was eloquently expressed: “I used to worship the mighty genius of Michael Angelo…. But I do not want Michael Angelo for breakfast—for luncheon—for dinner—for tea—for supper—for between meals…. Here—here it is frightful. He designed St Peter’s; he designed the Pope … the eternal bore designed the Eternal City, and unless all men and books do lie, he painted everything in it!… I never felt so fervently thankful, so soothed, so tranquil, so filled with the blessed peace, as I did yesterday when I learned that Michael Angelo was dead.â€
BIOGRAPHY: Columbia Encyclopedia.
WORKS: Twain [Samuel Langhorne Clemens] Collection.
bookmark_borderAdvice
An Old Farmer’s Advice:
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Your fences need to be horse-high, pig-tight and bull-strong.
Keep skunks and bankers and lawyers at a distance.
Life is simpler when you plow around the stump.
A bumble bee is considerably faster than a John Deere tractor.
Words that soak into your ears are whispered…not yelled.
Meanness don’t jes’ happen overnight.
Forgive your enemies. It messes up their heads.
Do not corner something that you know is meaner than you.
It don’t take a very big person to carry a grudge.
You cannot unsay a cruel word.
Every path has a few puddles.
When you wallow with pigs, expect to get dirty.
The best sermons are lived, not preached.
Most of the stuff people worry about ain’t never gonna’ happen anyway.
Don’t judge folks by their relatives.
Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you’ll enjoy it a second time.
Don’t interfere with somethin’ that ain’t botherin’ you none.
Timing has a lot to do with the outcome of a rain dance.
If you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop diggin’.
Sometimes you get, and sometimes you get got.
The biggest troublemaker you’ll probably ever have to deal with, watches you from the mirror every mornin’.
Always drink upstream from the herd.
Good judgment comes from experience, and a lotta that comes from bad judgment.
Lettin’ the cat outta the bag is a whole lot easier than puttin’ it back in.
If you get to thinkin’ you’re a person of some influence, try orderin’ somebody else’s dog around.
Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly.
bookmark_borderPrinter
I recently got meself a printer (finally!!). I bought it from CompUSA whilst up Nawth.
It’s an HP which ticks me off but, since my brother recommended it since it’s the only one to survive the nuts at his workplace, I decided to get it. ‘It’ is a HP Officejet 6210 all-in-one. The feature I wanted the most was fast print speed. Second was a flat-bed scanner. Fax was low on the list but a bonus with this one. I went in to get an Epson but Kev talked me into this one. (feed tray is stand-up in the back which he says sucks)
Print speed was supposed to be 22 b/w ppm. On regular printing, I don’t think it reached it. 16 was what I counted once when really bored. However, I just printed out the latest section of BGCDA and wanted to do it in ‘draft’ mode. I found ‘fast normal’ and ‘fast draft’. I set it to fast draft. Wowzers! I think it spit out the 63 pages (1/5 inch margins) in like, well, fast! I am impressed. AND it didn’t over heat.
The scanner works as expected as does the copier. The feed tray is flat and at the front but doesn’t hold many pages (maybe 100??). The plus is that they are a cinch to remove, making the front flat.
The main problem I had was the software. I put it first on the laptop and had numerous errors. Finally went to their website and found several patches. Once they were in place, it worked. Keep in mind this is a relatively new printer, not one that’s been out for 6+mos.
Then when I got home and tried to put it on the desktop, the error count just kept piling up. I quit and didn’t get back to it for over a month. Went to their website again and saw that they had a ‘replacement CD’ you can download. The date was 4/05 (the same month I bought it) so I downloaded this HUGE file and the install went without a single hitch.
Now that I’ve had it a while, and now that it works on both ‘puters, even I have to agree it was a good purchase. Would I get another HP? Nope.
bookmark_borderChapters 41-58
Are also now done. mostly.
I am going to squish the margins, print it out, and go over it tomorrow then reenter the data.
Meanwhile, it is my beddybye time (I am making myself go to bed by 2) so I am stopping for the night.
bookmark_borderSubmission Guidelines
BGCDA will be submitted first to Bella Books. Their guidelines say they accept manuscripts from 50,000 to 80,000 words. I just did some quick math, adding the numbers in the ‘count’ at the top of the sidebar, and it now stands at 62964. Which means just over 17K to go.
I sound so calm, don’t I?
On the one hand, 17K words seems so large. On the other hand, it’s a mere drop in the not-so-proverbial bucket. That means though, that I can now concentrate on heading for the finish line.
I sound so calm, don’t I?
And have I mentioned I am looking for a new title? Butch Girls just doesn’t fit it. Just what kind of title does one give a book about a fix-it lady and the two females (mom and daughter) that fix her?
bookmark_borderOh….my…
I think I am in love again. 😉
Baervers banned from Teddy Bear Parade in Germany.
(I found the link on Denis de Bernardy’s blog)
bookmark_borderChapters 24-40
are done done done!
Well, mostly. I have moved on to the next section which is rather raw. As you may or may not recall, I wrote this book during the month of November for NaNo. I have been editing/rewriting it and now have gotten to where I left off on the rewrite.
It feels good, this working thing. I got a lot done today, planning and actual doing. But my brain has froze with all the information (when did this happen? Before or after? does she know this already at this point?).