Today's Dispatch: Ten Things

This post is brought to you by this delicious smidge of cuteness in French Bulldog form, whose doppelganger was spotted walking alongside The Hotness in NYC a few days ago.

Source: images.google.com

Yes, The Hotness has been reading my mind. (See also: this previous entry on manly men with tiny dogs.)

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So the lovely Laura from Ladies Who Critique came up with this blog-posting prompt, which I thought I'd try out for this blog. It's a great way for me to get folks updated on what I've been up to lately, since I do a lot of regular rambling on this blog as well. Thanks, Laura! :)

1. Eating this: Oatmeal with two slices of raisin bread, with a side of papaya cubes. Every morning. No fail.

2. Reading this: Actually, the storm ruined my chances of getting some work-related reading done because the power outages prevented many of my students from submitting their papers. After this, however, I'm going to Manila to pick up more books.

3. Browsing this site: I've been following How Sweet It Is through Twitter. And why wouldn't I, when the cupcake photos look like this?

Photo credit: HowSweetEats.com

4. Writing this: I've started making a few dents on Nominated (my WiP from Camp NaNoWriMo), which means I am close to rescuing my protagonists from plot-mired limbo. Currently I have three critique partners looking at this manuscript, as well, which means that this baby should be in tip-top shape when I'm ready to send it in for publication.

Once Nominated is fixed - with a deadline of possibly mid-October - I will have the NaNoWriMo proper in November, though I haven't decided on what to do for this. Originally I was going to use this time to revise the previous year's NaNo (World on a Plate, aka "the Pinoy foodie novel"), but now there might be a possibility that I'll have time to write a new one, either a new chick-lit or possibly an alternate-reality espionage thriller with fairy-tale elements.

Photo credit:
We (Love) Delicious Food

5. Drinking this: I would have said "water," since it's the only thing I've been drinking lately, but right now I could really use more Oreo milkshakes. This, I blame on the mysterious #CookiesNCream hashtag that the rugby boys from the Philippine Volcanoes have been using every day on Twitter. No, I do not want to know what that's about, either.

6. Using this: In the software department, yWriter5 (excellent novel-writing software!) and the desktop version of Tweetdeck (faster than Tweetdeck for Chrome, plus it doesn't get in the way of work). In terms of beauty products, Neutrogena Rapid Clear acne treatment, Bench Fix Clay Doh, and Nivea's Fruity Shine tinted lip balm in Pomegranate, which is a lovely red stain that will get its own Glosswatch entry soon.

7. Watching this: TV-wise, I'm getting sucked into Law and Order: Criminal Intent, which is still my favorite series within the franchise. (Law and Order: UK is a close second.) I also caught my first episode of Sherlock (so intense, and Martin Freeman is so, so good as Watson), plus I've also downloaded the pilot for New Girl on iTunes as well.

As for movies, I have added The Descendants to my must-watch movie list for the fall. George Clooney, Alexander Payne, and gorgeous shots of very familiar neighborhoods in Hawaii? I am so in.



And I can't wait till Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy comes out, too.



8. Buying this: Mascara and (possibly) eyeliner. The last time I went shopping for makeup, an overzealous saleslady tried to push a lipstick on me, even though the lippy I wanted was in a different formulation. She was stubborn and persistent, and I gave her none of my money. This time, I'm going to branch out and try more mid-price Asian brands, like Etude House and Majolica Majorca.

9. Listening to this: My three favorite podcasts right now.

The Moth:



The Sporkful:



and Popspotting.

Screencap: mine.

And "Called Out In The Dark" by Snow Patrol, whose actual video isn't as awesome as the song itself.




10. Using this new word: Inveigle. 


From Dictionary.com:

From Thesaurus.com:

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