So I have a set up for this blog… Mostly. Monday is poetry.. Either mine or discussion of others. Tuesday is Tuesday tunes. Wednesday is either webcomics Wednesday or wordless Wednesday… Or very rarely Wednesday whimsy. Thursday is either tea party or reviews. The first Friday will be monthly prompts. I am considering a monthly submissions call on the second week. (Where I scour through finding calls for submissions for you all) I have two Fridays (most months) that I am still not sure about. I am considering doing a service spotlight where I point attention to a person providing a service for writer’s (editors, illustrators, cover designers, etc). 2020 my word for the year is change. I am going to embrace change. That means I am looking to improve how I interact with the world around me, how I approach my writing.
That is incredbly scary. Courage is not the lack of fear, instead it is being afraid and doing it anyway. I am terrified of change. It brings more Chaos… But I am facing it anyway.
So, I challenge you. What is your word for 2020? What are you going to embrace, and change in your life? No, I am not speaking of new year’s resolutions… This is something that is meant to make you think about you and how you approach life.
Well, well, what have we here? Our last tea party for all of this year! Gracious, this year has been one filled with growth… And strange adventures. I certainly have many planned for 2020.
Faery Footprints, the next anthology from Fae Corps Publishing, is due to be released on January 6. I will have a link for the preorder by Monday.
The submissions deadline for Through the Sunshine, a light fae anthology by Fae Corps Publishing, is January 30. It will be released around June/July 2020.
Beauty’s Tears, having been set aside so I could do layout for Faery Footprints, is about to go into layout. I am planning a release around the first of February.
The illutrations for Dylan and the Pet Zombie are nearly done. Once they are completed, I will be doing layout for it and announcing that release date.
Serena is still working with Kingdoms of Sin and Life, Guilt, and Undeath. She is hoping to finish one if not both in 2020.
I am still working with Coffee House Writers. I have been accepted to attempt a place in their anthology. I also am planning to submit to a couple of others in the upcoming year.
I personally still have to finish Attack on Shoe Mountain, and of course the poetry volumes. There is so much writing that I have to finish. So I plan to be busy.
Of course I will be updating you as I know more! This year should be a busy one.
Let us see your work! Link to something that you have done recently, art or word. This post will be shared on all platforms, so comment on any or all as you feel comfortable.
So… I have avoided seasonal songs because they are usually religion based…and it makes them likely to offend. The non religious songs… Well I was not feeling them. Until today. Sunday my daughter played a song that I had not thought of in a while – Weird Al – The Night Santa Went Crazy. I decided that it would be a good one for today… Then, yesterday a friend introduced me to another good option. Dar Williams The Christians and The Pagans. So I decided to do both.
Lyrics – The Night Santa Went Crazy Down in the workshop all the elves were making toys For the good Gentile girls and the good Gentile boys When the boss busted in, nearly scared ’em half to death Had a rifle in his hands and cheap whiskey on his breath From his beard to his boots he was covered with ammo Like a big fat drunk disgruntled Yuletide Rambo And he smiled as he said, with a twinkle in his eye, “Merry Christmas to all, now you’re all gonna die!” The night Santa went crazy The night St. Nick went insane Realized he’d been gettin’ the raw deal Something finally must have snapped in his brain Well, the workshop is gone now, he decided to bomb it Everywhere you’ll find pieces of Cupid and Comet And he tied up his helpers and he held the elves hostage And he ground up poor Rudolph into reindeer sausage He got Dancer and Prancer with an old German Luger And he slashed up Dasher just like Freddie Krueger And he picked up a flamethrower and he barbecued Blitzen And he took a big bite and said, “It tastes just like chicken!” The night Santa went crazy The night Kris Kringle went nuts Now you can hardly walk around the North Pole Without stepping in reindeer guts There’s the National Guard and the F. B. I. There’s a van from the Eyewitness News And helicopters circling around in the sky And the bullets are flying, the body count’s rising And everyone’s dyin’ to know, oh Santa, why? My my my my my my You used to be such a jolly guy Yes, Virginia, now Santa’s doing time In a federal prison for his infamous crime Hey, little friend, now don’t you cry no more tears He’ll be out with good behavior in seven hundred more years But now Vixen’s in therapy and Donner’s still nervous And the elves all got jobs working for the postal service And they say Mrs. Claus, she’s on the phone every night With her lawyer negotiating the movie rights They’re talkin’ ’bout The night Santa went crazy The night St. Nicholas flipped Broke his back for some milk and cookies Sounds to me like he was tired of getting gypped Wo-oh, the night Santa went crazy The night St. Nick went insane Realized he’d been gettin’ a raw deal Something finally must have snapped in his brain Wo-oh, something finally must have snapped in his brain Tell ya, something finally must have snapped, in his brain
