Randomness

Things I Should’ve Done Today

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! What’s everyone been up to lately? Things have been quiet here. I was supposed to be productive today. But I wasn’t. What’s new there? Instead, I listened to loud music while Dad ran an errand. I played stupid games. And I wasted time being social. Kind of. The minion and one of his spawn came by to drop something off for Dad. I mostly listened to them ramble. That’s as social as I get. But it was good seeing them after so long. Stupid plague. Nothing else got done.

I mostly should’ve been preparing to write this post. I didn’t have anything lined up to write about anyway, but I probably could’ve come up with something better to ramble about if it weren’t already so late. Or I would’ve kept procrastinating and written this anyway. At least I can blame it on the minion this week.

The other thing I really should’ve done is read. I’m reading two books and they’re both pretty long. I need to get through about 20 pages a day of the book I’ll be reviewing this month in order to finish it in time. I built in a couple of lazy days just in case, but I should try to get it done anyway. It takes me about an hour. The other book is my pre-bedtime read. I try to get at least half an hour in each night. I’ll at least do that tonight.

I should probably also have written an email and scheduled a video chat, but they can wait. It’s just for my jailbird sister. I keep putting off scheduling the video chat because I have better ways to waste my time. But at least Dad can join in this time (if I have to suffer, so do you). I also need to write emails to a couple of other people, but it’s nothing time sensitive or even important. I should just check in with some people who aren’t on social media.

There are probably things I’m forgetting, but it doesn’t really matter. Today was supposed to be a blog day and reading day. Instead, it was a people-ing kind of day. But I’m going to leave this kind of short and go catch up on reading. What were you supposed to do today? Did you do it? As always, feel free to share your thoughts or comments here or on my social media pages!

A Year of Reading

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing? I spent far too much time trying to fix something unfixable before I realized it was Amazon’s fault, so it’s late and I’m cranky. In other words, this post is just going to be a lazy one. It’s a recap of what I’ve read this year, plus the last two I plan on finishing. It’s pretty much what you would expect from a reading list from me.

1. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling. It’s still my favorite of the series.

2. One Poison Pie by Lynn Cahoon. You can see my review here.

3. Take Joy by Jane Yolen. It was a nice little craft book, but nothing spectacular.

4. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling. A little more rambling than I remembered, but still in my top three HP books.

5. The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey. You can see my review here.

6. Dark Shadow by Danielle Rose. A good series.

7. Vasilisa by Julie Mathison. You can see my review here.

8. Dark Descent by Danielle Rose. A good series.

9. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling. Probably in the bottom three of my favorite HP books.

10. Down World by Rebecca Phelps. You can see my review here.

11. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling. Somewhere in the middle of my favorite HP books.

12. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling. Probably my least favorite HP book.

13. Folklorn by Angela Mi Young Hur. You can see my review here.

14. Dark Power by Danielle Rose. A good series.

15. Death in Bloom by Jess Dylan. You can see my review here.

16. Fatal Fried Rice by Vivien Chien. I love this cozy mystery series.

17. The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix. I was super disappointed by this one.

18. Bound for Murder by Victoria Gilbert. A little description heavy, but a cute cozy series.

19. Walking Through Needles by Heather Levy. You can see my review here.

20. Watch Her by Edwin Hill. The series is on the darker end of the cozy spectrum and worth checking out.

21. Just One Look by Lindsay Cameron. You can see my review here.

22. A Crafter Hooks a Killer by Holly Quinn. A cute series, but nothing special.

23. Murder in the Village by Lisa Cutts. You can see my review here.

24. Winterwood by Shea Ernshaw. A lovely read, if a bit predictable.

25. A Time to Swill by Sherry Harris. Another cute series.

26. Snow, Glass, Apples by Neil Gaiman and Colleen Doran. Beautiful illustrations, but the fairy tale retelling was just meh.

27. The Orphan Witch by Paige Crutcher. You can see my review here.

28. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. I freaking loved this book and I have no idea why. It’s not my usual genre, but it gave me all the feels and I can’t get over how much I enjoyed it.

