i'd like a little more cowbell

Happy Wednesday!

You know, when I read back the "Happy Wednesday" line I'm hearing it like the voice that does Frosty the Snowman in that silly little holiday show. A kind of nasal, high-pitched, sincerely faked "Happy Wednesday!"

Because Wednesdays are like that.

I realize that I'm tired today. I was out late last night - but the new Brownie troop leader is TRAINED!! Which means that they're about ready to move on without needing me at their meetings; not quite yet, I'll help her transition, but she's getting there. The training went till 9:30 in Charlestown last night.

Anyway, one of the little signs of Sam-Fatigue: I have pulled several dozen commas out of everything I just typed. I don't know why I'm so attached to the comma, but there it is. I also have to take out lots of paranthesis. to quote Sarah Vowell:

so as not to call glaring attention to the fact that I cannot think in complete sentances and can only think in short fragments or long run-on sentances that the literati call Stream of Consciousness, but I like to think of as disdain for the finality of the period.

I'm amazed I was able to type that quote from memory because I couldn't find the book when I was looking for it just now. I love, love, love her book Take the Cannolli and whenever I find it I'm so happy and I read a few essays right there, or leave it on my pillow to read later. But I'm always losing the darn book! It's somewhere near where my current book stack is waiting for me. It's always somewhere around there. Why it never stays there is a mystery. I HIGHLY recommend this book; Vowell is an incredible storyteller with a gift for humor and spot-on insights. Not to mention, there is something similar in her background and mine - from the beginnings in a fundamentalist family to a liberal adulthood, studies in arts, and just the conclusions she's come to, I read these essays and often think "I could've written that." Of course, I didn't. But I should. I could write that.

In the meantime, someone sent me a link to one of my favorite SNL skits of all time: The Cowbell Skit

The blog thing is working out in a rather interesting, new way. I've begun getting helpful emails from other people that are now popping in with links that I might enjoy. Stumble is great, but this is pretty cool too.

Including things like this online webcomic of sardonic doom.

And this absolutely gorgeous webcomic that I will read more of (so I'm posting the link here so I can find it later): Nowhere Girl.

This is rather cool, too: a collection of the Best of Lists for books, movies, and music.

And here is a funny little game with a warning: Don't catch the grenade.

A parent yesterday called me a "hipster geek". I think I'd resent that if it weren't a wee bit true.

What I'm reading: I'm finishing up a new book for the youth department that I really like on a couple of different levels. Project Mulberry, a story about two kids, a FFA-type club, silkworms, tolerance, and the state fair. As just the story, it works - it's a nice tale - especially for the readers that like "realistic" fiction with nice characters and light humor - not all the tragedy. But what makes it really interesting for me is the between-chapters part. You see, between each chapter the author Linda Sue Park has a discussion with the protagonist, sometimes an argument, when the girl tells her that she doesn't like where the story is going and that the author shouldn't "boss her around", and the author counters with "this is your story", sometimes they talk about the points that are in the story. It's these middle sections that give an insight into the writing of the story, the thought process behind what is going on and how the story is developing. The pieces are small, and if you just wanted to read the story you could ignore them completely, but as an aspiring writer I recommend picking up this quick read and following the author's journey.

What I'm watching: Roofers. On our roof. Fixing a leak that all this rain has made much, much worse. I'm expecting a huge crowd of New Hampshire kids that don't have school again today at the library, so I'll be watching them later. Perhaps I'll just bring some games and plan on hanging out and playing. Regardless, they will be there.