Thursday, May 31, 2007

I'm so Proud!



I just had to show off my absolutely beautiful Queen Elizabeth rose. :D

I'm so freakin rose obsessed!

Labels: Life

posted by Lesley at Thursday, May 31, 2007 2 Comments

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Thursday Thirteen #7



13 Reasons I Wish the "World's Largest Retailer" Shareholder Meeting Was Over

1. I hate traffic!!!

No! I really, really hate it! I hate driving my car when there is no traffic much less when the streets are completely crammed with people who don't know how to obey the simple laws of pedestrian traffic. If I didn't have to drive the little guy around I'd so be driving my scooter every day.

2. If I don't get to see The Eagles, no one should!!!

Yes, I'm bitter! Very bitter! I love The Eagles!!! *pouts and breaks into the chorus of Witchy Woman*

3. I want our parking lot back!

They took over half of our parking lot! I want it back! I'm a bad parker, and it takes me at least four tries to get into those crummy straight spaces when the part of the lot we are allowed is full.

4. I'd like to be able to go to said World's Largest Retailer without feeling like a tourist attraction!

Wow, look it's one of those "Arkansans." OMG! She isn't barefoot or pregnant?! Who'd have thought! Aww, listen to that twangy accent! How quaint! Shut up!!! It's not twangy! Okay, it is a little twangy... Dang stupid Arkansas accent! Why couldn't it have been a cute Southern accent like Paula Dean's!

5. I'm tired of having to point at my parking permit every single time I come into my parking lot.

It's in the same place as EVERYONE else's! Why is it so hard to see? A big thanks to the nice policewoman who helped me turn out today! I never would have gotten out of that parking lot otherwise!

6. There won't be so many jets flying over!

I don't like having jets flying over! I used to live in a dorm where they flew over every thirty minutes, and I have hated it ever since!

7. Did I mention I need to go to the store?

No seriously. The Diet Coke supply is running perilously low! That is quite simply not an option in this house! Yes, I am aware that I have an addiction.

8. I will be able to work without feeling the base beat from the concerts down the block shaking my desk.

While it'd be fun if I actually got to go to the concerts since I don't it's really just rather an annoyance.

9. I'll be able to blog about something that isn't related to the stupid shareholders meeting!

Seriously it's the only thing I can think about right now! I'm so miffed.

10. When it's over I'll be able to forgive my friend's who aren't taking me with them to the Eagles concert!

One of my best friends is an associate of this large retailer in the corporate offices, and she gets to go to the Eagles concert. She is taking another of my best friends and her sister. A big fat :P to the both of you! hehe That's ok I still love you, but that would not be the case if it were Jimmy Buffett here again this year! *Giggles*

11. I could stop being bitter!

Until next year at least! When they deny me again!

12. There wouldn't be so many darn buses that didn't know how to drive our streets!

My husband, son, and I almost got creamed by a giant tour bus who tried to run his red light when we had the right-of-way and were making a U-Turn. Look, I know it's a dumb place for people to make a U-Turn but the geniuses who built our roads unfortunately didn't include an on ramp for the interstate unless you're going south! What does that mean? If you're going north you have to make a U-Turn. They are planning to build an on ramp. It should be ready by 2010...Or was that when they were planning to start it... hmm... I hope its not the same company building it that promised us a water park by memorial day TWO YEARS AGO!!! Still waiting for that one!

13. Did I mention the bitterness?

Yeah! The bitterness! *growls*



Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Labels: Thursday 13

posted by Lesley at Wednesday, May 30, 2007 22 Comments

Translation from Wife-Speak to Something Men Can Understand

Me: What time do you want to leave work, 4 or 5? (Tell me you want to leave at 4, hun, so I don't have to come and brave the traffic of this shareholders convention which is currently the bane of my existence.)

DH: 5

Me: Okay sweetie, but just in case I am really late, it's because I was stuck in the horrible traffic from the shareholder's meeting. (You should leave with me at 4 so I don't have to come near this nightmarish maze of people and policemen blocking the roads so that people can walk wherever the heck they want to.)

DH: That's fine, hun.

Me: All right, sweetheart. (What is wrong with you? Anyone could have understood that I wanted you to leave at 4. You are so making your own dinner tonight!)

