Musings of Lanna Lee Maheux

When thinking of something I might say about Henry at his funeral service, my thoughts kept going back to the picture I saw last night. It’s of Ed’s parents, Chris and Henry, at Chris’ college graduation. They are young and gorgeous, and Henry has a wide grin: he is so happy and proud of her accomplishment. This was Henry. He shared that love and pride for his children, and when I became his daughter-in-law, he shared it with me, showing up at my college graduation in 2011, proud of my achievement.

When I married Edmund, Henry said, now you’re my daughter too. He, and Chris, were as good as his word.

Today I am grateful to have had a second father in Henry, grateful to have had a few more years with him, and grateful to be able to celebrate his life with family and friends.

Henry’s funeral is (finally) tomorrow. We are in PA right now, drugged up for a good night’s sleep before the festivities.

Good times.

Going to see Star Trek darky darkness with my brother.

Waiting for MOm to cook us Dinner.

Got (yet another) prescription for an antibiotic from my Dentist today. If this doesn’t work, there is a root canal in my future.

Tomorrow we leave for Pennsylvania. Yahoo.

That is all.

So much to do. Getting Lounging with LannaLee ready for the next couple of weeks. Going to see Star Trek with my brother tomorrow. Got to get my work stuff ready and I am freaking out a little bit.

I have a pill for that.

(I’m not freaking out that much. Yet.

Okay, back to work.

A few weeks ago, I cried Uncle. I started to see a therapist. And today I got medicated.

Ugh.

I don’t have much to say about it, except that I am on the drugs now.

Well, I am reluctantly doing it, taking anti-depressant and anti-anxiety meds every day, but I think it really is for the best. I’ve been under a lot of stress since college, then my Dad’s death, Henry’s illness and death and all Edmund and I have been dealing with over the last month.

And now my brain is off. Time for bed, people!

Well, crap. All the things I DIDN’T do this weekend because I was hanging with Joe Hill, doing laundry or napping, I’ve got to do within the next 4 days. Because after that we are going to Henry’s funeral and after that we are going camping.

A lot to do.

Rotate tires, go to the doctors (x3), get blag posts ready (xLOTS), create 2 Lounging Episodes (sorry, no proper lounges in the wings, all experiments for now), pack for trip (x2), get caught up on work stuff (xAMillion, or at least it seems).

The bonus to working hard for a few days is (hopefully) I will enjoy 10 computer-free days and 7 of those days off-the-grid. It’s needed, I think.

Well, enough a yappin’, time to start a doin’.

Yesterday, Edmund and I went to see author Joe Hill read from his newest book NOS4A2 at the South Portland Books-A-Million.

It was a fun, albeit intense, couple of hours.

Now, I went to a reading Joe Hill did a few years ago, it might’ve been for Horns OR for Heart-Shaped Box. Regardless, this time there were a lot more people there. The difference was amazing. And, I noticed he seemed more at ease in front of the audience. He rocked it. (Now, he did just fine last time, but this time, he was much more polished.) We were thoroughly entertained, and he was so gracious and kind with everyone who wanted a picture (including me).

He is on my wish list to be on the Lounging with LannaLee show. So how was I going to wow him? My plan was to make him a balloon caricature and give it to him at the event. And I tried to do it, I really did, but I am so out of practice and I didn’t leave enough time to work it out, and I was getting too stressed, so I made a balloon vampire (which fits the theme of NOS4A2 very well), and included a couple of the pens plus a business card.

And he loved it! (See pix below.) He also tweeted the pic of me and him and the balloon, which was very sweet. [Not sure if him being on the show is a slam dunk, but it's all good.]

We had a surprise guest: Joe’s father, Stephen King, dropped by to hear him read. Everyone went a bit nuts. (Not me, nosirree. I was cool as a cucumber. And too lazy to run up and try to get my picture with him.) Joe did a great job acknowledging his dad, “My Dad’s here to see me today. He’s a writer too.” big laugh “I think if he keeps it up, he might go places.” I am paraphrasing, of course, but whatever he said got a great laugh, and won the audience over. I was totally won over, that’s for sure.

Also, I think it bears mentioning: the Books-A-Million crew did a fantastic job with the organization of the event. We all had numbers, which made it easy when it came to getting our books signed. They had a person working the line, another person at the table getting the book(s) ready for signing, and yet another person helping out by taking pictures (whenever they were requested.)

So here are some pictures.

Oh. And He tweeted our pic too! (I embedded it at the bottom, just for you.)

Arthur Roth came to the reading in NOS4A2 Cosplay FTW!! twitter.com/joe_hill/statu…

— Joe Hill (@joe_hill) May 11, 2013

I was going to write an uber-cool blag post, but I fell asleep whilst playing Warcraft 3 instead. I’m going with it.

Later.

Last week I called for guest posts. Lo and behold, I had a couple of takers.

In other news, Edmund and I will be going on our yearly camping trip, and this year we are doing the full 10 days. So much needed. And totally off the grid.

Today I had an epiphany, why not ask more people to submit a guest post, and then I will have a bunch of posts ready to go for my week off. Sure I will likely have to write some blag posts, but I can get some fun content for you, my readers, and jazz up the place while I am out-of-town.

So I asked some more lovely writers, and this is shaping up to be a slice of AWESOME! Very pleased.

I am still taking volunteers, so if you want to join in, let me know. Caveat: the people I’ve asked and have lined up to write have writing styles that will compliment this blag very well, I trust them and their judgement. If I don’t know you, I will want to read what you have written first before I decide to accept for publication. I favor humor and lightheartedness. My email is lannalee@gmail.com.

