Construction Photos- Week 28
3 hours ago
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Not Thursday Thirteen
Okay, let me just start by saying that this is evidently one of the worst years for Ragweed (and grass pollen), and I am evidently very allergic to one (or both of them). I am so stuffed up, I hear the ocean, and my nose has run so much today, I have figured out the mystery of Rudolph's Red Nose (hayfever). And to top it off, I start my vacation tomorrow, with an 8 hour car drive home (Yeah-camping and I get to see mom). So despite the fact that I had a kickass list planned out, I can't do it. If I'm going to hit the road tomorrow, I need to go to bed, now. I probably won't be making the rounds tomorrow, and if you're reading this Friday, I wasn't able to post a snippet either. So have a great and relaxing weekend, and I'll see you when I get back (I will try to stop by-but will have very limited internet access). Good night, y'all.
Monday, September 24, 2007
Monday Poetry Train
Hey y'all. Sorry I'm posting this so late. I would have posted last night, but I was busy working around the house after work, and then went to bed early. So this is another of the older poems, written the semester I was taking a linguistics class (and had quite a few discussions about the gender of words). I hope you like it.
Love Engendered
As a young man, I would have
Courted you, romanced you, wooed you,
Lied to you, denied you, used you,
Hated you, needed you, wanted you,
Filled you with children,
Emptied your heart,
Killed you.
As a young woman, I would have
Waited for you, searched for you, lost myself in you,
Denied myself, lied for you,
Hated myself for wanting you, needing you,
Loved my children because of you,
Sold my soul,
Died for you.
Genderless, I would fly,
Sing arias to the moon,
Love you wholly, passionately,
Commit myself to our love:
Without fear, without pain, without guilt,
And together we would explore
The heights and breadths, the depths and straights
Of Love.
Love Engendered
As a young man, I would have
Courted you, romanced you, wooed you,
Lied to you, denied you, used you,
Hated you, needed you, wanted you,
Filled you with children,
Emptied your heart,
Killed you.
As a young woman, I would have
Waited for you, searched for you, lost myself in you,
Denied myself, lied for you,
Hated myself for wanting you, needing you,
Loved my children because of you,
Sold my soul,
Died for you.
Genderless, I would fly,
Sing arias to the moon,
Love you wholly, passionately,
Commit myself to our love:
Without fear, without pain, without guilt,
And together we would explore
The heights and breadths, the depths and straights
Of Love.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Friday Snippet #16
Hey everybody, hope you've had a great week. Here is my second snippet from WDtW, still no reply yet from my letter. I'm going to give them a month and then send it on to someone else (which means rewriting the cover letter- shoot me now *g*). This is the second scene in the first chapter. Cassie is the main character, Adharshala is her best friend (only they've never met, they only see each other in dreams). Mare is the godess they worship, she is Toba's mother (the crazy god in last weeks post). Hope you like it. I'm going out of town tomorrow for the day and then going out to dinner with friends, so I probably won't get to everybody's snippets until Saturday (but I will get to them- promise). Have a great weekend everyone.
Cassie was cocooned in silence and darkness. This time though she felt safe; safe and wanted and loved. As the silence faded Cassie was aware of the faint singing of birds as they called to one another. The darkness slowly faded with the dawning of a new day. A light breeze blew the hair off her neck, cooling her sweat dampened brow. Taking a deep calming breath and looking up, Cassie watched as the waxing moon set, growing and full of promise.
Looking to the east, Cassie caught her first glimpse of the sun peeking over the horizon. As the sunlight pushed back the darkness, she realized that she was sailing on a ship, sliding gracefully through the gently rolling swells. Cassie stood on the forecastle deck and took everything in: the triangular jibs and behind them the square- rigged foresail and fore topsail snapping briskly in the wind, luffing and then billowing and catching again as the ship tacked, turning until it was reaching across the wind.
The sea birds wheeled and darted, diving for the scraps thrown by the unseen watch in the crow’s nest. Cassie was so entranced with what was happening she didn’t even think to question how she knew the words for what she was seeing.
Knowing there was only one person who could have brought her to such a place, Cassie smiled in relief and delight as she turned and made her way back to the quarter deck, and the young woman steering the ship. Standing at the wheel, her long white-blond hair hanging loose and blowing in the breeze; stood Adharshala, Cassie’s best friend and partner in these adventures. Practically skipping in her excitement, not an easy feat on a rolling vessel, Cassie made her way to Adharshala’s side and threw her arms around Adharshala’s shoulders, laughing as Adharshala returned the hug enthusiastically before turning back to face the wheel.