Labels: Family and Friends, Life, Rants

posted by Lesley at Wednesday, May 30, 2007 0 Comments

The Invasion is in Full Swing

Once a year the university campus where I work is a place you want to avoid at all cost as it is host to droves of associates and shareholders in the largest retailer in the world. Now don't get me wrong, the people are always very nice, but the traffic is awful!!! Not to mention that there is something about moving in large numbers that seems to make people believe that they don't have to get out of the middle of the road. I was driving into a parking space and a couple of ladies walked into it when I was halfway parked and stood there. I mean just stood there. What would make you think that was a good idea? There was no one else driving nearby. They could simply have walked into the next parking spot. Did I mention that the parking lot for my office is RIGHT next to the giant temple that they erected. Ok, it's not a temple, but it might as well be the way the people flock to it in worship.

Really. It's not that bad. It's not! I'm going to keep saying that until I believe it.

Now I like meeting people from all over the world, and this is an excellent opportunity. It's just that I'm bitter! I'm very bitter!

See it all started a few years ago...

Jewel came to the shareholders meeting, but you had to be a shareholder to see her concert. Ok, I really liked Jewel, but that wasn't the culmination of my bitterness. That didn't happen until just two years ago.

I was pregnant and grumpy anyway which naturally added to my annoyance. My favorite singer of all time came to perform. Jimmy Buffett! Yes, I'm a Parrothead, and I'm not ashamed to admit it! This time it wasn't even for shareholders it was for only the associates!!! So I thought, "That's okay. I'll go sit outside and listen to it since it was in the football stadium. It's not like I didn't buy a ticket, and I am just mooching. If I had been able to buy a ticket there would have been moolah shelled out!!!" So I drag my husband and my pregnant self up to campus and go to sit outside, but they won't let anyone sit near enough to the stadium to actually hear it! I mean what on earth was I hurting by sitting outside??? There was much whining and pouting! There is in fact much whining and pouting to this day.

This year they are kicking me in the face again by having another associates-only concert with my second favorite band, The Eagles. People like this don't come here!!! If they are already here why don't they have another concert and sell tickets for those of us who are unworthy enough to work for the world's largest retailer!

At least they seem to be trying to ply gain the good graces of the public this year. They had a couple of free concerts. Someone named Freak-Boy was here last night. My best friend's little sister went. Apparently this is some big popular band that I have NEVER heard of. I feel so old! And the other free concert...Cool and the Gang and Holland Oats. Wow! That's great. No, there was no sarcasm in my voice just then. Really. There wasn't.

I'm going to go sit in a corner and pout now and remember how great the Eagles concert I went to TEN years ago was. Did I mention that was the LAST concert I went to! At all!

Labels: Life, Rants

posted by Lesley at Wednesday, May 30, 2007 0 Comments

Monday, May 28, 2007

Will Write for Expensive Perfumes

Oh my friends, I have an illness. It comes upon me once in a while and nothing will make it better save on thing! What is it? I'm addicted to Black Phoenix Alchemy Labs Perfumes!!!

It's come upon me again! I'm craving some new scents!

My absolute favorite one is Samhain! It's one of their limited edition scents so watch for it right before...yup, you guessed it, Samhain. That's Halloween for you muggles out there. ;)

Another favorite, which needs replenishing, is Anne Bonny. It's named after a famous lady pirate. No, my love of it has absolutely nothing to do with my intense desire to be a pirate that I've had since LONG before the Pirates of the Caribbean movies were even a glimmer in anyone's eye. Really! That's not why! Ok, maybe a little.

I'm descended from a French pirate, you know? At least the family story says he was a pirate, and his painting was allegedly hanging on the wall of pirates at the New Orleans museum in the French Quarter. Captain Rousseau! I really must do some research into him and find out if that story has any basis in fact. :D

So anyway! If you've never tried Black Phoenix perfume and you have a bit of a goth and/or hippie side, you really must check them out!

Labels: Family and Friends, Life

posted by Lesley at Monday, May 28, 2007 2 Comments

Saturday, May 26, 2007

Nuts for Jericho!

I don't know if you're aware of this, but CBS made a terrible blunder this week when they announced the cancellation of one of my favorite TV shows, Jericho. Since then there has been an internet outcry about this. I signed a petition that last time I saw was at about 20,000 people. So once the petitions have been filed and the message boards have been sieged what else is there to do?

Well send the executives at CBS 22,000 pounds of peanuts of course!!! What else would you do?

