RIP Heath Ledger, 28

Heath Ledger, 28, found dead.

I'm not into celebrity gossip that much, but sometimes things just jump out and hit you and you sit there, reeling, trying to make sense of death. You think, cynically, that this must all be a joke somehow. A scam to make big blockbuster bucks.

Nope.

And then I realize...I'm 28.

It's a little detail like this that brings me just a little closer to mortality, to greatness, to sadness. It is both sobering and comforting to know that however illusory and tenuous your connections are to those around you, in the end they will still be severed by death, the great equalizer, the thing we all must live for and face, regardless of how we lived.

Peace be with his family and loved ones.

DO NOT WANT

I didn't believe the news stories that said this was the most depressing week of the year. But now I know what they're talking about. And here is the reason:

My first rejection letter!

See, back in July 2007, I sent off my first Harlequin Romance novel to New York, entitled All in the Details. Two weeks ago, having still received no response, I called the editorial assistant, who fished my MS from the slush pile and sent me back this reply.

I'm crushed (nothing a glass of wine won't fix), but his words are encouraging, and I was already kind of expecting his criticisms.

The highlight, of course, is that he recommended I pitch to the Desire line...if I alter the hero's character radically.

I'm not adverse to revisions, of course, but I'm going to move forward and write some other stuff before I think about editing and resubmitting to another line. Or publisher.

The author's path to success if fraught with rejections. I'm taking this one in strife--now I can become a PRO member of the RWA. And then I'm framing this to go right next to my first letter of kudos. It'll keep me humble.

Is Raptop?

Every now and again, I am startlingly reminded that I am a female minority living in a large metropolis populated mainly by white people.

I was riding the subway and had taken out my new eee pc to work on. A group of teens sorta glanced over and asked among themselves, "What is that? Is that a laptop?"

"No, no way, it's, like, a portable DVD player."
"Naw, naw, it's a translator. She's Asian."

They got off the subway before I could correct them. For some reason, I remained a little perturbed that my very chic little laptop had been mistaken for a glorified translator based on the fact that I was a visible minority.

They didn't say anything outright racist, of course, but it made me think about the assumptions we make based solely on the way people look.

I still encounter the outright racism occasionally, of course. Encountering stupid people can't be avoided in a city of 4 million, statistically speaking. But I figure evolution will kill off the stupids, one day. Or else karma will pay them back tenfold: they'll get hit by a car, lose their legs and have an Asian caretaker to help them pee. HA!

I wonder if I should put a decal on my eee that reads, "Yes, this is a raptop, and I speak Engrish. Now prease stop your stare and have happy spirit day."

Happy 2008

Welcome to the new year, which promises...well, much of what we had in 2007, but new and improved.

And speaking of new and improved, check out what I gots:

That's right, I finally caved to my inner tech junkie and bought myself a laptop. But not just any laptop. This here be the new Asus Eee PC, an ultraportable, Linux-based, flash drive only machine with a 7" screen, Wi-Fi, built-in camera and speakers, and everything I need to get my writing done on the road.

As the reviews have all reported, it's an awesome alternative to what I consider a chunky monstrosity of a uterus-frying laptop. Sure, it kinda looks like a toy, but that's what makes it extra cool.

And yeah, that picture is taken by the laptop camera.

For those of you who don't care, watch this.
Why? Because it amuses me.