We woke up this morning to find out that our area was hit by multiple tornadoes. A harsh thing to happen to a city that a.)doesn't have tornadoes and b.)is still struggling to recover from Hurricane Katrina.

On top of that, the recent spate of violence and robbery have apparently made some ugly-souled people out there say (loudly) that the country shouldn't be working to rebuild New Orleans. To you all, I point out that your moment will come, and you'd better hope that people feel more humanity toward you than you seem to be willing to extend to us.

New Orleans is an entertainment stop to most of the country. But the truth is, a lot of the drinking and partying is done by tourists who come here. We're very family oriented, as anyone who's ever attended an uptown parade during Mardi Gras season can tell you. We're far from the Sodom and Gomorrah that we're portrayed as. We're a very religious city--many religions, though predominantly Catholic, and we had nothing but goodwill for the rest of the country.

Now, I think, we're also very, very tired. It's very hard to shut out those loud, ugly voices who marginalize you. It's also painful to realize just how little concern your own state has for you as well. I've always heard that New Orleans was like an island all on its own... I didn't realize until now just how true that was.

No writing right now. The continued stress seems to be pushing me more toward light hysteria instead of panic, anxiety, and collapse. Is it a bad thing to be able to laugh about the fact that your hurricane-damaged house is still standing after a tornado?

I was hoping to get Chapter 4 finished this week, but Things have come up and conspired to eat most of my time. Here's hoping I can reclaim some of it and get the chapter out by Saturday night at the latest.

Meanwhile, here's the first Forward Motion for Writers exercise I've done for the Zette's Gym forum in quite a while. The challenge, as listed at the forum, was to write a sentence that included all five senses. Here's my attempt:

He drew his limbs tight to avoid feeding more skin to the broken stone, stars bursting into false brightness and fading behind his closed lids, and concentrated on each rasp of breath that burned his nostrils with dust from a past long forgotten and coated his throat with the dry promise of death.

I'd like to start writing again, but I'm not sure where to start. I mean, if your most senior of six bodyguards is found mysteriously dead in a foreign ruler's palace, what's your next step? Do you rage? Are you shellshocked? Wrought with anguish because he was your lover or because your favorite plaything is gone? Are you lost and paranoid?

This is a good time to make one of those Lists of 20, where you write down 20 alternative answers to your question and use one of the last few, which are bound to be unusual and brain-stimulating. Unfortunately, I've never actually gotten all the way through a List of 20. Hm. My assignment for the evening is to decide what reaction the young queen would have so I can get started on Chapter 4 of V's book.

I've become a hoarder of sorts. I always have been to an extent, but it seems to be getting worse. I've always found solace in gathering enough books around me, enough snacks, enough of my favorite foods so that I never feel anxious about running out. Now I find myself gathering experiences. It's a bit disconcerting to look back and see how many items I've purchased in the hopes that they would help me define who I am and how I can best handle my anxieties. I buy them and use them for a short while, then can't bring myself to use them any longer. I don't know why. Maybe I'm telling myself that I don't have enough time or personal space to use them well. Maybe because I feel like there are so many things that need to be done that I don't want to start another one and not be able to devote my full attention to that new task.

But that doesn't stop me from continuing to hunt for the next experience. The next self-help technique, the next hobby. The one thing that reins me in is my compulsion to comparison shop before I actually buy anything. (Thank God for Wishlists!)

I would like to believe that this isn't so bad if it helps me eventually pinpoint the way to work with my problems. At least I've identified that I have these problems-- including the problem about seeking answers to my problems. Meanwhile, I just wish I could get around to using that biofeedback kit that sounded so wonderful for the two weeks I mulled over it.

Sorry to be so long between posting. It's been a rough time out here. I haven't written much in months. Things were already looking grim and frustrating, and then our house was stripped of our silverware, media equipment, and copper pipes and wires (we're not yet sure what else is missing, since we're still in the temporary apartment). Five break-ins in spite of all of our attempts to secure the house. The estimate for the electricity alone is in the five-digit range. Not counting the roof repairs and foundation repairs and any gutting needed....

But I think I've found my footing once again. I'm ready to write again, and that's a wonderful feeling. All we can do is move forward, right?

Thanks go to all of our friends and neighbors who've offered so much moral support. And carpentry knowledge.

Save those old chapters.

Been struggling with chapter 3 for some time. I've begun 4 different versions of the chapter, and though I've been enthusiastic about them, I would always get to a point where I realized I had boxed myself into a corner. Very frustrating, since I have a storyline; I just keep having trouble connecting the dots.

While getting ready for work this morning, I thought of a way to use the latest beginning incorporated into the original "chapter" that I renamed and shuffled off. Good thing I still have it!

Take a moment of silence in remembrance today.

I need a writing strategy

I was able to sit down and do the Zette's Gym challenge, but every time I try to start Chapter 3, I stall. So here's my thought:

Approach each scene as a Gym challenge. Set a task for the characters to achieve during that scene, specific or general, doesn't matter as long as there's a goal to aim for. If I can do one Gym, I should be able to do a number of 'em and then string 'em together.