Celebrating Moms

Since my day to blog at the League of Reluctant Adults fell on Mother's Day, I thought I'd do a post around the topic of mothers. I've been lucky enough to have had a good relationship with my mother for my whole life. I haven't always lived close by, but I know I'm loved and that I can depend on her (and in case you were curious, I'm tight with my dad, too, but this is about mothers). It's funny, though, that the majority of the characters I write about either have absentee mothers, bad mothers, or dead mothers. Evangeline* Stone's mother died when Evy was a kid, and before that she was a pretty terrible mother. Wyatt's mother is dead, too. The only genuine mother/child relationship I can think of in the Dreg City books are Aurora/Ava.

(*On the other hand, we haven't had a chance to look at the relationship between Chalice Frost and her mother, which was supposed to be part of book five….)

In MetaWars, all of the main characters are orphans. Although you could argue that Dahlia Perkins had a great relationship with her mother—except her mother died a few years before….well, you'll learn all about that in CHANGELING (June 26, 2012). The Sekrit Project I've been mentioning here and there follows the same pattern of dead mothers (although for variety, there are some fantastic father/son relationships in that series). One of these days I'll write something with a healthy, solid mother/child relationship, I swear.

Since today is supposed to be about celebrating Mom, I want to list some of my favorite mothers in books, movies and television. In no particular order:

 JOYCE SUMMERS. "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer." She rocks it as a mom. Smart, funny, protective of her only child. Her death was one of the saddest moments of that entire series (admit it, you cried, too).

CAROLINE INGALLS. "Little House on the Prairie." As a little girl, I used to play Little House with my neighbor. Because I was younger, I got to be Laura a lot. I wanted to be Laura, and I wanted Ma Ingalls to make my dresses and braid my hair.
  CHARLIE MADIGAN. The "Charlie Madigan" series, by Kelly Gay. A single mom urban fantasy novel protagonist. You don't see many, and Charlie handles both her professional life and her role as a mother with a deft hand. If you haven't picked up this series, grab it now!

MRS. BRISBY. "The Secret of NIMH." This movie is part of my childhood, and I still adore it to this day. No one can touch Don Bluth's animated movies, and NIMH is my absolute favorite. Mrs. Brisby faces her fears and finds courage she never knew she had in order to save the lives of her children.

 FAITH YOKAS. "Third Watch." I adored all six seasons of this show, which few people seem to remember. Yokas was a fascinating character to watch grow. She was a patrol cop, but she was also a wife and mother, and those relationships developed over the course of the series in very complex ways.

KAREN SANDERS. The "Shifers" series by Rachel Vincent. She's the wife of the Alpha. She's Faythe's mother (really, enough said right there). She protects her family with a quiet strength, and when she's angry? Look out.

EVELYN O'CONNELL. "The Mummy Returns." She's a bookworm turned action heroine. She's also a reincarnated Egyptian princess. She trades blows and sarcasm with equal finesse. Plus she's just plain funny.

HEROINE. "Feast." Probably the most clever horror movies in recent decades, Heroine is a mama on a mission. She's not afraid to violently kill a bunch of radioactive monsters if it means getting to her daughter.
MARILLA CUTHBERT. "Anne of Green Gables/Anne of Avonlea." Do I really have to explain why Marilla is, like, the most awesome mom ever? Anyone else who adored the Anne movies as a girl will understand.

So that's my short list, and I'm certain I've forgotten some awesome mothers.

 Who are some of your favorite fictional Mom's?

New Year's Resolutions: Make 'Em Right

A wise man once said "I resolve to make no resolutions." Or if he didn't say that, he should have.

With New Year's Day fast approaching here in the States, all manner of things abound on the internet. "Best of 2011" lists are being posted all over the place, from books to movies to blog posts. People are doing their Year in Review posts, and they are looking forward to 2012.

This got me thinking about New Year's Resolutions. Year after year, we say we'll change something/do better at something/be a better person. And year after year, we fall back into the same old patterns. Why? Because change is hard. Real change requires commitment and determination.

Real change means that you have to do it for yourself, not because you flip the calendar to a new year and people say you should.



I'm thinking about this for two reasons. One, someone I follow on Twitter was talking about losing weight, keeping it off, and how it has to be a lifestyle change. Two, someone I've known for over three years told me he might be trying to quit smoking again (this will be the fifth time since I've known him). In order to succeed at those two things, the person must want to do it.

Yes, I know it's not as easy as simply saying "I want this." Life isn't like that. But having a positive mindset and being determined to reach your goal for yourself definitely gets that goal closer to you.

Another reason so many resolutions fail is that while people are good at the "what?" of a resolution, they aren't very good at the "How?" part. How are you going to achieve your goal? How are you going to lose ten pounds? How are you going to quit a ten-year smoking habit? How are you going to "be a better person?"