29. The Christmas Dress by Courtney Cole. You can see my review here.

30. Murder Always Barks Twice by Jennifer Hawkins. Another super cute cozy series and it features a corgi.

31. Storm the Earth by Rebecca Kim Wells. I probably should’ve re-read the first book in this duology, but things eventually came back to me. Definitely recommend it.

32. Flying Angels by Danielle Steel. You can see my review here.

33. Midnight Spells Murder by Mary Angela. It’s not a bad cozy series, but not great.

34. Currently Reading: Shackled Fates by Thilde Kold Holdt. I am in love with this trilogy so far.

35. Currently Reading: A History of Wild Places by Shea Ernshaw. I couldn’t find a book I wanted to review this month, so I decided to buy Ernshaw’s newest book and review it later this month.

End of Year Stuff

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing? Can you believe it’s already December? The year just slipped right on by. I’m still stuck somewhere back in March. But seriously, it wasn’t a very good year productivity-wise, as you very well know if you’ve been stalking me. I don’t really know what happened. I just got lazy and everything spiraled out of control. But I really need to get back on track for next year, so I’m just going to ramble a bit about my goals for this month. They aren’t much, but hopefully enough to get me back on track for being productive in 2022.

1. Read two books. This is pretty much the only thing I’ve kept up with this year. My goal was to read 35 books and I just started my 34th of the year. As long as I can finish that one and pick/finish a book to review by the end of the month, I’ll at least have my reading goal done. It shouldn’t be a problem.

2. Research publishing companies and how to query them. I’ve given up on finding an agent for the current book I was sending out, but I do want to try some publishers before I decide to put it away for a while. I just don’t know how different the querying process is for publishers vs. agents. So, I’ll have to do some Googling and/or pester people for advice.

3. Read through the current novel-in-progress. It’s already fully outlined and ready to be written (I believe it’s about halfway done, maybe a little less), so I need to at least finish the first draft. It’s the sequel to the novel I was querying, so I think I just got a bit discouraged and disgusted with the whole thing. But I still love these books and want to work on them, so hopefully I can drop back into that world and finish the draft. We’ll see how I feel after I re-read what I have.

4. Write words. It doesn’t have to be good words or even a lot of words, but I do need to get back in the habit of sitting here, opening a document, and writing something at least four days a week (five if you count blogging). I’m not even going to worry if it’s all part of the same story. Just practice for getting back into the novel-in-progress. When I start that, I’ll decide whether to focus on a specific word count or just time staring at the screen. And whether I want to establish a daily goal or weekly one.

That’s my plan for December. Nothing too demanding or exhausting. Just something to hopefully set me up for a better writing year in 2022. Forcing myself has failed miserably this year, so maybe easing myself into it will work better. But I really need to start trying again. Being lazy is only an excuse for so long before people start accusing you of being depressed. What about you? What are your plans for the last month of 2021? Are you wrapping up current goals or starting to plan for next year? As always, feel free to share your thoughts or questions here or on my social media pages!

What Do I Want?

~ shawnaborman ~ 4 Comments

Howdy, howdy! How’s it going this lovely day? Things here are pretty much the same as always lately. I avoid productivity and mostly just read. The world is still chaotic and filled with the plague, so I mostly just sit at home and mind my own business. Social media is kind of annoying with all the drama, so I lurk instead of participating. That’s about it. But I’m not here to whine. No one wants to listen to that. Instead, I’m going to ramble about things I want. People (mostly Dad) keep asking me what I want. What I’d like to have. And I keep saying nothing, which is true. If I want something, I usually just buy it or save up for it. But there are things I want that I won’t buy because I don’t know where to get good ones (and if I look it up, I’ll be tempted to buy stuff), I can’t actually use them, and I’ve run out of space for most of them. Weapons. I’m talking about weapons. The sharp pointy or slicey kind. I also like whips, but that’s another post. Anyway, in no particular order, here are some things I want but will probably never get.

Not these specifically. This is just so people know what I’m talking about. This goes for every picture in this post.

1. A new pair of sai. My current pair are just cheap and purely ornamental. I got them on a whim at an anime convention, so they aren’t great quality. I don’t mind them being ornamental, but I would eventually like to get a decent pair to replace them. No idea why. I can’t use them, so it doesn’t really matter if they’re good or not. I just like them and as I get older, I prefer nicer things.

