Little Victories

Hey everyone!  It has been quite some time since I’ve written anything on this blog of mine.  I hope all is well with you!  If you’re still following me- thank you!

These past few months have been a whirlwind.  Between going through months of physical therapy for my hip and our dog running away from his sitter while my husband and I were on our anniversary trip, things have been nothing short of crazy.

But despite all that, I’m still celebrating little victories.

1. I’m able to run again!  Thanks to about four months of PT for my hip, I can now run on my own again.  My hip was so bad that I would wake up in the middle of the night in pain.  Now that it’s feeling better, I do think I’m a little over-eager.  I really want to run a half before the end of the year, but I really don’t think my hip can handle that at this point.  But I’ve been able to run up to 2 miles so far again so I’m definitely on the right track.  My next step is to be able to run a 5K or two before the end of the year.  Possibly even a 10K.  We’ll see how the hip does!
2. I celebrated my one-year wedding anniversary!  Granted, it was spent driving down to Myrtle Beach, but we left early enough that we could still enjoy the pool and great food once we made it there safely!  It was also so much fun trying to find which “paper” gift to get Kyle, albeit semi-difficult because my budget was only so high and there was so much I wanted to get him!  I ended up getting him a rare comic book and he got me a writing notebook and another writing journal that we can both fill out about our relationship/marriage.  But seriously, how has it been a year?  And PSA: one-year-old wedding cake is terrible!
3. We got our dog back!  This is another whole (terrible) adventure in itself.  In summary, I had never been so tired and had never felt so hopeless than I did during the ten days he was gone.  What was worse is that we were on day four of our anniversary trip when we found out Oakley got loose.  But I learned not to give up hope AND to enjoy the little things, even if that means not getting frustrated when Oakley wakes us up at ungodly hours to go outside.  I truly hope that none of you will ever experience anything like that because it was terrible and heartbreaking and the worst thing that has ever happened in my life.
4. I’m writing again.  Okay, so I haven’t been writing on here, but I HAVE been writing and that’s clearly an improvement.  I’ve come down with the inspiration bug over the last few weeks and I even have a few ideas in the works for short stories that I plan on submitting to competitions.  We’ll see what happens with those, but I’m very excited about the ideas!
5. I’m a preferred writer.  As of today, I became a “preferred writer” for one of the client’s on the site BlogMutt who I freelance write for, and they gave me five stars on the article I wrote for them.  I honestly couldn’t be more thrilled!  This is just a small victory in terms of my writing career, but all the little victories will lead me in the right direction!

What small victories are you celebrating today?  Let me know in the comments below!

Long time, no see!

Well hello, WordPress world!  I am writing to you on this beautiful, snowy (wait? Isn’t it supposed to be Spring?) day in the northeast.  This is how it looks outside my house right now: 

So, since it has been a minute since I last updated this blog, I wanted to catch up and explain what has been happening in my world.

1. My husband and I bought a house!  Super exciting, right?  We’ve lived in it for just over two months now and we’ve never been happier (well, besides the mortgage and all of the responsibilities that come with homeownership- kidding!  It’s all great honestly).  Look at our cute picture at the house right after closing! 
2. The day after we moved into our house, we rescued a pit/lab mix named Oakley!  He’s turning 2 in April and he’s just the cutest, happiest little pup of all.  He was super skinny when we first got him because he was a stray found on the streets in Virginia, but we’ve given him lots of love and treats and food and exercise and he’s doing so much better now.  He likes to stare out windows when his daddy leaves for work.  He also loves to cuddle and loves to play with his friends Stella and Odin (our friend’s dogs).

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3. I’ve recently had this creative urge and it has been making me want to write again.  It’s the best feeling and I’ve missed it.  I try to embrace it as much as I can as I’ve had an endless bout of writer’s block (I know, you other writers out there are probably shaking your heads right now).  Luckily, it has been slowly subsiding.  So every day I’m looking up writing prompts on Pinterest or old fanfiction I’ve written for some inspiration.  Not to mention I’ve been rereading the Harry Potter series (aka the series that inspired me to write in the first place) since October and I’m finally a third of the way into the Deathly Hallows. I’ve been making notes of the parts that are so interesting to me and how Rowling foreshadows throughout the whole series without us (okay, maybe just me) realizing it.

So with the above being said, I wanted to ask you guys:

1. Do you think fanfiction is dumb?  Do people even still write fanfiction, let alone about Harry Potter?
2. How do you cure your writer’s block?  Do you listen to music, travel, read/watch movies?  I’m interested to see what helps you!
3. To go off my last questions, what type of movies do you watch, books do you read, and music that you listen to?  What’s your favorite place you’ve ever traveled, and how did it inspire you?
4. Have you rescued any animals?  If so, what kind?
5. Is it snowing where you are now, or is it warm and sunny?
6. How have you guys been?  What’s been going on lately?

