Randomness

Fancy Chocolate is Fancy… I Guess

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? Fall is here! Kind of. Pretty sure the temperatures are supposed to go back up a bit the next few days. Anyway, if you read last week’s post, you’ll know that I was thinking about buying myself a treat. After much hesitation, I got the fancy chocolates! I ordered from Recchiuti in San Francisco because they’re on all the “best chocolates” lists I looked at, so I figured they were at least okay. Guess what! They do indeed taste like chocolates. I haven’t tried all of them yet, but I thought I would share my thoughts on the ones I’ve tasted so far.

In order to make the shipping price hurt less, I ordered the Black Box 16 (because I like to try different things) and a box of Peppermint Thins (because I love all things peppermint). The Black Box was $52 (so like $3.25 a piece) and the other was $28 for 24 (around $1.17 each). I shouldn’t focus on the money, but I’m a miser, so this was a really difficult thing to talk myself into. I’m constantly wondering if things are worth the money, not just chocolates. Everything. But let’s get to my thoughts thus far:

1. Peppermint Thins. These are about the size of a nickel (I don’t think they’re as big as a quarter but it’s been a while since I’ve seen actual change, so maybe). The inside is thick and the whole thing is reminiscent of a York Peppermint Pattie without the white coloring. I like letting them melt on my tongue. You get to taste the chocolate first and the mint gradually gets stronger until it’s almost overwhelming. I enjoy that. Would I buy them again? No, but I’m not mad I tried them this time.

2. Black Box 16. So far, these are not bad. I’ve only had 5 as of me writing this and mostly they’ve been good, but nothing impressive. I’ll let you know if I come across one, but for now, it’s like with the Peppermint Thins… I’m enjoying them and I’m not mad I tried them, but I probably won’t be getting them again.

2a. Sesame Nougat. This one was definitely nutty and I liked the wafer that was hidden inside. I didn’t look at the legend until after I ate it, so I wasn’t sure what it was, but I enjoyed trying to figure it out. Did guess sesame specifically, but I knew it was a nut or seed. It was interesting.

2b. Kona Coffee. It’s coffee and chocolate. What’s not to love? So far, it’s my favorite.

2c. Rose Caramel. This one was interesting, but the flower oils left a perfume kind of taste that lingered. I wasn’t a fan.

2d. Force Noir. I love dark chocolate, but this one was just okay.

2e. Burnt Caramel. My second favorite. It has very intense dark caramel flavors that I like.

So, yeah. I got myself a treat. They’re not bad, but I think I’ll just stick with Hershey and the like. Future treats will probably just be useless pretty things.

Trick or Treat?

~ shawnaborman ~ 1 Comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? I’m trying to trick myself into buying myself a treat. I’ve been trying to talk myself into something for a while, but always make excuses not to. It’s very hard to come up with a reason to buy things that I want. If I don’t need it, why should I waste the money? It’s not like anyone is telling me not to buy shit. On the contrary. I’m constantly encouraged to treat myself. I just don’t. So, if I can talk myself into buying a treat in the near future, what should it be?

1. Fancy chocolates. I’ve been leaning towards a literal treat, but I keep putting it off because the shipping is like half the price of the chocolates. And fancy chocolates are always a let down. It tastes like chocolate. My palate is not sophisticated enough for expensive chocolate or coffee or whatever else people try to convince you is a whole different experience when you pay stupid amounts of money for it. It’s still just chocolate. But the flavor combinations sound fun and the ones I’m looking at aren’t too ridiculously priced. Except the shipping. Maybe I’ll feel better about it if I add a couple of other items and the shipping stays the same.

2. A sweater/nice top. Or just clothes in general. I bought a lovely, thick sweater last year and have only worn it once. I can only think of a couple of situations to wear it since it’s Texas, but I still love it. I could use a thinner sweater or just a nice long sleeved top. I have a nice summer top, but I have a feeling I’ll need a skirt to wear with it. I keep forgetting it exists, though. But we don’t really do anything that requires nice clothing, so I have a hard time justifying spending the money on that stuff. I can’t even talk myself into buying stuff that will go into my every day rotation.

