An Easy Way to Help Save the Tiger

The main character in my book, Otherkin, is a teen girl who discovers she can shapeshift... into a tiger.

Why?

'Cause tigers are so damned cool.

(Plus it helped me address themes of environmentalism, body image... oh who cares? The main thing is that tigers are the awesomest animal ever!)

But in the wild, tigers are critically endangered, along with many other big cats. Which is why you see a link to a conservation organization called Panthera on this blog. They are doing a lot to help save big cats in the wild.

And now there's a petition from UK organization Tiger Time, asking the Chinese government to stop legal tiger farming in that country.  It's a critical step in helping wild tigers for many reasons - like the farms are used as a smokescreen for selling wild tiger skins and parts.

You can find out more and sign the petition in a super fast, easy interface here.

It could really make a difference.

Thankfulness

This day before Thanksgiving I find myself very thankful for:

Fingers to type Book 2 (and another secret project) with
A steady job to pay the bills and stimulate my mind
My agent
My editor
That my book will go on sale next year (!)
Parents who love to read, and love me too
Friends who make me laugh and grow
Fellow writers who give me great notes and ideas and support
Bags of trail mix to keep me going between meals
Roasted brussell sprouts (yes, really)
The color forest green
A world that still has wild tigers in it
Writers like EB White, Charles Dickens, CS Lewis, and Jane Austen to inspire

Words, words, words

The Cutest Darned Birds of Prey aka...

Owlses!



My book Otherkin features a bird of prey, but it never occurred to me to have someone stroke his head and send him into a state of utter bliss. Hmm. I am writing book 2 right now...

The Week in Review

This week was a roller coaster.

1. My kitchen got rained on by busted pipes from my upstairs neighbor, who was out of town. My slumlord landlady could not be reached (the number she gave was a fax machine) and every building manager and repairman I'd ever been in touch with over the years had quit working for her. It took me three days of dogged detective work, pleading, and threatening to get her to agree to fix the pipes, get a repairman, and arrange for the upstairs neighbor (a great guy) to get his keys to the repairman.

It took the repairman (Gregory, also a nice guy) ten minutes to fix the problem.

Now I'm just grateful that my kitchen is dry. Simple pleasures.

2. I didn't sleep for two nights straight because of the very loud leaking pipes, my hatred for having something go wrong in my nest (er, apartment), and my lack of control over getting anything fixed because all power lay in the hands of my evil landlady. Other things I can't discuss were going on too. So I walked around like Queen Zombie until the leak was fixed and sleep konked me on the head.

3. I didn't get nearly enough writing done (see above), but I did come up with some great stuff in my head that I can't wait to get down on paper. Hello, weekend!

4. The cd player in my car broke, and I haven't had time to get a new one. So I've been listening to these things once known as "cassette tapes." Via these old compilations I rediscovered my love for "old" songs like 1979 by the Smashing Pumpkins, Big Bang Baby by Stone Temple Pilots, and She Will Have Her Way by Neil Finn.

But I'm itching to play some stuff I just downloaded (The Decemberists latest, for starters) and can't listen in the car!  So a new stereo beckons. This one will have the capability to play mp3 files too. Though I still prefer the less compressed full sound you get from cds.

5. My friends kept me sane this week. Keep your friends close.

6. I've seen the cover for my novel. Can't share yet. But let's just say... tiger.

There is no cooler word.

"He's the kind of man a woman would have to marry to get rid of." - Mae West in She Done Him Wrong.

Be Like the Bird

"Be like the bird that, passing on her flight awhile on boughs too slight, feels them give way beneath her, and yet sings, knowing that she hath wings." -- Victor Hugo

Save the Snow Leopard!

If you go to SnowLeopard.Org and vote, you could help save not only snow leopards, but help people in nearby communities, and the ecosystems that support this top predator.

Check out the video below if you're wondering how that works, plus revel in some amazing footage of these elusive, magnficent creatures:

Joss is boss

Duh.