Conference

Well, I got back last evening from conference and I was exhausted. I'm finally getting my energy back this evening. And in a good news/bad news kind of thing, I also get tomorrow off to further recuperate - Tropical Storm Edouard is expected to pass over us tomorrow so the site has closed for tomorrow.

Anyway, I'm going to try to get as much as I can about conference in this post, pictures and additional details may follow in future posts though. I'll start by saying that after Atlanta, I posted a list of things I'd learned in Atlanta and I just have to say that, when you have the same roommate, some of the things continue to hold true. That's all I'm saying.

Okay, so, I left home Saturday morning, dropped the dogs off at the kennel and headed towards the airport. When I got to the parking lot to leave my car, I was told that valet parking was all that was available. They said it was the same price as me parking the car so I said fine. Wasn't crazy about leaving my keys with someone who knew I was going to be gone eight days (I had to tell them that). I wrote down my mileage (and thanked God that I'd told my neighbor that no matter what he was told - I was NOT moving last week!) and got on the bus to the airport.

You know how you send your purse through the x-ray machine? Well, any time they run it through several times, it's not a good thing. I have a metal nail file I'd forgotten to take out (remembered on the return trip though - yes they let me keep it, which surprised me) that has a sharp point to it. When they asked me what I had in my purse with a sharp point, I told them my nail file. They picked it up with two fingers (well a finger and a thumb) and carried it over to this table where they proceeded to wipe it down so they could test it for bomb components residue (I asked). When the test came up negative (big surprise there HA! although I freaked a little when the alarm on the machine went off - obviously indicating an all clear), they gingerly (two fingered again) unzipped the area I told them held the offending nail file, made a visual and then released me to go - file intact.

Caught my flight and sat next to a man who told me a story of how the last time he went home (he lives in Washington but was working in Houston), his neighbor died in his arms. I didn't know what to say to that, but of course he didn't wait for one, and instead told me - in great detail - how it all happened. Now, I won't bore you all with the details but I just want to say that, in the end, his neighbor is alive and well but apparently has medical issues.

I made it to SF and caught the shuttle bus to the B&B I stayed at the first part of the week. It's a very nice B&B and gave me a visual and lots of info on how a B&B can work. Considering one of my stories is set in a B&B, I consider that a good thing - a very good thing.

Gabrielle arrived later that evening and she and her friend, Tamara, drove me around SF, including the Golden Gate Bridge (GGB). I whipped out my camera to get a night time shot of the GGB, only to get a great shot of the back of Gabrielle's head. I'm good with a camera like that. When I tried to get a second shot of the bridge, the battery was dead. *sigh* We drove around some more and then headed back to the B&B.

I should point out that the B&B had four guests rooms and only two bathrooms. That first night there and the next morning proved to be interesting in the way of getting to actually use the bathrooms. Kind of comical in the way of doors opening and closing and peeking out to see if it was "free".

That night I had a bizarre dream that involved my co-workers and bad people. In the dream I was standing across the street from my house with the bad man chasing me. My neighbor's garage door and front door were open so I thought if I called out to him, he could save me from the bad man. Well, you know how when you try to scream out in a dream but nothing will come out? That wasn't really a problem in my dream. I mean, it was a little choked out but it was still a pretty darn loud scream of "MARTIN, HELP!!!!" I woke up with a start, then realizing that I'd actually screamed out loud, I froze, waiting to see if I'd woken Gabrielle up. I sat there for a couple of minutes and she didn't move or show any signs of having heard me. Then I realized, while she might be a heavy sleeper, the other guests of the B&B might not be so I strained to hear any activity in the rest of the house. Nothing. No one was coming to save me from the bad guys. Which, since I wasn't really in jeopardy, was okay - I'm glad I didn't wake anyone. On the other hand, what if I had really been in trouble? I would've been so screwed - and not in a good way. Just saying.

Anyway, the next morning we got up to a wonderful breakfast and headed out to see the sights. We went into town and got a week-long bus pass, which pretty much covered all methods of transportation in SF. We took a trolley down to Fisherman's Wharf and spent the afternoon (along with a good amount of money) walking around there. The camera ran out of space before long and I started deleting shots that I couldn't really tell what they were. (Seeing what I have left, I may have deleted the wrong ones. *sigh*) Oh, and we saw the Naked Cowboy. He was on one side of the street, while on the other, someone was preaching the hell, fire and brimstone speech. It was kind of interesting.

We caught a couple of buses and made our way back towards the B&B, but not before stopping by a little coffee shop around the corner, where we discovered they had internet and food. The quiche looked good to me so I had them give me one to go because I wasn't hungry at that moment. (I ended up giving it to the host at the B&B before we left because, well, turns out there isn't a microwave at the B&B, not to mention, I was never hungry in the evening when it would have been convenient to eat it. It looked really good though.)

We didn't have any issues with the bathroom that night - or the next morning for that matter. One lady and a couple had checked out but another couple and another lady had checked in. The next morning I went upstairs to take my shower and came across the new lady. I just said hello in passing on the way to the bathroom but on the way out, she stopped me. Turns out she was there for the conference as well. A nice lady from Canada. She has some sightseeing she wanted to do and it worked out well because Gabrielle was wanting to take a break from all the walking, plus she wanted to do some writing. However, the three of us took a bus to town and Heather Ann (the other guest) and I deposited Gabrielle at Borders while we went on the Victorian Homes tour. (Very nice tour, by the way. We saw the house where Mrs. Doubtfire was filmed. It was interesting to find out that all the house scenes were filmed inside that house - with the exception of the kitchen scenes, and only because the kitchen wasn't big enough to fit the camera equipment inside it and the owner wasn't willing to let their walls be knocked down. They were, however, willing to let farm animals be brought in for the party scene!) I whipped out my camera to show a picture of the Naked Cowboy to Heather Ann only to discover that my camera battery was dead - again. I purchased a disposable camera at that point and gave up on my digital for the remainder of the trip.

Afterwards, Heather Ann and I collected Gabrielle and had lunch at Lori's Diner. We left there and took a bus to Coit Tower and then worked our way down through a quaint little neighborhood and saw the wild parrots flying overhead.

The next day, Gabrielle was on a roll and wanted to do some more writing to Heather Ann and I headed out. We went first to Haight and Asbury. We spent some time there and got hit up for money and asked to sign a petition to help the homeless.

From there we went to Golden Gate Park where we walked around for what seemed like forever (we later looked at the map and discovered we hadn't seen one quarter of the park!) and ended up at the Conservatory. We walked around there for a while and then caught a bus to the GGB (by the way, if you need directions in SF, just open a city map and people will come to you and offer directions). Having been told we could catch a bus on the other side, we walked across the GGB, only to find that no one seemed to know anything about where we might catch that bus on the other side. Several calls and many attempts to stop taxis later, we found the bus and rode into Sausalito. We walked around the town (cute town, by the way) and then caught the ferry back.

We made our way back to the B&B where we all agreed we were exhausted. But, I wanted a margarita so Gabrielle went online and located a place that sounded good for a margarita. So we walked the 20 miles uphill (both ways) to the margarita place, only to discover that they didn't have the strawberry margarita I wanted - so I had water instead. Yeah, I know, how do you go from a margarita to water, I don't know - but it isn't the first time that's happened. We still had a good time though.

Wednesday we (Gabrielle and I - Heather Ann stayed at the B&B for the duration) checked out of the B&B and headed over to the hotel - first thing. And by first thing, I mean around 9:30 a.m. Unfortunately our room wasn't ready until almost 3:00 p.m. Ugh!

Anyway, once we finally got in our room, we got ready for the Literacy Signing. (You know, I'm wondering now if we did something I can't remember because we were actually late to the signing.) By this point, our third roommate, Linda Carol, had joined us. I had a plan. . . you see, I was the official stalker of the conference this year.

I headed straight over to Amanda Ashby and introduced myself as her official stalker (she'd actually known about it for months - I was just making it official at the signing). She offered me a Tim Tam and well, despite what I'd previously heard, they are the best chocolate I've ever had. Let me just say, if I hadn't already committed to stalking her, that would have done it. OMG they're so good.

