For those of you who have been dropping by in hopes of finding a new Thursday Thirteen or other blogs, I offer sincere apologies. Unfortunately, my internet access is not reliable enough to permit me to do my usual blogs from home, and it's not always possible to make it out to the local internet cafe for updates.
Also, I've been working on those edits I mentioned, along with working up new material to finish 27 Stages.
So, I hope you'll accept my apologies and keep checking in from time to time to see what's new.
As y'all know, I'm keeping pretty busy over here in the US for the time being - but that's gonna come grinding to a halt over the next few weeks. At least, it will in the mornings. The reason? Well, why don't I give you thirteen of 'em?
Thirteen Photos from Le Tour de France
Yes, that *is* Ben Stiller on the far right.
Contador wins!
Fabian gets some advice on the road.
Andy and Frank Schleck. Go boys! Go!
Okay. Shout it with me, y'all: SSSSSSSCCCHHHHLEEECKK!!
Watch closely, everybody - try to spot the Devil!
Fans should use caution, too.
Cheater!!!
Jens Voigt, post-Stage 16 crash.
And yet, with all those gorgeous visuals, I know what you've all come to expect.
And I'd never think of denying y'all. You know that.
But it's hard to keep coming up with fresh material.
Whew! I'm busy-busy-busy this week! Still, there's been a little time to sit and reflect, and so I've had a chance to ponder this week's Thursday Thirteen topic.
So, please allow me to present:
Thirteen Things Which Have Made Me Happy!
That's me! All the way in the back of the pic! LOL!
1) I did my first ever public reading from my novel, Ask Me if I'm Happy. One of my bosses at the language school where I work asked if I would like to do a reading at the End-of-Year party this year, and since I was still here in Reggio (for once - I usually leave at the start of June), I agreed. It all went quite well, and I'm pleased to hear from my coworkers and several students that the selection I read did, indeed, stir their interest in buying the novel. Fingers crossed they'll remember in Autumn! LOL!
What a smile!
2) Seeing my hubby enjoy himself so much at various events this week made me very happy. We had the England/USA World Cup game, a trip to Fontanellato, Italy (not far from home) for a musical event, my reading last night - so many things which he's enjoyed, and so I've enjoyed them that much more!
Fabian when he was in the lead...
3) Watching the Tour de Suisse. My boy is currently in second place, one second behind the leader. This makes me happy, especially because my boy won last year, and because by most accounts, the part of the race which should be hardest for him is already over. Got my fingers crossed (again)!
Mia with Zio Alle!
4) My niece, Mia, told me I was beautiful. I reckon she's an expert on the subject, so I'm sooo pleased to hear it from her. :)
5) I got quite a few edits done - the MS is shaping up nicely and I have high hopes for completing and fleshing out a few key scenes while I'm in the US.
Heinrich Haussler, post-crash.
6) I developed new ideas for my WIP - watching the Tour de Suisse, complete with huge crashes, riding in the rain, and all the cycling drama on display has fueled my brain to get more done on 27 Stages when I have the opportunity. Not that there was a problem, I just can't work on two manuscripts at once...
No! Doodle! That is the *opposite* of help!
7) I've almost finished packing already! Considering that I'm leaving tomorrow morning, this is quite impressive! LOL!
8) Thanks to the party last night, I added to my collection of miniature Swiss flags! LOL! I know, it's weird. A running joke that's got a little out of control, but they make me smile. :)
9) The weather has been unseasonably cool this week. That makes me happy - everything I had to do has been easier to get done, thanks to the cooler air. Right now, it's raining buckets. The Italians are grumbling, but I can't help being happy.
10) Also thanks to the weather, I've slept really well this week. That's not normal for me, in June.
11) My flight leaves in the late part of the morning from Milan. So, I don't have a super-duper extra-early wake-up time, tomorrow. It should be daylight when we start our two-hour drive, which is great!
12) I have only one connection on my flight home. Atlanta. While that's not ideal, at least I have a good idea of what to expect. That helps. And then there's the fact I have a few hours there - so, no rush to get through Immigration or Customs. In as much as a 20-some-odd travel day can be reduced-stress, this one hopefully will be. (Touch wood!)
Me and Samuele - at last!
13) Finally, the thing which had me smiling all the way home from Fontanellato on Sunday night: I got to get a picture with that feller I've mentioned a few thousand times since I started blogging, the one whose music inspired so much of Ask Me if I'm Happy, and who I've adored since 2003, the first time I heard him sing - Samuele Bersani. Which is to say: SAMUELE BERSANI!!!!! OMG!!!! Yeah, if I squee any louder, only dogs will hear me. LOL!
