Guy stuff.

BABE IN THE WOODS: Nine

Thursday, October 31, 2013: Sherman Park, NY, USA Herman Ruth stood perfectly still, partially hidden behind a large oak tree three hundred yards into Leitas Pond Park, directly across from Detective Eric Pearson’s house. It was the first time he’d observed the house, but it was the first time he had company doing it. His eyes sparkled, as if lit from within, as they moved back and forth between Pearson’s house and the other zombie watching it from the edge of the tree line. When the last light in the house had turned off ten minutes ago, he’d locked his…

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BABE IN THE WOODS: Eight

Thursday, October 31, 2013: Sherman Park, NY, USA Eric Pearson gave the hot water knob another turn, wanting more than anything at that moment to scald away the invisible layer of fear coating his entire body. He winced sharply, but didn’t back away from the steaming spray showering down on him. He’d been standing there for the past 20 minutes and was planning to keep standing there until the hot water had completely run out. The Department of Homeland Water Conservation could fine him double for the violation, for all he cared. It was another twenty minutes before the water…

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NaNoWriMo 2004 Word Count, Day 15

Babe in the Woods, NaNoWriMo Word Count, Day 15: 13,297 (-11,708) For the second time in three days, I managed to crank out more than the 1,667 words/day minimum, resulting in a 121-word dent in my overall Word Debt. If not for the whole working and sleeping thing, I'd have made even more progress as the cracks in the belated Week 2 Wall were beginning to show. In other news, The Swan managed to reach a new low last night, pitting a pair of sisters against each other as they receive the most unnecessary, and undeserved, makeovers yet. It's bad…

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BABE IN THE WOODS: Seven

Thursday, October 31, 2013: West Point, NY, USA “Trick or treat, Vargas! Time to move!” Damon shifted under his green flannel bedsheet, slightly damp from a night of fitful sleep, as he teetered on the edge of consciousness, desperately trying to ignore the insistent knocking at his door. Pulling the lumpy pillow over his head in a vain attempt to drown out Captain James T. Merck’s gravelly voice, he wished for another hour of sleep – “Come on, Vargas! Open it up!” – but his wish wasn’t granted. “Alright, alright! Chill! I’m up! Hold on a minute.” Damon rubbed the…

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NaNoWriMo 2004 Word Count, Day 14

Like so many things with me, once I get past the hump of actually getting started on something, I tend to jump into it completely and, as much as possible, make the most of the moment.

Like spring cleaning, of the sort we did yesterday after continually putting it off for the past few weeks. It ended up being the equivalent of a good meditation session, clearing away the cobwebs that had built up in the corners of my mind and enabling me to take a closer look at some of the little things that tend to get missed in the crush. Like how great our apartment is; how nearly every single toy I picked up from the floor I could picture the kids playing with at some point; how a messy house makes for a messy mood, and a clean one exposes the silver lining.

Babe in the Woods, NaNoWriMo Word Count, Day 14: 11,509 (-11,829)

Squeezed out another 635 words last night before bed, officially bringing the first act to a close. I am now almost exactly one full week behind my word count which means I officially arrive at the Week 2 Wall – aka, where the hell is this story going? – today! Going to have to pull double-duty this week, with lunch sessions and a few late nights just to keep the gap from growing any larger, never mind reaching 35,007 words – the Week 3 goal – by Sunday.

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NaNoWriMo 2004 Word Count, Day 13

Babe in the Woods, NaNoWriMo Word Count, Day 13: 10,874 (-10,797) Roughly 50 double-spaced pages so far, surpassing the length of my old screenplay's first draft, many moons ago! (Though that was cranked out over three days, so perhaps it's not so impressive.) Still deep in the Word Debt hole, though, but the past couple of sessions were extremely productive as the plot is finally starting to come together in my head. I think I'm at the end of the first act, having introduced the main cast of characters, given most of them at least some background, and covered the…

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BABE IN THE WOODS: Interlude (two)

2007-2009; United States of America The United States’ second Civil War finally broke out in 2007, after three years of boiling following the controversial 2004 Presidential election. Strangled by a two-party political system that over the years had, for all intents and purposes, merged into one, unable to convincingly differentiate themselves on the major issues like the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, nuclear proliferation, health care or corporate control of the media, political campaigns had come to depend on so-called cultural and moral issues to rally their supporters. Gay marriage, abortion, reality television and pop singer Janet Jackson’s left breast…

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