Cassie and Adharshala had been many places and seen many things over the years, ever since their first meeting in one of Cassie’s recurring nightmares, but this was the first time they’d ever been on the open sea. Sailing for the first time was such a fantastic experience that Cassie wanted to savor all of it. Cassie had never felt so free in her life, she felt like they were flying. The closest Cassie had ever come to this feeling of freedom were some of the magical memories she had of her early childhood when it had been just she and her mother. But life without her mother had turned out so differently that Cassie had grown to wonder if those memories were truly real or just wishful fancy.
Standing at the prow of their ship, listening to the wind as it danced around her, snapping the sails and whistling in the shrouds, making the tall ship slide effortlessly through the water; Cassie felt as if she had grown wings. Or rather, looking down into the sun dappled water, she felt as if she could dive from the railing and join the dolphins as they surfed the bow waves.
Cassie looked at everything as she explored every inch of their ship: from the crow’s nest at the top of the main mast to the bottom most hold where the barrels of fresh water were stored, from the very tip of the bowsprit and the figurehead carving of Maré surrounded by Her salamanders, and firebirds, and a solitary phoenix, to the small private deck beyond the aft windows of the Captain’s Cabin. And wherever she went on their ship, her explorations always led her back here; back to this one spot, where she belonged; up on the quarter deck, behind the wheel, at Adharshala’s side.
She had never dreamed she could feel this free, this happy, this alive. Pain and sorrow did not exist here, and guilt had no power. Instead the sun was shining to the south in a cloudless sky with just a hint of winter’s chill in the brisk wind billowing in their sails. The late afternoon sun was now behind them, and Cassie felt as if her whole life was before her. Laughing as the wind whipped her hair across her face; Cassie turned her gaze to the young woman standing beside her, drinking her in. Cassie had never met anyone like her before: her courage, her honesty, her generous loving spirit. Adharshala’s friendship was the beacon that had gotten Cassie through the many dark days and the troubles that had started for Cassie even before her mother’s death.
Cassie felt she could stay like that forever, watching Adharshala sailing her ship, the wind blowing her white blond mane. Feeling Cassie’s eyes on her, and sensing her thoughts, Adharshala turned to look at Cassie, a wondrous joy lighting her eyes; eyes the blue of a cloudless summer sky, and laughingly asked, “Didn’t I tell you sailing was the most amazing thing in the world? And to think, she’s all ours!”
There was so much joy in Adharshala’s smile that Cassie had to answer with one of her own, but it was more than that. There is a kind of beauty, a grace, to watching someone do something so well, something they were meant to do. Something this rare was meant to be treasured for the gift it truly was.
“And someday we’ll even look the part,” Cassie laughed, looking down at the outfits they were both wearing. Sailor’s cotton long pants belted with a length of rope and rolled up at the cuffs, and homespun cotton jerseys so large they kept falling off one narrow shoulder or the other, the sleeves rolled up like the breeches but still too long and hanging down over their hands. “This is the most fun I’ve ever had. I don’t ever want to go back; I could just stay here forever.” Cassie laughed as the wind whipped her hair about, entangling it with Adharshala’s: long strands of flame red a stark contrast with Adharshala’s equally long white-blond hair.
“That sounds wonderful to me, too,” Adharshala agreed, “I can’t wait ‘til I can captain my own ship. I want a trader, just like this one.”
“We could call it the Friendship.” Cassie looked seriously at Adharshala, trying for an innocent expression and almost succeeding.
“Friendship?” Adharshala asked archly; a mischievous gleam in her eyes, which she had just rolled hearing Cassie’s pun.
Cassie looked back, grinning and asking, “Partnership?”
Adharshala thought for a moment before agreeing, “Partnership.”
“Partners?” Cassie asked.
“Anytime you want, partner, just say the word and I’ll be there.” Adharshala assured
Cassie as she gently untangled them, “Mmm? What do you say?”
“I wish I could, but there’s no way I’m leaving mum’s babies with him.” Cassie admitted honestly, shaking her head wistfully, “Something has to change. I don’t know if I can take it much longer. And no matter what I try, everything I do just seems to make things worse.”
“Well, don’t worry about that now. Just make it through the end of the summer, and see what happens. You never know, I just might show up some day and steal you away.” Adharshala teased her, looking at Cassie as if she knew something Cassie would dearly love to know.
“Her only daughter, kidnapped by Free Traders, the scourge of the thousand islands and the breakers of lonely hearts in seaports far and wide. What would my dear departed mother say? She’d be scandalized.” Cassie teased Adharshala right back, laughing and smiling freely in this place of dreams as she hadn’t in a long while elsewhere.
