It's Coming to the End... Sort of?

Three weeks from today it will be Friday, May 4th. It will also be the 365th day in a row that I'll have blogged without missing a single day.

Huzzah!

It will also be the last day that I'll be blogging without missing a single day.

When I started this blog my intent was to give myself a place to write some of the more funny, light-hearted things I'm capable of writing, since I seem to have fallen into the habit of writing Horror stories.  I am comfortable writing Horror, and I've managed to get a few things published in the genre, but that's not all I can do. I have a story that will be in an anthology of Christmas stories that's coming out this December that proves it, but I needed to remind myself more often.

So I started coming here and reminding myself every day.

Don't get me wrong, for the most part this blog has been a lot of fun. I have some anectotes in here that, with a little polish, I might submit somewhere as short stories. I have done some writing in here that I like very much, and I think I was, at times, pretty entertaining, and that was a good portion of the fun.

Also, I have some people who have become my constant audience, and that has been great too. Every writer loves to have his stuff read, and most want to have it liked. The fact that I had a returning audience, however small, was like a vitamin shot in the arm for me on a pretty much daily basis.

The problem is that this blog takes time. I have a few projects going where I am trying to get more of my writing published - the only way to make a name for myself out there is to get my name out there. I have stories I'm writing for magazines and e-zines, as well as some books simmering on the back burners of my writing stove, some short story collections as well as a possible future novel. Well, two novels. And a couple of novellas... Okay, I have a lot of stuff to do, and I think I'm going to need some of the time this blog has been taking, both in the writing part and the thinking part.

That's another thing. It's hard to come up with something to write about every day that you, my readers, might find funny. Sometimes I dropped the ball, and when I go back and read some of my entries I can always tell when it was one of those days. Mixed in with some pretty funny stories and some not bad writing, there are quite a few stinkers; days where I was stuck for something and just wrote anything I could think of, funny or not. When I read those posts, I'm embarrassed by them; If you all were good enough to take the time to read this stuff, the least I should have done is the best I could for you. Sometimes I didn't. All I can do is tell you all "sorry about that."

So, this May 4th will bring me to the end of my daily blog.... but not of blogging entirely.

I have too much fun here to quit this thing entirely, but I do think I need to cut it back a bit. I need to free up some more of my time so I can finish my projects and get my name out there, as best I can. I'm 42 people, and I'll be 43 by the time May 4th rolls around. With regards to writing - I think I have to get a wiggle on. But I still want this reminder that I can write things that might make people laugh from time to time, and I want to keep practicing at doing just that.

Also, I do like having an audience, however small.

Oh, and so you know: Though I can see from day to day that blog pages are read, and which blog pages are read, I can not see anything about the people doing the reading. If I register 40 page reads in a day, I have no way of knowing if that was 40 individuals logging in and reading a page each, or if there were 5 people reading 8 pages each, or if it was simply a single visitor, bored out of their mind and with time to kill, flipping along and reading 40 pages in a day. When I say I have no idea how large my audience is, and that I'm not sure, for the most part, who makes it up, I'm not kidding.

Now - on to the pitch for votes!
I have 3 weeks to decide how often I will be blogging after the 4th. I see some writers who blog once a week, some once a month, and some just whenever the mood strikes them and they feel like sticking some words together. I was thinking about once a week, but then I was thinking about once a month... Hell, I can't make up my mind, so I decided to ask for your opinion.

In the upper right corner of the page you'll find a poll asking you how often you think I should blog: once a month, once a week, and whenever I feel like it. Please, weigh in and let me know what you want. You all are my very first audience, and I'd love it if you all had a say. So please don't just read all this, shrug and move on to do something else. Take a second to vote up above there. The more votes I get the better I'll feel about whatever decision is made, and I'm leaving the poll up there right until the 4th, so everyone has time to vote, including people who only read me once a week.

Whatever the outcome, I'll have both more time for my fiction as well as time to give you all the best work I can, hopefully entertaining you with every post.

Looking forward to your votes!

Talk to you later!

                   -Thank you for your time, every bit of it.

