Muse funk

It must be said that, for the last week and a half I've been walking around with a rather woolly brain. Now, I know I'm pregnant, but that is not the reason for the fog. Rather, my muse met a superior muse! And I think mine has now gone into hiding.

We spent much of our Christmas break watching earlier seasons of Dr Who (mainly the remainder of the Christopher Eccleston era) and the first seasons of the David Tennant era. It's all great stuff, I can tell you that. No doubt that I love the good Doctor. He is amazing (and yes, I know he's fictional). But, as I found previously while watching through the Stargate SG-1 seasons, there are simply some episodes that make you go "WOW!" ... and then leave you stunned as you drink in, absorb and attempt to digest their audacity. And yes, that is the only word that is going through my mind.

And it's one such episode that currently has my muse in a funk. Oh, she knows that her ideas are as good, yet different ... but I think she's just wanting to ... pay respect to others who come up with, to put it plainly, brilliant plots.

SFFS 17/12/2011

I thought I'd join in the last SFFS round for 2011! Thank you to each of you who come by today and read this post.

This is the end of Layni's scene with the Helpie - or is it? - from The Contract. Enjoy!

Layni dreaded to contemplate the type of fun, except little was being left to her imagination. Already the two tentacles at her waist were working to loosen the ties that bound her clothing to her, and one stray was leaving no illusions as to its desired destination. She clamped her knees together.

‘Oh no, my pretty. We can’t have that.’ That one was Ner.

A tentacle heretofore unoccupied grabbed her hair and pulled her head backwards. The stray one, working together with the ones around her knees and ankles ...

You can view snippets from the other authors in the SFFS ring here.

Merry Christmas to each of you, and a wonderful New Year!

God's Name is to be Praised

Over the years that one lives, one meets many types of people. Some are similar (hopefully not "the same"), while others are different. Surely, if we were all the same, life would be boring?

Having said that, the one oil that helps the world go around is respect. Namely, respecting other's beliefs and the fact that they may differ from one's own. We all have our own pasts, our own futures, and our own reasons for being who and what we are, and none of those makes any of us a lesser person than the next.

There are those out there (and sometimes closer to home) who believe that if one believes in (has faith in, trusts in) God, then one is somehow failing in the logic department. I completely disagree. It is the discipline of science, for example, that taught me how awesome my God is. How immense is that universe beyond the borders of this Earth? How minute can the marvels of organisms and cells be? And how beautiful is ALL of it?! These are a few of my reasons for believing in God - or at least, that reinforce my conviction that God exists - for starters.

I appreciate every one of my friends who does not believe what I do. And I also appreciate those who believe the same.

Life's priorities

My husband and I were listening to the radio while driving home from Northampton on Saturday evening, and we heard this story. Now we've heard this story many times over the years, but not quite like this version.

When things in your lives seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the two cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began , he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sandfilled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things--God, your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions--and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

'The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.

The sand is everything else--the small stuff. If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

'Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first--the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled. 'I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.'

SFFS 05/11/2011

Oh bother it, I'm late with just everything today! Here's the next snippet from The Contract. Thank you very much to all of you who come by and read each week!

Layni squirmed beneath the tentacles as she felt more wrap themselves around her ankles and knees below the table. Was that another one ... two? ... feeling by her waist? If they so much as ... she sighed, helpless beneath the assault.
‘Now look what you’ve done, Con. This is no fun. She’s ac-qui-esss-ing.’
‘Oh, we can make this a lot more fun, can’t we, Layni?’ Con whispered in her ear.

To read snippets from the rest of the ring, go to the SFFS blog.