...comes the Brightest Day.

Made myself dinner tonight:

Saffron Chicken marinated in a wine sauce and grilled served with risotto on the side.

It was really REALLY good. I'm pretty damn proud of myself for making a dish that wasn't typical "easy" fare.

If you haven't seen Fox's new show "Glee", consider this your wake up call:



Absolutely AMAZING.

Patrick Swayze died of cancer today. :(

So very very sad. I loved him in To Wong Foo (and the million other good movies he was in).

Since this is an incredibly pivotal episode that doesn't have nearly the impact if it gets spoiled, I won't say anything other than this:


Holy fucking shit Joss Whedon, you are a GOD. This was, hands down, the best episode of Dollhouse so far.

If you watched Dollhouse, you NEED to see this episode.

I can't wait for Season Two.



"They really thought they were helping, huh? Giving people what they needed. Is this what we needed?!"
"...No. Kids playing with matches--and they burned the house down."

Seriously California? You're given a chance to fix a huge mistake on your part and what do you do? Decide not to.

Good going there.

Also, to all the people who support Prop 8 and will be celebrating tonight, I have one image macro for all of you:

Dear Fellow Missourian and PROMO Supporter -

This morning the Iowa Supreme Court issued a ruling which strikes down a 1998 law recognizing marriage only between a man and a woman. Folks, we have Marriage Equality in Iowa. As more details are released, we will attempt to keep you updated - especially since the Iowa legislative session only has a few weeks left.

As I build this message in our system, it is bringing me to tears of joy. Today is a major step forward for Equality right here in the heartland of America. Please join me in celebrating today! Below is the PROMO press release we're getting out across the state.

Yours in Equality,

A.J. Bockelman
Executive Director
PROMO


PRESS RELEASE

PROMO Hails Iowa Supreme Court Decision on Marriage Equality


April 3rd, 2009(St. Louis, MO) – PROMO praised today’s decision by the Iowa Supreme Court granting marriage equality to same sex couples. The decision in the case of Varnum v. Brien, overturned the state’s 10-year-old law defining a “valid” marriage as only “between a male and female,” ruling that it violates the Iowa Constitution’s guarantees of equal treatment and due process. This makes Iowa the fourth state, after Massachusetts, Connecticut, and California, to grant marriage equality on the basis of judicial review and the first Midwestern state to recognize the fundamental right of same sex couples to marry. Last November Californians narrowly voted to re-establish a ban on same sex marriage with the passage of Proposition 8. Missouri passed a state constitutional amendment banning same sex marriage in 2004 by a margin of 71% to 29%.



A.J. Bockelman, Executive Director of PROMO, Missouri’s statewide organization advocating for equal rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons, called the Iowa decision a breakthrough. “While the Iowa decision doesn’t directly affect Missourians, it shows that the trend toward equality is inevitable. The fact that Iowa is right next door to Missouri shows that marriage equality is not just a coastal phenomenon and should give hope to all Missourians who cherish farness, justice, and equality. This is a truly historic day and a breakthrough for equal rights in the United States.”



Bockelman said that since Iowa will allow persons from out of state to marry, it is likely that many same sex couples from Missouri will cross the border to take advantage of this right. Because of Missouri’s 2004 anti-marriage constitutional amendment, however, such marriages will not be recognized here.



He emphasized that a great deal of work remains to be done. “Here in Missouri a person can still be fired from their job or thrown out of their apartment by a boss or landlord simply for being gay. The Missouri Non-Discrimination Act (MONA, SB 109 & HB 701), which would provide protections for LGBT persons in jobs and housing, had a hearing in a State Senate committee for the first time in eight years. We are hopeful of hearings in the House as well as a Senate floor vote this session. The fact that marriage is now a reality right next door in Iowa gives me a great deal of hope that we will be able to achieve equality here in Missouri, but it’s going to take a lot of work.”



Bockelman concluded, “I am thrilled by this decision, but make no mistake: as encouraging as the Iowa marriage decision is to LGBT persons and our straight allies, it’s going to perceived as an enormous threat by those in this state who want to maintain inequality, unfairness, and injustice. Now is the time for all fair-minded Missourians to let their friends, their families, their coworkers, and their legislators know that they will no longer tolerate discrimination in this state. I truly believe that equality is inevitable. The timing, though: That’s up to us.”

------------------------------

All I have to say is "Holy shit."

Writer extraordinaire languages asked:

When did writing become a passion, rather than a minor little hobby? (Or if it's not a passion, when did it become something so fun as to do NaNo over?)

Writing became a passion once I got into high school...probably around tenth grade, when I wrote my first "novel" (A fanfic of Final Fantasy VIII). Up until then, I'd pretty much only ever written short stories and random ideas that had popped into my head.

Because of writing throughout high school, that's part of the reason I started NaNo; I really wanted to start writing original novels and finishing them. Up until that point, the only ones I'd actually gotten around to finishing were my two Final Fantasy VIII fanfics (both of which are horribly bad now that I look back at them.)

I'm really hoping that writing continues to be a passion throughout my life, even beyond things like NaNoWriMo. I'd really like to get some things published eventually.

Apparently March is Question Month on LJ. So, in deciding that I should actually post things with substance more often, I'm deciding to participate. But it'll only work if you guys ask me things.

So, feel free to ask me questions. Any question at all.

I do reserve the right to answer privately (i.e. post an entry only the questioner can see), especially if the subject is a particularly touchy one...but I will answer!