                                                        -Rob

A Day in the Life

REMINDER!
The Coffin Hop starts this Monday! I've added my website to the list and started making a 'Coffin Hop' page, so please stop by the Website, join in on the Hop! With over 90 different authors taking part, that makes more than 90 chances to win stuff!
Let me repeat that:
MORE THAN 90 CHANCES TO WIN STUFF!!!
...and you might just find a new author you like, someone who's writing career you can follow. Who knows, you might find the next Stephen King just waiting for you to discover him!

******************************************************************

So I know I said I'd not be posting here about my fiction writing, but this isn't about accomplishments. This is about the process. And my lack thereof.

I have a very short story, less that 1,500 words, and it's a response to the flash assignmenr from my writing group this month. A Halloween story - surprise surprise. So I wrote one, and I like it a lot, but I need to edit it. Pare it down. Streamline it.

Just so I don't forget things like this I put a little Gadget in the sidebar on my desktop. It look like a little yellow Post-It pad, and I use it to leave myself little reminders up there. It's my To-Do list. The 1st thing in the to-do list is "Edit It's a Powerful Thing" It's been the top thing in the list for almost a week now. Here's a little breakdown of my usual day lately:

• 6:30 am 
• Wake up, get ready for work and try to be early enough to sit down before clocking in and get some editing done on the story.
• 8:05 am
• Hustle in from the parking lot at work, trying to be on the clock for 8:00. Yes, I know, I didn't make it.  But I tried.
• 10:30 am
• Get my route on the road for my 9:05 leave time. Yes, I know, I didn't make it. But I tried.
• 4:00 pm
• Finish my route and head to the library in town, having worked straight through so I can take my lunch and breaks at the same time so I have at least 50 minutes to write this blog, then get right to editing that story.
• 4:10 pm
• Check my email, answer one or two really fast. Finish with that quickly so I can bang out the blog and get to that story.
• 4:15 pm
• Stare at blank Blog page for a while, thinking furiously. 
• 4:20 pm 
• Check email again, diddle around with something for the Coffin Hop. 
• 4:23
• Realize what I'm doing, curse at myself a little and get back to the blog
• 4:25 pm
• Stare at blank Blog page for a while, thinking furiously.
• 4:30
• Stroll to the bathroom looking for a little inspiration
• 4:35 pm
• Stare at blank Blog page for a while, thinking furiously.
• 4:40 pm
• ...Zzz... zzz...  - What? What! Oh, how embarrassing! (wipe up the drool)
• 4:45 pm
• Inspiration hits! Start writing furiously
• 4:46 pm
• Remember that I don't actually know how to type, and begin to hit the "backspace" button furiously
• 4:47 pm
• Start writing again at a more sedate pace
• 4:55 pm
• Stop writing and pack it up, head back to the office and get off the clock.
• 10:00 pm
• My son's been put to bed (and I took a half-hour nap with him) and I've come home, taken a shower and sat down to work for the evening - 1st thing's 1st, finish the Blog!
• 11:00 pm (+/- 15 minutes)
• Publish the blog and look at the story, sitting next to me in its nice manila folder, highlighters resting atop it. But there was thought I had about the Coffin Hop this afternoon... if I just get that one thing done then I can spend the rest of the night with the story...
• 1:00 am
• Doze off for the 1st time, wake up 5 minutes later (usually from one of those 'falling' dreams where you almost kick yourself over backward in the chair. Don't you hate those?) and try to just finish that one thing for the Hop, and then I'll go to bed and work on the story in the morning when I get up at 5:00 am.
• 2:00 am
• Bleary, a little dozy, I'm either finished with what I was working on for the Hop, or I just quit. I reset the alarm for 6:00 am and start getting stuff ready for work in the morning
• 2:15 am
• One last check of email before I go to bed. Then the weather. Then the blogsite for traffic. Then FaceBook. Then the weather again, just in case it changed. Then the website to make certain I remembered to hide all the pages I was supposed to hide. Then the weather again.
  I swear I don't have OCD.
• 2:45 am-ish
• Move the laptop over to the bed and pull up Archer on Hulu. Or FX. Or somewhere . I'm a little unsure of this part, it's a little bleary. Re-set the alarm for 6:30 am so I'll have a little time in the morning to work on editing that story (remember that story? remember that?)
• 2:55 am-ish
• Realize I'm still dressed, stop Archer, get undressed, then start Archer from the beginning again so i don't miss anything. It's the same episode I watched the night before, and the night before that, and the night before that ... and still, I worry that I might miss something. 
• Sometime between 3:00 am and 3:30 am. -ish. I think.
• Fall asleep
• 6:30 am 
• Wake up, get ready for work and try to be early enough to sit down before clocking in and get some editing done on the story.