Also: If you do plan on sending something in, I will need it by Monday or Tuesday (May 13th or May 14th). This is because I need to have my blag all set by Wednesday the 15th, our schedule is chock full after that, what with me and my brother going to see Star Trek on Thursday night; me, Edmund, Bill, and Mom going to Pennsylvania over the weekend to attend Henry’s (Ed’s Dad’s) Funeral; and then me and Edmund setting out for the Berkshires on Monday morning. So busy!

[Getting excited for a week in the woods! Woo Hoo!]

My Mom HATES f-bombs.

[You should know what an f-bomb is, but on the very, very off chance you don't, here is a definition. You're Welcome.]

As I was saying, my Mom HATES the f-bomb. She doesn’t say it and she doesn’t want anyone else around her to say it either. She is the unofficial f-bomb monitor in the family, gently chiding her nieces and nephews (and daughter) whenever they (I) use one.

She has a point. I certainly do not subscribe to her f-bomb ban in my personal life, but I do strive to refrain from spouting out f-bombs in her presence. [Really, it's much safer that way.]

I am very judicious in choosing just when I’ll layout the f-bomb online or in public. So you know that when I do post something with the f-word in it, I mean business. It packs more punch.

Please note, my Mom isn’t against swearing. She has been known to lay out some colorful language in her time. Just not the f-word. No f-bombs from Dottie.

My Father, who I know swore like sailor at times, never said the f-word in front of me. I am sure I would remember it. I know he did in front my brother, but not me. My Dad was fairly progressive in a lot of ways, I was more than welcome to tag along with the boys on hunting and camping trips, he and my mother shared household chores – including cleaning and cooking, but no f-bombs in front of women. That makes me sad, a bit. But I get it.

Mom told me the other day that in all the time they were married he only said the f-word once. One time. And he apologized profusely afterward. I think that’s amazing.

[No f-bombs were used in this message.]

Can I write a blag post without complaining? Let’s see!

My car is fixed! I have a beautiful new shiny tinted window installed where the busted one was. And it goes up and down, just like the old one. Winning!

And: My car floor is CLEANER NOW than it was before the broken window. Winning!

I needed a new mouse and I just happened to have one right next to me! Winning!

I drove to work (after splurging on a $3.00 meal from McDonald’s). Winning!

I am going to a fancy party tomorrow. Winning!

I am drinking some delicious Hazelnut coffee right now. Winning!

I recorded my next Lounging with LannaLee episode (out tomorrow) on my drive to work today. Winning!

Edmund and I are going for a 7-day camping trip instead of a 5-day camping trip. Winning!

I found EIGHT positive things to write about. Winning!

[Make that NINE. Winning!]

Do I get an A for Effort?! [I admit, it's a C- job at best. I didn't want to put tape on my car. And it was midnight when I did this, I was ready for bed.]

Tomorrow my car window will be fixed. I have an appointment window between eight and noon. Which means I will need to be dressed at 8. Not sure about the bright-eyed and bushy tailed part.

Yesterday I bemoaned our finances. So I won’t do that today. [Just know I am stoically bemoaning here at my desk.]

Because of our dire straights, I decided to (finally) put a donation button on the Lounging with LannaLee page. I don’t expect much, but I figured: what the hell. Maybe someone out there WANTS to send me money. Who am I to stop them? This blag, the Musings of LannaLee Maheux, will not have a donation button. (Why should it, when I can just point you to the Lounging with LannaLee site?)

I keep needing to find the blessings. To Focus on the positives. So let me give you some: Ed and I are going to a fancy party on Thursday. Very excited for that. Star Trek starts next week, and it’s coming out AFTER my paycheck, so I can pay for tickets! The kitties are still adorable. Yahoo!

This is another temporary dip, but let me tell you, I don’t see the end yet. Soon, maybe.

Rest assured, I will let you know.

…is gone.

I woke up this morning to this. Why does it seem like it doesn’t rain but it pours. We barely paid rent plus all of our most critical bills, and are eeking our way to my next paycheck, and BAM! A busted window (and a $500 deductible on my insurance.) Argh.

Now we have to pay $306 to get it fixed. I have to do some money shuffling here. My $100 cushion I was saving for the end of the month, gone.

Starting to feel a little hopeless over here.

Focus on the positive: we might not have to buy any more groceries until next week. Rent and most of the bills are paid. Edmund is doing better. I’ve spent a fun evening playing Warcraft 3. The kitties are adorable.

Now I’ve got to go outside and do something with the glass that is falling off. I put it off too long.

C’mon, really!?!?!

I slept in today. I watched the newest Doctor Who and Warehouse 13 episodes. I played a lot of Warcraft 3.

And I recorded another Episode of the LannaLee OnAir Experiment.

[Observation: if I prepared more, the show could be very good. Regardless, I had fun, and that is all that matters.]

Then I played more Warcraft 3.

And now for the sleeps.

Warcraft 3 Screenshot

My only goal today was not to leave the house.

Mission accomplished!

I surfed on the interwebs, played some Warcraft 3, watched Buffy and Angel, napped in my chair, made some mac and cheese. I did not go outside.

I needed that.

The past three weeks have been a whirlwind of stress and activity. It was time for a respite.

I guess that’s all for today. I might play some more Warcraft 3 if I have a mind to. Peace out, people.