September's End -- happy-sad storytime

We planted a garden yesterday. It was a vegetable garden. I really love vegetables. I was raised with gardens, and that is one of the blessings of my life. This particular garden is new and full of promise. If I don't receive a bounty of delicious veggies, I will be quite disappointed. 

We have tomatoes, peppers, cabbage, collard greens, romaine lettuce and red lettuce. Additionally, we bought herbs-- basil, oregano, peppermint and cilantro. The scent of the herbs stuck to my hands, and they kind of smelled like heaven. Sweet and spicy heaven. Heaven is a herbaceous kitchen. 

Also notable: I am the queen of weeding the dollar weeds. 

Running is hard. I'm trying to get back into shape, but it makes me sore. I think if I pushed myself, I could get back to an 8 minute mile. Maybe next week. This week is for just running a mile without stopping. Maybe I will run more than a mile tomorrow, if my legs are still attached to my body. Seriously, I'm sore. (Though, that could be from weeding the garden yesterday.) Anyway, the nice chemicals from the exercise should kick in sometime, which would be... nice. 

I sprinted part of my mile today. It was good to just GO, to release that energy that was sustaining me, to use it all up and spend myself out. 

I'm a little melancholy right now. Last week I was basking in the glory of the oncoming Autumn and the way it signals the quiet approach of Winter. This week I am remembering all the Summers I have had. 

But we planted a garden yesterday, and the rain and the earth are making the plants stronger than they were in their pots. 

In my dreams last night, a childhood friend visited me. He was one of my valued playmates during elementary school, and he's never been quite emotionally stable. In my dream, he saw me and was happy to see me, he was young and rational. Oh well. 

You really get another perspective on friendship as you grow up. Things aren't perfect. Friends have problems too. At least they tend to take their more serious problems away from me. (I think that might be selfish to say. I apologize. I am actually quite happy to listen to everyday problems.) I wonder if the people I knew could imagine what I have become. I wonder if anything would actually be deeply surprising to them. 

Silly, is what it is. 

This entry truly represents where I am right now. I think. Now I will go do something more fun-- Like watch an episode of Parks and Recreation. Lordy, what a good show that is. Many more laughs than this blog entry. 

Articles from the World of Books

I gave myself an assignment today. Frankly, it's been a while since I've been hip to the trends in the publishing industry. I'm mostly joking, but there was once a time when I was religious about keeping up with the pertinent news. That was before college.

During college, I took on a work-load that made staying up-to-date practically insane. Except for my project on "Amazon versus the bookstore" in a "Language and Power" class, I have not seen a real article on the subject since 2010. It has been a while. A WHILE.

So I thought, "Gee, why don't I go for a little spin in the search-engines and find some reading material." It did not take long for me to decide that I wanted to get in a "read, analyze, summarize" state of mind. I haven't had an opportunity to exercise this set of skills since graduation, and I am afraid of getting rusty.

 And without further ado..:

"Why Amazon Terrifies Publishers: Let's Look At Royalty Statements"

I've seen a bit of flurry on Twitter about the Hachette matter. Not much, but enough to have an idea that people are generally outraged at the behavior of Amazon. After further research this seems to be the case.* This piece from a Forbes contributor touches on the emotional ramifications, but focuses on the money side of the equation. Anders says, essentially, that eBooks are more profitable. They are a better deal for everyone but the publisher; the writer and the reader both benefit from non-traditional publishing. (Whereas the old means of publishing favored the publisher.) It's safe to say Anders seems to side with this new method of book-production.

George Anders' concluding paragraphs mirror my analysis of legitimate magazine and newspaper articles in a class project: readers and writers genuinely fear that the rise of the eBook could be the end of everything and Amazon is the harbinger of that end. It is the Book Apocalypse.** On the other, less cataclysmic hand, books are evolving to meet the market's needs. Amazon was depicted as a monster as far back as 2011, when Borders went under. Is this a fair portrayal? Maybe. Amazon certainly has a lion's share of power; but maybe Amazon is just the face of a changing market.

My thoughts are not entirely in line with Anders', of course. Sure, the publishers are terrified. Is it right to be scared of Amazon as an author? How about as a reader? Will the market settle in a way that benefits everyone? I don't have the answers.

The publishing industry has to compete with companies like Amazon, and that is scary. The bright side is, the struggle continues to be fascinating. For a broadly more informed counter to Anders' argument, I'd suggest reading this brilliantly thoughtful and passionate gem by Walter Jon Williams: Amazonia.

 Epilogue

Obviously this was a "dipping the toe into the water" situation for me, but it's clear that I really missed this. I am reminded of better days in my pursuit of knowledge. Being aware of the state of the publishing industry made me happy. Now that I have the time, I'll try to keep abreast of the news in this realm.

Ha! What a life.

*It reminds me of the time Amazon stopped selling Macmillan books back in 2010.
**The Book Apocalypse has been happening since at least before the release of You've Got Mail. (God, Nora Ephron was such a hero.)

