Writing galore

At long last, one of my travel articles is up and running. This one is a destination guide on Wellington. Pretty straightforward and boring, but it has a cute little picture of me at the end. http://www.gonomad.com/destinations/0611/wellington-nz.html

Next up should be my exploration of gay Melbourne in a print magazine, which will be online as well. I'll add that when it's up.

As for the rest of my writing life, all is chugging along nicely. I've just been hired on a short-term project to edit a book. A real book and a real publishing company and everything. I know! I may or may not be able to pick up some copywriting stuff on the side, and of course will keep busting my hump to keep getting journalismy stuff. It's a neverending battle, but one that can be won. I hope. For now I'm just going to watch Top Chef.

Home is Where my Hat is. And my shoes.

I'm shameful blogger, I know. If this were my job, I would have been fired long ago.

I've been back home from NZ for almost a week. I haven't blogged much simply because there's not a whole lot going on now that I'm back, although it is very nice to be back where all my stuff is. I've been catching up with friends, finding work and um, watching a lot of TV. I'm in that weird phase where I don't have a lot to do, so I feel awfully guilty for not being productive, but then I feel too lazy to deal with the stuff that I should be productive on. It's not a great place to be, but then again, it's just a transition period so it's not a big deal.

The good news is that I do have a contract job offer, so I have some sort of employment for the next few months. The best part is that it's a project I can do from anywhere, so even if we end up moving for hubby's job, I still have some cash flow. So that's one big stress off my plate, and I can more freely enjoy my days off right now knowing that something is around the corner.

In the meantime, I think my project for the day is to set up a little office area for myself. I have a teensy desk crowded into a corner and surrounded by junk. If I can figure out how to make a cozy little nook for myself, I think I'll be more inclined to work, rather than staring at countless episodes of Wife Swap. Because while Wife Swap is a perfectly entertaining show, it's really at its best when making fun of fundamentalist rednecks, and sometimes I get tired of being meanspirited.

Surprise, I'm still in Wellington! Okay, that's more of an FYI. I changed my ticket to leave on Monday instead. Leaving on a Friday night just seemed illogical. Although with me being sick and hubby being overworked, we didn't actually make it anywhere on Friday. But Saturday involved dinner out and today proved to be the first real summer-like day since I've been here, so I'm very glad I stuck around.

I always resist change a little bit, even though another part of me welcomes it. I've never been one to stay in one place and I don't feel ready to put down roots. After leaving my hometown for college, I haven't lived in any city for more than 4 years or so, and I feel just fine with that. But it is always hard to leave, proven by the point that it's even hard to leave a city I've only been in for 5 weeks.

It's fun getting to know a city. The other day I ran into someone I knew while walking along with people I had just met, and later that day an elderly woman asked me for directions and I actually knew the answer. That kind of stuff is always a little thrilling.

So tomorrow I plan on having brunch in my favorite cafe that I only just discovered last week...I've developed a taste for fruit salad and toast, and while I know that makes me sound ridiculously healthy, I'm really not one of those people. And I shall read my new books, and then toddle off to the airport. Thankfully, Air New Zealand has an awesome array of on-demand movies, so I'm actually looking forward to the flight. I shall be taking a hefty amount of decongestant though, as the last time I flew with a cold both of my eardrums perforate. And there's an uplifting note to end on. And a preposition.

P.S.

We got the Senate! We got the Senate!

Sorry, couldn't resist checking the news. In addition to procrastinating, I've been sick for the past two days, so I've been glued to CNN. I finally turned off the TV to get something accomplished and missed out on the final Virgina count.

We got the Senate! We got the Senate!

Procrastination

Unfortunately for me and my career, when given any sort of responsibility, old Procrasty McPrasterson rears his ugly head. Heck, even the term isn't an original. The whole "McSomething" to make it sound funnier comes straight from Cuteoverload.com. Although some may argue that the roots come from my friend D, who I believe coined the term "Fatty Watty McButterpants," or the more pithy "Fatty McWatty." Both of which are the ideal descriptions of how I feel when my jeans have just come out of the dryer, 5 sizes smaller than when they went in.

So old Procrasty makes it nigh impossible for me to get anything done in an effective manner. Even after I've fought tooth and nail to get freelance assignments to make this New Zealand trip more than just an extended holiday, after I've ranted and raved to my bewildered husband about how I'm better than the money I make and editors just need to give me a chance and I can produce better stuff than the drivel we see in magazines these days because I AM A WRITER dammit! Although, on the other hand, one of the hallmarks of being a writer is to see how long one can stare at a blank page before sheer boredom (and running out of things to look up on the internet) forces you to start typing. Anything.

And while the good news is that I usually manage to get the darned article done on time, even that knowledge makes Procrasty leer nastily and say "See, it'll get done. So....why not just take a quick peek at Myspace to see if anyone has voted on your picture that was taken two years and 10 inches of hair ago? (They have, and I'm still at a friggin' 6.6 out of 10).

