Getting out of the slushpile...and into print!

It took me a long, long time to get my first story published. I spent a semester during my MFA program writing and editing the first draft. Then I probably tweaked it for another month or two. Then I spent a year and a half sending it out to 21 different journals. It got rejected by 17 of them, and then was accepted by two different places right around the same time. (The remaining journals I wrote to and rescinded the submission.)

So when I came across this article in Writers' Digest on getting out of the slush pile, I thought I would write a post listing a few of the minor things I did in between the time I first sent the story out, and when it finally got picked up. I think these little tweaks made a world of difference.
(Note: I read about the WD article on the Practicing Writing Blog)

1- When I got the first five rejections or so, I sent the story to some writer friends who kindly gave me feedback. They all agreed that it was ready to be submitted--but two of them questioned one particular part of the story.
That sent a red flag to me that something wasn't working in that area. I revised it.

2- After rejection 10 or so, I printed out the story and read it over from start to finish--something I hadn't done in months at that point. I found a few typos (egads!) and reworked a few parts that seemed clunky.

3- Around that time, I reworked the red-flagged area from item #1 yet again.

4- Right before I sent out this last batch of submissions, I tweaked the opening in a way that I think made a big difference.

The opening line went from:
On her first day in Paris, Chloe buys six postcards.

To:
On her first day in Paris, Chloe writes a postcard to her dead husband.

The latter is much more engaging, no? It leaves you wondering, What happened to Chloe's husband? Is she crazy? The former might leave you wondering, Who cares?

The moral
* Work on your story until you really truly believe it is done.
* Have friends read it and comment on it (other writers are great for this, but I also have non-writer friends read my stuff and their comments are often just as helpful)
* If your story gets rejected a number of times, take a look at it with fresh eyes and see if there are parts where your interest flags, where the writing seems clunky, that could be cut, or that need clarification. Pay particular attention to the beginning, since that's what the editor will see first.
* Don't give up hope!

Some February crafts

I got a lot of crafting done this month. Not sure if that's because the cold weather kept me inside, or if my headaches kept me away from books and my computer, or if I was just in a craft mood. In any case....
I didn't want to throw away the Christmas cards I was taking down at the end of January, so I decided to recycle them into Valentine's decorations. I cut them into hearts, and then sewed a thread through them so they would hang in a line and dangle. Hanging them in front of the windows by my front door meant that people outside and inside could enjoy them.


(Don't mind the bad photo--the way the house is set up doesn't allow for a good angle of the windows.)

I didn't just use Christmas cards--I also used images from magazines. I ended up with many more heart cutouts than I did window space, so I also made a mobile--something I had been wanting to make for a while now, ever since I noticed how soothing I found the slow movements of a modern art mobile that hung in my dentist's office (and what a good place to find something soothing, no?)

As you can see, I put images on one side and relavent or just amusing (to me, anyway) words from magazine articles (mostly a very iteresting New Yorker piece on how scent informs memory).

I had so much fun making it (which took a lot of trial and error in terms of finding the right materials to be sturdy enough to support the structure, but fluid enough to allow for movement)that I'm going to make another using birds instead of hearts--to hang to celebrate spring (whenever that comes around!).

Post-mobile, I had yet MORE hearts, so I hung them in the archway that separates my living room from the kitchen/dining area:






I'll also have some knitting photos to post soon... What crafty things have you been up to this month?

Confession Tuesday: The Simultaneous Submission Edition

I confess: In the past, I have submitted pieces simultaneously to journals even if they didn't allow simultaneous submissions. I figured: With all the rejections I have gotten, what are the chances that one of my stories would be accepted by two journals at the same time?

I confess: THIS JUST HAPPENED! Luckily, the second journal that accepted it was one that allowed simultaneous submissions, so the weirdness of having to reject their acceptance was somewhat dampened. I also felt good about the fact that I did email that second journal as soon as I found out that the New Plains Review accepted my story. My guess is that the editor didn't have a chance to go through all the "general inbox" emails before emailing authors whose work he accepted.

I confess: I will never flout simultaneous submission rules again.

I confess: Once the anxiety I am feeling over having to reject the acceptance and probably piss off the editor of the second journal subsides, I will probably be all aglow for weeks at the idea that TWO journals wanted the story that SEVENTEEN rejected.

I confess: The idea of pissing someone off (in general, not in this case alone) causes me way more anxiety than it should.

