Bit of Ivory

Have started a Georgette Heyer book– The Grand Sophy. Am enjoying it immensely so far.

Submitted my SQ contest entry. I feel good about this fic. Don’t know if it’s a winner or not, as I don’t really know what the competition will be like, but I’m satisfied with what it is and what it says.

Went to the library this morning with Jen and her little sister and got some books on Victorian England, including some on clothing styles. There’s going to be all sorts of great stuff I can write about in this fic. I’m excited. The new Salt Lake City library is a beautiful building. They have a few shops in the outer area, one of which sold dip pens, ink, seals and sealing wax. I bought a new quill (I lost my old one) and some emerald green ink. Will look great on my parchment stationery. I can write out Hogwarts letters for all of you!

After we went to the library we went to the Gateway, which is an outdoor shopping mall, and got a crepe at European Connection. Then, we went and saw Pirates. That’s 6 for me! This one wasn’t as enjoyable as the last 5 times– not that it wasn’t great, it was. But the theatre had the movie out of focus the entire time. it was in focus for about a foot on the far left-hand side. Everything else was blurry. I even went out and told them, and they picked up a radio to tell–someone, I don’t know exactly who. But in any case, it never got better. The credits weren’t even readable.

If I’d been a bit more forward, I would have demanded my money back. But I’m not.

But am happy to say that Jen is still a Turnerite, even on a second viewing (which sent Angua over to the Dark Side). Hooray!

Tonight I’m going over to Jen’s to watch X-Men and eat pizza. Then tomorrow is my 5-year high school reunion!

Fun weekend, eh?

to all who have a copy of my story sitting in their inbox:

The contest deadline is tomorrow at 9 AM Eastern. Since I very much doubt that I will feel like getting up at 6:30 in the morning to go over any betas, I plan on submitting my entry tonight. I will most likely be up relatively late, since it seems to be a habit of mine, but I’m not going to sit up and wait for betas.

So, if you have time, please send me any suggestions you have between now and, say, 10:00 MST, which would be midnight Eastern. Otherwise I’ll just have to send it in w/o your suggestions.

Thanks a ton!

I must be mad.

I really must be mad.

And it’s all Trisha’s fault.

Remember that interview where Trisha asked me what fanfic plot I’d love to read but haven’t seen written yet?

I answered that I’d like to read about Dumbledore’s schooldays.

And I’ve spent the last four days obsessing over it.

I’ve got lots of great ideas. And they all involve lots of research, lots of speculation, oodles of planning, and tons and tons of writing.

Not to mention a lot of guts.

. . . . . . .

And I think I’m actually going to attempt it.

Jen and Rachel have both offered their help in the research/plotting/speculation aspect of it, although it looks like I’ll be doing all the writing on my own.

I’m scared. It’s an awesome task, to be Dumbledore’s biographer. I don’t know if I’m up to it.

But it’s going to be great fun to try.

Wish me luck.

I’ll need it.

Interview questions from Laura (who now has a blog!):

1. Do you like poetry (at least appreciate it?) and who is your favorite
poet?

I do like poetry, though not so much that I seek it out when I’m starving for reading material. I even used to write it. Maybe someday I’ll post some of my pathetic attempts at poetry. When I’m relatively pleased with myself and don’t care what everyone thinks about me.

As for my favorite poet, I really enjoy the Romantics—Wordsworth, Coleridge, Keats, Byron, Shelley. Many of Shakespeare’s sonnets are really nice

2. All the raspberries on the planet have disappeared. What kind of ice
cream would you eat now?

First let me state that this scenario is nothing short of disastrous. We’re talking armageddon here. But in the ice-cream world, it wouldn’t be too terrible. I adore Snelgrove’s Burnt Almond Fudge, and have recently become very hooked on Cold Stone’s Cake Batter. I’m also a fan of Pistachio Pistachio from Ben & Jerry’s and anything with caramel in it.

3. Miles or Ivan?

Miles. Duh.

Three things that make me happy:

1) I finished my entry for the SQ contest. Anyone else want to beta it for me?

2) I’m working today, which means MONEY. Which is a good thing.

