The "Brit a Day" series

What does a months-long parade of attractive British men have to do with fiction, you might well ask? These gentlemen have inspired some lovely scenes, part of the life I live in my head. Over time, some of these scenes reach out to one another and begin to form a story. For the present, each one of these pictures provides a writing prompt for me, a way to keep me writing with a sense of passion and narrative, even when the stories are not yet fully formed.



Friday, December 31, 2010

A Brit a Day [#312]

Eddie Argos in the bakery, perhaps purchasing breakfast.

I saw 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' last night on TV. [hyperbole coming up...] I'm a hundred years old but I'd never seen it before. I cried a bit over the cat being put out in the rain rather than over a girl marrying an old guy just shy of her 14th birthday, a plot point that mirrors the story of my own grandmother. Two of my fifty-ish girl pals told me today that they've never seen it, which surprised me. Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly is such an icon of our girlhoods. Truman Capote as a socialite, more so than as an author, is such an icon of my Merv Griffin/Mike Douglas childhood. People my age probably expect the George Peppard character to turn out being gay. Was Capote ever a kept man struggling with his sexuality? Did my grandmother ever think of running away from the family she wrought at 14 to reinvent herself in a new town?

I ate my breakfast in a rush at the kitchen counter this morning. Fortunes from cookies from last nights take-out Chinese were still on the counter. One of them says 'sometimes adversity is as needed as medicine.' Happy new year everyone. Reflect, cry a little, and then move on.

Thursday, December 30, 2010

A Brit a Day [#311]

Henry Ian Cusick in a quiet moment between the Q and the A at a 'Lost' Q & A in 2006.

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

A Brit a Day [#310]

My husband and I had our annual New Years-ish date at the Belly Up Tavern seeing Camper Van Beethoven and Cracker last night. I'm wondering what the Malfoys can recommend for a hangover from hell.

Monday, December 27, 2010

A Brit a Day [#309]

This is for Tuesday.

Here's Dan.

That looks just like the elevator at my kids' pediatrician.

A Brit a Day [#308]

A perfect shot of Christian Bale for the December cover of Esquire.

Sunday, December 26, 2010

A Brit a Day [#307]

I hear that some of you got a bit of snow on Christmas Day. Someone has thoughtfully cleared the stairs for Alan Rickman, shown at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival in Utah.

Friday, December 24, 2010

A Brit a Day [#306]


Gift #6:
Read with a child on the internet to learn more about the Christmas Truce of 1914.

[In the top photo, Dan Radcliffe wears a WW1 uniform for the film 'My Boy Jack,' but that is not meant to imply that Jack Kipling was involved in the Christmas truce.]

Gift #7:
I'm taking Christmas Day off. Fervently dream of world peace, everyone!

Thursday, December 23, 2010

A Brit a Day [#305]

Gift #5 is dedicated to my Sistahs in Retail, whether you are serving someone or are being served...

Face the crowds of last-minute holiday shoppers with all the grace you can manage.

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

A Brit a Day [#304]

Gift #4.
Go to a club just to support the opening band. Cheer loudly even though there are only 5 of you on the dance floor. The bands we love now were once in their trembling shoes. [I'm looking at you, Eddie Argos.]


Tuesday, December 21, 2010

A Brit a Day [#303]


Gift #3.
Go to a big newsstand and buy someone a magazine that they've never heard of just because you like the cover.

Monday, December 20, 2010

A Brit a Day [#302]

Gift #2:
Tell a gentleman you know with long hair that he has lovely locks. Ask him for a lock of his hair.

Sunday, December 19, 2010

A Brit a Day [#301]


This week: Simple gifts for Christmas.

#1.
Take someone to see HP and the Deathly Hallows, part 1. Dress up like it's the premiere and hide extra-nice snacks in your pockets.

Friday, December 17, 2010

A Brit a Day [#300]

This post is for Saturday.

To celebrate the 300th issue of A Brit a Day, I'm posting the hottest thing I can find in my 'Yet To Be Used' folder.

God, I love horses.

A Brit a Day [#299]

I can't resist posting another picture of Eddie Argos surfing in Hawaii, especially since San Diego's contribution to the recent weather news is that we've had 20-foot waves in anticipation of a winter storm.