I confess: Having my story accepted makes me feel like a "real" writer, whatever that means.

I confess: I wish I didn't need this kind of outside validation but, alas, I do.

How to Survive February in New England

T.S. Eliot got a lot right, but he got one thing wrong: February is the cruelest month, at least here in New England, according to this Writerbug. Though it is so short, it feels so long. And so dark. And so cold. (Which reminds me of that lovely Shakespeare quote: "Though he is small, he is but fierce.")

I'm not the only one who feels this way about February.

My plan to conquer February is a little different than Soule Mama's, though. It does entail lots of knitting and being outside, but the main component is movies! I plan to see all of the Best Picture nominations this month.

And the nominees are:

Avatar
The Blind Side
District 9
An Education
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire
A Serious Man
Up
Up in the Air

I've seen Avatar (eh), Inglourious Basterds (awesome), A Serious Man (very awesome), and Up (awesome). I plan to see another one or two movies this weekend, and I have The Hurt Locker out from Netflix.
That leaves me enough movies to get me through the last of this long short month.

Congratulations...to me!

After most "victories," Brian very sweetly gets me one of these helium balloons. This week, I got one to celebrate my most exciting victory yet--one of my short stories, Cartes Postales, will be published in the Spring Issue of The New Plains Review!

It's been a little over a week since I've heard the news (I didn't want to share until I got in touch with the editors of the other journals that were considering the story), but I still get giddy when I talk (write) about it!

Maybe that's the benefit of having Cartes rejected 17 times--yes, I counted. Now this victory is all the more sweet for being so hard won.

Another twist: of the four journals from which I had to rescind my submission, three wrote back to say the story was being seriously considered for publication and I should send other work.
Of course I was very happy to hear this--and it makes me wonder if Cartes got close to publication at any of the 17 journals that rejected it. Man, that would have been nice to know! It would've taken the sting out of those rejections just a wee bit....

But anyway, I am so so so so happy about this. It's so gratifying to know that my instinct that told me this story was ready was correct, despite all those rejections. And it's a good reminder to all of you out there who might be on rejection #16....Keep sending your stuff out! After a series of rejections, you might want to look at the story again and tweak it as you see fit (I did that a few times). But most of all, keep sending it out. All it takes is one! And, of course, keep writing.

My very exciting plans for this Friday evening involve doing just that.

Some pictures, on this snowy Wednesday

So far the snow in these parts (South of Boston) is way lighter than expected. But who knows what's to come....

Since I got out of work early in anticipation of the snow, I'm finally getting around to putting up some pictures I've been meaning to post.

Remember I mentioned I took myself on an artist's date and hit my favorite thrift store in Boston?

Here are just a few of my finds. I'll post more sporadically as the urge strikes.
I got all of these items at Boomerangs, probably all for under $10 total, though I don't remember exactly. I think they look quite lovely grouped on top of our piano.


I also bought this vase:


And then I needed to fill it, so I made some pom-pom flowers. Fun and easy!


I couldn't help myself from making more pom-pom flowers, and putting them on the branches that sit in this awesome vase I got when my Oma (German for grandmother) passed away. It's funny because the vase did not fit in with the rest of my Oma's house, and yet I had loved it from when I was a little girl. Now it doesn't really fit in with my decor either, but I still love it.

And I think the whole pom-pom flower look works with it, if I do say so myself!

Need some inspiration?

I love quotes from writers on writing. I find them inspiring. So I was quite pleased when I came across this post from the No Credentials Necessary blog.

My favorite of her list of quotes:
The best advice on writing I’ve ever received: Finish.” – Peter Mayle

So simple, yet so difficult!

Recent Reads: January Edition

I'm starting a new feature on this ole blog, a list of books I've read in the last month (and commentary on what I thought of them).

I hope this feature serves multiple purposes:
1- Selfishly, I'd like a place to keep track of my reading.
2- I love learning about books and articles from people I trust, so I hope to provide my readers with this service.

Next month, I hope to add a list of any particularly good articles I read, along with commentary on what I thought of those, too.

Here goes!

Books read last month
Reviewed on a scale of 1-5 stars, listed from worst to best. (Saving the best for last and all that.)

Santa Fe Dead by Stewart Woods
1.5 stars
Bought this as an airplane read....The plot was good enough that I finished the book, but I won't be recommending this author anytime soon. The writing was pretty bad.