And we know how it runs from there, don't we?

Now, it's quarter of 9 at night, and I think I have the blog done. I'm going to publish this baby, take a shower and get my son to bed. I'll take a little snooze with him, about 15-20 minutes, and I'll get up and come back over here and edit the story that's sitting right next to me right now, in its nice manila folder with the highlighters resting atop it.

Sure I will.

Talk to you later!

Serious Monkey Business

Sometimes this thing just about writes itself.
This has been one of those times.
I was sitting down to write you a little story about Handsome's changing taste in costumes over the years, and I think I still might. Maybe tomorrow, but not today. Today I went looking on the internet for some photos of costumes my son has worn in the past, preparing to give you all some sort of visual. I went straight to a costume store on the web, figuring they would have the best photos and a good selection. Maybe I could find all the pictures I wanted at one place - one stop shopping, as it were.
This year he is dressing as Freddy Krueger from the movie Nightmare on Elm Street. He's never seen the movie, but what the hell. So I searched the costume site for "Freddy". What came up was a picture of a young woman wearing their 'Sexy Freddy' costume, and, take it from me, Freddy Krueger did not look like that! If he had, then all those teen-aged boys he was chasing on the movie wouldn't have been running quite so hard.

If they ran at all.

Which I doubt.

Okay, fine. I'll refine the search. I backed out of 'Sexy Freddy', and entered 'Freddy kids' in the search field. What popped up was this:

I stared. I stared some more. I stared ... well, you get the point.

This, Ladies and Gentlemen, is the 'Search Monkey', and he pops up whenever the website search engine can not find what you are looking for. 

I had all sorts of things I was going to say about Handsome's costumes. I had all sorts of things to say about the Search Monkey. But they say 'a picture is worth a thousand words', so I'm going to save myself a while lot of time here.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you the Search Monkey!

'Nuff said.

Talk to you later!

To Whom it May Concern...

If you are reading this, then it must be too late, and I am dead.

I'm just kidding! But it is October, and Halloween is coming. Check out the new big scary button to right over there. That will, once October 24th arrives, take you to join the Coffin Hop - a temporary network of up-and-coming writers in the Horror Genre. For the week of October 24th to the 31st you will be able to see new, fresh stories, see author bios, play games and maybe win some prizes!
What prizes, you ask?
 I have no idea.
Well, that's not entirely true. You may win e-books, print books, or maybe even have yourself written into someone's next project! You have to shop the Hop to find out, and the more you hop the better your chances are; your chances both to win some Halloween swag and find a new author you like to read!

I'm sorry, was there a downside there? Maybe I missed it.
Nope.
There is no downside, only Halloween fun!

Now, on to the serious part.
For those of you who have not been paying attention, I'm a writer, and a pretty good one. I've had one story published so far, but there is another one coming out next month and two in December. And I have a little thing going on with a Christmas anthology that's coming out next year... there's a lot happening! That's why I started a website for my fiction.
The website, called The Storyteller, is a place for people to find some of my stories as well as information about when and where I'm being published. WYMOP (this blog) is a fun thing for me, and a place for people to keep track of me from day-to-day, but it's not all about my fiction. So, from now on, if you're interested in my short stories (and longer stories) and publishable work, you can find it on The Storyteller.
Now, will there be something new there every day? No. Every week? Probably not. But maybe.
So, what I'd like people to do, anyone who is interested in good stories (and eventually I'll be showcasing other writer's work as well) to go to my website and become a Member.
It's painless, I promise.
Now, every Member of my website will get an email notice whenever I have anything there to report. You don't have to check it every day, you don't even have to remember that it's there! It's like Ron Popeil used to say about his rotisserie: Set it and forget it! You'll just get a little news email every once in a while, say at least once a month. How easy is that? Oh, and it's as secure as you want it - your email address does not, repeat not go out with the group email for all to see. No worries.

Now, I have to be honest: I'm hoping for a whole bunch of Members. Nothing would give me the warm fuzzies more than seeing 25-30 Members by next week! To this end, you can invite other people you know who like good stories. So you tell two friends, and they'll tell two friends, and so on, and so on ... wow, my old commercials are really showing, aren't they? But seriously, if you like good stories, or want to keep track of my ever-growing writing career, or even both, then please go join my site.

