Notes from Nadir

The Joy of Melt and Pour Soap Crafting

2011-11-22T06:55:00.000-08:00

For the past two months my double boiler and I have been the best of friends. My kitchen is super clean and my bathroom is stocked with enough soap to starting selling … again! Yes, I've been making soap like it's the Christmas rush even before the official start date!

Key Lime Pie Soap

Last week at this time I was putting the finishing touches on a piece of Key Lime Pie soap for my new book, THE JOY OF MELT AND POUR SOAP CRAFTING. It's been fun getting back into it after a [nearly] two-year absence. But my next project, Leaving Nadir, is calling to me and I must complete that.

So that's what's been going on and I while it was fun to write and recreate some unique recipes, like Fruit of the Vine Wine soap, Coffee 'n Cream soap, Soapsicles, and even my signature Hollywood Fruit, Nuts & Flakes soap, I look forward to my return to fiction.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

THE JOY OF MELT AND POUR SOAP CRAFTING

Help Me Name a Soap!

2011-11-10T07:36:00.000-08:00

Yes, I'm almost done taking photos for my forthcoming soap crafting book! I've been crafting soap, and other bath & body products, for years. I've been planning an entire series of books, and only this month does it look like I'll finally have that soap book finished! It's called THE JOY OF MELT AND POUR SOAP CRAFTING and it'll be available on Kindle, B&N and Smashwords around November 19th.

Before it's completed, I need your help in naming a soap! The backstory is that when I was at the supermarket I discovered a 4-pack of colorful plastic gelatin molds. For $2 it was a great deal and they make some beautiful looking soaps. Currently, it's called Gelatin Soap, but I'm sure a better and catchier name can be found.

Name this soap!!!

The soap is a combination of clear melt and pour base, magenta mica [a natural mineral colorant], and strawberry fragrance.

So what do you get if you supply the name of this soap?

1. A copy of the book in either the .PDF or Kindle format.

2. Your name will be listed in the Acknowledgments section right in the front of the book!

Let me know what you think this soap should be called and the winner will be listed here! If you could do so by the weekend, that would be excellent!

11/16/11 UPDATE! Thanks everybody! A name has been found & the individual insists upon anonymity! I'll reveal the soap's new name next week after the book has been released.

SQUIRRELS IN THE HOOD is in Your E-Hood!

2011-09-21T06:37:00.000-07:00

If you love squirrels, cats and birds, you're in the right place! I discovered the joy of photographing squirrels in my L.A. neighborhood due to their close proximity. And I learned a lot about squirrelly behavior!

Squirrels in the Hood was originally written by hand in a notebook but I finally found some time to transcribe it into Word. The photos I'd taken really helped to shape the story. So, here's the official blurb.

When Sunshine the cat departs in 2006, the second story balcony she occupied is very empty. Now that birds can be fed, the author does so, also attracting an array of hungry squirrels. Follow the adventures of Alpha, Doc, Cocoa Butter and other squirrel-friends as they dine in the Bird & Squirrel Café located in the Miracle Mile district of Los Angeles. Squirrels in the Hood includes 19 color photos taken by the author.

I've also included my first book trailer. Thanks to Alex Cavanaugh, the author of CassaStar, I was able to see how cool book trailers are. I wasn't aware that books even had trailers! I was inspired to try making my own.

Squirrels in the Hood - B&N

Squirrels in the Hood - Amazon

Squirrels in the Hood - Smashwords

Hollywood Office Temp

2011-07-06T07:52:00.000-07:00

Although I've written a little about Hollywood in NOTES FROM NADIR, the majority of the book takes place far, far away from the proverbial glitter and glitz of Hollywood.

What really happened in Hollywood? How long was I out there? Did I work in the entertainment industry? Did I meet lots of celebrities?

Some answers. I originally wrote HOLLYWOOD OFFICE TEMP [H.O.T.] many years ago. This book is partially based on my years working in and out of the wonderful world of showbiz. My character, Chris Yarborough, is just that, someone who might have a few similarities to me. This book is based on people I met in Lalaland, I have also incorporated other peoples' stories to make this a better read. Some of the characters names have been changed to protect the innocent … and the guilty.

I'm also still working on the manuscript for LEAVING NADIR.

***

Chris Yarborough is a Midwesterner as green as the corn back home in Ohio. This former bookstore employee moves out to Los Angeles to pursue a profitable career in screenwriting.

Without an instant script sale, she stumbles upon an ad that reads: TYPE YOUR WAY TO THE STARS! The company is in a prestigious Century City high rise and she works there until the company closes. Out of work, her career as a temp is launched.

Chris temps in an East L.A. warehouse where the elderly owner is carried to her office to downtown where she discovers Banksluts, Inc. Other jobs in studios bring her in contact with famous actors. She learns that as a temp, she is the maid of the secretarial world. One employer says, "If you don't want to use her you can send her away."

As she searches for a literary agent and that elusive script sale, Chris encounters an array of unusual characters. A partying apartment manager, an important film director who could launch her career, a lawyer with an office furnished in kindergarten motif, and several household names. Sometimes working in the entertainment biz, including stints at Playboy, Universal Studios and Warner Bros., to jobs in unrelated fields, the plucky screenwriter perseveres.

HOLLYWOOD OFFICE TEMP is written in diary format. We are shown the excesses of the 1990's as a nobody tries to become a somebody in Hollywood. Here's a new interview!

Notes from Nadir ~ The Interview!

