Karina's Alphabet Soup #2 - B...Creative

Well folks, here we are with month two of Karina's Alphabet Soup...the letter B. I think the rules are pretty self explanatory, but click here for more).


One would think that with this being MY meme and all, I'd be highly prepared to wow you with my photos and prose. One would be wrong however. Turns out I had a great idea, but can't seem to find any great photos to go along with my great idea.


So, I took to the archives instead, thinking I'd see if any of my "B" photos inspired a bit of prose.


I could write about a Ball game,

Or perhaps about a Boat on the Beach,

I could write about a BlueJay,

Or a puppy Begging for a treat just out of reach,

I could write about a Blue globe, that just knows when,

Or about my Blackberry love affair,

I could even write about a bobble head pen,

Trully, am I getting anywhere?

Maybe I'd write about the Bareness of the trees

Or about a pair of Boots that make me smile,

Seems to me I'm spinning in circles here...

Honestly? It's all a Blur after a while...

Okay, I know I know...kind of lame, but that's all I've got today. You can see more of my prose here in my entry for Pensieve's Poetic License.

In the meantime, if you're participating, which I REALLY hope you are, leave me a comment, with a link to your post, and I'll add your link here:

1. You're first!

Pensieve's Poetic License #11 - English Sonnet - Masked

Please click HERE for Karina's Alphabet Soup.

This months PPL theme is "Masked" and the form is an English Sonnet. To be honest, when I saw the theme and form, I wasn't really sure I'd be playing along. I always hated Shakespearan sonnets because they seemed too damn constricting with the iambic pentameter and all that crap. I think it mostly had to do with the fact that my 9th grade english teacher was evil, and turned me off the form due to her evilness, but there you have it.

Yet, I decided to tackle it anyway, and even managed to stay within the "10 syllable perline" rule. Here's my entry:

Dark Alley

Though I walk on without trepidation
Head held high, as I look you in the eye
Firm steps, so sure of my destination
Never hesitating as I walk by

Though I stand tall, and with my shoulders squared
My strides determined, not afraid at all
Confidence apparent, never look scared
My very presence anything but small

Though I smile widely, grin ear to ear
Give off warmth, welcome, a friendly hello
Make it seem as if I’ve nothing to fear
Inside is the truth that only I know

You frighten me more than words can express
And just walking by? A major success.

Copyright 2008 - Karina

Hmm...for other entries, visit Pensieve's. Also, today is month TWO of Karina's Alphabet Soup, I'd love it if you joined in...please click here to find out more and see my entry for the letter "B".

The NaNoWriMo Experience - Excerpt 1

So, in case you haven't heard, I'm doing NaNoWriMo again this year. I say again, because I signed up to do it last year as well. However, after a bit of technical difficulties (as in, a computer crash that cost me 2 weeks of writing time), I never finished.

This year, however, I'm determined to hit that finish line running. So far, so good. Of course, we're only 5 days in. But hey, word count before I even write today is over 7,000 words. Only 43,000 to go. uh....YIKES.

Anyway, I promissed I'd share some excerpts here, so let me tell you a bit about my novel this year. As yet untitled, it is very loosely based on my life. VERY LOOSELY folks, keep that in mind. It is the story of a 30something woman hitting the dating scene after years away, and starting a new career with an eclectic and interesting group of clients. Told in the form of a diary/journal/blog. For now anyway. Her story of all the characters she meets both in her new job, and as she starts dating.

With that...I give you a peak (please note that in keeping with NaNoWriMo's rules and policies, there has been little to no editing as of yet, that comes later):

Monday, April 17th - Day 1 of the Dating Manifesto.

Today I begin my new life. I woke up on Saturday and realized that it had been 9 months, 1 week, 3 days and about 10 hours since my last date. I mean, seriously folks, I could have had a baby in that time. However, since you need to actually have physical contact with the opposite sex in order to create said baby, and a REALLY BAD kiss does not, no matter how you spin it, count, there is no child to show for all that time.

I have, however, in that period of time, managed to shed enough weight that it looks like I might have given birth, and regained my “pre-baby body”, so it hasn’t all been a waste of time.

But here we are. Monday morning, no baby, no baby weight, and no dates.

...

And then I have this fabulous new career as a personal stylist to the stars.

Okay, fine, so technically my clients aren’t exactly stars, but they could be. In their own little worlds, the ones they inhabit inside their heads, they are superstars. And you know what? Even if they aren't famous, they sure as hell are wealthy, and as long as they have the money to pay me outrageous sums to go shopping for them, well, they can believe whatever they want to believe in their little heads.

I mean, can you stand it? I get paid to go shopping. I get paid extremely WELL to go shopping in stores I could only DREAM of walking into six months ago.

How did I get to this point? Six months ago I was unemployed and crazily searching the want ads for a real estate position that would pay enough for me to meet my mortgage payments.

And then I have one conversation with a rich lady in a clothing store, about how I think she should try the green dress instead of the black one, because it’ll bring out her skin tone and hello, new career.

Now I work for her and about 8 of her wealthy friends, helping them dress for everything, from a jaunt to the market (as if they would ever shop for themselves) to a Fundraising Gala Dinner Event.

On any given day I’m running around designer boutiques picking out outfits that cost more than my mortgage payments. It all still seems a bit surreal to me, to be honest. I can’t believe people actually get paid to do what I do. I’m making a living (a very good living) doing this? Who knew?

I love my clients though. I mean, for a bunch of spoiled rich wives, they’re a pretty fantastic group with some of the most colorful personalities I’ve ever come across. And they adore me, which makes my job all that much easier.

It was one of my clients, actually, that made me realize that maybe it was time for me to get back out on the dating scene. Jenie, my 70 year old divorce. This woman? Oh man, the stories I could tell you about her. She’s simply amazing and wonderful and inspiring. And she told me last week that she had decided that she’s been single long enough, having gotten divorced about 15 years ago, and was going to join a dating website for seniors. What a hoot.

Copyright 2008 - Karina

That's it, that's all you get today. I have to get back to my actual writing now.