Event Monitor, Christmas in Oxnard and Writing

I have to wear an "event" monitor for 14 days over my heart. The doctor said he already knows the fainting doesn't have anything to do with my heart. It's just to see if my heart is reacting to the fainting. I already hit the little button twice, but I felt too horrible to actually document it on the log. 

I went a little past Solvang to hang out with Sue. It was such a fun day, and we visited two of my favorite (out of three) wineries. I wasn't feeling much pain until the next day. Yes, major hangover vibes. Good thing Emory was there to help me along. He made me electrolyte drinks, and when I could eat, he made me something light for my stomach. Awesome companion. Great best friend. The electricity in my veins... (if you know, you know).

Emory and I went to Oxnard for Christmas, though it was a little scary to drive because Ventura is having flooding with all the storms that came through. There are three ways to get up there, and one of the drives had fallen trees blocking the road. The other had flooding. So we took a 3rd path, which was a back road. 

The beach house was warm. The company was pleasant. The food was delicious. We played games that was so incredible fun, but I learned that I'm terrible at Banna-Rama, which is like Scrabble. I did NOT win any of the rounds. We played another game that I really want to get for the Phoenix commune. I probably don't need to collect any more games, but this was so fun.

I came home with three sari skirts. They are so boho in style and I'm freaking in love! Sue said we should go to the store and see if I can get tank tops to match the colors. I really suck at matching my clothes, but I think tank tops would be cute with them. Plus, they flip, so technically I have three interchangeable skirts that make 6 designs. This is so perfect for me! Don't be surprised if that's what you see me in over the summer. 

We finally did a live stream on YouTube, and for almost 30 minutes, we couldn't figure out the sound. Then we restarted it, and the sound popped up. We decorated cookies, though the cookies looked a little funky because they spread so badly in the oven. 

Writing Update:

F.C. chapter 10 is finally edited and ready to post. I think I see where this could go. I have moments in my head that I just need to get out on paper.

C. chapter 15 is still being edited. I had to stop for a day because I was getting frustrated with the process. Words fail me sometimes. 

Christmas Carol 3x, Leisurely Drives and Writing

Emory and I drove down to Glendale to see Madam Scrooge the Musical. It was fantastic! The masks the actors wore were a little different, but I think they added to the eeriness of the theater. I feel like I dressed a little too brightly. Most people who came to the theater dressed in darker colors. There was a decorated room at the theater and this was amazing, so we had to take a picture. 

The show was fantastic. This is the second Scrooge play I saw in a month, so I thought I would be done with the story, but I'm so amazed by the singing and dancing. Both shows were very different and yet so familiar. We're now watching Scrooge, the television series on Disney. This version is extremely dark and gruesome. 

Sue called me to say she wanted to go for a leisurely drive. I'm not so sure where we're going because the connection was horrid. I heard "leisurely drive... wine... lunch." 

Our wine rack came in! It holds about 24 bottles of wine. We just need 6 more bottles to completely fill it up. I'm so excited, and I love looking at it. This year we collected so much wine, and plus people give us bottles, and I'm so excited to have everything on display now. I do have the little 6-bottle holder that I bought for $3.00 at a rummage sale. The holder is metal and extremely cute, so I might give it to my mom to try and sell at an estate sale. 

Crazy Cousin Nik came into town. He's learning French. He's got his own business. He also has a really neat horse. It'll be good to see him if he has any time to visit with me. I think he's planning on moving out of the country. I hope there is a way to still communicate with him if that's the case. 

Awwww! I set my coffee cup down, and Mozart looked at the door. I think he's sad when his pack isn't home with him.

Writing Update:

C: 2701 words written. I want to get this to about 4,000+ words before I post the next chapter. My characters are currently doing mundane things like shopping. I don't know if it really is a lot of action, but the readers seem to like "slice of life" type moments too.

F: 2832 words written. I want this to be about 3,500+ words before I post the chapter. I think my characters are getting really "hot and bothered," which is what the readers are waiting for. 