“Oh, I don’t think she’d be as scandalized as you seem to think.” Adharshala’s tone was quite sure as she answered. She was about to say something else, perhaps even explaining what she meant. Not that Cassie really expected her to when she could have so much fun teasing Cassie with hints instead. All hope of an explanation was lost with the clanging of a bell.
“Oh damn,” Adharshala exclaimed, turning to face Cassie and holding her shoulders, “That’s the watch bell, and I have to go. This talk isn’t finished, you know.”
“I know,” Cassie sighed, hugging Adharshala tight, “I have to go too. Morning will be here before you know it. Good bye.”
“Good bye.” Adharshala hugged her back before letting go reluctantly, “Maré keep you. Stay safe, shala.”
Cassie woke up, a smile on her face and the smell of the sea in her nose. Her dreams of late were all that made it possible for her to get out of bed in the mornings, but as much as she needed them and went through her day with the thought of going to bed and being able to dream, she reminded herself that that’s all they were: Dreams. Dream or not, she likes me, she thought to herself, wanting to shout, and finding herself giggling aloud at the thought; she likes me and actually wants to spend time with me. Someday I’m going to meet someone just like her, Cassie resolved, even if I have to sail around the whole world to find her.
I wish I could tell mum about her, Cassie thought with a grin, as she put Yan back in his crib and shuffled sleepily off to her bed. And somehow thinking this didn’t bring with it the crushing guilt or overwhelming sadness of the past few months. I wish I could tell mum about a lot of things, Cassie mused. Imagine, me meeting someone in my dreams. There aren’t too many people around here who’d believe me if I told them that. They’d probably say that I made it up, or that I was crazy. Maybe I am crazy, Cassie decided with a sleepy smile, but if being sane means not being friends with Adharshala, I guess I’ll just be crazy. And thinking this, she fell back asleep.
Cassie was cocooned in silence and darkness. This time though she felt safe; safe and wanted and loved. As the silence faded Cassie was aware of the faint singing of birds as they called to one another. The darkness slowly faded with the dawning of a new day. A light breeze blew the hair off her neck, cooling her sweat dampened brow. Taking a deep calming breath and looking up, Cassie watched as the waxing moon set, growing and full of promise.
Looking to the east, Cassie caught her first glimpse of the sun peeking over the horizon. As the sunlight pushed back the darkness, she realized that she was sailing on a ship, sliding gracefully through the gently rolling swells. Cassie stood on the forecastle deck and took everything in: the triangular jibs and behind them the square- rigged foresail and fore topsail snapping briskly in the wind, luffing and then billowing and catching again as the ship tacked, turning until it was reaching across the wind.
The sea birds wheeled and darted, diving for the scraps thrown by the unseen watch in the crow’s nest. Cassie was so entranced with what was happening she didn’t even think to question how she knew the words for what she was seeing.
Knowing there was only one person who could have brought her to such a place, Cassie smiled in relief and delight as she turned and made her way back to the quarter deck, and the young woman steering the ship. Standing at the wheel, her long white-blond hair hanging loose and blowing in the breeze; stood Adharshala, Cassie’s best friend and partner in these adventures. Practically skipping in her excitement, not an easy feat on a rolling vessel, Cassie made her way to Adharshala’s side and threw her arms around Adharshala’s shoulders, laughing as Adharshala returned the hug enthusiastically before turning back to face the wheel.
Cassie and Adharshala had been many places and seen many things over the years, ever since their first meeting in one of Cassie’s recurring nightmares, but this was the first time they’d ever been on the open sea. Sailing for the first time was such a fantastic experience that Cassie wanted to savor all of it. Cassie had never felt so free in her life, she felt like they were flying. The closest Cassie had ever come to this feeling of freedom were some of the magical memories she had of her early childhood when it had been just she and her mother. But life without her mother had turned out so differently that Cassie had grown to wonder if those memories were truly real or just wishful fancy.
Standing at the prow of their ship, listening to the wind as it danced around her, snapping the sails and whistling in the shrouds, making the tall ship slide effortlessly through the water; Cassie felt as if she had grown wings. Or rather, looking down into the sun dappled water, she felt as if she could dive from the railing and join the dolphins as they surfed the bow waves.
Cassie looked at everything as she explored every inch of their ship: from the crow’s nest at the top of the main mast to the bottom most hold where the barrels of fresh water were stored, from the very tip of the bowsprit and the figurehead carving of Maré surrounded by Her salamanders, and firebirds, and a solitary phoenix, to the small private deck beyond the aft windows of the Captain’s Cabin. And wherever she went on their ship, her explorations always led her back here; back to this one spot, where she belonged; up on the quarter deck, behind the wheel, at Adharshala’s side.
