I’m still waiting to be able to announce any news, but have managed to:

–become thoroughly obsessed with seeing The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I’ve read two of the three books, also, and while I don’t think Larsson is a particularly good writer (he is a DAMN good journalist), I think he can tell a story.

–become thrilled with reading on my Kindle. Because, hello, holding onto a subway pole and turning pages at the same time without having to let go to turn a page? Awesome!

–bummed that there is a delay, if not a cancellation, of the NBA Season. I miss Amar’e! Plus I kinda like those nights the Basketball Spouse comes home later, so I get some time to myself.

–plan out, and possibly get, the second tattoo I’ve been threatening. This one, an open book, would be in tribute to my dad, sort of, plus also I figure I’ll never tire of books unlike, say, if I had gotten Gang of Four tattooed back in the day. Because those post Dave Allen/Hugo Burnham records were never as good as Entertainment!. Actually, NO record is as good as Entertainment!.

–up to the midway point of Battlestar Galactica. I work with two fangirls, one an uber fangirl, so I’m trying to know what they’re talking about.

So, yeahg. News when I can, life goes on as usual.

So after reading many similar reviews of Conan, I decided not to see it on my birthday, because it didn’t look cheesy bad fun, it looked cheesy bad bad.

We went to see Crazy Stupid Love instead, and that was delightful. A good, solid, nuanced romantic-comedy, go figure!

But right around lunchtime I got an email from the Most Thoughtful Spouse Ever who had gotten Jason Momoa to hold up a sign wishing me a Happy Birthday. I shrieked in the office when I saw the pic. My co-workers came running to see if I’d had a stroke or something.

Very cool. Later on, I was a big doofus and totally forgot it was my birthday when I was doing another errand, so when I got a call on my cell–from someone who never calls my cell–I assumed something was wrong. D’oh!

It was a great day. And meanwhile, I’m waiting to hear about a variety of projects out being reviewed, and that’s cool, and work is awesome, and I’m not miserable. Go figure!

So this week is the week of my birthday, and normally it’s not that big a deal, and it’s not really this week, except it’s a way to get the Long-Suffering Spouse to take me to see Conan the Barbarian* the day it opens, which coincides with the anniversary of my birth.

Last night, we went to see Cowboys and Aliens, which was as I’d expected it to be: Not very good, but enjoyable. And let me say, someone who knows knew that one of the best parts of the film would be Daniel Craig’s ass. Because it was in many, many shots, framed by chaps (not assless chaps, mind you, that’d be gross). I was quite impressed.

Not so fun is the hot water heater leakage we dealt with Sunday–we still don’t have a hot water heater, which means cold showers. Luckily, it is summer, so is more tolerable, but still.

*This trailer is way bloody. So don’t watch if you’re squeamish.

So the Has A Hard Time Relaxing Spouse and I have been doing many fun things while our son is away; last night, we had dinner at the other end of the neighborhood, and strolled the long way home.

Today, we got our bikes out and took advantage of the New York Summer Streets program, where they shut down big parts of Manhattan for bikes and runners and such. We did 23 miles, and I finally got to go over the Brooklyn Bridge. I’d never done that before!

I’ve been revising my manuscript, that should go to a brand new beta reader at the end of next week, and then back to the Fabulous Agent. Plus been brainstorming another project, yay, and working many hours at HeroesandHeartbreakers.

So there you go. That’s me. I STILL have not seen Cowboys and Aliens, feh. Soon, hopefully.

So over the weekend, we saw Mongol, starring Tadanobu Asano, who is described–somewhere–as a cross between Johnny Depp and Toshiro Mifune. Swoon (not so much in looks, although he is compelling, but in terms of acting talent)!

He’s got a whole bunch of films available through Netflix, double yay!

I know what I’ll be watching this fall.

So I might have been a Total Fail in terms of NaNo count, but the impetus allowed me to finish–FINISH!–the novella I’ve been working on forever.

Whee!

And then I jumped right back into the Urban Fantasy, and wrote a whole bunch of words yesterday.

Yay!

So maybe NaNo is good for me after all, just not in the ‘50K words by the end of the month’ way.

I have been a bad blogger, possibly the Worst Blogger In The Entire World (although perhaps I exaggerate), because I have been so incredibly lame about updating.

So here I am. Abashed AND ashamed.

What have I been doing instead?

Getting the new middle schooler ready for middle school. First day went as expected, which is to say he was very confused and overwhelmed.

Reading.

Writing! Sent the Champion Agent not one, but TWO proposals. One she can do nothing with now, it was just to get it out of my head for the time being. The other she might be able to do something for.

More writing! I wrote an article for the NINC newsletter.

And another project! A super-secret fun project for which I am getting paid. Woot!

. . . and I always have my freelance job. So life is busy, and I am trying to keep all the things I have to do getting done and all (not that that makes sense, but it’s late–almost midnight–and I’ve been up since 6:00am, albeit with a smidge of a nap in the middle there).

This is what the hero of the short historical thingy I’m working on looks like:

The thing is, I love posting stuff here, whether it’s a rant, or a hawt guy or a picture of a cup of coffee. It’s just that I’ve been both busy and boring (and alliterative, apparently–see! I did it again!), so haven’t bothered. Will bother more now that the school year has recommenced.

Megan

*No reference to the Champion Agent, whose name is Louise, nor to my cousin Luis; it’s merely something I’ve always said.

So I tweeted about this already, but today I bought Quantum of Solace as well as N.K. Jemisin’s Hundred Thousand Kingdoms.

The former because some blog or another had a picture of Daniel Craig kissing a spy’s back, and he had no shirt on, and I wanted to see the scene. Sue me. And the used DVD was less than $5, so at least I’m not paying too much for my salacious interest.

The latter because an author whom I profoundly respect said she had read the book and couldn’t put it down, and then another author whom I also profoundly respect wrote a review at Amazon for it. That was about $10.

All in all, loss of control cost about $15 today.

Yes, it has come to this. My life is so dull and predictable I am titling a blog entry “Monday.” Because, you know, that’s what day it is.

Sheesh.

I was thinking about how I love posting entries here, it’s not a drag or a chore like other people talk about; I like sharing, only the thing is, you have to have something to share to share, feel me?

And I got nothing. Or not much. The Champion Agent is out with a submission, my son is in the School of His Dreams, the Busy Spouse works too much, the friends are awesome (I pestered many of them for book blurbs, and they all delivered!) and I like smoked meats.

I’m not reading or writing enough, the house is moderately clean, it seems like my son is already out of school even though it doesn’t officially end for two weeks, what with half days and such, and I am stressing.

So, yes, it is Monday and nothing is new.

But I’ll post when I’ve got something to say or am vastly irritated (as opposed to my usual state of moderate irritation).

Megan

Brief, again, since life is kicking my ass (but I am taking a few names). We watched Justified last night, and although I still miss Seth Bullock (Deadwood), this new Timothy Olyphant character is fun. Way better than some of the career choices he’s made recently.

Writing, working, not sleeping enough. What else is new?