Oh, never fear, y'all. I know.
I wouldn't forget.
Even with all the wonderful happy things which have happened for me this week.
Not a lot of time to put in, but I had fun, anyway. :)
This week, I present to you:
Thirteen Cycling Races!
The cycling season starts earlier than ever now, with the Tour Down Under in January. Australian cyclists are making an especially strong showing all over the world this year, I might add. Woot!
The Tour of Oman in February is one of the earliest races on the calendar, too - and the first winner of this brand new race was my boy, Fabian Cancellara! Double-Woot!
A beautiful race to watch, Paris-Nice proved quite interesting this last March. Alberto Contador won, but it wasn't easy - which is what made it exciting. Heh.
Milan San-Remo, also in March, is always fascinating to watch. Occasionally, riders come seemingly out of nowhere to win - like Fabian did back in 2008.
The Tour of Flanders in April is legendary amongst cycling fans. Some of the toughest climbs around - on cobblestones, no less - make this one-day race particularly challenging.
Photos: Cancellara in 2008, 2009 (after his chain broke on the final climb) and finally, 2010.
The Giro d'Italia, in May, is another favorite. One of the three Grand Tours of cycling (along with the Tour de France and the Vuelta a Espana), almost every professional cyclist wants a win here under his belt. pictured above: Alberto Contador in 2008 pictured below: a disastrous rainy stage end from 2007
The Tour of California moved to May this year, which meant it conflicted with the Giro d'Italia. But that didn't stop some of cycling's heavy hitters from taking part.
In June comes the Tour of Switzerland. My boy - who happens to be Swiss - won it last year. He's riding again this year. Go Spartacus! Go Fab!
July. Do I really need to mention the Tour de France? Okay. I just did. ;)
August brings a couple of races, too. One of them is the Tour of Ireland - beautiful to watch, by the way...
Also in August, the final Grand Tour - la Vuelta a Espana - or Tour of Spain.
In September comes the UCI World Championships. My boy, of course, won the Time Trial competition. I was happy. :)
In October, we have the Race of the Falling Leaves - or as it's more properly known, il Giro di Lombardia.
And there we have them: Thirteen cycling races from throughout the year.
And for you greedy lot, there's just a tiny bit more to enjoy.
I went in search of an article for my final lesson, today. As I always do, I dropped by Newsweek.com to check out the articles -- I often find something interesting and wonderfully current there, after all -- and I found this article.
Hmph. Now, I'm pondering whether I should be encouraged or discouraged? Time will tell, I suppose. (It always does.) At any rate, I've got my fingers crossed the trend will continue -- without getting tired -- into the Autumn of this year.
Wow. What a week. I've spent days and days doing the following things:
Line edits/adjustments for Ask Me…
Creating a blurb for Ask Me…
And then, just for fun, I worked on my cover art and the header for this website.
The line edits/adjustments took two days. It would have been one day, but the computer had a Microsoft Brain Fart ™ and lost much of what I'd done. Okay, it lost all of what I had done. But after another day-long marathon I have it completed.
The blurb, however… Three solid days of kicking my own tokhes. That's right. Three days, to write eight lines of text – one hundred sixty-three words. If I'd written the entire manuscript at that speed, it would have taken me…
Okay, I don't know. I think it works out to roughly 5.6100176 years or something like that. I stink at math and I'm brain-fried from trying to get all this done before the bulk of the Summer heat and my trip to the US are upon me, so I could be a tad off in my calculations. Actually, I know I'm off, because I'd only calculated using the current manuscript, and didn't include the 127 pages which were cut (the Alternate Rialto section, for those of you familiar with it).
Anyway, I'm exhausted. My office is too warm, and I still have a lot of writing to do. I've had 27 Stages on hold for quite a while, during the edits on Ask Me…, because I can't work on two manuscripts at once. I tend to merge the characters or lose focus, and I can't afford to do that right now.
So, I keep working on the final polishing of Ask Me… (the end is in sight, I swear I can see it! No, wait, that's just a curve in the road…), and keep storing ideas for 27 Stages away, making notes here and there and occasionally allowing myself to visit Abby and Federico – just to keep in touch, of course – between stays with Emily and Davide.
The funny thing is, when I started writing Stages, I was convinced that Abby and Federico would never blossom for me the way Emily and Davide did. Now, I see I was wrong. I can't wait to get back to those two, and the other cyclists, and the Tour d'Europa (and just in time for Le Tour de France, I might add) and all the insanity surrounding them. But I have to be completely finished with one before I can indulge in the other.