She had never dreamed she could feel this free, this happy, this alive. Pain and sorrow did not exist here, and guilt had no power. Instead the sun was shining to the south in a cloudless sky with just a hint of winter’s chill in the brisk wind billowing in their sails. The late afternoon sun was now behind them, and Cassie felt as if her whole life was before her. Laughing as the wind whipped her hair across her face; Cassie turned her gaze to the young woman standing beside her, drinking her in. Cassie had never met anyone like her before: her courage, her honesty, her generous loving spirit. Adharshala’s friendship was the beacon that had gotten Cassie through the many dark days and the troubles that had started for Cassie even before her mother’s death.
Cassie felt she could stay like that forever, watching Adharshala sailing her ship, the wind blowing her white blond mane. Feeling Cassie’s eyes on her, and sensing her thoughts, Adharshala turned to look at Cassie, a wondrous joy lighting her eyes; eyes the blue of a cloudless summer sky, and laughingly asked, “Didn’t I tell you sailing was the most amazing thing in the world? And to think, she’s all ours!”
There was so much joy in Adharshala’s smile that Cassie had to answer with one of her own, but it was more than that. There is a kind of beauty, a grace, to watching someone do something so well, something they were meant to do. Something this rare was meant to be treasured for the gift it truly was.
“And someday we’ll even look the part,” Cassie laughed, looking down at the outfits they were both wearing. Sailor’s cotton long pants belted with a length of rope and rolled up at the cuffs, and homespun cotton jerseys so large they kept falling off one narrow shoulder or the other, the sleeves rolled up like the breeches but still too long and hanging down over their hands. “This is the most fun I’ve ever had. I don’t ever want to go back; I could just stay here forever.” Cassie laughed as the wind whipped her hair about, entangling it with Adharshala’s: long strands of flame red a stark contrast with Adharshala’s equally long white-blond hair.
“That sounds wonderful to me, too,” Adharshala agreed, “I can’t wait ‘til I can captain my own ship. I want a trader, just like this one.”
“We could call it the Friendship.” Cassie looked seriously at Adharshala, trying for an innocent expression and almost succeeding.
“Friendship?” Adharshala asked archly; a mischievous gleam in her eyes, which she had just rolled hearing Cassie’s pun.
Cassie looked back, grinning and asking, “Partnership?”
Adharshala thought for a moment before agreeing, “Partnership.”
“Partners?” Cassie asked.
“Anytime you want, partner, just say the word and I’ll be there.” Adharshala assured
Cassie as she gently untangled them, “Mmm? What do you say?”
“I wish I could, but there’s no way I’m leaving mum’s babies with him.” Cassie admitted honestly, shaking her head wistfully, “Something has to change. I don’t know if I can take it much longer. And no matter what I try, everything I do just seems to make things worse.”
“Well, don’t worry about that now. Just make it through the end of the summer, and see what happens. You never know, I just might show up some day and steal you away.” Adharshala teased her, looking at Cassie as if she knew something Cassie would dearly love to know.
“Her only daughter, kidnapped by Free Traders, the scourge of the thousand islands and the breakers of lonely hearts in seaports far and wide. What would my dear departed mother say? She’d be scandalized.” Cassie teased Adharshala right back, laughing and smiling freely in this place of dreams as she hadn’t in a long while elsewhere.
“Oh, I don’t think she’d be as scandalized as you seem to think.” Adharshala’s tone was quite sure as she answered. She was about to say something else, perhaps even explaining what she meant. Not that Cassie really expected her to when she could have so much fun teasing Cassie with hints instead. All hope of an explanation was lost with the clanging of a bell.
“Oh damn,” Adharshala exclaimed, turning to face Cassie and holding her shoulders, “That’s the watch bell, and I have to go. This talk isn’t finished, you know.”
“I know,” Cassie sighed, hugging Adharshala tight, “I have to go too. Morning will be here before you know it. Good bye.”
“Good bye.” Adharshala hugged her back before letting go reluctantly, “Maré keep you. Stay safe, shala.”
Cassie woke up, a smile on her face and the smell of the sea in her nose. Her dreams of late were all that made it possible for her to get out of bed in the mornings, but as much as she needed them and went through her day with the thought of going to bed and being able to dream, she reminded herself that that’s all they were: Dreams. Dream or not, she likes me, she thought to herself, wanting to shout, and finding herself giggling aloud at the thought; she likes me and actually wants to spend time with me. Someday I’m going to meet someone just like her, Cassie resolved, even if I have to sail around the whole world to find her.