3) I made a new ring tone for my phone: Fawkes the Phoenix. It wasn’t as hard as it otherwise would have been, because we have the sheet music. So I knew exactly what note to put in and whether it was sharp or flat and how long it needed to be held, etc. Now must think of other rings to program in. I’d like to do the Lois and Clark theme. And the Pirates theme. But I don’t have sheet music for either of those, so it would be harder. Hmmm. Ooh! The Pride and Prejudice theme! I have music for that. . .

Finally updated my sidebar. It’s been ages.

I got my college diploma in the mail today. Wahoo! The stupid univeristy sent it to the wrong address at first, even though I changed my address info the very day of my graduation. Anyway, I now feel like I officially graduated. It’s a nice feeling.

CAN YOU HELP ME?
Plot-Bunny Repellent needed. Uber-strength desired.
Please reply to this box.

for more interview questions! These ones are from Trisha:

1) What are your favorite and least favorite smells?

I love coming home after a day at church and smelling post roast cooking in the crock pot. Mmmm. Similarly, home-baked bread is delectable. And I adore the smells of pinion and ponderosa pines.

Least favorite? Vomit. Dirty diapers. Elementary-school cafeterias.

2) What is one fic plot that you would really love to see written but haven’t yet?

Hmm. I’m sure that Ginny/Michael Corner fics are on their way, and that’s a plot that would be fun to explore. What I’d really like to see is an Albus Dumbledore’s schooldays fic. It’d be fun to take into account the fact that he’s going to Hogwarts in the middle of the 19th century, when the quirkyness we see in the wizarding world was not quite as quirky, and when there would have been an extremely different political climate in the Muggle world. And we really have no idea what Dumbledore’s background is: is he Muggle-born (wouldn’t that be ironic?)? Halfblood? Pureblood? What is the meaning of all of his names? His parents must have been just as eccentric as he is. Was it is upbringing that gave him such a moral center? What about his brother?

And I really shouldn’t have thought of that. That’s epic-length fic, that is, and I DON’T HAVE TIME TO WRITE IT!!!

3) How has your childhood affected who you are today?

It made all the difference in the world. I had a tough childhood in many ways, an idyllic one in others. Certainly I was raised with a strong religious and moral background, which has been both a help and a detriment in different aspects of my life– usually a help. I know for a fact that if I had been born into any other family (even another LDS one), I would have been a very different person.

4) Have you ever considered converting religions? Why or why not?

I haven’t. It’s not that I haven’t had doubts about my own religion– I have, many times. I’ve considered going inactive. That’s different, though, than renouncing my own religion and going to a different chruch. I just haven’t ever seen or heard of a religion that can offer me what mine can– I’ve found ones that ask much less of me, but not ones that offer me more. There is something immensely satisfying in Mormonism, a happiness and peace that I haven’t found anywhere else. And I’ve had experiences that I can’t really talk about here, but that have given me a knowledge that would be impossible to deny.

5) You are given a 15 minute spot on the news to say whatever you want. The entire world is watching. What do you say?

I wish I could say that I would talk about Harry Potter or Jane Austen or the power of reading. But if I really had the entire world as an audience, I can’t think of anything more important than for me to give a message about the restored Gospel. I would probably offend some people, make some people angry, and cause no greater feeling than indifference to others. But if I managed to touch one person– influence one life for good, it would be worth it. It’s something that people just have to accept about me– I’m a religious person, and I feel a need to share my religion with others, if they are willing.

In other news, and kind of in line with Trisha’s questions, I attended a baptism today for one of my Primary kids. Did I ever mention that I teach Primary? I don’t know if I did. Primary is the children’s organization in my church. I teach 7-8 year olds, which is the age at which children are baptized. It made me remember my own baptism when I turned 8. I sometimes wonder if I was ready– if I knew what I was doing. It’s an extremely important step in Mormon theology– a neccessary ordinance in our eternal progression. I’m not sure that I fully realized at the time the impact of my decision to be baptized. On the other hand, I’m not sure if being baptized later on would have made any great difference either. I know the importance of what I did now, and that’s what’s important.

