Cat Character Inspiration

Just check out these cute faces! Many mannerisms of my cats Schrodinger and Ziggy Stardust and guest cat Martok have made their way into my stories so far! The cat in The Caterer ( who is unnamed but is often referred to as “My ladyship” or “the caterer”) definitely borrows a lot of mischief and cuddles from Martok in particular, as he loves to burrow into my hair just as she does to HER human in her story. 

Guest cat Martok! (He’s living with us until his owners live in a place where they can have cats)

Guest cat Martok! (He’s living with us until his owners live in a place where they can have cats)

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Schrodinger 

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Ziggy Stardust!  

My First Short Story eBook is up on Amazon!

Yesterday I published my first volume in Antiquicats: Felines of History on Amazon! I’m super excited about this. Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07T75WZ46

the caterer cover.JPG

It’s currently priced at $2.99 so I can keep it in the Kindle Unlimited program; I’ll be offering some free promotions for it soon, but am still figuring out all the details of it. I also need to figure out how to format it for print, in case anyone would like a physical copy to hold. There’s a lot to learn with self-publishing and promotion! I’ll definitely share it here as soon as I’ve figured it out.

Doesn’t that cover look amazing? Erica Noorderrmeer designed it after seeing my own feeble cover design attempts in a arts and crafts Facebook group; I love it way too much!

I’ve started work on my next AntiquiCats story and hope to have it up in July! It mayyyy be about an ancient battle between the Persians and Egyptians. More news soon!

Adulting with ADD: How I've Adapted

I was first diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder (and associated depression) as a junior in high school when I basically collapsed under all the stress I was under and the pressure I was putting on myself. As a 31-year-old lawyer, I still struggle with my ADD on a regular basis, but over the years, I’ve developed numerous strategies to adapt for my monkey brain.

 All tasks and commitments have to be put on my to-do list or my calendar, or it WILL be forgotten.

I used to keep my to-do list scribbled on the back of my hand in college. In law school, I graduated to using a notebook in an attempt to look more adult, but I was so very good at forgetting those notebooks in various places, that I finally just kept my to-do list on my phone. I have a massive to-do list in the Notes app that also includes other information I struggle to remember, such as the details of when my student loan payments and mortgage payment come out of my bank account. 

I also put every meeting, appointment, and rehearsal in my phone calendar as soon as I learn about it. Otherwise, it’s just way too easy for me to forget it.

While on the subject of financial obligations…..

• I automate all the payments I can. Any non-automated obligations are literally put in front of my computer so I can’t forget them and are paid ASAP.

In this day and age, we thankfully can automate almost everything. Our utility bills all automatically come out of our bank accounts. Our mortgage check sends out from our account automatically every month. It makes life so much simpler.

As we speak, I have a medical bill that I need to pay placed right in front of my work computer so I keep looking at it and remembering to deal with it. Once I pay a bill, I actually literally write ON the bill “Paid online on [date]” so I don’t think I need to pay it again.

• I plan ahead as much as I can.

It took me a startlingly long time to actually build the habit of taking my medicine every single morning. What finally worked for me was getting one of those organizers that holds a week’s worth of pills. 

I also keep all the belongings I use regularly in one place so that I always know where they are. My purse, wallet, keys? They live next to the coat rack in my house. If they go somewhere else, I’m in trouble.

• I use SO much technology.

Oh my gosh, my life has gotten so much easier with the advent of various forms of technology! 

- ZocDoc has changed my life, as I can actually make an appointment at any time of day or night just on a website without having to call someone or track down a doctor who takes my insurance.

- I use a website blocker on Chrome on my work computer to help block out distractions. I also have one on my iPhone, but I haven’t used that one as much lately because it just hasn’t been an issue. I do also turn my airplane mode on if I really need to concentrate.

- I’ve been using the app Habit Bull to remind me of specific things that need to be done daily, like water the plants, give my cat his medicine, etc. It also helps to remind me of various tasks that I KNOW will help with my chronic pain issues, like performing my neck stretches or using my massage machine on my back.

