Gosh, my back hurts....

It always hurts when I sit in the car for a long time. Yesterday morning, bright and early, I drove up to Berea to collect Adam. He has "reading days" on Monday and Tuesday, which means a long weekend! I just HAD to go collect him! He's not been well; his sinking spells have gotten out of hand, and the school is sending him to a neurologist. THEY think it's epilepsy. His girlfriend thinks it's hyperthyroid or something like that. I think it's the same thing I have: severe hypoglycemia. It runs in the family: my mother, my aunt, my younger daughter, and I all do the same thing. He doesn't need a neurologist; he needs to carry a candy bar in his man-purse.

The drive is six hours, round trip, which is way rough. Usually, I bring a ton of music, and sing along to the CD player so much that I'm hoarse by the time I hit Winchester; then Adam and I talk all the way back, and both my back and my voice are useless for the rest of the weekend. This time, however, I brought recordings of the Starbase Phoenix podcasts, and listened to them. Ken, Adam enjoyed them so much, he said it makes him want to join the game.

I finished my midterms this past week, and I'm on fall break for the next two weeks! Whee! Midterms went better than I had any right to expect. I know I got 88% on my biology test; a nice, solid "B" and the professor said my essay questions were "very refreshing." I got a perfect score on that section. Computers went well, too; I missed one question on the lab, and got like a 90% on the book test. Computers is basically a gimme, anyway.

History test was only one question, but with a hell of an answer: describe all the developments in Europe, from The Cradle of Civilization on, that made the colonization of America possible. I wrote four pages, in my smallest handwriting, and I was the last person done. I should get at least a C, just on volume! I think I did well on my math midterm as well; I didn't get stuck but the one time, and it was the question I had to guess at. The rest seemed really, well, not easy, but within my grasp, you know?

I am actually considering taking College Algebra next semester, even though I don't need it for my major. How's that for a sign that I'm feeling good about the subject? How's that for a sign of the coming Apocalypse?

I am going to get through this semester with my grades in the mid-B range. And I can totally live with that.

I am slowly binding a new book for my friend Kaija. I am using the opportunity to work on a lace experiment as well, so I'm back at the shuttle and rod, which is a good thing. That's keeping my hands busy during fall break. And the Star Trek PBEM game is keeping my brain busy.

Oh, gosh, the Game. I have always credited the game for my continually growing skills at writing character; I've always been good at plot, but not so much at character. My big problem with the game is that it has a tendency to subsume all my other writing projects. It just so damned FUN. And Starbase Phoenix is better than the average; so many good writers, so many opportunities to just get creative, and be encouraged by other creative people.

Right now I've got two characters and an NPC on Phoenix, two characters on S'Task, three of those characters are involved in their own little stories, plus I'm playing the villain in one plot, just been asked to play the villain in another plot, and I'm conlanging for the Andorian language on the side.

It's just so fun!

Come November, though, I'm going to try and dial it back a tiny bit. It's NanoWrimo, and I'm going to give it a try again. I've skipped it the last couple years, because I was hopelessly blocked. This time, I'm going to give it another shot. And I already have my story idea planned out: a horror novel. I think I'll give this one to my dear, sweet friend, Phil. He's always been so encouraging, he's another horror junkie like me, and I owe him a bit of writing (my last story I was writing for him kinda went to pieces)

I tend to write better when I know I have an audience, like Phil, like Tom, like the Game. I'm goal oriented. Go figure.

OK, enough of this. It's almost 8 AM, and I have Andorian verbs to conjugate!