I'm building my "authors website" - the thing that'll help me get my name out there a little.

I'm trying to work out a 'look' for the site - currently I have two very different ideas, but I want more. (for the record, they are: 'space-y fractal art' (apophysis.org) and 'cartoony piles of books'). If you're reading this, please take two minutes, and comment with a visual theme or idea that you think works for 'Speculative Fiction Author'. You can explain it or not as much as you want, I'd just like to get some ideas in my head other than mine.

(Speculative is an umbrella for 'scifi, fantasy, or anything just plain weird').

( For the curious-about-the-site: )
I think I'm going to be annoying and x-post on forums.

I got my enrollment information this afternoon, after getting home from a stocktake shift (where our district manager spent 5 hours (i kid you not) telling off our manager for crap that he told her to do in the first place. He's SUCH an arse. But i digress). Openy-openy, see what I have to do, when something strikes me as odd. I read through the paper another time, with all the fine print all over the place. Still can't place it. Something wierd here. So I start at the top again, and it hits me.

"Enrollment instructions for Honours Scholarship students - Semester 1 2006"

Here was me, panicking all year that I'd stuffed my chances for honours. Not only did they let me in, they've handed me a bloody scholarship - the university is footing my HECS bill this year, a nice $4000 that I won't have to pay in the future.

They have ten of these scholarships for the entire arts faculty. Our arts faculty has about five thousand students, about three hundred of which are doing honours this year.

Apparently I was supposed to get a letter, and I have to ring somebody to tell them that I don't have one yet. Not getting a letter would be why I had no idea they'd given me this.

Head spinning.

Christopher Reeve is gone. He was being treated in hospital for an infected pressure wound that had become a systemic infection. He lapsed into a coma on Sunday and died of a cardiac arrest.

He was just starting to regain movement and sensation in his body, too. He could have been walking in a decade or so.

He died at 52. Link

( Supermans' Song - Crash Test Dummies )

Today....

Manic-scriptwriting-teaching-woman was making us do stream-of-consciousness writing, and then she threw in random words. "olive-green.... salt.... keyring.... bathmat.... Gerald..."

Ahem. In other bits of daylight... Beeeads and beads and beads and beads. Damn it's bad for my wallet to have uni in the city. Nearly bought some books. Oh, and some girl whom I've never met recognised me and called out to me by name as I was passing the busstop just next to my old school. She remembered me from being House Music Uberbitch Captain two years ago, when she was in year seven. That's some impression. Mind you, I spent most of my time either yelling at them, singing to them, or waving my arms about like a complete prat. (I remember deciding I had little use for that thing called dignity anyway).

And I have to go see one of three plays in the city this week. *whinge* she gives us one week's notice, when they're all at nighttime, I'm somewhat sans transport and ticket money, and I have uni, work and family committments. One week! *whineyrant*

Aaaaaaaaand me. There's your intro.

Was a pretty good day, all up. Drove instead of bussing (your car is fine, Stef. And I think we've discovered the amazing distance it will go with the fuel light on... Dad's finally refuelled it), had a fiction class which was okay, some impressive workshopping form the class, I have high hopes for my workshop next week, despite the fact that I've submitted a draft written last night to be mauled... *shudder* Cardinal rule number one... ack!

Got some work done in my break, had a lecture from an editor with some interesting things to say, caught up with a friend on the bus home, didn't have to wait for any connecting transport things (ie I caught every single train and bus today just-in-time before it left. Anyone who takes multiple-connection public transport regularly will realise the awesomeness of that.)

Aaaaaand, courtesy of my brother-dear... Balloon Animals! Wheee! He recently went to Malaysia, apparently there are shopping centres five stories high or seven stories high that have mini-amusement parks on the top level. How nifty!

And work called to cancel and rearrange shifts. Meh. Not really fussed.

Today was....
writing frantically to get my story done in time for workshop on THursday (tomorrow will be hell enough, I want to get at least two thirds done tonight). It's the story I wrote a few weeks ago, and I realised this morning why it wasn't working, and rewrote it.
Successful driving lesson with promises of booking tests and whatnot, and much praise about driving and perfect three point turns and reverse parallel parks.
Riddick - actually quite good, despite the slamming I've heard. It's not what you expect from that actor and that genre, it's subtle, sort of, and it doesn't explain things it thinks the audience is smart enough to work out for itself, most of the time. Yes, there is only one plotline, but there's really not much room for anything else. They have an appropriate amount of "stuff" for the time, and some really nifty little thingummies happening.
Aaaaand food and now more work. *sigh*. Maybe some Buffy later. Oooh and I finally replaced "Eric", the pratchett book my ex lost/stole. Not the original cover art, sadly, but at least we have the complete set again.

That is all. I think. Probably. I'll get back to you about that. Or possibly not.

My family is wiiiierd. Last night:
I dreamt I was a nurse or similar of some kind in a "wierd kind of" hospital (I don't remember why it was wierd, but it was really strange).
My father dreamt of Rupert Murdoch, who was apparently "playing his guitar"
My mother dreamt she was being visited in hospital by Rupert Murdoch, who brought her roses. No sign of the guitar.

We're nuts.

( On another note... rants about work )

Aaaand I have Buffy Season Seven, now, wooot! Have to get my workies done before I can start watching it (whimper), but season seven!! awesomeness!! *glees*. I've been on a high about that for a while.

(now it's just season three, and then i can start on the Angel series....)

( I dreamt of war all night. )
And then there was...
Work
Uni Work
Chocolate
More Uni work
More chocolate
Aaaaand internet mooching!