I was working the signing so I hung around to the end. I don't want to bad mouth anyone but um, the clean up was handled completely differently this year and it wasn't the most organized thing I've ever seen. This may have been my last year to volunteer for that.

That was followed up by the RWAOnline Chapter party, where I beelined for (and therefore ate more) Tim Tams.

Thursday morning, Linda Carol and I took a bus up to Twin Peaks. We got back just in time for the luncheon. You know, I had never read Victoria Alexander, but I will now! OMG that woman is hysterical. A few days later I ran across someone trying to find the goody room. It sounded like a good idea to check it out again so I offered to walk with her there. I hadn't realized who it was at the time but it was Victoria Alexander. Very nice lady.

Anyway, Thursday I either did workshops or book signings - maybe both, I'd have to check. That evening, I went to the Diva Dinner. It was a lot of fun. Met a lot of fun, interesting people. :)

Friday was filled with workshops and book signings. That evening I went to a party hosted by a Houston writer. Had a lot of fun.

Saturday was more workshops and book signings - plus, I finally got my margarita! The awards ceremony was fun, followed by dessert and a visit to the bar (no drink for me though) before I went to bed to get a couple of hours sleep before I had to get up to catch the shuttle bus back to the airport (left at 4:25 a.m. - and the lines at the airport were surprising LONG! at that hour).

Went to pick up my babies before I headed home, where I promptly became a couch potato, until about an hour ago, when I started this post. :)

I took today off and, as I said, get tomorrow off as well. All in all, a good conference. :)

Countdown

In less than 24 hours I should be in San Francisco. I. Can't. Wait.

I've been spending today doing laundry and packing. I was going to get my hair cut and my eyebrows waxed but given how that's gone for me recently, maybe not. :)

I have a fear that I'm going to forget something terribly important. Like, right now, I keep thinking about packing my toothpaste. I bought a special one to take with me. By the time I'm done with this post, I guarantee I will have forgotten about packing it.

Now I'm thinking about my cell phone charger. Something else that definitely needs to go and I hope I don't forget.

Something else just came to mind and I've already forgotten what it was. Hopefully it will come back to me at some point.

A friend loaned (but said I could have if I liked it) me her luggage to take with me (unfortunate incident with the zipper on mine at Christmas). It's not quite as big as mine but I'm flying Southwest and I can check two pieces of luggage and carry on two pieces of luggage and you know what - I am. By the way, is it tacky that it doesn't all match (hers all matches and mine all matches - it's just that I'm bringing one of mine to compensate for all I'm bringing)?

The dogs have all been blissfully calm today - hardly gone out at all, which is a bit troublesome for me.

Anyway, I've printed out my boarding pass (20 minutes after I could and I ended up with number 51!!!), B&B reservation confirmation, shuttle bus confirmations, workshop schedules and the corresponding workshop printouts (for those I think I'd like to attend), phone lists - I think that's it for printing.

I'm taking my backlog (assuming I pack them) of People magazines to read on the plane so that I can, uh, pass them on to my friend when I'm done. :)

I'm (assuming it will fit in something I'm taking) packing one of those little thingies (technical name here) that you load things on, strap it down and wheel it around as if it's light as a feather (for hauling books to the post office for shipping).

Now, tell me, what am I forgetting to do and/or pack?

Oh, I remember something I was going to ask...I have a digital camera but it's not one that has a stick with it. It only holds so many pictures, period - and it's not going to be enough, I guarantee you. Should I take it and/or get disposables when I arrive?

Fill in the blanks

I went to a training session today. It was the first half of an Administrative Excellence course (I took the second half last month). I'll start by saying that I really don't know what it had to do with Admin training but both sections were fun.

Anyway, we did a little exercise today where we had to fill in the blanks with something other than the standard cliches you'd expect. Something that would lighten things up and express your humor. The example given was:

He looked like something the cat refused to drag in!

Okay, with that in mind, I'm going to post the sentences here and I'd love to see your offerings in the comments - and then I'll post mine.

Here goes:

1. If at first you don't succeed _________________________.

2. She was mad as a ________________________________.

3. It was raining ____________ and __________________.

4. A penny saved is ________________________________.

5. A _____________ a day keeps the ________________ away.

6. His face was as red as a ____________________________.

Go to it. :)

Hurricane Preparedness

It's that time of year again. The time when those of us in the Gulf Coast brace ourselves for hurricanes. You know, I didn't so much think about them until Katrina and Rita three years ago. Wow! Has it really been that long ago?

Anyway, five minutes after Rita entered the Gulf of Mexico you couldn't find non-perishables or plywood in this area to save your life. And since I didn't start paying attention to it until they said it was headed towards Galveston, I was SOL. They also started advertising the evacuation line. I live just north of I-10 (and by just north, I mean I can hear the traffic from my house) and the cut off was everything south of I-10. My reaction was that if everyone south of I-10 was evacuating and I lived that close to I-10, I was evacuating too. Well, I spent 15 hours on the road and got all of 50 miles away before I turned around and came home. At one point I thought I was going to lose my dog, Max, because I'd forgotten to bring the water and it was 100 degrees outside (literally) and he wasn't looking good. It was pretty bad. Now, when I look at the cut-off for evacuation I'm more like "I'm fine - I'm north of the evacuation line". I don't plan to go unless I really have to.

Which is why I do more preparing these days. For example, I buy a gallon of water each week when I go to the grocery store. They say you should have one gallon for each person for each day. Although it's just me, I do have three dogs to consider. Right now I have seven gallons of water - just in case.

But, I decided that I need to invest in some velcro this season. Instead of plywood, if a hurricane heads this way this year (which I hope one doesn't - but just in case), I plan to wrap my house in velcro. Why you ask? Well, I came to this decision while filling in for a co-worker this past week. I had to sit at her desk and deal with her set up Monday - Wednesday. This is someone who has a lot of ergonomic issues and complaints. We've ordered special furniture for her, special keyboards, special chairs - you name it and we've probably bought it for her. She chucks all of it and then puts her workstation in the most awkward positions imaginable and then complains of aches and pains. It makes me nuts. Anyway, I was sitting at her workstation this week and her phone is all but across the room. I wanted to move it closer but it was strangely stuck in place.

Now, I should point out that our phones sit on bases. The base interlocks with the phone and unless you really work at it, the phone will not separate from the base. The base provides a bit of an angle for the phone so that you can read the digital display looking straight at the phone (if that makes sense). But anyway, most staff supports (myself included) set their phones on stands to elevate them. This co-worker does this as well.

So, when I went to pull the phone towards me - it didn't budge. It didn't move. It stayed right where it was. That so wasn't working for me so I grabbed the phone and jerked it - hard. After working for a while on it, I finally got it. Well sort of anyway. I had pulled the phone of its base. The base, on the other hand, was still firmly velcro'd to the stand, which was velcro'd to the desk. Same for the keyboard. I all but jerked the screws that secured the keyboard tray to the desk out and the keyboard itself never budged.

So forget plywood. Forget duct tape. When it comes to preparing my house for a hurricane, I'm going with velcro! :)

Lasting Relationships

A long, long time ago I heard (or was told) that women set the tone of a romantic relationship. For example, if the guy starts out by walking on her and she just takes it from him, she's setting herself up to be treated that way for the rest of the relationship - however long it may last. If, down the line, she decides she's had enough, the man it taken aback and balks at it because he can't understand why something he's been doing from day one is suddenly a problem. He'll tell the woman she's the problem and probably convince her of that. I think I read somewhere that, statistically, married men lived longer than single men and single women lived longer than married women. Why is that? Someone said it was because the men were sucking the life out of the women but, well...

For the most part, I really like being single. I don't have to account to another human being for my actions. I can come and go as I please. I can spend my income any way I choose. I just have a lot of freedom. And I enjoy that.

On the other hand, when things aren't perfect and I need help, there's just me to figure things out. When things get bad at work and I'd rather ram sharp objects in my eyes while crawling over red-hot coals on my stomach, I have to suck it up and go into the office because working is not an option for me - I have to work.