Short blog today, my friends.  But I look forward to hearing your responses and I’ll be back again soon.

Em

 

October: National Book Month

As you may know, October is National Book Month and everywhere bookworms are rejoicing!  Reading is one of my absolute favorite pastimes, not only because I get to immerse myself into another world to get away from real-world problems for a little while, but also because it’s relaxing (well, for the most part- I suppose it depends on what book I’m reading!).  In honor of National Book Month, I’d like to share with you what I’ve been reading so far this month.

Back in September, I started reading Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.  I never finished it.  Never in my life have I stopped reading a book because I disliked it until now.  Okay, you caught me- with the exception of required novels during school, I have never stopped reading a book because I disliked it.  After a few weeks hiatus, I decided to give it another go.  I had only heard good things from people I know who have read it, so I really wanted to give it another chance, but I just couldn’t get past the strange first-person narrative with abnormally long paragraphs that held conversations within them rather than in separate paragraphs.

Maybe that’s because that’s what I’m used to when I read books- conversations being broken up into separate paragraphs for each person talking.  However, I realize that there is no “correct” way to write and that rules are meant to be broken when writing.  Even so, I placed the book back on my shelf last week for good.

I have been entranced with reading lately, however.  So late last week, after I set Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close aside, I decided to pick up an old book and visit some old friends.

Perhaps my desire to reread the Harry Potter series was due to the cool fall air (finally!) infiltrating the east coast.  Maybe it was because of the incessant previews for Freeform’s (many) Harry Potter weekends playing relentlessly on the TV.  Or, simply enough, perhaps it was because it has been several years since I’ve reread them in their entirety.  Regardless of the reason, I’m ecstatic about my decision to restart this journey.

I finished the Sorcerer’s Stone in just under six and a half hours, which must have been a personal record.  I believe it would have taken me less time if I didn’t have a full-time job and several other distractions (or responsibilities) that had to be completed prior to my reading binges.

Kyle came home from work Friday afternoon/early evening and could hardly believe I was on the last few pages of The Sorcerer’s Stone.  “How?!” he asked, astonished that I had somehow found the time to finish the book so quickly.  Without even asking, he went into our bedroom and grabbed The Chamber of Secrets from our bookshelf and laid it on the end table beside the couch where I was sitting at the time.  He just knew that I’d want to start the next book as soon as I was finished the first.  That, my friends, is true love.

Anyway, I started reading the Chamber of Secrets on Friday and I’m still currently reading it.  Not because I’m not interested in it or because it’s taking a long time to read- Kyle and I were just incredibly busy over the weekend so I had limited time to read.  But I’m truly enjoying every page of the series thus far and I’m loving it even more now than the first few times I read it.

Harry Potter holds a special place in my heart, and it remains high on my list of books that I love.  Rowling’s series is the first series that I can remember that truly inspired me to write.  Whether it was HP-related fan-fiction, online roleplaying (Neopets, anyone?) or even an original story of my own, I was writing almost every day when I was younger because I was so inspired.  I wanted to create a world as mystifying, extraordinary and magical (pun intended) as Rowling created.  It’s still my dream today.

I’ve realized over the past few weeks that maybe the reason I’m having difficulty writing anything of substance lately (creative writing, that is) is because I’ve been lacking inspiration.  I have been told that in times of severe writer’s block, I should revisit a favorite book’s world and find the reason why I wanted to write my own story in the first place.  Then, I should explore new worlds in the same genre that I’d like to write about and write down what makes them good and what makes me love them.  I’m currently on the first part of that with Harry Potter being my first stop.  I’m excited to see what happens while on this ride and what potential stories come out of it.

Now that you know what inspired me to begin writing and what I’m currently reading, I’d love to know what you’re currently reading (or rereading) and what’s on your list of books to read prior to year’s end.  Also, if there are any writers/authors out there, let me know what books truly captivated you and inspired you to write.  I’d love to discuss this with you and add to my list of books to read- and perhaps they’ll inspire me, too!

Until next time,

Emily

P.S.  If any of you are interested in my re-read of Harry Potter, check out the hashtag #EmilyrereadsHP on Twitter!

 

Starting a New Chapter

The trouble is, you think you have time.” – Buddha

A few weeks ago on a lonely Friday night I spent by myself in mine and my fiance’s apartment (readers-we have a lot of catching up to do!), I was suddenly inspired to start writing on this blog again and telling the story of what happened to my grandma.  Only a few days ago did I realize that it’s not necessarily what happened to her that matters with regard to my lack of writing (nor is it anything that you necessarily want to hear- there were some pretty gruesome aspects); it’s what she meant to me and how that turned into inspiration for writing.

My grandma passed away on April 4, 2015.  If you look at when my last post was published, it was only a week or so prior to that date, and in short that explains my lack of writing, and I do apologize for my absence since that time.

