----------------------------------------------- */ ----------------------------------------------- */ ----------------------------------------------- */ ----------------------------------------------- */ ----------------------------------------------- */ ----------------------------------------------- */ The Fabulous Adventures of Astera: Writer/Actress for Hire: September 2008

The Fabulous Adventures of Astera: Writer/Actress for Hire

Meet Astera (aka: me), a star in her own mind. Our plucky little heroine has embarked on not one but two difficult, low-paying career paths: writing and acting. Witness the menial jobs! The unreasonable demands! The quirky friends and family! And the glimmer of success just ahead! Through it all, Astera maintains her core beliefs: 1) She is destined to be fabulous 2) Everything is more fun with a cocktail.

Friday, September 19, 2008

The End...At Last!

I am proud to announce that I have finished the first draft of my novel! It's perfect timing, too...Mr. Pink and I are flying out to meet my family in Rome, where we will embark on an 11-night Mediterranean cruise. I'll have some time to relax and reflect, and then when I get back, I'll look at what I've written with fresh eyes. My goal is to send my query letter and synopsis out by mid-October.

Of course the draft still needs work, but it felt incredible to write, "The End!"

Monday, September 15, 2008

Short Cuts

Last week, I got my hair cut. It's darker and even shorter than usual. I was a bit shocked at first, but now I really like it. And Mr. Pink likes it, too. For some reason, he's got a thing for women with short hair, which is good for me, because he even liked me with my post-cancer Sinead O'Connor style.

Today, I realized that I am so on-trend with my hairstyle. "Posh Spice" Victoria Beckham just debuted her close-cropped locks, and love her or hate her, you have to admit that she's a trendsetter. Of course, she apparently waited three months to have her hair cut by celebrity stylist Garren, who charges an astounding $700 for a haircut. I got a similar cut for $65, and I've got to say, I think I look better. Why? Because I know how to smile!

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Wednesday, September 03, 2008

Stop the Republican Madness!

Let's get one thing clear right away...I was never going to vote for John McCain. He's old, he's out of touch, and I disagree with most of his policies. And now that he's got Sarah Palin on the ticket, I hope that other voters can see just how dangerous a McCain presidency would be for our already-damaged country.

I'm not an Obama maniac. As most of you know, I supported Hillary Clinton. But Obama/Biden would be far better for our country than McCain/Palin.

There are so many things that trouble me about Palin, and about McCain's decision-making process in choosing her as his running mate. From all I've read, it seems that he buckled under pressure to choose someone who was anti-abortion in order to appease the Christian right-wingers. Yep, that John McCain is a real maverick who thinks for himself!

I'm also insulted by the idea that the McCain campaign thinks that former Hillary supporters such as myself will vote for Palin because she's a woman. Palin is no Hillary Clinton. She lacks Clinton's experience and judgment. Voting for McCain/Palin just because there's a woman on the ticket seems to me to be the worst kind of affirmative action. For me, a candidate's policies and experience count more than gender.

Palin may wish to be portrayed as a happy hockey mom, but is that experience enough for one of the biggest jobs in the country? At the Republican National Convention last night, one speaker pointed to Palin's PTA leadership as proof that she had the skills necessary to serve as America's vice president. Yes, because running the PTA is just like running a country!

Besides her lack of experience (but hey, Alaska's close to Russia, so that should count for some international experience, right Cindy McCain?), here are the other problems I have with Cindy Palin:

*She wants to expand oil drilling, even though funds for drilling could be better spent on researching alternative energy options that would reduce America's addition to oil

*She may have tried to ban books in Wasilla:

[Former Wasilla mayor John] Stein says that as mayor, Palin continued to inject religious beliefs into her policy at times. "She asked the library how she could go about banning books," he says, because some voters thought they had inappropriate language in them. "The librarian was aghast." That woman, Mary Ellen Baker, couldn't be reached for comment, but news reports from the time show that Palin had threatened to fire Baker for not giving "full support" to the mayor.

*She is anti-abortion, even in the cases of rape or incest.

*She believes that the Iraq war is a mission from God.

*She believes in abstinence-only education for teenagers, and opposes giving them any information about birth control. (And that's worked so well for her daughter.)

*She doesn't believe that human actions cause global warming.

*She thinks creationism should be taught in schools.

Is this a woman who is prepared to be president? After all, with McCain's advanced age, she is just "a heartbeat away" from the presidency.

I also have problems with the entire Republican party. According to news sources, in his speech, Mitt Romney will say, "The right course is the one championed by Ronald Reagan 30 years ago, and by John McCain today. It is to rein in government spending and lower taxes, for taking a weed-whacker to excessive regulation and mandates, for putting a stop to tort windfalls, and to stand up to the Tyrannosaurus appetite of government unions."

Really? Reign in government spending? Then why did Palin ask for all that money in government earmarks? Take a weed-whacker to excessive regulation and mandates? Except, I guess, for regulations that could outlaw abortion. And according to social conservatives, the government, in the form of the FCC, should regulate what people see on TV. But that's not excessive. The hypocrisy of the Republican party is breathtaking to me.

Please, I implore you, vote Democrat this next election. Otherwise, Mr. Pink is going to make me move to Panama.