3. Shoes! I’ve refrained from buying shoes for a long time, but they are some of my favorite frivolous things. I stopped buying them because I only wear two pairs of boots (biker boots I’ve had since I was like 16 for every-day-winter-leaving-the-house wear and a nice bronze/brown pair with short heels in the event we go somewhere dressy during the winter), my two pairs of Converse, a pair of wedge sandals, and a pair of purple flip-flops. I have dressier shoes for summer, but never wear them. I also have my fluffy slipper bootie things that I wear most of the time in the winter. I just don’t need more shoes even though I love them.

JessyHerc

4. Jewelry. I randomly buy myself bracelets and necklaces, but then feel bad because I only wear them once or twice. I do want a new ring or two, but I don’t remember my size and I’m too socially awkward to go into a jewelry store, get my fingers sized, then leave without… you know… buying something. Rude. I guess I could just buy a sizer or print out one of the paper ones. I just haven’t. But I would definitely spend money on new rings because I wear one 99% of the time. That’s probably why I haven’t actually gotten sized. I don’t want to spend money.

There’s also art and knickknacks and things that I’ll never convince myself to buy. Also, weapons. I’ll never be able to afford the weapons I want unless I become a millionaire and can convince myself to part with a couple of thousand for no reason other than I want to. Anyway, should I buy myself a treat? What? What kind of treat would you buy yourself? As always, feel free to leave your thoughts or comments or questions here or on my social media pages!

Writerly/Readerly Updates

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! What’s everyone up to this wonderful Wednesday? Dad and I are going to Garland. There’s a place out there that does leatherwork on vehicles, so we’re getting some work done on the van. I’m sure I’ll share pictures whenever everything is finished. But that’s for another day. Today, I figured I’ll ramble about the few writerly/readerly things going on. It’s really nothing much, so this will probably be a short post.

Writerly things:

1. I’ve slowly been working on the new Untitled Cozy Mystery novel. When I do write, the words come easy enough, but actually making myself open the file and write is the hard part. Right now, I’m using slushing for PseudoPod as an excuse to avoid writing, but that’ll be done soon enough. I tried writing on my phone the other night. It worked a little. I’ve never done it before, so I’m trying to figure out the app as I go. It was only 224 words and they need fleshed out, but at least it was something.

2. I read through the part of the UCM novel written thus far and I actually like it. It was very much one of those “what happens next… oh shit, I have to write it” moments. I don’t get that feeling, so it was weird and creepy. It also makes it more daunting because what if I screw it up or no one else likes it? But yeah. I like it so far.

Readerly things:

1. I got a free book. I didn’t even have to ask for it. Someone from Books Forward (a marketing/publicity firm for authors) reached out to me asking if I would be interested in reviewing a book. This sometimes happens through NetGalley, but apparently she just randomly came across my blog, liked it enough to get in touch, and I guess she read enough to see that the book she’s flogging is in genres that I like. So, yay free book! It’s called Magic by Any Other Name by Alison Levy and the review will go up on November 8th. But also yay for people actually looking at my blog!

2. My desire to read for fun is currently waning. I finished Carrie and haven’t even started my next fun book. Granted, I’m reading two review books at the moment (completely different genres so I won’t get anything confused). I just don’t feel like throwing in a third book again. Oh well.

That’s about it. Nothing exciting. Any updates from you? As always, feel free to share your thoughts or questions here or on my social media pages!

Random Life Updates

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? Things finally seem to be cooling down a bit, so yay for that. I don’t have anything writerly or readerly to ramble about, so I thought I would share some random life updates. It’s nothing exciting or profound. Just mundane life crap. Annoyances. All of the stuff that I tend to overlook as topics of conversation because no one really wants to know, right? The “nothing much” that drifts through my mind when people ask what’s up. Proceed at your own risk (of boredom).

