Author Archives: Cat

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Barack Obama

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Before you go and get all excited about the thought of me venturing in to the world of political commentary, this is slightly anecdotal and also mostly a linguistic issue. I do not even remotely posses an educated opinion in the world of politics, which is a prerequisite to their discussion.

That disclamier being set forth, last night I saw a sound bite of this fellow (and I’m paraphrasing but you will understand) that aroused my concern. It went something like this:

“I know I haven’t been in Washington long enough to see what is wrong, but I know what is wrong needs to be changed”

To me, this is what that really says:

“”I know I haven’t been in Washington long enough to see what

is wrong, but I know what is wrong

needs to be changed”

I’m fairly certain that’s the way this type of phrasing works out. Yes?

That has me a little worried.

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New Features

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There is a page dedicated to the books that I’ve read, to make it easier to browse, there are even amazon links…CLICK HERE if you can’t find it…My thoughts are that rather than review every book I read as an entry, which would put half of you to sleep, you can just ask me about it if you’re interested in something in particular. I ‘read up’ on every book I read, and think I have a pretty defined preference, so most of the books you’ll see there I’d recommend.

I also posted my “amazon wish list” so you can see what I’m planning on reading next…

or for when you’re wondering what to get me for a belated President’s Day Gift.

😉

My Amazon.com Wish List

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Quotations For Today

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Hey, can you blame me? I’m on my way back to the dentist…

Elie Wiesel:
Write only if you cannot live without writing. Write only what you alone can write.

Sharon O’Brien:
Writing became such a process of discovery that I couldn’t wait to get to work in the morning: I wanted to know what I was going to say.

Sholem Asch:
Writing comes more easily if you have something to say.

Jules Renard:
Writing is an occupation in which you have to keep proving your talent to those who have none.

Stephen Leacock:
Writing is no trouble: you just jot down ideas as they occur to you. The jotting is simplicity itself – it is the occurring which is difficult.

Jack London:
You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.

F. Scott Fitzgerald:
You don’t write because you want to say something, you write because you’ve got something to say.

pen and writing
www.geotamil.com

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I Am From

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You should do this, every one I’ve seen is amazing, in realization and alive.

My favorite so far: LitLove

I am from the water, the land, and the sea salt air where the two meet. I am from lobsters and beach houses, running on sand and eating clam chowda. I am from light in my life, from stresses, from the tender hugs of ‘cuddling’ with mom during Lifetime movies. I am from pretending to swim in my toy-box.

I am from fearlessness, determination, and Pleasant View Drive. I am from a room with a slanted ceiling that dad strung with nets for teddy bears. I am from glasses, and braces, and hair down to my knees. I am from my student loans and my books and my loves and my memories.

I am from these keys I type on, their movement recording my insides, making something permanent. I am from the ink of every pen in my collection that moves across every page of every journal, every notebook, every word I write. I am from making stuff up. I am from tea and from wine, from songs and from lyrics, from all of my travels and all of what there is to come. I am from my poor French to my perfect teeth.

I am from yelling and being passionate and from being told to settle down and not settling. I am from embracing all that is wrong with me and all that is wrong with you, from changing and from staying the same, persevering and smiling.

I am from “sucking the marrow out of life” and from Emerson and from Hawthorne. I am from every page that I have read, every book that I have highlighted, every quote that I have remembered. I am from the morning I awake and from the praise I give God with my day.

Where are you from?

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Happiness Is

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characters_doozers.jpg

I don’t know who wrote the book, but I used to have one about happiness when I was a kid. Happiness was a bunch of things: a warm blanket, a puppy, eskimo kisses, etc. etc. Pretty mushy stuff. Sometimes though, it’s fun to think like a child again, to think about being happy, to focus on it and make it real for you in that moment.

 

Happiness is sending off the first chapter of your novel for revision.

Happiness is being scared, and embracing that scared-ness.

Happiness is that nothing exploded when you hit send.

Happiness is the hot cocoa that you made to celebrate.

Happiness is finding this picture on your computer in the VERY IMPORTANT FILES section, and smiling, because of course, that is exactly where it belonged.

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Phat Tuesday

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That’s what I’m having. Woo Hoo. By the end of the day today, the first chapter of my novel will be in the hands of an EDITOR, and I will be working on the second. I can’t tell you for the life of me why it took so long. It’s a challenge to do something this personal for me, I’m a little afraid of success, even more than failure (which of course is the most likely for any writer). Getting a book on the market will validate so much for me.

Procrastinating is easy to do, there are things that come up, excuses that I can make to avoid the work. Since there’s no time limit, no boss, no structure. It doesn’t come to you, and I’ve learned you really can’t force it. It’s rough work, slow going and intense, full of difficult thought and angst and pressure. I actually should be rushing to get it over with.

reading books
www.news.wisc.edu

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Chinese New Year Presents

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Well, I may have missed it by a day, but it’s the year of the pig! Yay!

We did all the appropriate stuff, I ate some Ramen Noodles and we celebrated in the traditional method of watching 24 hours of Law & Order on the TNT marathon. I got to go out last night and see some old friends and of course, if you know anything, you know that RB is in town (this guy from San Fran) so we got to party, and that is always the Best Of Times.

The house is a full, shiny, happy place full of fun and wonderfulness, despite me waking up every morning with my face still in pain. Boo.

Don’t google year of the pig, whatever you do, there are too many gross pictures of carved up pigs on the internet, that is for sure.


www.chizod.com

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Made For Heaven

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My kingdom does not belong to this world.

John 18:36

 

Unhappiness on earth cultivates a hunger for heaven. By gracing us with a deep dissatisfaction, God holds our attention. The only tragedy, then, is to be satisfied prematurely. To settle for earth. To be content in a strange land…

We are not happy here because we are not at home here. We are not happy here because we are not supposed to be happy here. We are like “foreigners and strangers in this world” (1 Pet. 2:11)…

And you will never be completely happy on earth simply because you were not made for earth. Oh, you will have your moments of joy. You will catch glimpses of light. You will know moments or even days of peace. But they simply do not compare with the happiness that lies ahead.

-from Max Lucado’s Grace for the Moment


www.abc-embroidery-designs.com

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Fonda San Miguel

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The restaurant itself is beautiful. It’s over by North Loop and Hancock. I’d never been before. I could meet anyone, anytime there for a drink, maybe even an appetizer. That part was yummy. After all that fun, the dining room and food left something to be desired.

Make no mistake, we managed to be almost the last table in there, so we tried our best to make our own good time. I just found the entrees pretty plain for all the other stuff being so much better. The company was great, and it was nice to have a relatively quiet weekend night, considering I’m still in recovery.

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Life, In Boxes

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Weirdest thing I’ve done in a while: I went through someone’s stuff. Their everything. This person had some things, well, all their things, left somewhere and never went for them. These boxes were made available to me as it was widely understood parts of my life might have found their way to these boxes as well. I wasn’t sure it was necessary, but part of me wanted to see the condition this person had given up in.

It was unsettling to be right, to see that people would take things and think nothing of it. It was also a memory of better things, and a realization of a life in need of saving, with no one knowing how to help. I really can’t get in to it much more than that, but can’t stop thinking about the situation. I’ve got some things back, sure, but someone else is missing so much more.


www.chicagolandtruckrental.com