I just hope Abby and Federico understand. They keep torturing me with a storyline that wants to continue after the Tour is over – and I can't have 27 Stages become fifty chapters long! Then again, Emily and Davide are trying to get more time with me, too – in another book – so perhaps Davide will go to the US with Emily…?
And then there's my "lifeguard" story, as it's come to be known… Eros and his sexual confusion, bless him, intrigues me from afar…
AAARRRGGGHHHH!!!
Yeah. Let me finish this one, and then the next one, and then the next one, and we'll get to see where it leads, eh?
Oh, yeah - the cover art? Took the least amount of time of any of this stuff!
Hello, all! Welcome to this week's Thursday Thirteen!
I thought I'd share something a little different this week. Well, maybe it's different, maybe not. Those of you who know me well can make the call better than I can.
You see, I have a tendency to get really focused/fixated on things. Some would say I become fanatical or obsessed, but I disagree. "I'm not obsessed, I'm focused" I say. It's all relative, anyway.
So, I present to you:
Thirteen Things I Have Been Extremely Focused On In My Life (at one time or another)
1) Monty Python's Flying Circus. Yes, it's true. I've been fascinated by the British troupe of comedians since I was roughly eight years old (God bless PBS). Michael Palin was one of my first British crushes (and there have been many, many of those), as some of you know.
I watched the show obsessively and saw "Live at the Hollywood Bowl" so many times when I was twelve that my mother feared for my mental health. I seem to have come through it all unscathed, and I've managed to drag my sweet hubby into the fanaticism along with me. Bwhaahaaahaaa!
2) Duran Duran. Also when I was twelve. And another thing which worried my mother half to death. I was obsessed with Simon le Bon (C'mon, he was delish, no?) at the time. Never mind that he was literally more than twice my age (only just), I found him dreamy beyond words.
Duran Duran's show in Charleston, West Virginia was the first concert I ever attended, too. Heh. Oh, and I had the poster pictured above. So did my sister. (She loved/loves John Taylor.)
3) The Beatles. I collected everything I could get my hands on: posters, books, badges, photos - you name it, I wanted it. From age thirteen onward, I was obsessed with the Beatles (John Lennon, especially). Music in general was an obsession, but my musical interests had a tendency to merge one into the other. Interest in one artist frequently led to interest in another.
Because I had all of Paul McCartney's albums, I soon came to know the work of the next artist(s).
4) Pink Floyd and David Gilmour. Because I loved the Beatles, I kept reading about Pink Floyd. My sister was a fan, and I liked some of their songs. When I was fifteen, Pink Floyd regrouped with Gilmour as the nominal leader. A Momentary Lapse of Reason came out when I was sixteen. I loved it. And I developed my long-standing crush on David Gilmour soon thereafter.
Dude. I'm actually on this DVD. Seriously. The little white blur over Michael Kamen's shoulder when the camera has the audience in the background? That's me. In my "I am GilmourWhore#1" t-shirt. (I had a website... Oh, nevermind... long story.)
5) Kate Bush. A natural progression. Gilmour produced her first album after helping her to get a record deal. I became totally obsessed with her bizarre, quirky - and innovative - style. I still love her.
One of the best pencil sketches I ever did was a copy of this cover, too.
6) Music, of course. In case you hadn't noticed, a lot of my obsessions were focused on music. I wanted to try my hand at producing music, as well as writing it and playing it. I never managed any of it. Though I still remember a few melodies I wrote for my poems. So, I kinda wrote some songs. Arguably.
7) Guitars. Guitarists. Where does one end and the other begin? Does it matter?
The photo here shows a Peavey T-15. I had one of these - the body was red, the scratchplate cream. I loved that thing (and I wrote those melodies I mentioned above on it). I played all the time. Plugged in, unplugged, in my dreams.
Never really did learn how to play, though. I lack the dexterity in my fingers and hands. Pity.
8) Cycling. Throughout it all, this interest burbled beneath the surface to break through from time to time. When I was sixteen, it started to grow - along with my cousin's ambitions to be a pro cyclist. It went underground for a short while, though, only to re-emerge when I made it to Italy, where there was real interest in the sport (and not just because of Mr. Armstrong).
Seriously, though; do you blame me?
I mean, come on!!!
Okay. Flash forward a few years, and you get:
9) Queer as Folk (USA version). From the very first episode, I was hooked. HOOKED! I thought the direction looked familiar (it was directed by Russell Mulcahy of Duran Duran vids fame), I thought the guys were hot, I thought the storyline was over-the-top-fanTASTIC!