2011-06-06T06:30:00.000-07:00

I've recently been interviewed about my novel, Notes from Nadir. It was a novel interview [pun intended!] in that I got to make up some of the questions that I could ask and answer about how this book came into being.

Instead of using the sample excerpt that is seen when the book's downloaded, I got to choose what part of the book I wanted to share. That's fun to do as the reader can see a "new" area of the story.

Much to everyone's relief, it's not a mega-long interview so I didn't get bored doing it! If you're interested, here's the link:

ANOTHER HOLLYWOOD EBOOK WINNER ANNOUNCED!

2011-05-31T11:58:00.000-07:00

Due to the fact that one of the winners of THE HOLLYWOOD FICTION E-BOOK CONTEST was unable to collect their prize, I'm now announcing another winner!

This individual was chosen randomly by another draw of names. Who is this fifth winner? Let me give you a hint: he's quite a prolific writer and blogger!

Stephen Tremp, SOUTH OF SUNSET

Make sure you visit his blog as he has some great news of his own to share!

Thank you for entering the contest, Stephen!

Stop by every Monday and Thursday to read LEAVING NADIR.

4 Contest Winners Revealed!

2011-05-25T07:38:00.000-07:00

I'm happy to announce the four bloggers who won ebooks in the HOLLYWOOD FICTION E-BOOK CONTEST! I also want to thank all the entrants who took the time to enter the contest.

As with the last contest, I want to reveal how their names were chosen. I typed each entrant's name and/or screen name and book choice on a piece of paper and printed it out. Then I cut all the names out individually and divided them into the two categories: those who wanted to win NORTH OF SUNSET and those who wanted to read the short stories contained in SOUTH OF SUNSET. There were three individuals who were in the "either" category and I chose two for one title and one for the other. Then I placed the South of Sunset names inside a shoe box, which I covered and shook several times. I opened and pulled out two names. I repeated the process for North of Sunset and came up with the second two recipients.

OK, enough, who are they?

Here are four talented bloggers whose names were chosen. I also include their links so that you can check out their blogs.

ANN BEST, NORTH OF SUNSET

LAURA KAY, NORTH OF SUNSET

OLD KITTY, SOUTH OF SUNSET

CONDA V. DOUGLAS, SOUTH OF SUNSET

THE HOLLYWOOD FICTION E-BOOK CONTEST

2011-05-09T05:19:00.000-07:00

There's a new e-book contest here at Notes from Nadir!

Do you like Hollywood? Ever been there? Want to read about it? Now you can – for absolutely no cost!

FOUR people will win free Kindle e-book editions of my novel, NORTH OF SUNSET or my short story collection, SOUTH OF SUNSET!

Just leave a comment saying which free Hollywood e-book you want. Please include your email address. You can write it out to avoid spam.

Your chances improve if you are a Notes from Nadir and/or Leaving Nadir blog subscriber.

Also, you can request a .PDF file if you don't want the Kindle version.

Winners will be chosen by a random draw of names on Wednesday, May 25, 2011. The four winners will have their names and blog links posted in a special blog entry.

CONTEST ENDS TUESDAY, MAY 24, 2010. Due to international time differences, the cut off time is midnight PST.

Stop by every Monday and Thursday to read LEAVING NADIR.

Leaving Nadir Returns Monday, April 18, 2011

2011-04-14T08:42:00.000-07:00

"Leaving Nadir" is returning to blogland! I've been writing blogs in order to keep ahead of myself, but have also completed two non-fiction books. One is mentioned in a previous blog, but the latest one is the first ever e-book all about Monoi de Tahiti!

I've missed visiting so many versatile bloggers here and am trying to work out a schedule where I can read blogs uninterrupted every day.

Writing this sequel has been difficult for me. I'm keeping everything rated PG-13 but when it comes time to write the first draft of the book, I won't be able to keep it that mild.

So, if you want to refresh your memory of that Nadirian place, here's the Index. The blog will pick up right where it left off.

Hope to see you again on Monday, April 18!

Stop by every Monday and Thursday to read LEAVING NADIR.

Been Away – But Not At Play!

2011-02-21T08:35:00.000-08:00

I've been on a leave of absence from writing "Leaving Nadir" as I was involved in co-writing a nonfiction e-book. Haven't written one of those in a while -- the last one was about ice skating and that was a few years ago. Unlike my skating e-book, which also had to be fact-filled and accurate, "Paranormal Reality: Investigating Paranormal State" involved viewing lots of footage and listening to audio. I also interviewed several people. That was fun. One interviewee went from saying please quote me to, oh no, don't reveal my name. Did that change things? You betcha!

Maybe you have or haven't heard of the A&E TV show, "Paranormal State". It began in 2007 and is now in its last season. If you've watched it, you know it's about a group of paranormal investigators seeking proof of ghosts. It's different than "Ghost Hunters" [the SyFy show that paved the way]. In each episode of "Paranormal State" you can see psychics and paranormal investigators trying to help distraught families troubled by haunted houses.

This book is a bit of a departure for me and I'm an unbiased enough to write about the paranormal field. I've learned more about people who seek out paranormal matters and appreciate the fact that they have so much enthusiasm for their work.

My next goal is to get back to working on Leaving Nadir and continuing that journey. It should be back next month.

3 Contest Winners Revealed!

2011-01-01T08:01:00.000-08:00

Maybe you could feel the tension building as it neared the stroke of midnight last night! Many of you must have been wondering who the winning three bloggers would be in the Better Than Chocolate Kindle E-Book Contest.

