RantFest: The Library

Buckle in kids. Auntie Wylie is sounding off.

I write at the library because I need quiet - no distractions. I chose the research department because it's in the basement (furthest spot away from the kids who are up on the top floor) and even chose a spot around the corner from the main stairs for fewest distractions.
Most days, this works. People come and go, some talk in hushed whispers, most simply get on with their library business without uttering a peep. I pop my earbuds in, tune in to some soft classical pieces - and voila, word count goes up. Usually...

So,... today this dude (not one of the regulars) sits down at a study carroll, hauls out his cell phone and starts yapping away in a normal street-volume voice! FOR FIFTEEN MINUTES!
Dude... not cool.

Yes, other library users have had quick and quiet conversations that usually consist of a whispered "I'm in the library. Call you back, kay?", which is the polite way to handle the situation, imo, but this guy clearly didn't understand the whole "shhh!" concept.
Quite a few people (including moi) tried 'the look', the throat clear, but nothing seemed to phase this guy.
And... AND... he further vexed me because was babbling in a foreign language which meant I was cheated out of a perfectly good eavesdrop!!
The nerve *huff*

On my way out, I said to the woman at the main librarian desk, that perhaps they could put a sign in the research dept politely asking patrons to refrain from cell phone usage.

But srsly... why? WHY should a sign have to go up??
WHAT happened to good old fashioned manners? Respect for others? A little decorum??

Your thoughts: Sign, manners, oh-Wylie-quit-bitching-and-write-the-damn-book-already. Take your pick!

10 Books Down, 40 More To Go

Finished Linda L Miller's McKettirck's Luck the other night. Pretty good read, but I must say, I'm really turned off by the whole romance genre right now. This can't be a good thing, considering I write romance!! But honestly, the last few books I picked up, I couldn't get past the first three pages. Even this one,... there was so much narrative in the first chapter -- so much crammed-in backstory, that if I wasn't trapped in the little room where my son's speech therapy was taking place, I may not have continued. There were SOOOO many characters - cousins, dead relatives, etc... that I found it rather distracting. But the author had to set it up this way because it's the first of a series. Next up is McKettrick's Pride, then McKettrick's Heart. So in addition to getting to know about Jesse, the hero, we had to have the history of him and his cousins, Rance and Keegan, -- and their backstories! And Sienna, and Travis, and the crippled brother, and the romantic-at-heart mother, and Bronwyn, the waitress at the pub...
It's no wonder that main characters in romance novels are more-often-than-not orphans or only-children, otherwise the author has to bore the reader to death with every person in the immediate and extended family. I just read a similar observation in Abby Godwin's blog.

Again, I feel compelled to say that I enjoyed the book overall. And loathe that I am to say negative things since I'm still collecting rejections, there was one scene in the book that was so contrived it was painful to read. Here's the abridged version:
Heroine walks in to hero's house and finds another woman (who happens to be the hero's ex-wife that he didn't tell the heroine about) in his bedroom who just happens to be wearing hero's t-shirt and nothing else... but hero had NO IDEA she was there because he was so tired when he got home, he didn't notice her sleeping on the couch... and she only went into his bedroom because she was scared of his big old house in the country... and she was tired so she took off all her clothes... blah blah blah...
How did this get past the editor??
Oh, now I'm mad at myself for ranting. I'm sure the author did what she thought was right for the characters and to move the story in the direction it needed to go.
Oh, great. Now I'm being a pussy,... It was a total cop-out! A lazy scene!!

Time to change genre's for awhile. Maybe I'll try a paranormal. Or another Pulitzer.
Any suggestions??

Hold on,... I'm ranting!

I must pipe up about these accusations that the American Idol judges have gone too far. Have they? YES! If you saw how they treated the fellow with the boogly eyes -- they were very rude and pointed out a physical issue that wasn't necessarily under the man's control. Simon Cowell compared him to a jungle animal - a bush baby, for heaven's sake! Simon called another very tall woman a giraffe! AND gave a heavy set man who was obviously mentally challenged a jibe about the size of his pants. Paula & Randy chuckled along. Childish.
This bruhaha has brought to light an interesting type of discrimination that's been niggling me for years. We judge people on appearances. Big news, eh!

In the case of American Idol and a few other reality shows, Hollywood has fausted their ridiculous physical standards on the average American (or fill in your own nationality) by assuming that we all should have perfect teeth, hair, height, nose, boobs, legs, body weight etc... This is an ideal completely unattainable by us 'average folk' (or we'd all be in bloody LaLaLand!) yet we're made to feel ashamed by it. Unworthy. Less.
We accept the unobvious flaws (smoking, drugs, sexual addictions, chronic divorces/cheating, chronic diva/bastard behavious, whatever...) -- or we're meant to feel sorry and root for them when they enter drug & alcohol rehab.
If they can't read, or they're beaten by their spouses because they don't have the balls to leave, miscarried a baby, we don't make fun of them. That would be awful!
Well - it's NOT OKAY to point out someone's physical flaws.
It's NOT OKAY to castigate a person because they don't have perfect teeth, or a full head of hair, or have the ideal body image, etc.
Can you imagine if the AI judges knew that Fantasia Barrino couldn't read? What if society forced illiterate people to wear arm badges identifying their 'ignorant' status. Would Simon, Paula & Randy have mocked her and sent her away? Would they have chided her in the audition, made her feel horrible about herself, humiliated her in front of her family, her child, and an audience of millions?
How about Katherine MacPherson's bulimia? Would they ridicule her for sticking her fingers down her throat?
Yet it was okay to make a crack about Mandisa needing a bigger stage? Nah-ah!!
Brainflash -- Maybe we should have everyone's IQ tattooed to their foreheads. Yah!! Then, when foolish people like S, P, & R make nasty comments about someone's large eyes, we can feel sorry for them because we can see that they're intellectually challenged. Awwww...

Enough is enough! We can't begin to treat people with 'visual' imperfections like plague victims. It's hurtful, it's wrong, it's uncivilized and dehumanizing. Young people and families watch that show -- what message are we sending?
Come on, people -- we've got to spread a little love!

PS - I'm boycotting AI this year (like they care). Phtooey!