All this is leading up to reunion guy (Don) and my online dating experience. Last weekend I was a bit giddy about having been "reunited" with Don. It was a lot of fun discussing old times and how we each perceived things. I felt completely at ease with him - totally comfortable. He gave me his phone number and email address. I felt comfortable emailing him from my personal email - I didn't create a phony one for this purpose. I didn't immediately offer up my phone number though, because he didn't ask for it. I also had no intention of calling him - I was raised that you don't call men, and for the most part I don't.

At the urging of many people, I finally offered up my home number to him without his asking for it. (I gave him the home number because any other number and he could/would be calling me at work and things are just too busy there for that now.) I also threw something in that email saying something to the effect of that we'd covered enough ancient history and asked about his life over the last 25 years. I specifically told him that I'd love to hear about his wife (who passed away a couple of years ago) and daughter, if he was comfortable talking about them. Yet, he seems stuck in the past. The only things I've learned about Don and the past 25 years is that his wife passed away, that he has a daughter and that he's working for a chemical company - and I learned all that from his profile. The only new information I've gotten from him is the name of the company he works for and I only got that because he sent me email from his work!

He keeps bringing up my marriage. I shared with him some of the things my ex and I went through before we got married and why I still married him, despite having doubts about him - and he seems to be focusing on that. Seems to be looking at it as I'm broken now and need to be fixed - and that he's the one to fix me. First email like that had me responding with "let me just clarify" and I proceeded to explain that I was giving him an example - not complaining about my life. He responded with something that came across like maybe I was in denial - but he could help with that. My reaction was to back way off.

He informed me that he was going to call me Wednesday evening - or at least try to. I wasn't at all upset when he didn't. I got an email from him Thursday suggesting he might call that night (he didn't come right out and say that but I got that from the email), so I came home from work and unplugged my phone. Then, about 9:15 Thursday night, I got an email from him telling me to get ready for his call, which would be coming soon. Normally, the time would tick me off but he was at work and I totally get that. No, my problem was that he just expected me to be home waiting for his email and call. Totally ticked me off.

He sent an email yesterday morning saying he'd tried to call and asked when he could call during the day yesterday - and could we meet up today. I responded, letting him know that I had unplugged my phone and intended to stay home this weekend, relaxing. I think I was pretty nice about it while also getting my point across - I wasn't going to see him this weekend. I got an email from him this morning telling me he wouldn't have been able to see me today anyway. It came across as his idea. Whatever. He also asked, again, when he can call. I haven't responded.

Then there's his pictures. He looks old. I know that shouldn't matter, but it does - apparently. I showed them to a couple of friends of mine (including SCG - yes I told him everything . . . everything) and they all think he looks about 20 years older than I do. That's a problem for me, for so many reasons. But, a good friend and SCG both think I should still give him a chance. Why? I have no idea.

Meanwhile, I'm wondering what it will cost to have my home number and email address changed...

In Shock!

I told a friend of mine yesterday that I'd blog about an eHarmony discovery I made. I didn't blog about it last night because, well, I was re-reading old posts to see if I needed to delete and/or amend any posts before I gave it out to someone (from eHarmony) who'd trusted me with their myspace information. And well, since this has always been a "secret" blog, I've kind of been pretty open on it so I wasn't sure if I should give it out "as is", if you know what I mean. I read about a year's worth of posts and didn't see anything I thought was particularly bad (although I do know of one dated further back that I wouldn't necessarily show this person).

I didn't post this morning because I was too busy replying to an email from this person. But I'm here now.

Anyway, remember eHarmony match Don? The one I thought I might know? It is him! At each step I worried that he would close the match before I found out for certain but I decided that, no matter what, I had to be honest in my answers (although I did keep in mind that I might know this person). As things progressed I thought to myself that if it wasn't the Don I knew, it was a Don I thought I wanted to get to know. So either way, I didn't want the match to be closed.

Thing was, he always seemed to take a few days to respond to things so it seemed like it was really going slow. I guess I had posed some questions to him and was waiting on a response when he gave me a photo nudge without responding to the questions. I thought the match might get closed at that point because it seems to be pretty important to some of the guys on there. And in case I haven't mentioned it before, I put in my profile that I don't have a picture to post so if someone wanted to close a match based on that, it was okay with me because they wouldn't be a good fit for me anyway - words to that effect. My response, though, was to give him a photo nudge. He has photos posted but to be shown "at a later stage" (we've exchanged email addresses and I still can't see them!). I guess he got the message because he responded to the questions and we progressed from there.

At the open-ended questions phase, I asked him about his extended family and what holidays were like. I figured his answer would give me a better idea whether it was the Don I thought it was or not. I was all but convinced by his response but there was a sliver of doubt there. I asked a couple of friends of mine what they thought - whether I should ask him or not tell him I suspected I knew him. They didn't think I should ask but I felt it would be dishonest to not ask. I didn't want to play games. Figured the worst thing that would happen is he would close the match - without answering!

Since I've already mentioned that it is him and that we've exchanged email addresses, I think it's safe to assume he responded to me. It's been fun catching up with an old friend. It's been hysterical to hear how we viewed things that happened differently. I just found out yesterday that it was him but we've exchanged a couple of long emails and I guess it seems longer. Plus, it almost feels like no time has passed since we were last spoke (a hundred years ago!). It's just kind of weird but I can't stop smiling. :)

Sucked in

A friend of mine is a huge fan of The Bachelor series. I'd never really watched it but the little bits I'd seen, well, I just didn't get it. Really didn't get it. But I know lots of people have to get it because it's been around for a while. Anyway, right now I couldn't tell you to save my life what made me decide to watch The Bachelorette this season - but I did. And I'm hooked. I want to know who DeAnna picks and if it's a love match or just a potential love match. I've been amazed at the choices she's made. Not because I thought they were good choices but because I didn't get them. I don't get the appeal of Graham. Never have. A person's personality can make them more or less attractive to me and Graham seemed lacking in that area - to me - so he was never this sexy thing that everyone seems see. I've been stunned at how long he's lasted. Now, I will say that on the home town dates he showed a different side of himself - something we haven't seen on air before. THAT Graham was fun and sexy. Until they sat on the bench to talk, when his appeal bottomed out again. I'm telling you, if Graham hadn't been the one to go Monday I would have lost all enthusiasm I've been getting for the show.

On the other hand, I'm just a little bit in love with Jesse now. He doesn't have classic good looks by any means but he's a good guy. He's the kind of guy you can have fun with, who would respect you, and who would take care of you. Major sexy in my book. And when they walked into his house and he explained that thing on the wall about the foundation for kids, it really touched me. It brought a smile to my heart and a tear to my eye. That's when I fell in love with him. Plus, I LOVED his parents. Seriously, they were great. His dad came out in a cap that had long hair attached to it, as a joke. Just shows they have great senses of humor and lots of personality. You see where Jesse gets it from. I didn't really get the labeling in his kitchen and I have to be honest, from what I've been hearing about it and others' reaction to it, I'm thinking it could be something that, over time, could result in justifiable homicide. But at the time I wasn't thinking like that. And since he's so respectful of the people in his life, he might be willing to give that up...especially if it could save his life. ;) I think Jesse has a good shot at being DeAnna's top choice.

Jason is another contender for DeAnna's heart. For me, though, he lost me early on. On the very first night I fell a little in love with him but once he had some alone time with DeAnna and he didn't tell her about his son, he lost me. My friend, the one who got me hooked, keeps telling me that they never know when they're going to be interrupted so she can forgive him for that. Okay, I can see that. BUT, when he got the one-on-one date he wasn't as open as I thought he should be. It was like her opinion of it mattered to him. As if, if she had a problem with it he would get rid of his son. Seriously, that's how it came across to me. I fell instantly OUT of love with him at that point. He won points back when he was there for her after she'd let Robert and Fred both go, but not enough for him to be the sexy, appealing man he'd once been to me. My friend fell in love with him on the home town visit and thinks DeAnna should choose him. She also doesn't think DeAnna would have brought him this far along if she wasn't going to pick him - because of his son. He's a bit of a dud to me.

