MsTiara’s Thoughts

I have been a fan of Neil Gaiman ever since a friend of mine recommended the Sandman series to me. I was a bit skeptical since I wasn’t too sure about a ‘graphic novel’ having enough sophistication to keep me interested. I found myself humbled as I sat pouring through the 10 different volumes trying to comprehend some of the most amazing, intelligent writing that I had read in… Well, I am not sure when the last time I HAD read writing that was filled with that much detail, new theories and the weaving of mythology from all around the world. From that point forward I became a serious Neil Gaiman fan, reading everything I could get my hands on, from the brilliance of Good Omens to American Gods, with side notes into Stardust and Mirror Mask. Even though I had enjoyed his works, nothing to me came close to touching the brilliance of Sandman.

That was until, I read the Graveyard Book.

The Graveyard Book is based upon the concept of The Jungle Book and yet other than the same theory the two are very different. It is about a boy who was raised by ghosts in a graveyard. We meet him when he was but an infant being saved from the person who murdered his family and we leave him as he turns 18. Along the way we watch him grow to be an adult and grow as a human being and we find as we read his story that we ALSO grow as human beings.

I am an avid reader of Neil Gaiman’s blog and followed along as he wrote the story and we got glimpses of what it takes to write a novel from the author’s perspective. I remember clearly when he wrote Chapter 5 and mentioned that he didn’t know how it ended. This chapter ended up being my favorite chapter in the entire book.

Take the time, pick up the book (which is in the Juvenile section for some strange reason) and enjoy a new perspective on the world.

Wow!  You have to check out their website for their fall line.  It is amazing, they have made something sexy and mysterious

http://www.agentprovocateur.com/experience.html

Sometimes I sit and stare off into space; I don’t do it very often because like most people it is hard to stop, do nothing, and just be.

I have always been a believer in Zen and the Tao, that philosophy of being one and living in the now. But the world we live in doesn’t train us to just be, we must do, running here and there, playing working, living, earning. We have even started to lose the ability to dream.

When I listen to people talk, it’s about TV, jokes about popular shows, words and phrases those of characters. Absorbing others personality traits that came from some fictional character to begin with.

Where are the people that are real? Where are those who know how to sit and be? And why, when you do find then, are they considered boring because we don’t know how to relate outside the media.

The sky is blue, but a thunderstorm is circling around waiting for the moment to show itself.  I know it is there even though I can’t see it.  You can feel the buzz in the air, touching your skin in an electrical caress, making your senses heightened, a slight headache as you try to absorb more than what can be noted with your normal senses.

Can you hear the thunder?  The gods talking about things that humans cannot possibly understand.  Have you ever wondered what they must think of what us creatures are doing to the world or is it like a human who has cancer, never realizing what is going on till it may be too late so all they can do is cut it out till it is no longer?

This morning, while I was curled in bed reading with my kitten Ober curled in my arms, I looked out my French Doors out over my pond and a hummingbird was flying in front of the window wishing me a good morning.

It made me smile, how much more perfect can life be?

When I was young… You know you are getting old when you start out a blog with THAT comment. Every Saturday morning I would sit in front of the television and watch HR Pufnstuff, Electra Woman and Dyna Girl (I was always Dyna Girl), and Isis.

A friend of mine was talking a couple of months ago and I asked her who her favorite super hero was, she said Isis. I became awash in small flashbacks, me sitting in the middle of the apartment building with my arms wide calling down the power of Isis, thinking I was running around in a purple outfit saving the world as Dyna Girl and the darkness and fear of the world of HR Pufnstuff. I couldn’t remember any specifics, just little tiny moments. Now, I put myself around 7 or 8 in all of these moments in time and I couldn’t help myself but start to do some research on that time from the past.

First thing I looked at was when these were aired. 1969 – 1972, that would put me at 1-4 years old! Huh? That just doesn’t seem right, but this wasn’t a world of DVD or Tivo so wow, I was very, very young when these memories were around. The next thing that I found out was it was on DVD! LOL, I am now the proud owner of the complete series – Secrets of Isis and HR Pufnstuf.

As I watched the first episode, when they were running through the forest I could understand how come I thought it was so very scary, the trees trying to grab you and the dark colors and shadows. I also realize how come I have this wonderful ability to give thoughts and emotions to trees and houses and my absolute adoration of dragons. I also found myself falling back in love with the whole world. It is wonderfully done, I want to be Witchiepoo and I also want to create one of the magical houses on my property in fun colors.

I find myself sitting here on a Saturday morning laughing, smiling and singing along with the songs.

What a wonderful way to spend a Saturday morning J

Have you noticed that there seems to be a lot of bank robberies lately? Okay, maybe it is just here in Arizona, but it seems every day they are talking about another one.

I know that when the economic times are ‘bad’ that people supposedly get desperate and do desperate things. But rob a bank? I would think that there were much better places to rob if you were going to do it. First, its high profile, second they have been set up to have higher security than most places. It just doesn’t seem to be a smart choice if you are just a petty bank robber (and yes, that is what most of the people are that are doing the robberies). It is just tickling my brain today making me go, why a bank?

The other thing that is running around in my brain is the bad economic times we are having. Companies are freaking out, putting jobs on hold. People are starting to hoard money, afraid of being laid off. But, when you look at the bottom line of these companies? They are still making ten to hundred million dollar profits, in a quarter! I truly do believe that the news is self fulfilling their own prophecies, creating the bad economic times.

Racing is an interesting world, it is like an insidious virus that just when you think you are cured of it, it comes back and starts to fizzle through your blood. Now, is that fizzle more like champagne that makes you giddy or something that will sap your strength as you run around delirious, I am not sure I am the best person to judge.

I thought I would be happy no longer doing it, that I had all the life experiences and amazing moments in time. But, then you get past eh awkwardness and the next thing you know, your soul kind of expands and sucks it all in and you realize it is a part of you and you are a part of it.

I am not sure whether or not I should thank my friend Dan for reeling me back into the world or find a way to pay him back. But, after going to the Indy 500 this weekend and seeing my friends and feeling the buzz of all that energy and excitement, I am back to wanting to go racing rather than easing off into the sunset.

Thanks?

Today is dark and grey, a storm is rolling through the city, but I am nice and cozy in the office with the fake yellow lights seeming surreal against the darkness of the day. My true joy would be, to be home at my house in the mountains, watching the storm from the comfort of my bed.

I read an amazing quote from Neil Gaiman today about writing, that the true secret is to just write. Keep on writing and slowly it will all come together and you will have your style solidify, that your voice will start to come.

I have a book of writing exercises for when I am home, but I still think I need to try other things, like tell the story from each pet’s perspective, where each one writes something, kind of like the Tao of Pooh where each one has a distinctive voice and personality.

Hello everyone, welcome to the ramblings from my mind.