And don't forget to consider "how long?" Give yourself a proper amount of time to achieve this goal. Don't rush change, and don't expect more from yourself than you can reasonably achieve--setting unreasonable expectations is another way to set yourself up for failure.

So be smart about your resolutions this year. And if I don't post again before then, see y'all in 2012!

Merry Winter Holiday of Your Choice!

Wishing everyone a safe and happy holiday season!

And I'm leaving you with a small slice of my favorite Christmas movie, THE REF.

Remember

Happy Easter

No matter how you may (or may not) celebrate today, don't forget: microwaving marshmallow Peeps is FUN!

Happy February 14th

I found this brilliant little video on YouTube, and I just had to share it.



To those of you celebrating today with someone you love, congrats and enjoy.

To the rest of us...well, enjoy the video. I know I did. :)

Food Court Serenade

If this doesn't put you in the holiday spirit, I don't know what will.



How come I'm never at the mall when cool stuff like this happens?

Thanks to SciFiGuy for the link.

On Thanksgiving Day....

...I'm thankful for a lot of things. But rather than boring you to tears with a long list, I figured I'd go for five. Five is a nice number.

5. I'm thankful I didn't have to cook and host the entire Thanksgiving meal this year. We three siblings (myself, sister and half-brother) put it all together and took it to my parents' house. Dad couldn't travel because of #4.

4. I'm thankful my Dad finally got the surgery on his leg that he's needed for months, and that it went well.

3. I'm thankful that I have an amazing agent who sold 4 books for me this year.

2. I'm thankful to have a happy, healthy kitty cat who is eating well, doing well, and is all-around terrific. This time last year she was just starting to get sick, and every time she purrs for me I remember how lucky I am to still have her.

1. I'm thankful for you, Readers, for making it possible to get paid for what I love to do: write.

What are you thankful for?

A Glimpse of Fire Alarms in the Dead of Night

There's nothing quite so disorienting than being terrified awake by a loud, obnoxious noise.

Especially if said noise is a fire alarm, it's blasting in your living room, and it's 2 o'clock in the morning. That was my Thursday night. And being two a.m., it took me several seconds to have an actual, coherent thought, which was, "Shit, where's my cat?" I didn't know if it was a real fire somewhere in the apartment building, or if some bastard had pulled the alarm for kicks--but I wasn't leaving Anya behind.

Which lead to a frantic search for her carrier (I could remember the first place I put it, but not where it actually was). And then a frantic search for the cat, who I had to yank out from under the bed where she was cowering. All while this alarm is flashing and squawking loudly enough to give me a headache. Then I realized, "Hey, pants! Coat!" All good things when it's about forty degrees outside.

It occurred to me later that I had the forethought to grab three things (clothes notwithstanding) -- my cat, my cell phone, and my car keys. I didn't even *think* to grab my purse.

Fortunately, it wasn't a real fire. Alarms had gone off in multiple buildings, so it took a while for the fire department to get to ours and turn them off. Forty minutes of sitting in my car (some of you may have seen my Tweets on the experience), and I finally got back inside.

Not cool.

***

So who's excited to see how A GLIMPSE OF DARKNESS ends? I know I am. It's been such a blast participating and seeing this story come together, and I just can't wait to see how Lara Adrian wraps it all up tomorrow!

***

I'll see in New York City this weekend for Halloween! I've made day trips to NYC, but this is my first overnight stay, and I'm ecstatic to get away. I never managed a real vacation this summer, so this (along with June's D.C. trip) kind of make up for that. We aren't making too many plans, because part of the fun is discovering things to do, but we are going to take in a Broadway show, as well as hit Central Park and a recommended restaurant. I'm also going to meet Agent J!

Anyone else have fun plans for Halloween?

Jack Bauer Interrogates Santa

This video is not for children.

Christmas Cheer

Anyone got some to spare?

Every time I look at a calendar, I have a hard time believing that it's December. Let alone more than halfway through December. This year has passed unbelievably fast, and I'm proud to say it's a year in which I'm pretty sure I read more books than watched movies. I wrote two books this year--neither contracted, but it was something to keep me in "writing shape" in between contract stuff. I'd hoped to write three, but a variety of stresses these last few months have made "fun" writing a little harder.

For those of you who are on Twitter, you've probably seen my kitty tweets. Vet still has no idea what's wrong with her, and naturally my kitty-mama worrying has stressed me right back into the cold I had at the end of November (which I don't think ever really went away). *reaches for tissue* This, of course, makes me not want to shop for the last of my Christmas list, or bake cookies/fudge like I do every year.

So how about spreading some holiday cheer? Jokes? Funny stories? What's something fun you did/are doing for Christmas this year?

Talk to me. :)

Three Things

Thing #1.

