Monday, November 02, 2009

Slices of Life

:::Got Wifi?:::

One of the reasons I haven't been blogging lately is that I have almost no internet access(aside from the casual 3G surfing and the occasional borrowing of my wife's sister's laptop) at my wife's family's house, where I currently reside. So I decided to a wifi friendly home and, after several minutes of grunting (from adjusting the old windows) and wheezing (pulling the lan cable across the roof the unto the next window) I now enjoy the luxuries of being jacked up again to internet.

:::Kapre Hunt:::

I finally submitted my short story for Philippine Speculative Fiction last month, coming within hours of the deadline. Total words: 2127. Entitled Kapre Hunt, I decided to go with the second one, seeing that I know my characters well enough to imagine them what they're going to do in a particular situation. Hopefully, I'll get an email confirmation of yes. Fingers crossed.

:::My Wife, the SuperHeroine:::

I'm always amazed by my wife. One day, while shopping, as she's walking quickly past a store when she saw this amazing set of pearl earrings AMIDSTS OF HUNDREDS OF LIKE DESIGNS in a glass table TEN FEET AWAY. You men with relationships know what I'm talking about. Then I'll ask her to fetch me a ballpen NEXT TO HER on a CLEAR TABLE and she'll ask me where. The mind boggles. It's like she has an alter ego.

:::Reading Ancient Fantasy:::

Well, not actually ancient, but now I'm in a phase where I'm reading cult literary authors, the likes of H.P. Lovecraft (of Cthulhu Mythos), Robert Howard (Conan the Barbarian) , Edgar Rice Burroughs (Tarzan of the Apes) Isaac Asimov (Foundation) and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes) . Lot's of good pure stuff. Consider this prose by Robert Howard when Conan said ...

"I have known many gods. He who denies them is as blind as he who trusts them too deeply. I seek not beyond death. It may be the blackness averred by the Nemedian skeptics, or Crom's realm of ice and cloud, or the snowy plains and vaulted halls of the Nordheimer's Valhalla. I know not, nor do I care. Let me live deep while I live; let me know the rich juices of red meat and stinging wine on my palate, the hot embrace of white arms, the mad exultation of battle when the blue blades flame and crimson, and I am content. Let teachers and priests and philosophers brood over questions of reality and illusion. I know this: if life is illusion, then I am no less an illusion, and being thus, the illusion is real to me. I live, I burn with life, I love, I slay, and am content."


Wow. Just Wow.

:::Writing Again:::

November marks again the National Novel Writing Month, or Nanowrimo for short. I'm joining again, but unlike last year I'm taking these easily, writing whenever I feel like it, instead of being pressured to write 1,667 words per day, just to reach the 50,000 finish line. Maybe I'll finally do it, maybe not. We'll see.

:::Back to Communism:::

Took up a month long Chinese course, just to refresh my memory, a decision I regret somewhat. It's good to learn again, but the schedule ... good lord, three hours everyday at night for six days a week. I must have been out of mind. Coupled this with work in the morning, my brains have all been turned into mush.

:::Store Plans:::
If all goes well before the year ends, I will have my very own hobby store here in Iloilo. The drive is there and the market is waiting. All I gotta do now is take it easy, one step at the time, and not screw up the process. Here's to one dream to come true this year.

State of Mind: Mindless Buzz
Song of the Day: Blood Red Summer by Coheed and Cambria
Book of the Week: Collected Works of H.P. Lovecraft
Want/Need: Call of Cthulhu LCG