Blogging Top Chef- 1 mo’ time!
What’s Jack up to? Poor Jack is as stinky as he can be so I guess he’ll be getting wet today when I dunk his dirty butt in a bath. Oh the fun. Not!
So here I am blogging Top Chef one more time. It’s The Reunion show
Whoo Hoo! Here it is as I’m thinking it.Gail’s covered. Tom’s in a vest- I likie. Padma’s looking like Padma and Ted’s there. Yay!
No Richard because it was taped when his wife was giving birth. Aww.Loving Dale’s body language. He is so not into being there and the show is just beginning.
Stephanie is using the money to open another restaurant in Chicago. She will be a powerhouse.
The talk of Mark and Spike’s Bromance was just icky. And Dale and Richard? Andrew and Spike? That Spike just gets around. And Can I say how I can’t stand the word Bromance. Like I hate the term Baby bump. But I love Andrew. He’s just crazy.Marks of the market. He got married to an American. Hmm.
Oh Snap! Internet rumor blow up. Zoi and Jen totally broke up, but don’t want t admit it on TV. I guess couples will think twice before signing up to compete on TC the next time. Must find out what happened. I suspect someone cheated and Zoi is was too defensive.
Who will win fan favorite and why are they suggesting Spike? Pla-ease. Spare me.
Love the idea of The Stew Room and what the judges do during that time. So funny.
Dale talk. Yes! Tom disagreed with the decision. Dale was a big man though. I still heart him.
Lisa’s scowl. Yech! Ha, Lisa got dirty looks at a lesbian party. Too funny. I love that.
Best of Andrew. ADD. Advanced Dungeons and Dragons. Great! You know he could win fan favorite and I wouldn’t be surprised. And Andrew’s “Culinary Boner” line won the t-shirt contest this year.Top fights:
4. Dale vs. Andrew
3. Lisa vs. Dale
2. Lisa vs. Andrew
1. Spike vs. Antonia vs .Jen vs. Dale vs. Lisa .What?
Good Times!Hey it’s Richard via satellite with a sort-a-hawk? You can tell he was up all night. He’s opening another restaurant. See I knew he was going to be fine.
Now for fan favorite…. And it’s… wait Tom just dissed Lisa and said it won’t be her. I can’t stop laughing. Ha. That is too mean. I want to see the mush face again. David Dust are you out there?
Ok now to fan favorite. It’s… Stephanie!! All around a great year for the super woman.
Best
KwanaPS: Scroll down for a fun book review video. We should all be so lucky.
We should be so lucky
So I came across this cool video from, Daniel on Melissa Walker’s Blog. In it he reviews her Violet Books. He’s a big fan. Check it out. He also has strong opinions on America’s Next Top Model which I just love!
Best,
KwanaHell Week
What’s Jack up to? He’s being a Jackster. Barking like crazy whenever another dog prances by. No matter how sweet or silent that other dog is or how friendly the other dog’s owner is by smiling and waving kindly at us. So embarrassing, Jack.So, I’m in the midst of hell week with the Dear Twins. It’s finals week at the high school with tests scheduled all different hours. Some in the morning and some in the afternoon and the kids only have to come in for their tests or for different study sessions if they want so it’s mom On Call all the time.Besides that I’m in the middle of pure adolescent hell and my motto of “I’m not mature enough for this job” is really being proven. Every day new situations arise that just baffle my mind. I’m exhausted.
Note to self: must talk with hairdresser about these pesky grey hairs that have popped out this week. Ugh!Best,Kwana2 for Tuesday
What’s Jack up to? He’s running around happy today. Nana’s visiting so it’s all joy for him. He’s never happier than when she’s here to give lots of love and treats!
I was so exhausted last night that I was nodding off on the end of The Bachelorette. So I didn’t get to see who got booted off. No big surprise to me today to find out it was Sean and Twilley who got the ax. Buh-bye boys! Now on to the home town dates!I’m glad to say that the proposal is going well and I bit the bullet and dove in the the synopsis. I couldn’t let that bout of Synopsisphobia get the best of me. It had me in it’s grips for while there though. Thanks for all your comments on that post. If you missed it you can check it out here. Ugh those dreaded synopsis! Yech!Best,Kwana200th Post
What’s Jack up to? Well he’s still Jack. Which means he’s up to just about anything!I had new clue what I was going to write today. My current mood puts me in mind to complain and I really don’t want to do that. What would it accomplish? Nada.Then as I opened my blogger dashboard I noticed that this would be my 200th post. Wow! 200. That’s a huge accomplishment for a person that can’t stick to a diet for more than 3 days.So I’ll just write:Happy 200th post to me!!And share this pic that I took recently of a flower after the rain.
