#NaNoWriMo 2015: DAYS 24 & 25

I will be trying to accomplish a Thanksgiving marathon of 5500 words tomorrow. I'm sure I can get it done, providing I don't concentrate on anything else.

Yep. It WILL happen. I'm only 13,201 words away from winning anyway, so I could theoretically be done with the novel by the end of the day on Friday. Yay!! I'm more excited about moving on to other projects than I am finishing this one, because I just see a whole lot of revising in front of me. A whole lot.

#NaNoWriMo 2015: DAYS 21-23

I've found my writing rhythm again. I'm managing what I should have been getting done over these last two weeks (about 1,600 words per day). But will it be enough to win? I'm not sure. Currently, my NaNo stats page says I need 2300 per day to win now. Huh. Maybe I could do it. After all, a holiday is a great time to sneak away into a quiet corner and write instead of mingling. No? That's just me? Oh well... 😁 🍗

Not My Weekend...

I hope everyone's holiday weekend went well. Mine was going just fine until I woke up yesterday. I'll spare you the gruesome details, but I did have to fight a bout of what I think was food poisoning yesterday. Funny thing is, it wasn't any holiday related food. It was prepackaged frozen food that I think was the culprit. I'm just so glad that its over, and that I was adamant about working extra on Saturday, because I definitely couldn't do anything yesterday.

That setback also meant that Nanowrimo was again pushed off the table, its potential progress shattered into a million pieces. Although there are still a few more days in the month, I think that ship has officially sailed. Bon Voyage. 

On Turkey Day...

I'm giving you a quote and a blast from the past... not my best look but appropriate for the holiday.

Thanksgiving is an emotional time. People travel thousands of miles to be with people they only see once a year. And then discover once a year is way too often.  ~ Johnny Carson

Thanksgiving 2009

Nearing Turkey Day

...and I'm pleased that more than likely I'll be dining on steak, not turkey. There's just something about turkey that I can't stand. I only like the dark, fatty meat and somehow that part of the bird usually disappears before I ever get near it. Steak is simple.

Anyway, although I have to work all the through the holidays, I am making time to set out an outline for what I want to accomplish next month. I know, I know--if you have been reading my blog for the past few months, you know that I'm great at making plans--I'm just not always great at seeing them through. NANOWRIMO, for example. I thought for sure I was going to win this year. At just a little over 5k, I gave up. At this point, any time left I have to finish has already been written out of the schedule for this month. I know what's wrong--procrastination. To add to that, I just picked up Sims 3 for Wii and really... that game should never have entered my house. I know my life is boring and dull, but to sit in front of the TV for hours watching a fake person's dull, boring life should be outlawed. Really.

Trying to get back

Getting back to a normal routine after a holiday is really hard for me. Work is slow, so I feel unaccomplished. There's still the stench of leftover turkey in the refrigerator. It suddenly got cold in the Midwest, so my toes are freezing. But, I have my health, a job, and a roof so I still consider myself pretty lucky.

And I made my final purchase for the year -- shoes for my Christmas dress. The dress is navy blue with some pink/fuchsia flowers on it, so I thought that these would go perfectly:



I chose the pink ones. They look like shiny wrapping paper and should give me that little pop of color my outfit needs (I definitely watch too much TLC). And now my credit card will be hidden until the new year. THere's nothing else that I really need anyway. Shopping (especially online) is just another excuse to avoid writing, and we certainly don't want that!

Speaking of writing, NANOWRIMO is another bust this year. I haven't written since before Thanksgiving and I'm pretty sure I can't get through more than 10K tonight. The one thing I can pat myself on the back for is getting past the 20K mark. First time ever and I hope this means I will have a better chance at winning next year.

The Holidays Are Upon Us

I just spent two hours wrapping Christmas presents. It's fun at first, but once you get down to the last few, paper starts ripping, scissors stop working, and you question why you ever bother in the first place. But I'm one of those people that make the effort even when you know the other person won't, so my living room is filled with presents. I probably spent too much in total, but per person the average price is very reasonable.

And if I have some more last minute things to get, I'll probably check out Amazon's Black Friday Deals. Anyone who reads this blog will recall how much I love shopping online. This is just another excuse to do so!