The very last word in the last episode of Jericho, or at least one of the last, was "Nuts." It's a long story, but one of the main characters was pretty much telling the head of the army attacking them to "screw you." Which I think is what CBS did to us when they canceled the show.

Don't worry. The peanuts aren't going to waste. They are being sent out to a charity that redistributes excess food to the poor.

So if you love Jericho and want to see it continue then go to Nuts Online and contribute to the cause. I'm heading there right now.

Labels: Life

posted by Lesley at Saturday, May 26, 2007 2 Comments

Friday, May 25, 2007

Passports are a Pain!

It's so complicated and costs too much and takes TOO long! Why does it take so long? In Denmark my husband could just go to the police station and take his application and he got one the same day. Is it because they have to do lots of background checks or something?

Bryon, Nicky and I are going to Denmark this fall. We're leaving September 16th. Let's just hope that I get Nicky's passport back by then! Isn't it adorable that he has to have a passport! Well except for the whole having to apply for it. And that his passport will say he is 2 feet tall! *giggles uncontrollably* That is just too cute!

We're taking him tomorrow to get his passport picture taken. That should be fun. Getting a 20 month old to stand still long enough to snap a picture... Ugh... Well wish me luck!!!

Labels: Family and Friends, Life

posted by Lesley at Friday, May 25, 2007 0 Comments

Thursday, May 24, 2007

Fiona is 200!

Happy Birthday, Fiona!

She's not really 200 years old, but she did just hit 200 pages and 63,000 words. I'm enjoying writing this one immensely. Fiona has quite the little attitude! When I first starting writing this book, I thought she was sweet and adorable. Well she is! But she also has a temper that could take out an army! I didn't see that one coming.

Labels: Writing

posted by Lesley at Thursday, May 24, 2007 0 Comments

Thursday Thirteen #6


Thirteen Things Lesley Needs to Get Done


1. Make A LOT of royal icing violets for a birthday cake

My best friend's baby girl is turning two. *insert heartfelt awwww here* She's having cupcakes with icing flowers. :D I'm the resident cake geek so I volunteered to make the flowers. I finally managed to gather up all the stuff I need! My supplies have become somewhat unorganized since my little guy thinks that they are his personal toys.

2. Clean the whole house

This needs to be done anyway, but my best friends are coming over to aid me tonight in the flower creation.

3. Weed the Rose beds

I actually have my first rose of the year finally! It's not the color it was on the label...but oh well it's still pretty.

4. Finish the chapter I'm working on in Fiona

I have my doubts that this will happen with the munchkin running rampant.

5. Feed my pet crow

Okay, he isn't really my pet, but an ADORABLE little bitty crow comes to my bird feeder and eats everyday. In fact between him and the others they empty it once a day!

6. Mow

I'm not actually allowed to do this myself. Bryon has some sort of macho belief that only the man should do the mowing... Whatever, as long as it gets done!

7. Weed Eat

I do this because otherwise he chops down flowers and baby bushes that I spent hours planting. He'd do that mowing too but I've marked them all with big neon flags now. I'm telling you, those flags are one sexy fashion statement for my yard! One step below giant pink flamingos!

8. Change the cat litter

Ugh! I've seriously considered getting pregnant again just to avoid this job. hehe Okay not really!

9. Read approximately 15 books and play about 500 games with my son!

What can I say, he loves his mommy. I think he must have sensed me write that because he just brought me The Cat in the Hat.

10. Clean up the piles of fabric lying on the floor of our spare bedroom.

I was trying to find some fabric I wanted the other day and I pretty much tossed my collection of unused fabrics all over the room.

11. Remove all the rocks from the pasture so it can be mowed.

ROFLMAO Yeah, like this is going to ever happen! We have a field that is about an acre, and the people who lived here before had like four horses on it. I don't know if you know anything about horses but let's just say that is TOO MANY horses on one acre. They ate everything living out there including the bark from the trees most of which have died. I live in the mountains and when water runs over ground with nothing growing on it you get top soil erosion. What's under the top soil? GIANT BOULDERS and various little rocks! Well at least I'll never have to buy rocks for landscaping. :D

12. Cut Down the aforementioned dead trees

13. Post my Thursday Thirteen

And promise myself that I won't go another ENTIRE week without posting a single thing on my blog.




Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Labels: Thursday 13

posted by Lesley at Thursday, May 24, 2007 19 Comments

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Thursday Thirteen #5



Thirteen of my Favorite Movies

1. Hook

What's more beautiful than the idea that Peter Pan gave up the childhood he clung to for so long because he fell in love?

2. Joe Versus the Volcano

It's so absolutely weird but somehow it works!

3. Shrek
4. Shrek 2

Oh come on! Who doesn't love these movies? I can't wait to see the third one.

5. Sean of the Dead

This movie is the perfect balance between creepiness and humor! If you haven't seen it then do!

6. Legally Blond
7. Legally Blond 2

I secretly want to be Elle Wood!!! Pink is my signature color too!

8. The Little Mermaid

This is one of the first movies I obsessed over. I had the soundtrack and still know every word to every song. Plus Eric was one of the first storybook princes that I saw who actually had a personality! Not to mention a name!

9. Interview with the Vampire

Oh, how I love Anne Rice. They did such a great job with this movie. We won't even discuss Queen of the Damned though. *shudders*

10.Beauty and the Beast

Aww what woman doesn't have a soft spot for the Beast!

11.Underworld

Okay while one half of me wants to be Elle Wood, the other half wants to be this uber hot chick in the leather corset!

12.The Lord of the Rings Trilogy

You know you all love this movie!

13.Baby Shakespeare

Ahh...this is the reason I don't have dishes piled to the ceiling EVERY day. :D This stuff is baby crack!




Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Labels: Thursday 13

posted by Lesley at Wednesday, May 16, 2007 10 Comments

Tuesday, May 15, 2007

The Complications of Love Scenes...

You know, I was just thinking...

I've not read a great deal of homosexual erotica by any means, but I was really thinking that it might get pretty darn complicated. I mean you couldn't use pronouns!!! If you've got a love scene between Jill and Tom, then you can refer to them and he and she the majority of the time, but if you've got Dan and Alan for instance, do you have to keep referring to them as Dan did this and Alan did this? I guess you'd have to. Because if you did anything else you would never have any idea who was doing what to who.

This was another Hmmmmmm moment brought to you by Lesley Speller.

Labels: Writing

posted by Lesley at Tuesday, May 15, 2007 0 Comments

Thank You...A Polite Gesture or Self-deameaning?

I have a question. I was just reading a critique of a query on a blog that I frequent and the agent said that you should not thank an agent for her time, because your time is as valuable as hers. I was wondering how people felt about that? Personally I think when you take time out of someone's day you should thank them. Regardless of those circumstances. I thank people at the store who check me out. I thank customer service people who I speak to on the phone. I don't think my time is one iota more important than theirs regardless of their position in the world. We're all on this planet for a very short time in the grand scheme of things and whether you're cleaning my carpet or delivering my baby the time that you spend helping me is that much time out of your life. You might only be doing it so you can feed your kids, or you may be doing it because you're just a nice, helpful person. I don't care why you're doing it. The end result is that you're helping me get the things done that I need done.

What do y'all think? Do you thank people?

Labels: Life, manners

posted by Lesley at Tuesday, May 15, 2007 0 Comments

Ants in my Pants!!!

Okay! Now they weren't actually in my pants. So you think where might they actually have been? Well let me tell you!

I don't get to ride my scooter very often much to my dismay. So whenever I have the opportunity naturally I take it. This weekend my darling husband and I decided to have Mexican from the place that is just about 3 miles down the road from our house. So I thought...Perfect!!! I'll make him watch Nicky and I'll go pick it up, then I'll get to take a nice refreshing scoot around the neighborhood. If only I had known!

I saw an ant on the leg shield of my scooter, but I didn't think much of it. I seem to live in the ant capital of world. It's a constant battle to keep them out of the house. So I brushed little Miss. Ant off and opened up the helmet storage under the seat, took out my helmet, and went on my merry way.

Remember always wear your helmet!

Nicky agrees...


Yes, that WAS just a blatant excuse to show you my adorable boy!

So I put on my helmet closed the compartment and hopped on my scooter. It was a lovely ride on the way there. Absolutely nothing was out of the ordinary. I went inside picked up my fajitas and headed out to my scooter. Now scooters don't have the best storage for food in the world, but in this case the helmet compartment would have been absolutely perfect for the size of what we'd ordered. So I popped the lid and looked down into the compartment. There were like 5 ants crawling on my Scooter Seat Cover, which I hadn't put back on after I took it off to protect it from the rain. I really MUST get a carport!