Before I announce that, I want to reveal how were their names chosen. The old-fashioned way! I typed each entrant's name and/or screen name on a piece of paper and printed it out. Then I cut all the names out individually and placed them inside a shoe box, which I covered and shook several times. There was a hole in one side of it as this was a box that was destined for the recycling bin, and the first 3 names that slid out are the people who will receive NOTES FROM NADIR as a gift via their email.

I also want to thank all the entrants who took the time to read and comment on the blog.

So, who are the recipients?

These three talented bloggers who were nice enough to enter. I also include their links so that you can check out their blogs.

The Words Crafter [The Rainy Day Wanderer]

Neurotic Workaholic ~ Obsessions of a Workaholic

Jemi Fraser ~ Just Jemi

Thanks for stopping by! Wishing everyone a wonderful, prosperous, healthy, writing and reading-filled 2011! J

Stop by every Monday and Thursday to read the continuing adventures at my LEAVING NADIR blog.

A Naughty Narcissist's Yuletide Greetings!

2010-12-23T06:57:00.000-08:00

I've decided to include an excerpt from my novel Love Me, Need Me: A Narcissist's Tale due to the wacky Christmas scene it contains. The narcissistic main character, Arlen J. Stevenson, is a Southern zombie author and public speaker. This scene is from a December speaking gig for firefighters and their wives in a small Southern town…

Warning: Rated PG-13!

Well, I needed to get more festive as it was warming up to be a very merry Christmas for me and I thought, well hell, who sang the best Christmas songs in the world? Me! Because I'd just composed Arlen's Christmas Song and it was gonna get a deal with Sony Music next year.

I went back over to my briefcase and pulled out my Lucky Santa cap with the mistletoe attached to it. I removed the first one and put the new one on my head and went over to the mic and pulled it off its stand.

“Ladies and gentlemen--let me make this the best Christmas show you’ve ever attended. Why? Because there is a special Christmas treat for y'all, that’s why! This is an original musical composition!”

I cleared my throat and began singing, "Here's your Christmas present, baby," and smiled, shook my hips a little to warm myself up and began…

“I said, here's your Christmas present, baby…” I was directing my vocal offerings at Daisy, the sexy ol gal in the back of the room and smiled at her, swishing my hips slowly back and forth, hinting that later on in the evening me and her could share some naked rockin’ and rollin’ in my motel room. I wished to hell she read minds, as I was getting hotter than hell thinking of what that ol gal must be like in the sack. She seemed to be grooving on it too, but I thought maybe I should continue on and do something Christmassy first before coming onto her up close and personal-like.

"Are you gonna pull my red ribbon tonight?" I warbled in a loud, musical voice. "Red ribbon…and if I'm lucky you'll take it through the back door…" I went over to the Christmas tree at the back of the stage and admired it as I sang: “Oh I'm your Christmas present, baby…” extending the lyrics, fondling a large gold ornament, but not quite expecting it to crash to the stage floor and break loudly, but not nearly as loud as my strong tenor.

Time to get off the stage, and I switched hands on the mic and walked into the crowd, working it like the paid professional public speaker/singer I proudly am. I began slowly clapping in time to my singing and encouraging the audience to follow me, even clapping my hands above my head a few times. But they just sat there like some of my zombie characters.

I was making my way over to the sexy broad, but I stopped in front of a grandmaesque fat woman with a few tufts of cotton candy blue hair and thought of singing Blue Christmas to her, but decided to keep on singing what I was and I stood kinda close to her and rocked my hips suggestively as I sang. "Once you unwrap me, baby, you won't need Elvis anymore!" But hell, she was too ugly to kiss so I just pretended like the mistletoe wasn’t there as I made my way over to the hottie with the big, nursable boobs.

On my way across the room I continued to sing, smiling at some ol gal in a wheelchair and deciding to flirt with her. I put my hand on the back of her chair. And I made her feel real good by pushing her wheelchair around in slow, sexy circles as I sang, "If I'd've been in Hollywood I'd've been the leading man and Elvis would work at a shoe store."

She seemed a little bluer in the hair and redder in the face so I stopped the ride and by that time I had found my way over to Miss Daisy who was beaming up at me adoringly. Damn, I was gonna be giving her the Christmas love package a little early this year! I stripped off my sport jacket and my hips were a rockin’ back and forth and I sang directly to her "I'm your Christmas present, baby, touch me and watch your present growwwww". I extended my arms to show how much, and was gonna lean on in to the sexiest woman in the room and get my mistletoe over her head and get my reward…

And that’s when some porky ol gal comes up behind me, interrupting me, by informing me: “Thank you Arlen J. Stevenson for your, uh, performance. But it looks like it’s time for our dinner to be served. Please join us!”

I smiled tightly at her and nodded in thanks. Some fat slob who thought dinner was more important than my groinal gratification had just interrupted my spectacular holiday musical performance.

Note: There will be no Thursday blog at the Leaving Nadir site. The story will continue on Monday, December 27th.

E-Book Contest & North of Sunset

2010-12-17T18:05:00.000-08:00

Yes, the new blog, Leaving Nadir is keeping me busy twice a week. But not too busy to remind everyone who hasn't entered the Better Than Chocolate Kindle E-Book Contest that you have until 12/31 to enter. All you have to do is mention that you want to win 1 of 3 copies of NOTES FROM NADIR and leave your email addy [write it out if you like]. Winners will be notified on January 1 right after the drawing. I'll also post a special blog to announce this.