My second serialized short story started yesterday on Suvudu.com. "Pride Before Fall" will be posted in five parts, just like "The Hoarder." You'll see more of Tybalt, the main character, next summer in AS LIE THE DEAD, but for now, I hope you enjoy.

Thing #2.

There's a special kind of happiness felt when you're told by a thirteen year-old girl that your book "is better than Twilight." And to then by told by a friend to whom you related the story than her fourteen year-old daughter agrees. Now, THREE DAYS TO DEAD isn't targeted to teens, but I like the idea of teenage girls identifying with a woman who takes charge of her destiny, rather than lusts after a guy and lets him control her.

Thing #3.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING to my fellow U.S. residents who are celebrating today!



I'm hosting today, so I have to get offline soon. Still have mashed potatoes, Mac-n-cheese, stuffing, and cracker dressing to prepare.

Happy 4th of July!

It's been a bit of a bummer week, so instead of trying to be interesting or funny, I'll leave you with one of my favorite film speeches of all time.

Weekend Round-Up

Well, it's been a hectic couple of days. On Thursday, my dad and I went to an auction in Lebanon, PA, and bought some fun stuff. We do some side selling on eBay and at flea markets, so we were stocking up a bit. I managed to pick up some awesome things from my childhood: the My Little Ponies Show Stable and Nursery playsets, with most of their furniture, and about ten ponies. I still need to wash them (dirt accumulation points toward being in someone's garage for a while), but they're both in good shape.

I couldn't even tell you where Friday went, but yesterday was spent cleaning and cooking in preparation for today's Easter dinner guests. Let me tell you, chicken pot pie is not as easy to make as my mom always made it seem. Plus, I stole a method from Semi-Homemade and concocted a yummy-looking lemon pudding cake (and I say "looking" because I haven't tried it yet).

Saw the movie "Quarantine" last night. The shaky camera was starting to make me seasick, but as far as horror films go, this one rates up there. Good set up, good build of tension. My only complaint was the final scene--given the "we aren't really sure what's going on" vibe from the rest of the film, it felt unnecessarily tacked on. That's about all I can say without spoiling it.

Gotta finish making crusts for the pot pie. I'll leave you with this thought to ponder: if the Easter Bunny was a paranormal creature, what species would he be?

Ringing in 2009

I had to work early on New Year's Day, so we had belated festivities last night (and way into the morning) in the form of a movie/wine marathon. And boy did we run the gamut of the surreal. We started off with Hellraiser--classic horror film. I recalled bits and pieces, but not the entire thing, which always makes for a better viewing. Then we tempered the gore with an episode of "The Dresden Files." The one with werewolves and the super-hot scene where Harry smells Heather and she looks like she's going to rip his throat out. Mmmmm...

Then (because I'd told my roomie in the past that this movie is best viewed while drinking) we moved onto bottle number two and Dancer in the Dark. The last time I'd seen it was almost eight years ago, when it first came out. Superb movie. I bawled like a baby again. By the time it was over, it was inching toward two-thirty, but neither of us was tired. So I got out my Nightmare on Elm Street collector's boxed set, and we watched Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare in its original 3-D format (the set comes with 3-D glasses!). Let me tell you, watching that after two bottles of wine is FUNNY. Of course, the movie makes no damn sense sober, so I definitely recommend my viewing method.

After that, we started looking at photo albums (reasoning defies explanation). Then, since we were in the dining room anyway, decided to finish off the third bottle of wine while removing Christmas ornaments from our dead tree. I climbed a step-stool and didn't fall. And I think we managed to successfully remove all of them, plus every strand of lights, the garland, the topper, and the tree skirt. Sweeping was left for today.

We decided the tree was acceptably naked and wandered back into the living room, where the TV had stopped showing reruns of "Three's Company" and had moved on to infomercials for male enhancement pills and, er, vaccuums. I found the remake of The Fly on AMC, and we watched that until 5:00 am, when it was decided that we should try to get some sleep.

I haven't stayed up that late in a long time. It was fun. Surreal, but fun.

The Worst Feeling in the World...

....is being absolutely certain you have something, but being unable to find it.

Last night, I wrote out the last check in my checkbook. Not a problem, I had a box of a hundred more (I'd just ordered them back in July and rarely write more than four checks a month for various bills). I also knew I'd just seen them a week or two ago, so they should be easy to find.

Nuh uh.

I searched in every drawer and even in those plastic tub things under my bed. Twice! No dice. That box of checks is well-hidden. I'll probably find them in March. I'm not panicking, because I know they're in the house. And I suppose it's as good a reason as any to order new checks with my new mailing address.

Still! I hate not being to find something I know exists! Grrr....

