October 2005

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Happy Halloween!

October 30, 2005 in Pictures | View Comments

I promised pictures, and here they be:


Robbie as Captain Jack Sparrow

Sonja as an evil witch

Charlie and Bridget (Robbie's parents) as the Count and Countess

Mom the machine-head

Joanna the elf (note pointed ears)

Dad the cowboy (I told him it was a costume party. Baha.)

Skye came as Rainbow Bright and Craig came as... um... we're not sure.

Jen as a bat and Johnny as Zorro (and Bridget)

The pirate family: Tim, Dylan (the kid, not the skull pirate), and Bonnie

Appropriately, Robbie carved the pirate and I carved the witch.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Beethoven’s Ninth

October 27, 2005 in Families | View Comments

My mom and my brother and I are all in a performance of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony on Friday night. (Bruder plays clarinet in the orchestera and Mom and I are in the chorus.) Last night we heard the 3rd and 4th movements all together. (The chorus only sings in the 4th movement.) It was pretty amazing. You know the 4th movement, whether or not you know you know. ;-) (Did you get all that?) It's the Ode to Joy tune. You know? "Joyful joyful we adore thee, God of..." something something. But you get the idea. Anyway, the way it's composed, the orchestra builds a teeny little bit at a time up to that theme. First, the low strings play it reallyreallyreally soft and then they add more and more and more until the entire orchestra practically bursts. And then the chorus comes in. It's awesome. I don't really listen to classical music much and I'm not really as "cultured" as most people about it, but I was so touched to be able to hear it all together with the choir and the orchestra and the soloists.

Now all you classically trained musicians can roll your eyes at me. ;-) Go ahead, I know you want to.

And now for a less cultured conversation about Beethoven...

Mom: Some of those high notes sound screechy.
Me: I don't think they can NOT sound screechy. All notes that are that high sound screechy and bad.
Mom: Well, Beethoven didn't think they did.
Me: Well... He was deaf. What did he know? Bahaha.

Two Magna Cartas

October 25, 2005 in NaNoWriMo | View Comments

If any of you are going to jump into the Nano fray with me (coughSkyecough), I recommend you go out right now and buy No Plot? No Problem! by Chris Baty, founder of NaNoWriMo. And no, you moochers, you can't borrow my copy because I need it. I'll be referring to it throughout the month. Get your own. They have copies at Barnes and Noble and it's well worth the $14.95.

I started the prewriting exercises today (at Taco Bell on my lunch break-- such an inspiring atmosphere). The first one is called Two Magna Cartas. I won't quote from the book because, um, I don't want to be accused of plagiarism (such a dirty word!) but the basic idea is that you first make a list of everything you like in novels that you've read, and then second, you make a list of everything in novels that bores you or depresses you. The second list was actually way easier than the first. I'll blame it on the fact that I'd already warmed up on the first list, rather than my suspicion that I'm just a negative person. Hee.

But here are my lists. Feel free to create your own. And give me a vague idea in the comments section if you want to. Or post to your blog. I promise I'll comment. ;-)

MAGNA CARTA I: What Sonja Likes in Novels
humor
romance
Happily Ever After (or an emotionally satisfying conclusion)
lots of dialogue
rich scenery
functional, touching family relationships
well-developed characters
fresh/young perspective (which usually means a young narrator/main character)
pets
dancing
best friends
journeys (literal & figurative)/adventures
fight/chase scenes (2 or 3)

MAGNA CARTA II: What Sonja Hates to Read
violence
gratuitous sex
too much navel-gazing
woe-is-me characters
tortured heroes
overcoming-tremendous-odds stories
inspiring anecdotes (Chicken Soup for the Stupid)
didactic message/"moral of the story" endings
divine intervention/deus ex machina (I like Emily's phrase better)
spiritual theme
adultery
tragic endings to sappy love stories
any character with cancer/other life-threatening disease or disability

Your turn. Hit me.

Day: Made

October 25, 2005 in The Day Job | View Comments

Do you know how much it takes to make my day? Very little. Here's an email I got this morning:

Sonja gets the award for best status reports. Clear, concise, effective. Must be a writer in her other life.

- Z., Strunk & White fan

He's not my boss or anything. In fact, he's a remote employee so I think I've actually met him, like, once, but he definitely made my day.

I apologize for my scarceness this week, in advance. I have rehearsals/performances every night but Thursday, and the big Halloween shindig Saturday night, so I'm a busy little bee this week. (Apparently a 72-year-old "busy little bee," judging by word choice.)

The Broom’s at Home Today

October 20, 2005 in My Glorious Visage, Pictures | View Comments

I dyed my hair last night. My boss asked me if that was my broom in the parking lot. Hee.


On a completely unrelated note, I found this picture on my phone and forgot I took it, so I'm posting it. You are now required to go "awwww." (My parents tell me that my twin sister looked like Yoda when she was a baby. Since we're twins, I can't decide if I should be insulted by that or not.)

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