Things I've Made | The Plaid Pladd Blog

Archive for the ‘Things I’ve Made’ Category

Pirate Gingerbread Men

December 17th, 2009 by pladd

Monday I decided it would be super cool if I could bake pirate gingerbread men for my 5th grade reading class. They’re basically just like normal gingerbread men, but you break off legs (or arms or heads) and use Popsicle sticks to make “pegs”. Then we could have a writing assignment where you: 1) Name your pirate, 2) Tell how he lost his arm(s)/leg(s)/head, and 3) write about if he likes being a pirate. This was easier conceived than accomplished.

This guy lost his legs in a bet over a heated game of Blokus.

First off, it was WAY hard to find a gingerbread man cookie cutter. I thought that grocery stores would have them as part of their Christmas display, but no luck. The nearby cooking-utensil-selling store didn’t have them either, and neither did Target or Bed, Bath, and Beyond. We finally found one at Michael’s that is actually made of silicone and supposed to be for making small, gingerbread man shaped pancakes, but it worked just as well.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tagged: baking, pirates, tutoring

Posted in Food, Things I've Made |

National Novel Writing Month 2009: Epic Win!

November 29th, 2009 by pladd

This graphic, the only semi-tangible prize, was SO WORTH IT.

Granted, my main memories of Thanksgiving are of writing 17,000 words in two days, but still! Look at this picture I won!!! In case you were wondering, the novel ends with the three different Patricias plus random historical/alternate time line characters teaming up to USE THEIR IMAGINATIONS to defeat the Plutonians. Apparently illogical thought processes are their one weakness, making Middle School Patricia the ultimate contender.

I can’t be bothered to post the entire novel on here, but here is the wordle art version of it:

I like how PATRICIA dominates. Just like always. Click for larger image (i.e. to read any words that aren’t PATRICIA)

Tagged: Middle School, nanowrimo, wordle

Posted in Things I've Made, Writing |

National Novel Writing Month 2009: A Timeline

November 24th, 2009 by pladd

I thought it was over forever last year. But then in October this happened:

2009
October
Start receiving “reminder” emails from the NaNoWriMo website. Roll my eyes.

October 24th
Read over “novel” from last year while procrastinating writing a paper. Feel bad about the lack of coherency.

October 26th
Decide to do National Novel Writing Month again, this time attempting not to fall back on random free association to meet word limit. I CAN write a 50,000 word novel that sticks to one plot. For varying definitions of “one plot”. And “sticks”. And “novel”.

October 30th
Convince James Fox to write one too in exchange for making him a character in my novel.

November 1st–10pm
Suddenly remember that it’s the first day of National Novel Writing Month. Stay up to begin novel. Decide it should be about Middle School Patricia traveling to the future by accident to meet me now. It can be deep and full of meaning and reveal things about my life and stuff.

November 2nd
Decide to occasionally write from Middle School Patricia’s Point of View to use up more words. Read the rest of this entry »

Tagged: James Fox, Middle School, nanowrimo, pictures, timeline

Posted in Things I've Made, Writing |

National Novel Writing Month 2008: A Timeline

November 24th, 2009 by pladd

2008

March
See a class called “How To Write a Novel In a Month” while registering. Decide this is the class for me because 1) I like writing novels, 2) I like having no time to revise, and 3) I only needed one more credit hour.

August–First Week of Class
Discover this is a Martel Student Taught Course. Half the people signed up are Serious English Major Novelists, the other half seem to make up Rice’s Anime Club.

August–Second Week of Class
Discover the Serious English Major Novelists have dropped the class en masse. Learn about: how writing is a serious mystical art that puts your mind in tune with the gods; anime.

September–Third Week of Class
Begin bringing laptop and playing Mah Jong during class, which this week consists of watching a youtube fan video about Halo 2 or something. And always the constant hum of Anime in the background.

September–Fourth Week of Class
Listen to a girl’s novel idea about puppies that, when they lick you, they change your gender.

Rest of September
Skip class. See above.

October
Try to think of ideas for 50,000 word novels that I could write way fast. Decide to just write about my summer job at the library in third person, artfully changing everyone’s name. Figure that will give me AT LEAST 50,000 words of ridic stories.

November 1st
Start novel. Decide this is going to be easy.

November 5th
Already 1000 words behind.

November 10th
3000 words behind. Introduce library trolls for variety.