Then there's Jeremy. I don't really know what to think of him. He's just kind of there for me. Not appealing. Not sexy. But not, NOT either of those things either. But listening to her the other night she kept saying, "he's just perfect. he has the perfect job, the perfect house, the perfect (whatever)". And all I could think was, nothing's perfect. My advice to DeAnna is, if it looks too good to be true, it probably is. There were just things on the home town date that just gave me the creeps about Jeremy. There are some that think Jeremy will go the distance but for the life of me, I can't see why.

Oh, but the point of the blog was, my friend was telling her boyfriend how funny it was that I'd never watched the show and now I can't wait until Monday nights to see what DeAnna does with the men. I mean, I really still don't get the appeal of the show but I'll be there Monday night, watching with the rest of America.

P.S. I was going to tell you how my friend has also got me watching So You Think You Can Dance (another show I don't get the appeal of) but this blog post ran longer than I meant for it to so maybe another time..... ;)

Okay, I'll play

My Town Monday

So, I popped over to Alyssa's blog and she was following Travis Erwin's lead to spotlight someone - a celebrity - from your town. I knew (or believe anyway) that Jennifer Garner's grandmother lives here but, well, she's not the celebrity.

Anyway, in my google search, I discovered that Renee Zellweger was born in Baytown, Texas! That's right, born on April 25, 1969, Renée graduated from University of Texas, Austin with a BA degree in Radio, Film and Television.

Her family now lives in Katy, Texas. And in case I haven't mentioned it, I lived in Katy for four years. Both are relatively small towns on either end of Houston (Baytown is east of Houston and Katy is west of Houston).

So, there you go. Renee Zellweger is from the town I now live in. What celebrity is from your town?

The blog about nothing

Remember the Seinfeld episode where Elaine invited George's girlfriend to the movie? George was upset because his two "worlds" were colliding. Well, I have a similar situation going on at work. See, I used to talk about my friends from law to my friends in engineering and vice versa. Then recently part of my group moved their offices down by law AND a friend of mine from law came upstairs to my area and met SCG. Worlds are colliding!!!

Speaking of work, things are not much better there and I'm picking up old habits. You know, of the eating-under-stress variety. I've gained ten pounds in the last month. I still went to Weight Watchers though (and had to pay) because I figured if I was having to pay for it, I'd get more motivated to get the weight back off.

And since we're talking about getting the weight back off, I should mention that I've been going to the gym the last few days (7-day free pass to 24-hour fitness gym). Water aerobics and yoga may look like wimpy classes but they both kicked my rear! The step-aerobic class I took this morning had less of an impact than they did. I'm thinking of joining for the summer, since I don't anticipate having a lot of time in the fall - what with school and all. The company I work for gets a good discount on memberships.

This online dating thing is going slow. I guess it was last weekend that I decided to take the bull by the horns and quit waiting for things to happen. I went through the 50+ "matches" that were open and either closed them or sent out questions. I've only heard back from two or three - one of which closed the match because they were pursuing another relationship. One of the ones I closed replied back that they thought we had potential and wanted me to reconsider. I re-read his profile and I only see two things that would have made me close the match - but one was a biggie. And there is one match who I think I may know:

Don is a 50 year old laboratory analyst - the age fits. We went to the same church (it's a huge church so that doesn't guarantee that I know him). He was married for 23 years when his wife passed away last year - which would be about right (length of marriage, that is) if it were who I think it is. He did mission work - again fits the man I know. Where he lives fits, as do his answers to my questions. He has pictures but they haven't been released for me to view yet so... Oh and if it is the guy I think it is, we went out once many, many years ago. I thought it was a "as friends" thing but, apparently, he thought it was a "date". We had a very nice time but he never "invited" me out like that again. After I married (anniversary was 25 years ago this past Wednesday), I saw him and he confessed to me that he'd had strong feelings for me. I don't think I ever suspected that but I do know that when he told me I'd wished I'd known at the time because he was such a good guy. Meanwhile, I'm just waiting for the time when I know for sure if this the same Don or not.

So, those are some things going on in my world. What's going on in yours?

Flashbacks

A couple of years ago I was so excited to be leaving the department I worked in. We had a manager that micro-managed everything. You'd get yelled at for working too much overtime and then get yelled at because you weren't working enough overtime. You'd get called into meetings where they'd yell at everyone collectively, telling everyone that they're not being productive enough during the work day - and this would take two hours for them to tell you this sufficiently. It was awful and I was miserable. When I found out I was "escaping" the group, I literally skipped down the hall singing. Literally!

Okay, so for the better part of the next just over two years, I was happy. I mean, there were some things that weren't great at times but no matter what else I knew, I knew I could go to management and freely discuss what was going on without fear of punishment. For that time I was allowed to work on my own. I was treated like a responsible adult. I was shown respect. And I got used to it.

Then, on May 5, 2008 at approximately 4:03 p.m. my world changed. The manager who treated his staff like all managers should treat their staff, called me into his office. He said - and I quote - "Lucy (okay, so it's not verbatim but you get the idea!), there's an announcement going out tomorrow...and your name's on it."

When he said that I had a sinking feeling because a then-friend of mine had told me earlier in the day that she had gotten a job she had applied for. A job that was also within our group. They hadn't announced what they would do with HER job but when I found out she got the job (and at the time I thought she deserved the job and wanted her to get it...things change though - but that's a whole other story) I told her how happy I was for her but I hoped they didn't move me into her job.

It was at approximately 4:03 p.m on May 5, 2008 that I found out I was in fact getting her job. (here is where my head hits the table in a "just kill me now" kind of way) On the plus side of getting her job, it really is a good opportunity for me in the big picture. On the down side of getting her job, her manager is the Nazi boss from hell. Seriously.

I wanted to get off on the right foot with my new boss so the day after I found out I was going to be working for him I went to see him. I told him that I wanted to discuss his expectations for me. He told me he didn't have time and I've gone back to him I can't tell you how many times to try to take up this conversation with him again and to date, we have not had that conversation.

We did, however, have a safety walk-thru last week in my office. A safety walk-thru is where one person looks around your area and identifies things that may be unsafe and if they truly are unsafe, you have to change them.

Okay. I can handle that, right? First thing he mentioned was that the shelves I had moved into my office weren't secured. A valid comment. I got it fixed. Next thing he tells me is that he doesn't like the printer on my desk. He also doesn't like this little stand that I bought - since I got the new job - for my desk. He didn't want me to have my lotion, calendar or candle on my desk either. Not to mention that he had a problem with the inspirational quotes I had saved from my dove candies - those he wadded up and threw away, saying I didn't need them. I was forced to throw out boxes that I was saving for shipping. Never mind that the boxes were stored under a table and weren't visible unless you crawled under my desk. And yes, he crawled under my desk. I had a second printer in my office - a color printer. It was used for the job by the person who had the job before me. Nazi boss from hell told me I had to get rid of it - no discussion (let's just say, SCG benefited from me having a "safety" walk-thru). He wouldn't let me keep a briefcase I'd gotten from the company. He went through my drawers and threw out more personal stuff. I just couldn't believe what he was doing.

And so it went. By the time it was all over I was just dumb-struck. I mean, what the heck was all that? But I'm new so I'm busy taking measures to comply with his requests/demands. Then the next morning I woke up pissed. I'm talking royally pissed. After all, what the !*&$@ did a color printer have to do with safety? Or boxes that weren't visible unless you crawled under the desk? Not to mention that he had no right to wad up and throw away something I was saving! There was just something wrong about that entire situation. But, I'm being the good girl and still trying to do what I was told.

Now there was a lot more going on than this safety walk-thru, like ugly emails to me for no apparent reason (ie he cc'd me on a meeting notice so that I could secure a room for the meeting. I responded with a tentative acceptance - so that it would be on my calendar and I would know where he was but my time would reflect me as available if anyone else needed me during that time. I never, for one second, thought I was invited to the meeting. Yet he sent me an email saying "You are not invited." Yeah, I knew that - and I replied and let him know that.). So it's been really hard on me. Yet, Thursday, when I felt sick to my stomach (and went home), I wasn't convinced it was the job. That is until I was still sick Friday until about 3:00 p.m. (you know, when it's too late for me to go into the office that day) and felt fine until I got up this morning and thought about having to go in to work with him. Which is how things were in my old group. I so don't want to go back to those days. Towards the end I was throwing up in my office trash can on a regular basis.

