I'm Baaaaack (well, 87% back)

Well, my dear friends. My colleagues and I have returned from China, bringing with us our newly acquired slew of parasites and ailments.

Actually, I have been back for over a week, but it has been a weak week. Until now, the only possible blog post for me would have looked something along the lines of:

I R Sick (followed by accounts of my doctor-visiting adventures).

or

Water. Water. Bring Water.

Anyway, I'd say I'm back up to 87%. I have regained my appetite and shake like a Chihuahua every time I eat (I lost a million lbs, totally messing with my Shape-Ups experiment - Don't worry, I plan to gain them back asap in the form of milkshakes. MMmmmmmmm milkshakes).

So On With The Show

This is not China-related, but it was the moment where I realized I was well enough to rejoin the ranks of humans (or whatever ranks I used to be in):

My friend had a party (I told her I wouldn't blog about it (I only blog about parties where I fail to socialize) - I'm blogging anyway).

So. My friend had a party. She lives with her fiance and a new(er) roomate.

We were outside eating watermelon (ok. I was eating all the watermelon. Chihuahua-style) and I noticed a cute little garden in the yard. My friend's fiance is european and an awesome cook, thus I assumed it was his garden.

He's also a little straight laced.

I caught the eye of the new(er) roommate, brought my finger to my lips, whispered, "Shhhhhh," and tossed my watermelon rind in the garden.

She returned the, "Shhhhh," and smiled.

Later that night, I found out it was, in fact, her garden I was tossing watermelon rinds in (yes, rinds. I'm a jerk).

I left early (recuperating people need their rest), but not before ensuring the fire pit and the roof of the neighbor's shed were equally graced with watermelon rinds.

That's right, my friends. It is time to return to writing. The creativity is beginning to flow in a not-so-savory direction.

Do you find yourselves becoming inadvertently (or destructively) creative if you spend too much time away from your creative outlet of choice?

Mermaids make the day shinier

I came across a mermaid.

Mermaid sightings are largely attributed to those of sea cows, manatees and dugongs by lonely / malnourished / drunken sailors.

These photos are of the beluga whales in the Vancouver Aquarium in Vancouver, Canada.

Double agent

Today I'm blogging over at Prairie Chicks Write Romance.

So excited!

Cut and paste

I hope you have a nice day today.

For the writers in the crowd:

Are you the type of writer who knows what they are doing from the start and can write in a straight line from point A to point B or are you the type of writer who puts down bits and pieces and rearranges them until they fit the way you want them to? Do you have a different method from the two I have listed?

Make a wish

If you the type of person who makes wishes on airplanes, now is your chance.

I have it on good authority that there is one in the sky.

A little birdie has told me Google and its affiliates (including blogger) are inaccessible in China as of May 24th (they used to route through Hong Kong, apparently), so I apologize in advance for allowing my blog to wilt. There are a few prearranged posts coming up but there probably won't be any of the spur-of-the-moment traveling posts I had hoped to make.

Leaving on a Jet Plane

You may have wondered if I had been bit by a zombie, hence my failure to post anything of late.

Your guess would have been close. I'm preparing for a trip to China and any time I try to work on anything resembling a creative outlet, 14 pairs of socks... 14 pairs of socks... takes over my thought waves.

Even as I type this, I'm thinking about the uncharged batteries in my camera.

There are a two things I want to see while I am there:

• A cherry blossom (preferably more that one, but one will do).

• The great wall.

As it is The Year of the Tiger, one of my airplane books will be Marjorie Liu's Tiger Eye. The book is set in China and Marjorie blogs about her trips to China, so it feels appropriate. Feel free to read along with me.

I have to go. I'm on the verge of hyperventilating as my suitcase is totally full and I know I want to bring back a zillion (give or take a few) souvenirs.

Book chatter and shiny, shiny pictures to follow. Any tips from people who have visited China?

Find umbrella... Find umbrella...

'Blogs For You' aka 'Janet made my day'

Janet, from Janet's Journal has been kind enough to award me with the One Lovely Blog Award. If you haven't seen it already, I'd recommend stopping by to visit her blog. She has some interesting posts and every Friday, she posts some of her current work in progress.

With great power comes great responsibility. Recipients of the One Lovely Blog Award are required to:

1. Post the award on your blog with the name of the person who has granted it to you and his or her blog link.

2. Pass the award to other deserving bloggers.

3. Email the bloggers to let them know you've given them the award.

4. Just kidding. There are only 3 rules.

So here are a few blogs I really enjoy:

The Chocolate Chip Waffle

Terresa Wellborn is the author of this blog and I know I'll be visiting some place beautiful every time I type in the url. Poetry, art, famous quotes, chocolate chip waffles. You really have to see it to believe it. Her writing is also protected by an invisible ninja force field. True story. I read it on her blog.

Dark Angel's Blog

I've been following Sherry's blog for some time and enjoy her writing advice, author interviews and the snippets from her work. It has a deliciously paranormal atmosphere.

The Regency World of Author Lesley-Anne McLeod

This blog is filled with research from the regency period, writerly advice and fun literary information I would have never come across otherwise. Something about it draws a person in (especially a person interested in historical research and / or writing). Some of her recent posts have also been striking a personal chord with me. Ex. My father is doing a lot of genealogical research for our family. The day he told me my great-great grandfather and grandmother were hat-makers who lived on one side of London and worked on the other, Lesley-Anne had a post about how she had to find a milliner in a somewhat unfashionable area of Regency London.