Do you hear the silence surrounding you now that it's December? Now that National Novel writing Month is over, silence--blessed silence--replaces the clack of the keyboards, the scratching of pencils, and the grinding of mental gears as Nanowrimo participants created 50,000-word manuscripts out of nothing but their own creativity.
It was a hard month. Ask any of us. November is always the month that a cold sweeps through the office, or a dishwasher breaks or--let's not forget--we get together with all of our family for a huge Thanksgiving feast.
The Rise of App Games: the Great Avian-Porcine War of 2010
Over the last few years, I've drastically reduced the amount of time I spend playing video games. Staying up all night playing XBox 360 just wasn't working out for me anymore. I decided to change my ways. I was doing so well, but then I got an iPod Touch and was introduced to my downfall: Angry Birds.
My husband and I like listening to audiobooks together while we work in our home office. We also listen to audiobooks when we go on trips. His family lives far enough away that we can usually get a book done on the way there and another one on the way home.
Hollywood seems to have exhausted their resources. As far as blockbusters go, there doesn’t appear to be very many original concepts. Now, I understand that the screenwriting industry is brutal. More often than not, people are hired to write screenplays for adaptations of other, already-published works, such as novels or plays, and not deliver their own original content. Surely, the world isn’t completely out of original ideas. Hollywood, however, has begun production on films based on books that haven’t even been published yet.
Just think of all the heavy clothing you will have to wear that bogs you down just to keep warm. And how many times you have to go to a gas station and pump gas into your car while your hands and face are freezing. Make sure the trunk of your car is loaded down with heavy objects so you don't slide into the person who is speeding past you on a slick street.
All in all, winter won't last forever. As fast as the months fly by, spring will return.
Temporary North Independence Branch Closing Dec 6th
The North Independence Branch temporary location at 1509 Truman Road will close December 6th. Come in to say goodbye to our home away from home, pick up your Holds, and wish us luck. The new North Independence Branch at 317 West 24 Highway will open December 20th. The book drop will remain open at 1509 Truman Road until December 20th. All Holds designated for pick-up at the North Independence Branch between December 6th and December 20th will be available on December 20th.
The Kansas City Star newspaper had a front page article Saturday, November 27 on a WWI military unit which became known as the Polar Bears. They were sent by President Woodrow Wilson to the Arctic shore of Russia in 1918, at the end of WWI. Their mission was to oppose the communists and support the czarists as the Russian Revolution began. The men were left in frigid Russia for about seven months before they were evacuated.
On Monday (Nov. 29), the Lee’s Summit Branch wrapped up its first Nanowrimo group. Yep, a total of 7 brave souls embarked on a frenzied 30-day journey that for some of us ended with a completed novel, 50,000 words total. It can be done! I’ve seen it happen!
Unfortunately, I have to admit that my novel never really got off of the ground. 11,000 words in, I got stuck with characters that had no depth at all. Just between us, I had an eerie hankering to kill them all off. I guess there’s always next year.
Discovery Club met on November 3rd to celebrate El Dia de los Muertos/The Day of the Dead. The Day of the Dead is celebrated in Mexico and other Latin American countries on November 1st and 2nd. During these days, it is believed that the spirits of their loved ones lost return home. Relatives leave favorite foods and create altars for their loved ones to visit, while those living visit the graveyards for festivities. The Discovery Club kids decorated sugar skulls and made paper skeletons to celebrate the day.
Come join the Blue Springs North Bookies as they meet at the Barnes and Noble Bookstore to judge the First Annual Sunnyvale "BookWalk" Contest. What fun we’ll have as we are entertained by the Sunnyvale Middle School Book Club. Participants will select a literary hero or heroine, dress in character, and entertain us--leaving everyone begging for more Saturday, December 11, 2010 at 1:00 pm. Be there or be square.