Mary and Mr. Collins: the Pride and Prejudice fan-fic

I recently watched Pride and Prejudice with some friends, and this is the result. The sketch is a little bit like imitation crab-meat, in that it is entirely based on my remembrance of the substance of Jane Austen's prose and probably does not resemble it at all.

 Chapter One

Whenever the affable Mr. Collins made mention of his cousin Mary Bennett, he never indicated any improper feeling toward the lady. He said nothing of her that would impugn his own character, from the moment he first realized that his affections might sway from her sister Elizabeth. It was a matter of honor for Mr. Collins, that he not show favor to too many of the Bennett sisters. Changing his plans from acquiring Jane to courting Elizabeth was permissible; but marrying Mary would have been one Bennett too far. 

In truth, Mr. Collins always fancied that Mary Bennett would have suited him better, even if she was the plainest of her sisters. It was his woefully high standards of character that kept him from true happiness. His married life was not quite satisfactory. Charlotte was a fine choice, a wonderful woman, but Mr. Collins was not convinced that their marriage was as complete as it could have been. The main difference between he and his wife was that she was not much of a reader, whereas he was quite fond of the habit. There was also a reluctance on her part to spend time in the same room as her husband, which he did not notice at first. As the years passed, he became aware of a skulking unhappiness that began to affect his sermon-making.

Lady Catherine de Bourgh began to comment on the flagging enthusiasm of his delivery, and noted that "had she been a member of the clergy, she would have delivered her sermons each Sunday with great aplomb."

Mr. Collins attempted to correct this slight dip in fervor. Nevertheless, he continued to have occasional weeks when he was simply too grave for church.

It was many years later that Mr. Collins embarked for Longbourn, which he was finally to claim from the Bennett family. Only Mary and Lydia Bennett lived there now and they would soon find other arrangements. Mr. Collins traveled to Longbourn with his daughter Maria. His wife Charlotte, of fifteen years, was recently deceased. Nothing remained that could separate Mr. Collins from pondering his earlier choices with regret.

***

And there ends the first chapter of a troubling romance which can only be increasingly awkward and uncomfortable.

Terrarium by an Amatuer

Yesterday I made a terrarium. It is in a bowl that I got at Michael's for $12.70. They had a bigger bowl for $16, but I need to fit mine on my desk.

I think it might be a little crowded in there.

I've been doing research on terrariums for about a month now, and there are some super pages out there that have some great advice. If you want some guaranteed success, I suggest looking elsewhere. If you would like to see me outline a process that may or may not work, you're in the right place.

After much research, I decided to make a succulent terrarium. It requires watering and is uncovered, which is what makes it different from the other kind of terrarium. I also found that with succulents, I could do most of my purchasing in one stop at Lowe's. This is the kind of efficiency I spring for.

Anyway, here's the process I followed:

1. Pea Gravel: about $3.65 at Lowe's for an unnecessarily large bag. (If anyone needs some extra gravel, I'm your gal.) I put about 2 inches of gravel in the bottom of the container. This is supposed to help drainage.

2. Activated Carbon: also supposed to help drainage. It's commonly used in aquariums, so I bought a jar at a pet store for $12.70. Then I put a 1/2 inch on top of the gravel.

3. Sphagnum Moss: this layer is supposed to keep the drainage separate from the upper levels. I put about 2 inches worth into the container. It cost $3.97.

4. Cactus Soil: $4.24, works well with succulents. Apply some inches of this atop your sphagnum moss. (This thing is like a 7-layer dip, except pretty to look at and less edible.)

5. Succulents: I spent $5 on the plants. Some of them were on clearance and perhaps I will have to replace them. I'm also pretty sure that I'll have to remove a little bit of the foliage.

Evidently you're supposed to water once a week, or when the soil is dry. As far as I can tell, the soil is not dry yet.

Epilogue
 So the entire terrarium was under $45, and I have enough supplies to make at least one more. (Provided I buy another container and more plants.)

On Day 2 of mothering a bowl of plants, I just worry about it. Does it have enough water? Does it have enough room to grow and mature? 

I will post about more terrarium adventures, I am sure. Especially if they go well.

Post-Graduation Blues

"You should stay in college as long as you can; the job market is terrible right now."

I heard some jumbled version of this message from every relative over the age of 40 this year. I wish I were exaggerating. There were reunions and holidays full of this particular brand of advice. I kept thinking, "Maybe the economy is in a recession, but there's no need for this negativity." I did not heed their advice. I graduated with the intention of taking a year off. 

This is my gap year. 

It follows a year of emotional turmoil. In all my extremely long life, I have not had this rough of a time. 

My cat almost died. I mean really. This cuteness almost perished. 

Plus other major life events happened, of the sort that I don't want to discuss in places other than my fiction.

So really, we have things to focus on besides my choice to declare a momentary cease-fire on scholarship. (Perhaps this metaphor doesn't bear the weight of any examination at all.) A person is only 22 once.

So my goal for now is to figure out exactly what my goals are. In the meantime, I'm diving into the real world and rediscovering forgotten ideals.