But anyway, being off for a day and a half gave me some time to think. That printer he wanted me to move is pretty big. If I moved it to where he told me to move it, it was going to create additional problems for me. So first thing this morning I went into SCG's office (he's away on business) and borrowed his tape measure. The printer is too big to move where he wants me to move it...it would create a safety hazard if I moved. And I told him so, so it gets to stay where it is. Yay!

Oh, but when I got back into the office today, he'd turned off my radio and moved something off my desk. They were scheduled to move the printer on Friday but I'd emailed them, asking to change the date since I wasn't there. I thought the stuff that was moved was because the computer people had come by and it was in their way. But no, Nazi boss had moved it...he told me so. He said, "did you notice I moved your thing?" I said, "yes, did you notice I moved it right back?"

Meanwhile I have an email in to HR, asking how many times he can refuse to let me post for other jobs. I don't think they want to put it in writing but I'm going to press them until they do because I've worked for a Nazi boss from hell before and I just don't think I can survive another tour of duty with another one.

Ahhh, the joys of the new job.

The Search for Mr. Right

Who knew that finding a suitable date would be so difficult? It's funny because when you complete all the questions you have they give you this thing to fill out on how important each thing is. For example, you give an age range and then you have to mark whether it's really important, somewhat important or not important at all. Only, I found out that it really is important how you mark those things because well, if, like me, you mark things as not that important (because I didn't want to come off as inflexible and rigid), they look outside of your criteria - way outside.

And that resulted in me receiving a bunch of "flexible matches", which I later found out meant they didn't match my criteria but, since I was so flexible and all, they thought they'd throw them in there. I kept getting matches for men over 60. I mean, there's really nothing wrong with that but that's not really who I want to date, you know? So, I went in and made a point of changing my age range in the system. Yet I still kept getting these matches of men in their 60s. This was still before I realized that I was getting these matches because I wanted to be "flexible".

Now, the shortest distance you can list is 30 miles, which frankly, for me - regardless of gas prices - is more than I want to travel to date someone. I don't even want to split the distance there...it's just too far for me. However, I had noted on the questionnaire that distance wasn't that important to me.

It wasn't until they gave me at least two matches that were - get this - in another state that it started to be important to me. Because, let's be clear, I don't live near any state line. That's when I made a point of figuring out why I was getting so many matches that weren't within my criteria. On the other hand, now that things are more important, I'm not getting as many matches.

Oh well, I still have 56 open matches - four of which are in the "communicating" stage. There have been 59 matches closed out by either me or the other party. And all of my "I'm not sure" feelings have lead to a closure, one way or another.

The last closing was on Beverly, age 50. I closed based on the physical distance between us but I'm wondering if I don't need to go back and check the importance of the gender of the match..... ;)

Interesting dreams

I've been having some interesting dreams lately. I think my favorite (of late anyway) came Monday night, after I'd watched The Bachelorette. Now, I have to point out that I've never watched this show in the past. One of my best friends in the whole world loves it and wants to talk about it all the time so I kind of follow what's happening without actually seeing a second of the show. She knows I don't get the show and don't understand the appeal of it but we're good enough friends that we can both respect each other's opinions on things like this.

Anyway, for some reason or another I decided to watch this season of the show. I watched the first one and all the while I was thinking to myself "I so don't get this show". Then I called my friend the next day and told her that...again (she hears it from me all the time). But, I did decide after that first show that I was going to watch the season. You know, kind of like that train wreck that you have to stop and stare at. You don't really understand why you have to do it but you just can't not do it. That's kind of how it is.

So, about the dream. I had just finished watching Monday night's show when I went to bed. In my dream, I was the Bachelorette. And for those that have never seen it (including this season) DeAnna has been handing out roses to the guys. These past two weeks she's given three roses out before the rose ceremony. If they get a rose before the rose ceremony, they know they're safe - they're not going home that week. The first week was "first impression" roses. I'm not sure what the second week roses were about. I don't know if this is how it works every season or not but that's how it's working this season.

But anyway, so I'm the Bachelorette and I have roses to hand out. Only I don't have red roses like DeAnna has been passing out. I have black roses that I'm handing out. And those roses go to the men that I don't like. They don't have to wait for the rose ceremony to find out that they're history - they have to leave then. lol

I told SCG (secret crush guy) about the dream the next day and he said he totally could see me doing that. Said that would be a fun version to watch. lol

Anyway, that was my dream and I found it kind of amusing - but then I'm easily amused. ;)

All in the name of Research

I promise not to have daily updates on the online dating but, well, I am an official member now. I signed up for a three month membership. It will run out about the time school starts back up for me and I figure if nothing develops before then that I won't have time to continue. So I'm giving myself three months of "fun", if that's what you want to call it.

I've "closed" several more matches today. One had looked pretty promising on his profile - he said he loves dogs and just lost his dog, who was 17 years old. Plus he had a little country place that he likes to hang out it. It sounded good.

Until he got to the questions.

He only wants one night a week to himself...less time - way less time - than I want for myself.

I asked the premarital sex question of him and he wrote in "the last three". The only other option was "I'm completely opposed to it".

When asked if he dominated his relationships he said yes - translation: control freak, which is a total "no way in hell" for me.

Yet, I STILL moved on to the must haves/can't stands stage of the program, but only after I reminded myself of his love of dogs and his country place. lol

As for his must haves/can't stands, they reinforced my belief that he is a control freak and only wants someone whose world will revolve around him and his desires. Anyone who wants to have their own life or wants their needs and desires met will not be compatible for him.

Mark that one CLOSED as of 8:15 a.m. today.

Aside from that, I want to know why someone would include their official arrest mug shots as their photos. Seriously, now that I'm able to view pictures I have to wonder what these people think! And do the guys who include pictures of themselves with other women think that's appealing? I just want to say it looks like they have enough women in their lives already and I'm not willing to become part of their harem.

It's going to be an interesting three months.

Oh, and P.S. I'm a redhead, as of yesterday. ;-)

Meet the Bachelors

Bachelor #1
Jerry is a 47 year old Computer Technician and Export Manager
Jerry is the bachelor that made the crack about romance novels I mentioned a couple of posts ago. Even with the comment, I decided not to write him off immediately - I wanted to keep an open mind. So we went through the initial questions.

In response to my question regarding personal space, he said when he was at work was all the "down time" he needed - he wanted to spend the rest of his time with his partner. Uh, wrong answer for this girl! But, his dream getaway is a cottage by the sea. Made up some points with that. So we moved on to round 2...must haves and can't stands.

Let's just say he has high expectations for his partner and it doesn't seem like he's willing to give anything back.

The match was officially "closed" as of May 24, 2008, 12:44 p.m. (by me)


Bachelor #2
TOMMIE (how he was listed - in all caps) is 51 and retired - from what, I have no idea
One of TOMMIE's life skills is managing his finances (which could explain how he can be retired at 51).
His answers to my questions revealed that he is mostly serious but enjoys the occasional laugh. Okay, so not working for me as I love to laugh as much as possible - but, still keeping an open mind. But more on that in a minute.

We moved on to must haves and can't stands.
TOMMIE must have someone with a sense of humor. Yes, the guy who is mostly serious must have a woman with a sense of humor. (Note to TOMMIE, LUCY likes consistency!)

Nevertheless, we moved on to the second set of questions which we get to write ourselves, rather than draw from a list (although a list is available and I did use it).
In the question where I asked what one event in his life did he most regret he gave me a one sentence reply and then went on to give me his email and phone number, ask what I look like and tell me that he's only on the program through Monday.