I wish I could tell mum about her, Cassie thought with a grin, as she put Yan back in his crib and shuffled sleepily off to her bed. And somehow thinking this didn’t bring with it the crushing guilt or overwhelming sadness of the past few months. I wish I could tell mum about a lot of things, Cassie mused. Imagine, me meeting someone in my dreams. There aren’t too many people around here who’d believe me if I told them that. They’d probably say that I made it up, or that I was crazy. Maybe I am crazy, Cassie decided with a sleepy smile, but if being sane means not being friends with Adharshala, I guess I’ll just be crazy. And thinking this, she fell back asleep.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Thursday 13 #27
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I was rather stumped for a topic for this week, so I sat down to work on my WIP (which I had signed up to work on during Sven’s Sweaty Seventy ). This summer was totally insanely busy for me at the dayjob, so halfway into the Sweaty 70 I hit the wall and ran out of words. So of course now that the challenge is over, I’ve started writing again (figures, huh? Timing is everything). Anyway, I came up with this topic. Does it make you curious? I hope so. The first group is from the book I am currently waiting for an answer from the publisher. It is set on a world of my own making, with magic, and pirates, and adventure, and danger (oh my). I’ve posted my first snippet from this here. This list might answer some questions from it: 1) Gods and Godesses- Mare is a godess, Nami and Toba are gods (Toba is crazy). 2) Salamanders- left to help Cassie (the main character) by her mother. 3) Firebirds- just a hatchling when Cassie and her friends find her. 4) DragonFlies and EarthWyrms- okay, I made them up- they’re food for the firebird. 5) Phoenix (okay, this one will probably be in book 3 or 4- 2 seems to be water based *g*). 6) Dragons (okay, this one will also show up in book 3- maybe 4). 7) Water Sprights (book 2)-the water equivalent to salamanders. 8) Mermaids (in book 2)-trouble, but not evil, more a mischief maker. This group is from my current WIP, an urban fantasy, that has been the subject of my other Friday Snippets (which are listed to the left of this entry- under Friday Snippet Posts). 9) Witches- the main character is one 10) Hell Hounds- yup, they're here too. 11) Shapeshifters (dogs and cats)- a whole family of cats. 12) Werewolves- no snippets on them, yet 13) Psychics- you never know where they’ll show up. Links to other Thursday Thirteens! The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted! |
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Riding the Storm
Okay, I won my copy of Riding the Storm from Alison Kent, having promised to review the book on my blog, which is kind of ironic since I went to Larissa’s book signing less than a week after I received my copy. Anyway, this is my review. Be patient with me, this is only the second review I’ve done. Feel free to go out and buy this book and find out if you agree with me, or not.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book (sorry, I don’t squeal, and I don’t do fangirl). I would certainly recommend this book to anyone who reads paranormal fiction (not just romances), and will at some point read it again.
The main characters are a man named Remy Begnaud, who can control the weather, and Haley Holmes, who is sent to help him harness this power. She has to get him to trust her, and do so before the bad guys decide to kidnap him for their own purposes. It’s got action, suspense, bad weather, and steamy sex. The good guys are all characters in their own right, the bad guys are creepy and evil without being caricatures. The story is well written, despite knowing that this was written by two women, it is hard to tell which parts were written by which person.
So go buy Riding the Storm and read it. You’ll be glad you did.
Monday, September 17, 2007
Monday's Poetry Train
I know, tecnically Autumn hasn't started yet. But the evenings have started getting cooler, and the days are not so hot. Cool enough for me to turn off the AC, in fact. So I thought I would post this today. Hope you like it.
Autumn is much to tame
a word
too calm, too tranquil
too serene
to show, to describe, to give
meaning to what happens in these
our mountains.
How the leaves blaze and burn
in reds and yellows and gold.
Or fall in flurries,
an avalanche of leaves
and needles
and pinecones
and those little seeds
that flutter down like
whirligigs.
On days when the wind is calm
the leaves float and dance, while the trees
murmur and laugh at their antics.
On days when the wind blows
pushing all before it,
the leaves race down
like skydivers landing with a gentle plop
before being swept along.
Nor can autumn convey
the reason that I laugh
and cry,
witnessing nature's splendor
and the death of another summer.