No Good Deeds by Laura Lipman*
3.5 stars
This murder mystery set in Baltimore kept my interest and, when I was away from the book, I kept thinking about the characters and the plot--always a good sign. In terms of craft, I would like to go back to this book (and others by Lipman) to look at how well she creates a sense of place. I don't know much about Baltimore, but she described the city in a way that was not confusing for an outsider and, it seemed to me, wouldn't be boring or redundant for someone who knew it well.

*Note: I listened to an audio version of this book

Loving Frank by Nancy Horan
4 stars
I got interested in this book, which fictionalizes a long-term affair that Frank Lloyd Wright had with one of his clients, after visiting the architect's house in Scottsdale, AZ, in December.

The book is told from the perspective of the woman, Mamah. It was well done--until the end. I won't spoil it for people who want to read the book, but I was totally shocked in the end. I like books that surprise me, but whose endings, when I look back on the book as a whole, seem as inevitable as they were surprising. This was just surprising.

That said, I would still recommend the book for its lovely architecture and art descriptions, and the information about the women's movement in the early 1900s, as well as the illumination of the topic of making hard choices in life (Mamah left her own family, including two young children, to take up with Wright because she felt it was what she needed to do, as a person.)


Delicate Edible Birds and Other Stories by Lauren Groff*
5 stars
I loved these stories. They embody everything I hope to have in my own work--characters who are alive, interesting plots, and subtle but completely comprehensible endings. In fact, I liked the book (which I got from the library) so much that I ordered myself a copy, so I can reread it, study it, and underline to my heart's content. Hopefully I'll figure out just how Ms. Groff works her magic.


*Note: I listened to an audio version of this book

Confession Tuesday

January over at PoetMom started Confession Tuesday a while back. I follow her and others' confessions, but I've never confessed myself. Here goes!

I confess that when I thought about writing this post, all I could think of was my Catholic upbringing: It's been about 15 years since my last (priest-witnessed) confession.

I confess that now I'm wondering what it is I confessed in that confession, which is probably to be my last in a Catholic Church.

I confess that I've started to attend the Unitarian Church near my house and I love it. Aside from the welcoming nature of the congregation, and the social justice component of Unitarianism, what I most love is the weekly tradition they call "Sharing of Joys and Sorrows." People get up and share something they are happy about, or concerned about, and then light a candle. At the end, the leader of the service lights a candle for "all the joys and sorrows unspoken, but that are in our hearts."

I confess that I've never shared a joy or sorrow for fear that I would cry while I was up there.

I confess I cry a lot. Movies, TV shows, books, life in general...all fodder for tears for me.

I confess that ever since attending PoetMom's and Erin Dionne's book parties recently, I have been daydreaming about my own book party, which I hope to have occasion to throw one day in the relatively near future. More on that in another post.

I confess I am writing this post during work hours and must get back to my job!

Thrifting

I'm having a bit of Me Time tomorrow (or an Artists' Date, if you are a Julia Cameron Follower). One of my stops will be one of my favorite Boston thrift stores, which I used to go to at least once a week, and which I miss dearly now that I live outside of the city. (Boomerangs in Jamaica Plain, for those of you locals who are wondering.)

I'm going to be on the lookout for some candlesticks for this cool project, a DIY Ribbon Organizer made out of old candlesticks.

And I want to look for some sweaters that I can felt for a tote bag I want to make.

Any other suggestions for cool projects/materials I should be on the lookout for?

Slow down....whether you like it or not!

I've been trying to be all philosophical about the crazy migraines I've been getting just about everyday. (Quick aside, I'm seeing lots of doctors and alternative practitioners, so no need to worry about my not getting the care I need.) I've been trying to think of them the way I think of Rufus, my insanely cute though very annoying puppy--that they will teach me patience, and to slow down.

But the thing is, I don't want to slow down. And slowing down because you're in pain and lack energy is not enjoyable in the way that slowing down because you want to take some time off to just veg is. I get frustrated when I look at the sweater I want to get back to knitting. Or when I look at the cut outs that line my dining room table just waiting to be put onto the mobile I am creating. Or when I think about the many blog posts I've half-written in my head. And don't get me started about my poor, abandoned journal. Or the stack of books collecting dust on my nightstand. Thinking about them makes me want to cry.