I hope you have a great week.
Best,
Kwana
Synopsisphobia
What’s Jack up to? Just being a Jack nuisance. I had a late night flood in the basement last night when the sink from the washing machine backed up. Well it was party time for Jack. How much fun was that? Sopping up water while trying to keep Jack out of it.
So I think I have a Synopsisphopia. You know a phobia of synopsis. Give me a book to write and sure it’s tough, but I can make it though 300-400 pages with just a few battle scars. But ask me to do a 5- 10 page synopsis and the thought causes me to break out in a rash.
Why oh why are they so hard? Waaa-Waaa!!!!
Would someone please give me the magic formula? I want to hear from all you writers out there. Especially you pantsers. I’m itching over here!Best,
KwanaP.S. Scroll down for Ask the Agent.
Ask the Agent
What’s Jack up to? Just being Jack on this fine spring day. He’s checking out the scenery and seeing what sort of trouble he can get into.Welcome to ask the agent for this week with Fab agent Elaine Spencer from The Knight Agency.
Thanks for joining us again this week . Here goes…
I’m curious as to what makes a manuscript you like turn into a “pass” instead of asking the author to rework the whatever portions don’t quite click with you?This was a left over question from an answer that I gave last week and I thought it really had some merit so I figured I would revisit.
The above situation always involves a gamble, usually one on a couple of different levels. When I’m reading a partial (or a full) I have to give it my own personal rating system. If it’s something I’m enjoying and I see potential in and I think to myself “ok, so you like this, now how much do you like it”. I start to weight the merits of the manuscript on every level from the page that it hooks me forward. I look at the quality of the idea, the development of the plot, the evolution of the characters, the authenticity and readability to the voice, the world, the strength of the writing, the skill of the story-teller, and the list goes on and on and on . . .
Then I stop and I look at my pros and cons. When I start to realize that yes there are a lot of things I really like, but also there are a lot of cons, that is when your question really comes into play.
I stop and evaluate these cons and try to figure out if they are all related to one another. I try to figure out if we can go in and fix this and that, or if once we do that it’s going to be like a giant thread and once you tug, the entire story will unravel. I look at what these fixes will take. I try to figure out if it’s something simple like working on a certain writing “tick” or if it’s something greater that shows the author just isn’t there quite yet in their potential.
When I have a story that I really love but isn’t quite there I always strike up a dialogue with the author in question. I figure out where they are in their querying process and where they are in their writing career. If they have another idea that they are working on I’ll take a look at that too to see exactly how much I love the writing of the author.
Basically I try to figure out how serious the errors are in a partial. If they are substantial but fixable I’ll offer suggestions and see how the author does with the editorial process. If they are errors that show me the craft just isn’t there yet, there is no amount of revision that can really expedite that process so I will most likely just say, “Until next time, good luck” and pass.
Hope that clears that up.
Thanks Elaine and thanks to everyone for stopping by. Please be sure to post your comments and questions.
best,
KwanaDing Dong .. and She’s the Tops
What’s Jack up to? He’s extra playful this morning and he’s following behind me with his new favorite stuffed toy so that I’ll play fetch. Jack, love. There’s work to do.
First off, thanks for all the well wishes for my birthday yesterday. You all were so sweet!I’m on a chocolate high today. My head is spinning. and I’m so tired from watching the late version of Top Chef. But here goes. The final re-cap. It won’t be a goody because honestly I was watching though half-closed eyes.TOP CHEF-ERYThe show opens with our lovely final 2 plus 1 that we just can’t understand, but there must be something to her because as Tom says it’s in the taste of the food. That’s what I have to tell myself so I don’t hate the show.
