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lenora_roseReasons why -10* weather is sometimes better than 0 degree* weather, even if the latter means you don't have to wear your gloves so much:
Last night, we had freezing rain. This morning, we had rain. The result? Depending where one is walking, one is either walking fairly normally on the packed crunch snow that still offers some traction, walking tentatively on the packed snow that ha been sprayed and sometimes offers traction, pickign your way over varied terrain with many pauses to inspect the options, walking with exquisite attempts at balance on ice with some pits in it from rain or thaw to steady your boots on (and your hand out to the nearest fence/tree, etc), skatewalking on slick ice, where any micro-dip in the sidewalk means you begin to drift in that direction (Many sidewalks are slanted towards the street. With a boulevard between, often, so granted, not that dangerous, but very disocncerting to try and skate forwards and end up going sideways. Worst, or course, are the placed the sidewalk dips down to cross alleys and streets), or standing utterly still, because you have just attempted to ascend a not-too-horrible looking bit of sidewalk up from the street you just crossed, and discovered that any weight shift at all will cause you to start sliding back onto the street -- if you aren't already gliding backwards, and standing still mostly to not fall as you do so. Oh, and wobbling. lots and lots of wobbling.
Fun! I walked up to Osborne this AM, and promptly turned to get to river and catch the bus that takes me partway. Getting off the bus did result in one of those lovely "Step forward and slide gently right back to where you started" moments. But I was lucky and the sidewalk by the park was mostly good. Also, I was lucky and have reasonably good balance, so while I wobbled lots, I never fell.
It was better going home (Much better; there were whole stretches of sidewalk that allowed for normal walking in the middle! albeit, some of them involved three-inch puddles, not so appealing if you don't have good boots, but I do.), but still a bit too much of an adventure. And of course, the temperature will drop overnight and it will be identical tomorrow. Except that the city might have sanded a few more streets and sidewalks.
But seriously; this weather meant no mailmen. The highways are CLOSED. Driving in the suburbs is also considered a terrifying experience. Downtown has enough traffic, plus the thawing effects of friction heat (This is not a joke.) I could walk Osborne. Stradbrook, a not-unbusy side street? Yipe.
______________________
You know, I think that since I started prodding at Bird of Dusk again, I have officially advanced about three to four scenes on where I put it down last time? And yet, I make scary progress. To be specific, I've gone through and changed *so much*, and added scenes on the way, and stripped scenes on the way, and re-altered the exact course of events, and rewrote so that was logical, then did it again.... (and snuck in a Shadow Unit reference; not exact words but more then recognizable.)
And at this point, i am much happier with things up to about chapter sixteen as I have it broken up now (I've complained before that chapter breaks are unnatural to my thought process).
Howeve, there's a precise point past which I keep needing to fight with the order of events. Short version: I introduce a character who is utterly essential to the story arc, climax, and everything else, at either the halfway and 2/3-way point. Which is a seriously broken writing rule. And even so; when I say at either point, i mean that literally. I can order events to make him show up earlier, but stretch reader credulity further than I like, or set it (And the consequences) up *much better* and have him arrive even later than late.
Clearly I am opting, right now, for the "Break any of these rules rather than do something barbaric" solution. But it feels wrong to introduce someone without whom the story could not stand at all so very late, (And with only one prior scene foreshadowing his arrival.)
So I'm simultaneously trying to forge ahead on the actual immediate battle scene (in which said newcomer is an essential component), and pull straight the tangled yarn leading to it. Some parts of which require me to *know* whether a given other event happens before or after said battle.
Rargh.
______________________
I've spent the last while of pottery making chili bowls for the chili bowl sale we have as part of the final open house. And teaching a friend at least the bare basics of throwing and trimming her own bowls. Which is fun. I do hope they survive; she had a near-disaster with one. On the other hand, she produced recognizeable, if lopsided, bowls on her first day, where I took months of wrassling with the wheel and almost failed first term, way back in 1998. I still remember that when the skill/persistence thing comes up. I've mentioned it to first years this year, too.
(There's a first year class after mine on Wednesdays. Wednesday, there is also dance practice in the evening, which is on University grounds, so I have no reason to leave the university grounds.)
My proposal for my second project this term was accepted (With requests to tweak a few handfuls of grammar), though, so the next thing... well actually, the very next thing, likely, is going to be sitting down with my original sketches (made at Keycon while listening to Jane Yolen's G-o-H speech.) and coming out with feasible basic images. I don't do drawings ahead of time for most projects, but this one seems to be the exception. (I don't outline ahead of time for most stories, either. Except when I do. And I don't write filks. Except when I do.)
__________________________
*Celcius. Where 0 means exactly the temperature where ice and water comingle. Which strikes me as vastly superior, when it comes to discerning the meaning of weather, to whatever basis Faranheit has.