NEW BOOK! North of Sunset

There's a long history to my latest Kindle release, North of Sunset. First written in 1996, it was e-published in 2000. The company went under and in 2004 it was "published" by what turned out to be a vanity press. It still remains on Amazon in paperback format at $19.95 but no copies are available. Ever since 2005 I retain all rights to North of Sunset. And it's been extensively edited since then.

Since I worked in the film industry, I was able to have firsthand knowledge about what went on in some of those stately homes just off Sunset Boulevard. Here's what this book is about:

It's 1996 and Hollywood is thriving in the era of indulgences. Sherman Lee is a volatile and successful action movie producer who seeks critical acceptance. Ever the partier, his excesses are starting to take their toll. He can't keep a personal assistant for more than a few days until Emily Karelin is sent to fill the position. She's a temp with no showbiz background, one of the requirements Sherman demands.

Emily is struggling to find what she wants out of life. The only thing that fills her nonworking hours is ice skating. She doesn't trust men due to a failed relationship with a pathological liar. When she works for Sherman, they discover their synchronistic style and are intrigued with each other. Sherman's longtime best friend, internationally renowned actor Wesley Barron, is aware of the producer's problems. He also wonders who this unknown and mysterious Emily is.

"North of Sunset" shows a segment of a power broker's jaded lifestyle. Even in one of the most expensive places to live in the world, sometimes you find what you're not looking for…

Leaving Nadir - Monday Post

2010-12-06T08:06:00.000-08:00

Hello Everybody!
Leaving Nadir is now live as of Friday, December 3rd.Here is a link to the second post, Leaving the Factory Early.
Leaving Nadir will have new blog posts every Monday and Thursday. I am also including a chronological Leaving Nadir INDEX so you can read blog entries in order.
If you wish to remain up to date, please become a follower at Leaving Nadir's blog!

Thank you!

LEAVING NADIR is LIVE!

2010-12-03T08:01:00.000-08:00

Hello Everybody!
Just wanted to give you a link to my new blog, LEAVING NADIR!
Here is a link to the first post, Mom's Last Day
Leaving Nadir will have new blog posts every Monday and Thursday. If you wish to remain up to date, please become a follower at Leaving Nadir's blog!

Thank you!

Contest, New Blog & New Book

2010-11-29T07:29:00.000-08:00

The Better Than Chocolate Kindle E-Book Contest! is going well and I have been adding each contestant's name to the growing list. You have until 12/31/10 to enter and have a chance to win one of 3 Kindle ebooks of my first title, Notes from Nadir. You don't need a Kindle as you can get a free Kindle app. Or you can request a PDF version.

Just leave a comment saying you're in the contest and you want to read Notes from Nadir. Your email address should be included and you can write it out to avoid spam. You also should be a Notes from Nadir blog subscriber.

'LEAVING NADIR' BLOG STARTS FRIDAY

The sequel to Notes from Nadir, Leaving Nadir, makes its debut on Friday, December 3, 2010.

BRAND NEW KINDLE BOOK ARRIVES

In 2007 I wrote the first of many drafts of my newest book entitled Love Me, Need Me: A Narcissist's Tale. Unlike Notes from Nadir, this book is rated "R" due to the subject matter. If you have an active book review site or blog and would like to review a PDF version of this title, please contact me. Here is a summary that is even suitable for those readers under 18!

Middle-aged Arlen J. Stevenson hails from Alabama. He's a bumbling sexual predator, narcissist, and author of three insipid zombie books. His relentless and often hilarious pursuit of women online leads him to our other protagonist, Los Angeles-based writer of term papers, Helena Hoffman. She isn’t aware of what Arlen is as she only sees his amusing and entertaining side in their daily email correspondence.

Told in alternating points of view, we see Arlen’s self-absorbed lifestyle as he endeavors to meet his numerous catches all over the South. Helena and Arlen get friendlier via their online communication, and he invites her to be his personal manager because of her communications skills, gullibility factor and location. She launches a MySpace site for his new company. Soon he realizes there are thousands of available women in his region alone! Unlike the jailbait that many online stalkers pursue, Arlen chases after their mothers and grandmothers. Helena is aware of his perpetual cheating and decides to investigate it in person. What happens after that is alternately scary and darkly humorous. Warning: Contains graphic sexual content and language.

Better Than Chocolate Kindle E-Book Contest!

2010-11-15T12:48:00.000-08:00

I want to thank each and every one of you who stops off here and reads my blog. I began writing Notes from Nadir back in March and, like all newbies, I began with no followers and no readers. How much that has changed! And the result has been that I have turned a blog into a book!

To celebrate, I'm holding a Better Than Chocolate Kindle E-Book Contest! which runs through the end of the year.

3, count 'em, THREE people will win a free Kindle ebook edition of NOTES FROM NADIR! No, you don't need a Kindle, as you only need a FREE Kindle app. Here's the link.

So, what do you have to do to be eligible to win a free copy of Notes from Nadir? Not much! And it's all done online!

Just leave a comment saying you're in the contest and you want a free e-book. Your email address should be included and you can write it out to avoid spam.

To increase your chances, you should be a Notes from Nadir blog subscriber.

To enhance your chances even more, you can also subscribe to my forthcoming blog Leaving Nadir. This blog will be active in early December as the story continues to unfold.

If you want to have an even better shot at winning a free, brand new Kindle e-book, come over and see some fun pictures and be a friend at Facebook.

I'm new over here at Open Salon.com, but stop by and say hi.