Anywho, I'll be off to my grandparents' house in a few hours for Christmas Eve festivities. Since my roomie is going to out of state to see her family, I've got the house to myself tonight. I think this is the first Christmas Eve night I've ever NOT spent at my parents house. Just me and my cat.

Oh, and the fudge? Semi-sweet chocolate with orange extract. YUMMY!!!!

Top Ten Christmas Movies

Shopping is complete. Presents are wrapped. Cookies are mostly done. Still need to make fudge tomorrow. But all in all, I'm looking good (and feeling better, if I could just get rid of this daggone cough!).

One of the things I remember most about Christmas is decorating the tree with my parents and sister. My mom would string the lights. My sister and I would put on the ornaments. My dad would sit on the sofa and watch. In the background, we'd play a stream of Christmas specials - Charlie Brown Christmas, Mickey's Christmas Carol, Christmas on Sesame Street, etc... All of those old videos hold a special place in my heart.

I also try to watch my favorite Christmas movies around this time of year. Haven't gotten to many of them yet, but I thought I'd offer my top ten (and if anyone feels like sharing, please do).

1. The Ref
2. Scrooged
3. A Muppet's Christmas Carol
4. The Santa Clause
5. Home Alone
6. Mixed Nuts
7. The Family Stone
8. Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer
9. Trapped in Paradise
10. Gremlins

Holiday Musings

Saturday came and went pretty darn fast. Technically, there are still five hours left, though, so not quite done. I spent late morning and early afternoon visiting my dad. Trying to offer a bit of relief from house-bound boredom. And lunch from my favorite local deli, Capriotti's. Their sandwiches are amazing--they use real chunks of turkey and beef and chicken, not deli slices. As Rachel Ray would say, "Yum-O."

On the drive home, I had holiday baking on my mind. Mostly because it's December 20th and I haven't done any, yet. In my defense, I've hosted both Thanksgiving dinner and a baby shower over the last three weeks, so I think I've done my fair share of cooking. I just love holiday baking. I love making cookies and cheesecake and candy and fudge. Especially fudge. There's this super-easy recipe on the side of marshmallow whip jars, and two of the ingredients are vanilla extract and chocolate chips--two things I love to tweak. I'll play around with extracts and chips to make fun new flavors. This year I have a bag of chocolate-raspberry twist chips that will become fudge.

At least my shopping is basically done. I need to pick up one more thing for mom/from dad, and still something for my grandmother. Wrap the last odds-n-ends, and then I'm done. Well, except for Christmas cards. I am always so late in sending those out. Always.

Oooh, the timer is beeping. Another batch of cream cheese cookies is ready for extraction!

The turkey is thawed. The sweet potato biscuits are done. Dessert is in the fridge. The house is (mostly) clean. And my feet hurt...but in a good way.

I did take an hour out of my cooking/cleaning schedule to watch "Bones." Okay, so it wasn't quite an hour, because I was up and down during commercial breaks, vacuuming and measuring ingredients out. Anyway, I mention it because of the small amount of amusement I get from seeing actors guest star on more than one series with one another.

Tonight's ep guest starred Gina Torres ("Firefly"!), who seems to be making the rounds, since I just saw her on an episode of "Eli Stone." It mostly amused me, cuz Gina also guest starred on David Boreanaz's other series (you may have heard of it), "Angel." Kinda like when Adam Baldwin guested and I was giggling because Angel and Hamilton were at it again, I was giggling tonight because Angel and Jasmine were at it.

Well, not *at it*, but you know what I mean. Yes, the small things in life amuse me. Maybe Alexis Denisof with stumble his way into the Jeffersonian sometime soon (since he's back on TV again, a la last week's "Private Practice").

Also, in honor of Turkey Day, I leave you with an amusing email that's been making the rounds.

Recently I received a parrot as a gift.

The parrot had a bad attitude and an even worse vocabulary.
Every word out of the bird's mouth was rude, obno x ious and laced with profanity.

I tried and tried to change the bird's attitude by consistently saying only polite words, playing soft music and anything else I could think of to "clean up" the bird's vocabulary.

Finally, I was fed up and I yelled at the parrot.

The parrot yelled back.

I shook the parrot and the parrot got angrier and even ruder.

So in desperation, I threw up my hands, grabbed the bird and put him in the freezer.

For a few minutes the parrot squawked and kicked and screamed …… then suddenly there was total quiet.

Not a peep was heard for over a minute.

Fearing that I'd hurt the parrot,

I quickly open the door to the freezer.

The parrot calmly stepped out onto my outstretched arms and said "I believe I may have offended you with my rude language and actions. I'm sincerely remorseful for my inappropriate transgressions and I fully intend to do everything I can to correct my rude and unforgivable behavior.."

I was stunned at the change in the bird's attitude.

As I was about to ask the parrot what had made such a dramatic change in his behavior, the bird continued, "May I ask what the turkey did?"