Buggered.
Scriptwriting today was awesome, we did writing excercies for the whole two and a half hours, and I have thirteen pages of dialogue and stuff based aorund this guy I met ont he train yesterday who was talking to mid air about things in the most fascinating way, who in my script is something of a compulsive liar (which makes answering questions in his voice about himself very interesting. Everybody, including himself, is named Dennis, and everyone seems to have been shot. I'm gonna have fun with this.)

But I am so buggered. And there's shit i have to do for next week... but not tonight. I had a neepynap which was good. With strange dreams about talking to a girl. I think it was aobut appearances and internal thoughts, which is another idea for a thing. Hrrmmm...

Damn. Angelfire's disabled remote loading. I was gonna share a pic of these awesome balloon animals stef took in Sing (they have Mickey Mouse and everything, it's hilarious) but I can't be fucked making a whole new page for it, and I can't put it up from my system. Grr. Stupid people.

In other news... I was supposed to have a lecture today with Shane Maloney, the guy who wrote Stiff and the other book, which were TV-movieised with David Wenham. Unfortunately, the building we were upposed to have the lecture in was on fire at the time. I was sleeping in it (after a hard ten minute's study, mind you) on the desk down on the lower floor, underground, when all these klaxons went off. I went and slept in the actual Sleeping Room at Union house instead, and when i came back for my lecture, there were firemen and firetrucks and pretty red tape everywhere. So no lecture. *grumble*. A) if I'd known, I could have gone home four hours ago, and b) that lecture woulda been awesome. Hope it's been rescheduled.

That's aobut all my news today. Ooh, but I did learn a valuable thing about writing today, but it's too long winded to go into here - vis, I can't be bothered explaining.

I had strange dreams about my ex last night. Something about seeing Chris and Alice, and us getting back together. sort of. I remember it vaguely (you know, I can only vaguely remember what the two brothers look like? I know what Doug looks like, and I've only seen him 3 times, and I know what Alice looks like, but those two are blurred to me).

That threw off my whole day. My mood and mental "setup" are all wrong. Like someone booted me up on an outdated backup disk.

( Buffy Memeage )
WHeeeee.... or not....

( Sooner or Later )

My eyes are sore, now.

I'm a little teapot,
bored bored bored.
I've eaten random crap all day
because I can't be bothered making my brain work.

That really didn't work at all. Not my best work. But really - celery, tea and corn chips is not the healthiest combination. Two diuretics and some extra salty dry things? Smart, sof. *munches cornchips*.

I should be wriiiiting, yeah... (i have random stupid songs with superimposed lyrics in my head...) in my heead, in my heaad ahyeh ahyeh... mm.

So I can drive pretty well, apparently. Need to check my mirrors more often, and be more observant of stupid hidden speed signs. The stupid thing is, they also bust you for being ten k below the limit, as well as being above at all. So you can't play safe between the 40/50 zones in unfamiliar roads. Grrr. Stupid people. So I "failed" a couple of times on the practise tests with him today, because I firstly assumed it was fifty, when it was forty, and then later missed the change to fifty from a forty zone. *roll eyes*

He's booking my test after next week's lesson, though. Whee!

Also - assingments done and done. Transcription of story put off until tomorrow. *sigh*. Might be driving out to Churnside (sp??) tomorrow again, what fun. I hate that roundabout.

Bllleuuurgh. Why does everyone decide at 4:45pm they have to buy something form our store? THere was a queue 15 people long at 4:50, and more people coming in whilst we're shutting the doors. Like hello?? You chouldn't have done this half an hour ago? or tomorrow? Bea told this lady who lwas looking around at 5:10, when out doors were all shut, that we were closed, and she'd have to come back tomorrow. She goes "okay" and just keeps looking at stuff! Grah.

Friendly faces though today, which was awesome. It's amazing how much saying hi to a friend whilst you're working can lift your mood.

Aaaaaand i can't be fucked doing the assignments tonight. Do them tomorrow. Time for Band of Brothers... and chocolate.

My god.... two-inch thick MSA standard T-bone steak for dinner.

never had T-bone steak before. And I don't even like meat, but I gotta admit this was pretty damn good.

Even better for being a freebie.

Workies. One of our registers blew up this morning. We went through half the day with one register and the express counter. That was a bucket of fun. Custoemrs weren't too bad, but DragonLady was on teh ceiling with stress. Not pleasant. Maybe it's just that the customers weren't too bad compared to her.

If you can be fucked: What would we be doing if just the two of us were alone in a room right now?

I swear I'm feeling bloody bipolar lately... I'll be manic for two hours and then in the space of thirty seconds I'm plummetting.. and three hours later I'm happy again, and then plunging... wiiierd.

Aaand an entry like, five minutes later.

We had a lecture today from a fair highend publisher/editor from Allun and Unwin (for the ignorant - very well stablished and respected publishing house) who spent half the lecture telling us the story of her career and about ten minutes telling us anything useful. And the useful stuff I mostly alread knew. Except for the bit where anyone who writes a cookbook tends to land themselves $50,000. Sof makes plans to write cookbook or three, and buy a house. Sof them makes plans to learn to actually cook. And then is too lazy and gives up.

Saw "Much Ado About Nothing" with a friend tonight, on an impulse, at my old school theatre. They did it suprisingly well, really. Aside from the wincing at the overplaying of the watchmen. And the strange decision to smother every girl in blue eyeshadow. The boy who played Benedick was extremely talented. And don John was a cutie, being all dour and solomn. 'Twas a good night.

Father's leaving at four tomorrow. *sigh*. Is there any point going to bed?

THE RULES!
1 -- Leave a comment, saying you want to be interviewed.
2 -- I will respond; I'll ask you five questions.
3 -- You'll update your journal with my five questions, and your five answers.
4 -- You'll include this explanation.
5 -- You'll ask other people five questions when they want to be interviewed

( Questions from Steph and Mark )