Also, you can request Notes from Nadir as a .PDF file if you don't have or want the Kindle version.

Winners will be chosen by a random draw of names on January 1, 2011. The winners will have their names and blog or website links posted in a special blog entry.

CONTEST ENDS FRIDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2010. Due to international time differences, the cut off time is midnight PST.

Notes from Nadir on Kindle: First Review!

2010-11-01T08:09:00.000-07:00

Thank you for all the congratulations I've received on getting "Notes from Nadir" from blog form to Kindle form! It went through a lot of expansion and editing to refine it to its current version.

Fiction and non-fiction writer/blogger Talli Roland was kind enough to review a copy of Notes from Nadir. Not only am I pleased with her five-star review, I thank her for the summary she has supplied!

"I first started reading this memoir through the author's blog, and I was quickly hooked by her conversational, down-to-earth style. The book - with lots of new content not featured on the blog - follows the author as she leaves behind her LA life and returns to her roots, with lots of vignettes and familial snapshots along the way. A very enjoyable read about trying to fit back into a mould you no longer fit." Link to Amazon UK version.

I'd also like to let you know about Talli's blogfest to help her forthcoming novel, The Hating Game, out on December 1st when it makes a gigantic splash on Amazon!

December 1st is the date to remember!

Notes from Nadir is Here!

2010-10-22T10:21:00.000-07:00

Notes from Nadir is officially on Kindle! This novel introduces you to new characters and allows the reader to gain more insight into this oddly humorous situation. By meeting the relatives, the groundwork is established for my forthcoming sequel blog, Leaving Nadir.

Initially, I wasn't planning on residing in Nadir for more than a few months, so the omission of certain characters in the blog will make more sense in the Kindle version.

For those of you who have a blog and/or website and would like to review a .DOC or HTML version of Notes from Nadir, please send me an email at: lisamaliga@gmail.com

Notes from Nadir - Kindle version

Even if you don't own a Kindle, you can download a FREE Kindle reader for your PC or Mac here

If you live in the UK, here's a link to the Amazon.co.uk version.

OCTOBER UPDATE

2010-10-10T12:52:00.000-07:00

NOTES FROM NADIR is in the final stages of being edited. While I don't have an exact release date, it should be later this month if all continues on schedule.

This book is now novel length [approximately 59,000 words] and has new chapters and new characters. The reader learns much more about my situation back in Los Angeles and there is another major celebrity encounter.

Starting next month, LEAVING NADIR will continue where NOTES FROM NADIR left off.

Operation Stay in L.A.

2010-08-13T14:11:00.000-07:00

Why did I have to leave L.A.? And why was I so reluctant to depart? The answers will be found in the forthcoming Kindle book [NOTES FROM NADIR] in October, but for now, this excerpt should give you a few hints...

A week before I had to move from my apartment, I launched Operation Stay in L.A. I went from looking for a small apartment to a roommate situation. I called a Culver City resident who had a two-bedroom unit. The location was near the 405 freeway, parking was hard to find, and there was one bathroom. As Mom would say, it was a roof over my head, so I made an appointment to see the place the next afternoon. I walked over to The Grove, a trendy outdoor mall near the original Farmers Market, not knowing it was my final time there. I was optimistic that I’d get a place and reside within Los Angeles city limits.

A world premiere at the Pacific Theatres was being held for the movie Hotel for Dogs which starred Don Cheadle. I smiled, remembering the actor.

I won a contest on Amazon for their tenth anniversary when I ordered a DVD of Hotel Rwanda. Unlike Don’s current canine caper, Hotel Rwanda revealed a far different kind of lodging, one that served as a refuge for those who were persecuted in the 1994 genocide. I got the announcement that someone affiliated with the movie I’d just ordered would deliver it to me. Someone in front of the camera or behind it?

On a hot July afternoon there was a knock on my front door. I was surprised to see the star of the movie standing there! But a quick glance to my right and I was unhappily surprised to see that the Academy Award nominated actor had tracked tar upstairs and globs of it were on the new beige and white woven doormat I’d set out expressly for the occasion. “I’m sorry,” the actor said, looking down at his now dirty sneakers. So was I. The mat was far less expensive than his shoes. I recall looking into his large eyes and thinking how kind he was; he radiated that friendliness and hospitality that was seen in the character, Paul Rusesabagina, he portrayed in the film. I was upset about the mini tar pit gushing downstairs on the walkway and making its way towards the street, but the landlady wouldn’t fix it, nor would the city. I had put some cardboard on the walkway to stave off the flow so I was puzzled as to why Don had stepped in it.

The tall UPS driver is super friendly as he’s being filmed and has me sign for the package. The camera guy has a wide angle lens and is in the middle of the stairs filming the constrained action, below him on the edge of the walkway is the boom operator and I see three other people who I guess are publicists and those affiliated with Amazon.

We went downstairs and they wanted to interview me in front of the landlady’s house but I said no and we settled on the corrugated metal background of the garage which isn’t scenic but is away from the always-home landlady. I told Don that I’m a very private person and he said, “You must think I’m sick!” He grins and adds, “You actually never really get used to all this…” indicating the cameras and attention. A woman carrying a shopping bag has stopped on the sidewalk and is gawking.

I ask Don if he got lost, remembering the Comcast cable guy who went up to the landlady’s house and she threatened to call the police for trespassing. “I have friends that live across the street,” he said.