So I lifted up the seat cover and the owners manual at the bottom of the compartment and what I found underneath will haunt me for the rest of my life!!! There was a colony of ants!!! Now I don't just mean that there were a bunch of ants! That would have been bad enough! No, there was a freaking colony! Complete with little baby ant larva!!! I don't think I've ever been so disturbed in my life!

I got my glove and started trying to wipe all the ants and larva out of there and had almost all of them out when I looked over at my tail light. *Shudders* Now I don't know if they'd been living in there or they picked up their little ant babies and made a break for it and that is where they ended up, but I could see all these little black things (ants) and white things (larva) moving around underneath the plastic of the tail light!!! I thought I would die. I couldn't get in there to get them out without a screwdriver, and I had to get home! So I tied the handles of my bag with my food together and hung it from my handlebar. Which if you have never tried...is not a fun way to ride a scooter! However I couldn't exactly put my food where I'd planed on putting it, because while I'm all about protein in my diet ants floating in my cheese dip is just really not what I'm going for!

I did make it home with our dinner intact. I must say however that my appetite was not what it was before I'd left to pick it up!

I still haven't been brave enough to go conquer the colony living in my poor, sweet little scooter.
*Peeks out the back door at it and shudders* I promise I'll get you all cleaned up soon, baby!!!

Labels: Scooters

posted by Lesley at Tuesday, May 15, 2007 0 Comments

Monday, May 14, 2007

My Meez



This is tooo much fun!

Labels: Life

posted by Lesley at Monday, May 14, 2007 0 Comments

Saturday, May 12, 2007

What's so appetitizing about Sand???

I love my little boy! I do! Adore him! Fawn over him! But sometimes he does the strangest things!!!

He's playing in his sandbox with his best buddy and she's playing happily, but all he wants to do is eat the sand!!! He even dipped his pacifier in it! Like it was some sort of exquisite sauce. I mean ewww!!! The thought of even one tiny grain of sand getting in my mouth gives me shivers of ickiness!!!

Aww...but doesn't he look cute doing it!?

Labels: Family and Friends

posted by Lesley at Saturday, May 12, 2007 0 Comments

New Thursday Thirteen Image

Testing...
Woot! I love it!

Labels: Webpage

posted by Lesley at Saturday, May 12, 2007 0 Comments

New Header Image

In the interest of making a prettier blog...


I've made myself a header image. :-D

Labels: Webpage

posted by Lesley at Saturday, May 12, 2007 0 Comments

Wednesday, May 09, 2007

Thursday Thirteen #4


Thirteen Things You Didn't Know About 12th Century London Unless You're a Super Nerd Like Me


1 . There were 98 Parish Churches.

That's only within the city walls! There were 10 more outside the walls of the city. And the original St. Paul's church, which was an Gothic cathedral with an ENORMOUS spire, not the pretty domed one we see there today. The Old church was destroyed in the Great Fire in 1666.

2 . They went ice skating outside the walls of the city in winter.

They just didn't have the nice skates we have today. They tied bones to their shoes. Yes! Bones! I kid you not! And if skating around on bones weren't fun enough, the boys (being the boys that they were) played a game where two of them got going as fast as the possibly could and rammed each other. Men sure haven't changed much...

3. They Jousted...on Boats!!!

Now we've all heard of jousting. Who hasn't seen A Knight's Tale? If you haven't you simply must because Heath Ledger is positively yummy. I digress...I was talking about boats. They would get their friends together and take their boats into the Thames and one would stand on the prow of the ship with a lance. There would be big pole with a shield strapped to it in the middle of the river. They would then have their good buddies row the ship as fast as possible with the current and standing on the prow of the ship would try to break their lance on the shield. Naturally a good many of them ended up wet with a perfectly whole lance. Silly boys!

4 . They had horse races.

Every Friday they had a horse sale, unless there was some big holy feast. One of the things they did at the sale was race the horses to prove, which was the fastest.

5 . The Tower of London was called the Palatine Citadel.

The Tower of London was already built at this point, but they didn't yet call it the Tower of London.

6 . They had mock wars.

Every Sunday in Lent all the young gentleman would go out in the field and play war. Sure! Why not? I know I enjoy a rousing round of paintball.

7 . There were Dog fights and cock fights.

