I enjoyed writing the feature on Arsenic and Old Lace best. I know a lot of the theater kids, but there were several in Arsenic that I had never met, and it was nice getting to know them. I made friends with one friendly, funny guy in particular, and he has brightened my day more than once since then. The show was light and humorous, and there were a lot of people I care about involved, so it was even funnier to me. It was just, well, fun, you know. Not stressful.

I’m graduating this year. It’s only now really coming home to me, and I don’t know how I feel. It’s safe here. My writing might get a bad grade, but I know why, and I trust the professors to help me improve. I want to find a job that includes some form of writing, but I don’t know if that will be possible right away. I’m prepared to take what I can, and do my best. Freelancing is going to be my main avenue of going professional, I think. I plan to start doing some of that whether or not I find a job. I want to finish a novel this year, too. Yeah, not sure that’s going to happen, but I want to try… the hardest part will be picking which one.

Thank you to all my fellow students, editors and the professors who guide us. You’ve made my time at CBU memorable, and I feel that I’m well-equipped for life, armed with good friendships and confidence.

Lisa Pagan is in a difficult position. In 2005, Pagan was honorably discharged from the army. Now, four years later, she has been recalled to complete the time on her enlistment contract and heading to Ft. Benning Ga. -- with her two children in the backseat.

Pagan’s husband travels frequently for work, and there is apparently no one who can take care of her children while she finishes her service. So she is bringing the children with her. The AP article in the San Francisco Chronicle quoted Master Sgt. Keith O'Donnell, Army spokesman in St. Louis, who said that "The Army tries to look at the whole picture and they definitely don't want to do anything that jeopardizes the family or jeopardizes the children. At the same time, these are individuals who made obligations and commitments to the country."

The biggest thing that stands out to me about this story is that, according to the O’Donnell, “Of the 25,000 individual ready reserve troops recalled since September 2001, more than 7,500 have been granted deferments or exemptions,” and yet Pagan, who certainly has a legitimate reason to be exempt, has been denied. They are leaving her with the choice of leaving her children or failing to report. I don’t think that’s fair.

I wholeheartedly support women who wish to serve in the armed forces, but I also believe that once you have children, your first duty is to them. Pagan met her husband while stationed in Hawaii. She was still in the army when she had her first baby, and she and her husband left the army soon after, when their enlistments were up.

Pagan did it the right way: her kids obviously mean a lot to her, and when she took up family duty, she finished her army duty with honor. If Pagan’s husband wasn’t away frequently and unavoidably for work, (his employer even stated in a letter that "In order for Travis to remain an employee, he will be required to travel,") I’d even say she should just leave them with him and finish at Ft. Benning.

Tom Tarantino, a policy associate with the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, is quoted in the MSNBC version of the AP article saying that "Usually the only way that someone can get out of the deployment or get out of the military due to a family hardship is if they get into a situation where the kids will be put into foster care."

I think Pagan has a legitimate reason to be excused by the army, and I also think that this whole fiasco may put off women who are considering enlisting, in case the same thing happens to them.

I also wonder where the grandparent and aunts and uncles are – either or both sides of the family should certainly lend a hand, and don’t appear to be doing anything at all.

I hope Pagan can work out a viable plan, that the army considers her problem carefully, and that the recalcitrant family that should have been the first to offer assistance will come to their senses and take in the children for a little while if no other solution can be reached.

My sources:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29441874/
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/nation/6288646.html
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/02/28/MNN116720L.DTL

It's very hard not to write posts that will, at the very least cause me to be viewed as odd, and at the worst, declared certifiable (see my first entry). But I suppose I should give it a shot. This is important to me because writing is my one steadfast dream, and I've had a long dry spell full of banal plots, one dimensional characters and trite aphorisms. Hopefully this marks the beginning of a great first novel.

I'm working on a new new story idea, and it's begun to take on some very unique aspects. I posted a blog about Steampunk earlier and its taken root and grown into a steampunk bramble full of strange fruit and sharp thorns. Although Steampunk generally centers around a time period that looks mid to late 19th century-ish, there don't appear to be any hard and fast rules about that. I'm not sure whether anyone has done it before (probably -- I just haven't seen it yet) but my setting is taking on a distinctly mid-eighteenth century look. The clothing, mostly; and the way the airships are built reminds me more of tall ships than hot air balloons and blimps. I don't really care if that's "allowed" in Steampunk, I like it. So there.

I know I have something good when the characters begin to direct the plot. They're an interesting bunch, a bit rowdy, but very likable. They've taken permanent residence in by brain and are constantly whispering little details about themselves to me. The other day, Evie forcibly took my pen and showed me that she was a much more dangerous person than I had originally thought -- honestly, the girl is a menace! I already have a favorite, but I won't say who because the others might get jealous and wreck my plot.

My room mate suggested a new way of writing and it seems to be working very well, mostly because of the aggressive way these characters are telling their story. I'm writing a sort of summary of each of their lives from their viewpoints up to the movement where their lives intersect. Then I'll take it from there in the 3rd person. It helps to know how their minds work, and they've been very gracious about sharing their thoughts.