B.N.F. : I'm working on this. I had it edited up to chapter 3 and then my flash drive took a nosedive and scrambled everything. Depression sank in. So now I'm trying this again. I have three drafts and two edited "final" versions of this story. I skipped editing the "final" versions and went straight to the 3rd Draft to edit again. I don't know if this is the final "boss" version that I want, but it is something to edit. 

My writing style has really changed a lot. So when I look back at stories that need to be worked on, I cringe and wonder what I was trying to get at. I really like that all my practice has conformed me into this version of myself. I still need to work on my Yuletide horror story. 

Spiritual Adviser, Stoner Rob and Writing

I've decided that I'd like to have a spiritual adviser. I did talk with the High Priestess, and it was so fulfilling. She gave me a beautiful little white heart stone that I can keep until I see her again, and we'll keep passing it back and forth as we charge it with our energy. What a wonderful concept. 

I went to Arizona for four days, and I really missed Emory a lot. It was really busy. I spent the night with Jeffrey, and I actually crashed a little early, but woke up within a few hours. The weather wasn't too bad, but it is getting a little cold out in the desert at night. We watched Christmas light challenges, and a lot of the houses that won were in Arizona. I would love to have seen these homes in person.

Friday night, we went to Stir Crazy and saw Stoner Rob. He called our row out. I couldn't stop laughing because he asked what I did for a living. He also asked Steven what he did, and of course, Steven's job is pretty advanced, so it's hard to sum up. Stoner Rob summed it up pretty quickly and had us all rolling. 

Saturday, we went shopping and got lunch, and ended up going to see Christmas Carol the musical. It was fantastic. I think I enjoyed it a little more than even Ann and Sue. It was so great.

On Sunday, we did a little more shopping. Ann got me clothes for Christmas. I can't say what I got her in case she reads these blogs. I wanted to do 12 days of Christmas for Emory, so I need to do a little more shopping to finish this little project. I think he's excited. I hope he's not disappointed in the gifts.

Oh, Steven said that the bag of popcorn I gave him, he already ate most of the bag. It was the mango habanero spicy stuff. Lucelle is working on the Puzzle Advent Calendar, which we bought her. Every day she wakes up and goes to her table to open a box and put her pieces together for the day. She said it's something she's going to keep. I'm so excited. 

Sue is so sick right now and miserable. She is such a trooper though, and really toughed the trip out. Mozart got lots of love, but I think he's happy to be in a single dog home. He played with Ollie, but the excitement for him was short-lived. 

I really wish I could have went thrift shopping or go to rummage sales. I love the neighborhoods and the things people sell. I find the neatest things. 

I would like to do standup again. I was told that I'm pretty funny, but I think most people find my laugh to be more funny than me.

Writing Update:

I'm working on a few projects that are going nowhere. I just want to write drama/fluff and I needed to just pound out the plot bunnies onto paper so I've been working on these projects just to have something for myself. 

I didn't work too much while I was in Arizona. I thought I'd have time to write. Now that I'm back, I'm trying really hard to get my projects finished. This might be long freaking projects. 

I find that there aren't enough trans-characters in media so I am working on a horror project that I'd like to submit for next year to a publisher looking for LGBTQ projects. I want to make my trans woman a final girl. There is so much to understand so I can write this character with the best representation possible. I've been watching youtube/Instagram videos of women walking through everything from their thoughts on the process, the hoops that they have to jump through, etc. I think I might understand the medication, but I'm not 100% sure. This is exciting and scary because I love horror movies, but I don't know how to write these stories. Also, I'm so in love with my main character that I just don't want anything bad to happen to her, but there are rules to being a final girl. You have to go through a lot and I feel like it's going to be a rollercoaster of emotions to write.

Pet Raccoons, Halloween Coffee Mugs and Writing

Mozart's hair appointment was cancelled. The little groomer was sick. I told them not to worry about it. Plus, now that it's winter-ish.... I say that so loosely- Mozart might want his fur coat. We're heading to Arizona with him dirty.

