Style v Content, Round 192
The problem with me is that most of my writing, if I'm honest, isn't really about anything. It's all disjointed scenes, vigniettes, powerful in themselves but ultimately sterile. I need stories, real stories; and for that I need focus.
But the bigger problem-- the great, oozing Alien Queen of a problem, the problem that endlessly squits out new problems which will in turn hatch to choke up my life-- is that I can't finish anything.
Monday, July 29, 2002
I hate it when this happens.
None of my bits are getting on with my other bits. The empiricist in me is Not Talking to the magickian, the magickian is having a bit of a sulk, the Drunk Poet is making the Mad Poet cry, the Eternal Adolecent doesn't have a thing to we-e-e-a-r, the Wise Old One is having a senior moment and nobody's getting any work done.
None of my bits are getting on with my other bits. The empiricist in me is Not Talking to the magickian, the magickian is having a bit of a sulk, the Drunk Poet is making the Mad Poet cry, the Eternal Adolecent doesn't have a thing to we-e-e-a-r, the Wise Old One is having a senior moment and nobody's getting any work done.
Sunday, July 28, 2002
Obese man sues Maccy D's
Get this: an obesity sufferer is sueing McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King and Kentucky Fried Chicken for making him fat.
Okay, the case is self evidently a load of codswallop and the plaintiff is a prat for not actually thinking about what he was putting into his body, and I'm sick to death of the way people want to replace commonsense with instructions, thus absolving themselves of the need to use their brains. (We can take my intolerance for stupidity as read by now, yes?) But I'm also sick of the way big food companies pollute our lives and lie about what their food does to our bodies. They suppress evidence, they buy off "experts" to spout drivel and they use cynical marketing to hook kids on junk food. I hope the guy wins the case.
Then I'm going to sue him becase his stupidity has raised my blood-pressure.
Get this: an obesity sufferer is sueing McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King and Kentucky Fried Chicken for making him fat.
Okay, the case is self evidently a load of codswallop and the plaintiff is a prat for not actually thinking about what he was putting into his body, and I'm sick to death of the way people want to replace commonsense with instructions, thus absolving themselves of the need to use their brains. (We can take my intolerance for stupidity as read by now, yes?) But I'm also sick of the way big food companies pollute our lives and lie about what their food does to our bodies. They suppress evidence, they buy off "experts" to spout drivel and they use cynical marketing to hook kids on junk food. I hope the guy wins the case.
Then I'm going to sue him becase his stupidity has raised my blood-pressure.
My manifesto.
1) I will stop worrying about what people think of me. I rub people up the wrong way. Boo fucking hoo. If I'm out of line I'll apologise, but I'm not going to crawl.
2) I will stop getting distracted by stuff that doesn't matter.
3) I will stop getting all worked up over random wankers. That git shouting at me from a white van is not my Evil Nemesis, he's a git in a white van.
4) I will stop being such a conflictophobe. I will accept that my convictions are not widely held and will get me in trouble one of these days. Tough.
5) I will punt out stories, articles, treatments and any other goddam thing I can think of until I am the calm eye at the centre of a hurricane of rejection letters.
6) I will accept that I am trying to break into writing at a time where magazines and comics are folding left, right and centre. I will respond by being even more bloodyminded and stubborn than usual.
7) I will accept that people like me attract flak. I will deal with said flak without curling up into a little ball and sobbing. I will soak it up and keep going.
8) I will experiment with various mediums in a systematic way, until I find something I can master.
9) I will recognise that I am not the apex of creation. I can always do better than I'm doing now. I will always be aiming for that better.
10) I will do whatever it takes to get where I need to be.
11) I will never quit.
1) I will stop worrying about what people think of me. I rub people up the wrong way. Boo fucking hoo. If I'm out of line I'll apologise, but I'm not going to crawl.
2) I will stop getting distracted by stuff that doesn't matter.
3) I will stop getting all worked up over random wankers. That git shouting at me from a white van is not my Evil Nemesis, he's a git in a white van.