Yet, I still agreed to move on to Open Communication (which is still anonymous through the website).
After a couple of emails (did I mention that he can't spell and his grammar is atrocious - who knew it would be so important to me!) of him begging me to call and/or email him, the match was officially "closed" by me on May 24, 2008 at 1:42 p.m.

Next up we have Bachelor #3
Jerry is a 61 year old Sales Rep.

Now, I have to be honest his age is a put off for me but I'm really trying to be open-minded here. However, the Sales Rep thing is even a bigger deal than the age...I don't much care for salesmen. But being open-minded and all, I answered his questions and then asked my own.

I asked how many years he had lived alone and he responded with his phone number and said he'd be leaving the service soon. Apparently he misunderstood how the question and answer thing worked!
Premarital sex? A part of the dating process.
Opinion on mate having opposite sex friends? Basically, only if any and all socializing is done in his presence.

The match was officially closed May 24, 2008 at 2:11 p.m.

Bachelor #4
David is a 42 year old truck driver. Okay, I've heard enough stories about truck drivers that I'm skeptical but still (for whatever reason) open-minded. He'd sent me an "icebreaker" and I reciprocated. Then the questions started.

I asked what his opinion of the traditional gender roles were, he basically said he was for them. Uh, wrong answer.
Premarital sex? He has no problem with it.
Laughter? Mostly serious with the occasional laugh.
Financially? He's cheap (paraphrasing here).
Opposite sex friendships? Not only does he think it's okay, he thinks they both should actively pursue them. Hmmm, I was asking because I have male friends and I don't anyone telling me I shouldn't (my ex did that and I regret that I let him talk me out of being friends with my friends) - but actively pursuing them? I don't know.

Still, I moved on to the must haves and can't stands. In a nutshell, he's looking for someone to take care of him and be his sex slave.

Match officially closed today at 3:46 p.m.

I have three others that are in the communication stage, one of which requested we "fast track" the communications (meaning you skip the questions and must haves/can't stands and go straight to open - anonymous - communication). He did this when we got to the "open question" phase and I directed a question to his "can't stands" (he can't stand gamblers and I love Las Vegas - even though I'm not really a gambler). I declined his fast track because I want him to answer the question at hand. I'm still waiting to see if he's okay with the decline.

There are two others that I've sent icebreakers to that seem promising but you never know. I guess time will tell.

Holiday Weekend

I'm so glad we have a long weekend this weekend. I brought home work because I have a 9:00 a.m. meeting on Tuesday and some things are going to be asked of me and I won't be able to give a thorough answer unless I do the work. But you know what, I don't care. I mean, who the heck schedules a meeting first thing in the morning on the first day back after a holiday? I'll be able to give a reasonably intelligent answer if I don't do the work, I just won't be able to answer ALL the questions that might come up. I've been working my tail off at work lately and I deserve the time off, so I'm taking it! I'm not working this weekend!!!

And I'm going to read as many books as time allows, starting with finishing Kasey Michael's latest, Dial M for Mischief.

I've also been playing a bit on the online dating sites I previously mentioned. eHarmony is having a free communication weekend. I had already been pretty well talked into officially joining, because someone pointed out to me that most men wouldn't pay for a membership if they weren't serious about it. There may a few scam artists out there who have paid, but not a lot. So, then eHarmony opens things up for four days. I was kind of reviewing the "matches" they've made and decided to be pretty open minded about it.

I received questions today from a man who is 51 (5 years older than me) and retired. His profile says something to the effect that he's thankful that money is not a problem for him. Then we go through the "guided communication" far enough to where he can send/ask more than the eHarmony system controls (initially you can only ask/tell things from a list provided by eHarmony). He mentions that he won't have his membership past Monday and gives me his email and home numbers - twice.

I looked back at his profile and notice that our "match" was made last night. I'm thinking that he only joined for the free communication weekend and may not be part of the "serious - I paid" crowd. I sent him an email (though the eHarmony system, and therefore somewhat anonymous) asking him when he joined or if he was just in for the free communication.

I'm thinking he's a "no".

What about you? Anyone have any big plans for the weekend?

Confession Time

Every Friday I pop over to the Killer Fiction Writer's blog and read the dating adventures of one Gemma Halliday. She's done the speed dating and the online dating and the blind dating and it just makes me want to be a bit more adventurous in that regard. I mean, I'm not looking to find "the one" to marry or anything but it would be nice to go out from time to time. I also have a friend who has done the online dating thing (which is the most scary to me in one way and least scary in another).

So anyway, a few days ago I decided to go to a couple of the online dating sites and create profiles. I wasn't officially a member of these services because no money had exchanged hands . . . that is until tonight. I joined one of them on a three day trial so that I could, er, check things out, for research purposes only, you understand. Yeah, that sounds good - research purposes.

Anyway, none of the services allow anything more than a "I'm interested/wink" type of communication unless you're a paid member. They will tell you that so-and-so wants to communicate with you but you can't respond. Well, on the first day I had a profile I received several "matches" and several with "communications". Of the "communications" most were wanting to close communication because they couldn't see pictures of me. I know men are visual people but still. I couldn't communicate back with them because, well, as I've been saying, I wasn't an official member. A couple wanted to communicate with questions. I could see their questions but couldn't respond for reasons stated above. Then I didn't log on for several days.

Even though I couldn't "communicate" with the men who wanted to close communication, I could close it from my end as well - just without a message. I decided to officially close out those who wrote me off because I didn't have pictures. And I noticed that the man who had sent questions had wanted to close communications for "other" (unidentified) reasons. I figure he was upset that I didn't respond to his questions (and guess he didn't know I couldn't) and decided I wasn't worth it. I closed that communication out as well. I was thinking strongly about it the other day anyway because well, his height was a bit of a problem for me - we're about the same height.

But, the guy who goes on the definite "close" list is the one who had this response to "last book you read":

A silly little historic romance (!?!). A charming story of how love triumphs over adversity. In it's defense...it was very well written for that type of book...some nice little hidden messages about being persistent in getting what you want out of life.

He posted questions for me which, well, I can't respond to. But wouldn't I love to tell him how offensive that comment was, as if romance books aren't well written.

Anyway, I have to confess something else here. I've never wanted to join an online dating service because, well, there's something about it that I don't like. It's kind of like this blog, a bit of a secret that few people know about me. It's not something I would tell many people I was doing so you can imagine how I felt when I was searching "who I matched" and came across someone I know...and work with!!! I didn't want to view his profile because it would tell him I had (although I don't have pictures or enough identifying information in the profile for him to know it's me) but curiosity got the better of me and I looked. Thing is, this man suggested we go out a few years ago. I mentioned that I was taking classes (I was at the time) and that certain evenings weren't open for me. Well, not only did he never ask me out, he told a mutual friend that I'd shot him down cold. We saw each other recently and he suggested that he wasn't interested in dating at all - yet he has a paid membership with an online dating service. I just find it interesting.

So, I have a three-day trial membership with an online service. Now, if I could only find a place to do the speed-dating thing...

School's out for Summer!

...well, not exactly. I still have one more test tomorrow. I won't call it a final since it's not comprehensive. But still, a test is a test.

I took my final (it was somewhat comprehensive) in Shakespeare Thursday night. She had given us a study guide which would include all of the actual questions on the test. Thing was, you wouldn't know which ones would be on the test you got so you had to study for all of them. There were two questions each on King Lear, Cymbeline and Shakespeare's Sonnets. Each test (however many versions there were) would have one of the two questions from each play/sonnet on the exam. Then there were four essay questions that covered all the material we'd studied this semester. We would be getting two on our exam and would have to write up a five paragraph comparison paper on one of them.

Okay, so I started studying. One of the questions on Cymbeline and one of the questions on the Sonnets covered things I had no idea what she was talking about. I emailed her and asked her about those questions and turns out, the "background" information she gave us in class wasn't just "fluff" information...it was on the test! She pointed me in the direction of how to find out what they meant and what she wanted, which was good. But, it made me not want to see them on the test I got.

Then, Wednesday night I spoke with friend of mine from class and we discussed what we might put on the test for a few answers. She had me doubting what I'd put on that one Sonnet question that I'd had to email the teacher about and one of them from King Lear. So now I had one question from each play/sonnet that I did NOT want to see on my test.