2. A new katana/wakizashi/tanto set. Again, I already have one that my folks got me a while back for Christmas (birthday, maybe?). It’s nice, but you can never have too many blades. And again, I can’t use them, so there’s no real excuse to spend that kind of money on a good set. I’d feel sad if they just sat there, not getting any use. But deep down, I still want them.

3. A battle axe or two or three. Mostly because I can’t decide which style I like best. Axes are a relatively new interest for me, so I don’t currently have any. Only got into them a couple of years ago. I have no idea where to look for them (which is fine, because I would want decent ones and have no money or space for them). They range from pretty plain to super ornate, so I suppose I could get some good looking decorative ones and not feel too bad about not being able to use them. But I won’t.

Glaive of the Bodyguard of Guglielmo Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua and Monferrato, ca. 1575 Italian, Etched steel, wood; The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

4. A glaive/fauchard. The picture doesn’t really show it, but they’re polearm weapons (on a long shaft). You can blame Sailor Saturn and her glaive for my interest in these things. There are a lot of variations of this type of weapon across cultures, so I’d have to do more research before I actually consider getting one, but they’re so pretty they had to go on the list.

This is nowhere near a full list of the weapons I want. If it’s shiny and stabby, I probably want one. I might already have one. But yeah, blades are beautiful. What kind of weapons do you prefer? Or, if you’re not into stuff like that, what are some things you want but probably won’t buy? What do you collect? As always, feel free to leave your thoughts or comments or questions here or on my social media pages!

Mythical Pets

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this week? Things here are pretty quiet, which is good. I can’t complain. But I still can’t muster up the motivation to write regularly. Definitely not attempting NaNoWriMo. I’ve just been slacking on every front except for reading. Even that’s kind of difficult since I pretty much hate one of the books I’m currently reading. And, as usual, I had no idea what to ramble about this week, so a friend told me to write about which mythical creature I’d want as a pet. “All of them” is apparently not an acceptable answer. Sadness. So, I whittled it down to three (kind of).

1. Cerberus and/or Fenrir. If you know me at all, this is the obvious answer. Why? Because puppers! Cerberus has always been one of my favorites. Her part in Garnets and Guardians (I should probably try looking at that one again now that I’ve had a couple of years away from it to see if I can fix it) is still some of my favorite writing that actually came from me. What’s not to love about a floofy pupper that guards the entrance to Hades? And all doggos need companionship, so I’d adopt Fenrir too. Poor dude just needs some love and cuddles, then maybe he wouldn’t be so hell bent on eating Odin. A giant wolf and a three-headed hound should be able to get along, right?

2. Dragon. I mean, who doesn’t want a dragon? I’m not even picky about the type of dragon. Something warm to cuddle in a cave with while we enjoy our hoards. What more does a girl need? But then I think about all the other reptilian creatures and I start to waver. A basilisk would be neat, but would require extra special care, so no one makes eye contact. I’d also love Jörmungandr (the world serpent). Why did Loki have all the cool kids? But mostly, I want a dragon.

3. Kraken! Actually, I’m quite fond of most of the water based mythical creatures. Hydra, kelpie, etc. I would say Cthulhu, but I don’t think an elder god would want to be my pet. Same for merpeople and selkies. But a kraken would be lovely and think of how good they are at hugs. They just get a little overzealous and break boats. But they could be fun. I’d just need to get a place by the ocean. It wouldn’t be fair to bring one to north Texas. Not enough water around here for the big baby.

I could keep going, but I don’t think anyone really wants me to keep rambling about the pet potential of mythical creatures. What about you? What kind of creatures would you want as a pet? As always, feel free to share your thoughts, comments, questions, or whatever here or on my social media pages!

Standalones Vs. Series

~ shawnaborman ~ 2 Comments

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing this bright and beautiful day? Things here are pretty annoying. WordPress seems to have tinkered with its editor, so now the text appears super tiny unless I zoom my screen in, but the preview for the final post looks perfectly normal. We’ll see. It also froze and lost the entire paragraph I just wrote despite supposedly autosaving it. It’s nowhere to be found. That’s always fun. Otherwise, things are good. Dad, the neighbor, and I are scheduled for our Covid boosters tomorrow. We got appointments at our preferred pharmacy, so we don’t have to run all over town. It’s been a pretty painless process so far. Hopefully the actual appointments will be just as easy. But that’s not what I want to talk about. Today, I’m here to ramble about standalone books versus series and which I prefer as a reader versus as a writer.