Anticipating the coming of winter
while looking all the while
toward spring.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Friday Snippet #15
Okay, the WIP has stalled, but I'm not giving up yet. In the mean time, I thought I would post the opening scene from my first finished work, which is currently sitting at the bottom of a slush pile (unless someone's cat really did have kittens on it-*g*- nothing would surprise me at this point). I'm actually considering adding a prologue to the story which would be something like this. So here is my snippet, let me know what you think. Thanks, Ann
She was running as quickly and as quietly as she could, struggling not to cry out her terror and pain as each breath rasped in her chest. Stumbling time and again in the darkness, her arms and legs felt like they were nothing but scrapes and bruises as she ran into things she could not see and fell onto things she could not name. He was somewhere behind her, stalking her as she fled, lost and terrified in this impenetrable darkness. Always she ran, trying to get away from him, from this endless nothingness.
He was laughing at her; she knew it, laughing at the futility of her trying to get away. She could hear him, somewhere in this darkness that made a mockery of her sense of both direction and distance. His breath sounding like the idle panting of a dragon as it toyed with its prey. His laugh was the rumbling of a sleeping volcano, one which could wake at any second with a fiery explosion and obliterate everything.
Cassie ran, trying to get away from him, even now not understanding why he had spent so much time and effort trying to capture her. After all what would a god, even one as mad and tormented as Toba, want with a scrawny, puny, good-for-nothing girl child-which everyone told Cassie she was. There was absolutely nothing special about Cassie.
All Cassie knew was he wanted her, and she would do anything, go anywhere to make sure it didn’t happen. Trying to get away from him was so much more important than keeping out of Sir’s grasp had ever been. Cassie knew with a bone-deep certainty that he wanted not only her body, but her very soul; and if he were to get it somehow, it would mean the end not just of her, but of everyone and everything.
She was running, stumbling, blinded by tears and darkness and smoke and ash and what might have been blood trickling down her forehead and into her eyes.
Driven on by the overwhelming fear and terror, hearing the rasping breathing behind her coming closer and closer until she seemed to feel it as well as hear it, and all the while that strange voice laughing at her, cackling at her fear and pain; and endlessly this unceasing rhythm as they chanted His name: Toba, Toba, Toba, Toba; the rhythmic chanting and her racing pulse were driving each other faster and faster and faster, the fear and terror were pounding at her relentlessly until Cassie thought that her lungs would burst or her heart explode.
A pain-filled cry shattered the darkness, ripping Cassie from her terrifying nightmare, a nightmare that felt more real than any dream should. Somehow the chanting seemed to echo in the night air, but as the shrill wailing continued, Cassie realized after a few confused moments that the crying hadn’t been part of her dream. It was her baby brother Yan, screaming in distress.
Throwing back the light mosquito netting that surrounded her tester bed, Cassie staggered out of bed, shivering as her bare feet hit the cold wood of the bare floor, and thought sadly of the coming winter and the need to see that the winter draperies and bed canopies were washed and hung. With her mum gone, it was just one more task that would fall to her, and one more thing she’d have been punished for had she forgotten.
Still feeling foggy from the overwhelming terror of her dream, Cassie pulled on her robe and bedroom shoes and tiptoed out of her room and down the hall to the nursery. The pale moonlight shone through the open window showing a room full of little boys, three sets of twins sound asleep in their cots, and baby Yan. These precious boys were all that had been left Cassie by her mother’s death.
Watching the little boys, Cassie was amazed once more by their ability to sleep through anything. Walking quickly over to the crib, Cassie carefully picked up baby Yan, holding him close and trying to quiet his crying and find out what was wrong. The crying stopped as soon as she held Yan to her shoulder and began patting his back, letting him know that he wasn’t alone and that she would take care of him.
Changing his diaper wasn’t necessary, but she did it anyway, following it with a clean nightgown and clean socks. Cassie thought it might just have been a baby nightmare, but decided to let him nurse anyway. After all at that age food was comfort.
Sitting down in her mum’s beautifully hand-carved honeyoak nursing rocker, one of the few pieces of furniture that Cassie’s mum had brought here with them from Mizar, Cassie got comfortably settled, made sure baby Yan was comfortable in her arms, and gave him his bottle. Not actually a bottle, like the ones that the wine and the oil came in, Yan’s nursing bottles were actually small terra cotta vessels kiln-fired with holes in the spout that controlled how much milk was released at a time.
The bottle did the trick. As the soft moonlight and the gentle breeze soothed their fears, Cassie sat for a long time with her eyes closed and prayed, feeling her bond with Maré and the love and comfort she felt from her. It was while she was meditating that she slipped unnoticed back into dreams, the sleeping baby held securely in her arms.
Whistle Down the Wind
She was running as quickly and as quietly as she could, struggling not to cry out her terror and pain as each breath rasped in her chest. Stumbling time and again in the darkness, her arms and legs felt like they were nothing but scrapes and bruises as she ran into things she could not see and fell onto things she could not name. He was somewhere behind her, stalking her as she fled, lost and terrified in this impenetrable darkness. Always she ran, trying to get away from him, from this endless nothingness.
