Nike! Nike!

Off I went to the dentist--a new one--for a deep cleaning to the first two quadrants of my mouth. Next week will be the next two and final quadrants.

Five injections of novocaine and, though I felt nothing, the water pick sounded like a water canon inside my mouth. The file didn't sound any better.

Knowing I needed a filling, I gamely suggested she do it while that part of my mouth was numb. Also at the back of my mind was the thought there might be a bit of a saving.

"Okay, Damian."

The dreadful whine of the drill and then it stopped dead.
I was glad because I was beginning to feel a little pain.

"The decay's quite deep," she said. "It's also very close to the nerve."
"Meaning what, exactly?" I managed to say, though my mouth was so frozen I thought the words were palpable as I said them.
"You need a root canal in my opinion."
I thought of my old dentist and wondered if I had swapped him out for one that thought she could vacuum the money from my pockets.

"Damian, would you like to know the cost of a root canal?" said the receptionist cum billing clerk.
I felt suddenly vulnerable, exposed. I couldn't just walk out if it was too expensive. In short, I was screwed.

"Tell me?"
"$640 and 15% discount for cash."
"Nike," I said.
"What do you mean?" said the dentist.
"Just do it."
"It's going to be a longer procedure so I'm plugging this and come back Tuesday?" she said.
"So I wait."
A damned good reason to include dental in any health care reform, huh?
It's time. No listening to the greedy insurance industry, Republicans and other industry insiders who are trying to fear-monger and say standards will fall and wait-times rise. That's bullshit.

Nike.

An evening of feedback

I'm making headway on the next novel which remains untitled until something pops into my head. I'm just finishing Chapter 4.

On Tuesday night, with great trepidation, I received feedback from my writers group, Rebel Writers of Buck County a.k.a The Rebs, about the first two chapters which I'd submitted the previous month. It's great to have people you trust critique your work and we have, among our members, a couple of great copy-editors and people who do not hold back when a plot point isn't working.

All in all my sample was well received, though a few felt I needed to get to the first conflict before page 8. I'm mulling this advice bearing in mind there is a difference between literary fiction and thrillers or criminal novels.

One thing that came up is the fact I wasn't born in America. Some of my prose is still Brit in that I use 'gas forecourt' instead of 'gas station' and expressions like 'playing up.'

Regards publishing in general, I've got a feeling there's going to be a big shake-up in the industry soon. They're simply not doing well in these difficult times. Many agents will fall by the wayside in the way real estate agents leave the industry when the housing market is in the doldrums --certainly those lit agents who haven't been selling manuscripts and those who really earn their living attending writers conferences and earning money from that will leave to find new work. The larger literary agencies will drop some of their employees.

I'm thinking the smaller, flexible independent publishers will be the winners after the winds of change have settled--publishers like the UK's Legend Press who published my first novel. They're managed by young Turks like Tom Chalmers who owe no allegiance to the stodgy old business models and aren't afraid to try new things. It'll be an interesting ride.

An extraordinary woman

As a teenager, I idealized Agnetha from ABBA and Farrah Fawcett Majors, the glamorous one in Charlie's Angels, as she was known then. Both are/were powerful, attractive women who reached for the stars and achieved.

And then life gets busy and one moves fully to inhabit one's own life as one should and the crushes and people who inspired them are forgotten.

Last week, I watched Farrah's Story and I was struck again by the woman--not this time because of her head of golden hair and huge American smile, but by how human she was, how vulnerable, how strong and compassionate, how full of life. And her spirituality and deep faith--Roman Catholicism--astonished me because we don't really associate that with people living in Hollywood. It was astonishing to see her wheel her rosary beads in her fingers and watch her kiss the crucifix as my mother would

Having been brought up Roman Catholic, I knew intimately this woman's visceral need to continue believing in a benign God and last minute possibilities as she rested her head on her balcony and talked to God and said she's seriously in need of a miracle.

Her unflinching bravery as she allowed us to view the most intimate periods of her fight against cancer, her bouts of tears that weren't self-pitying, her desire to shield her aged father--a plain-talking Texan with a huge heart--from yet another death that would obliterate the last of his immediate family, the last moments when her son came to visit and she didn't recognize him, the medical peaks and troughs she traversed as she searched in Germany and the US for a cure, all showed what a truly remarkable woman she was and had become.

Michael Jackson's death--in itself a great tragedy--overshadowed this woman's last day on this earth. But she will be remembered.

Farewell Farrah and rest in peace.

Whisking through the city

Just back from three tremendous days at NYC with Larry and my brother Seamus.

Stayed at the Hilton at Times Square as we wanted to be near to the action and my brother doesn't walk so good, result of a road accident when he was twelve.