Me when I lost my supposedly saved work.

As a reader, I’m not usually picky about whether something is a series or a standalone. Series tend to offer better chances for character development and a deeper plot, but they also run the risk of dragging things out. I love getting to know the characters over multiple books and seeing how they grow, who gets redemption arcs and who doesn’t, etc. Series also provide a chance for world building that you don’t get so much of in standalones. They’re more immersive a lot of the time. Not always, but often. The biggest drawback of reading a series (for me) is that I feel compelled to finish them even if I don’t particularly like them. It’s like I haven’t given them a fair chance if I haven’t read everything. I know that’s ridiculous. And I have plenty of series that I gave up on, but it still feels awkward to me. Now, if I love a series, the hardest part is the wait between books. I try to find series that are completed or close to it, but sometimes it doesn’t work out. The waiting is the worst.

Standalones also have a lot to offer. They can be quick, fun reads, but they can also be in-depth and wonderful. On the other hand, a lot of them feel thin to me, lacking in the plot or the character development or both. It just depends on the book. I also think some genres lend themselves better to standalones than others. Horror, yes. Epic fantasy, not so much (but there are some gems). And some genres dance around the line between standalones and series like it doesn’t exist. Cozy mysteries. Most of those series are written as multiple standalone books, so even new readers can pick up any book in the series and not be lost. But from a reader’s perspective, as long as I like the story and the characters, I’ll read anything. Series or standalone.

Reading-wise. Get your mind out of the gutter.

As a writer, standalone novels are hard. I don’t think I’ve ever finished one. Short stories and stuff like that, I can do. The last standalone novel I tried to write decided it wanted to be a trilogy. I haven’t finished it (book one still needs major edits before I can even vaguely plot out book two), but the plot is too much for one book. I can’t find a middle ground between short story and multiple books. It’s really weird. I’d love to be able to write standalones, but for now, my brain is stuck in series mode. Maybe I’ll find a way one day, but today is not that day.

Ah well.

What about you? What do you prefer to read, standalones or series? Why? If you write, which do you gravitate towards? As always, feel free to leave your thoughts or comments or questions here or on my social media pages! See you next week for my monthly book review.

Progress, Not Perfection

~ shawnaborman ~ 2 Comments

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this week? Things are pretty much the same here. Got my flu shot last week. Should be eligible for a Pfizer booster soon. Other than that, I don’t have any reason to leave the house for the foreseeable future. I’m mostly okay with this. I should really buckle down and start writing steadily again. My slushing duties are basically done until the next submission period, so I have zero excuses to avoid writing. I just have to get back in the rhythm. NaNoWriMo is fast approaching. I’m not participating (I write far too slowly for that), but it’s always encouraging to see others’ progress. And progress is what I’m going to ramble about today.

I was watching NCIS the other night and Gibbs said something that I keep thinking about even though I’ve heard it before. “It’s about progress, not perfection.” I guess when Leroy Jethro Gibbs quotes a motivational poster, it just hits different. But actually, it’s not originally from all the self-help crap (like motivational posters) floating around. According to Google, the quote’s origins are from the AA book (something to do with focusing on spiritual progress rather than trying to achieve spiritual perfection), but it’s shortened version has spilled over into common use pretty much everywhere (exercise, writing, art, etc.).

As a perfectionist, it’s difficult for me to appreciate the idea of progress. That affects my writing. It took me years to accept that nothing I write will ever be perfect, to just say it’s the best I can currently do and toss it out into the world as is. And I still struggle to see progress from piece to piece, since everything is different. It also takes me forever to write because I’m one of those weirdos who edit as they go, especially on short pieces, so I don’t always get to see the progress of a story through multiple drafts. It’s part of the reason I’ve been avoiding writing lately. I’m mostly just annoyed that I don’t seem to be moving forward. I can handle rejection. It’s the feeling of being stuck that I’m having trouble with.

