“Skyfall”

Susan and I went to see the new Bond film this evening.  And, yes, Skyfall is excellent.  Everyone’s great in it (Ben Whishaw! Naomie Harris! Javier Bardem!) and it’s clever and stylish and just plain beautiful. Susan and I agreed it was great, even better than Casino Royale.

“The Forest Awakes”

Suddenly the end of the semester seems so close.  Almost there!  I am excited — both for a break, and for what’s to come.

Someone asked me today, “Are you happy?” and I came to the conclusion that, while I’m not always overjoyed on a day-to-day basis (and I know I complain a lot), I can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be.  So I guess the answer is yes.  (Cynthia, if you’re reading this, thanks for asking!)

“Die Moldau”

Out of curiosity . . .

I’ve been thinking about renaming this blog.  Does anyone have strong feelings about renaming this blog as “Carlea Cassyl” vs. keeping “Hour of Gold”?  Further, does anyone have advice about professional writer’s websites/blogs (which this is patently not, but ought to be, probably, if I ever got serious about “branding” myself).

And on that note: what are people’s feelings on pen names?  I’ve already been published under my legal name, but sometimes I’m tempted to go by something else.  “Carlea Cassyl” just has such a nice ring to it . . .

“Not Fade Away”

You know how people say, “You’re so cute I could just eat you up”?  Yeah, I guess that’s what’s going on here.  Or else I’m experiencing some strange subset of pica.  But in any case, there it is: the new car.  What will I name it?

“M.E.X.I.C.O.”

So today I bought a car.

This is a real thing that people do, and yet somehow I can’t imagine anything stranger.

“Circumambient”

There’s something almost magical about red nail polish to me.  Superficial, maybe, but I’m not going to fight it.

Pumpkin-coconut soup with peanuts and ginger for dinner (yum!) and so so so much grading.  And there is yet more to do.  But not tonight.

Tonight, a moment of writing and a few pages of Henning Mankell and then sleep.

“When My Train Pulls In”

This afternoon the windows on my car stopped working and now one is sealed with plastic and duct tape. This evening I learned that someone I know has been nominated for a Pushcart.

As a metaphor for my life, this seems fairly apt.

“Bel Air”

I had this amazing plan where I was going to be in bed by ten.  Well, I was in bed by ten, but asleep is another matter entirely.

“Dreams”

OK, here’s hoping that all that goodwill I was feeling a few days ago wasn’t just early-in-the-week optimism.

I suppose time will tell.

“Winter Fields”

This past week, I’ve had the feeling of coming out from under some low overhang.  I’m feeling, for the first time in a while, a little more hopeful, a little less exhausted, a little more proactive.  I’m no less mired in all my various obligations, but I feel like there’s a way forward through it.

So, fingers crossed, I can keep this up through the end of the semester.  It’s only about a month away.  The end is in sight!