I don’t know how this happened but here I am less than 24 hours before my writing class and have I done my assignment? No.

But, here are some other things I’ve managed to do instead:

• Write emails – must stay connected with friends.
• Start a new book – in all fairness this is a book of short stories by ZZ Packer so it sort of counts as research for class right?
• Went to Half Price Books – because I haven’t been to the bookstore since, uh, yesterday.
• Realize Oprah is all mighty – she can raise the dead for the sake of her book club.
• Been checking NaNoWriMo – I can’t seem to write a one page dialogue in one week but I’m considering writing a novel in a month.

As I’ve been in a haze of antihistamines this weekend for pesky allergies, my mind wasn’t in the mood to tackle any serious literature. Instead I read some magazines and opted to read the song lyrics of some recent CD purchases.

I love music but when it comes to finding out about new bands or songs I’m woefully behind the times. I usually rely on my friends to steer me in the right direction but I’ve recently made two discoveries all on my own – yeah me.

First, the self-titled CD from Los Lonely Boys. I had heard about them a couple of months ago when they came to town but it wasn’t until I was roaming around in a music store that I stopped to listen to their CD. I’m not going to even attempt to do a music review and try to classify them but if you like the music of Santana, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Los Lobos, give these guys a try.

Next up is the Garden State soundtrack. We went out with a group of friends to see the film last weekend, and when we came out of the movie theater the first thing we said was “great movie but we gotta get that soundtrack”. Okay, maybe that wasn’t such a huge discovery as I was a captive audience but after getting the CD, I’ve now heard songs from The Shins, Frou Frou and Zero 7. These are bands I’ve never heard of but will now be seeking out.

I’m sure everyone has heard of these two CDs but still they were new to me. And, if you haven’t heard them, go out and give them a try.

I went to my creative writing class tonight, and our first assignment is to be more observant. We have to write down bits of dialogue, set a scene, describe a person, etc. from our daily life.

Immediately I put my keen powers of observation to use and here’s what I learned in class:

• Everyone wants to be a writer – a published writer.
• Bring pen & paper – why half of the class didn’t think it was necessary to bring these items to a writing class is beyond me.
• Don’t read books in class – guy in the back, put down The Lord of the Rings. The focus is short stories.
• There will always be class clowns – these guys are still not funny.
• I realize I will scream if someone else states their favorite book is The Da Vinci Code.

Yep, I think we are off to a great start.