1. Annoying thing 1: Resolved. Dad gets paid to take care of me via a Medicaid program. Medicaid decided to go with a new clock in/out system this year and we have to switch over on Oct. 1st. The new company requires training to use their system and sent a notice to the people who handle payments and stuff (basically the middleman between me as the employer and Medicaid so that I don’t touch the money) that the employer (me) has to participate in a webinar or in-person training (just no to people). The latest webinar they offer is at noon. I’m not up and in my chair by noon and I didn’t want to break my sleep schedule for them to tell me how to use a program that’s pretty self-explanatory. Anyway, I did some digging and found online training videos and asked the middleman if I could just do that. She said they didn’t exist, so I emailed her the link. Two days later she emailed back that I could use them. Why didn’t they just send her those in the first place? So, that’s on my list of things to do this week.

2. Annoying thing 2: Resolved but requires monitoring. Medicare/Medicaid got hit by hackers and some of my information was among the stuff accessed. That’s always fun, right? They gave me free fraud monitoring through Experian, because they’ve proven to be unhackable… oh, wait. Anyway, I tried signing up for everything the day I got the letter, but the Experian website kept saying they couldn’t load the page. Got signed up the next day though, which is good because their customer service people went off on a tangent that had nothing to do with the question I emailed them, then acted like that fixed everything. They did not get a good review. Ugh.

3. Our dog is a sadistic murderer. A few nights ago, she got hold of a small possum (maybe a large rat) and shook it into pieces. Of course she had to bring it in the house to play with it too. Dad found it’s liver in the kitchen despite the fact that she didn’t take it in there. Her doggy door is a little ways into the living room. She just whipped the poor thing around so much that bits flew, I guess. It was a traumatic event for everyone except Mardi. She tried to get another one (a little bigger) Monday night, but Dad was able to mostly keep her away from it. She’s a demon dog and once she fixates on something, it’s impossible to get her attention away from it.

4. Had a doctor appointment on Tuesday because I have a stubborn sinus infection. I took the antibiotic she called in a couple of weeks ago, but it came right back, so I went to see her. Got an allergy shot. Fingers crossed it works. She said to give it some time to work, then we can go get our flu shots and the new Covid vaccine.

5. I think I figured out how to fix my screenplay after all these years.

6. Carrie by Stephen King is so much worse than I remember. I guess when you’re 14 and devouring books one after the other everything seems better. It’s slow going this time.

I’m sure there’s more, but I can’t think of anything else. How’s life going for you? As always, feel free to share your thoughts or questions or whatever here or on my social media pages!

September Books

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? This summer is never-ending. I like the heat, but even I’m tired of triple digits. Plus, I feel anxious for no real reason, so there’s this sense of impending doom lingering over me. That’s how I am! So, instead of rambling about anything remotely personal, I thought I’d share my book list for September. It’s not much, but I like it.

1. Murder in an Italian Village by Michael Falco. This is my September review book, so you’ll get to hear my thoughts on it on the 27th. I’ll say this, it’s extremely dense. So many words and factoids. I have thoughts already. Not sure if that’s good or bad.

2. Carrie by Stephen King. Danielle and I have started a kind of informal book club thing, so we decided to rotate through craft books, masters of their craft (originally started as just Stephen King because she hasn’t read much by him, but we thought it might get boring so we decided to include authors who are most well known in their genres, like Agatha Christie, Anne Rice, etc.), and randomness (just whatever we want to read). Last month she chose a craft book, this month I chose Carrie, next month she’ll choose a random book, then I’ll choose a craft book, and so on. I figured we should start at the beginning with King and it’s been a long time since I read this one, so yeah.

3. The Battle of the Labyrinth (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, book 4) by Rick Riordan. A new book in the series is coming out, so I decided to reread the first five. That’s all. I’ll probably start book 5, but won’t finish it until October.

4. Alicia Alonso: Prima Ballerina by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand. I do those stupid Kindle Challenges where you collect virtual bookmarks as you complete reading challenges and one of the challenges this season is to read something from their Hispanic and Latino Voices section. The challenge is over on the 30th, so I chose one of the short books to squeeze in. If they’d have revealed this particular challenge earlier, I would’ve read Mexican Gothic.

What are you planning to read this month? As always, feel free to leave your thoughts and comments and questions here or on my social media pages!

Something Pretty

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone? I’m tired and annoyed. Haven’t slept well in a few days. Been trying to get something straightened out with the Internet that should’ve been easy peasy, but it’s being a dick. So, I don’t feel like writing an actual post today. Here’s something pretty by Yuumei as an apology.