Work is going well, but I'm having to put up a fight for what I want. Everyone else is hungrily grabbing work for a padded paycheck. Since I already spent my money, I'm just trying to fill my bank accounts again, but it's not looking too promising -- at least this week. After Black Friday, things should calm down again and a lot more work should be available. So if I have free time, I'll sneak in a few words to add to NANOWRIMO. At least it keep me writing!

Two Hands

This weekend has been one hectic ride. I've been shopping (apparently I still didn't have everything for Christmas) babysitting for 2, and I have still managed to stay ahead on NANOWRIMO. On the other hand, this week probably won't allow any free time for writing with work, Thanksgiving prep, and the all-important Christmas prep as soon as I have digested my dessert. But I still have nothing to complain about this year because I have passed 36K on my novel. The last two years I could make it above 20K, so I'm making progress. I don't know whether to blame it on the fact that I'm now officially a responsible adult or that I just have that much free time!

Taking on Tofurky

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Jones Soda. All opinions are 100% mine.

Yesterday, a bright green box appeared on my doorstep. No, it wasn't anything left by aliens – though I wondered for a second! It was Izea's Thanksgiving postie pack. When I opened the box, I found a free groovy turkey hat and a Jones Soda: Tofurky and Gravy flavored. The Tofurky and Gravy Jones Soda seems kind of strange, but when I first opened it, the smell was a mix of gravy and a hint of sweetness. It tasted pretty good, though I didn't drink the whole thing. Instead, the bottle was passed around for everyone in my house to try it. Most agree that while the flavor sounds funny, the taste far exceeded it. I think this soda would be a fun way to celebrate the holidays – especially for kids. Kids always love to try weird foods. Unfortunately my nephew wasn't here yesterday to try it with us. I'm sure he would have loved to go around the house telling everyone he was drinking Tofurky and Gravy. I'm pretty sure he is going to love wearing my fun turkey at as well. I know I had fun wearing it around the house last night. :)

My Fridge Smells Awesome

Okay... not really. Have you ever smelled leftover turkey? Tastes great, smells terrible. And I would switch the pile of bird meat from a covered plate to airtight plastic ware, but I ran out. It's all dirty or made its way to another house. And even after giving away most of the leftovers, I still have way too much. But its okay. If I can eat turkey for the whole weekend, I get Oreo pie as dessert for those days. But today I'm working overtime in order to get a great paycheck in February, so all I have to do after lunch today is fill the dishwasher, and I will be set.

And I really wanted to go shopping today, but because all I could think about buying was things for myself, I decided to stay home. I know whatever I could buy today I wouldn't really need, such as an iPod dock (although I think I really do need that) and various other junk that I can get cheaper online (which I've already bought).

Looks Like I Have Another Article...

Don't laugh--but I wrote an article on having a Thanksgiving wedding. So here it is: Planning A Thanksgiving Wedding. Now, I am certainly no wedding expert, but I think I came up with some creative ways to balance the holiday with the celebration. Enjoy!

Ready for Black Friday?

It might seem to be a little early to think about Black Friday and Christmas shopping just yet, but there are also so many people who are looking out for bargains that this is the only time of the year when they shop. They wait excitedly for those Black Friday ads in their newspaper that tell them just what they can expect when the doors open early Friday morning. It is really like a kid in a candy store, to use the old adage.

There are so many ads for black friday that you get the week before the big event—when all the people across the country go to look for after-Thanksgiving, pre-Christmas blowout sales. Nine times out of ten, the advertised products sell out within the first hour. If you want to get a leg up on these great deals, you can visit a site that will show you all of the ads for Black Friday before everyone else gets them in their newspapers. This is one of the best ways to plan ahead for your shopping adventure.

And if you are looking to get this information first, you will want to sign up to email alerts from this site so that when new ads are posted for your area, you will be the first to know. The site is very organizes, giving you the comfort and ease of finding useful information for your holiday shopping. And the holidays are closer than you think. If you are not thinking about shopping yet, you should at least begin thinking about saving up some cash to get those big ticket items when they are half off.

I always like to check out Best Buy and Toys R Us for door busters on Black Friday. I have a little nephew, so the toy store is a given. But I also like to get the best deals on electronics, so Best Buy is another place I make sure to go to first.