- I get reminders for everything. Email reminders on when my library books are due. Text reminders to pick up my prescriptions. I also use alerts on my phone which subtly remind me of upcoming commitments an hour or two before the actual time.

- When I’m writing, I use a white noise app on my phone and a timer to keep me on track. Just working in 15 minutes increments helps me SO MUCH. This is an offshoot of the Pomodoro time management method, which has also really worked for me in the past (there are numerous Pomodoro apps and websites out there that work well).

• I take the medicine when I need it.

I stopped taking ADD meds sometime in college (I frankly don’t remember when) and did not actually get back on it until about 1.5 years ago. Yes, that means I went through my first 6 years post-college and all of law school without ADD meds. Having a generally flexible schedule helped a lot with that. But after 9 or so months in my current job, I had to admit that I needed the meds to focus. A lot of my work is pretty repetitive, and I just needed it to keep going. I take it on work days and on weekends when I have a lot of work that requires focus. It significantly reduces the amount of stress in my life, as it just calms down the "SQUIRREL" moments in my mind a lot.

Comic from the brilliant XKCD. Used under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 License. https://xkcd.com/1106/

Comic from the brilliant XKCD. Used under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 License. https://xkcd.com/1106/

I'm sure I'll write more about this soon, but that's what I've got for now!

If you have ADD, what do you use to manage your symptoms and accomplish your goals?

Throwback Thursday: Driving to Houston

Wrote this in the backseat of my dad’s car while driving with him to Houston. June 5, 2010.

Lying curled in the back of daddy’s car/melting sticky sweet in Texas sun

He’s talking bout the movie theaters closing/his voice rolls over me

A Simple Day/knowing that as long as it is sticky and my daddy’s voice covers

and protects me/i will never grow old/or too tired to relax.

Throwback Thursday: Pomegranate

Written January 12, 2011.

Juicy seeds to tempt a goddess to Hell-
A bitch to get out their fleshy shell.

You cut it open and
maroon blood runs over on your hands

And it pops and squirts and
stains like love.

Hard to get out of your dress, off your skin,
out of your heart.

But I’ll still eat it by the spoonfuls-
and chew every hard bit for the
juice within.

I know my hard bits have made me stronger
than Atlas
bring on what may-
I will not shake.

I am my own muse and
shield.

Throwback Thursday: A Letter to My Future Self

I wrote this on December 3, 2010 for a blog that I kept pretty consistently from 2010-2012. I was following a prompt from a blogger I liked that said “Write a letter of love to yourself to read in one year.

To my lovely friend Rachael,

Wherever you are and whatever you’re doing right now, I want you to take a moment, look around and appreciate all the wonderful things you have in your life. Then think about what you did to bring about those wonderful things. You’re a pretty cool chica.

You are beautiful. Yes. Beautiful. You have such a sense of style and class. Your smile could light up a room. I know you’re feeling upset because you’re not the size you used to be and like a bit of a failure because you think you should be so much thinner than you are, but stop right there. Do you really want to let yourself worry about that? You may not look like a model, but you are spunky and unique and something truly special. And your sense of style! You dress adventurously- the vintage jewelry and the necklaces and brightly colored nails. You never blend in with the crowd- and that’s a good thing.

I know you’re feeling anxious and sad about not having everything figured out- I know you get the blues sometimes. But don’t beat yourself up over it. You’re doing fine and remember- you are so much stronger than you feel in your darkest moments. You know this. You’ve been through bad stuff before and you’ve always gotten through it.

I hope you’re still pursuing all your dreams- you have such great big ones and I can’t wait to see them all come true. And don’t fuss too much over the things you’ve left behind- don’t let yourself guilty over not playing harp really anymore- don’t let yourself get down because you can’t do everything. No one can- remember? You’re doing all you can day to day- and that’s all anyone can ask for. You are amazing.

I want to remind you of how when you were a teenager, you posted Christmas lights up all around the top of your room. Sometimes you’d turn on the lights before you went to sleep. With your glasses off, everything looked fuzzy and beautiful and magical. I hope you always keep that view of the world- if you just step back and look at it again, it’s such a lovely place to be. Never lose your sense of wonder.

