Small Talk: a.k.a. 'The Meet Market'

[Shanna Marie]

Is anybody planning to read the new Harper Lee novel?

Probably not. I don't want to sully my memory of To Kill a Mockingbird, and I get the feeling she doesn't actually know it's being released. It was actually found a while ago, so it's fishy that it's only being published now. Since she wrote it first, she obviously went a very long time not wanting it to be published, when I'm sure any publisher would have leapt at it long before now.

 

Plus, she swiped my publication date. :-)

[tennisgurl]

Not so much after recent news about the book. Very Sadly. 

[Souris]

Yeah, I doubt I'll read it. Too much problematic about it in-book and out-of-book.

 

Ouch, Shanna Marie! That's really unfortunate timing.

[Shanna Marie]

Ouch, Shanna Marie! That's really unfortunate timing.

I actually don't think it'll affect me much, although it's good for people to be going to bookstores. It was just one of those "Seriously? Really?" things when they announced it. I was in no danger of having a #1, but this just means it's absolutely impossible.

[sharky]

Forgive me, I jumping in because I missed something, but a book, Shanna? Details!

 

Meanwhile, I've actually done a major rewrite on one of my fanfics to turn it into an original fic and try to get it published. I have no idea how this is going to go and am a little worried it will be all for nothing, but still want to at least try it once and see what happens.

[HoodlumSheep]

I' e heard so many things about the release of Go Set a Watchmen; I don't know what to believe.

I'v heard instances that the story was written before TKAM, so the characters in the book are pretty much separate characters than the ones that we know and love.

I've heard instances that Harper Lee was pushed into publishing the book and of course instances that refute that.

It's kind of a mess.

I don't care if it's true or not, but I think I'm going to choose to believe the former, and that the characters in GSAW are pretty much the first draft/beginning concepts of the characters before they morphed into what they are in TKAM.

Does that make any sense?

Woody was originally supposed to be a puppet/ventriloquist dummy (or something of that sort) in Toy Story, and eventually morphed into the cowboy we all know and love today. The Atticus Finch in GSAM is like the puppet.

I don't care if it's wrong/untrue, but I'm sticking with this idea.

Edited July 14, 2015 by HoodlumSheep

[Crimson Belle]

Monroeville is only an hour or so away from me,  and my Dad's family is from right around there.  Harper Lee's sister controlled most of her business dealings, but with her sister's death, I think there's a niece who is in control, and who is not well thought of.  Most folks around here don't believe Lee has been making her own decisions for several years, and I doubt she's capable of it.

Monroeville is only an hour or so away from me,  and my Dad's family is from right around there.  Harper Lee's sister controlled most of her business dealings, but with her sister's death, I think there's a niece who is in control, and who is not well thought of.  Most folks around here don't believe Lee has been making her own decisions for several years, and I doubt she's capable of it.

[Shanna Marie]

Forgive me, I jumping in because I missed something, but a book, Shanna? Details!

It's not top secret or anything. I mostly just try to avoid "work" coming up here because I try to make this space un-googleable so I can hide here without being in "public" mode, but my day job is writing books (so I'm not just blowing hot air when I discuss stuff like plot and characterization). I have a new book releasing today. It has nothing to do with anything related to Once Upon a Time, other than having fantasy elements. And there's a character named Henry, but I wrote the first draft of this in 2010, so I had the name first and he has nothing to do with our Henry. Here's the Amazon page if you're curious.

[Mari]

Monroeville is only an hour or so away from me, and my Dad's family is from right around there. Harper Lee's sister controlled most of her business dealings, but with her sister's death, I think there's a niece who is in control, and who is not well thought of. Most folks around here don't believe Lee has been making her own decisions for several years, and I doubt she's capable of it.

I heard on the news this morning that the estate's lawyers had stated that when they looked through the container holding the manuscript for the just published book, they had also found pages that could be a third book.