At that time, I was temporarily staying with my fiance’s (at this time he was still my boyfriend) Aunt and his grandma (which is a long story in itself of how we got to living there), and it was so nice because it felt like even if I wasn’t around my grandma as much as I would like, I still had Grandma Vera to help me along, although she wasn’t in the best of conditions, either.  It was so nice to have a grandma figure around, who could give wise advice and tell stories of when she was young.

We had been living there for less than two months when I got the phone call late Saturday night that awoke me from my place on the couch.  The world was suddenly less beautiful when I realized my Grandma was no longer around.  If I had been by myself at that time that I got the call, I don’t know what I would have done, and I am so so thankful that Daria and Grandma Vera were in the house (and shortly thereafter, Kyle).  My grandma was my world, and it kills me that she might not have known that.  Not only was she my world, but she was my inspiration.

I remember visiting her in the hospital with my aunt and uncle and even my Sunday School teacher from when I went to church with my grandparents twice a week during my summers growing up.  I had woken up early that Friday morning and drove three and a half hours just to see her, and even if I didn’t want to admit it at that time, I knew it would be the last time I’d see her in her body on this Earth.  After spending a few hours there, my aunt and uncle left the room so I could say everything that I wanted and needed to at that moment- just between the two of us.

I remember seeing her with a breathing tube from her mouth and her muscles twitching, but I knew she wasn’t there, and I knew she hadn’t been in her body for a few days.  I remember holding her hand and wishing she would just open her eyes, just like she did the Sunday prior when I woke her up from her nap on her notorious recliner.  But I knew this time she wasn’t going to open her eyes, no matter how much I wished for that to happen.

I remember saying how much I loved her, how much I needed her here, and how much everyone else needed her, especially my mom who was still heartbroken after losing both my uncle and my grandpa so close together.

People have often told me that I was her favorite, even out of her own children.  I spent every summer with her and my grandpa and she and I would always go to bingo, get our hair done together, go to the mall, go to the park, etc.  You name it, we probably did it.  With us being so close, everyone secretly hoped that once I came into the room and said hello and told her I missed her and loved her and needed her, she would open her eyes.  A part of me feels like I let them down when that didn’t happen.  But I think the reason she didn’t open her eyes again was because of what I had to tell her- the one thing she needed to hear, and how she needed to hear it from me.  At first I joked with her and told her she couldn’t leave until I started working for a newspaper in Pittsburgh so I could get her inside the Steelers locker room.  That had always been the joke between us- but I had every intention on making it happen.

But then I did the bravest thing I think I’ve ever done thus far in my lifetime.  While I stood there beside her, holding her clammy hand with one hand and pushing her matted hair back with my other, I said the one thing that needed to be said; the one thing that I think she needed to hear.  I told her I was selfish for wanting her to stay, because she wasn’t really living.  I told her that she was in so much pain, and she would continue to be for as long as she held on.  Then I told her that my Pappy, her sweetheart who she had been married to for sixty wonderful years, needed her too, probably more than we needed her here.  And that my uncle Rick, one of the sweetest and kindest men to walk this Earth, the youngest of her children, needed his mom.

The truth is, my grandma started going downhill when she lost her baby- my uncle was only 50 when he passed.  My grandpa passed in October of 2013, about a year and half after my uncle, and my grandma continuously started getting worse.  I never really knew how bad she had gotten until a few days ago when I looked back at my Facebook messages between my mom, my siblings and me and I saw that she was in and out of the hospital an outrageous amount over the last year she was alive.  It was clear to me then that she hadn’t really been living for quite some time- simply going through life day by day, always in pain and her heart always aching.  I know now that she is in the best place she can be.

The past few months that I’ve been silent, I’ve been grieving.  After she passed (and a week after, sweet Grandma Vera passed as well), I just couldn’t find the words to write.  Everything was so overwhelming and it felt like I had no time to process it.  In those two weeks, I lost all of my inspiration, because one of the few people who kept me inspired had left this Earth.

I may still be sad that my best friend isn’t here anymore, but I knew she would want me to stop being so sad and work toward fulfilling my dreams.  I hope to do that with her help even though she isn’t here anymore.  My Grandma was always my number one fan when it came to writing (and being a journalist in general), and even though I know she was proud of me, I hope to make her even more proud by following my dreams.  Not only am I going to use this inspiration to write random thoughts about every day life on this blog (and hopefully create a career out of blogging/writing); I’m also going to use her inspiration to create a story in her, Grandma Vera’s, and my Grandma King’s memory.  Whether it takes me five, ten or twenty years to finish, I promise there will be a novel in bookstores across the country that on the very first page leaves a dedication to my Grandma Haase, Grandma Vera, and my sweet sweet Grandma King who passed years ago but that I don’t go a day without thinking about, either.

So here’s to starting a new chapter, here’s to doing what I love most without holding myself back any longer, and here’s to the women who have been/will be my biggest inspirations.