Your comments to this entry will be screened and I will create separate posts for each question and answer. If you'd like to remain anonymous, let me know; otherwise, I'll be posting your LJ name along with your question.

"i forgot my phone today , just wanted to let you know, i may have a chance to go get it , if not just call me after work....when do you work today? love you."

I was going through old emails in my GMail account tonight and I stumbled upon this.

It's the last email that Will ever sent me where he said he loved me. This was on March 31st of last year. We broke up on May 13th.

And while I know that our relationship was poisonous for both of us, and while I also realize that things have to end sometimes; I read this email and began to cry. It's not even really anything, just some mundane chit-chat like we always swapped but for some reason, it makes me feel like I've been stabbed when I read it.

I feel like something that could have been so much better and brighter was ripped away from me. And God, it really hurts to think about having lost someone that was so close to my heart. Sure, since then I've moved past and lived my life the best I could. I've gotten through some incredibly difficult times without him by my side in the last nine months and I've even started dating again.

And of course, I'm not interested in pursuing any further romantic or sexual interactions with Will; that chapter has been flipped past. But I do miss him to this day.

And somewhere deep in the recesses of my heart and mind, a thought bubbled up while I read the email and tears clouded up my vision:

I wonder if some nights, he sits in his new apartment with his boyfriend and his thoughts stray from the stresses of bills and work in the morning. And hope a little bit that when that happens, he remembers my face and my smile. And I can't help but wonder if he misses me too.

Unbeautiful
by Lesley Roy

Don't hang up, can't we talk
So confused it's like I'm lost
What went wrong, what made you go
Don't pretend you don't know
This is me I'm unchangable

When did we fall apart
Or did you lie from the start
When you said, it's only you
I was blind, such a fool
Thinking we were unbreakable

It was you and me, against the world
And you promised me forever more
Was it something that I said
Was it something that I did
Cause I gotta know what made me unbeautiful

I've been told what's done is done
To let it go and carry on
Deep inside I know that's true
I'm stuck in time, stuck on you
When We were still untouchable

It was you and me, against the world
And you promised me forever more
Was it something that I said
Was it something that I did
Cause I gotta know what made me unbeautiful

Wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up
Cause I'm only dreaming
Get out, get out, get out, get out
Get out of my head now
Because we're much better altogether
Can't let go

It was you and me, against the world
And you promised me forever more
Was it something that I said
Was it something that I did
Cause I gotta know what made me unbeautiful

It was you and me, against the world
And you promised me forever more
Was it something that I said
Was it something that I did
Cause I gotta know what made me unbeautiful

... Made me unbeautiful

The youngest actor to have taken on the iconic role; Matt Smith, 26, has been revealed to be cast as The Eleventh Doctor in the popular British sci-fi show Doctor Who.


Honestly, I already like him. He's kinda goofy looking, but still adorable. And I have to say, he just *looks* like the Doctor. I'm excited to see what happens when he comes on in Spring 2010.

EDIT: Yes, I know he looks like he probably belongs in Twilight (it was what I said when I got my first look at him).

And I am always the first person to admit that I hate Twilight and the characters contained therein. But I default to the fact that he's a young British man, and therefore is likely to be pasty skinned. It all comes down to what he'll do on his first episode, I guess.

"The End."

That's right, with less than eight hours to spare, I finished my novel.

Novel Stats
Title: Keys In The Lock
Final Word Count: 158,173 words.
Chapters: Thirty One, including an Epilogue and Prologue.
Climax: Chapter Twenty Five - Dueling For a Haunted Lady
Deaths: Five total, including one main character.

Oh God, that was an epic writing adventure. I'm so thrilled that I was able to finish it. Now I can rest for an entire month, hahaha. Hope anyone else who participated in NaNoWriMo was able to get across the finish line or at least get something down that they're proud of, even if they didn't hit 50k.

Congrats to you all, see you all next year.

I'm gonna go rest my hands before they fall off.

Is really sharing:

http://www.simplifymedia.com/index.html

Everyone needs to download this, it's amazing. It streams your entire music library (compatible with iTunes and Winamp) and allows you to share it with your friends remotely (via a friends list, max of 30 people). It's free on top of that.

* For those of us with iPhones, there's even an iPhone Application that allows you to stream any of the music libraries on your "Friends List" directly to your device without syncing, it costs $3.99

Anyone who gets this, feel free to add me. My name on it is "colorofsakura", without the quotes.

In my annual writing frenzy, I am again doing National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). This year I'm taking a dive into Mainstream Fiction, which seems to be proving more of a challenge than previous years where I wrote mostly Sci-Fi/Fantasy hybrid novels. I'm taking a much more active approach to NaNo this year than in the past, as I am the Municipal Liaison (essentially the person "in charge" for a specific area) to the Springfield, Missouri region. So you all will see one of two things happen during November:

1) I will disappear almost completely during the month as I will be focused on novelling.
or 2) I will be posting regular updates about NaNo and (most likely) only NaNo during the month.

Either way, if you are also participating in NaNoWriMo, feel free to add me to your Writing Buddies. My profile is here: http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/user/95107

Good luck to everyone participating! To everyone who isn't, good luck dealing with all of us!

David Tennant is leaving Doctor Who after the 2009 series of specials:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7698886.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7698815.stm


GOD DAMNIT, NO!

Sarah Palin is in Springfield today speaking in front of the Bass Pro Shops World Headquarters.

and apparently, she just compared Missouri to Alaska.


...

HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I found this at Borders the other day and just had to take a picture of it.

I figured it'd give you all a good LOL.