Typing Is Annoying

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? Things here are okay. I’ve been procrastinating like usual, despite having an outline and basically knowing how the first couple of chapters should go. I blame Dad and TV, but I just can’t find the motivation to actually write. I don’t know why. So, I’m procrastinating even more by trying to find a faster way to type. I use the onscreen keyboard with the cursor, which is great, but slow compared to how I used to type. Anyway, I don’t type anymore because the laptop keyboards sit too far back for me to reach. I don’t know if I lost some range of motion or if touchpads got bigger or what, but I haven’t been able to actually type since two computers ago. So, I’ve been looking for alternatives to the onscreen keyboard. Fun, no? No.

I figured since I couldn’t reach the keyboard, I’d try getting a cheap plugin one that I can pull right up to me or into my lap to see if that would help. It’s the one pictured above. A Snpurdiri 60% wired keyboard. I got it on sale for less than $20, so I won’t feel too bad if it doesn’t work for me. It comes in different colors and it’s backlit, so that’s neat. The keys are easy to press and it’s small enough that I can pull it to me and into my lap, then get it back onto my computer and push it out of the way. But it’s too tall for me to use at the moment. I’ll try again when Dad’s not busy. Maybe a towel or something to prop my arm on will help. But it’s cheap and cute enough. If it works, huzzah! It’ll give me a better idea of what I actually need in a decent one when it dies. If not, meh. I’ll try something else.

The other option I’m considering is dictation. I tried Dragon Naturally Speaking when it first became a thing (yes, I’m old), but it was horrid and turned me off of that kind of program before I even started hating my voice. But Windows actually comes with dictation software now (it’s under the ease of access settings) and my camera has a microphone, so I don’t have to buy anything just to try it. However, I don’t like this option. Talking is not my favorite thing. People can’t hear me. I’ve been accused of mumbling. I’ve been told I have a slur (which I don’t believe I do, so wtf?). I use a ventilator, so I usually have a tube in my mouth. Even when I remove it to speak, I still have to repeat myself all the time. And I speak softly, which seems to create more issues. Talking is just not something I enjoy. At all. Plus, I run out of breath easily. So, this would be my last ditch effort to speed up the word flow and strictly used when writing.

I’m sure if I looked harder for adaptive typing aids, I could find other things to try, but I won’t. I’m not really that worried about it. Sure, I hate taking an hour and 45 minutes to type 1,000 words with the onscreen keyboard, but I’ll keep doing it. It’s not really a big deal in the grand scheme of things. I’m just procrastinating and I know it. At least I’m being semi-productive about it.

Do you use any special typing equipment? What about dictation software? As always, feel free to leave your thoughts or comments or questions here or on my social media pages!

Just A Quick Reminder

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing today? It’s been a while since I took a lazy day for the blog, but as I’m writing this, it’s July 4th, so I’m using that as an excuse. Woo ‘Murica! Not really. I’m not exactly proud of my country lately, but I do want a break… sooooooooooo… HOLIDAY! I’ll be vegging and possibly catching up on reading. Or just watching TV. I don’t know. Mostly, I just wanted to use this post as your annual reminder that July is Disability Pride Month. Go learn something about cripples! I’ll be back next week.

More Book Talk

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing this lovely Wednesday? I’m sure it’s lovely somewhere. Here, it’s hot and humid and generally blah. But the cicadas are doing their screeching thing, so that’s nice. Anyway, today I’m here to ramble about the last “Ask me about…” thingie. Unless someone picks another number before July 4th (feel free). So far, we’ve covered 13 (you can find the prompt list there), 31, 41, and 54. Today, we’re doing number 7: Ask me about my favorite book.

I think you all know my reading tastes by now. Anything Stephen King or Neil Gaiman. I’ve loved everything I’ve read by Rainbow Rowell. The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater. Rick Riordan. Stuff about gods and demons. I’m not picky about genre, though I do lean towards fantasy or horror or cozy mysteries. Adult, YA, MG. I don’t particularly care about the target age range. As long as I enjoy it, that’s all that matters. But if you’ve been reading my blog, you know this, so I think I’ll approach this question in a different way and tell you a little about my favorite book that I’ve written so far.

