Coming to a toothpaste commercial near you

One of these girls is in the middle of a 6-month hike of the Appalachians. One is working for one of the world's largest media companies. Two are about to become masters. Another is inches away from becoming a world-famous DJ.

Kind of cool, no?

My friend Marko "defended" his novel to the academic committee this week ("It's written in sentences! I swear!") and he invited a few of us to witness the proceedings. This was a rare and welcome experience, because most MAers understandably seal off their committee defense to the public, opting instead to invite everyone to the post-defense celebratory drink-off. The closest I've ever come to seeing how an actual defense works was sitting in the hallway outside the interrogation room - I mean, conference room - and holding the defender's hand while her committee deliberated. Thanks to Marko and his novel Mongrel (check bookstores in the coming weeks - or, at least, library shelves at Concordia), I now know what happens behind those closed doors. I watched him defend his 65,000-word achievement to the committee, and I just kept thinking, isn't this amazing? Isn't it amazing that a bunch of us have decided to spend two+ years, several thousand dollars, and a few hundred brain cells, all for the end goal of having a novel under our belts? (NB: very uncomforatble, lots of papercuts to the abdomen).

Things I have been doing lately, in lieu of blogging (because what would be an out-of-the-blue blog post, without a litany of excuses for not updating?):

1. Writing a novel. I don't even have to say thing-that-rhymes-with-hovel anymore, because it's very nearly complete! It has a beginning and a middle! And characters! Isn't that the basic criteria?

2. Watching archaic episodes of "My So-Called Life." See that TV screen? That's Claire Danes, circa 1994.


3. Celebrating Rocky McRockstar's birthday:

4. Having my first summer feast of ice cream, thanks to Elise (please, just hook me up to a chocolate-flavoured IV for the next four months):


5. And, finally, learning how to be blissfully undignified - a lesson that could benefit everyone. Especially if your name is Tycho and you have a fondness for licking your nether regions and eating any crawling thing that is smaller than a dime. Earwigs! Yum!