Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Perpetual Running to Catch Up With Myself

This will always remind me of Forest Gump
Hello again. I promised that I would catch everyone up on my life - not that it's all that exciting, but writing here makes me feel as if I'm being productive, if even for a little bit.

So for those of you who do read this blog, you've seen that I've traveled to a few places in the past year - Chicago, Berlin, and a quick jump to New York. I can now add DC to the list. The main reason to visit our nation's capital (other than the fact that I've never been there) was to meet up with my two best friends.

This about sums up our entire friendship. 
We were convinced that at some point the city of DC would drop kick us out and warn us never to return. That's just the type of shenanigans we usually get into. But we weren't banned from DC and I had a fantastic time.

Obligatory White House photo shot. Didn't get to see the Prez, unfortunately. 
Sitting precariously near the Lincoln Memorial. 

I've known these wonderful women for almost ten years now, and I've enjoyed every moment with them, whether it's taking photo ops with our neon yellow Johnny Depp tank top in highly inappropriate venues *cough with FDR's memorial cough*, or laughing about a little boy answering, "Conferences?" when asked by his father, "What do you think happens in the Capitol?"

The other big thing that's happened recently was that I graduated.

Yes, again.

Children's lit class of '14 - MA and MFA students pictured here. 
I am now officially the holder of a second master's degree, with a MFA in Writing for Children. It definitely was an odd mixture of excitement and sadness that I approached graduation. Excitement for the fact that I never have to write another academic essay ever, and sadness because I had enjoyed being back in school, working on my writing, meeting new people, and making new friends. But all good things must come to an end, and so must my career in academia.

The other big thing that has happened is that I have started a new job. No, not instead of my other one, but in addition to. I am now a bookseller at the fabulous Trident Booksellers & Cafe here in Boston. As one friend put it when I told her that I was working there, "Trident? That place is delicious." And delicious it is. I know I swore off retail after I stopped working at the place-that-shall-not-be-named *cough Bloomingdale's* but what I have found is that working in a bookstore is infinitely different and better than working in a department store. My job at the bookstore is actually very similar to what I did in my job as an undergrad, working in our library. Funny how ten years have passed, and I'm still shelving books. Not that I'm complaining, but it's definitely funny how life can come around full circle.

And lastly, the other noteworthy thing that has happened is that I started querying my manuscript. Finally. Querying is such a strange process. I've sent out many query letters and have received no confirmation that my manuscript is worth reading. Not one agent has said, "Yes, this might be something I'm interested in." Which has done wonders for my ego. I know everyone says that you have to grow thick skin when sending out your work into the world, and that you have to keep going, but it's difficult to do that when you get three or four or five rejection emails all back to back.

My critique group, the Ink Bombs, have been super supportive in helping me tweak my manuscript and for providing feedback, but I keep finding myself in the pit of despair that my work is worthless and that it'll just end up somewhere on my hard drive, unknown to the world. I volunteered for Mindy McGinnis' Saturday Slash, so I'm hoping that I will be able to keep whipping my query into shape, and that maybe some agent out there will at least want to see more of my manuscript. It's not Newbery worthy, by any means, but it's a good story.

I think.

Maybe.

And I know I should keep writing, but every time I sit down to write, I fall asleep, or I realize that my sock drawer needs organizing, or the people upstairs start jumping on their mini-trampoline in their foyer.

I should just move to somewhere remote for a year and then perhaps actual writing will be accomplished.

On I forge, with lots of bad writing, and some good writing.

Now that we're all caught up, kids, I think next time I'll divulge details regarding my adventures in online dating.

Until then...

Thursday, June 5, 2014

Another Catch Up Post...Apologies in Advance

Hey gang.

It's been awhile, hasn't it?

Not too long, for all three of my readers, or maybe it's only two now, since it's been some time.

Anyway, here's a quick blurb about my life since my last post.

Stick around, why dontcha?

I saw the Used and Taking Back Sunday. It was a great show. The openers were bands that I'd never heard of prior to the show - Sleepwave and Tonight Alive - but I definitely thought their sounds were fun, and stuff that I probably would listen to now that I've heard them live.

Taking Back Sunday. I definitely felt that I was reliving 2004. In a good way.



The crowd was mixed with kids that were a lot younger than me, which made me feel really old, and people my age, which made me feel better that I wasn't the one oddball in the audience. I was in the pit the entire time, and as I mentioned in a previous post, maybe I just don't get pit culture, but there were some really rude people standing near me. I'm a fan of Taking Back Sunday, though I will admit that I haven't listened to some of their newer stuff, so when they were performing, I wasn't into it 100%, just because I didn't know some of their songs. But the people around were getting crazy, to the point where I wanted to hit them, because well, there's no need to keep elbowing me in the ribs just because Adam Lazzara is standing two feet away. Even with the elbowing going on, I had a good time listening to their set.

But it was when the Used took the stage that the tables turned, because I went crazy.

That's right, bitches. Bert McCracken in the house. 


The last time I saw the Used was around 2008. That was also the first time I saw them, and it was at the first Musink festival, where I saw a few semi-passable and some shitty bands before the Used took the stage. I was with my boyfriend at the time, who didn't really get their music (he told me this point blank) but he knew how much I liked them, so he went with me. Where I essentially ignored him for a good portion of the show, and basically all but forgot he was there.

Quinn Allman
This time it was better, because I was by myself and I could get as crazy over the band as I wanted to. Much to the chagrin of the folks around me, who apparently were bigger TBS fans, and gave me dirty looks when I was screaming the words to "The Taste of Ink." All in all, it was a fantastic show. The band was loud and fast and fun.

I think I might be getting too old for the pit though.

Next time: shenanigans in DC with my two best friends, graduation, details about my new (second) job, and all my querying woes.

And on that note, I am going to sleep. G'night, all!