The Christians and the Pagans Amber called her uncle, said “We’re up here for the holiday, Jane and I were having Solstice, now we need a place to stay.” And her Christ-loving uncle watched his wife hang Mary on a tree, He watched his son hang candy canes all made with Red Dye No. 3. He told his niece, “Its Christmas Eve, I know our life is not your style, “ She said, “Christmas is like Solstice, and we miss you and its been awhile.” So the Christians and the Pagans sat together at the table, Finding faith and common ground the best that they were able, And just before the meal was served, hands were held and prayers were said, Sending hope for peace on earth to all their gods and goddesses. The food was great, the tree plugged in, the meal had gone without a hitch, Till Timmy turned to Amber and said, “Is it true that you’re a wtich?” His mom jumped up and said, “The pies are burning, ” and she hit the kitchen, And it was Jane who spoke, she said, “It’s true, your cousin’s not a Christian, “ “But we love trees, we love the snow, the friends we have, the world we share, And you find magic from your God, and we find magic everywhere, “ So the Christians and the Pagans sat together at the table, Finding faith and common ground the best that they were able, And where does magic come from? I think magic’s in the learning, ‘Cause now when Christians sit with Pagans only pumpkin pies are burning. When Amber tried to do the dishes, her aunt said, “Really, no, don’t bother.” Amber’s uncle saw how Amber looked like Tim and like her father. He thought about his brother, how they hadn’t spoken in a year, He thought he’d call him up and say, “It’s Christmas, and your daughter’s here.” He thought of fathers, sons and brothers, saw his own son tug his sleeve, saying, “Can I be a Pagan?” Dad said, “We’ll discuss it when they leave.” So the Christians and the Pagans sat together at the table, Finding faith and common ground the best that they were able, Lighting trees in darkness, learning new ways from the old, and Making sense of history and drawing warmth out of the cold.
My 2 cents – Both of these songs are fun, in different ways. The night Santa went crazy is straight up satire. It pokes fun at everything about the holidays. The Christians and the pagans is a well thought out song that speaks heavily of tolerance for the holidays. Holiday songs are so very often a sign of the times they were created in.
[Verse 1]
Today I’m kinda feelin’ like a ghost
Call my friends but ain’t nobody home
Tell myself I’m fine but I don’t really know
I’m just scared that I’ll end up, I’ll end up, I’ll end up alone
I never let it show
But I feel like a missed call on a phone
Tryna live my life, pay-as-you-go
But I’m so scared that I’ll end up, I’ll end up, I’ll end up alone
[Chorus]
You know I’m like a ghost, sometimes I have to fade
And it haunts me that I have to be this way
You say it’s gone cold, I say I’ll do better
But I always seem to disappear again
You know I’m like a ghost, I see it in your face
And it haunts me that I have to be this way
You say it’s gone cold, I say I’ll do better
But I always seem to disappear again
You know I’m like a ghost
[Verse 2]
You know I never meant to cut you off
Got phantom feelings I can never solve
Stranger things to worry ’bout, I know
But I’m so scared that I’ll end up, I’ll end up, I’llghost
up alone
[Pre-Chorus]
Can’t see myself in the mirror
Does that mean I’m not really here?
I’m losin’ touch with everything I know
And I’m so scared that I’ll end up, I’ll end up, I’ll end up alone
[Chorus]
You know I’m like a ghost, sometimes I have to fade
And it haunts me that I have to be this way
You say it’s gone cold, I say I’ll do better
But I always seem to disappear again
You know I’m like a ghost, I see it in your face
And it haunts me that I have to be this way
You say it’s gone cold, I say I’ll do better
But I always seem to disappear again
You know I’m like a ghost
[Bridge]
(Ghost, ghost, ghost, ghost)
(Ghost, ghost, ghost, ghost)
You know I’m like a ghost
(Ghost, ghost, ghost, ghost)
(Ghost, ghost, ghost, ghost, you know I’m like a ghost)
Ooh, I’ll be okay, I’ll be alright, I know
Ooh, I’ll be okay, I’m just scared that I’ll end up alone
(Ooh, ooh)
[Chorus]
You know I’m like a ghost, I see it in your face
And it haunts me that I have to be this way
You say it’s gone cold, I say I’ll do better
But I always seem to disappear again
You know I’m like a ghost
My 2 cents –
I honestly thought about a holiday song… But not everyone celebrates the same holiday. So I found a song that I feel reflects how many feel during this time of year. The artist has a wonderful voice and you really feel the loneliness in the song. I often feel like a ghost, unseen. That is the result of having a chronic illness. I often end up with only my family as company because I am too ill to go out. And then anxiety adds to it. If you are feeling like a ghost… You are not as alone as you feel. Reach out. Message me (patti.mouse@gmail). I will always chat with anyone who feels alone.