Weird Minnesota Stuff: Part 1

As promised, here is some new (and maybe a bit strange) stuff from here in Minnesota. I'm just gonna do five a post, and even though a couple of these are just small things, it really lets you know you're in an entirely different area.

1) Snowmobiles.

I've never seen one. So, naturally, when one pulled up to the gas pump across the street, I darted to the window in Subway and was like, "Oh my god, is that a snowmobile?! I've never seen one!"

Naturally, I got weird looks from the natives.

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2) Snow shoveling

Have you ever worked out before? If not, don't start it with shoveling snow. I just did it earlier today, and nearly collapsed from exhaustion afterwards. (Okay, that might be a bit of an exaggeration, but still.) And if you do have to do it, make sure you have a good snow-blower. Ours puts out smoke sometimes and smells bad, so I don't completely trust it, but it's better than having to shovel it all by hand. Some of this stuff comes up past my waist! And it's soft and fluffy, not like Texas's wet snow. So, the cold isn't quite so bad. As long as the wind doesn't blow.
I still don't recommend going out in a hoodie though.

3) Boxed Potato Chips
This is probably one of the more weird things. Like, they're really good, nice sized potato chips, but they are in boxes. There are two or three silvery packages inside one box, depending on which one you buy. I've never seen anything like it before.

4) Hy-Vee
Dunno if all the grocery stores here are like this, but Hy-Vee (HyVee?) has CHINESE FOOD for sale. Like, you know how Walmart has fried chicken and stuff in the back? They have that too, but then they have Chinese. Like, cooked. And then they have their grapes on real shelves instead of in a box/crate thingy like most Texas stores do.

5) Libraries
This is amazing. Like, all the libraries are linked. I have some here linked to libraries in Red Wing and Faribault and Cannon Falls, and I can order in books from any of those libraries, public or school. It's awesome, especially for a big reader like me!

Like I said, a couple of these are only little things, but they really drive home that I am far from home. Like, really far.

-Katheryn

You're probably wondering about the book by now...

Gosh, the whole Starting-a-new-entry thing is kinda weird. It's like, "Oh man there's so much I wanna say, but I dunno where to start or what to say so I'll type the first thing that comes to my mind."

Right. Now, before I get off track -- again -- the book is called Raleigh, after the main character: Raleigh Sanders. And the cover I have is kinda pink, hence the pink on the blog. It'll change colors with each book. And the color is gonna change before the book is announced.

Oh, you want a summary? Let's see if I can find Raleigh's voice.
...
I'm normal, really. Well, if you consider being a Seer normal. But in my world, that's about as close to normal as you can get. And normal means danger. Normal means no self-defense. Seers are targets, cause we're weaker than the Clan members. Speaking of, there's an evil dictator over one of the two clans named Liah who's out to destroy the human race and keep all her people on tight leashes and God knows what else.
And I'm supposed to stay neutral.
But when I fall in love, and Liah threatens all my friends and family, it gets hard. I don't know if I can do it. If I break neutrality, it could have apocalyptic consequences. For everyone. On top of all that, her people are rebelling. A war is brewing.

Well? Whaddya think? Let me know. Post a comment. Email me. (nicolahawkins97@gmail.com)

By the way, I'm calling my fans/readers/whatever my Warriors. Or Comrades, depending on whether they like Syra or Liah. And I may have a post or two from point of view of the characters themselves. And here's a summary of the series as a whole.

A war is brewing in a world parallel to our own. When a dictator named Liah takes over a clan who swore never to have a government, her sister Syra gains followers for a rebellion. People begin to oppose Liah. Faithful soldiers begin to betray their leaders in the heat of the war, and passionate lovers turn to bitter enemies. But no one can figure out the answer to one big question: Why did Liah take power when she used to be against all government? Why is she so oppressive? What happened when the Guardians visited her?

A friend of mine is writing a book based off some RPs we did a while back, too. I think it's gonna be great. Like, the RPs were some of the best I've done in my seven years of it. (If you don't know what an RP is, visit this blog: http://kokoronokagami.blogspot.com/ and it'll give some good examples.)

Welcome to The Hideout, followup!

Hello there, person! As I stated in my first post (Welcome to The Hideout), I am a young author working on my first book, and my name is Nicola Hawkins. I'm a gamer, an otaku (anime-lover), and a big reader. In the past, I haven't had much luck with books or blogs. Never kept up with them. But I'm hoping that it'll be different this time, no matter how idealistic or moronic that may be. (I'm a bit of a pessimist/realist, if you haven't noticed. But I don't bite! ... Much.)

Right. So. A month ago today, I moved from northern Texas all the way to... You guessed it, Minnesota. "The Land of a Thousand Lakes", or something. I prefer to call it "The Land of Endless Cold and Burning Legs and Potato Chips in boxes." I have a couple acquaintances so far: Sammie, Celia, Sydney, Evelyn, and a couple others who I'm learning the names of. I won't give their last names, but if I mention them, you know who they are now. And I'll probably be blogging about some of the weird stuff here in Minnesota. (Sorry, Yankees. You guys have lots of weird stuff here by my standards.)

Potential Blog Subjects:

     In relation to Minnesota:
The weather

The house

Chips and other Food-related stuff, like the grocery store shelving

     In relation to school:

The lockers

Food lines

Online stuff

Library functions

The dudes here

The class sizes

Dress code (Remind me about the hair dye policies and the midriff stuff)

      Books:

Maximum Ride

Various Authors

Hush, hush

Vampire Academy (I was into it before the movie, thanks!)

The Chronicles of Vladimir Todd

Some of those might be mushed into one post. 

All my best,
Katheryn

Welcome to The Hideout!

Hey, I'm Katheryn Hawkins, and I am a young author working on my first book. This is going to be my blog, and I'll be setting it up soon, bringing in my designs for the covers of the books in my series. Please come back to see the final results!
Also, if you have any questions, feel free to email me at nicolahawkins97@gmail.com
Have a great day! (Meanwhile, I get to shovel snow soon. Thank whoever for snow blowers for people in their second week in Minnesota!)