Black Rabbit Ink

Random Thought # 2

Stephen Chow is a genius.

If you haven't seen Kung Fu Hustle yet, get thee to a video store, or a Redbox, or Netflix, or wherever you go to get movies NOW. This movie has it all: action, adventure, comedy, drama, romance. The plot is fun, quirky, and cartoony with colorful characters that include dancing gangsters and a chain smoking landlady with a big chip on her shoulder. There are not enough words to describe the awesomeness of this movie; so, I've included a clip and the trailer below. 

Quote of the Week

"From now on, ending a sentence with a preposition is something up with which I will not put."

Sir Winston Churchill

Random Thought #1

The last few weeks have been super busy: contests, deadlines, trying to reduce the ridiculously huge TBR pile of books on my desk, working on my novel, working full-time at my "real" job, a few online workshops, and, of course, taking care of a house and family too...

Whew!  

I am still swamped, but do have a few updates coming up for you in the next few days. A book review of The Marriage Bureau for Rich People will be posted later this week (again, I’m really busy so it will be a bit shorter than my usual reviews) and I’ll get a new quote up by Friday.

In the meantime, just so you know I haven’t dropped off the face of the blogging world, I’ll be posting little random thoughts for you to laugh at, agree with, or just ignore until I have time to post more writing/reading related content.

And, so, I give you...

RANDOM THOUGHT # 1

Copacabana - sung by Barry Manilow and written by Manilow, Jack Feldman, and Bruce Sussman - is the best song ever written.   

Who knew a mere 4 minutes and 8 seconds of music could convey such a tragic tale of passion, jealousy, and murder? The retro 40's big band vibe mixes with a disco beat into a song that is fun, breezy, and ohhhhh so catchy. But, in the end, the story is a sad one. Here's how it goes:

Chapter 1:

Tony loves Lola. Lola loves Tony. The young lovers work together at the Copacabana, “the hottest spot north of Havana”. He is the bartender. She is a showgirl. Everything is perfect...

Chapter 2:

Until Rico shows up, flashing his diamond and making passes at Lola. He gets a little too grabby, and Tony rushes over to protect his girl. A fight ensues and then – boom – a gunshot.  

Chapter 3:

It’s thirty years later and the Copacabana is now a disco. Lola is still there, but her grief over losing Tony has made her crazy. Wearing her old showgirl outfit, she sits at a table and drowns her sorrow in alcohol until she is so inebriated she can’t see straight.  She is destroyed. The moral Barry Manilow offers up?

“At the Copa...don’t fall in love”.

So. Heavy.

Quote of the Week

"I look at my books the way parents look at their children. The fact that one becomes more successful than the others doesn't make me love the less successful one any less."
 
Alex Haley

Bookish Gifts to Give and Get

Today I was perusing the Internet when I came across The Library Shop at the New York Public Library site.

Which has a lot of really awesome stuff for readers and writers.

First, there is the Personal Library System for book lovers who love to lend books to friends from their personal library -  and want to get those books back. It has adhesive pockets, checkout cards, and a date stamper with an ink pad. How cool is that?

Then, I saw the X and O Typewriter Key Bracelet with vintage keys from Royal, Underwood and LC Smith Corona typewriters. It's really pricey. But I so want one now.

Fans of the marvelously morbid Edward Gorey, like myself, can find a few things to oooooooo and ahhhhhhhh over, such as the Edward Gorey's Dracula Theater or the Edward Gorey Cat on Book Pin (engraved on the back with "books. cats. life is sweet").

The six adorable Laini's Ladies figurines are also worth checking out. My favorite is the one that says "She is too fond of books, and it has addled her brain."

There's also a Vintage Camera Photo Album that caught my eye. And the store has a nice assortment of journals to choose from such as the New York or Books to Check Out journals.

The store has tons of other unique gifts available, too. So if you know any readers or writers with birthdays, anniversaries, or other celabratory events coming up, The Library Shop is definitely worth a visit.

Reasons Why Today Was A Good Day To Be A Mom

"It's a stone heart from Hades!"   Mr. Smartypants, giving me his Mother's Day gift - a stone paperweight in the shape of a heart from Haiti

4 hours of Sing It: High School Musical addition with two giggling children (and occasionally one goofy husband) belting out "Breaking Free" at the top of their lungs. Over and over and over again...

The Princess: Ew, your fingernails are too long! You're like a vampire or something.

Mr. Smartypants: Do I look like I sparkle?

- Conversation heard from the backseat on the way to Mother's Day dinner at Don Pablo's

Quote of the Week

"So the writer who breeds more words than he needs, Is making a chore for the reader who reads. "

From Seuss-isms by Dr Seuss (Theodor Geisel)

No. Help. At. All.