After the baptism, I went to the At&T store and bought a new cell phone. My Nokia 3360 was slowly going braindead. It would turn itself off, even with a full battery. It would drop calls. It wouldn’t turn back on again. Every time I turned it on, it asked me to set the time and date. The battery meter would lie, saying I had a full battery when I really had about 2 minutes of talk time left. It was practically useless to me in its present state. I did some research and found out that that particular model had bad software, which gradually corrupted itself until it started having the problems mine was. Of course, I didn’t start having problems until my warranty had run out. I also didn’t realize how bad it was until I had already re-uped my contract for a year, so changing my service to get a good deal on a phone wasn’t an option. My brother was in the same boat– his phone wasn’t as bad as mine was, but it was on its way. The phone that I wanted retails at $150, and is being offered to new customers for $49.95 right now, but AT&T wanted to charge Ben and me $220 for it. Even a call to Customer Care helped not at all.

The other night, though, I was working, and a salesman from AT&T brought by a flyer offering mall employees 40% off of the $49.95 they were already offering. I discussed my dilemma with him, and he told me point-blank that until today, he could give us the phone for $120. I told my brother, thought it over, and today we went and bought it. So I am now the proud owner of a Motorola v60i. Hurrah.

I don’t really have the money for this, of course, but I also don’t feel like paying a monthy fee for a phone I can’t reliably use. Oh, well. I *am* working a little more than I thought I would be, so it’s not the end of the world. I didn’t even put it on my credit card.

This is fun! Thanks, q_sama!

1. Do you want to see Snape “redeemed”? Why or why not?

Ooh, tough question. Well, considering that RJA’s Darkness and Light is one of my favorite fanfics of all time, I’m not adverse to the redeemed Snape idea. I’m just not sure that, given what we have in canon and JKR’s statements, that it will be possible. I *do* believe that, in canon, Snape is not all he seems, and that he will do something not only heroic but noble in battling the dark, possibly saving Harry’s life once again. I’m not convinced that this act will lead to his death, like many people are. However, while I believe that Snape has his good side, and his own brand of integrity, I do not believe that Snape will ever become a “nice” man, or that he and Harry will ever be more than uneasy colleauges. I also don’t see Snape as being all that great of a teacher– unless he learns to treat his students with more respect, and to encourage rather than belittle them, I can’t see him become headmaster.

2. How do you feel about the religion vs. HP debate? Does it anger you when people assume anti-HP people are Christians?

Funny you should ask this question. The other panel I presented on at Nimbus was on this very topic. I really believe that those who object to Harry Potter for religious reasons are misguided; however, I can’t disagree with the idea that there are some things that are evil and should be avoided. I myself carefully censor what I read (personally– I don’t try and get books, etc., removed from shelves), what movies I see, etc., and I know that I will be careful what I allow my children to be exposed to. I get upset, however, when the HP books are dismissed by Christians without any effort being made to find out what is really in them.

I don’t get angry, per se, at the assumption that anti-HP people are Christians, because for the most part it is true. There is a small segment of the population that object to HP on the grounds of aesthetics– Harold Bloom and A.S. Byatt being two of them. What *does* anger me is when people assume that because I am Christian, I am anti-HP, and assume that I have to justify my enjoyment of them in opposition to my religion. That does bug me.

3. What is your earliest memory?

Strangely enough, my earliest memory isn’t really a memory at all. We were living in an apartment building when I was about 3, and there was a swimming pool in the complex next door that we would sometimes be allowed to swim in. Apparently one day the pool was being repaired and had been drained. That night I had a dream that I had fallen into the bottom of the pool, and it was really, really deep. My brother (who was 4) tried to get me out with a garden hose. I don’t remember seeing the pool, but I do remember the dream. Odd.

4. A what-if question: hypothetically, if Draco and Harry had become tentative friends, [how] do you think it would compare to Clark/Lex friendship?

