Friday, March 4, 2011

Friday Feedback: You Machete through; I'm In the Weeds


I am in my monkey hat
because it is magic and bringing me luck.

Hey peepos.

This is me. *points left*

And I am officially

In the weeds.

Hmm. Those *points right* are Kudzu weeds. We don't have them here in NY but I'm kinda fascinated by them.

If you want to see another kind of weed (no, no, stop it, I'm not like that, seriously), go here to Caroline by Line, and check out my writer-friend Caroline's tumbleweeds. Man, those things need googly eyes, fuzzy slippers and a leash! (Hey, no cheating! Stop reading right now, and click on that link and go and look at Caroline's tumbleweeds!)

But where was I? Oh yeah, how I am in the weeds.

For those of you who have never worked in the restaurant business waiting tables (oh lord, yes I did *shudders*), this means: In the Weeds: A colloquial expression used when persons are near or beyond their capacity to handle a situation or cannot catch up. Struggling. Very busy.

Yep. That would be me. Struggling. Very busy. Cannot catch up. Juggling too many balls:
Oooh, yay. I like this dude!

Er, yeah, and mixing too many metaphors. ;\
 
At any rate, no excerpt from me today. I'm leaving Friday Feedback up to you! Yep, you heard me, you're in charge. Whoever you are. Post an excerpt in your comment and I'll read it this weekend and give you some groovy feedback. Maybe some other people will happen along and also give you some feedback.

You know the rules (weeds or no, they're still the same):

Please post no more than 3 -5 paragraphs, 3 if they're longish, 5 if they're short. If there's more, I will only read the first 3 -5. If you are a student from a particular class, please identify yourself as such. If you're providing feedback: does the piece hook you? What works? What doesn't? (please be nice in your criticism. Criticism sucks, so it's nice to be nice).

Okay, peepos that's it. Peace out. See you in the comment box.

-gae

13 comments:

  1. I too am in the weeds. So, I have decidedly decided to let some things drop off my tables.

    Maybe you could let somethings drop too :-)

    But first, now I know what a burpee and kudzu are. I am enlightened.

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  2. I feel your exhaustion, Gae. I'm in the weeds a bit myself. As far as kudzu - another name for it is "foot-a-night" because it literally grows that fast. The south is overrun with it, thanks to states using it on the side of roads back in the 50's and 60's to control erosion. An interesting metaphor - we want things, then often find ourselves overwhelmed when we get them. Hang in there lovely lady.

    love and hugs,

    max

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  3. I'm not quite in the weeds, but when I am I write my way out lol Or rather, I write people or places without weeds, and then I forget I have them :) Here is the poem I wrote the other day, please enjoy :)

    Writers hear so many words
    We speak better with our hands
    From minds to gentle fingers
    We ink the white wastelands

    Scribbled letters or clacking keys
    We breathe life into those barren lines
    Painting people we wish we knew
    And weaving plot designs

    No one else can understand
    How colors can unite
    To create a world so vivid
    All from black and white

    The words are not just things to say
    But things that we have known
    A part of us, we can't escape
    It aches within our bones

    Stitching sentences together
    Braiding chapters into one
    New worlds at our fingertips
    A Writer's work is never done

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  4. You know, Gae, I can no longer do a burpee or look at a tumbleweed the same way, all because of you. ;)

    As for those weeds, one moment at a time.xo

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  5. Which was worse on the South, the War Between the States or Kudzu?

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  6. Ellie, the line "ink the white wastelands" is MARVELOUS!!!

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  7. ok who talking weeds now y'all?

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  8. Thank you very much, Randy :)

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  9. I feel like I'm always in the weeds these days. Hoping to play catch up this weekend. *fingers crossed*

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  10. Allo ^_^. Gabby again....what is this the third time? Haven't posted in awhile and felt like giving it a try with something new this week. I've been posting bits and pieces from my novel (ok my novel in progress, Phoenix) on my writing group on facebook and I'm finally ready to get some feedback on it.*deep breath* The quick sum up is the character is Martica Narcassa who is an assassin and she's possessed by a demon which is more or less a puppet master and controls her. It's caused her to do things that have caused people to hunt her down. This is what I hope is gonna be the opening to it but that's debateable. Enjoy ^_^.

    Most people are lucky enough to wake up from their nightmares. Not me. I can never wake up from them...They aren't just my nightmares...they are my reality. The line between my nightmares and my life blurred a long time ago. When I wake up nothing has changed.

    I am always running. Running from someone. It's always the same person. Think about your nightmares for a moment. I'm typically the person coming after you. Now what do you imagine I'm running from?

    My threat is a captain of a squad assembled for one purpose and one purpose only. To kill me. One side of me hates what I do and would love for them to complete their misson, the other side wants to run and keep living. was possesed for one reason only...to kill. For that I deserve to die...so that I can't take anymore more lives.

    Death is what I want the most and the least at the same time. Eventually one side will win out...for now I'll just keep running from my nightmares.

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  11. hey, all, thanks for all the comments.

    Ellie, what Randy said, a few gems in there and that standout line!

    Gabby, good work. Very intriguing, especially this line: One side of me hates what I do and would love for them to complete their misson, the other side wants to run and keep living. has me totally wondering. Keep going.

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  12. I spent 14 years in the restaurant industry, and never heard the expression in the weeds. I wonder of it's localized, or an American expression that never made it to Canada.

    But I totally understand the meaning. I still have nightmares about having 18 tables fill up in 10 minutes, and I wake up in a panic. And I left the industry 20 years ago!

    Hope things calm down for you soon. But it's a good reason to be so busy.

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  13. When I worked in restaurants, we always used the phrase "in the weeds" when the kitchen was slammed with orders all at once. Maybe it is just a US thing.

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