November 12th
Library trolls aren’t working out. Change plot entirely so that it is now Me (Summer Intern) and the elderly assistant director against a horde of zombies and other book characters that have come alive and are attacking the library in the night.

November 13th
We team up with Napoleon. Excerpt:
Read the rest of this entry »

Tagged: library, nanowrimo, timeline

Posted in Things I've Made, Writing |

Times I Have Almost Died: National Novel Writing Month

November 10th, 2009 by pladd

National Novel Writing Month happens every November, when writers and crazy people alike attempt to complete a 50,000 word novel in one month. That’s about 1667 words a day. Like 3 pages single spaced. No sweat right? Yeah.

Last year my novel started out being a set of connected and humorous short stories about the library I used to work at. Then that got boring and I wasn’t working fast enough so zombies attacked the library. Then about a third of the way through I couldn’t take the word limit requirements and it turned into ridiculous stream of consciousness where I talked about everything from what I had dreamed the night before to how I feel about flying squirrels. In hundreds of years they will probably find it and be so confused they will have no choice but to turn it into a holy book and start worshiping its bad syntax.

This year I made a vow that I would hold off stream of consciousness for as long as possible. However, it’s November 10th and I only have 13,868 words. By the end of today I should have 16,670. Yeah, right. Not when I am also trying to write final papers for grad school, thanks.

To say that I have upheld my vow and completely stayed on track would also not be completely accurate. Sure, I have stuck with a story and not started rambling about my personal life yet, but it only took about four days for that story to veer dramatically from semi-serious psychological study of realistic characters to TIME TRAVELING ALIENS ARE ATTACKING; ONLY YOU CAN SAVE MANKIND. I assume this switch was inevitable. Also, it is only November 10th. There are 20 more days left. I predict I would be stream of consciousnessing to make Faulkner proud by the end of this week.

Tagged: death, nanowrimo, novels, writing

Posted in Things I've Made, Writing |

Baked Goods Self-Portrait Contest II: The Cupcakening

October 27th, 2009 by pladd

Due to the rampant success of the Cookie Self-Portrait Challenge, Steven and I were recently challenged to a rematch by Houston-area artist James Fox, who generously agreed to fly up for this showdown.

On the plus side, I finally had an excuse to buy a cupcake pan. On the downside, I am not very good at art in any medium, especially not frosting. I was therefore forced to make two cupcakes in the hope that quantity would finally win over quality. So my entries included:
Read the rest of this entry »

Tagged: contest, cupcakes, mark twain, self-portrait, Steven

Posted in Food, Servery Challenges, Things I've Made |

H-Town: The Debriefing

September 29th, 2009 by pladd

I’m glad that Houston is just like I remember: nearly unbearable. But in a way I’ve grown to love. I love the ridiculous traffic, the sweltering heat, the overzealous mosquito population, the two stars. I also love the now-completed building that was outside my window all of last year. Its roof now looks like a ship’s prow that has accidentally careened into the med center. And, yeah, I walked by the new gym and it consumed my soul with jealousy. Other than that, though, I managed to pretty well avoid getting hit by the nostalgia truck. Because my shower doesn’t scream.

Probably the most surprising part of the weekend came on Saturday when I was expecting to collect my pieroyalties, the amount of which increases in increments of one pie yearly. I was promised three, but since both Anna (director) and Jacob (producer) assumed responsibility for this, I ended up with six. Jacob gave his long suffering Jacob sigh, said they would tip me one more, and keep two for the cast party. I assumed this was just his way of covering up a failed attempt at winning my affections. Because nothing says “Let’s make out after this play” like extra pie. It’s maybe a universal signal.

Anna also felt the need to tip me, specifically for this part of the play:
Read the rest of this entry »

Tagged: h-town, One act, pie, space, thresher, Wiess

Posted in Things I've Made, Writing |

Airplane Poetry

September 25th, 2009 by pladd

I’m in Houston! I knew the minute the swampy, humid air hit my face and I quickly found myself on an eight lane highway with a forest of tacky, neon signs on either side that the prodigal Patricia had returned.

This return involved two plane rides and a sandwich in Baltimore, whose airport is actually just a mall where some planes hang out. On the latter plane, Steven and I decided that the BEST POSSIBLE use of our time was to write each other notes while listening to our respective iPods. Naturally this quickly devolved into joint poetry:
Read the rest of this entry »

Tagged: airplanes, h-town, music, poetry, Steven, Wiess

Posted in Things I've Made, Writing |