Falling off a horse during mounting is never a good idea. Thankfully, I bounced. Rolled onto my back and got right back up. Goofy horse decided to move while I was getting on. First time I've fallen off in awhile. Not the first time I fell off the mounting block. Last time was off a 3 year old. I was trying to get on him bareback and the mounting block wasn't stable. I fell. He took a single step back and looked down at me going "What are you doing down there?"

I'm learning to deal with goofier horses.

* three months later.... *

Disney was great, Valia. I'll actually be going down again in a couple weeks for a training, and, of course, will stop by when I'm there.

Shawna, that sounds interesting, to me at least. I wish you the best of luck with it.

I am currently muddling through life, trying to determine what I am to do for the next few years. All of my well-laid plans have fallen through, so I feel a bit like a fish out of water. Hopefully I can find my footing--and make new plans--sometime soon.

Before I pop back out of the square, I would like to wish all of you A Most Frabjous New Year, filled with many unexpected boxes of jelly doughnuts.

Now see, I'm just curious about the rules of vampires in your world when I hear something like that. (I imagine it's still similar to the Ditto Story rules, but assuming I didn't know you and heard that...)

Actually, for this story, it's totally different. Every time I write vampires (when I'm making them up myself and not writing with established vampire rules), I reinvent them. The ones in this story ... well, there are 4 different kinds. There's one type that's basically an animal, and they're kind of like much scarier, more viscous versions of the Ditto Town vampires (kind of). The other three are all formerly humans.

Heh, sounds like the rules for each of my fantasy worlds every time I start writing a new story. Making rules just makes you want to play around with what the alternatives are. With vampires, especially - there are so many things you can do with them, but as far too many stories show, there's such a thing as too much.

The vampires in my stories are just people who've undergone a physical transformation. They don't lose their souls when they become vampires. They're just people. Although, given various circumstances, most vampires are evil people. It's just that they don't have to be. More that vampirism draws a certain type of person to seek it out. So part of what I explore in the story is, "What if the urge to hurt other people was not just a desire but a biological imperative?" It's a lot harder to be a good vampire than a good human.

It's a really interesting idea to explore - it's kind of taken for granted a lot of times in vampire/monster stories, but here it sounds like it's the crux of the story. So is this more of a sci-fi story with the transformations being some kind of procedure/mutation, or is it more fantasy with very different rules for vampires? Or some other combination I'm not thinking of?

Ahhh, I wish I had a good excuse for having been away for so long. But, truth be told, I've just been highly distractable the past couple of months. (Netflix has proven a terrible, TERRIBLE thing for my productivity.) I had a wonderful set of holidays at the end of the year, though - for Thanksgiving (my favorite holiday of the year ), we went to my aunt's house, who recently moved to Iowa from California, so now all of my aunts (on both sides!) live within 1 state of us. Most of her children still live elsewhere in the country, but some of them came to visit for Thanksgiving, so that was really nice. Christmas and New Year's were a little more low-key - just my family plus my sister/her husband/their son, then family/friends for New Year's, but I like it better that way. Christmas is crazy enough without juggling so many schedules. We still have to see my dad's side of the family, but that's coming up next Saturday.

In the meanwhile, I've been getting back into the swing of writing regularly again. I really fell out of the habit with my past two jobs (one of which had strange hours and the other would regularly having me work 6 days a week), but now that I've got a job with regular hours and mostly optional overtime instead of mandatory, no excuses. I actually managed to win NaNo this year!! First time ever! Admittedly, the story I wrote crumbled into a nonsensical mess by the end, but not only was it 50,000 words, but it technically had an ending! (If "The villain is miraculously defeated and carted away, we get a page of exposition, and then the story ends, YAY!" counts as an ending. ...I had close to 3,000 words to write on the last day.) Better yet, I think I've figured out how to fold some of the story elements I came up with into another story I'm working on, so overall, I'd call that a success.

Mostly, though, I've been writing a story I started when I was 16, though it has gone through many, many changes. As in, the main villain used to be part of a subplot I almost cut out. I think probably the only thing that has stayed the same is the identities of the main heroes, and even then almost half of them have had name and/or drastic age changes. Supposedly, I'm also working on a comic book with my brother, but I lost my momentum on that when NaNo rolled around and am trying to get back into it. (We, ah, have a lot to work on. )

I am currently muddling through life, trying to determine what I am to do for the next few years. All of my well-laid plans have fallen through, so I feel a bit like a fish out of water. Hopefully I can find my footing--and make new plans--sometime soon.

That sounds all-too familiar. I almost miss being a teenager, when I was so sure that life would make sense when I was an adult.

*Gorse glares at ceppault, inquiring, "Where have you been all this time, old friend?"*

Coming up on 10 years since I joined this forum. Went by fast. And that also means I was a tender age of 40 when I joined.

