4 posts tagged “writing”
I suppose it could be better, but I am coming along with my list of things to keep me busy this summer. I've gotten some cleaning done, still have a lot more to go, plus the organizing... must start with the garage soon. I've learned the basics of RoboHelp and HTML/CSS. I've played the hell out of some Sims, baby! I have written down the bones of something fiction-esque. I have at least dragged out of the closet and washed the material for a sewing project. I vaguely helped hubby put up some fence panels - as in, he did the work and I mostly just handed him tools. And, with the help of the godson we got a large part of the lawn and our bountiful abundance of leaves tamed.
This whole Mother's Day/Birthday week kind of slowed things down a bit. We popped down south for part of the day to have lunch with my mum. We found a Wii at Best Buy (!) so that's what we got my mum for Mother's Day. She was as excited as a little girl. Mom's an original gamer from way back - she started with Pong when it first came out, then the first Atari and the first Nintendo, and so on. Mom's cool like that...
Then I had to come home and clean some more because mum-in-law was set to arrive Sunday morning. Not that she cares what the house looks like, but it's days like that that I do.
My Physics instructor has not yet handed back our tests from Monday, so I don't know exactly how I did. I don't think it was very good, however. The test was over the first four chapters, Measurement, Motion on a Straight Line, Vectors, and Motion in Two and Three Dimensions. I had a pretty decent handle on things through vectors, but I got really messed up in Chapter 4. Uniform circular motion was fine, and I almost understood projectile motion but I don't think I ever managed to complete a relative motion problem on my own. So, the plan now is to add a projectile motion problem and a relative motion problem to my homework every day until I get the hang of them. I have this strange feeling that they will become harder and more important as we move forward...
At any rate, as no one really noticed, that means that this past Sunday's Sunday Brunch book review had to be pushed aside while I studied for said test. Just in case someone is waiting in breathless anticipation for my next review, I wanted to clear that up. <wink>
In other, much better news, my second ever technical document (a user guide for a web application) was sent to the client and accepted and approved with wild acclaim. Or, at least, no loud complaints. They seemed to like it, and didn't send back any changes. Go me!
(Okay, so this is closer to a Sunday midnight snack than a brunch, but it's been a crazy weekend.)
This little 60 page gem is just about the handiest little reference I've encountered since I came back to school. Between my beloved and myself, we have now accumulated about six, perhaps seven, grammar and mechanics handbooks, most of which are just the same damn thing. Some of them I do like, and one of them I helped write (as a student project, so it's no big deal, really), but this one I am fond of because it is simply the basics in a very small book. It's small enough to tuck into a duo-tang folder, and even comes with holes down the side for just that purpose.
Grammar and mechanics are explained in easy, short sections, rarely longer than a paragraph or two, unless its something more complicated. There are several examples in each section, both wrong and right samples, to highlight the difference. There is a short table of contents on the front inside cover and, even better, a "Quick Locator Chart" on the back cover to help you find just the right section. The entire intent of this grammar guide is to get you essential information quickly, not to put you to sleep with a dissertation on comma splices that you won't remember anyway.
In comparison to the more complete, trade size style guides or handbooks, this one does have a few disadvantages. One, it isn't comprehensive, but of course, that was the point. And second, the larger books have those handy tabs so that you can just flip to the section you want. In English Simplified, you really do have to look up the section on the back cover and then go find it in the book. But when I just need a quick reminder of some minor rule, this book suits my purposes perfectly well, and I still don't have to dig through endless dull paragraphs to get to the heart of the information. I can definitely recommend it as a supplement to a regular format style guide. You can keep the big style guide on your shelf at home for reference, but English Simplified can go with you anywhere!
I'm thinking of the song "Live Through This (Fifteen Stories)" by Mighty Joe Plum (one hit wonder, basically, but I quite enjoyed their first album). The line is: "I can't shed my skin... well, it's crushing me..."
The point is, I have homework. I had a Japanese test on Friday, which I believe I rather nearly flunked. Maybe the extra credit will get me a C on it, if I'm lucky. Ugh... But, at least having the test out of the way gives me a nice long weekend to concentrate on Physics and writing. Yesterday was Physics Day in lieu of the usual Caturday. I got behind in Physics homework whilst not studying for Japanese, apparently. So, my beloved and I spent a very nice Physics Day together, doing homework and attempting to cram some information about vectors into my brain. I will write up a post about vectors soon, but I don't really understand them yet.
Today is dedicated to my Technical Documentation class. My assignment is to write a document for a real-world client. I have the client, I have the job, but I have to write a proposal for my teacher to describe the job and the document and the intended audience, and so on. I really should have started on this a week or two ago, but of course I didn't. Today is Sunday, and the proposal is due Wednesday.
So, that is what I'm doing instead of writing about Physics... I'll get right on that as soon as I get a better handle on the vectors, though!