Since it concluded after I moved to Italy, I watched the whole series on DVD.
Twice.
10) Jarvis Cocker. As much for his sense of humor and his sense of style as for his music and lyrics (which are AMAZING). A friend introduced me to the work of Pulp, and I was fixated on their lanky frontman in no time.
He inspired the novel which brought the hubby and me together.
'nuff said.
11) Photography. I started learning it in high school. I'm still learning. I've loved it all through the years. One day, I'll actually get pretty good at it, I think. ;-)
This is one of my lucky shots from September, 2006, on Lago Maggiore, Italy.
12) The X-Files. I was a total geek for this show. Again, I collected all I could get my hands on. The videos. The DVDs. The magazines. The comic books. I even had the Mulder and Scully action figures for the first movie and put them on my writing desk. Inspiration, of course.
13) Doctor Who. Starting when I was a kid, I loved the Tom Baker version of the Doctor. Last Christmas, since I was in the States, I watched the Doctor Who marathon on BBC America.
Love. It.
And one of my students was a dead ringer for the Tenth Doctor. Uncanny!
*Bonus*! 14) Writing. Throughout it all, I've been writing. There were times when inspiration took a hike and left me high and dry, but that's fine. I kept slogging away until my Muse returned.
Now I'm making a teensy bit of headway, so I'll have to keep it up, I reckon. Heh.
Summer is here and you know what that means... I have to get ready to go back to the States for a visit. Since I'm leaving in three weeks or so, I have a lot to do in the meantime - and other stuff to do once I'm there!
This week, I'm giving y'all (and myself!) a sneak preview of what lies ahead of me this Summer Holiday:
13 Things I Have to Do This Summer
1) Book the flights. Actually, I've got this done - with no help from Delta Airlines, btw. Grrrr...
(How are you supposed to buy a ticket when the credit card verification system they use throws up a "Untrusted Encryption" message at ya? Huh? Huh? I called Delta's "helpline" and they told me to call Mastercard. Uh, no, ma'am, the problem is your website geniuses are using a system every browser I have says is unsafe to use. Grrrr... again! May I advise you to use a different system? 'cause who knows how many direct customers you're losing in the meantime... Grrr... If I had other options, believe me, I'd take one of them. Unfortunately, I'm stuck with this bunch of sad sacks because hardly anyone affordable flies to where I'm going.)
2) Pack for the trip. I know, you'd think three weeks should be enough time. But with a little helper like this, I need all the time I can get!
3) Find substitute teachers for the few lessons I'll miss out on.
4) Complete my edits and send them in. I won't have frequent online access after I leave, and even though I've had the release date pushed back to Autumn, I want to complete these for my original June deadline.
5) Straighten up my office. Seriously, it's a disaster area.
6) Change out all my cool weather clothes for warm/hot weather clothes. Then decide which of those I'm taking with me. I don't usually take a lot with me when I go to the US, but when I'm coming home, I generally have extra stuff.
7) Donate my old clothes I'm not wearing any more. I can't bear to throw them out, so I'm donating them to charity. This should make a lot of space in my closet, I reckon.
After I get to the US, I have to:
8) Get my eyes checked.
9) Start back to work on 27 Stages - which has been on hold while I'm doing those other edits.
10) Watch the Tour de France in July! Woo-hoo-hoo! :) Yeah, it's Versus' coverage, but I'll take it, baby. Go, SexyBank! Go, Spartacus!
11) Take my mom to see Adam Lambert in July. Yes, you read that right. I'm taking my MOTHER to see Adam Lambert. She absolutely LOVES him. This should be fascinating to watch! LOL!
12) Go shopping for clothes. I always have to do this in the US - my difficulties finding modestly-priced clothing in my sizes in Italy are the stuff of legend.
13) Count the days until my hubby gets to join me in August! I start off okay for the first few weeks, but by the time he gets there, I'm missing him like mad!
Look at him! Can you blame me???
And there you have them. Thirteen things I have ahead of me this Summer.
Another week consumed by work and edits. Again, I've been pressed for time and didn't get to make a proper Thursday Thirteen - even though I'd planned it out in advance!
Yeah, I've got to work on my time-management skills. No doubt about that.
Anyway, this week, I'm doing another pictures-heavy installment:
13 Photos I've Taken in the Last Year
1) Taken on Mother's Day of 2009 - my sister-in-law Roberta and her baby, Mia.