I FINALLY watched Marvel vs Zombies. It was dark, like I thought it would be, but it was fun watching it with our moon family. I think it gave me nightmares, though. I definitely could see some similarities in my nightmare.

I'm watching Peacemaker now. EEEEEEHHHHH!!!!! I'm such a fan girl. He's such a jerk, but in a lovable, doomed sort of way. I think I'm secretly in LOVE with Harcourt. Her anger and rage make her so doomed and so incredibly hot. I think I am secretly in love with angry people. What does that say about me?

I found a Halloween coffee mug. We have enough, but this one was only 50 cents, so how was I supposed to pass it up? I should have bought all of them so I could give them as gifts. I'll have to do that next time. I could FORCE myself into people's morning schedules. Teehee! (We did just stop by to check on these mugs at Ralph's Grocery. Sadly, there are none left.)

My high priestess said she would adopt a raccoon as a pet! I said hell no to that because they can get in the fridge. But if we start a commune with the high priestess and the coven, I think it might be fun to have a number of the pets she would adopt. I kind of want a groundhog. We both said we'd ADOPT a lot of dogs so they could be free and loved. We want a garden, and we want to invite the coven to stay a while. 

Writing Update:

C: I wrote about 327 words on chapter 15. I have a feeling this is going to be a super long story. It's got a lot of hits, so that's really cool. 

F.C. I wrote about 410 words on this one. I need my character to go with withdrawals. I don't know much about withdrawals, but I've seen it portrayed in Train Spotting. I think it would be terrible to go through. I might know a few people who went through withdrawals that I can speak with. I think people have certain expectations for what should happen for the withdrawals, so I do need to put it in consideration.

Werewolf: Still untitled. 😂 I am only on chapter 1 but it's a really good chapter. It's flowing and I have a lot of personalities to really feel out. The only problem is, it feels a little like Witcher meets Supernatural with Norse vs. Irish mythology. So right now, I have no idea where this is going. I like my characters. This is supposed to be a romance. Do I split it into two Point of Views? or do I keep this under one point of view, my Norse werewolf vs my Irish fairy? 

High Priestess Tarot, Friendsgiving and Writing

I found so many sweets for my Friendsgiving. Nothing I can eat because it all has wheat, but why punish the whole house? So we found cinnamon rolls, two pies, blueberry muffins, flavored nuts....

Sue came by to pick up the last of what we're taking out to Arizona. That's still a week or so away, and it's just the two of us going. Emory has to stay with the pets. 

I spoke with Steven, and he said he would take me to a themed coffee shop that's in Phoenix, AZ. I'm so excited. Now, I think they offer tons of things, but I just want a coffee and to see the atmosphere. I think it's Harry Potter-themed, and I'm on the fence about the franchise. I don't know how people are feeling about the author. Her world really got tons of children reading, and people just love what was created. 

I hope there is time to go. I have two communes to visit and a few houses to go to. I have events scheduled with everyone. I have presents that I need to wrap right away. It's going to be fun. 

I wonder if Glendale Glitters is still a thing. Emory said he would look it up.

I found a painting event for the weekend Sue and I are out of town, but it's in California. She said we could come back home early, but why? We're going to be running for four days and then come back early just for this? Nah. We'll catch the next paint event.

The high priestess read my tarot for me. I feel like the message is saying something needs to change. I think there are some decisions that need to be made, but not right now. Maybe two years from now the cards will make a little more sense. 

Writing Update:

I have two characters whose names are way too similar, but they are for two different stories. 

The names in question: Amita (for my omega polygamy story) and Amina (for my Yuletide horror). Funny thing is, I didn't see how close they were until a day ago, so I need to change one, and I put so much effort into naming my character for the Yuletide horror, so I guess Amita is going to be the one that gets changed. 

I'm also working on a short erotica. It's not going so great because my tarot pull was interesting, but I kind of wonder if I'm trying to write in that space and it's too open. I need to try to focus on one concept. What I got was a giant genie and a Daughter of Knives.... What am I supposed to do with this? I'm excited but I'm also not so sure I'm great writing straight fiction. 

Phantasmagoria Deck