I gestured to the north at the apartment building. He shook his and head. “Right there.” It was a large Spanish style house on the east side of Bradley Street with a freshly landscaped front yard.

Instead of discussing the genocide flick he had come to promote, I mentioned Boogie Nights and Volcano, the latter which was filmed in this neighborhood.

Standing at the top of the driveway; unused to being in front of cameras, I was uncomfortable. I noticed that traffic on Park Street was stuck and wondered why; it was only 1:30. L.A. was a common filming ground but I didn’t expect it to happen to me in front of a garage. As the cameras rolled, Don autographed the DVD. I was also given a package of green Save Darfur wristbands.

Soon he was gone, traffic increased from parade speed, and the spectator resumed her journey. I went back into what I referred to as the compound, closing and locking the gate behind me. I looked at the cover of the DVD with Don’s dramatic handwriting filling the top portion. After so many years of trying to make it as a screenwriter in the film business, I finally had someone in the film business visit me. I went upstairs and saw the newest markings and wished that Le Petit Tar Pit was fixed but it was too much money, according to the owner.

Don Cheadle

See, I’d first moved into the apartment when it was totally remodeled and all the appliances were new and the grey Berber carpeting was recently installed and walls were stark white as were the mini-blinds. To me, it was the cutest little apartment in the Miracle Mile area. I used to joke it was a miracle that I’d found the place as it was affordable and I even had my own one-car garage right below me as well as use of the washer and dryer that was in the other garage.

Like in the film, Kundun, the young Dalai Lama’s employee told him; “Today you lose, tomorrow you may win” He snaps his fingers for emphasis. “Things change.” Oh boy, do they!

But not overnight, just over the years. Queenie, the landlady who had gone from being a liberal, PBS-affiliated Democrat, spent so much her time ranting against then-president George W. Bush that she ended up agoraphobic and alcoholic. I used to see empty plastic whisky bottles whenever I took out the trash. Hell, at least she put ‘em in the blue recycling bin like a good citizen.

New Book Cover & Excerpt!

2010-07-26T14:25:00.000-07:00

Greetings Blogger Friends!

Just wanted you to know that I’ve been trying to keep up with many of your blogs and of course I keep discovering new ones! Wish I had more time to read them, especially on a daily basis.

Got my new cover design and have put it on this profile and over on Facebook, but for your convenience, here it is...

NOTES FROM NADIR will be coming out toward the end of September – don’t have an exact date yet. I’ll let you know when I do.

Meanwhile, here’s another excerpt that dates back to the beginning of my stay in Nadir.

February 2009 - “Job Hunting In Hell”

Before Mom left for her part time office job at a nearby school, she made sure my laptop was hooked up and I was able to get online there and not on her old Dell PC from the turn of the century. Only a few months ago she had changed from dial-up to DSL!

As she was a senior citizen, she worked at her secretarial job no more than two hours at a time. Wasn’t much time at all, but at least I’d have the place to myself between the hours of 10 and noon. Oh yeah, and the maximum commute time of maybe 12 minutes gave me a little extra. In the old days, she would have walked there—but in the old days she worked 40-plus hours per week.

I lingered over tea and toast and took in the ambiance the gas fireplace created. All I did was flick on a switch, observe the manmade logs and flames imitate a real fire, and about 15 minutes later the fan clicked on and expelled heat. It was right next to the table so I was able to have breakfast in warmth. But I got so relaxed I miscalculated my time as I was reading another Charlaine Harris mystery I’d bought before I left entitled Shakespeare’s Christmas. I liked the heroine, Lily Bard, and she had her own cleaning service which meant she was self-employed. Reading about other places than the Left Coast sort of prepared me for being here. But only sort of. As I was engrossed in the adventures of a small town gal, I suddenly realized I wasn’t alone.

The sight of Mom coming inside lugging her canvas library bag made me feel guilty. I was supposed to be looking for work not lingering over breakfast was the vibe I got but she didn’t say it. When I returned to the sun room, I never referred to it as my room, I got online and began job hunting by emailing resumes. Mom thought I was “playing.”

Being the old-fashioned sort, she lectured: “You have to go out and look for a job. You can’t do it online they won’t remember you. Go out and you’ll stand out.” She also wanted to get rid of me, I reasoned.

I did so, spending the time driving around the area and familiarizing myself with where the farmland began and where the city ended. I was just driving and driving and looking at places where I wanted to work and seeing if there were any help wanted signs. In the age of the internet who hunted for jobs on foot or in a car? Yeah, I’d found my first job, even my third and fourth job that way – during the pre-WWW era.

DAY 1 - February 2009 – Start Point

2010-07-14T14:31:00.000-07:00

Here is the revised beginning to the Kindle version of NOTES FROM NADIR which will be released in August.

I was leaving it all behind. Well, most of it in a multi-level storage facility near Hollywood. The rest was deposited on the sidewalk and part of the driveway for the general public to gather up. Large objects: table and chairs, bookcases, a stereo and black modular plywood cabinet from 1995 that took a week to assemble. Old music in cassette tape format. Piles of clothes, some unworn. Ten minutes before my departure a chubby Asian guy held up a blue bath towel and asked, “Got any matching towels in beige?” Did he think this was Macy’s? This was what remained of my life for more than a decade. All those years spent in the same apartment, less than two miles from Beverly Hills, and now only empty rooms remained.

In my Mustang were the most precious remnants of my memories: books, writings, clothes and laptop. I’d even left my two beloved pairs of ice skates in the locker as I was so limited in square footage. ‘Stangs weren’t known as moving vans.