Bad Norman Londoners! Poor puppies and rosters!!!

8 . There were Athletic tournaments on feast days all summer.

They had jumping contests, archery, wrestling, javelin throwing, shot put, and of course sword fighting. What medieval day would be complete without a little sword fighting?

9 . They played football.

Okay, I don't know the rules so it probably wasn't actually football, but they went out an played ball at any rate. Each of the schools would have teams and each of the guilds of workmen would as well. I can just see them! Go Bakers Beat the Smiths!!!

10 . They had sewers.

Okay, this is probably naive of me, but I had no earthly idea that they had sewers. I guess I just imagined that everything eventually trickled down to the river. Talk about yuck!

11 . The kids hung out by the wells.

Yes, sounds exciting doesn't it? But this was particularly sweet watered wells! hehe In my head this is the equivalent of cruising the square, which was the highlight of my hometown's nightlife. So basically it was just what you told your mom you were doing so that you could go talk to your friends about how boring Cheapside was, and how you were moving as soon as you were old enough to get your own place.

12 . They had a hospital.

The Hospital of St. Kathrine to be exact. I can only imagine the joys of being treated there!

13 . They had Great Street names!!!

Fleet Street was already named, but I don't think there were any murdering barbers on it. Gutter Lane. Wood Street. Mincing Street. Candlewick street. Lime Street. And my personal favorite Knichrider Street. I am not sure why it was named that, but it sounds really cool. :D

Links to other Thursday Thirteens!





Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Labels: Thursday 13

posted by Lesley at Wednesday, May 09, 2007 11 Comments

Tuesday, May 08, 2007

Flashbacks Complete with Waynes World Wiggly Fingers

OK, perhaps not... but Flashbacks nonetheless.

I've been struggling making my main characters history work in Fiona O'Sithein, but I think I've found a way. Their relationship started in Arianna Penndragon, but there is verrrrrrry little mention of it. It naturally greatly effects their current relationship, and I was trying to figure out the best way to do it. I've been working with them both just remembering things, but it didn't have nearly the umph that it needed. So I'm moving on to full on flashbacks. Queue the wiggly screen and weird music here.

Yeah, this is gonna work great! Now I just have to decide when they'll be remembering what! This should be fun! Muhaha! I'm totally going to screw with Beltran's head!

Labels: Writing

posted by Lesley at Tuesday, May 08, 2007 0 Comments

My New Favorite Poem

I discovered this on Nicky's Baby Shakespeare dvd.

The Tale of Custard the Dragon by Ogden Nash

I absolutely love this poem! It's sooo cute. I think I'm going to have to go buy myself an Ogden Nash book of poetry now.

Labels: Family and Friends, Life

posted by Lesley at Tuesday, May 08, 2007 0 Comments

Monday, May 07, 2007

It's all about the plot, baby!

Much to my husband's dismay and irritation about 19 times out of 20 within the first half hour of a movie I can tell you the entire plot of the rest of the film. I don't know if it's because of the insane numbers of movies I've seen in my lifetime and books that I've read, but usually the plot is completely laid out before me. Bryon asked me the other day if this annoyed me? That I knew exactly what was going to happen, and that got me to thinking.

It really doesn't bother me. I guess it's because I never know for sure until the very end if I'm right or not. Also just because I know the story doesn't necessarily mean that I don't enjoy the journey. Also if they are about to do something really bad to me, like murder off the main character who I'm growing to like, I want to know it ahead of time. I think that's part of the reason I like romance novels so much. They might kill off some secondary characters in the course of the book, but you know in the end the hero and heroine are going to get together and neither of them is going to drop dead.

One of the main reasons I started writing was because I got sick and tired of them killing off people I liked in books. That and the injustices done to our friends the vampires. I'm not for the angsty vamp, and I'm most certainly not for the vampire not getting the girl just because he's a vampire, or vampiress not getting the boy, or any combination thereof.

But I digress...

So it made me wonder if my plots are all so completely predictable. I hope not! Although you'll never have to fear that I'm going to hurt the main characters! Well...hurt perhaps, but they'll survive. :-D

Labels: Life, Writing

posted by Lesley at Monday, May 07, 2007 0 Comments

Sunday, May 06, 2007

We Invested in More Baby Crack

Baby Crack is how I refer to Baby Einstein DVDs. I don't know if you've experienced them yet. They have little puppets, toys, classical, music, some have poetry. The only one we had until now as Baby Shakespeare. Hey I'm a writer, which one did you expect me to buy?