Like several of my fellow would-be writers, I have a day job. And at my day job, my team is working on a big project that involves me getting a package shipped out each afternoon for next day delivery. The world as we know it would fall apart if this were not done. Seriously. My boss told me so.

Because some of our packages end up being too large for the unnamed delivery company drop box near my office, I sometimes call for a pickup.

However, recently, the packages for shipping are making it to me later and later in the day. Like, an hour before I am supposed to go home. Naturally, I got curious. How late is too late to call unnamed delivery company for a pickup? Otherwise, if the package is too large for the drop box, I have to lug said package to the local unnamed delivery company on my way home, a real pain in the a** after working 8 hours straight.

So I emailed unnamed delivery company and asked them. Easy peasy - if anyone would know the answer to my question, they would, right? Ah, no. Not exactly. Here's how this went:

Customer (AK Willett) - 05/06/2009 03:25 PM

AK wrote:  If my office closes at 5 p.m., what is the latest time I could call unnamed delivery company to schedule a pickup for the same day?

Response (Customer Service) - 05/06/2009 03:27 PM

UDC wrote: We received your e-mail. Thank you for contacting unnamed delivery company.

You can request an unnamed delivery company SuperFast or unnamed delivery company SortaFast pickup from one convenient location on our Web site, unnameddeliverycompanyrocks.com.

You can schedule an unnamed delivery company SuperFast pickup for the same day or next business day. Unnamed delivery company SortaFast pickups can be scheduled for next business day or up to two weeks in advance.

Unnamed delivery company will pick up your package at the address we have on file for your account. If you need an unnamed delivery company SuperFast pickup at a different address, please call 1.800.unnameddeliverycompanyrocks.

We hope this information is helpful. Thank you for shipping with unnamed delivery company.

Hmmm. Ok, didn’t really answer the question. So I replied back and added more specifics to my query.

Customer (AK Willett) - 05/06/2009 03:55 PM

AK wrote: Thanks. But what is the latest I could call to schedule a pickup if my office closes at 5 (meaning the package would have to be picked up by unnamed delivery company before 5 o'clock)?

2 pm? 3 pm? 4 pm?

Response (Customer Service) - 05/06/2009 04:00 PM

UDC wrote: We received your email. We apologize for the inconvenience.

If you are scheduling a SortaFast pickup, your package will be picked up on the afternoon of the next business day.

In case you are scheduling an SuperFast pickup, you can contact unnamed delivery company in the morning for pickup in the afternoon.

We hope that this information is helpful. Thank you for shipping unnamed delivery company.

Really? That’s the best I can get?  Something like “pickups must be scheduled at least 3 hours before your office closes”  is too technical? Honestly, vagueness like call “in the morning for pickup in the afternoon” is not helpful.

Really.

Not one bit.

Bookshelf Review: Being Nikki

 

Name:Being Nikki (Airhead)

Author: Meg Cabot

In Airhead, Emerson Watts woke up after a freak accident and discovered that her brain had been transplanted into supermodel Nikki Howard's body. And that her parents had signed a contract with Stark Enterprises to save her. And that the contract stated she had to give up almost everything in her life and become Nikki permanently in exchange for the surgery. Things couldn't get worse, right?

Wrong.

It's been a couple of months since the accident and Em is beginning to adjust to life as the fashion world’s hottest model. But pretending to be someone else, even someone as hot as Nikki, isn’t easy. Her crush can't see who she really is, her family is moving on without her, and Stark Enterprises is watching her every move. Then Nikki's brother, a person no one in Nikki's circle even knew existed, shows up demanding answers for their mother's disappearance. Mysterious text messages, an ex with a mega chip on his shoulder, a $10M bra...Being a teenager is hard enough. Will Em ever adjust to being Nikki?

I love when a book is so good, I can't stop reading it until I've finished every last word. Being Nikki is one of those books.

Meg Cabot's writing is, as always, humorous and fun. I was hooked from the opening scene:  Em in a bikini, clinging to wet rocks and clenching a dagger between her teeth, wondering if the sharks swimming below are waiting around for a midnight snack. What a great place to pick up the story – smack dab in the middle of a photo shoot for Stark deodorant.

I think I enjoyed hanging out with Em Watts even more this time around. The plot is much more layered than in Airhead with several twists and turns to keep things interesting. A couple of spots in the beginning are a little slow, but overall the story moves along swiftly. New characters such as Nikki's brother, Steven, add fresh conflicts to Em’s already chaotic new life. And a few really BIG secrets are revealed that take Em’s story in a delightfully unexpected and darker direction.

I recommend reading Airhead before Being Nikki, but those reading this second installment in the series first won't be lost. Cabot has put in enough background to bring new readers up to speed. However, it would be best to read both of these before the final book in the trilogy, Runaway, is released next year.

Being Nikki will be in bookstores May 5, 2009.