None of my novels have been published (not for a lack of trying), but I do have a couple that are query ready, one that’s ready for revisions, and a handful of others that are at least partially written. Out of all of those, I’m particularly attached to one tentatively titled A Taste of Cyn: A Dreamscapes Novel. It’s a darker version of a cozy mystery with paranormal elements (vampires). And it has been rejected… a LOT, but I keep sending it out. Any personal rejections it’s received boil down to “We love the characters and idea, but have no idea how to market it.” I’m gathering that’s code for “it crosses some weird ass genres and we don’t know what to sell it as.” Which I thought might be a problem when I started writing it. Then again, it might just suck and no one wants to say that (I wish they would). But I still love it.

Here’s the blurb I’ve been using when querying:

Love bites and stalkers suck.

Lucynda “Cyn” Moseman wants nothing more than a quiet life running Dreamscapes, the first and only host club in Dallas. Unfortunately, Cyn’s life is anything but normal.

When she was eighteen, Cyn used college as an excuse to flee from Marfa, an awkward relationship, and her dysfunctional family. It’s been twelve years since she left, and she rarely looks back.

Three years ago, Cyn opened Dreamscapes, and now, the cozy nest she’s built around herself is being torn apart. Someone is picking off her customers and draining them of blood. With a staff consisting primarily of vampires, Cyn fears the worst.

Dragged into the middle of a murder investigation despite wanting nothing to do with it, Cyn’s life is spiraling out of control. Throw in a detective she may or may not have feelings for, the unexpected arrival of her clingy ex, and a box of hair appearing on her doorstep, and Cyn tells herself things can’t get worse.

She’s wrong.

I like it. I guess that’s what really matters. The second book in the series is actually plotted and partially written. It has more beasties than just vampires. I like it too, but stopped working on it after so many rejections. Maybe I’ll get back to it. Or maybe I’ll start working on the slightly more traditional cozy mystery that’s been banging around my head. It has ghosts, but I don’t think that’s too far out of the genre to make it unsellable. I mean, they have ones with talking dogs and others with witches now, so why not ghosts?

Anyway, that’s my current favorite book that I’ve written. I’m sure that’ll change. As always, feel free to leave your thoughts and questions here or on my social media pages!

THE FIRST BRIGHT THING by J. R. Dawson

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! Today, we’re interrupting our regularly scheduled programming to shamelessly promote my friend/fellow Stonecoast alum, J. R. Dawson! Yesterday (06/13), her book, The First Bright Thing, was released by Tor. I’m super excited for her, so I wanted to let my little part of the world know that this book exists and you should buy it. I’m currently only two chapters in, but I’m loving the atmosphere and characters so far. I’m so proud of you, J. R.! As far as where everyone can get the book, obvious choices include Amazon and Barnes & Noble, but also check out your local bookstores and libraries. You can find J. R.’s website here with access to her social media and information about tour dates, etc. And you can add the book to your GoodReads here. Go! Get the thing!

Blurb:

If you knew how dark tomorrow would be, what would you do with today?

The First Bright Thing by J. R. Dawson is a spellbinding debut for fans of The Night Circus and The Invisible Life of Addie La Rue.

Welcome to the Circus of the Fantasticals.

Ringmaster – Rin, to those who know her best – can jump to different moments in time as easily as her wife, Odette, soars from bar to bar on the trapeze. With the scars of World War I feeling more distant as the years pass, Rin is focusing on the brighter things in life. Like the circus she’s built and the magical misfits and outcasts – known as Sparks – who’ve made it their home. Every night, Rin and the Fantasticals enchant a Big Top packed full with audiences who need to see the impossible.

But while the present is bright, threats come at Rin from the past and the future. The future holds an impending war that the Sparks can see barrelling toward their Big Top and everyone in it. And Rin’s past creeps closer every day, a malevolent shadow Rin can’t fully escape. It takes the form of another Spark circus, with tents as black as midnight and a ringmaster who rules over his troupe with a dangerous power. Rin’s circus has something he wants, and he won’t stop until it’s his.