I'd love to have you! :-)

Talk to you later!

P.S. - Tomorrow, the return of the Funny. I promise. Well... I promise to try, okay?

NaNoWriMo And Giant Shoes

Next month is National Novel Writing Month!

(NaNoWriMo, or just NaNo for short)
For an explanation of NaNoWriMo, click this link to go to my post called "Treated Right But Still Planning A Murder", I pretty much explain it all there.

I've been holding on to an idea for this year's NaNo for 10 or 11 months now, and it's almost time to start writing! I'd actually been holding the idea for so long it was starting to seem stale in my mind. I'd think about it a bit and start to worry about NaNoWriMo rather than look forward to it.
"Is there enough there?" I'd worry. "Will I be able to take that idea and stretch it out for at least 50,000 words?" I was so wrapped up in writing other fiction, even writing this blog, that the idea I had for my NaNo novel, started looking iffy. I was considering not working on NaNo this year, but I decided to think about it a little more.
So today as I was walking my route I started to think about the story, which I have given the working title "Home Grown". I started with a main character sketch, then some supporting characters. A little about my Big Bad for the story, then some area sketches. Then a plan for a quick outline to follow, planned some scenes, and added a dog. Planned some more scenes, thought of a sub-plot, nixied the dog then brought him back, thought of some backstory, added another character sketch to the mulch-pile, thought of a twist, two more characters went into the pile ...
Holy Crap I thought, my mind flying like the Concord. Wow, I can write anything!
I moved on to doing rewrites of existing stories in my head, stories I have written this year that have... issues. I fixed the issues, made the stories better, all in my head as I was walking. It all seemed so easy!
My God! I really can write anything! I'm a great writer!


I got to lunch, went to the library and whipped out the laptop and sat down to write my blog. I zipped to the site, opened a New Post, cracked my knuckles and gently placed my fingers on the keys.
Okay, I've been cooking with gas all day, so this shouldn't take long at all! Okay ... I'll blog about ... um ... I'll blog about...  about ... ah ... 

...Dang!




 

 


 Yup. Mr. 'Great Writer' had Blogger's Block, so you got that instead.

From hero to zero in seconds flat. Even the fastest of runners can stumble when their shoes are too big.

...or their britches.

Talk to you later!

Website, Ho!!

Hi.

I'm tired.

I spent last night, into the early hours of the morning, creating a website where I can handle my fiction and showcase some of it. There's a button in the upper right of your screen that will bring you right to it. You can see what I dream up, rather than what I live.

No trip, no directions, no maps. There won't even be time for the men to get lost and the women to get all disgusted with the men for not wanting to stop and ask for directions.

Not to worry, I'm sure we'll give them something else to be disgusted with us about.

You saw my 2-parter on Male/Female bathroom etiquette? I rest my case.

Anyway, I'm tired. The site's not really done, might never be done, but there are a couple of stories there already, and information about finding more. It is now, and will forever be, a work in progress.

Just like me. 

I was going to write a blog today.  I swear I was.

I was going to work on my current story, a tale of sci-fi /horror. I swear I was.

I did not.

Instead I worked on pages, links, pictures (well, one picture), a little bit of content, and figuring out just how all that crap works. In fact, I vgbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb

Oh crap! Sorry about that. Well, at least I now know that when I doze off in front of the laptop my nose lands squarely on the "B". Funny the things you find out on less than 3 hours of sleep.

Maybe I need caffeine.

Oh well.

