Monthly Archives: September 2010

Sep
16

Succubus

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Succubus by =mynfel on deviantART Just a late night commission I finally finished up. Been working off and on it for about a month just due to time constraints, but yay for completion. 🙂… Read more
Sep
16

The Wind on the Heath

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I stumbled across this particular gem of a book when I was doing research a while back for a story that’s most likely going to stay in the trunk. However, I found it to be pretty useful – not because it’s a book of actual Romany life so much as a historical perspective of how others, particularly in the literary world, saw the Gypsy people. Originally published in 1930,  the author amassed quite the collection of stories, poetry, songs and general observations from about the 1500’s and up, including some from the Gypsies themselves. Now, obviously I have my doubts as to the complete accuracy of everything being said, but it’s still fascinating to look through – the viewpoints range from admiration to envy to flat out discrimination. (And sadly, such discrimination against the Roma continues, even to this day.) On top of that, there are some great writing prompts to be found –… Read more
Sep
15

Sucker for Sidekicks

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My good friend, Laura Bickle, just had a new release the other week – Sparks. (Shameless pimpage – go *buy* it, my friends, and the first book in the series, Embers.) Aside from the fact that the book contains some excellent writing (and all the ghosts, elementals and fire action you could hope for), the book also boasts a sidekick. And not just any sidekick – he’s a fire elemental, also known as a salamander, who goes by the name Sparky. Sparky is a hoot and easily one of my favorite characters in the book. Even though he doesn’t talk, he’s definitely got a larger-than-life personality – but his presence never overrides the story. However, this got me to thinking a bit as to the popularity of animal sidekicks in books. Quite a few novels them have them, although the form and format change a bit, depending on the author or the story.… Read more
Sep
14

Birthdays

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The princess turns four today. I’m not doing a whole lot for her tonight – she already had a massive party at House of Bounce on Saturday, plus a separate family party on Sunday. (And yes, I not only fell off the Weight Watchers wagon – I dove head-first into an orgy of cake and pizza and Twizzlers and didn’t emerge until…um. Yesterday. *sigh*) I did buy her cupcakes to take into her class this morning, but I eschewed the goody-bag phenomenon on Saturday. It’s something I never really understood. When I was growing up, I seem to remember pretty low key birthday parties at home  – spaghetti lunches and pin the tail on the donkey. Maybe ten kids. Homemade carrot cake for dessert. Running around outside. Water balloon fights. Looking for toads in the garden. Undoubtedly I’m using some pretty thick rose-colored glasses here. These days it’s all about… Read more
Sep
12

Mace WTFkery

Posted in guns, wtf | 2 Comments
I am all about self-defense and the right to do whatever you have to in order to keep yourself safe. That being said, I really do have to question the wisdom of carrying a mace dispenser that looks like a revolver. Okay – yes, it’s nice that it gives you an LED laser for aiming, though to be honest, I think in most situations where a woman pulls out her mace, she’s probably not thinking along such tactical lines. I guess my main issue with carrying anything gun-shaped is that it probably has the potential to escalate an ugly situation into something much worse – particularly if there is a police officer involved. And having a pink gun isn’t necessarily going to be enough to get you out of the situation – there are plenty of real guns that are pink. Yes, a good cop should be able to assess… Read more