Peeps

The Seattle Times Peeps contest ran last week so I was a little busy putting together my entry while vacationing in Idaho. I love this contest (and would love it even more if I won). Check out the Peeps Parade. There are some pretty funny Peeps. I wonder if contests such as this are the true reason behind Peeps success. Have you ever eaten a Peep? Talk about a sugar rush. But, eating a Peep pales in comparison to trying an aplet or cotlets. I'll never forgot my mom trying to pass these off as candy during a road trip through Yakima. Anyway, my entry is up there and I'll give you a hint. Dr. Phil Peep appears somewhere in my entry...

And, here's my entry from last year. I can't remember the title but the main idea was super delegates on a limb, during the democratic caucus here in WA. Needless to say, I didn't win. Maybe this year. Check back on April 14th.

Cafe Time

When I first started "working from home," I would trot to a local cafe with free Wi-Fi, order a latte and scone, plop myself onto a stool, plug in, and write. I found the chatter of other people peaceful. That is, until one day, I looked up to see about twenty people aglow from their screens, all plugged in, doing their work. I wondered what the cafe's electric bill looked like and then drew this picture. The resolution isn't great but the sign on the vacant seat says "out to lunch."
Why so many people oppose cubicles but will choose a cafe is, possibly, one of life's little mysteries...

What?!! We're Not Supposed to Write on Web Sites

In my last entry, I was dealing with rejection and I thought the blender guy was my solution. Since then my daughter spilled an entire cup of (warm) coffee all over my stuff at almost the same moment that I received a link to NetDisaster.com from the Very Short List. So, I decided that a healthy combination of Scribbling Baby and my need for an emotional outlet was just the ticket (all in good humor my fellow Penguineers)... And, when I returned a few minutes later...


Ahhh! Good, clean fun was had by all (no Web sites were hurt in this demonstration)!

It's Not Me, It's You...

I've submitted my kid's book manuscript to four editors and am now in rejection mode. I'm trying to take the letters in stride. Wasn't Steven King rejected a hundred times before his wife submitted a crumpled draft of Carrie that she pulled from his garbage can? Even though I know they are form letters, I still find myself clinging to some choice of words or turn of phrase to extract more meaning: "after thoughtful consideration;" "after consider this carefully;" "this is due entirely to the books on our list;" and so on. That makes me feel hopeful for about a second. Because when someone tells me, "It's not you, it's me," I hear the exact reverse.

So, what to do with these letters as I am in the midst of a long-awaited, satisfying, cleansing, blitz of purging every unused, unneed item from my home. Here's:

Top Ten Things to do With Rejection Letters

10. In the spirit of acupuncture where they put a needle into pain to draw all the pain to it before removing the needle, use it for origami.
9. Build a wordle and recycle the paper.
8. Write (but, of course, not send) a thank you note to the editors telling them how happy I was to receive their form letters that squashed my dreams.
7. Paper mache a devil puppet.
6. Post on Facebook.
5. Write each editor a rejection denial letter.
4. Get citrus peel in hopes of growing back thicker skin.
3. Wallpaper my room. I'm laughing as I write this because someone actually did this and I'm trying to imagine how I would feel looking at these things every day.
2. Mulch it into paper for my kid's to draw on. Possibly some sort of feeling of circular satisfaction??
1. Send to this guy for a good blend.

Any other suggestions are welcome as I haven't quite decided.

Waste Not Want Not

Cleaning out our playroom, I was struck by how much Stuff we have and whenever I think of Stuff, I remember The Story of Stuff. This is an enlightening journey into where our stuff goes. Now I want to build a show about this that includes crafts from recycling and junk and puppets inspired by--you got it--Stuff.
Stay tuned for more on the new script and a look at the first puppet designed by me and crafted by Claudia Zimmerman with -- you got it -- remnants, newspaper, and paint Stuff.

Cake Decorations

Everyone loves a cake. It's one of those things that "keeps on giving" in that you feel good when you make it, when the recipient sees it and when you all consume it! Mike's birthday was Tuesday and, of course, Ella picked a theme to celebrate --cowboy. Yeehaw! Giddy-up and away we went to buy cake mix and decorations. We galluped into a great find: Home Cake Decorating in Maple Leaf. This is a tiny shop but I was blown away by all the fun items for cakes and the incredibly helpful owner...who ever thought that brown sugar would make great dirt? Here are the results. Not Martha and proud of it!

In this photo, Ella is placing the 40+ candles that she insisted we do. We had a few burn victims, including 2 cacti and one cowboy. As the smoke cleared and the melted items were removed, Ella said, "Maybe we should've bought the two number candles."

Spacebar

How am I going to write with a broken spacebar? That's what I'm asking myself as I have to pound two or three times to get the darned thing to give me some space. I will honor my sanity by keeping this short and pertinent to the area between characters. Isn't it true that the best art has just as much to do with what isn't said? soinhonorofaworldwithoutspace,checkoutsomepaintingsbykoko(agorilla):

Images from Koko’s World at Koko.org