There was no quickfire just straight to the real deal and it was a real doozy. The chefs got to be paired with real top chefs Eric Ripert, Dan Barber and April Bloomfield. They have to make a 4 course meal including dessert, which scares them all to death.Richard and Stephanie were tied for most wins and had to draw knives to see who would chose first. Stephanie won and picked Chef Eric. Richard picked Chef Dan and Lisa Got April. She was thrilled. Girl power!Richard is exited to pull out the Liquid Nitro and start to demo for the Top Chefs. I’m worried something is going to blow up in there. But Richard is happy as a pig is slop. The Chefs are happy that Richard is happy.The next day the finalist were surprised to be left on their own with no help. Richard is wild, Stephanie is nervous and Lisa is calm. She’s all like “It’s all good.”At this Richard makes a face like he wants to smack her into reality.Stephanie says “she hates her cake, yo.” I think she’s channeling, Dale.Suddenly it’s plate time and the judges are all dressed up and going into a beautiful dining room to be served.On to dinner, The finalist come out and say a few words. Blah, Blah, Blah.1st course. Lisa got a question mark from the judges. Stephanie was elegant and Richard was s0-so.2nd course Lisa’s soup was a love. Gulp. Stephanie fell flat. Richard was a like.3rd Lisa was pedestrian. Never good. Stephanie’s lamb was a love and Richard’s Pork had no seasoning.Dessert- They loved Lisa’s rise pudding, Liked Stephanie’s cake and Liked Richard’s Ice cream.With the commentary after ,they made it all vague so you couldn’t tell who would win. It had better not be Lisa.Chefs go to the not so Glad room where this is lots of Evian today. Hmm?They all look thoughtful. Not a lot of action there.The chefs are called in and questioned. Then they’re ask if they have any last words. There’s a long awkward pause and Stephanie speak up saying she second guessed herself on the dessert but she wants to be the Top Chef.Lisa says she should be be it or something like that. Ha.Richard says he thinks he choked, which shocks the judges. Quick cut to Tom for expression. He serves it well.There is judge talk. Blah, Blah, Blah. I like’ Tom’s scruffy look.The chef’s are called back in and the verdict.Padma please.The Top Chef is….. Stephanie!!!
Ding Dong the witch is dead and the right woman won! It’s been a roller coaster season. This was a fun was to experience it.Can’t wait to see the reunion show next week.Oh and check out the A-List awards tonight on Bravo, which I went to last week!Best,KwanaHappy Birthday to… Me!
What’s Jack up to? He’s just being Jack. Happy and bouncing and driving me batty.
Just like he’s supposed to.So today is my birthday. Wow, I can’t believe another one has come around so quickly. Must be the age.I’m always a little down on birthdays and holidays. Like a child, I tend to make way too much out of them. I don’t know why I do. I’m old enough to know better. But, I’m one of those people who believe that special days and special people should be marked in extra-special ways. So I always go all out, make a huge deal, then I get all melancholy thinking of the past and the future and then I turn to mush. I’ll try real hard not to do that this year. This year I plan on smiling as much as possible and counting the many blessings I have.What I’d like to do here is say thank you to my dear friends old and new for hanging with me on this blog and listening to my silly ramblings. It really means so much to me.
Please enjoy this pic of my little flower this sits in my kitchen window and let’s bloom together this year.Cheers!KwanaIt’s a Man, Baby!
What’s Jack up to? Just trying to keep cool. Right now, the basement is the place to be. Ahh, relief is being a dog with a cool bed and no responsibilities.
It was another day of mind boggling heat. Man, it was blazing hot yesterday which meant power outages all over New York. That’s just what happens here when the temps go up and the A/C goes on. Today will be another day of record heat.
I have been in complete edit mode which is intense. I’m in that space where my mind is never really out of the story. I was chatting with a friend who is married to a writer and it was funny because she could see it in my eyes where I was in the story process.
I had, no time to sit and watch The Bachelorette for 2 hours straight. Why is this show so darn long? I’ve got a lot to do with 2 hours. There is no way I can sit and watch the whole thing.And DeAnna, why are you crying so much and saying ‘ya’ll’ so much?
I did love when she cried, yelled at the guys and said, “I can’t promise to not kiss other people!” Then she walked off. A total guy move, right.Sidebar: Can I just clip Jesse’s wings? That hair is making me crazy.Robert, the chef, was living in La-La land. How sad was he with the single tear in the limo? But then DeAnna does a Brad Womack and gives the old double whammy and lets poor Fred go home too!! She really is turning into a guy on this show!!
Going home tonight was the tall guy that I don’t remember DeAnna hardly talking to at all. Go figure.
The Mole is back and they are still hating on Nicole, but that Bobby is surely showing the most Mole-y behavior by having a girl push him in a wheel barrel uphill. Nutty, but fun to watch. The crazy thing is I still have no clue who the mole is or how this game really works. Shrug.Best,Kwana
