Ramblings. As in: Have Words -Will Ramble. As in: Ramble: to write or talk aimlessly or without sequence of ideas, to proceed with turns and twists; meander As In: observances of an everyday life in passing through the spectrum of extraordinary.
Postpartum BonBon's
Thursday, September 27, 2007
For anyone that's been anywhere within, oh, I don't know, a thousand miles of me the last few months, all they have heard me saying is, "The novel! I'm working on the novel. I have to go write. I can't talk - I'm writing! I really shouldn't be here having fun with you because I should be home working on THE NOVEL. Or they are turning blue with their eyes rolling up in their head as I am reporting my word count as if they really care. Or listening to me complain about how tired I was from working on the novel or how my hands were numb, my shoulders ached until they want to slap me and say, 'SNAP OUT OF IT!' Oh the pain. Oh the glory.
So said novel is finished. (Or at least until some gifted editor says something like, "You know in this tiny little part right here, well, no one on the planet earth understands what you are talking about (okay, an editor has never told me those words but Mr. Wonderful has offered that kind advice.) Regardless, the thousands of words, the hands, the shoulders, all for a good cause and the novel is off, off, off.
Now I have found myself watching TV at night for a moment and thinking, "What am I forgetting? What am I supposed to be doing?" Then I realize - HA! Nothing! I've earned this mindless vegetation state and I'm going to enjoy it to the fullest. I don't need to clean house, run errands, or complete to-do lists. Can't you see I've just given birth to an elephant???? Bring on the bonbons! The reruns! The sweatpants!
But I have this itchy anti-gravity feeling.This, 'My feet aren't firmly connected to the earth feeling.' And I realize that my taproot, this great novel that I've been working on for so long, has been centering me. And I miss it. I want to pull the pages back in, to reenter that town, sit down with those people, and wait to see what happens next. I want to turn the next page as it's happening. I want to be lost in a world that is running parallel to mine on a thin line of author sweat and black ink.
It's akin to missing being with child after the baby is born. It's no longer that protected, intimate, personal being. Anyone can hold the baby now. (Well, almost anyone. I really don't think you would want to tote this two-ton baby around anywhere.)
There's really nothing else for me to do but watch reruns. Or . . .
I'm checking my story garden. I'm testing the season, the soil and the weather. Checking the seeds in my pocket, wondering which ones to plant, to keep, to stash away. To run my fingers through them like a field  of flowers, testing the readiness. The ripeness. To write something sweet and fresh that smells of sunshine and daisies or something a bit more exotic, more mysterious, like Peter Siffels orchids. It may just be the crazy, insane, wonderful time to begin something new.
Otherwise, I'm stuck with the bonbons and Barney. But, hey, don't tell my family or they'll start rolling their eyes and turning blue.
posted by River Jordan at 6:44 AM
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Davis Kidd Book Clubs
Friday, September 21, 2007
I had the great pleasure of hanging out at Davis Kidd last night as various members of assorted book clubs came together in force to check out some of the new books that will be finding their way in stores soon or to discuss some classics that deserve to be rediscovered. Case in point - The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins. The Classics bookclub at Davis Kidd is reading this book now and the presenter was raving over it. Listing it as one of her top ten books of all time. Of all time. Now that's way up there on the book list. I cringed as she said this because my mother has told me ALL OF MY LIFE, you just must read The Woman in White. And of course, I haven't.
And I also cringe because we were discussing first lines and I said, I think the first line of my novel, The Messenger of Magnolia Street is one of the finest, or I love it, or some such thing. Then someone asked me to recite it. Lovely. Except I couldn't do it. I was suddenly like the kid from The Christmas Story when he finally reaches Santa's lap and stumbles out that he wants a football instead of a Red Rider BB Gun. Okay, so here it is.
"God is walking through Shibboleth, rummaging through the pockets of his memory, the distant past and the near future."
