HEART Rocks!

How shall I begin this entry today? It’s a gorgeous bright, windy, fall day and I am bursting with lots of lovely, bubbly energy. I love this time of year…the humidity is being taken over by windier days and I can wear a light jacket. Yum!

I am putting up a video of one of my favorite female rock bands: HEART
With Ann's voice and Nancy's playing you can't go wrong.  I heard that they are coming out with a new album on October 2 called FANATIC. Can it be true?! Say it’s so!! Very excited indeed!! Can’t wait!! Okay, have I put up enough exclamation points…can’t help the enthusiasm. They are killer musicians and you know what I’m like with rockers. ;-)

Let’s see…I’m still reading about Patricia Highsmith’s life and she feels like a kindred spirit…bendito. Her tragic love affairs, the ups and downs with her creative life, her bouts with drinking and depression…yep, I can relate to this woman very well. I am mid-way through a 400+ page biography.

Reading about her work, her process, has helped me to navigate through a rough sketch of an idea for another novel. I think I made mention of it sometime last week. I worked on it last night and put in another 1,000+ words down. It’s rough and I’ll try not to judge it. The story is about a married man’s obsession over a female co-worker. I sketched out a couple of chapters so far, nothing major. Not sure where it’s going yet but trying to stay with it, without throwing it out. For the first time, I’m not writing in a linear way. I am moving only from one major incident to the next. How I’ll tie it together, I’m not quite sure yet but it’ll figure itself out.

I’m also still working on Indigo although that seems to be going much slower. The plotting out is a bit grueling. Perhaps, I need to sketch out the rest of the novel as a way of thinking through the next couple of chapters. I know where I want it to end, just not sure how I’m going to get there from where I am 1/3 of the way through this novel. Ergh! I have three months to finish this draft. I can feel the deadline breathing down my neck. Then I’ll put in a drawer for a month before I start going through the revising process.

Last bit, I took a walk around Bryant Park during my lunch break and they were shooting an episode of Person of Interest. Jim Caviezel (one of the lead actors) was standing there running lines with someone and he was looking dapper in his tailored suit. Do people say dapper anymore? Anyway there’s the word in black and white and very appropriate indeed.

Anyway, that’s all for now.

Peace,

L~

All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2012 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Liliana Almendarez.

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

I am in a mood today.  Not sure where it's coming from or what's bothering me at the moment, but I'm in a bit of a snit.  The thing is I don't have anything to complain about at the moment.  I've addressed some issues that have popped up (for a change, instead of letting them fester), I've reached out to friends for support and advise (check), cooked healthy foods for myself (check), taken walks to clear my head (check).  So where is the funky stink mood coming from?  Ergh!! 
 
I've tried some retail therapy but that hasn't work out lately.  I've bought three pairs of shoes in the last three months only to return them as soon as I get them home.  My flat Sasquash feet don't fit into anything pretty.  And since I'm not 20 anymore...wearing dr. marten's with dresses just doesn't look right. *sigh* 

I've lost 16 lbs up until last week and today I'm back up 3 lbs...*frustrating*  My sister says she can see the weight loss...unfortunately, I don't.  * grumble, grumble *

I have an idea for another story about desire and obsession.  Last night, I sat down at my desk to quickly sketch out the story.  It was just to get down the overall idea. But somewhere between sketching out the idea, my direction changed and I was trying to block out the story and the writing was just terrible.  Big clunky phrasing that reminded me of undergraduate work. I balled everything up and threw it out.  I'll have to go back tonight and fish it out of the wastepaper basket...in hopes of salvaging the idea itself.  I'm frustrated with writing lately.  It's like holding a finger down on a bruise.  It hurts but I can't help but do it, write, that is.  I know there are hills and valleys to my process...just sometimes wish there were more peaks than troughs.  Maybe that is where the mood is coming from...wanting the writing to be better than what it is currently. 

On the bright side, today is Friday.  I'm having dinner with my sister and her boyfriend at one of our favorite Korean restaurants.  Yummy Kimchi and Dolsot BiBamBop, can't wait.  I think I'll walk around Bryant Park a couple of times during my lunch break to help with the funky mood.  It's a warm, bright day...I may as well take it in before winter sets in.  
I'm not in the mood to work (day job) today. Instead, I just want to pile everything up in the corner of my desk and try my hand at that story again.  See if I can piece together the impulse with the act of writing. Wish me luck. 

All for now,

L~

All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2012 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Liliana Almendarez.

Lianne La Havas at The Bowery Ballroom (Sep 11, 2012)

I went to see the Lianne La Havas last night at The Bowery Ballroom and she was phenomenal!! I loved her vibe and the way she flirted with her audience. She wore a black velvet bolero jacket with gold thread and a short leather skirt with black platform shoes. I was up in the balcony…yay! so I could actually see her act without getting squished. The music was sensational and listening to her live actually made me well up with an abundance of soppy emotions. The sadder the ballad, the bigger the well-up of tears yet it was cathartic. There were a few songs where the audience sang along with her and the energy could barely be contained in the place. There was a couple of audience members right in front of the stage that was jamming and grooving so hard…that their energy was infectious. Her last song of the night was Is Your Love Big Enough. Hoorah! Last but not least, her band mates were on point. Her drummer is fierce. After the concert, I walked up along the Bowery, and the street was dark and the night was cool and I had her music inside of me. I hummed all the way to the train station in a low mellow way and it was a gorgeous night. Lovely!!

All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2012 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Liliana Almendarez.