Sunday, April 18, 2010

Terrible Tilly and some less terrible things

Does this not look like the best spot for a ghost story? Tillamook Lighthouse (aka Terrible Tilly) sits isolated and abandoned, perched upon a rock a mile offshore. The lighthouse dates back to 1887 and wasn't exactly built under the best working conditions (dangerous, crashing waves, flying debris, etc.). While it operated for 70 years, it was never open to the public. There are legends about a child's grave left by an early keeper, a grey lady, a former keeper who loved the lighthouse so much that his ghost roams the structure, and Native American stories about the haunting of nearby underwater tunnels. Even without ghosts, it wasn't always the safest workplace. Being closed and essentially inaccessible just makes the place all the more intriguing, which is always good for the imagination.

Seeing it last weekend made me want to dig out the beachy ghost story I started a few years ago as part of a failed NaNoWriMo attempt. These days I don't seem to make a lot of time for writing anymore. The truth is that it's only through a hastily made gentlewoman's agreement under the thrall of the road and sea air that I have recently even resurrected the idea of updating this blog more often. At this point, doing so still feels a little creaky and awkward, but having the deadline of five posts a week helps me in the same way that my past January blogstravaganza project did. It even has a bonus in that the agreed upon "five posts a week" sounds far less daunting than blogstravaganza's "every day" did. Even God took a day to rest and we all know that I am WAY lazier than God ever was!

2 comments:

Jen said...

Woo! I agree about the deadline, even though I fell down on the job last week. But I'm back in action this week! Our gentlewoman's agreement allows for getting back on the horse, I think.

nice lighthouse picture. My camera doesn't zoom that far - I wonder where the little entryway in the rock goes?

Martina said...

I do not know, but doesn't it make you want to get a kayak (I know how you love them!) and find out?

And, yes, any good gentlewoman's agreement is not unreasonable and allows for getting back on the horse. (For example, I didn't write quite five posts last week either, but what I did write is better than none, so I feel good about it!)

P.s. Sorry I never called about the movie. Work got icky. Want to go this week?