But I need to suck it up and get over it. In my head, I know this. Actually doing the sucking up and getting over is proving much harder in practice than in theory. However, if I have no words on the page, I’ll never see any progress. I won’t have anything to mold into something resembling perfection. I have to write. Creativity is hard. Ugh.

Even Chuck thinks so.

Okay, I’m done whining and rambling. I will strive to see my own progress instead of aiming for perfection. I’ll try not to let myself feel mired in mediocrity. A forward motion. That’s what I’ll try to achieve. Self pep talks (read that as pep talks in general) are not my forte, so I’m going to stop now.

Anyway, what are some words of wisdom that help motivate you? What doesn’t help? As always, feel free to share your thoughts or comments or questions here or on my social media pages! I’ll try to think of something better to ramble about next week.

Wasting Time

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this week? Things are good here. Dad got a new toy (the big Kamado Joe, an egg-shaped smoker), so I got brisket and pulled pork. Yum! Other than that, everything is about the same as it has been. I’m lazy. All I’ve really done is review edits for a story coming out early next year (I’ll post about it after the official announcement, which is supposed to happen later this week), annoy people with shameless self-promotion (keep an eye on my social media for more of that next week for Love Letters to Poe), read, and slush (I’m an associate editor for PseudoPod, which is a fancy title for first reader). Otherwise, I’ve just been wasting time. I had no idea what to blog about, so I searched for ideas for September. One of the lists of ideas that I usually find helpful posed a question to answer in a post, so I decided to use that for today.

Agree or Disagree: “The time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.”

I both agree and disagree with this statement. Most of the time, I don’t really feel like I’ve wasted my time if I enjoy something, unless it eats away more time than it really should. Reading doesn’t count, because it’s actually work. At least that’s what I keep telling myself as I binge read webtoons/manga/manhwa. Okay, that’s not technically work, but it gives me stuff to think about when I can’t sleep, instead of having my brain home in on every stupid mistake I’ve ever made. Crocheting or drawing never really feels like wastes, because there’s actual proof that my time has been productive. Even just staring into space and thinking doesn’t feel like a waste of time, because that’s what writers do. It’s weird. But as long as it feels productive (even if it isn’t), I don’t feel like I’ve wasted time.

That said, watching more TV/movies than usual feels like wasted time. Playing mindless games for five minutes and realizing it’s an hour later feels like wasted time. It doesn’t mean I’m going to stop doing these things, but there will always be the feeling that I should’ve been doing something else. I enjoy wasting time. I understand that taking time to do stupid things is important, especially when you’re feeling burnt out or whatever. That doesn’t mean it’s not a waste of time, it just means you needed or wanted a break. And that’s okay.

Oops.

So, do I agree that wasted time you enjoy isn’t wasted? Eh. Not entirely. But I do recognize that it’s an important part of self-care. I know that people are going to scoff and call me a capitalist and argue that not everything has to be productive. I’m not saying it does. I’m just saying that unproductive wasted time feels like an actual waste of time to me. That’s not a bad thing. Embrace the waste! (Please don’t hug your garbage). I accept it for what it is: a much needed rest.

I guess hugging human trash is okay, but why would you want to?

I just wasted time writing this. Apparently, it’s my 350th post. I’ve wasted your time with 350 posts. Anyway, what’re your thoughts on wasting time? As always, feel free to share your thoughts or comments here or on my social media pages!

The Best Weird Compliments

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How’s everyone doing this bright and beautiful day? Things are finally slowing down here, doctor appointment-wise, though Dad does keep bringing home more of them. At least the newest one is a month away. All of my doctors seem to be retiring. It makes me feel old, but that’s okay. Just means I get to meet people like Dr. Lucifer. Her name is actually Lussier, but the guy who left the message telling me she was my doctor didn’t enunciate and my ears heard what they wanted to, so she will forever be Dr. Lucifer. And since there’s a chance she could read this, I totally mean it in a Tom Ellis way, not a Mark Pellegrino (Supernatural) way. Anyway, I’m rambling and off topic. I’ve recently been thinking about weird compliments I’ve received. I even posted about it in a Facebook group in order to socialize a bit. But I thought I’d share a few of the ones I’ve received for you to laugh (or cringe) at.