I don't want to post a description of the guys quite yet, nor am I going to divulge any plot details. Mostly, that's because it's not clear in my head, but it's also because I'm paranoid. If I was browsing a bookshop one day and discovered that someone had stolen my dear Linus Quinn, I would probably revert to my Viking roots and go berserk. Pity the thief, my people. It wouldn't be pretty.

So, if you see me in class writing furiously for no legitimate reason, tip of my tongue protruding shoulders tense, it's because they're talking to me again. If I don't pay attention they sulk, you see, and I can never recapture the phantom phrases.

I crave your indulgence mesdames et messieurs, and remain, as always,

Faithfully yours,

The Oddity

Note: For more information on everything Steampunk, visit brassgoggles.co.uk.

My Photoshop class project, now complete. The sky belongs to my room mate Stephanie, and the background was shot by Trever Hoehne, who teaches the class. The portrait of me was an in-class portrait, and I think Colby ended up taking this one. It was done on Photoshop CS3, with a good deal of help from Trever.

I have a new passion. It’s called Steampunk.

To many people, the word represents the epitome of geekdom, but to these same geeks, the word denotes high adventure, mechanical butterflies and sky pirates.

Steampunk is a little-known subculture. I had never heard of it until I stumbled on a reference while researching Edith Nesbit for an essay. One of my favorite Nesbit heroes, Oswald Bastable of The Treasure Seekers, was borrowed by author Michael Moorcock in the mid seventies -- the result is an early Steampunk trilogy called “Nomad of Time.” The novels sound bizarre, but interesting, dealing with an alternate version of the 20^th century in which WWII never happened.. I’ve never been a science fiction fan – anything but “A Wrinkle in Time” bores me. Alternate universes, though, I might be able to handle.

My favorite Steampunk blog, Brass Goggles, has a very nice breakdown of the different subgenres of steampunk. Jules Verne was one of the original Steampunk authors, although his particular subgenre is classed as “Voyages Extraodinaire.” Wild/Weird West also sounds interesting – I think this one may have been adopted by some Japanese artists, giant mechanical spiders and all!

Brass Goggles has all sorts of wonderful links to art, fiction music (who knew there was such a thing as Steampunk music?) forums and Steampunk publications.

Through Brass Goggles, I found The Steampunk Home. It’s like Martha Stewart with corsets and hot air balloons. The décor is really too dark for my tastes, but the whole mad scientist meets Victorian gentleman meets otherworldly artisan thing is pretty cool. Oh! And hidden libraries with secret doors! Who wouldn’t love that?

Voyages Extraodinaires deals more with film and literature. There are some entries on books genres, and video clips galore. I’ll be exploring it more thoroughly soon.

I cannot conclude this blog without directing your attention to the slightly macabre, but very, very beautiful art of Mike Libby at Insect Lab Studio. Clockwork beetles, delicate geared grasshoppers and butterflies with gold wire antennae teem in his galleries – all of them made with real preserved insects.

On top of the amazing costumes, art and general weirdness, this discovery of mine is sparking some very interesting plot ideas … sky pirates have a certain appeal, after all.

The werewolves in my head won't shut up.

I'm fascinated by the effect the moon has on human behavior, and the werewolf legend has been very much at the forefront of popular culture lately. It is also quite widespread, which makes me wonder a little -- maybe there really are individuals who run in shaggy pelts of a full moon night....

Anyway, the subject inspired a fit of creativity, and I made a poem. It has been impressed upon me that my brainchild doesn't qualify as a Haiku proper, because of all the rules and conventions that are involved, so here it is: A poem Haiku format.

Wolf

Magic moon calls me,
Smell the green and waiting woods --
Shed my shape and run.



That reminds me -- I have to make my "Team Jacob" shirt this weekend...

Not having read many blogs, I have absolutely no idea where to start. That is why the title up there includes the word “ramblings.” Luckily, I happen to be very good at rambling.

As she will very likely feature extensively in future posts of any honesty, I should introduce you all to Jack. Jack is my alter ego. She goes to auditions, tells people off, and flirts fluently. While you may rest assured that I suffer from absolutely no mental abnormalities, I have noticed that every now and then a very different aspect of myself surfaces. I have named this part of me “Jack.” For some incomprehensible reason, she is fascinated by Jack Merridew from William Golding’s wonderful book “The Lord of the Flies.” I thought I’d let her share his name because she also shares his primal spirit and love of knives, food, and dancing around fires. Jack is not evil, like her namesake, just free from many of the social constraints that I’m obligated to observe.

So, now that I’ve convinced you I’m completely off my gourd, I'll just add that if you expect deep philosophical musings, you should find another blog to read. No philosophers here. Nope.

What you can expect is bits of my scribblings, news articles and art projects. Maybe some disjointed flailing at actual thought. I appreciate comments, even constructive criticism, but please don't destroy my fragile self-regard completely, for the sake of mercy, my family and the universe at large.

Several excellent English professors have, with much laborious work, taught me to stop writing when I have nothing more to say. So, out of respect for their only sometimes effective efforts,

I remain sincerely yours,

Danielle

. . .

and Jack