Laugh, Chuckle, Chortle

From Webster’s New World Dictionary: Laugh- to make the sounds and facial movements that express mirth, ridicule, etc.

Webster’s New World Thesaurus: Laugh- chuckle, chortle, guffaw, laugh off, snicker, titter, giggle, burst out laughing, shriek, roar, beam, grin, smile, smirk, shout, die laughing, break up, crack up, howl, roll in the aisles, be in stitches, see also smile.

That’s all I have done for four days.

Thursday was book club night. Picture 12 women sitting around a table in the backyard chuckling and chortling until they pee. That was pretty much the book club. And just so you know, the book really wasn’t funny at all…

We were drinking Mojitos, which I am pretty sure helps the giggle abilities but it was also just a bunch of happy, funny people.

We laughed so hard and so loud that some complete stranger popped into the backyard. Some guy heard our laughter, knew it was a bunch of women and HAD to come over. All that did was make us laugh harder. I mean please! If a woman heard a bunch of men outside, I don’t know, ummm… drilling and hammering. Do you think she would HAVE to drop by? This man looked a bit like a bad Santa and when he told us about the last time he went to the gym… well you can imagine, my Mojito shot out of my nose as I howled and rolled in the aisle!

So then Friday, my neighbor invited us over to try some yummy wines and meet her brother who was in town. All I can say is the entire night was full of shrieks, roars, and howling laughter. (In case you haven’t figured it out, I am trying to use every one of the thesaurus words).

There was some story about a snake… I can’t even tell you why it was so funny, it just won’t translate, but I looked across the table and my darling husband was crying he was laughing so hard and this is not a man who laughs enough! My stomach hurt, I guess that’s what it means to be in stitches. We were only planning on staying an hour tops! Five and a half hours later we drug our hysterical butts out of their house.

I like the term die laughing. There can’t be any better way to go. If it were at all possible to die from laughter, I surely would have departed this weekend. I recommend laughing as hard as possible as often as possible. It makes you feel so full of life. Thank you to all my friends who made me laugh this weekend! Loved it!

PS. Just saw a beautiful brown bear walk through my front yard. The dogs were inside so he wasn’t scared away as usual and I got to watch him for a few seconds. I love that I have bears in my front yard! What a great day it’s going to be!!! Heres a picture of the bears, I didn't take it and it wasn't today. This was about a month ago right up around the corner from me. I think it was this brown one that I just saw.

Criticism

Went to book club last night, such a great bunch of gals. We talked about Prodigal Summer, by Barbara Kingsolver. Not much to talk about it, seems no one really enjoyed it. It's funny several of us read it a few years back and actually remember liking it. Now trying to reread, couldn't remember why.

Anyway, I took the query and first two chapters of my book. It was great to be able to read it out loud, it sounds different that way, and I caught some word changes while doing it. Everyone was also really good at giving criticism. They caught a problem with the dad's booze, that I completely missed. These people are poor, dad wouldn't be drinking Chivas on the rocks, we decided Johhny Walker was more likely. There were also other tips, wording issues and overall suggestions that I really appreciate. I love to be critiqued.

I was telling them, yesterday, I posted my logline for the SP on the website Absolutewrite.com. It's a chat forum, where other writers will critique, you can ask questions, it really seems like a gem of a site. So the logline started...

When a twelve-year-old girl is forced into a bet with a school bully, to secretly give away all of her family's Christmas gifts to needy families, she quickly gets in over her head, and not only risks ruining Christmas for her family, but for an entire town.

I thought that was great. Really set my story up well. I was surprised to find out they hated it!! "huh?" one guy wrote, "I don't think your logline is supposed to make someone go, huh?" Overall, everyone was pretty confused by it, they didn't understand how you could ruin Christmas by giving away gifts to needy people. Hmm... good point.

So, after chewing on my ego for a while, I decided to just keep playing. I responded back with another try...

When a 12-year-old girl’s inspired to give away her Christmas gifts to an underprivileged school, she is unwittingly forced into a bet with a school bully to secretly give away her entire family’s Christmas gifts, and not only risks ruining Christmas for her family, but for an entire town.

(the buzzer sounds... ewwww.. can you smell that?)

okay, how about this...

When a 12-year-old girl from a wealthy, all American, over indulgent family, recognizes an imbalance after visiting a lower class, neighboring school, she decides to help; only after being provoked by the school bully, she ends up making a bet to secretly give away ALL of her family’s Christmas presents, and not only risks ruining Christmas for her family, but for the entire town that’s counting on her.

(the buzzer sounds again... nope! People shake their heads, embarrassed for me.)

So after taking a shot at my critiquer (not sure if that's really a word), I called him a 12-year-old girl and since one of his posts said he's been in the business 20 years, I'm pretty sure, he's not a 12-year-old girl, I tried again...

A precocious 12-year-old girl from a wealthy family tries to teach a town about the importance of giving, but her crusade is jeopardized when everyone, including herself, focuses on the gifts, instead of the giving.

(Crowd goes wild, erupting into a standing ovation. People cry tears of joy, I am relieved... I have succeeded. )

They liked that one, and you know what? I do too. Taking criticism is hard sometimes, but I know from experience that if I go with it, everything will come out better in the end.

Evangelicals Among Us

I had an opportunity last night to sit with 10 other women and discuss religion. It was a phenomenal group and I was extremely pleased with the energy and overall tone of acceptance. We all came with different backgrounds and experience that led us to our beliefs and understandings of not only religions but also our faiths. I have been thinking about it all morning.

I really enjoy situations like last night, where intelligent people can discover each other’s opinions and insights in an unthreatening manner. I was probably the most threatening person in the group, constantly asking for more information and prying into the personal beliefs of these women. No one seemed offended and no one told me to mind my own business, so I happily delved as far as possible.

The part I found most fascinating is they all held very strong beliefs. Even the women that don’t have religious beliefs held strongly to their point of view. No one, not one single woman in the group, claimed to be “right”. I thought this was incredible. I know that in our hearts we all believe ourselves to be right, why would we hold on to any idea that we were unsure about? But in this gathering of confident, articulate women, no one felt the need to force their ideas on anyone else.

Don’t get me wrong, there was some preaching, some definite ideas of how things should be done, but through it all, it really felt like the women understood that this subject is very personal. I guess that’s why so many people have a hard time talking about it.

We had a segue that specifically dealt with the idea of evangelizing to others. Some felt that it’s just inappropriate to try and sway people toward your point of view. I argued that maybe it’s not in the presentation of the information that is at fault, but on the receiving end. If you don’t want to hear it, kindly say so.

The questions become, is it evangelizing when you are telling people what you believe and why? Or is it in the tone that it is offered? Are you trying to persuade me with your ideas or simply sharing more about yourself? Is it only okay when you are specifically asked?

I think that when voicing our opinions we are always trying to persuade. It doesn’t mean that I should be offended. It doesn’t mean that I will change my point of view. I simply appreciate the opportunity to hear others thoughts and feeling about important subjects. I enjoy knowing how they got to that understanding or belief. I thank these women for sharing with me. I am richer today because of them.