#blogitjuly What Is Your Favorite Card Game?

Day 5 (super, duper late)

The first thing that came to mind is Speed. My youngest and I play this, sometimes for an entire evening! Let's see if I can explain it:

Shuffle the cards
...
It's sort of one of those sneaky games where you forget how to play it until the cards are in front of you. It's like a double secret card game!

Let's see...
I think there's three piles in the middle of the table with...some cards in each pile--oh. This is ridiculous! It's my favorite card game and I can't explain it!

Okay, back from Youtube.
Deal twenty cards each. In the middle of table are two piles with six cards in each, top card from each pile taken off top to center so you have:

5 cards 1 card 1 card. 5 cards, plus both players have their stock of twenty.
Two middle cards are flipped simultaneously (you can play onto either one) going in ascending or descending order--ace, king, queen or ace, two, three. You can also duplicate the card, so if a three is thrown and you have 2 threes--you can throw them both on the other three.

There is much screaming and bashing of teeth whilst playing.

Also, if you get stuck--no one can play a card, you then flip the next two cards from the pile of five, etc, etc, etc.

I know I've explained it horribly (it's really late and I met a friend for dinner and I had two cosmos) and I should have put up a link to a youtube video, but you guys are smart, right?

It really is fun. So what's your fave card game?

#blogitjuly What Do You Like About America? (Being awesome doesn't count)

Blog it July Day 4

I love the idea of America.

I love that during the last election the line wound around inside the building (as if we were outlining the interior walls) all the way outside the building. People chatted with each other. My husband had gone earlier than me, so when he was done he hung out in the line and had everyone laughing around us.

So, of course, I posted that on Facebook:

1. 

   Amy Kennedy Fosseen

   November 6, 2012

   Voted. I walk into our poling place and there's my husband...about 100 people waiting behind him, I almost cut in line, then thought better of it. After he was done voting, he hung out with me for awhile, did a bit of a comedy routine, got everyone laughing and then left.
   
   Gotta love democracy!

   
   

   I love that, usually, we can come together in times of crisis and help each other.

   I love that once in awhile the SCOTUS does the right thing (goodbye DOMA).

   
   

   And I love Baseball:

   

   
   

America is like a child, sometimes she disappoints me, or doesn't do the right (what I think is right) thing--but I love her no matter what.

Happy 4th of July!

#blogitjuly Day Three...Dunh, Dunh, DUNH

Assuming there is intelligent life in the universe, how do you think we will connect with them, if and when we do (invasion, violence, surrender, peace etc.)

This is an awesome question, especially since I'm reading Richard Yancey's The 5th Wave. OH. My. Fracking. (Auto correct made "fracking" far king, which is kind of cool). GAWD.

It is not pretty. But it is sooooo good! So, it's kind of skewed my view of alien encounters.

But, I'll try to answer this with my own mind and not that of a corrupted alien brain.

Sometimes the people I meet make me think aliens are already here, you know the ones, the ones that make you go, "hmm." Aliens are here and they are posing as pubescent 13 year olds, because, seriously, have you talked to a kid lately? 

Okay, I'm joking, I've owned several 13 year olds and they eventually grow out of it.

I actually have high hopes for a good encounter with intelligent life, but have you seen District 9? We're assholes! So, I don't know. I want it to be good and joyful and love each other and learn from each other...but then we have a lot of growing to do before they get here.

I wrote a short story, a long, long time ago, but it was before computers were invented--fine, they were invented, but hardly anyone owned one. Anyway, I don't know where it is, if I ever find it and feel the need to be ridiculed, I'll post it.

So, what do you think? E.T. or Falling Skies?

#blogitjuly WHAT DO YOU GEEK?

Day 2 #blogitjuly...Write. Sew. Drink. Repeat
What do I geek? I don't nerd out over things, wait...yes I do. I like to think I have some level of sophistication, but then I realize that's so damn boring--I can fake sophistication if I have to, why should I live it? So, without further ado, let the geek-o-meter start:

This is me
Geeking on Battlestar Galactica. Frack Yeah! I have taught the 14 year old to use the word "frack" in all possible scenarios. I am a goodly(ish) mother.

(steampunk) je t'aime!

Also this.
Hello (bad) Angel, Hello (good or bad) Spike.

(steampunk) je t'adore!