He was laughing at her; she knew it, laughing at the futility of her trying to get away. She could hear him, somewhere in this darkness that made a mockery of her sense of both direction and distance. His breath sounding like the idle panting of a dragon as it toyed with its prey. His laugh was the rumbling of a sleeping volcano, one which could wake at any second with a fiery explosion and obliterate everything.
Cassie ran, trying to get away from him, even now not understanding why he had spent so much time and effort trying to capture her. After all what would a god, even one as mad and tormented as Toba, want with a scrawny, puny, good-for-nothing girl child-which everyone told Cassie she was. There was absolutely nothing special about Cassie.
All Cassie knew was he wanted her, and she would do anything, go anywhere to make sure it didn’t happen. Trying to get away from him was so much more important than keeping out of Sir’s grasp had ever been. Cassie knew with a bone-deep certainty that he wanted not only her body, but her very soul; and if he were to get it somehow, it would mean the end not just of her, but of everyone and everything.
She was running, stumbling, blinded by tears and darkness and smoke and ash and what might have been blood trickling down her forehead and into her eyes.
Driven on by the overwhelming fear and terror, hearing the rasping breathing behind her coming closer and closer until she seemed to feel it as well as hear it, and all the while that strange voice laughing at her, cackling at her fear and pain; and endlessly this unceasing rhythm as they chanted His name: Toba, Toba, Toba, Toba; the rhythmic chanting and her racing pulse were driving each other faster and faster and faster, the fear and terror were pounding at her relentlessly until Cassie thought that her lungs would burst or her heart explode.
A pain-filled cry shattered the darkness, ripping Cassie from her terrifying nightmare, a nightmare that felt more real than any dream should. Somehow the chanting seemed to echo in the night air, but as the shrill wailing continued, Cassie realized after a few confused moments that the crying hadn’t been part of her dream. It was her baby brother Yan, screaming in distress.
Throwing back the light mosquito netting that surrounded her tester bed, Cassie staggered out of bed, shivering as her bare feet hit the cold wood of the bare floor, and thought sadly of the coming winter and the need to see that the winter draperies and bed canopies were washed and hung. With her mum gone, it was just one more task that would fall to her, and one more thing she’d have been punished for had she forgotten.
Still feeling foggy from the overwhelming terror of her dream, Cassie pulled on her robe and bedroom shoes and tiptoed out of her room and down the hall to the nursery. The pale moonlight shone through the open window showing a room full of little boys, three sets of twins sound asleep in their cots, and baby Yan. These precious boys were all that had been left Cassie by her mother’s death.
Watching the little boys, Cassie was amazed once more by their ability to sleep through anything. Walking quickly over to the crib, Cassie carefully picked up baby Yan, holding him close and trying to quiet his crying and find out what was wrong. The crying stopped as soon as she held Yan to her shoulder and began patting his back, letting him know that he wasn’t alone and that she would take care of him.
Changing his diaper wasn’t necessary, but she did it anyway, following it with a clean nightgown and clean socks. Cassie thought it might just have been a baby nightmare, but decided to let him nurse anyway. After all at that age food was comfort.
Sitting down in her mum’s beautifully hand-carved honeyoak nursing rocker, one of the few pieces of furniture that Cassie’s mum had brought here with them from Mizar, Cassie got comfortably settled, made sure baby Yan was comfortable in her arms, and gave him his bottle. Not actually a bottle, like the ones that the wine and the oil came in, Yan’s nursing bottles were actually small terra cotta vessels kiln-fired with holes in the spout that controlled how much milk was released at a time.