The sad part is, I only need to write 400 words today. For reference, this blog is already at 311. It's not a Shakespeare dissertation that I'm avoiding here, it's just the mere fact that it's "work." And now...I've run out of excuses, internet searches and no one has sent me any new emails. I think. I should go check.

Winding Down

I know, long time, no real blog. But you have to admit, that disapproving bunny is a hoot. I found it on Cuteoverload.com, my favorite website in the world if I haven't already plugged it.

Anyhoo, the past week or so has been a blur of semi-normal life sans real job. This involves going to the gym, visiting a used bookshop almost daily, and wandering around aimlessly. I also met more gay people, a zany non-gay tour operator, and did a voiceover for a video game. That was cool- I played "Pedestrian Babe 2" and "Driver." It involved shouting out many a swear word. Here's hoping that I make the cut and become a faceless voice on Jackass the video game.

The session wasn't that serious. This is a posed shot after the fact, and I didn't know what to do except clutch onto the music stand.

I managed to drag hubby out for a walk over the weekend, leaving behind his precious laptop for a while. We took the cable car up to the botanic gardens, where he had fun commandeering a cannon (he's at work right now, so I feel I should hold off on posting a picture of his face before getting permission. You know, because Sarktales is such a hot blog these days.)

Oh, and since November 5 was Guy Fawkes day, we got to see fireworks over the harbour, which is located conveniently a block away from our apartment. Being that we're in a country of only 4 million people, it was a pleasantly populated, but not overly crowded event with some spectacular fireworks.

It's kind of hard to capture them on film, but it was pretty what with the full moon off to the side and all.

I'm leaving on Friday, which is bumming me out. Especially since our new next door neighbor just invited us to a party that day. Hmph. I'm not sure why I schedule my flight for a Friday as opposed to, say, over the weekend. November 10 just sounded like a nice, rounded date. Oh well, one must return to normal life at some point, whether it's a Friday or Sunday. Have no fear though- I'm sure Sarktales adventures can continue with Los Angeles: The Search for Employment.

On that note, here are some pretty pictures from the Kapiti Coast, where I spent a night last week. The owner has 10, count 'em 10, acres of gorgeous property.

Disapproving Bunny

These aren't my pics, or my captions. But I was hooting with laughter and wiping away the tears last night when I discovered the "Disapproving Bunny." Just click the link, I urge each and every one of you. Nothing bad will happen, and you may come out of it a greater person.

http://www.birdchick.com/adventures/rabbit/index3.html

Dunedin, sheep, etc.

In the words of my sister-in-law: comments, people. Comments are a very nice thing on a blog. So get typing and make your voice heard, even if it is to say "wow, a slab of cow thigh bone. Awesome."

In order to inspire discussion, we could make up our own captions to this picture. It's my friend's cat on a very hot day in Berlin:

Now that bit of entertainment is over, let's catch up on my trip photos. Here's a yellow-eyed penguin nesting an egg. It was super cute- penguins come together every year to mate, usually with the same partner. One sits with the egg while the other goes off to get food, then returns and they switch places. That's a 50/50 partnership at its best. Since they're sitting there for 24 hours with the egg, this is one of those moments when he was coming out "to stretch his legs for a bit."

This is me with a hot jacket and sexy hair. If only I had thought to turn my head a little, it would have looked like I was kissing this seal. He's the gray blob that blends in very nicely with the rock.

This is just a view from the ferry. I thought it was a very romantic picture, so I took a bunch, hoping to blow one up and frame it.

Okay, now the sheep... I'm sure I've mentioned before that there are many- nay millions of sheep in New Zealand. About 45 million, which outnumbers humans about 11 to one. I couldn't take my eyes off of them as we drove through the countrysides, and I wished I had more pictures to demonstrate just how many there are. Roaming grassy fields, climbing up mountainsides. Fluffy sheep, shorn sheep. Grown up sheep, baby sheep (lambs?). Running sheep, sleeping sheep, and mostly eating sheep. It's nonstop grazing for those little guys.

Finally on our train trip to Middlemarch, the sheep farming town of 250, I got close enough to some to take pictures. Sort of. They're not very bright creatures, working mostly off instinct, so as soon as I got near, they ran. Fast. So essentially I think the thought process going on here was:

"Munch, munch, munch. Burp." It's all butt shots, except for the one little guy on the right who's all like "Huh?"

I think it was that guy who was the first to shout "RUN!"

"AAAAAHHHHHHH!!!"

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!"

"Whatever you do, DON'T LOOK UP!"

Thankfully, even Limpy McLimpins and his trusty lamb managed to escape.

Once we left them alone, I'm sure they promptly forgot that there was any problem and wandered back to the section where we found them.