Kat, don't fall off horses. That can hurt

Ryadian -

Yes, their versatility is one of the things I love about vampires. It's also why it's disappointing to see so many authors falling back on the same overused tropes.

I wouldn't say there's a sci-fi reason for the vampires in my story. It's more that none of them really know how vampires came to be exactly, though there's a vague guess that magic was involved way, way back when. I don't want to have magic be a notable part of the story, though, so it's kept indistinct and in the distant past. Sort of the way that magic's referenced in the Old Testament without really going into detail about what it was and how it worked.

Congrats on finishing NaNo! I tried that once several years back and didn't do so great. I've been having a very hard time concentrating on my writing these past several months. At this point I'm not sure if it's purely a matter of self-discipline or if there might be some physical cause contributing. Possibly both.

Kat, don't fall off horses. That can hurt

Trying not to. I've been working with a new horse and at about 17.3 hands tall, he's at or above 6ft at his shoulder. I'm ok once I'm on him. It's the getting up that's the problem. lol.

Glad you're enjoying riding the bigger horse, starkat. I'm a bit embarrassed to admit I don't remember the last time I rode a horse (it was several decades ago. )

Congrats on 10 years ceppault! Does this mean a big landmark birthday is coming up this year?

The big news here is the weather. The bottom is falling out after a really warm December. About 6 inches of wet slushy snow fell the past few days; when I left to visit Ryadian's family's house last evening it was still slush. Perhaps 10 minutes the temperature had dropped enough that the side streets were sheets of ice, not slush.

There's an outdoor NFL playoff game here tomorrow, with temps expected to hover around 0F/-17C and wind chills much lower. Because of the cold, tickets are still available. I met friends for lunch this morning, and we half-seriously talked about going to the game together. But by the time we went back outside, the sky had cleared and the wind came up, reminding us just how cold it's going to be tomorrow, and that I can watch it from the comfort of my house.

I just may have to give up my honorary polar bear card.

Coming up on 10 years since I joined this forum. Went by fast. And that also means I was a tender age of 40 when I joined.

Oh wow, has it really been 10 years?? I suppose I shouldn't be that surprised, since I've been here for 11 1/2, but still... wow. Time flies. Conga Rats!!

I wouldn't say there's a sci-fi reason for the vampires in my story. It's more that none of them really know how vampires came to be exactly, though there's a vague guess that magic was involved way, way back when. I don't want to have magic be a notable part of the story, though, so it's kept indistinct and in the distant past. Sort of the way that magic's referenced in the Old Testament without really going into detail about what it was and how it worked.

Ah, I see. That level of unseen magic really intriguing - though, admittedly, I don't have the self-restraint to do it myself. (Having characters with magic is just too darn fun!) But that would seem to fit with the kind of story you're describing, which seems to be less about epic battles with magic constantly at the forefront and more about humanity... umm, no pun intended. I've tried my hand at writing that kind of story in the past, but it inevitably starts turning more into the kind of story I read/watch the most... which tends to involve superpower-esque magic and epic battles, so.

Congrats on finishing NaNo! I tried that once several years back and didn't do so great. I've been having a very hard time concentrating on my writing these past several months.

Thanks! I've been trying on and off since high school, though I guess I shouldn't be surprised that it was the first year I really tried after I was out of school that I managed it. I'm sorry to hear you've been having difficulty writing. I have, too, pretty much since after NaNo - I got out of the habit of writing (nearly) every day and now I'm having trouble getting back into it. (Not to mention I'm re-writing the beginning of the story I'm working on for the third time this month because I keep changing my mind). I'm focusing on amount of time vs. words per day right now - if nothing else, to force myself in the chair to try to write something, even if it's not always the project I intended to work on.

I met friends for lunch this morning, and we half-seriously talked about going to the game together. But by the time we went back outside, the sky had cleared and the wind came up, reminding us just how cold it's going to be tomorrow, and that I can watch it from the comfort of my house.

I just may have to give up my honorary polar bear card.

Even native born Minnesotans have their limits. Besides, it was the first real cold spell this winter - that always feels a lot colder. Of course, usually it goes "It's 20 degrees out, it's so cold!" to "It's only -20 degrees out, I'm okay to run outside and back" over the space of a couple weeks, as I warm up (no pun intended) to the winter, whereas this year it went straight from 30's to below 0.

Phew, it's been a busy January thus far. We've been rather swamped at my job lately - which means plenty of overtime. Not nearly as much as my last job (thank goodness), but... well, I'll have some nice paychecks in the near future, I guess. Add to it some late Christmas get-togethers and the fact that I'm focusing a lot more lately on being productive, and... well, at least I'm succeeding on the productive part on the weekends, don't even ask me about weeknights. 'Twould be nice to have a weekend where I actually got to sleep in, though.