2) Also on Mother's Day 2009 - my hubby. Squee! :)
3) Sophie "Doodlebug" Menozzi, a.k.a., "the Doodle" enjoys a freshly-unpacked suitcase after Alle and I return from the US.
4) Bologna Centrale Train Station, Bologna, Italy. One of the settings in my story, Ask Me if I'm Happy. These are the electronic schedules which replaced the old-style boards. I miss the clack-clack-clack of the changing schedule boards, now...
5) Italian singer Samuele Bersani - his music provided much of the inspiration for Ask Me..., and he himself provided some inspiration for the character of Davide.
6) My hubby in London, when we attended the launch of Diiarts publishing. This pic was taken just outside our hotel, along the Thames. It was raining and it was freezing cold and I loved every second of it!
7) The London Eye at night, November 2009. I loved the blue lighting in the square, too.
8) Snowfall in Tennessee, December 2009.
9) Snuggly socks and flannel pyjamas - my favorites! December, 2009.
10) Snow in Reggio Emilia, Italy, February 2010.
11) My hubby and my brother-in-law, Andrew, chat after my father-in-law Paolo's birthday dinner, February 2010.
12) Andrew, Mia and Paolo, post birthday dinner, February 2010.
13) Samuele Bersani (again) in concert in Parma, Italy, April 2010.
Wuv.
And yes, there's one more...
There's always one more...
And I hope you enjoy...
Simon Baker, actor.
I have soooo got to watch a few episodes of The Mentalist, soon!
I probably seem like a well-traveled person to many of my friends, but the fact is I haven't done a lot of traveling at all. I've been a few beautiful places, yes - I live in Italy (for the two of you who didn't know that, already) and I've visited a few places here and there as a result. There's much of the country I haven't yet seen, however, and then, heck - there's a great big world out there, too!
And so, this week I present:
13 Places I'd Like to Go
1) Lisbon, Portugal. I want to go here for two reasons:
a) I started my novel 27 Stages here, and I'd like to see if I did the place justice, and
b) I have a photo of my father here from his days in the Navy when he was just a young fella. I'd like to stand in front of the statue he posed in front of, too.
2) Barcelona, Spain.
Just because. While it does play a small role in my WiP, Barcelona is one of the places I want to go because my hubby was crazy about it when he went. Unfortunately, he went before we met so now he has to take me, someday...
3) Paris, France.
I soooo want to do a museum crawl through this city. It's another place Alle is crazy about - one of his favorite places in the world, I think - and hey, he'd be the perfect guide: He's a hottie, he speaks French, and I can tip him any way I want. Heh. And if we could be there for the end of Le Tour de France? Ohhhh...yeah...!
4) Scotland.
Anywhere in Scotland will do, I'm up for it. Why? Because I've never been, and I think the natural part of the country is fascinating.
5) Ireland.
Like Scotland, I'd like to go anywhere in Ireland. I'll let Alle (pictured on his trip to Ireland some years ago) decide where. Maybe I'd even manage to ride a bike? Yeah... right. I'd better start training, soon!
6) London, England.
Yeah, I'm cheating with this one. I've been there twice already - but I can go again and again and again... I hope to be there this year for the launch of Ask Me if I'm Happy, too!
7) Firenze, Italia.
Again, another cheat - but it's a place I can go time and again without ever feeling like I've seen it all.
8) Bologna, Italia.
My final cheat. I live close to Bologna, but don't get to go there as often as I'd like. Life has a way of interfering, sometimes. I have got to try before I go back to the States for the summer, though.
9) Window Rock, Arizona, USA.
I'd like to take the hubby here for a holiday sometime - I haven't been there since I was about four years old and my grandparents lived out there.
10) Perugia, Italy.
Anywhere in Umbria would be lovely, I'm sure, but I do fancy a trip to the city of chocolate. Mmmm! Perugia!
11) Australia (pictured: Sydney).
I'm not sure which part I'd prefer, but if I could stand the travel time, I'd love to see Australia for myself.
12) New Zealand.
While I'm in Australia, I could pop over to New Zealand as well, and partake in some of that breathtaking beauty...
13) Switzerland.
I've nearly been there a time or two - it borders Italy in one of my favorite areas of the country, in the Alps - but I've never made it. I'm more determined than ever, of course, now that you-know-who has come to my attention.
Heh. I'm trying so hard to be good and not mention him... Heh.
You know the drill, y'all...
I'm aware of what brings you here each week (most of you)...
And of course, I'd hate to ever disappoint anyone...
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