So the Democratic Nat'l Convention was this week in Boston. Though I told myself last week to keep tabs on it...you know...at least watch the key speeches of my fave political peeps...Slick Willie, Hillary, Madeline Albright, Edwards & Kerry...either I was too busy or seemed slightly apathetic about it. I don't know why.

I mean I'll definitely vote for Kerry in Nov. But since CA isn't considered a battleground state, its hard for me to get very worked up about it. Poll X will show Bush has the lead and Poll Y shows that Kerry is ahead. So its anyone's guess what will happen. I guess I'll just have to hope for the best...

So I bought some makeup this weekend...foundation, powder etc etc etc. Have been maintaining a makeup routine for a week now. Am quite pleased with the result.

The writing is going extremely well too. Chapter one? BANG ON BABY!!! I think I am a very slow writer. I mean, I've been fiddling with Chapter 1 since like April now. I have enough material for 4-5 chapters now...but molding it into something I'm happy with is another matter entirely. Spent the last two days staring at 2 paragraphs...crafting...shaping...tweaking...and I think it turned out pretty well...the first part of a chapter is always the hardest...it sets the tone for that 5000 words...very important. I think the more I write, the easier it seems. So that's pretty good. Though, I must say that as a girl who only grew up w/ girls (one sister and all cousins except 3 who are boys)...I don't feel like I have that much exposure to the male psyche. I mean Hubby does...and Son is helpful in providing insight to the male id...but other then that...

I mean am I walking the fine line between the contrasting notions that are guys really all about food, comfort, sex and bodily functions? The other being the male in romance...the thickly muscled manly man standing tall and proud on some ship...his puffy pirate shirt (with lace at the sleeves and collar) torn open to reveal his manly chest?

I can't believe its not butter, Manly Pirate says, looking deep into the heroine's soulful eyes.

In my own case, the image of my hero...a Marine lewey in full battle rattle (the mustard colored desert combat boots, the camo fatigues, flak jacket/armored vest (I'm not sure what they call it), kevlar helmet, wearing sunglasses and carrying his rifle/gun thingie...confidently looking like the badass he knows he is...

That's the image that is projected in countless books and articles about Soldier X. Its my job to dig behind this facade and look deep into what makes the hero tick. What are his hangups...what is his personality like...stuff like that. Its a lot easier for me to write the heroine...but this guy...Dan...he's leading me on this journey to discovering who he really is. Very enigmatic bugger, he is. He's slowly choosing to reveal himself...but not very easily. Its like pulling teeth. :p

Writing, I have found, is much like preparing Thanksgiving Dinner. There is this work that goes into the preparation...you want everything to be perfect...you slave for hours in the kitchen for the food to be delish...for the presentation to be flawless...and when it is finally ready, you stare with pride at the spread before you. A minute later, it is all gobbled up in a matter of minutes!!!! The eaters then look up at you and say, what's next? When is the next dish? I'm ready for more. Sigh.

Damn, I getting maudlin now. Maybe I better stop listening to the love songs station on Yahoo! Launchcast...

PS - Sean from Doc in the Box, this might be a cool thing for you to have. ;)