The way it is stated implies that this was a manuscript found in her things, and published with little to no input from her.

Edited July 14, 2015 by Mari

[sharky]

It's not top secret or anything. I mostly just try to avoid "work" coming up here because I try to make this space un-googleable so I can hide here without being in "public" mode, but my day job is writing books (so I'm not just blowing hot air when I discuss stuff like plot and characterization). I have a new book releasing today. It has nothing to do with anything related to Once Upon a Time, other than having fantasy elements. And there's a character named Henry, but I wrote the first draft of this in 2010, so I had the name first and he has nothing to do with our Henry. Here's the Amazon page if you're curious.

Oh, pretty cover! And it's now added to my goodreads list. It's starting to get long.

[Dianthus]

I just found out about an organization called Trash Bags to Travel Bags. It provides foster kids with new luggage stocked with comforting items like pjs, coloring books, journals and pens. There are links in the article I wanted to share: info@astepcloser.org and www.casaforchildren.org.

Edited July 17, 2015 by Dianthus

[Souris]

We soooo need to have a get together! I used to belong to a BtVS message board (with a Spike problem) and we had 3 S'cubie get togethers. One was in Nashville, one in Chicago , and one in Minneapolis. I actually had money then, so I went to all of them. It was a hoot! California's really nice, you guys, especially my little corner of it. You'd love it out here.

 

I went to an XFiles Romantics email list (yes, it was long enough ago that our chatting option was an email list) get-together once in D.C. It was a ton of fun. We posed Mulder & Scully dolls outside the FBI building. Good times.

[Dianthus]

Souris, on 17 Jul 2015 - 6:14 PM, said:

I went to an XFiles Romantics email list (yes, it was long enough ago that our chatting option was an email list) get-together once in D.C. It was a ton of fun. We posed Mulder & Scully dolls outside the FBI building. Good times.

I totally 'shipped Mulder and Scully back in the day. Can't wait for the reboot.

[Souris]

Man, I keep almost clicking on the "Report This Post" icon instead of the Like icon after their change!

[Mari]

Souris, you vicious troublemaker, you!  :)

 

(I keep having to work extra hard to avoid doing that, too.  I might be too blunt sometimes, but I'm not that abrasive.)

[KAOS Agent]

 

I just found out about an organization called Trash Bags to Travel Bags. It provides foster kids with new luggage stocked with comforting items like pjs, coloring books, journals and pens.

 

 I read a book last night where the heroine had been in foster care from the age of three and was quite proud of the fact that she was one very few foster kids who'd graduated from college. Within the story, she volunteered for Treehouse and one of her roles was to help counsel kids who were aging out of the system. One of the girls wanted to go to college but couldn't even afford the application fees to try to get in. That's so damn sad. They never even have a chance. At the end of the book, there was a little information about foster kids and education. Less than half graduate from high school with their peers, two thirds never go to college and less than 10% actually graduate. One of the things the author highlighted was that Treehouse provides education support to the kids in addition to the clothing/toys/books/toiletries. They also grant small wishes for kids like paying for sports participation fees, drivers ed, music lessons or even smaller stuff like a cap & gown and school pictures.

 

Also, I made a truly, truly sad discovery today. You can actually go through online databases and select your preferences for a child (age, gender, race, etc) and pull up photos and detailed profiles about kids in the system waiting to be adopted. 

[Dianthus]

I wish I knew how to put the power of this fandom behind these groups. JMo's a busy lady, but she could easily rally all her Ugly Ducklings to the cause. I'm not on Twitter myself. Anyone?

[Shanna Marie]

I went to a few Firefly Shindigs, where I met a bunch of people from the TWOP Firefly thread, many of whom are still friends I'm in regular contact with. It's been a while since we got together for Firefly purposes, so I almost forget why I know them sometimes. I go to several science fiction conventions, but I seldom run into a lot of OUAT fans, other than when I'm on related panels. Mostly when I talk about it to people, I get the "I watched the first season but quit in the middle of season two because I couldn't deal with Regina anymore and they wimpified Snow. But I've thought about trying it again because Captain Hook looks pretty hot" response.