*bustles in after shoveling the car out*

Sure, it's warmer now, but we got a bit of snow on Groundhog Day. 13 inches or more was a common report around here, though I think my neighborhood got a bit less.

We may be famous for cold but really don't receive big amounts of snow at a time (like they do in lake-effect snow areas like Buffalo, NY). This was the biggest one-time snowfall since the December 2010 storm that collapsed the Metrodome. (I was out of town for the Chicago VDT Lion Party at the time. Ah, the memories).

The cold and snow make for good times to do a little work on last November's NaNo story, and I've enjoyed working on it. Maybe I'll finish by next November.

Just dropping in to say hi.

I see most of you on Facebook, but it's nice to visit the old homestead from time to time too. As you may have seen, I just traveled for an international mission trip, and I'm planning on going again in April. It's been quite the adventure!

Houston's been enjoying a mild, sunny winter. I'm not envying all the snow up north; I'm quite happy with our pleasant weather. It's almost Rodeo/ bluebonnet season - best time of the year!

Rya, glad you're liking the new job!

The Royal Bloodlines Guru pops in quickly, looks to and fro desperately trying to locate his beloved blue lobster to no avail.

If anyone locates said blue lobster, please contact him if you are fortunate enough to locate him.

Willow, Sty! It's good to see you both. Sty, would your lobster happen to look anything like this?

(This is how I have always imagined your blue lobster. Blame VeggieTales. )

Hello, all! It's been a while since my last visit; I've been a bit distracted. In large part... by my new little niece! She was born on Feb. 18th, and SHE IS SUCH A CUTIE. My sister is so glad that she's here finally - she was a big baby, 9 lbs 6 oz! Her older brother, who's just under 3 1/2, is super jealous, but I'm hoping he'll come around.

We had some really nice weather yesterday - as in, high 50's, which, as stargazer tells me, is a record-breaking high for late February. It felt like spring - so, naturally, it snowed today. Minnesota never knows what it wants. Of course, now that we've had a nice day, I want spring to come so we can go camping. The bug always bits a good 3-4 months prematurely, but at least it means we'll start making plans earlier.

Wow, how is March coming this week? It feels like the new year just started. While I'm looking forward to spring already, it would be nice if time didn't feel the need to move at such break-neck speeds.

*sneezes from the dust in the town square* - or is it just allergies from the tree pollen?

Has it really been two months?

Ryadian mentioned the warmth in the last post, but recent weather has been surprisingly cool for April. It may even snow tonight. Maybe that will take some of the pollen out of the air.

I can agree with her that her new niece is quite cute, and both she and her brother are fun to have around.

I'm also looking forward to camping, once warmer weather arrives.

I'm also looking forward to camping, once warmer weather arrives.

Yes, please!! I'm not the world's biggest fan of summer, but this is the part I look forward to every year. Actually, I kind of need to get on scheduling camping plans with my friends.... Man, how is May almost over? Didn't 2016 just start???

I've had a rather interesting May so far. I've mentioned that I've been working as a contract worker at a site since September, and earlier this month my supervisor offered me a full time position with my company. It's been a lot of paperwork and e-mails, but it's finally all sorted out - I'm a permanent employee as of the end of the month! I'm finally working a job that has vacation time and benefits and all that... which means now I have to figure out what all that stuff means. Ahhh, adulthood.

I've also been trying to write one of my books lately, but right now my creative train of thought seems to keep running full speed into an immovable wall. (That, right there, great example. I insisted on making a metaphor even though I had no idea how I was actually going to finish that thought.) For some reason, May seems to do this to me - I get an explosion of creative energy and ideas, but trying to translate them to paper/"paper" is a nightmare and a half. One of my New Year's resolutions this year was to finish a draft of one of my stories - it didn't even have to be a good draft, just finished - but we're almost halfway through the year and I haven't finished an outline. I'm... thinking it's not going to happen this year. But, I actually won NaNo last year, much to my amazement, so we'll see!

* hands gazer some Benadryl *

I feel ya. Fortunately spring is almost over....

Man, how is May almost over? Didn't 2016 just start???

Ugh, I know how you feel. In fact, earlier this evening, I was googling my favorite artist, because last year I had looked up when she was going to release her next album, and it had said sometime this year. Apparently "last year" was in 2014, because her album came out June of 2015. Time is moving far too quickly....

I'm currently looking at my summer and trying to figure out what I'm going to be doing (isn't that what I always seem to be doing???). My life seems to be a series of feast and famines. The spring was hectic, with an extended trip overseas, and now the summer is largely empty, especially since work is a feast-or-famine situation too, and summer, well, summer always falls into the famine stretch. Unfortunately, the more I travel, the more I seem to get restless for traveling more, which costs money. Why must everything cost money? It's so inconvenient....