I know, I know. I need to rest as much as I need to. All these projects will be there, waiting for me when I get better. That's what I would tell a friend if she were in my shoes. But I didn't appreciate before this experience how frustrating it is not to be able to do what you want to do, when you want to do it. And none of the advice I would give my friend/my self acknowledges that fact.

So, that's where I am, moving at a frustratingly slow pace and hating every minute of it. So as not to end on a complete downer, here's a pic of that insanely cute dog who is teaching me to be patient, and who is a much kinder teacher than head pain. (He's the gray one, Chloe is the black lab)

Random ramblings

I just read an interesting, random list on the Juniper Moon Farm blog featuring 5 things readers didn't know about Susan the Shepherdess. It inspired me to make my own random list. And away we go...

Five things you probably don't know about me

1. I love bargain shopping--I can't remember the last time I paid full price for a piece of clothing. My first love is thrift stores (where the thrill of the find is heightened--they're like little treasure hunts!), but I also hit up the sales rack.

2. That said, I don't scrimp on shoes. I tend to have a few, sturdy pairs of shoes that I wear and wear and wear, so I want those to be well made and comfortable. I've found that often means expensive. But since they last me years and years, I'm OK with that. (And I have a few cute, cheap shoes to mix things up a bit.)

3. While we're on the subject of money, I've never had credit card debt (knock on wood--I've been blessed with jobs that offer health insurance; I know many people have to go into debt if they don't have insurance). My dad instilled in me the importance of only buying what you can afford, and that lesson stuck.

4. And speaking of health... I'm much more comfortable with alternative medicines like acupuncture than I am with popping pills (not exactly the easiest attitude to live by now that daily migraine headaches have been striking for the last few weeks. Pain meds are now my friend).

5. In the last two to three years, I've really come to enjoy winter. I can account for this shift in attitude with five things:

a-This Landsend coat, which really could keep you warm on a tundra.
Here's a shot of me in my coat, and my good friend Kathy in a similar one:













b- These boots (Sorel Snow Bird Zip)


Warm feet are the key to feeling warm, and these things are so well made, you can stand with your feet in a snowdrift for hours (it seems, I haven't actually tried it for that long!) without feeling a thing. (My one complaint is that the zipper slides down a lot, but I still love the boots.)


c- Living in a house I love with two fire places. I spend a lot of time indoors in the winter, and loving my home has made that time a retreat, instead of a burden.













d- Instead of thinking of winter as one, icy, five-month block, I notice the variations in temperature and light from day to day. Yes, winter lasts a long time here, but there are plenty of pleasantly chilly days (like today--about 40 and sunny) mixed in with the bitterly cold ones.

e- I get outside for a walk at least once a week. Despite loving to sit by the fire and read/write/knit, I also need some outside time. And thanks to items a and b on this list, I can get out there without being too miserable.

Come join me at the Boston Center for Adult Ed!

I'm teaching this class this weekend at the BCAE, and really looking forward to it! Please pass this info on to anyone you know in the area who might be interested.

Writer's Weekend Workshop

Have you always wanted to write, but have a hard time getting started? Or have you been writing but currently feel stuck? Or do you just want to spend a Saturday writing with others? If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, this class is for you. We will begin with writing exercises to get inspired and to learn about different aspects of the craft of writing, such as characterization, setting scenes, and plot. As a group, we will discuss the writing that comes out of the exercises. If students want, they can bring copies of a two or three page writing excerpt that they want workshopped. This class will mostly address fiction writers, but essayists, memoirists, and creative non-fiction writers are welcome to attend.

Saturday, 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM;
2 sessions starting January 23, 2010, ending January 30, 2010
Tuition: $50.00 ($40.00 for BCAE members)

On a happier note....

I'm not sure why, but I've been daydreaming about planning a birthday party. My birthday is in late June, mind you. And I don't normally even have a party.
But after my last depressing post, I thought I'd post my birthday party wishes. Much nicer than my end of life wishes, no?

I want this cake, as I am an avid (obsessive?) scrabble player:


I would like this shirt as a present, to represent one of my other obsesssions, knitting:


I might ask my guests to come dressed as a favorite literary character, as Kelli of Book of Kells did.

And I would wear a tiara and feather boa All Day Long.



[Edited to add] I forgot about music!! There would be tons of music ala the brother of a friend of mine who is a DJ, and LOTS of dancing. Our living room is rather large and would make an awesome dance space. Those looking for a more mellow time would be hanging outside, under the luminary-lit backyard.