4) I will stop being such a conflictophobe. I will accept that my convictions are not widely held and will get me in trouble one of these days. Tough.
5) I will punt out stories, articles, treatments and any other goddam thing I can think of until I am the calm eye at the centre of a hurricane of rejection letters.
6) I will accept that I am trying to break into writing at a time where magazines and comics are folding left, right and centre. I will respond by being even more bloodyminded and stubborn than usual.
7) I will accept that people like me attract flak. I will deal with said flak without curling up into a little ball and sobbing. I will soak it up and keep going.
8) I will experiment with various mediums in a systematic way, until I find something I can master.
9) I will recognise that I am not the apex of creation. I can always do better than I'm doing now. I will always be aiming for that better.
10) I will do whatever it takes to get where I need to be.
11) I will never quit.
Paranormal beliefs linked to brain chemistry
Interesting article from the NS. Apperently higher levels of dopamine aid pattern-regcognition but also make people more likely to percieve patterns when there were none.
Interesting article from the NS. Apperently higher levels of dopamine aid pattern-regcognition but also make people more likely to percieve patterns when there were none.
Saturday, July 27, 2002
More info.
Since putting up That blog entry, I've had a few people ask me what they should do if they see somebody having a fit. Here's the basics:
So now you know, eh?
Since putting up That blog entry, I've had a few people ask me what they should do if they see somebody having a fit. Here's the basics:
While a grand mal is scary to watch, it's not always an emergency. Look and see if they have a medic-alert bracelet with details of the problem.
Lower the person carefully onto the ground.
If possible, turn their head to one side so that they don't choke on their saliva or tongue. It is not possible to "swallow" your tongue, but it can fall back and block the airway.
Stay with them, and make sure they can't knock into anything. Place something soft under the person's head.
Don't put anything in the person's mouth-- it could break their teeth or choke them.
Don't restrain them. This could cause the person to break or dislocate a bone.
Reassure them. An epileptic may feel very disoriented and anxious on coming to; tell them they've had a fit, tell them where they are and who you are.
Stay with them until they are fully aware of their surroundings.
If the fit lasts longer than 5 or 10 minutes, or if it's the person's first fit, or they've had more than one fit, then summon emergency medical assistance.
So now you know, eh?
A clarification.
Okay, that was not the full on seizure, right? That was the bit before the seizure, known as the aura. The actual seizure, in my case, involves falling on the floor, frothing at the mouth, and usually ends up with me losing a fight with a neighbouring item of furniture. This is not conducive to fast or accurate typing. Some people's epileptic fits are a lot like the description; YMMV.
Here is a site explaining seizures, and this site has some good general info on epilepsy.
Okay, that was not the full on seizure, right? That was the bit before the seizure, known as the aura. The actual seizure, in my case, involves falling on the floor, frothing at the mouth, and usually ends up with me losing a fight with a neighbouring item of furniture. This is not conducive to fast or accurate typing. Some people's epileptic fits are a lot like the description; YMMV.
Here is a site explaining seizures, and this site has some good general info on epilepsy.
If you liked the online aura thang, then you'll just love...
Barbelith Underground > Creation > Electronics project: mind control.
We still need a kilo of iron filings and some sort of ring-shaped container.
Barbelith Underground > Creation > Electronics project: mind control.
We still need a kilo of iron filings and some sort of ring-shaped container.
Rethink.
I've toyed with the idea in of writing a comic in the past, but always dismissed it. I wasn't raised in a very comic-y environment, except for Asterix and Tin-Tin, and I always thought that you sort of had to be raised on the things. Comics only really hoved into my ken in my middle teens, with Deadline magazine; I didn't even read Watchmen till ten years after came out.
But now it I'm beginning to rethink the whole oh-I-could-never-write-a-comic thing. I've got a very strong visual imagination, which might lend itself to the medium. And I have some pretty good ideas. I'm going to have a look at what comics writers have to say about the process, and reassess some of my own yarns in relation to what's out there.