After about the 1 millionth time my son shouted BARD (Bard is the name of the poetic dragon who hosts Baby Shakespeare) at the top of his lungs pointing at the TV and then forced me to endure it again, I knew that it was time to buy some new ones. So we now are the proud new owners of Baby Noah - Animal Expedition and Baby Einstein - Language Nursery. He loves the animal one, but is not completely entranced by the language nursery one. It's neat though. It has like 6 different languages on it to expose children to different languages before they lose their ability to mimic any sound. It supposed to make learning languages later easier.

At least I have more variety in the crazy films I'm forced to watch now. hehe

Labels: Family and Friends

posted by Lesley at Sunday, May 06, 2007 0 Comments

Thursday, May 03, 2007

Thursday Thirteen #3


Thirteen of my Favorite Quotes


1. Well behaved women rarely make history. - Laurel Thatcher Ulrich

I don't behave well at all most of the time, and I think this is just the perfect excuse not to. ;)

2. "Those who fight monsters should take care not to become monsters themselves. For when you stare too long into the abyss, the abyss stares back into you." - Frederich Nietsche

I respect and appreciate the work that the people who protect us do, but I'm sure glad it's not my job!

3. "There must be quite a few things that a hot bath can't cure, but I don't know many of them." - Sylvia Plath

My darling husband believes that if I had a choice I would never emerge from my jacuzzi. ;) He's probably right!

4. "Ladies don't start fights, but they can finish them!" - Marie from Aristocats

You better bet your booty they can. :D

5. "People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within." - Elizabeth Kubler-Ross

6. "If we shadows have offended,
Think but this, and all is mended,
That you have but slumber'd here
While these visions did appear."
- William Shakespeare

What can I say? Shakespeare was a genius!

7. "Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn and cauldron bubble." - William Shakespeare

This was on the wall of my mother's classroom when she taught senior English. I've loved it since I was a little girl.

8. "Meddle not in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and good with ketchup." - A deviation of a Tolkien quote

9. Big Bad Vampire: "We are one."
Buffy: "One what? Really cute couple? I don't think so." - Movie Buffy

10. "Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." - Dr. Seuss


11. "I'm sorry, Beltran. I'm not laughing at you, but it's just amusing that a vampire who thinks he's damned is trying to convert me to Christianity." - Fiona O'Sithein.


My little Fiona cracks me the heck up!

12. "Custard the dragon had big sharp teeth,
And spikes on the top of him and scales underneath,
Mouth like a fireplace, chimney for a nose,
And realio, trulio, daggers on his toes." - Ogden Nash

This is on Nicky's new favorite DVD, Baby Shakespeare. It's just adorable!

13. Mama! - Nicholai Alexander Speller

This is of course my absolute favorite!!!

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Labels: Thursday 13

posted by Lesley at Thursday, May 03, 2007 10 Comments

Tuesday, May 01, 2007

The Fantasy Novelist's Exam

*rolling around on the floor laughing my arse off* I'm sorry ROFLMAO just didn't cut it!!!

You simply must check out this page if you're a fan of fantasy!

The Fantasy Novelist's Exam

posted by Lesley at Tuesday, May 01, 2007 0 Comments

Much Whining!

You were warned...

I have gotten virtually no writing done in days. I've been feeling sickly and exhausted and apparently that kills whatever creativity I have because I'm just meandering through the chapter I'm trying to work on. If I'm not enjoying writing it, who is is going to enjoy reading it! This is probably going to require some major rewrites.

Of course, some things I've written that while I was writing I thought "Jeez this is pure and utter crapola" that actually turned out to be the best scenes in the book. So we shall see. I am looking forward to getting back to something that makes me giggle riotously while writing it or at least shiver in fear!

I'm also terribly distracted!

I just figured out how to read e-books on my Axim, and it's practically like reading a real book! Although it doesn't have that new book smell. ;) Right now I'm reading Daystar by Rene Lyons. It's great!

Not to mention that I found the blog of Daisy Dexter Dobbs and now I must go back and read every post she has ever written cause she cracks me the heck up! She's a woman after my own heart in SO many ways!

Labels: Rants

posted by Lesley at Tuesday, May 01, 2007 2 Comments

About Me

Name: Lesley Speller
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