I had big plans for when I got home last night. I was actually excited while on my drive home. I was going to practice piano...work on my sweater...watch ER And then it all fell apart. I decided to spend just a few minutes "relaxing" on the couch and then next thing I knew it was 10pm. No practicing or knitting or watching of ER was accomplished. I didn't get to practice piano nearly as much as I usually do...hopefully the teacher won't be able to tell. I don't want to be fired! :)

Wendy and I went to Lion King last night and it was awesome! I had heard it was incredible and it's my favorite Disney movie. Still, I wondered how certain scenes would play out on stage from an animated movie where anything can be done. But everything was handled really well. The costumes were fabulous and even though a lot of the characters are "puppets," I found myself still watching the actors' faces, too. Not because they were distracting or they took me out of the moment, but just because watching the actor act and then the puppet "act" was very interesting. The actor who plays Timone, especially, was intriguing to me. I am not sure if it's like Rent for me, which I would see every time it comes to Seattle if I could, but it was well worth the ticket.

I am not promising that it will be scintillating...but here it is. :)

Tonight I am going to see Lion King at the Paramount Theatre; I am super excited! I wanted to see it a couple years ago when it was in town but the gently placed hints I put out there didn't work. lol I bought two tickets, hoping that I would have enough courage to ask the guy I wanted to go with me, but alas, I didn't have enough courage so Wendy has agreed to be my backup plan. :)

I started sketching out a story yesterday, based on a little bit from Paranormal State. Since it's a tv show, but really more of a documentary, I am wondering if, if it ever got published, I would have to credit the show somehow. I am not going to worry about it too much right now. It's just journaling right now. :) It's my first foray into a ghost story...we'll see how it goes.

I can't believe it's March already. Should I start counting down until my birthday yet? :)

Obviously the problem is that I get so wrapped up in it that I forget to blog, as evidenced by my lack of blogging. Sigh. And it's not like I can say "Well my FB page is more private than the blog." Frankly, more people read the FB page, at least the status updates, than my blog. Maybe it's because messing around FB doesn't really take that much time, whereas I like to take my time with a blog update. Or maybe I am making up excuses. lol

So catch up time. I am taking piano lessons. I love it! I have the most awesome teacher ever. I am trying to learn If You Leave from Pretty in Pink. Why that song? No reason exactly, other than it looked fairly easy to learn. :) I forgot how much I miss playing music. It's frustrating, though, going into a music store and not being able to play any of the music in there. lol Soon. Soon. My teacher promises me that I will and that I am already far far ahead of most adults who learn as adults. He said it usually takes upwards of 9 months to a year for an adult to play a song. I worried that perhaps he is so encouraging because he's just a nice guy but he assures me that he has fired students for not practicing enough and told me that I am not allowed to judge my own piano playing. Basically, leave it to the professionals. :)

The romance department is still bare as ever. :) It's the status quo, which is: Nikki has a crush on someone wayyyyy out of her league. Nikki is open to other possibilities, but as long as there are none and Crush sticks around to entertain her, she's smitten. Smitten. Sigh. Not much I can say about him since who knows who actually DOES read this blog. Now, I've made sure to mention to him that I have a blog and if he was at all the type of guy that I wish he was that, upon receiving that nugget of information, immediately googled me as his next available chance and found my blog and scoured it for any and all tidbits about me, I would be incredibly happy about that. But something tells me that he is not that kind of guy at all. lol And that's okay, too.

Okay, just a little update. I know I know. Not nearly satisfying enough. Get a FB account if you want more! :)

I saw an author have this on her site...music that inspired her writing of a certain book. I thought it might be fun to build my own.

Hey, I know it's been over a month since I blogged. Get over it! lol

So, I won second place in a writing contest that I didn't even know was a contest. That's pretty sweet! My prize was 30 minutes worth of feedback from the judge on a different piece of writing. So I sent in a short story that I recently finished (I think the first short story I've actually finished in...well, a very long time.). So the feedback was great and one of the biggest things that she suggested was having more conflict for the main character than already exists. Hm. As a person who has been known to go great lengths to avoid conflict in her own life, and often cries when there is some kind of conflict (much to my chagrin), this is a difficult thing. It's not that I never write about conflicts...but I thought that I had enough in this story. lol So now I am contemplating what to do. It's actually quite interesting. I am confident that her suggestions will improve the story immensely. It's just that all of the suggestions are things that I will have to carefully consider, not just quickly find an answer for and "whip up." Such is the life of a writer! :)

I've said it before; I hate being sick. Being sick is one of the prime reasons I hate living alone. No one to complain to in the immediate vicinity. Anyway, I have expounded on that many a time.