 

As for the foster kids, one of our local TV stations features kids needing homes every week on the midday news, and I always get weepy and want to take them in. I have considered that when I have a certain degree of financial stability and a house with enough room, I might adopt some kids who are about to age out of the system. I'm not sure I would be a great parent to a smaller child, but I could be a home base and support system so an older kid doesn't feel alone in the world -- be someone to help them go to college, send care packages, go to parents' days and special events, be a place to come home to for holidays, etc.

[Souris]

That's lovely, Shanna Marie. My former neighbors are going through the steps to become foster parents right now. They have three young kids themselves and are getting by on a teacher's salary, but they'll be great. The wife just adores children and wants to help them all. She's the mom-est mom I've ever met. Bless them.

[daxx]

I found a town home I like. Making an offer today. Wish me luck!

[HoodlumSheep]

Good luck, daxx!!!

[Souris]

How exciting, daxx! Good luck!! I hope you get it for the price you want to pay!

[HoodlumSheep]

Just saw The Good Dinosaur trailer! It looks stunning! The visuals/animation look amazing, especially the scenery. The details! Gah!!!

Here's the trailer:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=O-RgquKVTPE

[tennisgurl]

Good Luck Daxx!

 

Oh Pixar, between this trailer and Inside Out, you are so back on my good side. 

[Shanna Marie]

Fingers crossed, daxx!

 

I had to postpone my house buying plans, between the market going insane around here with a big bubble forming and some exterior repairs the HOA needs to do that affect my interior, it's just a bad time for me to try to sell or buy. Not that this is a bad place, and every one of my neighbors who's heard I was thinking of selling (it turns out my neighbors read my blog) has said something about how they'd hate to see me go, which is nice to hear. I guess when you've got a neighbor who can be home all day while you think she might be out of town, you want to keep that person instead of getting someone potentially noisy.

 

I've got another trip this weekend with the disorganized friend, and I'm really regretting having said I'd travel with him. We're going to a convention, which is something he does for fun but it's a business trip for me, and he doesn't seem to be able to absorb that concept. I have a panel at 6 that I'm moderating, so I can't afford to be late, and I've got enough stress that I don't want to spend the morning wondering when/if he'll get here and then spend the trip wondering if every little setback means we won't make it on time. I've issued the "if you're not here at 10, I'm leaving on my own" ultimatum. I'd really rather go on my own. I need some serious brainstorming time, and driving is good for that. Plus, the alone time in the car means I have more social energy when I get there. And then I want to get home as early as possible afterward because I have a tight deadline and need to get to work, and he likes to wait until the last second to draw out every little second of what he sees as vacation. I've mentioned that I won't make very good company. Is it bad that I'm kind of hoping he's running late and I can just go?

[HoodlumSheep]

This isn't important, but I gave myself a haircut today. Trimmed of an inch or two...and gave myself bangs! It was spontaneous.

I haven't had bangs for 11 years (since the fifth grade)! It feels so weird! I don't know what to think. I guess I'll have to examine them when I've washed and dried my hair. Gah! I don't think they look too horrendous; my older brother didn't laugh at me, so they must not look too bad? Either that or he's pitying me. I can't tell.

Right now I'm most concerned about it looking thin where my part is, but that might be from my hair not being used to bangs.

[ABitOFluff]

I love my bangs! I've had them for about 5 years, sometimes longish and fringy (think Florence Welch), and sometimes really short & blunt (think Bettie Page). I have a cowlick right there, so I know what you're talking about.

 

You might have to work with them so they lay how you want them, but don't use any product on them. I also run a flat iron over them quickly when they won't behave.

