Bernadette Benda

It’s Saturday morning (last Saturday morning if you want to know). I wake up late (as does everyone) because last night we went to see Fellowship of the Ring (EXTENDED BABY) at the drive-in and I didn’t get to sleep till around 2:30 (probably was pushing 3am). I was sitting in the back of my little hatchback with my mom, wearing a Batman tshirt and off-brand vans I wore for that modern piece I performed in some years ago.

It’s cloudy. I’m making disaster-looking banana pancakes in a messy kitchen. There’s herbs drying on a towel, and a book on the Russian Revolution, an empty cereal box (pet peeve #52) and a bag of snacks from the night before.

Mom is on Pinterest, my sister is listening to a webinar. This is a good Saturday morning to me. Mom showed me a clip from Little Shop of Horrors and that singing plant, which we thought was apropos because of the random seed packets that are being shipped across the US, or were (Every new 2020 subplot seems to like disappear in a week. And then appear a month later like the murder hornets)(I just tried to spell “murder” as “mordor” so that’s where my brain has been. In Middle Earth) and those seeds will totally turn into carnivorous botanicals if you plant them. Also we were bringing back the tradition of watching random things on Saturday mornings. Like old Saturday Night Live skits, Godzilla, and some 60’s music videos.

These were my melodramatic musings last Saturday about “the simple life” (insert voice over of Bilbo “it is no bad thing to celebrate a simple life.”)

Started reading The Hobbit because I want to read all the books again. I honestly can’t remember when was the last time I read them all the way through (is my family the only one that feels like LOTR must be read like every five years/decade or so?)

Still reading Indianapolis (there are sharks) (please don’t ever drink salt water if you are stranded in the ocean) (also hitting/poking a shark can be effective if you ever need to) (but no guarantee here) (please do not come to me for advise on how to handle sharks. I have not seen Jaws so obviously I know nothing.)

I’m working on outlining OWWTSF and…does anyone write outlines for their books in a “serious” tone? Like in the actual tone and style that your book will be written in? Because I’m over here like:

“And she’s like this and he feels like this and she’s like mr. handsome just walked in the room and he’s all like I don’t know what day it is” and then there are random things in all caps like RUN BOY RUN. Or to make a note to myself of what I want a scene to be like such as I want a scene to be more “dunghill lighter” and random Pirates of the Caribbean or Indiana Jones quotes and honestly if someone read my outline they would have no idea what the story is about or what the heck is happening.

Luckily no one has to except me so were all good here.

Also is there anyone else that can just FEEL August???? Like I step outside, sniff the air, and am “it’s August. It’s here. September is coming. Fall is coming.” (pumpkins and crows and stuff begin to rattle inside my closet) Like I can FEEL driving in early August mornings to events, late nights at fairs and stuff. I just get really Galadriel sometimes.

Anywho. CAN YOU FEEL AUGUST???