This too.
I wish I had this show when I was 16 years old. Just sayin'

(steampunk) le vagues son tres forte!* 

Do not get me started on this!

My heart breaks

Okay, enough with the tough chicks. Sheesh! Also, I geek on writers, I've been known to squeal with delight when I get an author's new book, especially in a series. I know I'll forget someone, but I hold in geeky adoration:
Patricia Briggs
Kiersten White
Veronica Roth
Suzanne Collins
Joe Hill (Locke & Key)
Laurell K Hamilton (the first 8 Anita Blake's are genius)
J.K. Rowling
Charlaine Harris
Lisa Kleypas (I once met her and spontaneously combusted into a fan girl--I hugged her.)
I have way more authors, but I'm tired and feeling a bit lazy.

STEAMPUNK!

FRANCE!!! PARIS!!!

Renaissance Festivals too.
I geek, therefor I am.

*the waves are very strong. You'd be surprised how often you need to say this!
What do you geek?

Blog it July! What do you want to be remembered for?

My husband talks about this a lot. Like, a lot, a lot. He seems to be concerned that he'll never be a James Taylor, remembered for iconic music or an Albert Einstein remembered for genius and beauty--and even though he talks about it (a lot) I never really thought about it specifically. And I guess, when I think of being remembered, I think of my family and friends.

How would they remember me?

This is what I care about. What do I want to be remembered for by the people who matter most to me?

I want to be remembered for being the best me I could be. For laughing too loud and making other people laugh too loud. For not succumbing to suffering when faced with immeasurable sadness. For loving life. For having style (whether I do or not, I want people to remember me for that), for listening, for loving them.



Now, if I were to consider people I don't know, well, I'd like to be remembered for writing a heartbreaking work of staggering genius, wait...no, that's not right, there is no staggering genius dying to be let out of my noggin. And I don't actually write heartbreaking anything.

There is, however, some paranormalish teen romantical stuff that likes to come out to play. So, you know, it might be cool to be remembered for writing pretty darn okay books...that were made into kick-ass movies, that made people laugh and made me incredibly rich.

Okay. My dream after (or while) writing pretty darn okay books is to develop some kind of art space(s) for at risk kids and young adults--a safe place to come together, create art whether that's painting, poetry, photography, mixed media, quilting, handcrafting--anything. A place to create and heal. That would be cool to accomplish (and be remembered for).

And I think my family and friends would agree.

Apparently, I lied. I guess I have thought about this!

So...what about you, what do you want to be remembered for?

Here's a link to the creator/dreamer-upper of Blog It July, Heather Wambach at Write.Sew.Drink.Repeat



  

A Check-in With my Brain (ROW80)

What I don’t know (a sampling)

I don’t know How many angels can dance on my pin head

I don’t know what “easy as pie” means. Does it mean, as easy as making pie? Because, that is not easy—unless you cheat and buy a frozen crust and canned fruit filling.

Now, eating pie? That is easy. Maybe the saying should be:

Easy as eating pie.

I don’t know how to let the bright shiny things be. Just let them be!

I don’t know how to express my love for and stupidity about Quantum Physics and String Theory including other universes

I don’t know where the show “Firefly” could have gone if not cancelled. OKAY, they gave me “Serenity” but, come-on!

What I do know (a sampling)

I do know when I write, I write, which in turn makes me write more.

I do know every time I send something out I am braver and braver (also willing to take more risks—because they’re really not risks since I’m not published yet!)

I do know when I feel a part of a community and with some healthy competition I write more.

I do know that I can write whatever the hell I want and if I want to write a Steampunked mythological zombie-fied automaton novel of revenge, I fricken can! Or, you know, a romance is good too.

ROW 80, cha-cha-cha

Feeling much better about a lot of things. Seem to have a handle on my goals, here's the scoop:

Edited 5 pages a day--check! 

Extra special stuff:
I've joined a health challenge with a group of co-workers, point based. Lots of "healthy" competition ;).
Every day I wear my pedometer and I try to do two cardio things--walking and riding the stationary, ice skating and walking...you get the picture.

And because I love to see our team in the top three, I like to add big numbers! Yesterday I broke 20k steps on my pedometer and walked (ran for a micro-second) at the activity center for an hour (yay!) while my youngest had baseball practice.

How's everyone else doing?