Chicon 2013

Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me, happy birthday dear me-ee…happy birthday to me!

So in case I was being subtle, today’s my birthday. I’m probably not getting too much this year, but I didn’t ask for much. However…

What I’m getting for my birthday. Next year. Don’t care if I don’t get anything this year or anything else next year or any Christmas gifts (all right, I’ll kick up a fuss if I don’t get some small gifts to show me that hubby and the boys care and remembered).

I've heard from a lot of people that these Stargate conventions are a blast and I've been wanting to go to one for a couple of years now. This is probably the only time I’ll ever go, my first and last convention of this sort. Not that I think I’ll have a bad time, it’s just that unless I hit the lottery, there are other things I want to do—people to see, places to go, etc. But I simply could not pass up this opportunity. LOOK who’s going to be there:

And some other people, too. I can’t wait to meet Kavan, though. I’m only six rows back from the front and sitting on the aisle directly in front of the stage! Maybe I can write a story about a lovesick fan meeting her soul mate at one of these events and write it off my taxes…

The Haunting of the South Creek Post Office

The other day, I was needing to go the post office to mail some invitations. I brought along my son's girlfriend, who was helping me prepare the invitations. It was around 8 at night on a Saturday, so naturally, the place was empty. One man was at the automatic mailing station. As N and I stood waiting our turn, the automatic doors opened and closed. No one was there. We thought nothing of it--a simple glitch.

The man at the kiosk left and we stepped up to take our turn. A minute later, the doors opened and closed again. We looked at each other, eyebrows raised in surprise. Again, no one was there. We finished our purchase and turned to the table to begin affixing the stamps.

We were nearly halfway through when the door opened and closed again. No one there. N and I began stamping faster. A minute later, I looked up when I went to grab another card and out of the corner of my eye, I saw a figure. It was a young woman with long brown hair.

Mind, the doors hadn't let anyone in when it had opened before. And as I watched, she passed between N & the door toward the back of the post office and just...disappeared. I told N and we finished the last invitations. As we stamped the last one, the doors opened and closed again and then they opened to admit a middle-aged woman with short blonde hair. N & I ran out the door, leaving her to her fate.

I'd say we were cowards, but for two facts:

A) She likely wouldn't have believed us if she even understood us (English is not spoken by everyone here).
B) She walked out before N & I got to the car.

Needless to say, I won't be going back to that post office after hours. Unless I want to encounter the ghost. How about you? If you saw something that couldn't be, would you believe it or would you find some other explanation, no matter how far-fetched? If you saw a ghost, would you go back to try to find it again or avoid the situation that led to the sighting?

Happy Horoscope

My horoscope yesterday, when I attended my local RWA meeting.

Some additional income could be brought your way today through use of computers or other forms of modern technology, Lynne. You should have a very busy day, but you'll like what you're doing and be excited about the prospect of some extra money to spend. Though you might not be thinking this way now, what you're doing now could develop into a lucrative business, eventually bringing you to a question: what do you really want to do with your life?

I was super-excited because yesterday was also my most productive day, writing-wise, in months. Not only did I get some blog ideas written down, but I also wrote a blog entry—nothing big, but an entry. And when I look to see when my last entry was, I cringe. Sorry, guys.

Back to the horoscope. Let’s dissect it line by line, shall we?

Some additional income could be brought your way today through use of computers or other forms of modern technology, Lynne.

I work on my computer every day—I run a sales business as my “real job”. I received a new recruit, and responses to an invitation I’d sent out to my group that will help them increase their earnings, thereby increasing mine.

You should have a very busy day, but you'll like what you're doing and be excited about the prospect of some extra money to spend.

I was on the run from early in the morning until bedtime yesterday. We’d heard an author speak about what she wrote and it was very similar to a genre that I write well, but have been afraid to “come out of the closet” about—erotica. For some reason, I write that pretty well, at least according to reviews I’ve received, and it flows very well for me also. This author gave us a rough idea of what she earns (she told us how many copies she sells in a month and her percentage) for writing novella-length stories of 40-50,000 words. The number is staggering.  

Though you might not be thinking this way now, what you're doing now could develop into a lucrative business, eventually bringing you to a question: what do you really want to do with your life?

My current day job is something I would quit in a heartbeat if I won the lottery. However, if I won the lottery today, I would want to buy a nice quiet house in the mountains where I could ride horses, hang with the hubster, and…write.

Now, sometimes, my horoscope is so off-center that I wonder if they were reading the correct stars or even reading stars from this galaxy, but this one was right on. What about you? Do you believe that horoscopes can predict your future? Or is it all just hooey to you?