I added the last load to the car; my purse, overnight bag, and me. As I started the engine, and headed east down the street I’d lived off of for so many years, it would officially begin—start point. I’d driven down that street in rain, on perfect sunny days, at night, in all kinds of moods, probably more than a thousand times.

This was my last time. I turned right on La Brea Avenue and five minutes later was on the 10 East.

Beautiful SoCA weather, seventies and sunny and even soaring up to the lower eighties in the valley. I took the usual 31-mile trip to West Covina, making a detour to fund my trip at a Wells Fargo ATM. Afterwards; I drove to the dharma center, heading back west several blocks. I’d been going there ever since the summer of 1999. So many times I’d driven that familiar route in rain, good days, nights, even the earliest of mornings so that I could see my teacher or take a class from him. But on that summerlike February day I drove up to the quiet center on a weekday morning only to see it was unusually quiet. The students were at work. The teachers weren’t there, not even in the shrine room. I’d never been there alone before, with not even a student monk present. I’m surprised, and disappointed. Before leaving, I take a few pictures, those of the colorful flapping prayer flags flying in the soft breeze to the snow covered Mount Baldy looming in the distance. I shiver inwardly, thinking that the stuff on the mountain would be seen on the ground where I’m heading…

I’d never felt so reluctant to begin a journey. I just wanted to spend the next several hours hanging out in my favorite quiet place. My teacher was in India for the next few weeks, but even that didn’t matter. His vibes were there.

When I left, I drove slowly down the street and towards the freeway. Had to get gas. Could’ve stopped off anywhere down the 10 but I was hanging out in the San Gabriel Valley area. Just absorbing the sunshine and smog and SoCA a little longer.

About 100 miles away from the City of Angels, on an uncrowded 10 freeway I saw my first sign of change. The speed limit sign had new numbers: 70. I stomped my foot down harder on the accelerator, wondering when that happy change had transpired.

Driving southeast, in the desert and heading for more and more of it. Around me were palm trees sprouting from the dirt and always in the distance were the beckoning mountains.

NOTES FROM NADIR will be available as a Kindle edition in August.

You can read any part[s] that you might have missed. Just click “INDEX”.

Week 26 October 2009 – Manic Monday

2010-06-14T14:03:00.000-07:00

The deafening sound of an air horn nearby almost made me drop a rusty Roy Rogers lunchbox I was in the middle of describing. Some unladylike words were rocketing through my head and the other 9 employees were in various stages of surprise. Jane let out a “What the f---ing hell!” with no hesitation and a second later Cheryl walks in and says it’s time for the tornado drill and we have to go downstairs…

Mondays are the worst way to start a week. I followed the rest of the crew down to Cheryl’s cramped office and we stood there like amazed idiots while Brent lurches to the doorway, his red face sweaty and his gray suit rumpled and I wonder if he woke up in the warehouse after a drunken binge. I half expect him to yell, “Air raid, b*tches, air raid!” like the Parker Posey character did in Dazed & Confused. And we’re all dazed and confused by this mess.

“No, we have to go in MY office,” Brent shouts. He turns and waddles away and Cheryl follows him and we do the same and wind up in the larger office. It’s furnished with bottom of the line office furniture but at least the faux mahogany desk and credenza are the same color and style. The Packers and Pickers have congregated in here and they look like red-shirted, vertical sardines wedged up against each other, but a hefty new guy manages to sit down on a guest chair.

Mercifully, we’re dismissed but herded back upstairs into the shipping department. We gather ‘round the shipping tables which are in a u-shape and are just old wooden planks nailed together by some teens in shop class. The only thing that made it look like a mail room was the fact that they had rolls of butcher’s paper, bubble wrap, large bags of packing peanuts, and boxes.

Brent stood at the head of the room and waved his pudgy hands in front of his face to get our attention. “People!” he began, and I thought of the weekly magazine. “People, I need your attention!” Well, duh, isn’t that why we’re standing here?

He looked behind him on the shipping department desk where he fumbled with a box and pulled out a stack of yellow 3” x 5” index cards. “People, we are going to wear name badges now so we know each other’s names. We have lots of new employees and we need to know each other’s names. I want you to write your first name only and your department name on these cards. Put them in these…” he turned and reached inside the box and pulled out a clear plastic badge holder with a clip on the back. “…Name tag holder. Wear them on your left side.” He made himself a badge and it read Brent and underneath he’d printed Manager. We watched as he slid it into the clear name tag holder and then slowly clipped it onto the pocket of his shirt. Didn’t this crap happen back in kindergarten? Could we get creative and add stickers of flowers or get crayons and doodle them in?

Jane wrinkled her freckled forehead. “I bet he tells us if we don’t wear ‘em we get written up.”

Brent reached into the box and pulled out a handful of black markers. “Remember to always wear your name tags, people! It’s important!”

If we don’t then The Factory will shut down?

“We need you to wear them because soon we’ll be getting a new manager for the Listers and we’re going to be hiring more people and we need to know each other’s names. It’s nice and it’s friendly. We want to be friendly!”

Oh sure, but we don’t want to pay our employees anything like a living wage…

Right before lunch one of the Packers came over and announced: “Bakery donuts downstairs in the warehouse… main door!”

On a Monday? Rita smiled and turned to me, “That’s great! They sometimes donate donuts from the bakery down the street. It’s really a great place…” she got up and was heading for the stairs a lot faster than I’d seen her move since I began working there.

