Location: Kits Beach, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Photo info: captured on an iPhone 4s and stitched together in Photoshop (no effects added – those clouds are 100% natural!).
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Author: MCD
I'm a writer. I also bake. And knit. A lot. My novels are available anywhere ebooks/paperbacks/audiobooks are sold online. Find more info on my blog: http://www.madebymeghan.ca
“A child has no trouble believing in the unbelievable, nor does the genius or the madman. It’s only you and I, with our big brains and tiny hearts, who doubt and overthink and hesitate.” – Steven Pressfield, Do The Work
This is not a review – yes I enjoyed the book, but, having just finished it, must let it distill, and distill and then? Spring into action! Just wanted to share the above quote.
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Christmas Baking #FAIL
I just spent three weeks baking for Christmas – no, I am not exaggerating – I made the following goodies:
Fruit Cake
Sugar Cookies – iced and sugared
Santa Whiskers
Gingerbread – decorated, but tradition not as zombies, regular & mini
Shortbread – chocolate-dipped and un-dipped
Caramel – plain, chocolate-dipped, dipped & salted, and cashew turtles
Butter Tarts
Nanaimo Bars
Fake Fudge
Almond Bark
…I feel like I am forgetting something – not the point – the point is that this is all I have to show for all that baking:
One photo. Taken on my iPhone and posted to Facebook to tease my sister (who LOVES homemade turtles), and, yes, I do believe that blob on the right side is the shadow of my finger in the shot – sigh!
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Yarn bombing…
It has been especially quiet around here for over a month, and while some of that time off was forced upon me (I was rather unwell through November into December), the later half of December was a self-imposed holiday filled with much baking and entertaining and holiday fun. Through all this the weather has been remarkable here in Vancouver and I have enjoyed a number of sunny (and windy!!) seawall walks.
While walking to Granville Island on December 31, I happened upon two great examples of yarn bombing a.k.a knitting graffitti… true, I have noted others while wandering around Vancouver’s Kitsilano area, but these were brand new and begging to be photographed (with the iPhone 4s, FYI).
Wikipedia (linked above) describes yarn bombing as such: Yarn bombing, yarnbombing, yarnstorming, guerrilla knitting, urban knitting or graffiti knitting is a type of graffiti or street art that employs colorful displays of knitted or crocheted cloth rather than paint or chalk.
- A fringed yarn bomb on the swing set at Kits Beach, Vancouver, BC, Canada
This, of course, got me wondering about yarn bombing and whether or not anyone was tracking such things… if I should be submitting the photos to a database or what not… and, upon Googling, I discovered that the writers behind yarnbombing.com were actually from Vancouver, BC, Canada, which I thought was more than a little cool! There are also a few Ravelry groups devoted to this subject.
- A flowered yarn bomb on a tree at the entrance of the seawall path of Vanier Park
There were no tags identifying the artist(s), but I suppose that isn’t the point. I hope to happen upon more installations, and may be moved to contribute my own some day…
“What? What are you talking about Feeder? A Christmas scarf for your sister? Your loom?!”
“Human insanity. This clearly a cat bed. With yarn toys conveniently attached. Now let me sleep in peace. Can’t you see the sunbeam I’m soaking?”
- After The Virus is the Kindle Sponsor of the Day over at David Wisehart’s blog, Kindle Author!
- 3 new 4 star reviews over at Amazon: “Great debut novel of a post apocalyptic world in which females are hunted” by Cheryl M-M, “Love among the post-apocalypse” by puggle, and “Good Book” by M. hampton.
- In other book publishing related news, Michelle Demers, who has generously answered many of my questions about self-publishing, has just released her book, The Global Indie Author. Grab it here in paperback or as an ebook! I will personally be scouring the pages about setting up a POD version (Print on Demand) for After The Virus (release date TBA).
I first stumbled across Suzie Ivy via her blog, Bad Luck Detective, and last week I was happy to see that she had released her first book, Bad Luck Cadet, which I believe is a collection of her early blog posts. I immediately bought and then, very soon after, read Suzie’s book.
I really liked it.
I knew I would, but still I am glad that that was the case, because — if you hang out with me at all regularly or if you’ve read any of my writing — you will already understand how unusual it is for me to like and follow a writer who is, in this particular incarnation, a memoirist.
Suzie Ivy is the Bad Luck Detective. She chose to become a police officer at the age 45 – it was a tough, male-dominated road (read her book). I don’t even know her and I think she is an amazing person. I really do love her stories. Actually, some times, I can’t believe they are “real life”.
So what exactly do I like about Suzie Ivy, and, in particular, the Bad Luck Cadet?
Beyond appreciating her as a person for the difficult lifestyle choice she made when becoming a police officer, I love how she has taken her police work and simply shared it with us all. She is insightful and humorous. I have actually laughed and then teared-up in the same chapter. Her writing is personal, but not overly dramatic. She details her real life in a completely accessible, and even charming, manner. She lets the poignant moments be, so you almost stumble upon them, rather than dressing everything up in flowery “look here” language.
The Bad Luck Cadet is a new, fresh character in the “cops & robbers” world, and I look forward to reading many more of her adventures.
Suzie’s next book is due out January 13, 2012!
How about a by weekly round up of the Flash Fictions currently available for “A Year Before Harbinger”?
Please note: These are unedited, non-proofed first drafts.
The three entries so far are:
– September 30, 2011 – Peace of Mind?
- Writer Suzie Ivy recently read and reviewed my novel, After The Virus – “Bad guys become good, worse guys stay bad and humanity fights for what’s right. What more could I ask for? Oh and then Doidge added zombies. Bottom line, I loved this book!”
- A brand new project of mine can be found over at Yesterday’s Sunsets – in an effort to offset the massive amounts of writing I am currently doing on the Harbinger first draft, I felt I needed another creative project, but not one that would consume too much writing time. I had always intended to document the amazing sunsets we are so lucky to get here in Vancouver, and this seemed like a good time to start doing so. I am adding a bit of random dialogue along with each post – just to keep my writing muscles flexed (in a different direction) as well.
- Currently reading, Bad Luck Cadet by Suzie Ivy and very much enjoying it! I’ll post a review when I am done, but you can find excerpts of the book (and her next one) over at her Bad Luck Detective blog.
- Just read Scott Fitzgerald Gray’s novella, The Twilight Child, and though I usually don’t read high fantasy, (which I believe is the correct term) I really enjoyed this short story. I even reviewed it!!
General update: I just cracked the midpoint of the Harbinger novel, and am trying to not get distracted by a new idea to redo my screenplay, Love Lies Bleeding, as a novel. I actually have most of the third act written for Harbinger, so it’s a bit deceptive to say I am only halfway. I should have a completed draft by the beginning of December, then the rewriting begins! I’ll continue the Flash Fiction Fridays every 2nd Friday and start posting some short stories soon as well. Sales for After The Virus have been steady (thank you!), and I am working on a POD (print on demand) version that I hope to have ready for Holiday shopping.
Hope you are all well – I just can’t believe it’s NOVEMBER!!
These are Navdeep’s Christmas 2010 socks…he took possession of them last night on October 31, 2011. Yes, I am a little behind with the knitting, ahem, either that or I have too many projects on the go…
Pattern: David Socks – Designed by Anne Hanson of Knitspot – as always Anne’s patterns are well written and result in fantastic finished objects! – rating: 5 stars
Yarn: Gourmet Crafter Sock Yarn by Gourmet Crafter (Alexa) – Colourway: Stanley Park Lights – love the yarn base (cashmere!!) and the colours – rating: 5 stars