Yeah, you don’t come here to hear me talk about my writing, or lack thereof, but today I’ve got nothing. NOTHING. Because I am still revising, am going to the New Jersey Conference this weekend, where I get to hang with the Alpha Sparkle Dog, Liz Maverick (who begs you to vote for her and awesome Hope Tarr in their Quest For Thailand, go here to find out more), and the Partner-In-Crime, Kwana. Not to mention seeing fellow Risky Janet Mullany and Pam-frickin’-Rosenthal. Woot!

So I’ve got writing on the brain. I am close to done with the revision, and have all kinds of awesome hopes for this version of the ms.

So–your Action Plan for the day is: Vote for Liz and Hope; wish me luck on the final throes of the ms.; and further luck that I do not make an ass of myself at the NJRW, and that I have some productive writer events happen.

Thanks!

PS: It’s Viggo’s birthday today! All that, and he’s an amazing actor, too!

I don’t usually review stuff, except to say ‘yay! I read it! I loved it!,’ which isn’t really helpful for anyone, including me. But I have seen a fair amount of movies, read some books and heard some good music lately, so I thought since I feel as lethargic as someone can who actually bothers to finish writing ‘lethargic,’ that I would do some quick reviews. Maybe incite some discussion.

Shoot ‘Em Up: Abby asked me what I thought of this starring our boy Clive. I think it was a laudatory attempt to take the action movie to its nth degree, but it wasn’t quite clever enough. It was a load of fun to watch, but hardly resonant after. Not to say I won’t want to own the DVD when it comes out, but it was just a fun movie with a lot of death. Plus it had Clive for me, and Monica Belluci for the Loves Pale Women With Dark Hair Spouse.

Eastern Promises: Amazing. I love Cronenberg, apparently, and Viggo Mortensen gets so inside the skin of his characters it is astonishing (Plus he’s really freaking HOT!). This was a lot more memorable and complex than S’EU, with fewer deaths but way more violence, if that makes sense. Not for the weak of stomach.

Agnes And The Hitman: I didn’t care for the first Crusie/Mayer collaboration that much, but Jennie said this one was really good, so I gave it a try. And it was so much fun! A rollercoaster of action (bam!), romance (pow!) and way more death (kaboom!) than is usual in a romance novel. Totally refreshing, thanks for the rec, Jennie.

Beguilement (The Sharing Knife, Vol. 1): Oddly enough, I don’t like Lois McMaster Bujold’s most famous series, the Miles V-whatever his last name is, but I have totally adored her fantasy such as the Chalion series and now this one. She does subtle romance very well, and her world-building is complex and compelling.

Little Miss Sunshine: I was expecting a cute indie film with quirky characters, ooh, aren’t the disfunctional people funny, but this was way better than I had anticipated. This has depth and characterization and you really feel for all of the people involved, and it wasn’t just the fish-in-barrel fun of examining kids’ beauty contests. So, yay! I loved it!

Alice Smith: Amazing artist, her record is being re-released here soon. Alicia Keys meets Melanie, I’ve been singing her songs in my head ever since I first heard it. I love, love, love this record.

Kate Nash: British singer, a clear, pure voice like Sia’s or Bjork’s and with a biting wit like Dorothy Parker. Her record isn’t out here yet, but was #1 in England. Search for “Dickhead” on YouTube for a preview.

Lady Tigra: Oh, lord, totally stripped-down hip-hop, like ESG, only with a good rapper, and her songs are good allthe waythrough, which is just plain awesome. I am completely hooked on this one, too, I can’t believe how good it is.

Okay, so what’s got you stoked lately?

1. Sleep Late.
2. See Shoot ‘Em Up
3. Get Banh Mi (Vietnamese sandwich. Yum).
4. Nap
5. See Eastern Promises
6. See documentary Inside Deep Throat
7. Drink Wine.
8. Bed

Result: Renewed enthusiasm to write and live life happily and well and get things done. Yay for the Perfect Day.