Now, I am an avid reader and as such, I happen to believe that's a great first line. The way it found it's way to the page is a bit of a miracle to me as are all the mysteries regarding the process of writing. And it's not a hard line to recite. I just always think I'll say the line wrong, that I'll drop a word, change a word, and not do the line justice. To be able to walk around with time in our pockets seems like such an awesome thing. But then, I think that is exactly what we do. Pockets full of time. All of us. Rummaging through it the best we can. Fingering the past, toying with the future.
Beyond my short-lived first line fiasco we discussed being so captivated by a book, any type of book, that you are motivated to capture strangers in line at bookstores, grocery stores, or the library and ask, "Have you read this yet?" And follow that with a must. "You must read this. You simply must." Books that suddenly draft us, employ us, to carry them forward. What are those books for you and why are they so special? (I'm looking for answers so please share your thoughts by email.)
Okay, so now I'm memorizing to perfection that one simple line. Reciting it over and over again. Go ahead someone, just ask me. I am so ready. "God is walking through Shibboleth . . . "
posted by River Jordan at 10:48 AM
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The Geek In Me
Monday, September 17, 2007
So, I got new glasses. (is that grammatically correct?) Okay - I procured them, bought them, needed them (only to see better), wore them out of the store.
My husband,(formerly Mr. Wonderful) took one look at me and said, "You look like such a geek." (or was that nerd?) Anyway, point taken. But what exactly was the point?
So this drove me to go to that most reliable source - the WIKI on line research tool to discover:
Geek - (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia on line)
The word geek has recently come to be used to refer to a person who is fascinated by knowledge and imagination, usually electronic or virtual in nature. (okay, so far so Good - I am just fascinated by knowledge and imagination - just like my good buddy, Albert Einstein.) The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the word geek as "1: a carnival performer often billed as a wild man whose act usually includes biting the head off a live chicken, bat or snake (OKAY- I am definitely NOT biting off the heads of live chickens!) 2: a person often of an intellectual bent who is disliked
(I admit it. Some people don't like me on occasion, for just a little while, including my closest family members and people from international help desks when I've been on hold for an hour - but they also don't consider me much of an intellectual so maybe they don't count) 3: an enthusiast or expert especially in a technological field or activity". (nada, nada, nada)
BUT NOW - tada! We have the definition according to that great unseen cultural reference point in cyberland.
THE DEFINITION OF GEEK
The definition of geek has changed considerably over time, and there is no definite meaning. The social and rather derogatory connotations of the word make it particularly difficult to define. A definition common among self-identified geeks is: "one who is primarily motivated by passion," indicating somebody whose reasoning and decision making is always first and foremost based on his/her passions rather than things like financial reward or social acceptance. Geeks do not see the typical "geeky" interests as merely interesting, but as objects of passionate devotion. The idea that the pursuit of personal passions should be the fundamental driving force to all decisions could be considered the most basic shared tenet among geeks of all varieties. Geeks consider such pursuits to be their own defining characteristic.
Alright, based on that definition, I'm as geeky baby as they come. I'm so geeky I'm going to get a t-shirt AND a bumper sticker that says GEEK GIRL RIDES AGAIN. Okay, don't steal that. I think I'll use it. I think I'll create that great comic girl . . . oh nevermind, I'll just sign off and go write it. Anyway, those same family members would also say I'm a quart low on logic. They would call my pursuit of passion as that thing that makes me so - special. (I don't think they mean special in a really nice way.) Or just a little off. Okay, maybe way, way, off. (Think Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe on Friends)
And the glasses . . . well my cousin Deb tells me they make me look like that porno star, "You know the one that . . . " NO, I don't know. And I don't want to know. And I don't want to know how she knows either.
For more information on Geeks and all the current definitions and defining characteristics. Just check out Wikipedia
And if your one of us, shun the opposition honey. You know what I'm talking about, all that conformity to look like a Barbie in the box pumped full botox. Set that inner geek in you free with no apologies. All passion and wonder and imagination. Just put on those geeky shoes and those strange frames and step out into the world large and in charge.
But realize all that intellectual passion is a powerful magnet and if sleazy, bizarre people start sliding up next to you asking for an autograph remember the words of cousin Deb and run. Labels: friends, Geeks, passion
posted by River Jordan at 9:54 AM
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