The bottle did the trick. As the soft moonlight and the gentle breeze soothed their fears, Cassie sat for a long time with her eyes closed and prayed, feeling her bond with Maré and the love and comfort she felt from her. It was while she was meditating that she slipped unnoticed back into dreams, the sleeping baby held securely in her arms.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Thursday 13 #26
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No, not the things that must get done tomorrow list, some of these I’d like to get done this weekend, others are things I’d like to get done as the chance arises. 1) Finish organizing the office/dining room-i.e. clean off the dining table so I can have people over for dinner. 2) Buy a bike-  I’m thinking something like this- just to get me back in the habit of riding a bike, then if I find I’ve outgrown this one, I’ll think about a serious bike (maybe a Specialized- I’ve got a Hard Rock, but it’s more than I need right now- that and the guy at the bike shop says it’s too tall for me- it wasn’t when I bought it-18 years ago-sigh). 3) Visit Larissa, buy books, and talk over coffee (maybe next week). 4) Go home and visit mom (and go camping, and get a haircut). 5) Finish organizing the rest of my apartment (I take comfort in the picture that Jennifer Crusie posted of her office *g*). 6) Get rid of the things in the get rid of pile (anyone need a dining table?) 7) File the stuff to keep. 8) Learn bookmaking. 9) Get all of my writing notes and partials stored in one place (what I’d really like to do is put them all on a flash drive). 10) Buy a new bed (queen sized preferably) 11) Write and post a few book reviews (Riding the Storm- I just finished the book and hope to post the review over the weekend). 12) Print out and read IanT’s manuscript- I’ve read snippets so I know I’m going to enjoy it. 13) Buy a house (okay, I’m thinking townhouse, but still)- I’m going to the bank tomorrow to see if this is even within the realm of the possible, so wish me luck. Links to other Thursday Thirteens! The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted! |
Monday, September 10, 2007
Monday Poetry Train
Hi everybody, I'm back and survived the weekend. I didn't have the time (or energy) to work on any poetry this past week, so I will give you instead one of my favorite poems by Emily Dickinson. I'll even throw in a piece of trivia I'll bet none of you were aware of: you can take any poem by Emily Dickinson and sing it to the music of... The Yellow Rose of Texas, Or, The Theme Song to the TV Show Gilligan's Island (it's true). So here it is:
THIS is my letter to the world,
That never wrote to me,—
The simple news that Nature told,
With tender majesty.
Her message is committed
To hands I cannot see;
For love of her, sweet countrymen,
Judge tenderly of me.
Friday, September 07, 2007
Yes, It's Friday
No Snippet today, sorry guys. Things have been rather hectic lately, and I had to work last night and just didn't have the energy to post anything last night. I'm even posting this from the dayjob, because I didn't want you all to think I'd just forgotten. I'll get back to my regular posting schedule next week. Have a great weekend (I'll be working both days- teaching the little monsters how to make candles).
Wednesday, September 05, 2007
Thursday Thirteen #25
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So Sunday was the day of Larissa's book signing, and I had promised I'd be there and it turned out I made it there, and had a blast meeting her and Michelle. Getting there, however, was another matter entirely. Not bad, just really really weird, in a Murphy's Law kind of way. So here is my list: 1) I woke up, on a Sunday, somewhere around 6 am. On a Sunday. 2) Had an a-ha moment about my WIP. 3) Got up, fed the cat, ate breakfast, and started working on my WIP, integrating the a-ha moment into the plot. 4) Started nodding off about an hour or so later, and decided to take a nap before I fell out of my desk chair and landed on the cat. 5) Went back to bed and slept like a log. 6) Woke up thinking it was perhaps 11 or 11:30. Nope, it was 1:15 (the signing ran from 1-3). 7) Ran into the bathroom, threw on my contacts, went to turn on the water to take a shower…and there was no water…in any faucet in the entire apartment. Sigh. 8) So I threw on my clothes, got in the car and realized I hadn’t eaten in about 6 hours, so I thought I’d go through a drive through, get a happy meal and eat it on the way. 9) The Drive-through had 5-6 cars in it, so sitting in line would have made me late. 10) I drove to the mall where it was being held, and went to the bookstore in a satellite building, only the signing was in the mall. 11) So I parked near the first mall entrance I came to, and then had to walk the length of the mall to get to the bookstore. 12) Larissa and Michelle were both talking to people when I got there, so I quietly pulled out my camera and took a picture, and Larissa looked up and said, “Ann?” 13) It was very cool to get her book signed, and Michelle’s book signed, and after I got a sandwich and an iced coffee from the coffee shop in the bookstore and we sat and talked for over an hour. And if you want to see pictures, Larissa has posted hers already. Links to other Thursday Thirteens! The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted! |
Monday, September 03, 2007
Monday's Poetry Train
Today was an offline kind of day, I didn't really get much done, and didn't really feel like doing much. I couldn't even think of what I wanted to post for the poetry train, and then I went out to dinner with a friend and she suggested I write Haikus about Labor Day (except I didn't do much), and I had the idea to write Haikus about going to a author's book signing and getting to meet Larissa (one half of Sydney Croft whose new book, Riding the Storm, was just released this past week). So here are my haiku (such as they are). :)
I'm going to gloat
to brag, to boast, to show-off
I met Larissa.
She signed the copy
of her new book that I won
on Alison's blog.
Michelle signed one too.
I got to hang out with them
she took our picture.
After the signing,
we went, had coffee, and talked
and talked, and talked more.
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