[HoodlumSheep]

Okay, thanks for the advice! Hopefully it doesn't take too long for them to behave! They go just past my eyebrows. I didn't want to cut them too short in case I messed up or didn't like them.

[Souris]

There are family photos of when I decided to cut my own bangs when I was 3. It ... did not end well. Basically, I left myself about a half inch of uneven hair.

 

At least hair grows & I didn't give myself a facial scar like Colin.

Edited July 23, 2015 by Souris

[HoodlumSheep]

Going camping up north (still in the lower peninsula though) for a couple of days! So I'll be off the grid for a bit. Which means I expect to miss boatloads of ouat spoilers popping up while I'm away (because that always happens)! Have fun analyzing all of them!

See ya in a couple of days!

[daxx]

Damn, I'm bored. Actually frustrated I think.

I want to get going on things for my new house but doesn't close until Aug 24th and I can't spend any money until it does.

I want to shop, call the contractor to remove that awful popcorn ceiling, I want to lay down vinyl plank flooring and get carpet installed. I want to go to the thrift store to pick out furniture(cause I'll be broke after the previous items).

I want to clean the place, it's been rented out the last ten years and it needs it.

Since I can't do that I want to watch some season three OUAT but can't even do that without putting up with the mocking...

I so need out of this place, at least I have an end date now.

Done venting. I feel better now oddly.

[sharky]

Have you thought about a trip to IKEA? When we bought our house, we needed a lot of furniture and and spent six hours there with two kids. It was like being in the fifth circle of hell, but we got a furnished house! And they have a delivery service if you don't have some way to take it all home. You can even pay to have them assemble it too although I did most of the assembly myself or with the husband.

[daxx]

I did look at their website and found a few pieces I could use for the kids room but I'm doing nautical with darker colors in the living room and cape cod in my bedroom, dark blue accents, white walls, and eventually an accent wall with ship lap painted white.

I didn't see anything at ikea that wasn't modern looking.

I did find a place in town that builds custom furniture out of reclaimed wood. I will eventually get some pieces from them.

$500 for a solid wood dining table stained in cappuccino, so not bad price wise.

I found some great Edison bulb chandeliers on etsy, but expensive, so will wait. A gal on etsy near me make adorable ladders for holding extra blankets I'll get one of those.

Poor house it's going to have a split personality, sea themed on the inside and Santa Fe on the outside.

[Shanna Marie]

Poor house it's going to have a split personality, sea themed on the inside and Santa Fe on the outside.

Sounds like my house -- Spanish/Mediterranean on the outside, with stucco walls and a red clay tile roof, and my decor is rather Victorian and formal.

 

I miss the Bombay Company for cheap assemble-it-yourself furniture that wasn't IKEA modern. They were based locally, so there was an outlet and the occasional factory sale. I got my dining table for $99 at a factory clearance sale. Most of the wood furniture in my living room is also Bombay Company. But they went out of business.

[OnceUponAJen]

I loved Bombay Company. At one point in time, I worked down the street from their headquarters.

I'm sort of mixed in my tastes, too. My bedroom, dining room and living room are more traditional, but I like a more modern look in the kitchen and bathrooms. Traditional southern on the outside with a porch and white columns.

[daxx]

This is how I know I miss my home, I keep trying to bring the sea/ beach to the desert.

I'm a California native and since I moved to Phoenix 20 odd years ago for work this is the longest I have gone without my feet in the surf. Used to go several times a month now I'm lucky once a year to hit the beach or Disneyland.

[RadioGirl27]

I'm so tired (and grumpy). This summer is going to end me, we are having a heat wave after another, with temperatures over 30°C (that would be around 86°F) day and night, with many days that have been over 40°C (104°F). And we are close to the sea, so there is a lot of humidity. Siberia sounds like heaven right now.

[sharky]

Yea, our tastes run modern so IKEA was the perfect place for us. It was either that or buy furniture for some astronomical price from some snobby modern store.