I've toyed with the idea in of writing a comic in the past, but always dismissed it. I wasn't raised in a very comic-y environment, except for Asterix and Tin-Tin, and I always thought that you sort of had to be raised on the things. Comics only really hoved into my ken in my middle teens, with Deadline magazine; I didn't even read Watchmen till ten years after came out.
But now it I'm beginning to rethink the whole oh-I-could-never-write-a-comic thing. I've got a very strong visual imagination, which might lend itself to the medium. And I have some pretty good ideas. I'm going to have a look at what comics writers have to say about the process, and reassess some of my own yarns in relation to what's out there.
Friday, July 26, 2002
Bizarre Breasts
I'm not alone: L.K. Malnassy has also noticed that many comic artists can't draw t1ts.
"I have utilized my meager knowledge of anatomy and admittedly unpolished art skills to bring the world a brief tutorial on one of the comic artists' greatest challenges: the breast."
I'm not alone: L.K. Malnassy has also noticed that many comic artists can't draw t1ts.
Oh, yeah.
I forgot: AND I'm getting too old to try and get into another line of work.
Rabbits to it. There's not much point me trying to get a job writing stuff until I've got some stuff out there. Not much hope of getting paid for it at the mo., but plenty of worthy 'zines rely on voluntary contributions. Get out there. Get name in magazine. Then can go "look, Mr. Editor! Writey thing what I have wrote!" Then will get job, and hopefully money will follow. Or more money than I make in temp hell, anyhow.
I forgot: AND I'm getting too old to try and get into another line of work.
Rabbits to it. There's not much point me trying to get a job writing stuff until I've got some stuff out there. Not much hope of getting paid for it at the mo., but plenty of worthy 'zines rely on voluntary contributions. Get out there. Get name in magazine. Then can go "look, Mr. Editor! Writey thing what I have wrote!" Then will get job, and hopefully money will follow. Or more money than I make in temp hell, anyhow.
Argh.
Right: my job finished today AND I don't have another one lined up AND I don't know when I'll be able to find another job AND I'll probably have to start scrounging off my boyfriend again AND I don't want to AND when I do find a job it'll be caretaking or cleaning or packing since that's all I ever bloody get AND I'm looking for work in an industry I know nothing about AND where I have no experience AND my head hurts.
I'm going to go and kick things now.
Right: my job finished today AND I don't have another one lined up AND I don't know when I'll be able to find another job AND I'll probably have to start scrounging off my boyfriend again AND I don't want to AND when I do find a job it'll be caretaking or cleaning or packing since that's all I ever bloody get AND I'm looking for work in an industry I know nothing about AND where I have no experience AND my head hurts.
I'm going to go and kick things now.
GAP GETS SHAGGED IN SHEFFIELD
How activists comprehensively f*cked up a Gap recruitment fair by setting up an information point outside and telling everyone how the company makes its money by exploiting sweatshop labour.
What bothers me is that this news still came as a surprise to a lot of people. Since the world is evidently still full of individuals who think clothes float onto Gap's shelves by magic, here's another link: www.gapsucks.org.
Pay more attention, bad people! Pay attention to horribleness or I'll come round and paint your cat!
How activists comprehensively f*cked up a Gap recruitment fair by setting up an information point outside and telling everyone how the company makes its money by exploiting sweatshop labour.
What bothers me is that this news still came as a surprise to a lot of people. Since the world is evidently still full of individuals who think clothes float onto Gap's shelves by magic, here's another link: www.gapsucks.org.
Pay more attention, bad people! Pay attention to horribleness or I'll come round and paint your cat!
Imagine waking up one morning to find that someone had covered your lawn with tacky pink plastic waterfowl. Oh, no! It's a Flamingo Nightmare!
(Whisked away from kookymojo in a little pink handbag.)
(Whisked away from kookymojo in a little pink handbag.)
Thursday, July 25, 2002
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