RAWR!

Guess who is going to see some dinosaurs on Monday!

I've been planning this trip for a very long time. I'm not going to lie, I wasn't into dinosaurs when I was a kid. Outside of the Power Rangers referencing them every Saturday, I didn't pay much attention to the dinosaur lessons in school. Not because they aren't cool or anything, but I didn't really see the point.

Of course now at 24, because I'm a late bloomer, Dinosaurs fucking rock my world. I can't get enough of them. But I am going to the museum for reasons outside of my new fond appreciation. It has more to do with story writing.

Don't tell anyone, but I'm writing a short story. I know I still have the Peru story to write, and that screenplay to compose but short stories are fun. Josh, dude at work, proclaims that he is a writer and because I like him to pieces I don't really question him. I mean, I think that I am a writer too. I don't go around introducing myself as one like he does but I do write.

A couple of weeks ago he came to me uber excited because he said he was getting published in some journal. My heart dropped. My first thought was 'you are fucking kidding right? Your ideas are sub par, your plots are convoluted, and you wanting to become a writer so that you can be like Richard Castle from Castle is not a reason to write, jackass!'. But what he neglected to tell me is that he is not getting published in any journal, he is submitting a story to a journal for potential publication. Like everyone else.

The one, and only thing, I honestly learned from hot professor is that writing is full of rejection. You can think something is awesome, so awesome that no one could possibly reject it, until that letter comes into the mail that your story was not accepted, you have been denied admission, we went another route but we thank you for your work. It's apart a life, and if I want to be a writer I must accept that. I don't think Joshua knows that yet because he thinks submitting a story entails publication. I didn't want to remind him that writing a short story can be more difficult than a full length one, that though the plot structure is still the same condensing it into 16-20 pages 'ain't' easy. And that having never written anything critiqued, work shopped, or reviewed by ANYONE outside of friends will make first time publication difficult, if not down right impossible.

But he was so confidant that I didn't want to come off as the 'jealous Debbie downer' by stating my concerns so i kept my mouth shut. But he thinks this is going to lead to book rights, and movie offers. I shit you not, I know this only because a few minutes later a coworker wanted to know what we were talking about, and he said with the most gleeful smile ever 'my story getting published thing'. She rolled her eyes and walked away saying 'yeah, you told me'.

But you should have seen him. He was like a little boy being told that he got the only A on a test everyone did poorly on. It was smug and gullible and naive all wrapped up in one smile. And so....I've decided to submit a short story to a plethora of contest coming up in the next few months. What, I never said I wasn't a competitive person.

Okay that's a stretch, the real reason I am on this submission bandwagon is because anyone can submit stories (case in point: josh). And as a person who wants to write, I need to start getting my stuff out of my head and into some hands. Unlike josh, i am prepared for the realities of submissions and my stories aren't terribly horrible.

And as I was walking home the other day, I saw a school bus of children dressed like little adults boarding a bus in preparation for a field trip. And I was filled with this desire to write a story about a field trip to a museum with a heartbreaking realization from the nerdy, introspective protagonist. And there you have it, a story idea (still in the beginning stages) and a definite trip to a museum while will hopefully lead to a complete short story ready for submission.

But I need to authenticate the museum experience. I have not been to this one since I was a kid, and in all honesty I don't remember anything about it. So, I'm going to go on Monday to get a sense of the setting, to expose my eyes to field trip experience. I am going to bring my camera, and notebook, and write as much as I can about sights, smells, and emotions that arise in the museum. Plus, I need a break from my life for awhile. I am thinking way to much lately, and it's wearing me out. The trip will be a little pricey, but I will manage.

I've been looking at the website the past couple of days, and it is geeking me out. Though I won't go on any of the group/school related tours the exhibits look amazing. Outside of the dinosaurs, I am most excited about the Hall of Human Origins. I'm not sure if it is actively open, but goddamn how I want to explore!

My camera is a little busted and unused these days, but expect pictures. Lots