The night of the test we (my friend and I) were talking before class. I said that I had a fear that the two essay questions I was totally unprepared for were going to be on my exam (I was good to go on the other two - well, mostly anyway). She tells me that she's had an epiphany on one of the questions I'm saying I'm afraid will be on the test - and then she tells me what that epiphany is. I can see it but I'm still hoping it won't be on my test.

So, the instructor shows up and starts handing out the tests. I got Exam B. It consisted of the three questions I didn't want to see on my test and the two essay questions that I feared would be on my exam. That's when I had a semi turrets-like outburst and started saying some very unladylike words. I mean, what are the odds of that happening (the things on the test, I mean)?

Anyway, I decided to go with my gut reaction to the questions that my friend had made me question myself on and did my best on the third. Actually, I felt pretty okay with what I'd put down. Then, when it came to the essay portion of the exam, I totally stole my friend's epiphany. I figured it was a very slim chance that she had the same question on her exam - it's very possible that there were only two versions of the exam out there and that one test had the questions I had and the other had all the other questions on it - and even if she did have it on her exam, the instructor knew we were friends and could have figured we'd studied together to come up with the same outline.

I called my friend after class and told her what I'd done. She was totally okay with it, saying if it weren't for my notes that I'd given her, she wouldn't have had the epiphany and it wasn't one of the options on her test.

So, don't know how well I did but I felt okay at the end of the day. I got my paper back (the one I re-wrote a couple of times *sigh*) and got an A- on it. She made the following comments on it:

"Laura - I still stand by my comments that I made at our meeting about how this paper could be improved. In general, it is more interesting to focus on why characters do things, not what they do --and to delve into characterizations. You've certainly done that here; I'm just trying to get you to focus less on what and more on why. In the case of the Queen it is simpler, but with Edmund he is more complex and the paper could explore that more. That said, your writing is, as always, fluent, elegant, and easy to read --and your argument is well-structured -- no small achievement!"

Overall, pretty nice comments. It did, however, make me wonder if I would have gotten a better grade if I'd never gone to see her - that maybe I was somewhat penalized for not quite capturing what we'd discussed - not that I got a bad grade or anything, it just made me wonder. Anyway, I'd also gone into her office prior to the class and asked a couple of questions. I'd told her that I had registered for her fall class already and hoped that wasn't a problem. You see, I've worried about being one of "those" students because I keep asking questions and going to see her on papers and having a different viewpoint/interpretation on the stories and videos we've read/seen. But, she told me that I was one of the best students she'd had all semester and she'd love to have me in another one of her classes. So I left feeling pretty good in general.

So, one more test and then I AM done for the summer. Margaritas on me! ;-)

Melt Down

Lately I've felt like I've been so behind on everything. I've been walking around with this overwhelming feeling that I won't get everything done and that there's something important that I'm totally forgetting to do. And just let me be upfront right here and now...I HATE those feelings.

Anyway, school is finally winding down but that hasn't stopped the feelings. No, in fact, it's this big ol' reminder that I've left everything until the last minute.

For example, Thursday is the last day in my Shakespeare class. It's the day of the final and the day our portfolios are due. Now, all semester long I've said I was going to work on my portfolio as we went along. When that wasn't happening, I said I was going to catch up over spring break. But as you may recall, I didn't get to much I'd intended to over spring break. Then time kept creeping up and the end started getting closer and closer and I still wasn't doing anything.

All this putting things off came back to bite me in the rear this past week. See, we had a paper due this past Thursday. It was a comparison paper of two works we've read over the last half of the semester. (I chose to compare the villains of King Lear and Cymbeline.) I also had an exam in my government class on Wednesday. The plan was to work up the paper on Saturday and then study on Sunday of last weekend. Well, Saturday I was exhausted and after I went to the grocery store and took my dogs to the vet, I was wiped out and slept most of the afternoon. But I still had Sunday, right?

Who knew it would take all day Sunday to write a freakin' paper! When I was done, I sent an email to my instructor asking if we could meet one day after work for her input. She said we could meet Tuesday afternoon. Perfect! That meant that I could study on Monday AND Tuesday and then do any revisions on the paper Wednesday night, right?

Yeah, it should be so easy. I had also sent my paper off to a friend of mine who had a lot to say about my first paragraph. Don't get me wrong, she was right and I really appreciated the input. But that meant that Monday night I was reworking my paper. I did, however, take time to type up about half of my notes for the test on Wednesday. I figured I was still good though because I would have Tuesday evening to study for the exam still.

Then I met with the instructor. She liked the paper and said I was a good writer but she really wanted to challenge me and she basically asked me to rewrite everything except the thesis paragraph and the conclusion - essentially the entire paper...by Thursday! No pressure or anything. I told her my main concern with that was that I could rewrite it and be totally wrong in it and then submit something worse than I'd already given her. She said she'd take into consideration the work I put into it. Not greatly encouraging but it is something so I said okay.

I still planned to study Tuesday night but when I got home I started thinking that there would be no way I could rewrite an entire paper in one evening (Wednesday - after the test) so I worked on typing up the rest of the notes for the test during Dancing With The Stars (so hated to see Marlee go) because you don't have to devote all attention to the TV when it's elimination night and then turned my attention to the paper. I worked on it until about 10:30 and was really tired so decided to send the revisions to my instructor to see if I was at least on the right track of what she was hoping to see.

Oh, but what I forgot to mention was that Monday night/Tuesday morning, I woke up about 3:00 a.m. panicked that I wouldn't get everything done. I finally crawled out of bed around 4:00 a.m. and started working on my portfolio for the class because this weekend I need to prepare for the final and I wanted as much time available for that as possible. I worked on the portfolio for about two hours before I started getting ready for work, doing the questions for Julius Caesar and working on the questions for Measure for Measure. Then Tuesday night/Wednesday morning, I woke up around 2:00 a.m. I crawled out of bed around 3:00 a.m. and read over my notes a couple of times before work.

When I got to class that morning to take the test, I knew I was so screwed. This was the first section that I hadn't read the book materials before the test and the first section that I wasn't "getting" during the lectures. I also spent less time on reviewing my notes than I usually do. Regardless, I decided to give it my best shot. But I was so lost. I decided to make decisions as to what certain things meant and went with those "assumptions" throughout the test so that at least I'd be consistent with my answers. Turns out that might not have been the best idea. We reviewed several policies and theories and I paired a couple together and answered them based on the assumption I'd made only to find out that not only did they not mean the same thing, they were exact opposites. Yeah, so not good. Needless to say, this isn't going to be my best test score. In fact, I'm kind of dreading getting the grade back.

But back to the paper, I'd sent my revisions from the night before to the instructor to be sure I was doing the right thing. Her comment was that I was on the right track but... Doesn't matter what the "but" was, only that it meant more work was involved in what I was doing. Ugh!

I worked on the paper until 11:00 that night (Wednesday), sent it to a friend and then reworked it more at lunch before printing out what I ultimately submitted Thursday night. I have no idea if I gave the instructor what she wanted or if what I wrote was more than crap. But then I got to class and she handed out the study guide for this upcoming Thursday's final. I totally freaked out and had a meltdown, right there in the classroom. I got that overwhelming feeling like you can't breathe and came thisclose to breaking down crying - which I'm sure the lack of sleep had nothing to do with.

Anyway, I decided to take Friday off to relax and then spend the rest of the weekend working on the portfolio and final prep. I can do that, right? But then last night I decided to start on the questions again. I pulled up the last saved version of questions (each story is getting its own file). It was Julius Caesar. I was kind of confused because I was pretty sure I'd finished those that morning I woke up so early. But then I opened it up and only one and a half of the questions has been answered. I had a little panic attack. It didn't become a major, full-on panic attack until I realized that the question and answers in this file were to Measure for Measure. I'd used the template for Julius Caesar on Measure for Measure only, instead of doing a "save as" when I was done, I just saved OVER the file and all the work - the two hours worth of work - I'd done! Let's just say it was not pretty. And although you'd think that writing up the answers the second time around would be easier, it wasn't. And it didn't sit well to have to spend time redoing something I'd already done when time has been an issue for me lately. But I redid them last night and worked on Measure for Measure.

