8 Things Friday

1. The tattoo is feeling better. Still sore, still don't really want to touch it, but I think the colours are pretty much what they're going to be. I'm keeping Aquaphor on it constantly, washing and lotioning the area three times a day to keep it clean and moist, lest it scab over. (Ick.) Some of it's still kind of raised, especially the darker parts of the branches. Anyway, it's getting better, slowly but surely. And thanks for all the nice comments about it in my last post!

2. My Aunt Jane has always said that if "Mom and Dad's" (my great-grandma and great-grandad--my mom's mother's parents) old farm ever went up for sale, she was buying it, and guess what! It did, and she did! They sold the place eight or so years before I was born, so I never saw it, but they all have memories of Easter egg hunts and family dinners and who got slapped in what room for talking back to Mamo (which is what everyone called her, I think due to some baby's mispronunciation of a form of "grandma.") Jane and two other great-aunts are staying with my grandma and driving out about 15-20 minutes every day to scrape and paint and clean and rake at the farm. And actually, it's not a farm anymore, just the house and about eleventy-thousand sheds, as well as an overgrown garden and a lot of dirt. They sold off the fields around it years before. But Jane, who lives in California, wants to get as much done as she can this week, then maybe come back after Christmas for more, and have a big family reunion at Easter.


So cute! The previous owners just let all the grass die, I guess...


An old chair in the now-empty chicken coop. Don't ask me why!


The trees there are massive! It's really awesome.

3. I'm getting excited for NaNoWriMo! I really need to post a bit more on Miss Greenwater's blog before November starts. Is anyone checking it? If so, sorry I haven't put more stuff up. I should do that before work. But I'm dressing as Bernice for the evening Halloween party I'm going to. Not sure what, exactly, that will entail yet. I might do her mid-story after... well, I won't spoil it for you. But once I post costume pictures, maybe that will give you a hint.
EDIT: New post on Miss Greenwater's blog!

4. My daytime, wear-to-work costume will be Anne Boleyn's ghost! (Have I mentioned this already? I can't remember what I've told people and what I've posted here. Sorry if I've said it twice now.) I'll wear my grey/silver Ren Faire outfit and paint my face and hands white. I thought about doing fake blood all over my neck since she did get her head chopped off, but a) I don't want to deal with it because it'll probably make a mess and I'd have a fit if anything stained that outfit and b) I'm just not into the yucky gorey side of Halloween. I prefer the fun sparkly side, like cute bat and cat cutouts in the window, pretty jack o' lanterns, and lovely dressy costumes.

5. I didn't make it to the NaNo meet-up yesterday, which we have every Thursday at 7 at a bookstore cafe. So of course, four other people showed up! The last few weeks it's just been me and one other guy who was dedicated last year, so of course the one week I don't show up, lots of other people come. *SIGH* Supposedly a couple of them will come next week, though. I hope we have a good group like last year! We got in a local paper toward the end of last November, and had 12 or so people at the most, coming to weekly write-ins at various bookstore cafes. If you live near me and want to write a novel next month, let me know and I'll add you onto my email list!

6. I miss you, friend! (You know who you are.) I know we're both busy and a lot's been going on lately, but that's no excuse! We should find time to hang out, even if it's just to whip out the laptops and write for an hour, or something. I literally haven't seen you for over a month, and every time we make plans, something happens to blow it up. I hope you have internet now and can read this, but if not, I'll send "Call me" vibes to you and hope you get them. I don't work this coming Tuesday til 4pm....

7. I miss you too, other friend! (You know who you are.) I'm glad we got to talk on the phone last night, and I wish you luck in all your endeavors. Maybe one of the weekends you have off, I can manage to get a few days off too and come see you.... maybe....

8. Nothing terribly exciting has been happening, craft-wise, lately. I sewed two fabric shopping bags the other day, so I can feel less guilty about using up plastic ones at the store. Now I just need to remember to take them into the store with me when I go, and not leave them in the car! But so far, so good. I want a couple more eventually for when I do big grocery shopping visits. I'm also working on a scarf, which is... not terribly exciting. First it looked like a swatch, then a washcloth, and now it's maybe a foot and a half long. Pictures when it's done, probably.