Talk to you labbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb

Digging That Funky Sound

So yesterday I was sitting at the dining room table at Handsome's house, putting the finishing touches on that day's blog. (If you haven't seen it, this entry may make more sense to you if you read that one first - it's the one titled 'Mindworm') I had decided to out in a link to a Village People video on YouTube. I performed the search, found the right video, and copied the URL. That was all I had to do, really, I could have left or even closed the page and returned to the blog to embed the link, finishing the blog.
The song, however, was starting.
It was still stuck in my head, so with a shameful fascination I maximized the window and just let the video roll.
It was about 1/3 of the way along when Handsome appeared by my side, fresh from the shower.
"What'cha doin', Dad?"
"Watching the video of this band."
He stood next to me and watched with me, as the Village People danced up the sidewalk singing "YMCA" with a gusto never seen before, and not seen since. They pumped fists, they swung hips, they kicked and jumped. They were also, unfortunately, dressed as the Village People.
After about a minute of this I became aware of Handsome looking at me sideways.
"This is awful! I mean, I'm embarrassed to be here seeing this and nobody even knows!"
"It's just a band," I explained. "They're just a band with a gimmick. They dress like everyday people, you know, like guys who work for a living, while they perform."
I thought it sounded good, but Handsome's finger stabbed at the screen.
"An indian? What about the indian?"



"Uh ... " I gave it some thought, trying to come up with a good explanation for the Village People.

I failed.




"Okay, that's it, I'm embarrassed to be seen with you," he said, waving a hand at me as he hurried away.
"What," I shouted, "it's not like anybody knows we watched it."

Until now. (Cue the Evil Laughter!) Muhahahahaaaaa ...

Talk to you later!

Writer's Block?

At lunch today I sat there and wracked my brain for something to blog about ... and I came up empty. I wound up working on my current ghost story instead. It's becoming longer than I had planned, but as anyone who has actually spoken with me can tell you, my stories do tend do drag on a bit.
That's what editing is for!
The end result of all this is that now it's 11:00 at night, and technically I only have an hour to get something in here for Wednesday ... and I'm sitting here wracking my brain and coming up empty.
Terrific.
I'm doing what I can to help myself think. For a while I was spinning my chair back and forth, but that didn't help. I tried drumming on the chair arms for a while, but that just degenerated into the solo from "Wipe Out". Whenever I drum on anything like that it becomes that solo. Actually, it becomes an arrhythmical mess, but I always say it's the drum solo from "Wipe Out". Less embarrassing that way.
Hold on, this is an emergency. I know what I need to do. I'll be back in a bit.

Okay, I'm back. Took me a while to get back. I decided to do what really helps me think. I grabbed the book I am currently reading and headed into the bathroom. I didn't have to go (have you noticed that even when you don't have to go, if you go in there and sit down you suddenly have to go just a little? I call it the Token Trickle. I Tokened, but that was it.) but I stayed in there reading "Full Dark, No Stars" by Stephen King.
Man, that dude can write.
So I stayed in there, reading and waiting for inspiration to hit, until I got to a good place to put the bookmark back between the pages. I closed the book and rose from my seat.
I said I rose from my seat.
Hello?
Okay, I tried to rise from my seat, but apparently my legs up and died from the knee down. I made myself get up, holding on to the vanity counter for support and tried to walk back in here.
Have you ever noticed that when your legs are dead from the knee down you ...
What are you looking at me like that for? What, like I'm the only one to ever have done this? Horse hockey! You know you've done the exact same thing! Maybe not for the same reason, but you've done it more than once, so you keep your weird 'I don't know what you're talking about' looks to yourself. You get me?
Good.
So anyway, have you noticed that when you are in this odd dead-leg state, when you try to walk your ankles don't flex properly? You lift your foot from the floor and instead of actively stepping it just hangs off your ankle like it's in desperate need of a large Viagra shipment? You try to step forward normally, try to bring your foot down heel first like you did on the way in to the room you are now trying to leave, but your foot just refuses to cooperate? You wind up doing this exaggerated tippy-toe, looking like the villain sneaking through a silent film. You aren't silent, though, as the circulation always begins to come back before you get wherever you are going, even if it's just across the room. It's like that trickster, God, has turned the entire floor into one huge joy-buzzer, and with every step you hear yourself saying "ooohhhh .... ahhhhhh ..... ohmiGod ...".
So, I just  ooohhhh .... ahhhhhh ..... ohmiGod dead-foot tippy-toed my way out into the hall and into my room. Half-way here I realized I had forgotten my book, and I gave going back for it a brief consideration.
No. Way.
So I managed to collapse into this chair here, and here I'm staying. The joy-buzzer feeling is starting to subside, thank God, but I think I'll give it a while yet before I try to walk anywhere.
Besides, I still have to think of something to write for today's ... hang on. What the ...?

I just did a word-count on the babbling I just did up there. Over 700 words. 700 words of nothing. Nothing!
Waitaminute... a whole piece about nothing? Holy @#$&!! It sounds like I just wrote "Seinfeld"!

