Working Vacation

I'm enjoying Day 2 of a 5-DAY WEEKEND!!! WOO-HOO!

The end of 2010 was a bitch, and I knew I would have to burn a couple of Vacation days to recover and start 2011 fresh. But this year, instead of just grabbing the first days of the year that were available, I bid my time a planned a bit...I intend to have a Rough Draft of Brian's & my novel finished by April Fools' Day. So I am taking Monday and Tuesday off as Vacation days, in hopes of getting further with the novel.

My reasoning, when I concocted my scheme, was that by mid-February I would have a clearer impression of what was keeping me from finishing (the writing problems that lay in my path). I believe my reasoning was sound! Had I taken 2 days off last week, the novel would have had a less Comedy tone and a more Action/Adventure thrust.

Still, as of today (Saturday), I haven't done much actual writing work. Brian & I have had a VERY useful discussion about the story!!! That's awesome!!! But yesterday was about blowing off steam, and today has been about necessary tasks: I got my car inspected, got the oil changed, and sent off the payment to get my car registered. So YAY! there!!! :)

Currently, I am enjoying some drinks as I listen to the audiobook version of Murder, She Wrote: The Maine Mutiny. (I am so obsessed with Murder, She Wrote lately that I bought all the audiobboks from Audible.com. What's wrong with me? Is it because I just turned 39 for the second year in a row, and now I'm going to start baking my own bread and gardening?! I have no idea! But, for some reason, I DIG Jessica Fletcher and her adventures!)

Also, I've been reading old Captain America comics. It's cool; I am transported back into a world that I enjoyed when I was 15 or so. Captain America's New York in 1971 (back when he was teamed-up with The Falcon) is a cool place to hang out in! Not quite as cool as Cap's New York of 1983 (when I was reading each issue as it popped onto the shelves, and his partner was Nomad) but still a very evocative and (somehow) rejuvenating place in which to hang!

Also, may I just say that visiting New York in 2002 was slightly disappointing?

I mean, NOT REALLY disappointing...see, new York had -- back in the 1960s, '70s, and '80s this image of this filthy, chaotic, cesspool teaming with victims swimming together through this tide of humanity. You could TOTALLY believe that there were these superheroes and superhero groups operating throughout The City because there was so much pulsing humanity everywhere that Optimus Prime could do close-up magic tricks on a corner all day you might not know about it until you picked up the New York Times the next morning.

But, I mean, growing up with Marvel Comics (and, of course, all the movies of the '70s and '80s), you got this idea of this dirty, and yet somehow magical metropolis, where anything could happen!

And then, apparently, Mayor Koch happened, and teamed-up with the Disney Corporation, and now NYC is totally Family Friendly.

Now, as a tourist in NY for 5 days, I AM NOT COMPLAINING, lol. I mean, I was staying in Brooklyn -- when I was growing up, Brooklyn was supposed to be one of the toughest 'hoods in New York -- and I felt completely comfortable waking up in the middle of the night and going downstairs and across the street to buy some cigarettes and have a smoke outside. A lot of my time spent in New York (specifically, NYC) was spent on foot during the night hours, and I never once felt threatened or uneasy.

But there is this little-boy consciousness within me -- the cat that still reads Captain America comic books -- that is the slightest bit disappointed that New York is so safe and snug. You know what I mean? I mean, I would rather not be eaten by Jaws...and yet...part of me thrills at the thought that there may be a "Jaws" out there, trying to eat tourists, lol.

The cocktails are tasting TERRIFIC, so this may be an appropriate place for me to bid adieu.

MAY YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND!!!

:D