I followed her; I could walk faster than her as I didn’t wear a size 18. I knew her size because she saw a pair of large black pants on my cart and said they’d fit her and placed a bid on them.

Near the main door I saw a big flimsy pink cardboard box on top of a donated table. It was surrounded by red shirted employees.

People in the warehouse without gloves who spent the day handling pee-stained quilts, cast off toys and games, old electronics, mildewed books, filthy furniture with chewed up legs and torn upholstery; all manner of junk, were pawing through the donut selection. I knew their hands were dark with dirt. And not a napkin or paper towel in sight! But that didn’t stop Rita or any of the other workers. One toothless old guy with a tiny ponytail was licking his fingers. Free food, free dessert, and free germs!

By quitting time I was ready to run out of that place. I immediately removed my nametag and put it in my purse. As soon as I got inside my car I took off my red shirt as I always wore a long sleeved shirt beneath it. I no longer resembled a Factory employee. I was glad to drive up to Mom’s house and park in the driveway like I did every day. Sometimes Mom greeted me at the front door. But not today.

I went inside and saw she was on the phone. A few seconds later she hangs up and looks at me.

Want to read more?

Week 24 September 2009 - Mom’s Baking Surprise

2010-06-11T14:34:00.000-07:00

Sometimes on weekends Mom would go to Target or a nearby store for a little while. But since her return from The Hospital she didn’t want to leave. While hospitals and hotels both provide room service, Mom was much happier being at home and eating her meals in her own comfy bed or at the table in front of the fireplace. She pulled aside the drapes so she could see her garden. She was tired all the time and still read a lot, or watched TV. She sat in her garden and as each day passed, it was as warm and sunny as Southern California.

I caught an edge of anxiety as the days went by, September soon would leave and the days were slowly decreasing in length. One evening we sat in the living room with the TV blaring, she’d never been able to adjust the speakers properly in the 2001 model that still had a hulking backside, and she looked at the remote control she held.

“I hope it’s not a bad winter like it was last year, Lisa,” she began. “I didn’t leave for 2, 3 days at a time, I was snowed in.”

I shook my head. “That sucks.”

“No, it wasn’t so bad. I didn’t have to be at work like you do.”

The thought of being in Nadir in the middle of winter and having to go to The Factory every day was like telling me I was a dismal failure in 35 different languages.

“When they come around with the snowplows they can’t get the snow near the edge of the garage so it has to be shoveled and I just can’t do that anymore.”

Neither one of us wanted to spend a winter in Nadir.

On Saturday I went for a drive that lasted all afternoon. I discovered a small city about 50 miles away that was populated with students and shops and an independently-run health food store that sold organic farm fresh bottled milk in glass jars. When I saw the chocolate version I bought some. Also got a jar of clover honey from a local apiary.

As I drove back to Mom’s place I thought of how every weekend afternoon I felt like a homeless person. Unless there was some sort of dire emergency, I wasn’t welcome in her home during the hours of 12 to 4. Watching the dying cornfields, seeing the cows and horses in pastures, noting the green leaves tinged with shades of gold, maroon and brown…knowing it was coming…inevitably autumn was brushing aside the warmth of summer. How I longed for the perpetual summer of L.A.

For years, all I wanted to do was to write fulltime. Technically, I was, even though I was a cog in the wheel of The Factory. I earned chump change plus an extra dollar, but I wrote and as a bonus I took pictures of the stuff I wrote about. But it wasn’t what I had in mind; it was drudgery after a while. I handled other people’s castoff stuff.

A few miles north of Mom’s house I recalled how I’d been able to drive around Nadir “back in the day” and visit friends and go to places where I knew people. But now, I had absolutely no one to contact. It was like the book title “All of My Friends Are Going to Be Strangers” but I sure as heck wasn’t in the same league as Larry McMurtry. Heck, I was still an unpublished hack…

I felt like a thundercloud was parked directly above my head and tried to shake it away because being in a bad mood wasn’t healthy for Mom. Once inside my nose alerted me to something in the air. Something unique that made it twitch and a few seconds later the realization of what it was made me smile, then laugh.

Mom had spent the afternoon baking her famous pecan tassies! She was always good at making those little tarts filled with chopped pecans and loaded with butter and brown sugar and I could never eat just one. Nor could Mom. She knew by my expression that she had made my afternoon. I even spontaneously hugged her. She smiled. “They’re not pecan tassies.”

I looked at them and they looked exactly like what she always made. I saw the rich browns and subtle caramel tones were the colors but the smell was nutty sugar. “What are they, oatmeal raisin tarts?”

“No, they’re walnuts. I didn’t have any pecans, so I used the walnuts you bought.”

I’d bought them to feed the squirrels but there were none in Hampton Lake. I guess they didn’t like the lack of trees and that cane-wielding goose and animal hater, Bobby Ray. “That’s fine.” I looked down at the bag I’d carried in. “I even have milk!” I opened the bag to show her my chocolate milk and she smiled.

“I’m not supposed to have chocolate…” still gazing at the sweaty bottle, the rich color attracting her attention. “But I guess a small glass won’t hurt!”

And that afternoon my Mom switched on the gas burning fireplace as it was getting a little chilly. We had microwaved low sodium chicken pot pies and for dessert we each had a few of her walnut tassie cookies and the organic chocolate milk.

Want to read more? You can cruise around all my older blog entries so that this story can be read in chronological order—the way it was written, and the way it was intended to be read. Or, you can read any part[s] that you might have missed. Just click “INDEX”.