Want to come?

Death and writing

I've been quiet this week (blog-wise and in general). Feeling a little overwhelmed by emotion, between the terrible sadness in Haiti, and, on a more personal level, the sadness in my husband's family as they grieve for the death of his beloved grandfather and worry about the health of some other family members.

But, I can link the depressing topic of death with writing! PoetMom posted an interesting question recently regarding what, if any, provisions her readers-who-are-writers have taken to ensure their wishes are followed regarding the publication (or not) of journals or works in progress.

Making a will is on my list of things to get done this year, and I will make a provision for my writing journals and files. Assuming Brian out lives me, I'll leave decisions about what to do with everything up to him, and ask that he consult my writing friends about anything he has questions about. I would hope that he would work to publish the things that I was working to publish at the time of my death.

If we die together or he dies first, then I will have one of my MFA friends be put in charge of making those decisions. (I need to ask her first, obviously!)

The only real question in my mind is what to do with those books and books filled with morning pages. In some ways, they are utterly private and certainly are not written with the intention of ever being read. On the other hand, if I'm dead, I'm not sure my privacy is really relevant, and maybe my survivors would find comfort in reading my day to day musings. On the other other hand, I would hate for something I wrote in a private journal to be misinterpreted or cause pain to a loved one.

What are your thoughts on what you'd want done with your writing (computer files, journals, etc.) posthumously?

A short one

This will be a short post because I have a killer headache. I've been plagued with these damn things for about a month now (and off and on throughout my life, but never like this!).

But I wanted to point readers over to the blog of the beautiful and talented Erin Dionne. Her second YA novel was just published (whoo-HOO!!), and to celebrate, her editor at Dial books gave a two-part interview on Erin's blog. It's very informative for writers of all genres. Click here for part one, and here for part two.

And a big congrats to Erin!

Check back soon for posts on:
* How I untangled a knotty problem in my novel
* One of my goals for 2010: Allowing myself to feel like a legitimate writer.
* Some artsy movies that I've recently watched and recommend.

Christmas in the Dessert

One of the things I love about traveling is that I take the time to take photos. I've always loved photography, but the hobby has fallen by the wayside a bit as I am trying to devote my creative energies to writing. But vacations are a good excuse to get back to this craft. Here are some of my favorite images from the trip.

We spent most of our time in Scottsdale, where my brother lives.






Then we took a short jaunt up to the red, red mountains of Sedona, one of the most beautiful places I've ever been.







In Scottsdale, two of my favorite attractions we visited were the Scottsdale Botanical Gardens and Frank Lloyd Wright's house, Talesin West. The Gardens had a luminary celebration going on, so we got to tour through the various cacti displays lit by 7,000 candles. And around every corner, there was a different kind of band playing. Our walk was serendaded by carolers, bell ringers, mariachis, salsa, jazz singers, and many more.











The tour of Wright's house was really neat. The guide talked all about his processes in creating architecture, and the principles he worked by. He sounded like quite the character--his ego probably couldn't fit into any of his houses, according to the asides of the guide. It's prompted me to read two historical novels based on Frank's life, Loving Frank and The Women. I'll let you know what I think when I'm done.

New Year

I woke up this morning with a feeling of beginning anew, in a way that I don't normally experience on January 1. Maybe it's the fact that this is not only the start of a new year, but a new decade. Or maybe it was the fresh coating of snow that covered the world outside my window. Whatever the reason, I am relishing it.

I plan to spend the day writing, casting on this sweater(link only available to ravelry.com members), which I'm making for myself (!), catching up on the emails I got behind on while away in Arizona for Christmas (pics to come), and maybe watching a movie (or napping while a movie plays in the background....).

Oh, and I promised myself I'd start doing this exercise DVD I bought myself for Christmas--Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred. I'm not resolving to lose weight or get in better shape this new year. I will not be one of those people who makes a weight loss resolution come January 1. But call it what you will, that workout is on my list of January 1 things to do.

Have a great New Year's Day, all!

An ode to Poet Mom

I had the pleasure and honor of attending the book party for Underlife, the first book by Poet Mom (aka January Gill O'Neill). I am finding it hard to describe how wonderful it was. In fact I'm getting teary even trying to. It felt like a dream, and it wasn't even my book party! I can only imagine how much January was/is floating after wards.

