September 26th Challenge

Hi it’s Christina –

Good Morning! I’ve been in a bit of a funk for the past few days – kinda – sorta – sick, but not quite. Everything was a little off, and that is why I did not do a blog post. I was concentrating on the “absolutely have to”, and letting the rest slide.

I did go to my Tuesday writing group. We had a HUGH crowd. I think it was the biggest yet. Afterwards, a small group of us went for ice cream. Terrance, a regular in the group, Rebecca, a new addition who found our group completely by accident (she was supposed to be studying, then thought we were a volunteer group, so she decided to sit in – boy was she surprised; but then she had so much fun, she decided to stay, and will more than likely be returning), and Annabelle, a radio producer for the BBC, who was visiting from England, via Tanzania.

Can you believe that? She was in Princeton for just one day, had nothing better to do, so she decided to visit our writing group at the library. She claims she has never written before, but Oh MY, what a talent she has. If she ever gets bored with doing her radio shtick, she could have a lucrative career as a writer. Yeah, she was that amazing.

Blessedly, Wednesday evening I had not meetings, so I was able to relax a little. Dani went out with some friends, and I commandeered the television. Monday night I got to watch the season premiere of Sleepy Hollow, but as luck would have it, it aired at the exact same time as a new show I wanted to see, Scorpion. Thanks to the magic of OnDemand, I was able to watch Monday’s show on Wednesday.

Now, even though because of all the hype, and all the previews, you pretty much saw the entire show before it aired, I still think it is going to be a good show. Next week will be the real test for me. If they can keep the momentum going, I’ll continue to watch. (On OnDemand of course – Sleepy Hollow takes presidents.)

Even though I claim I do not watch much TV, this season appears to have sucked me back in. I am, and I have been, a fan of NCIS since its inception, and have watched fairly faithfully. A few years back they did a spin-off NCIS:LA, and I began to watch that one too, but not faithfully. Now this year there is another spin-off NCIS: New Orleans – and considering I have always been a fan of Scott Bakula, there was no way I was going to miss this new series. So there’s three shows.

You already know what a Sleepy Hollow nut I am, plus now I may be adding Scorpion. My husband got me hooked on Person of Interest, but I’m not a faithful watcher. Dani and I watch Teen Wolf together (it’s our thing). Another obsession of mine is Grimm, which like NCIS and Hawaii Five-O, I have been watching from their first episodes; and as luck would have it, Grimm and Hawaii Five-O are on at the same time. All told, that’s nine shows – nine hours of my week spent unproductively, doing nothing but sitting on my bum, relaxing. Not my usual style.

Oh wait, I forgot one. Elementary. I’m a big fan of Sherlock Holmes, so when a modern day version came out, I was all over it. I love pitting my wit against the character to see if I can pick up on the same clues he does.

I will admit, the new show Forever has caught my interest as well, but I think I will let that one slide by for now. For someone who doesn’t not really like to waste time watching TV, my plate is quite full at the moment. This one I will relegate to OnDemand while the others are in reruns.

That’s the same way I get my Castle fix. I watched an episode this summer when there was nothing on, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. So between TNT, OnDemand, Netflix, and my computer, I have been getting caught up on the last several seasons.

So what about you? What shows have gained your loyalty and commandeered your precious time? What is it about the show that drew you in, that keeps you coming back week after week?

Just a reminder, the $0.99 Kindle Sale is still going on. You have until 11:59 p.m. on Saturday to get your copies of A Second Chance, Taking Chances, and/or Corporate Blues. At midnight, the prices go back up, and I don’t think they will be on sale again this year. We’ll see.

Okay, I should get going. I need to run to the bank to get change for Saturday – I’m actually selling my books, they are not being filtered through a bookstore this time. I have to run to ShopRite to replenish my candy again – both days last weekend, I got wiped out. Then, when I get home, I need to clean out my car, because not only does all my junk need to get pack in there, Kathi Kurz is driving up to MilfordAlive with me, so I’m going to have all her junk too. Two tables, two chairs, all our decorations, cases of both of our books, our food and drink cooler, and God only knows what else. At least we are sharing the tent, so we’ll only have one of those. 

I hope you have an amazing day, and happy writing!

Your Next Challenge:

Cinderella gets fed up with being “mister nice guy” and plots her revenge on her step sisters…

You have ten minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count, and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

October 15th Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina – 

Good morning. The whole “feeling better” yesterday lasted about two hours and then I was back in bed. It was so strange. I would have sworn I was getting the flu, I had all the symptoms, but today, other than a little tired, I am pretty much fine. There is no such thing as a one day flu I’m sure.

I did force myself to stay up and watch Sleepy Hollow last night. I am SO addicted to the show. If you haven’t had a chance to see it, it’s on Monday nights at 9:00 pm on Fox, and it is amazing.

Ichabod Crane, an Oxford professor, abandons his “red coat” and becomes an officer in George Washington’s army. During a battle he receives a mortal wound, but lasts long enough to behead his attacker. Unbeknownst to him, his wife Katrina is a witch, and she puts a spell on him to keep him from dying. He awakens in modern day Sleepy Hollow, and with him awakes the “man” he beheaded. Ah, but it isn’t a man at all. The now Headless Horseman is Death, one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse.  Ichabod and police “leftenant” (lieutenant) Abby Mills must work together to keep the gates of Hell from opening, and their only instructions as to how they can do that comes from the book of Revelations.

Although the individual episodes do stand on their own; if you can, you really should go back to the beginning and start watching. There is a lot of back story, and references in subsequent episodes won’t make much sense if you don’t know the whole story.

I’m very thankful Sleepy Hollow is getting such good reviews, because the track record for shows I enjoy has not been very good. If I love a show, it ends up getting cancelled or the writers change after the first couple of seasons and the show goes in the hopper.

As you can tell, I LOVE the show, and I will admit it is partly because I am smitten with Tom Mison who portrays Ichabod Crane. I’d like to hear what you have to say about it. Do you love it? Hate it? Haven’t seen it yet? Let me know.

 

I hope you have a wonderful day and happy writing!

 

Your Last Challenge was:

“Star Light, Star Bright, First Start I See Tonight…”

 

“Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight.” Close your eyes and make a wish. How many times did you do that as a child? Who among you will admit to still doing it now? I will, although now it is more a catalyst for sending up a prayer than actually thinking a star can grant a wish.

As a young child I would wish for things my mother said I couldn’t have, like a pony or a pool. As I got a little older the wishes would be for things like snow on Friday so I wouldn’t have to take my science test. When I reached the age where wishing on stars was no longer “cool”; that’s when the silent pleas would go up for the teasing to stop and for the acne to clear.

At some point, the wishes evolved from self-centered requests to prayers for others. Now, when I see the first star of the evening, I close my eyes and either pray for someone else in need or simply to give thanks for the blessings I have. That’s not to say the little girl in me wouldn’t still like the pony she never got…

 

Your Next Challenge is:

 

You wake from a dream that was so real…

 

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.