I finished those up this morning and am about half way through King Lear. Then I'll only have Cymbeline and the Sonnets to work through before I devote myself to the final exam prep.

I can do this...right?

Spotlight on...Laura Drewry

I first met Laura Drewry in Reno in 2005. It was at the Moonlight Madness event at RWA's National Conference. I was working the booth for my local chapter and Laura was hanging out with another writer, Jessica Trapp. Dawn Temple (whose book is now out but she'd just found out she'd sold right before the conference) was trying to take a picture with me and I didn't want my picture taken. Well, she put her arm around me and put her cheek up to mine and said something about what the photo would represent. This was about the time Laura was walking up and she overheard the comment. Let's just say the look on her face was priceless. I burst out laughing and the picture was snapped, and then I officially met Laura. I don't think she remembers it - and that's okay - but that's when I officially became a Laura Drewry stalker-fan. And I can't wait to stalk her again in San Francisco this summer. :-)

Laura's latest book, The Devil's Daughter, is out this week. I have my copy already and can't wait to sit down and read it. I've loved her previous books and know I will love this one too.

Anyway, I did a little "interview" (online style) with her, and here it is below.

Tell us about your story.

The Devil’s Daughter will do whatever it takes to win her freedom, even if it means claiming the soul of sexy Jed Caine. There’s no question he wants her, but he wants more than just her body; he wants her heart, too, and he’ll settle for nothing less. His stubborn ways and gentle touches are too much – even for the devil’s own daughter. She was sent to steal his soul, yet there he is. . .capturing her heart.

How is she ever going to explain this to her father??

What's a typical day like for you?

Once I get the little darlings off to school, I take my breakfast and coffee up to my office and spend a little time reading emails, catching up on computer stuff and, yes, okay, playing a few rounds of Spider Solitaire or Mah Jong. But I try to make sure I’m down to work by 9:30, and then I do whatever I need to be doing. Sometimes it’s researching, sometimes it’s working on my newsletter, and sometimes –though not nearly often enough – I actually write! LOL I go until about 2:30 when I have to go get the little darlings and once I do that, the rest of my day is usually shot, so I try to get as much done as I possibly can before they get home. Sometimes I can get more done after supper, but by the time we get through that and any homework they might have, my brain is pretty frazzled.

How long have you been writing? How many books did you write before you sold?

I’ve always been scribbling in some form or another, but I didn’t make the conscious decision that I wanted to write novels until about ten or eleven years ago. I was 8 months pregnant with Darling #2 and we’d just moved hundreds of miles away from our families, so it seemed like a good time to start. LOL I had written 3 complete novels before I sold one. The first two were (are) total crap, but each a great learning experience in its own way. The third one sold to Hilary Sares at Kensington in September ’04.

What is the best part of writing for you?

My favourite parts are writing the beginning and the end. The beginning, because . . .well. . .because it’s a new beginning. Everything is fresh and anything is possible at that point. I love writing the ending because I’ve been waiting so long to see my characters finally reach their happily ever after and I finally get to write it. Of course, having said that, I hate writing the ending because I know it’s the end and I have to wave those characters goodbye. It’s like saying goodbye to a good friend.

Are you a plotter or a pantser?

LOL Every book, to date, has been written completely by the seat of my pants. I enjoy the not-knowing, the adventure, and the excitement of discovering who my characters are page by page. However. . . after this last book I just handed in to my editor, I now know that I need to try a different track. I will never be one of those people who is able to plot everything, scene for scene, but I spend so much time rewriting, editing, rewriting, editing and rewriting some more that I could probably write 3 plotted books in the time it takes me to write 1 by the seat of my pants. So I am making a concerted effort to find a way to plot my next book that won’t be too restrictive.

What was it like getting "the call"? Who was the first person you told?

Oooh, I love “call” stories. LOL My call came on September 7 2004. I’d just dropped the older 2 at school and then met a friend for coffee. When I got home, I had a voice mail and an email from Hilary Sares. Saying I was stunned is like saying the ocean is deep. Once I was able to pick my jaw up off the floor, I set my 4-year old up in front of the TV with a snack and shook like the proverbial leaf while I called Hilary back. To be honest, I don’t actually remember most of the conversation. It was more like a dream than anything else. But the moment I hung up from that call, I called my husband who was out of town. Got his voice mail.

Called each one of my 3 sisters. Got voice mail EVERY TIME.

Called my friend Wendy who gave me the shove to write way back when. Yup, you guessed it – voice mail.

I thought I’d go crazy!

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

If you want to write, and I mean *really* want to write, then do it. Don’t go at it half-heartedly and don’t think for one second it’s going to be a cake-walk, because it’s not. If you want to write, then write. Literally and figuratively, just write. Sit your butt in your chair and write. Do it any way that works for you, whether that means starting at page 1 and writing straight thru to page 400 or if it means writing the middle of the book first. It doesn’t matter. Just write it. Don’t let yourself get caught up in all the stuff that happens online. Yes, in today’s world, you really should be part of it, but it’s too easy to get distracted with online groups and the latest scandal rocking the writing world.

If you want to write, and I mean *really* want to write, then do it. Write. Study your favourite authors, take classes if you can, and learn as much as you can. And while you’re doing this, write. And then write some more. The only way to get better is to practice, and there’s no other way to practice than to just write.

Where do you get your story ideas? What inspires you?

People inspire me. If you sit down in the middle of a park or a mall or something and just watch, it’s amazing what you see. That man’s trying not to yell into his cell phone; that lady’s laughing at something her friend just said; the couple over there looks like they’re breaking up; and that girl over there is crying.

Why? Who are they? What has happened up to this point in their lives to get them to this place?

There’s such a range of emotions all around us every day, from the lowest of the low to the height of happiness, and as we all know, you have to experience the lowest of the low to truly appreciate the heights of happiness, so how do people get from the low to the high, and what roadblocks do they have to get around before they get there?

How much of a role did contests play in your quest for publication?

Funny you should ask. I entered two stories in the Laurie contest in the spring of ’04 and placed 2^nd and 3^rd behind my friend Teresa Bodwell, who won. One of the final round judges was Hilary Sares, who had just bought the book Teresa won with, so that gave me a little head way. Hilary asked to see the complete of my 2^nd place finish and the rest, as they say, is history.

What do you wish you'd known before you reached where you are now - and would it have made a difference in the steps you've taken to get there?

Oooh, boy. LOL I started to answer this question, then stopped and deleted what I’d written. The truth is, I have stumbled my way through this, taking wrong turns and detours and somehow finding my way back to where I was supposed to be. But even if I’d known everything about everything beforehand, I still would have taken the same path because that’s how I learn. You can tell me anything you like, but I need to experience it myself in order to relate it to my work, and I think a lot of writers are similar. Just because Plan A worked for you, doesn’t mean it’s going to work for me, or her or him. We each have our own path and I can’t imagine taking any different steps than I already have. I’m sure that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. J

What do you do when you're not writing?

I watch House on Tuesday nights. LOL Other than that, I’m just your typical wife/mother. I take the kids to their soccer and baseball practices and games, and I seem to spend a lot of time doing laundry. J I used to scrap book a lot because my sister was a Creative Memories rep, but it’s very time consuming, so I don’t do it nearly as much as I should. The kids and I like to take road trips and walk around the golf courses looking for eagles and discarded or forgotten golf balls. And, of course, I love to read. I’m usually months and months behind on that, though. My TBR pile is a little staggering. J

What's coming up next for you?

The Devil’s Daughter was just released this week, and the sequel, Dancing with the Devil, is scheduled for release in December, so I’ll have a bit of work to do on that one before it’s really finished. Besides that, my agent has a few proposals out for me and I’m working on a few more. Most of the proposals are historical westerns, but one is a contemporary and another is non-fiction, so we’ll see what happens with that.

The Devil's Daughter is available at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Visit Laura at her website. Thanks for stopping by Laura! :)