Continue believing the best of people- no matter how many times they disappoint you. This is a beautiful trait- don’t let anyone put you down for it. There’s nothing wrong with being an optimist.

You have a giving heart. Keep giving back in whatever way you can- whether it’s driving folks to the doctor, collecting pink yogurt lids or buying a skateboard for a little boy. You know that however little you may have, you are truly rich when you help others.

Have I ever told you how funny you are? And witty. And smart. You find the humor in anything and the joy in the everyday. You’re like a little kid, but really, that’s a good thing. Never never change.

You can do anything if you set your mind to it- with you, not even the sky is the limit. Maybe the Milky Way- but who knows? Still haven’t written that novel? It’ll happen – I know it. Traveling still on the agenda? You’ll make it happen. I know you can scale mountains and conquer the world- you are smart enough to make it happen.

Never ever forget that you are someone special and that a lot of people, including myself, love you and think you are awesome.

<3-Rachael

Steps

When I’m downstairs, I can hear the steps above me, John’s heavy rhythm, Wendy’s skipping and light beat, the flurry of the cats racing each other down the stairs. They all move toward me in their own percussive way, a symphony of sound bringing a smile to my face.

I hear it all and wonder what sound my feet make and when.

What impact do i make here in my own home? What path do i create?

Do I cover the stairs in my essence, my life, my way?

Can i be heard over the purr of the air conditioner, puttering along at 68?

Do I stand out as a soul sound in my echoey house the way others do for me?

Sometimes I'd rather read about cakes

I’ve been sitting here reading about cakes for far too long. I’ve lost count of how long, but surely /any/ length is too long when I could be working or writing on my books or cleaning the house or running outside.

But I’ve been paging through my favorite cookbook for recipes and stories and pictures of baked goods from long ago, filled with fruit cocktail or coconut or topped with lemon or meringue or powdered sugar.

Appalachian weddings would often feature cakes made of many thin cake layers; guests would bring one to add. The higher the cake the more popular the bride. How wonderful that sounds.

It all sounds much better than the vitriol online, then the laws out there trying to take my rights away and leave me bare and unprotected, the fighting among so many I know.

Conversations

I am very good at having interesting conversations that stay with me, reverberating in my head, but forgetting entirely who I had the conversation with or under what circumstances.

These days, I can’t even remember whether such conversations happened in person or via text, facebook messenger, g-chat, all the many ways our words fly across the world now - whether it was one on one, or had to do with numerous voices chiming in their varied thoughts and stories.

My conversation about the new scary laws in some states, or the meaning of some scene in Game of Thrones, or the funny story about my ten-year-old niece - did that happen with my husband in our kitchen, as we crafted a feast for only two? With my theater friends in our ongoing two-year-long group chat, where we vary from serious to mundane topics throughout every day? Over clinking glasses of wine and pretentious pizza at a bar with lawyer friends? Or with coworkers, standing on green grass and nodding, while forks delicately slice through cake?

Does it even matter? There the words stay, the thoughts tangle and untangle as needed to make their points and form my dreams.

Throwback Thursday: Snippets from New York - January 10, 2012

Good morning New Year-
it’s so lovely to meet you
in this crisp morning street
sitting on my luggage outside a crappy coffee shop
waiting for a bus to catch me up into
January.

Nothing worse than that feeling
you get when you realize the cute guy
you’ve been eyeing on the subway has been
surreptitiously spitting every few minutes into a coffee cup
he’s holding.
I don’t even know if I can make a metaphor out of that.

Discovery of the day:
Seeing a guy dressed in a Navy uniforn
all slovenly and undone
Actually Offends Me.
Me- the champion of free speech and expression.
But also the girl who cries at patriotic songs
that I freely acknowledge are propaganda.
I guess I’m not as cynical as I thought I was.

Overheard on a subway:
“Straight guys high five like they’re tired.
We’re trying to be like them!”
I am amused.