First day was spent visiting the WTC and Rockerfeller Center followed by dinner at our fav Indonesian restaurant just off Restaurant Row. My brother can't understand why so many Americans want to line up to be seen waving during the Today Show. During teh afternoon, we stopped by an IMAX as Seamus hadn't seen a movie on IMAX before. Star Trek was showing (which we'd seen the previous week and really enjoyed) and Night at The Museum 2. Even the fact it was on IMAX couldn't save such a ridiculously hokey movie. Time Ben Stiller moved on.

Next day saw us doing the Empire State building, including the ride--not so good. A bit of a rip-off actually, given the quality of the photography and the gimmicks a la Kevin Bacon. Yeah, that guy really is degrees of everywhere.

After that, we went to see Chicago--which we all enjoyed--followed by drinks and dinner at The View, the revolving restaurant on the 48th floor of the Times Square.

Last day was spent at the Hayden Planetarium and Museum of Natural History. I'd never been before and the last time Larry was there was when he was a schoolkid in the Bronx being chaperoned by his teacher. It was very enjoyable, especially the African exhibit with its huge herd of elephants. It was worrisome (and quivers of political correctness threatened to extinguish my pleasure) when I read the the herd that included a huge bull and two calves was 'collected' and then given to the museum by an individual (not Teddy Roosevelt). Was 'collected' a pseudonym for 'shot'? I mused.
They were 'presented' in 1905 which made me feel better, though I couldn't help wonder how the magnificent creatures still sporting their huge tusks had died in their prime.

Knowing what we know now about elephant society, even culling is unacceptable.
The dinosaur skeletons, on the other hand, produced awe of a different kind.

And then our trip was over and we were speeding back to Bucks through the horrid rain.

A visitor

Gone a little off the Engine 2 diet as my brother Seamus is visiting currently--although not very much as we're eating delicious veggie dishes five times a week.

So far I've managed to lose 10 lbs so I'm quite pleased with my progress--very pleased actually since I'm hooking up with my writing group on Tuesday evening and Marie wants to see how much I've lost on account of how I raved about the diet.

I'm also submitting a couple of chapters of the new novel--less than I'd have liked but I'm showing my bro' the wonders of Bucks county. Next week, Larry he and I will spend three days in NYC doing theater and restaurants, etc. Looking forward to being a tourist there myself.

It's great listening to my bro yak with his kids Oran and Eimer on the phone (the other two are older and out of the house; Seams really is a dedicated Dad, but being an Uncle is definitely the way to be. Love 'em on your own time. LOL

Tomorrow we're holding a BBQ for him--looking forward to kicking back with some vino and friends.

And a big shout to my nephew David and niece Ciara (Seamus's daughter) who've just completed their exams and second year at the Queens University Belfast.

Week 2 complete and a new beginning

Week 2 of Fire Engine 2 down with a slight hiccup.

Yeah, we strayed a bit over Memorial Day weekend and tucked into a burger and some BBQ ribs. Not many mind you, but enough to make me feel mucho guilty.

However, back on track again and I'm not gonna worry about feeling guilty. Just had an excellent Japanese meal with mushrooms, carrots and bok choy done with ginger and mirin sauce.

Today has been eventful as I've just begun a new novel. I agonized for an hour about the opening paragraphs and now am out the gate. My Mormon protagonist has now got life. This time I tried a new technique. I actually outlined the plot on index cards and then sorted them in sequence and copied them into the Word document. As I complete each scene, I can delete the corresponding entry and on and on until the novel is written.


It's supposed to banish writer's block aka staring at a blank page. We'll see.

Engine 2 -Week One complete

I've just completed Day 7 of the Engine 2 diet, which isn't a diet per se but rather a means of changing one's eating habits.

Engine 2 diet is basically a Vegan diet (consuming anything with a face or mother is forbidden) that was started by the head fireman from a Houston's Fire Engine 2. He persuaded a company of Texan red meat eaters to go Vegan. However, his father (who really devised it while doing heart research) is/was head of the Cleveland Clinic--a top heart hospital in the US, which was founded by his great grandfather. If you're interested to try it out, the book is called The Engine 2 Diet by Rip Esselstyn and there's a website.

Basically, the diet states we've been brainwashed by the meat and dairy industries and the USDA to believe we can only get good protein from animals and their by-products. This is not true as animals get their protein from plants--and meat and dairy are basically not good for us and that living a plant based diet can eliminate and in some cases reverse the damage caused by the western diet. The only vitamin not found in plants--largely as a result of modern day large scale food production--is B12 and that you can get from Nutritional Yeast, which looks like grated Parmesan and can be used in dishes as such.

I'm a meat and chicken eater, love cheese and yogurt and haven't missed any of it so far. The recipes suggested as part of the diet we have so far enjoyed, and the one we found a little bland was easily fixed with additional spices, etc. So far the one I enjoyed best was the Portabello Mushroom burger with sweet potato fries. Major yum-yum. That surprised me.

Real Men can also be Vegans. Who knew.

Report on Week 2 next Sunday.