here we go!

I am so very excited! This past weekend was a fabulous start to my New Year, filled with fun times with friends old and new. On one of the social sites I use - facebook, if you must know - I had beau coup wishes for a happy birthday, with quite a few from unexpected sources. Nice! I had gone to work on my special day, as I am quite a trouper and I was needed there, but I did get off a bit earlier than usual, allowing me to get up to my BFF's place in Hiram in time for a mojito before dinner. Very nice! Then she and I and the family all piled in to the car and off we went in search of cake. Big, monster, artery-chokin' hunks of cake, at a place known as Pasta Bella. I selected Lemon Meringue Pie, with a five-inch, beautifully sculpted, perfectly browned meringue topping on a three-inch layer of lemon curd. YUMMMM. Oh, did I mention the candle? Yes, boys and girls, there was a pink candle valiantly blazing atop the dreamy drifts of whipped egg whites, as well as a trio singing "happy birthday, dear customer" as the lovely treat was gently placed before me. My BFF had given me a lovely "aquarium" picture, a three-dimensional still life with fish, so to speak. I intend to place it in my Ocean Room, on the wall near the computer, so I can enjoy the new view as I converse here and elsewhere. She told me she had thought of my personal aquarium, my bedroom, as the location for the new art, but I would rather have it where I can look at it often through open eyes, not eyelids.
The next day, off we went to the trade fair at Centennial Park, where my BFF was to hawk her wares: beautiful purses, with pockets inside for essentials. Great fabrics, nice textures, several different styles of The Perfect Bag (at etsy.com). (Yes, I am QUITE shamelessly promoting her enterprise!) I even found a rather unique necklace for my little black dress: a strand of gray and black beads, closed with two sterling dragonflies on the side. Not only is it an unusual piece, but it also appeals to my asymmetry bent. I'll have to create an occasion to try it out... oh, wait, I can wear it at the Celebration of Daddy's Life scheduled for Sunday! Oh, nice! I think Daddy would definitely have approved!
Saturday night, one of my BFF's friends had a low country boil, with a twist. They use crayfish, with a few crab legs for good measure, instead of shrimp, and they season it with fire. No, truly, They say they're using Louisiana spices, but I have it on good authority - my entry and exit orifices - that it's fire. Even the corn on the cob and the new potatoes were so spicy as to be nearly inedible by normal people. Fortunately, none of them were present and we all ate our fill, followed by a trifle created by my BFF in honor of my birthday. A non-dairy concoction with cherries, chocolate-laced whipped "cream", and angel food cake, topped with Bing cherries.
Wait just a darn minute! I know what you're thinking. "That's twice she's mentioned her birthday and not said anything about HER eating cake. What's up with that?" Well, quite frankly, I think I'm done with cake for a while, after having a certain type of cake lay siege on my mind for better than two weeks. So, pie, trifle, cobbler, bread pudding, even brownies, but no cake, please. The angel food cake in the trifle doesn't count, as it's not whole, but torn into little pieces. So, there!
On Sunday, my bird from Charleston flew on down and we had dinner and a movie. Actually, we had slunch (too late for lunch, too early for supper) at one of my favorites (Chili's - their tilapia is so very tasty!), then the movie. "Star Trek" for the second time, this time paying more attention to the character Ayel, played by Clifton Collins, Jr. He was also in "Sunshine Cleaning", as a completely (COMPLETELY) different character. I had wanted to see "Star Trek" again, especially for the sword fight (!) and the view of Earth from space. The viewing was that much nicer with my bird by my side!
And the whole weekend, my brain was feverishly trying to work up concepts for my novel-writing experience. Oh, how about this one? Hmmm, how to flesh it out past just a few pages? Whose voice should be telling the tale? Should there be only the one point of view? How about a series of stories, woven together? That sounds like fun, but how to get the characters to meet? Where to have the tale set? When is the action and what is the action and why??? So, Monday evening I began my journey into the Southern Cross world, having finally settled on an opening gambit... and found, after the first few lines, that I had diverged from my original concept into one that felt more natural, more me. I'll be quite interested to see where this adventure leads!