The Trip

In lieu of pictures of Twin, since she is still partly anon, you can have the very first picture I took, on our walk to the grocery store.

So, I admit, I totally wanted to do a post while I was with Twin and be all, "We are TOGETHER!" But that failed. I was entirely too busy being with Twin.

I had so much fun with her, guys. She's pretty much just as amazing in real life, which makes her WAY AWESOME.

We rewatched all three Lord of The Ring movies, extended versions, and we agree that neither of us like Frodo, not even one bit. Sam's the real hero. <3<3<3
We went on lovely walks, and drank delicious tea, and even wrote a bit. We painted our nails (mine are colorful! :D) and listened to music we both loved. We made chocolate truffles, and attempted chocolate sauce twice with varying success. We read the same book at the same time. (That was an accident, but interesting.)

After the first awkward moment where her siblings all stared at me, I got along with her family famously. Her little sister, Molly, even declared that she loved me, and wanted to be my best friend. I have the picture she drew and "home steeple" to prove it.

Don't I look mysterious?

One of my favorite moments––which is an inaccurate statement, because the whole trip was my favorite moment––was right at the beginning. When I arrived at the airport, I called Maggie and told her I was there, then I pulled on a lovely hat and my "fake glasses"(reading glasses from the dollar store with the lenses popped out) before heading to the baggage claim. As soon as I saw her and her mom, sitting, I forced myself to keep my eyes off them, and I slowly walked behind the pillar closest to them. It was all I could do to not squeal and launch myself at her. Or collapse on the floor, because my legs go cooked-noodle when I'm nervous, and I was so so so so nervous. Once behind the pillar, I took a moment to not have a meltdown, drew a deep, not-as-calming-as-I-could-hope breath, and walked around behind their seats. I was sure they would see me and Maggie would instantly know it was me.
At least, until I grabbed her shoulders and made her jump.
I am quite proud of myself for successfully sneaking up on her.
Her? Not so much. She was a little ticked.

Another favorite moment was when I went to the bookstore with Maggie, her mom, and her sister. This may not seem so big to you guys, but I've never gone to the bookstore with like-minded readers. It was thrilling. I bought a beautiful copy of Beth Revis's A Million Suns. It's quite lovely. *admires*

So many other things happened. I had balance difficulties once or twice. (In my defense, sliding across hardwood floors in socks is the funnest thing EVER.) We went spelunking. (spelunking = my new love in life <3) I actually finished a pair of fingerless mitts for myself (those in the above photo) and I'm very pleased with them. They fit and they're wonderful and they make me happy. *^_^*

The best of the best, though, was undoubtedly talking to Maggie face to face. Just...being in the same room as her. Knowing beyond doubt she's not a figment of my imagination or––as several family members have suggested––a creepy old man.

But now I'm back in Texas, and aside from being forgotten at the airport, I'm safe and sound. I've just begun the unpacking process, which is the real sign that my trip is over. *tear*

The trip was a blessing. Maggie is wonderful, and her family is unbelievably kind. I admit I was so sad I had to leave that I shed tears while waiting for my plane.

Now back to school and work and daily life. I'm glad to be back home, but I definitely can't wait 'til I get to see Maggie Twin again.

Soundtracks

Happy Friday! It's the best day of the week. Unless you're on holiday; then every day is good.

On Wednesday I spent a good hour thoroughly enjoying myself, hunting for soundtracks to write my new team of novels to. I had to pick an oceany-sounding soundtrack for Aqueous (temporary title), an intense, driven soundtrack for Survival, and a post-apocalyptic with a little dragon mixed in for Fire.

I found them all. (Hans Zimmer is a god of music, and Steve Jablonsky's works are imagery in musical form. Well, both of their works are.) Anyway, it inspired a long overdue post about one of my favorite aspects of writing.

Music.

I can't write without it. Music plays a very important role in my life in general. It soothes me, motivates me, inspires me. It can pretty much put me in any mood you can think of. For me, writing and music are one and the same. I don't often have one without the other.

My favorite thing to do as I'm preparing to write a novel is to pick a movie soundtrack for it. All my novels have one. This way, each novel's playlist has the same feel, and later, if I ever want to pick the novel up again, a few notes of that theme song will transport me right back to my world.

It's magical.

I wrote Darkblood to Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard's "Batman Begins" soundtrack. I wrote Xiomara to James Horner's "Avatar" soundtrack. In fact, a few weeks ago I picked up an Avatar birthday card in the grocery store, one of those that play music when you open it. The moment I heard those notes, I went right back to Xiomara's world.

Question time! Do you listen to music while you write? If so, what are your favorite artists? What feel do you usually lean toward? Lyrics or none?

I know I can't have lyrics. And my favorite artists are James Newton Howard, Hans Zimmer, Steve Jablonsky, James Horner, Michael Kamen, Patrick Doyle, Rachel Portman, Alexandre Desplat, Harry Gregson-Williams, etc. Love. Them. All.

Your turn!

Enjoy the rest of the day and weekend!

Best Part of Today: Grooming and chillin' with a pony. Or maybe meeting another bookworm whilst picking a paddock.
Currently Craving: Chocolate. I'm off sugar at the moment, and there's a bag of chocolate taunting me from my desk drawer.
Music Pick: "White Christmas" by Bing Crosby 
I'm Reading: "Gulliver's Travles" (ick!)

WIP: Fire (1,326 words*)

*I started over. Don't ask.

Classical Music

Because I've been particularly enjoying it today, I wanted to do a quick post on classical music. This is one of those because-I-can posts, not particularly a wow-this-is-useful or such-an-insightful post.

Below I've listed a couple of my all-time favorite classical songs. If you ever have a minute to listen, I hope you will. You won't be disappointed. This is some of music's finest.

1. Moonlight Sonata Adagio Sostenuto ~ Ludwig Van Beethoven
This song is one of my all-time favorite pieces of classical music. It's such a beautiful, emotional piece. I always imagine things when I hear it.

2. Waltz of the Snowflakes - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Being a ballerina (even one who's currently taking a break) it's natural that my favorite composer in the world is Peter (or Pyotr) Tchaikovsky. There's nothing like Nutcracker. NOTHING.

3. Lacrimosa Requium - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Though admittedly a darker piece of music, it's still so gorgeous there aren't words.

4. Swan Lake Waltz - Pyotr Llyich Tchaikovsky
Again with Tchaikovsky. Swan Lake comes in close second to Nutcracker. I adore this song.

Even if you got nothing out of this post, I enjoyed making it. Nothing like a little culture. Hehe!

Anyway, I've added something new to my fill-out. See it below.

Thanks for reading!

Best Part of Today: The beautiful breeze after much humidity.
Currently Craving: It's still ice cream.
Music Pick: "Dance of the Little Swans" by Tchaikovsky (again!)
I'm Reading: Re-reading the beginning of "The Deed of Paksenarrion" by Elizabeth Moon 
WATM: Sovereignty (drafting) + plotting for new book