Last night, we had freezing rain. This morning, we had rain. The result? Depending where one is walking, one is either walking fairly normally on the packed crunch snow that still offers some traction, walking tentatively on the packed snow that ha been sprayed and sometimes offers traction, pickign your way over varied terrain with many pauses to inspect the options, walking with exquisite attempts at balance on ice with some pits in it from rain or thaw to steady your boots on (and your hand out to the nearest fence/tree, etc), skatewalking on slick ice, where any micro-dip in the sidewalk means you begin to drift in that direction (Many sidewalks are slanted towards the street. With a boulevard between, often, so granted, not that dangerous, but very disocncerting to try and skate forwards and end up going sideways. Worst, or course, are the placed the sidewalk dips down to cross alleys and streets), or standing utterly still, because you have just attempted to ascend a not-too-horrible looking bit of sidewalk up from the street you just crossed, and discovered that any weight shift at all will cause you to start sliding back onto the street -- if you aren't already gliding backwards, and standing still mostly to not fall as you do so. Oh, and wobbling. lots and lots of wobbling.
Fun! I walked up to Osborne this AM, and promptly turned to get to river and catch the bus that takes me partway. Getting off the bus did result in one of those lovely "Step forward and slide gently right back to where you started" moments. But I was lucky and the sidewalk by the park was mostly good. Also, I was lucky and have reasonably good balance, so while I wobbled lots, I never fell.
It was better going home (Much better; there were whole stretches of sidewalk that allowed for normal walking in the middle! albeit, some of them involved three-inch puddles, not so appealing if you don't have good boots, but I do.), but still a bit too much of an adventure. And of course, the temperature will drop overnight and it will be identical tomorrow. Except that the city might have sanded a few more streets and sidewalks.
But seriously; this weather meant no mailmen. The highways are CLOSED. Driving in the suburbs is also considered a terrifying experience. Downtown has enough traffic, plus the thawing effects of friction heat (This is not a joke.) I could walk Osborne. Stradbrook, a not-unbusy side street? Yipe.
______________________
You know, I think that since I started prodding at Bird of Dusk again, I have officially advanced about three to four scenes on where I put it down last time? And yet, I make scary progress. To be specific, I've gone through and changed *so much*, and added scenes on the way, and stripped scenes on the way, and re-altered the exact course of events, and rewrote so that was logical, then did it again.... (and snuck in a Shadow Unit reference; not exact words but more then recognizable.)
And at this point, i am much happier with things up to about chapter sixteen as I have it broken up now (I've complained before that chapter breaks are unnatural to my thought process).
Howeve, there's a precise point past which I keep needing to fight with the order of events. Short version: I introduce a character who is utterly essential to the story arc, climax, and everything else, at either the halfway and 2/3-way point. Which is a seriously broken writing rule. And even so; when I say at either point, i mean that literally. I can order events to make him show up earlier, but stretch reader credulity further than I like, or set it (And the consequences) up *much better* and have him arrive even later than late.
Clearly I am opting, right now, for the "Break any of these rules rather than do something barbaric" solution. But it feels wrong to introduce someone without whom the story could not stand at all so very late, (And with only one prior scene foreshadowing his arrival.)
So I'm simultaneously trying to forge ahead on the actual immediate battle scene (in which said newcomer is an essential component), and pull straight the tangled yarn leading to it. Some parts of which require me to *know* whether a given other event happens before or after said battle.
Rargh.
______________________
I've spent the last while of pottery making chili bowls for the chili bowl sale we have as part of the final open house. And teaching a friend at least the bare basics of throwing and trimming her own bowls. Which is fun. I do hope they survive; she had a near-disaster with one. On the other hand, she produced recognizeable, if lopsided, bowls on her first day, where I took months of wrassling with the wheel and almost failed first term, way back in 1998. I still remember that when the skill/persistence thing comes up. I've mentioned it to first years this year, too.
(There's a first year class after mine on Wednesdays. Wednesday, there is also dance practice in the evening, which is on University grounds, so I have no reason to leave the university grounds.)
My proposal for my second project this term was accepted (With requests to tweak a few handfuls of grammar), though, so the next thing... well actually, the very next thing, likely, is going to be sitting down with my original sketches (made at Keycon while listening to Jane Yolen's G-o-H speech.) and coming out with feasible basic images. I don't do drawings ahead of time for most projects, but this one seems to be the exception. (I don't outline ahead of time for most stories, either. Except when I do. And I don't write filks. Except when I do.)
__________________________
*Celcius. Where 0 means exactly the temperature where ice and water comingle. Which strikes me as vastly superior, when it comes to discerning the meaning of weather, to whatever basis Faranheit has.