1. So, I was hanging out with a friend and some of his friends when he stops mid-sentence, stares me in the eye, and says “I never noticed before, but your eyes are like blue crystal. I want to cut them out and hang them on my wall.” And, as you know, I appreciate all of the creepy things in life, so this was basically the best compliment ever. It inspired one of my serial killer stories (“Lying Eyes”). Who doesn’t love friendly serial killer-esque compliments from friends? To be fair, it came from the guy who also once told me that he keeps forgetting I’m creepy too after he apologized for some other weird remark. Creepy friends are fun.

2. Another time, I was texting a long-distance friend when I got bored and asked if he had any single friends. He told me that all of his friends were either married or assholes and he wouldn’t give me to an asshole. I still don’t know if that was weirdly sweet or just super unhelpful. I’m going with sweet just because it’s him, but I’m still single so it also wasn’t helpful at all.

3. During grad school, one of my fellow pop ficcers sent me the best feedback ever. He told me that my story had the potential for EVA-level mindfucks. Being the Neon Genesis Evangelion lover that I am, I admit I squeed. I squeed hard. I can only aspire to EVA-level mindfuckery, but to think someone had that much faith in me was super sweet.

I can probably think of other weird compliments, but this post is feeling a bit awkward. I’m not used to nice things. What are some of the weird things that have been said to you? Were you creeped out or did you think it was sweet? As always, feel free to share your thoughts and comments here or on my social media pages!

All The Small Things

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing? August is on the wane. Next week is the monthly book review. Can you believe it? I have no idea where the time is going. But I do know that I’ve been feeling annoyed and angry and just generally blah. It happens every August. I don’t really know why. I mean, I’m annoyed most of the time, but I can usually pinpoint the reason. In August, I can rarely figure out why things get to me. I’m just irrationally upset a lot of the time. So, I’ve decided to try that self-help crap of writing about a few good things to try to improve my mood. I’m not doing it every day. Not that desperate. But here are some things that make me stupidly happy.

Watch it. You know you want to.

1. Daniel Radcliffe as a preacher doing the campiest drag rendition of She’ll Be Coming ‘Round The Mountain When She Comes that you will ever see. It’s from Miracle Workers: Oregon Trail. I cannot share this enough. I knew Harry Potter had a secret side, but this is just glorious. Watch it and you too can be stupidly happy for a minute and a half. If you haven’t seen it, you’re welcome.

2. Any book that mentions alcohol describes that slow burn as it travels down the throat, but what about when you’re drinking something icy cold? Like when you’re warm, verging on uncomfortable, and you take a long drink of something super cold. The iciness travels down your throat and blooms across your chest and you keep drinking and it gets colder until it’s almost unbearable. Then you stop and it’s gone. No? Just me? Well, that feeling makes me happy.

Enema of the State

3. Singing along to stupid pop-punk songs as loud as they’ll go. I haven’t really been in the mood for loud music the past couple of weeks, but when I do crank it up, it’s been for bands like Blink-182, Eve 6, and Lit. How can I not be momentarily happy when singing All the Small Things or Jet Pack or Zip-Lock. Yeah, yeah. A lot of those types of songs are immature and crappy, but they’re fun. Judge me all you want. My music tastes range from wtf? to awesome. It’s just the way I am.

4. The different shades of coffee. I don’t drink it too often because I like sleep, but I enjoy looking at it and how it changes colors as cream is added. The way the coffee and cream swirl together to form strange little galaxies in the cup. I mostly have to watch it in GIFs or whatever, since my thermos isn’t clear, but it’s still cool. One of those weird tiny pleasures in life. Except now I feel stupid for even sharing it. Whatever.

5. Looking at houses that cost millions of dollars and totally judging the owners’ interior design preferences. So much zebra print. And the higher the price, the more gaudy gold cherubs. It’s creepy. And they either paint all of the walls white or super dark jewel tones. There’s no in between. But there are occasionally really beautiful places with gardens and lots of wood in the house and fireplace mantles that aren’t monstrosities. I know. You’re not supposed to judge people and all that crap, but I do. And I enjoy it. It’s not my fault so many rich people have bad taste. But I normally keep my thoughts to myself or between myself and a few people who understand.

Now you know some weird little things that make me happy. What are some things that make you happy while the world is burning? As always, feel free to leave your thoughts or comments or questions or whatever here or on my social media pages!