Tonight I tried something new, in an effort to feel better. Netty pots are supposedly all the rage. I've heard good things about their effectiveness, so I bought one when I blearily stumbled into Bartell's for a prescription. I was a little dubious...but amazingly, it actually does help. I can't say that I am devoid of phlegm...and I don't know how long it will last. But, I do feel better, even if it is just all in my mind. It's an odd feeling, filling your sinuses with water. And even stranger watching the crud come out of the nostril without a kleenex there to catch it. But I don't care. As long as I get some relief...I'm good.

I had really strange dreams all night and day, almost as though I was feverish - even though I never did, about tracking pixels and URLs. So strange. Even when I'm not at work, I dream of work related things. I can think of other work related things I would rather be dreaming about. lol

Biggest Loser was on tonight. I love Tuesdays!

It's been awhile since a story idea has chased me around. I've certainly pursued stories, to varying degrees of success. But sometimes an idea comes to me and won't leave me alone until I write it. Such was the case this weekend. All because of Matt Nathanson and the ABC News story. I'm not writing this exact story...just something based on it. Yesterday I went to the park in Bellevue and wrote a bunch of scenes from it. Not in order. Mostly just dialogue.

Then I went to Bellevue Square because I had a coupon for an item from Victoria's Secret. Now, the mall is not really a place I think of as the Muse hanging out in. But sure enough, the Muse was in Victoria's Secret! I think this one is for a poem or maybe flash fiction. I wrote a little sketch of it this morning. It sucks. But at least it's a start. :)

I want everyone to know that I was actually the one that came up with the idea of Tina Fey playing Sarah Palin. The day that she was selected, Mom asked me, "So the big question is who will play her on SNL." I took about three seconds to consider it, since I am not all that familiar with the cast anymore, and suddenly it came to me. "Well, she's not on the show anymore, but Tina Fey would be perfect." Maybe Lorne Michaels has my mom's trailer bugged...or my knitting (if you own a fleur de lys scarf that I knit, be warned!). Can I sue for royalties of some sort?

I hadn't thought of Amy Poehler as Cindy McCain, though, dammit. She's perfect for that, too.

This line of questioning has always been difficult for me to answer. It's actually easier for me to list off the genres that I don't like: country, rap, heavy metal....In the early years of my music purchasing, I bought very few tapes (oh yeah, pre-CD and back when CDs were too expensive for a poor teenage babysitter's wages) because the only way I could justify the purchase in my mind was if I like the majority of the songs. I tended to like soundtracks, for the variety offered. For this reason also, there were very few artists/bands that I could claim as a "favorite."

I listen to the radio more often than not. Top 40 radio. I know my mom has secretly been wishing that as I got older I would come over to the dark side and share her love of country music. I am pretty sure that's never going to happen.

Today I had a revelation, based upon an artist that I "discovered" recently: Matt Nathanson. I've heard his song Come On, Get Higher on 101.5 lately and really liked it. So I downloaded the album and have really liked it. Upon further research via his Web site and various articles that compares him to other artists, I realized that the type of music that I like is "Cute Guy With A Guitar Who Writes His Own Music and is Prone to Coffee Shop Concerts" Yes that's a genre. Several of the articles compared him to Jason Mraz, Howie Day, John Mayer...all whom I enjoy. I would throw in Joshua Radin, as well. So I guess that's the kind of music I most enjoy: Sensitive, Somewhat-Dorky, Guitar Playing Hot Guy music.

I am so glad this mystery has finally been solved. Everyone can go about their business now.

I should be working on my self-review for work...but I decided that my audience comes first. Who needs raises? I've got people to satisfy!

The weekend was pretty dull, mostly of my own doing. I went to IKEA and tried to buy a bookshelf, only to find that there was no way I could haul it. Even if I had been wearing mascara, which makes fluttering eyelashes at young IKEA workers all the more powerful when trying to get them to haul stuff to your car, I would have to wear more...or perhaps less (?) to convince him to get in my car and then haul it up to my condo. And then I would have to take him back. Meanwhile, books abound. I hate piles of books.