I have to post this, then go back and read it. I really wasn't paying attention when I wrote it.
This is Writer's Block?

Talk to you later!

How-To

I'm sitting here with absolutely no idea what to blog about today. Nothing terrific happened today, well, nothing anyone wants to read about happened. My mind is a complete blank. But I look to my right, and there,sitting on the cart right next to my little printer, is a book I picked up on my trip to Colorado earlier in the year: "Write a Novel (and get it published)". I picked it up because it has what looks like a great section on Structure, and that seems to be a weak spot in my writing.

But that's not important right now.

Seeing that "How To" book lying there gave me a thought. I'll bet there are a whole bunch of "How To" books that don't exist, but should! So I thought I'd try making a list of helpful "How To" books that, as far as I know, don't exist yet.

"How To" Books that Don't Exist

(but should)

• "Mickey-Mousing  -  A Home Owner's Guide"
  
  
• "No, Really, It's for a Friend!"
• ... or "How to purchase an embarrassing ointment or other personal product"
  
• "No, Really, It's A Horrible Cold."
• ...or "A Guide to Avoiding Kissing, Shaking Hands, or Otherwise Touching the Strange Relatives you Only See at Weddings and Reunions."
  
• "It's a Boy!"
• ... or "Lawn Care - Long Term Solutions to Labor-Intensive Problems"
  
• "No, Really, It's A Terrible Cold."
• ...or "A Guide to Avoiding Kissing, Shaking Hands, or Otherwise Touching the Strange Dude Your So-Called 'Friends' Set You Up With."
  
• "Yes, Officer, But I Can Explain... "
• ...or, "How to get out of a ticket when you are so, SO in the wrong..."
  
• "The Immune System of the Gods!"
• ... or "How To Get Around A Hottie Who's Using The Old 'No, Really, It's A Terrible Cold' Defense"
  
• "My Computer? It's In The Shop"
• ... or "What to Tell The Dork Who's Urging You to Read His Blog"

Okay, I think that's enough punishment for you few readers tonight. I think I'll wrap this up. 

Just a warning: I may return to this topic at a later date. 

Now... I have to get up early and call my local computer shops. I feel I need to warn them that there's about to be a run of people who feel the need to get their computers "In The Shop".

Sorry about that.

Talk to to you later!

Does Catnip Give You The Munchies?

Late last month I saw an ad in my Facebook sidebar. "Bloggers needed." I checked it out. I wound up going to a Facebook page for product called Chronic Catnip. They have their own website as well as the Facebook page, and apparently they're looking for bloggers.

Well hell, I thought, I'm blogging every day anyway. Whether they pay money or I can use as a writing credit, either way it kind of looks like fun.

So I followed the contact information and sent them an e-mail. They said that they were looking for bloggers with the humorous bent, so I sent them a few links to blog posts here at "While You're Making Other Plans", choosing three or four of, what I consider to be, the funniest posts I had. Since this wasn't entirely unsolicited, they had been advertising for bloggers, I sat back and waited for a response. I was a little excited, and looking forward to getting a response, since I would count this as an actual writing job. Whether it was for pay or just for using is a writing credit, it would be solicited writing for someone else. Yay me!

So, figuring that I would get an immediate response, I waited.

… And waited…

… And waited…

And 2 1/2 weeks later, as I was sitting at my computer, and e-mail came in from someone at Chronic Catnip, sent from their iPhone. The message, in its entirety, was "Rob, still interested in blogging?"

Well, I was sitting right there, so I banged out an immediate response. My send time was only 10 min. after I received their e-mail. I asked a couple of questions, basically asking what they were looking for, and hit Send.

That was almost 2 weeks ago, and I am yet to hear back again.

I'm still waiting.

Should I be surprised that a small business whose symbol is a stylized cat smoking something that looks suspiciously un-cigarette like seems to have a hard time getting back to me in a timely fashion? That their attitude seems to be quite laid-back?

I think not.

If anyone from Chronic is reading this, please, feel free to contact me through the blog. I'd still be thrilled to blog for you guys. It still sounds like fun, and I would still try to do a good job.

Maybe just a little bit… Slower than I had originally intended.

Still waiting.

Talk to you later!

… Still waiting…