The first part of the event--the reading--was held in Jan's hometown library, a historic building that set the scene beautifully.



I got lost getting there, and arrived just in time to hear Erin give a polished and proud introduction of her friend. It was a bitterly cold evening, and I brought a rush of cold air in with me as I quickly found a seat among the 40 or so people gathered. My eyes were wet from the biting wind, but they overflowed with happy tears when Jan took the microphone and did a wonderful job of thanking the friends and family who supported her, and then reading several brave, funny poems.

Jan looked GORGEOUS and read beautifully and confidently (click here for a short video of her reading). Everyone hung on her every word, and she got a standing ovation when she finished. AND, the bookstore selling copies of her book sold out almost immediately after the reading, and had to dip into Jan's own stash to fulfill the customers.


After the reading, I chatted with a number of the interesting people at the party. I was nervous going in since I really only knew the star of the show and the emcee (Erin), who I knew would be busy. But everyone was warm and welcoming, and just as quickly as my cold toes defrosted in the warm air of the library, my nerves melted. And best of all, since the audience was filled with many of Jan's writer friends, I got to talk writing! One of my all time favorite subjects. :)

Since I know January in real life, I know how much work she puts into her art, and that knowledge made being part of the fruition of that work all the more sweet. She signed my copy of Underlife, and pointed out that I even got a shout out in the acknowledgments, since I had read and commented on the manuscript.

One of my favorite touches from the party was that she had a copy of Underlife for all of us to sign, a guest book for her to remember all of us who were there for what must be one of the highlights of her life--the party really was one of the highlights of mine!

Dear Friends: The low-lights of the year

As promised, here is my sarcastic, always-look-on-the-dull side anti-Christmas letter.

I'm finding this letter hard to write, not because I had a perfect year filled only with happy, pride-inducing moments, but because it's part of my flawed psychological make up to bury the less-than-happy memories in hopes that I can pretend they never happened. Hence the years and years of therapy.

From said therapy, I can tell you this flaw is all my parents' fault. In fact, one of the low-lights of the year came in the days after Thanksgiving, when my family stayed with us. In true Bug-family style, no one talked about anything that was bothering them until my parents decided to leave early, giving no reason why (and of course I didn't ask for one, not only because that would truly go against our nature, but also because I didn't want to make them thing I didn't want them to go).

So now B and I are very much looking forward to spending Christmas with them! B is especially excited about the fights being with them will bring up between the two of us, because you know it's awesome to have to pretend you're totally happy with one another because your in-laws are watching your every move.

Speaking of in-laws, B's family has had a spate of bad luck this year: two elderly grandparents are hospitalized and don't seem to be getting any better, a middle-aged uncle got diagnosed with cancer and died about 2 weeks later, and my step-father also just received a cancer diagnosis. The guilt we felt about not spending Christmas with B's family? Now quadrupled.

On my own health front, I spent all of November and part of October battling a bug that made me exhausted and achy. Then, just as that cleared, I got a bout of chronic headaches that strike everyday between 1 and 2 p.m. They're so precise I don't even need a watch! Talking with my doctor to figure out if they're migraine or tension headaches, but either way, headaches are one of those poorly understood conditions that call for lots of trial and error. So I see lots of doctor's appointments in my future. It'll be a good excuse to get to know my doctor better.

B has also had a list of illnesses (chronic and acute) that I won't go into here lest I breach his privacy. But let's just say it's a long and varied list, much longer say, than the list of things I want for Christmas. Fun!

Now that health and the families are covered, we can move on to the low-lights of my writing life. They mostly consist of the pile of rejection letters housed in my desk drawer--a new one just added to the pile days ago! What a nice surprise to see a SASE in my handwriting amidst the cheery green and red envelopes in my mailbox. I couldn't wait to open it to find out who had rejected me now. (An anthology of stories about baseball, if you must know.)

We also added an insanely difficult-to-train dog to our little family. Nothing like a dog that constantly, and I mean CONSTANTLY, needs attention/reassurance to annoy the crap out of you. And speaking of crap--he's also been difficult to potty train! And our other dog has developed the wonderful ability to grab food off of the counter no matter how far back you place it/what kind of security system you set up. Say bye-bye to lots of "cooling" Christmas cookies...

I think that covers most of 2009. Looking forward to learning what will ail me, my family, and the world in the New Year.