Hmm. Interesting question. In many ways it would have been a similiar dynamic, and I think friendship with Harry might have changed Draco for the better. I don’t think that Draco, though, would put aside his death-eater tendencies and biases for the sake of Harry’s friendship, just as Lex will eventually become the evil super-villain he was despite Clark’s influence. There is another difference as well– Lex is gradually falling toward the dark, and is fighting it along the way. We have seen no such development in Draco’s character. He doesn’t seem to resent his father, as Lex does, and seems perfectly willing to live up to the family expectations. Harry only would have been hurt– and really, Clark is going to have some issues to deal with, knowing that Lex was once his friend, when he finally comes into his own as Superman.

5. Colonel Brandon, or Willoughby?

Does it lower me in your estimation if I say Colonel Brandon? I never would have been attracted to Willoughby in the first place– or, at least, not for long. I don’t usually go for that bad-boy type. I know a lot of people are mad at Marianne for “settling” for Colonel Brandon, but I really think that he was the best match for her. He’s really a Marianne who has learned his lesson, and can control his passions enough that they don’t control him, but so they still give him pleasure and drive. He’s a fascinating character in many ways.

And the fact that he’s played by Alan Rickman had no influence on my decision whatsoever. . . .

Will write Amy’s questions soon.

Anyone else have a burning desire to find out my innermost secrets? Or to be grilled in return?

rather productive, actually. Although not necessarily for the company.

I got a plot for the SQ contest!

It’s darn good, too. And I have 3 handwritten pages done. I’m afraid to type it up, ’cause I still have a ways to go and I’m sure it’s going to be over the 1,000 word limit.

It’s a crossover fic, too. In a way. Kinda.

Ooh, more questions! Thanx Chicagoamy!

1. No limit in regard to money or time, where do you go and what do you do?

I’d go and visit all the places I’ve read about in books. I’d go to France, to England, to P.E.I., etc. And I’d make sure to stop at every city that has someone I’ve met online in it, and spend a goodly amount of time hobnobbing with my fellow wizards.

2. Has a book ever made you cry (and by cry I mean more than just tear up, but full out cry) and if so, which one(s)?

Oh, too many to count. I absolutey *bawled* at Mistress Pat by L.M. Montgomery (even though it has a happy ending), and I cried rather hard after finishing OotP, though my reaction was a bit delayed on that one. I think the book that made me cry most, though, was volume 6 of The Work and the Glory, which is an LDS historical novel based on the early history of the Mormon church. Its title is Praise to the Man, and it’s the one where the martyrdom of Joseph Smith takes place. Over the course of the previous books I’d gained an even greater appreciation of who Joseph was as a man, and not just as a prophet. I knew it was coming (of course), but I still bawled. What a tragic loss– he was killed at only 38 years of age, which is seeming younger and younger to me as I get older. I cried a lot in that series, actually. Whenever people died it was a real wrench. 9 books worth of association will do that to a person.

I’ve also had similar emotional reactions to scripture, and to certain other church books.

3. If you could live out a fairy tale, which one would you want it be and who would you play?

Beauty and the Beast is my favorite fairy tale, but I was never able to think myself into the role of Beauty herself. I’m just not very good looking. Until I read Robin McKinley’s Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast, where not only the Beast but Beauty herself discovers that she’s beautiful. So it would be Robin McKinley’s version of Beauty and the Beast that I’d like to live.

4. Stealing one of Seviet’s question, because it rocks…. if you could produce a Patronus, which happy memory would you use and which form would it assume?

Hmm. I’d have to say that one of my happiest memories is when my brother came home from his mission after 2 years in Hungary, with only letters and 4 phone calls to keep in touch with him. As for what form it would assume. . . I really have no idea. A book, perhaps. Or the form of Jane Austen.

5. And stealing one that I asked Seviet …what caused you initially to pick up a Harry Potter book and read it, and did you expect to love it as much as you do?

I was working in an LDS bookstore and was being asked questions about the appropriateness of HP, so I decided that the best way to find out if they were appropriate or not was to read them. They certainly took me by surprise, and I never, ever would have guessed that three years later I would have become as obsessed as I am, or that my life would have changed the way it has. I certainly have done a lot of things and met a lot of people that, without HP, I would never have done or met. I count it one of the luckiest days of my life that I picked up that book and started to read.

You’ll have to give me a bit on your questions.