I did finish knitting the fleur de lys scarf finally. I learned an important lesson, don't put a singlular piece of clothing in the dryer with a fabric sheet. It comes out feeling slimey. It took two rewashings to figure this out. I have started knitting a Christmas gift: a hat. I may frog it tonight due to some mistakes I made. At the time, I said, "What the hell, I don't care. I've got to knit like a madwoman to get these gifts done and it's not like anyone is even going to notice...." But now that I have stepped away from the knitting, I think maybe that's not fair. Does anyone desire a not-quite-right anything as a gift?

Packer game tonight. Woohoo!!!

So I finally did it...I submitted a short story (actually "flash fiction") for a contest. I haven't submitted anything for publication, other than for Writergrrls or SLL, in a really long time. We'll see how it goes. Flash fiction is a very new form for me to write in and I am not convinced that I did it justice. I didn't have anyone read it over and provide feedback. I didn't pay extra for feedback from the judge either. So maybe I will be amazed and win! But probably I won't place...and that's actually fine, too. At least I tried, which is about 100% better than what I've been doing for the past five years. :)

Dear Whomever Keeps Messing Up My House,

I don't know how you keep finding me. I've moved several times over the years, hoping evade your evil clutches. But here you are again. Always messing things up. Does the joy come from watching me labor over righting everything that you've destroyed?

You could help out every once in awhile, you know, actually put the dishes in the dishwasher. Take the wet clothes out of the washer and load them into the dryer. Fold the dry clothes. I leave you for sometimes 12 hours a day and yet you don't seem to find the time. Amazing.

If you want to wear my makeup, that's fine, just put it back in the cute little basket afterwards. The counter is just not big enough for all the stuff that you insist needs to go on it: makeup, flat iron, any number of brushes, toothepaste, hair dryer, perfume, medicine...I get it. It takes a lot of stuff for you to look good. I wouldn't know, since I've never actually seen you, but I have to be convinced by the sheer number of items left out. I don't think that I did it. I have too much respect for a clean house.

Oh, and it's okay to play a DVD; please put it back in the zipper case.

Oh, one more thing, if you're going to knit, then do it right. I had to rip back three rows on th fluer de lis scarf last night and I wasn't too happy about it.

Sincerely,
Nikki

It went from beastly hot on Sunday to overcast and chilly yesterday. Amazing.

I feel as though I am having a moderate cute day today. That's always a pleasant change!

I can't believe it's the middle of August already.

Tonight is my night off from the gym!

One of the few things that I miss about Wisconsin is the heat of the summer. Granted, three to four months of incessant sunshine and humity does have its tedious moments, but so does the rain here. But I prefer heat to being cold. This weekend it's been quite hot here. I've enjoyed it, but also have realized that I am sorely out of practice concerning heat. I wilt a little bit faster. I woke up this afternoon from what has become my usual Sunday afternoon nap, still dressed in a cute khaki skirt and rouched aqua shirt with tank top beneath (way too many layers for the weather) and felt disgusted with myself. The condo was a sauna. I am a hot sleeper to begin with, so that didn't improve matters either. I quickly changed and decided that fleeing was my only option. So, I went to the park in Bellevue, one of my favorite places, and spread out on the blanket and read The Scarlet Pimpernel. It's turning out to be quite a good book. I also watched the many many dogs in the park and on more than one occassion laughed out loud. There was a group of dogs, some of whom appeared to know each other (given that their owners will all talking together) and some that didn't. They're all doing dog kinds of things...including humping. It started with one small dog climbing onto another. Then that dog reciprocated. Then one of the voyeurs joined in. It was pretty funny. I feel as though I witnessed my first orgy. Their human counterparts didn't notice for quite some time, which only made it that much more hilarious. I am fairly certain that no impregnation was going on...just a "simulated" movement. And I don't know why it was so amusing to me. It was just so...not what I expected to see at the park.

I was hoping that the cute, rumpled hair blond guy sitting not too far away from me, who also observed this moment, would laugh as well, but he did not. He must not be a dog person.

It has cooled down substantially in the few hours that I was away. Perhaps sleeping tonight will be possible.