 

And I'm having the same heat issue. It's going to be a high of 90+ degrees for the next two weeks it looks like and the AC in my car has crapped out. Ugh. Off to get that fixed hopefully soon.

[daxx]

Yeah, partly cloudy and 107f today, 108 tomorrow. Probably won't dip below triple digits until Sept or Oct. Arizona is too hot. And I'll be prepping and moving to a new place right in the worst of it, late August.

[Selina K]

Daxx, congrats!!?? I guess you got the place :)

[daxx]

Daxx, congrats!!?? I guess you got the place :)

Thanks, not a sure thing yet. Still need the appraisal to come in, but after that it should be all good. They won't budge on the price so the appraisal could be a deal breaker.

[daxx]

I just got 5 emails from Twitter advising suspicious login attempts from unknown devices. It better not be fandom crap. I logged into Twitter and changed my password just to be sure.

[Souris]

I just got 5 emails from Twitter advising suspicious login attempts from unknown devices. It better not be fandom crap. I logged into Twitter and changed my password just to be sure.

 

Ugh, Daxx!

[daxx]

Before I joined TWOP I used Kryptonsite, just for kicks and giggles I went to see my last few posts. I also looked up my first OUAT related post. I haven't changed my taste much judging from the avatar I had back in 2013.

It was from the "Perhaps I would" scene.

First post was general speculation on how Wendy Darling was going to play out in the Neverland arc. I was wrong.

One of the last posts was me defending Hook saying that he would of course tell them about Neal being in Neverland even if it broke his heart. I left Kryptonsite quickly for TWOP since the site was very unfriendly to CS.

[Lieutenant]

American Pharoah is about to run in the Haskell on NBC! It's his first out since winning the Belmont/Triple Crown. No surprise, he's the heavy favorite.

Aaaand and he cake-walked that like he could do it in his sleep. OMG this horse is an absolute machine. This year's Breeder's Cup Classic is going to be EPIC!

Edited August 2, 2015 by Lieutenant

[HoodlumSheep]

^ I missed the race :(. It was my brother's birthday. I'll have to watch some clips. The Breeder's Cup is at the end of October, if I looked at the right sources. Hopefully I don't forget about it due to Halloween. I'll have to mark it on my calendar!

Let's just pray that American Pharaoh stays healthy until then.

[Souris]

I'm so bummed that today is Jon Stewart's last "Daily Show."

[HoodlumSheep]

I do find it sort of fitting that he's ending his run though. You may find this odd, but I like how Jon and Stephen Colbert ended their runs on their shows kind of around the same time (sort of). Honestly, I can't think of one without thinking of the other (despite them being awesome individuals and having awesome separate shows).

I wasn't a loyal viewer, but Jon was hilarious, smart, and all-around awesome.

I'm sure he'll keep busy though.

And on a whole different note, I was just about to post this question here anyways:

Are any of you subscribed to the Taste of Home magazine, and if so, was there an August issue? I know the last one was June/July and the website is already showing the Sep/Oct issue.

Do they take a break in August? their website isn't very helpful.

[pezgirl7]

Things are so slow at work today, and this board is a bit slow as well. How about we explain what our usernames mean or why we picked it? Maybe our user icons too?

Mine, pezgirl7, is because I collect Pez dispensers (I think I have about 250 now), I'm a girl (shocker), and 7 is my lucky number, and my birthday. My user icon is pretty obvious! I love Hook, and the smolder, and I think I've had the same icon since I first joined the board. It's perfect, why change it? :)

 

Anyone else want to share?

[HoodlumSheep]

Hoodlum is what my 2 older brothers call me. I like sheep. I raised some for 4-H for 2 years.

I have no icon. If I did, it'd probably be of Ana from OuatWonderland because she's flippin' awesome and one of my favorite ouat characters overall.

***there, I fixed my icon! Bow before Ana's awesomeness!!

Edited August 7, 2015 by HoodlumSheep