Weekend Randomness

[jon_chaisson]

Stuff done today
--dropped unwanted clothes off at Goodwill
--went shopping at Target/JoAnn/BB&B for various things
--went shopping at Trader Joe's on the way back (and managed to get a good parking space in the dinky underground lot)
--went for a walk with Emm to the local library to drop off unwanted books
--picked up quarters for laundry
--laundry
--not a lick of writing!!

It feels weird yet relaxing that I haven't done any writing since New Year's Eve. I was telling Emm this is not a normal thing for me to do; if I do take a day off from writing, it's usually during the writing of the novel itself rather than afterwards. But I figure sometime next week or so I'll start picking up Love Like Blood again to do the revision.

In the meantime, I've been utilizing the unexpected slow time we've been getting at work to do some brainstorming for the IWN Project. I've been doing things such as making some quick character bios, making a (VERY) brief plan of the layout of the story, and trying to remember certain plot points I'd come up with for each of the versions that I might be able to use. It's not much, maybe around 5 pages or so on a steno notebook, but it's something to work on, I guess. I'm planning on transcribing them to the Dana when I can so I can build them up from there.

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Speaking of the Dana, after many problems trying to figure the damn thing out, I finally found out how to use the wireless connection! It took some tweaking, but it's all figured out. Now all I need to do is try to figure out how to go online. I managed to upload a browser to it, but that doesn't seem to be working correctly, so I'll have to tweak it some more to figure out what I need to do.

Well, as long as I can use it to write and not goof around online (thanks for pointing that out,

shadawyn ! ), everything should work out just fine.

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One of the resolutions both Emm and I have made is to try and save as much money as possible this year so when we decide on the family thing we'll be able to afford me working from home, as well as moving to a somewhat larger place. We're still thinking of looking for a place in Noe Valley, a neighborhood we both like quite a bit. I've been looking on craigslist every now and again to check out apartment listings, just to get a feel for what we'd be able to afford. It's a bit more expensive there than it is at our current place, but we'll see what we can do...

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Speaking of Noe Valley, we'll be heading down there (I should say "up" there, as part of it is actually on top of a hill :p ) to do a bit of shopping and scope out the neighborhood some more. I really like the place, as it's kind of quiet and away from everything, yet still in the city. It's kind of interesting in that a lot of the online listings of the neighborhood list it as a sort of baby-boomer place with a lot of couples with strollers and therefore a bit hoity-toity, but I have to disagree. Sure, it's a family-oriented neighborhood and there are more than a few kid-centric stores there, but the vibe is actually decidedly "I'm going to settle down", rather than "ooh, this is a hip place to live".

Anyhoo, it sports not only a yarn store but a record store, so that's cool for both of us. ;)

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Other than that, not much else happening...it's supposed to actually hit the 60s this weekend, so we'll finally be as warm as the rest of the country...sheesh, didn't Emm and I move here to enjoy better weather?!?? ;-)

 

Comments

[juniperblue.livejournal.com]

Whereabouts is Noe Valley?

As far as better weather, no snow, right? ;D

[joncwriter.livejournal.com]

Remember when I took you and Amanda down Market Street from the Zoo so I could show you that great lookout place? Noe Valley is directly underneath that hill...in fact, it's right underneath that stretch of Market! :p

True, and I'm always happy about that, even if I do kind of miss the snow in some weird masochistic way... :p

[dasmarzipan.livejournal.com]

You are not allowed to complain about the weather (evil grin). At least you don't have the Santa Anas threatening to blow down your house all night long. (I found out that there is a lot of lore associated with those winds...such as people going loony because of them (talking to one's self, etc. Even in "White Oleander", a woman's murder is blamed on the Santa Ana winds that hit the LA area every year. Who knew?????)) Kept me up last night and the night before. Of course, having wind chimes on one's balcony during a windy night can create QUITE the cacophony!!!!!

[joncwriter.livejournal.com]

Oh, I talk to myself a lot, especially at work. It's usually "man, what are these people on ?!??" after I hang up the phone, but still...

At least in Noe it's reasonably quieter...

[dasmarzipan.livejournal.com]

Noe Way!

(heh heh...you're in for it now, mister!)

[dasmarzipan.livejournal.com]

And just one more thing... So what you're saying is, "Noe" Valley is a hill?
Damn straight...that's what I say.

[joncwriter.livejournal.com]

*headdesk*

Saving

[chaoticmoth.livejournal.com]

Good luck with the savings! The two strategies I have used successfully in the past are:

Make the account the money goes into difficult to withdraw from. No ATM card! When I was saving for Amy's engagement ring I had to drove 20 minutes to make a withdrawal (money went in via a split direct deposit).

Track EVERY expense for a month, see what you can cut, figure out how much you can afford each month in savings, and then set that as the first "bill" you pay after you get your paycheck.

Good luck!

Re: Saving

[joncwriter.livejournal.com]

I tried the No ATM Card thing in the past but it really didn't work for me all that much. I think the good thing is that Emm has trained me enough [enter joke here] not to be as materialistic as I once was. I'd be surprised if I end up spending over $30 a week on myself anyway...

As for tracking expenses, we're going to try to do that. I believe Emm already has an Excel shell for it, but we're yet to really give it a good workout yet! :p

[emilytheslayer.livejournal.com]

I love that when looking for a good place to start a family, you consider nearby yarn and cd shops. Not that there's anything wrong with that, I'm just impressed by how quickly you've become "fiber aware." :)

[joncwriter.livejournal.com]

Well, I think of it this way: if I've got my back to her and furiously typing away at my latest novel or whatnot, I figure she'd need something to keep her busy too and yarn seems to do the trick quite nicely. ;)