A soldier, a dwarf king & a henchman walked into a room . . .

“Soooo . . . I see you two showed up on my day. ” The tall, dark and toothsome knight gave a disdainful sniff of his rather magnificent aquiline nose and folded his arms across his chest as he smirked at his companions.  (He was as magnificent a Smirker as he was a first-class Sniffer and Smoulderer.)

The soldier, who was rocking a scarf like nobody’s business, shot him a cool, measured glance and folded HIS arms, their very impressive biceps rippling beneath his desert gear.  “Yeah . . . seems the Yanks are finally going to get to meet me . . .”

“Although audiences around the world are eagerly anticipating MY arrival–and some have already seen me via this digital download apparatus,” rumbled the dwarf in a majestic manner, somehow making himself look taller–even if he was a foot shorter than the other two blokes. He slipped off his kingly coat, and showed off his own impressive biceps. The three men eyed each other. Was it her imagination, or was that the distinctive odor of testosterone in the air?

The blonde woman sighed. “Now, lads, there’s room for all of you. You are all much loved, adored AND lusted after.  Happy Guyday Friday, Happy premiere of Strike Back: Origins tonight and hooray for the Extended Edition of The Hobbit! There are chocolate chip fudge brownies and a big bag of cheese curls in the kitchen and a gallon of Blue Bell in the freezer.”

“I’ve got first dibs on the brownies . . .” Guy said in his chocolate-laden baritone.

“All yours, milord. I’ll take the cheese curls,” Porter drawled, his crystalline green eyes glinting.

Thorin flicked back his luxurious mane. “Blue Bell being the king of ice creams makes it the perfect choice for me . . .”

Ladywriter wondered how long it would take before they got into a squabble over the satellite remote control.

Never a dull moment when the ChaRActers took over the house . . .

And she wouldn’t have changed a thing!

Where my head is at . . . and it’s not a bad place, really.

Where my head is at . . .

My brain is busy. It’s tired and there’s always worry lurking there—I am my mother’s daughter, after all—but things are getting accomplished, too.  I am making progress. I completed two pieces of video editing for the homecoming dance DVD and I am really pleased with how it turned out. Scarlett and I are watching the “rough draft” DVD right now to vet it for Benny and I am snapping a few screencaps along the way and typing up a few notes for things that need tweaking.  Samples . . .

And here is a photo I took and edited from the recent bar mitzvah we covered.  I love it. Mama loves it. And if Mama loves it, that makes me happy.

I also stood up and said “no” to one of my volunteer duties for the humane society.

I am the recording secretary and PR chair. I write and submit articles and photos to the local newspapers, I manage its FB page which I update daily, I create numerous graphics for ads and flyers, I assist with taking photos to submit to the pet rescue groups, I am going to completely redo the website at some point—so did I really need to be the scheduling person for the spay-neuter program, too? It’s not as if we don’t have dozens of other members—although, as with many organizations, a very small number of folks do most of the “heavy lifting.”

I said “no” and the world didn’t fall apart and I felt something lifting off my shoulders. You gotta do what you gotta do.

My husband’s birthday was last Sunday. I set a goal to raise enough money to buy him a good tablet—not an iPad, because he really isn’t a Mac kind of guy, but an Android with a good track record and the bells and whistles he needs and wants.

I went the cheap route last Christmas and the darned thing has already died. And his old iPod Touch I gave him for Christmas years ago isn’t going to last much longer.  He needed something other than his desktop. And what profits we’ve made in our video production biz has gone into camera equipment and other business-related stuff—nothing personal.

So I flogged some of my jewelry on FB.

And between my darling sis’s generous donation and my bling-lovin’ FB friends, I raised $400 and bought him a Samsung Google Nexus 10. He was showing me the voice response feature last night. “Angie K Long,” he told it, and what do you know—a familiar pair of eyes looking over her sunglasses appeared. Cool! The display is beautiful—better, some say, than the iPad—and he really likes it. And that makes ME happy. 😀

A month from today, I will be making my entrance, speaking the first lines of dialogue in“Dying from a Drink.” I have been rehearsing my role at home, practicing my “drunk face” and appropriate body language in front of the mirror. Never a heavy drinker, I haven’t been inebriated in this century. So it IS a bit of a stretch for me.

O.K., it’s just a role in a short two-act play for a small-town community theatre, one our cast of six will perform in the banquet room of a local restaurant as part of our first-ever mystery dinner theatre.

Still, I want to be good. I want all of us to be good, to remember our lines and deliver them with feeling and make that small, intimate audience laugh and puzzle over just who wants to do in the tipsy wealth widow I am playing . . . so I take my Big Black Hat to rehearsals, put in my blingy earrings, and put on my best slurry voice . . . and think about Richard Armitage and what he’d say and do!

“Go forth and give your best paranoid drunken murder victim-to-be, Ange!”

“Oh, and think about these lips. Puckering up to give you a congratulatory kiss when you ace it . . .”

Hmmmmmmm . . . . oh well, I can dream.

I actually could get some kisses from this gorgeous creature . . . and my sweet hubby. 😀

How to be amazing. Words that remind me of Richard Armitage.

I found this quote by Robin Sharma on FB a while ago and saved it. As I read the words, I found myself visualizing Richard Armitage as a prime example of someone who has mastered the art of being amazing.

Here is a man who puts his heart and soul and intellect into his work, carefully crafting his roles, always striving to go from strength to strength; a team player who leads by example and give 100 percent every time.  A wonderful, charismatic performer who has also retained his humility and his good manners and displays such a generous and kind spirit. Someone you can admire and desire to emulate on so many different levels. All this and he’s gorgeous to look at, too! Wow–are we not blessed to be his ardent admirers?

(I would say more but it’s late and I am truly tired and the kitten on my lap says she wants to go beddy-bye very soon . . .)

How to Be Amazing

Risk more than is required. Learn more than is normal. Be strong.

Show courage. Breathe. Excel. Love. Lead. Speak your truth. Live your values. Laugh. Cry, Innovate.

Simplify. Adore mastery. Release mediocrity. Aim for genius. Stay humble. Be kinder than necessary. Deliver more than is needed.
Exude passion. Shatter your limits. Transcend your fears. Inspire others by your bigness. Dream big but start small. Act now. Don’t stop.

Change the world.

~Robin Sharma~

Amazing. Just—amazing.