Monthly Archives: October 2009
Happy Halloween!
It’s a big weekend for our little family; not only is it Halloween and the kids will be trick-or-treating for the first time, but this is George’s last free weekend to relax before the crew shows up and the long, windy, stormy, crazy month of Dungeness crab gear work begins.
We have had the best time off together and my only complaints are that the time was too short and went by too fast! We spent today walking in the fall wind around our quaint section of town, visiting a local bookstore and the local running store. George also bought the Juicer he’s had his eye on, so I’m expecting one especially tasty cocktail tonight. Okay, who am I kidding? I’m expecting two tasty cocktails tonight!
After years of consideration, I’ve finally decided to give National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) a shot.
NaNoWriMo is not for the writing faint-of-heart. The task is to complete a novel (50,000 words) in one month. Writing begins at midnight November 1, and ends at midnight November 30. This year, organizers are expecting 150,000 participants worldwide! Check out the NaNoWriMo website if you’re interested in learning more.
I now have my NaNoWriMo participant page, joined my region for in-person write-ins, and connected with a writer friend across the country. Except for the fact that I have no idea how I plan to write 50,000 words of anything in one month, I’m ready to go!
For Halloween this year, Eva is going as Tinkerbell (she doesn’t even know who Tinkerbell is, but she saw the costume and thought it looked like a “pretty princess”) and Vincent is going as a dinosaur. For anyone keeping track: yes, Vincent went as a dinosaur last year as well. (Hey, the costume is really cute, he only wore it for about five minutes, and it still fits!)
Happy Halloween!
Okay….
Upon finishing her pink-froggy plate of food tonight, my toddler said, “Good dinner, Jen.”
I’m not sure which I should be concerned about: the fact that my 3-year old daughter called me “Jen” with such ease, or the fact that she thought a Lean Cuisine herb roasted chicken qualified as a good dinner!
Ah, well. Daddy (the real chef) will be home on Monday! :-)
A Successful Reading and Cool Chicks
The first reading for the brand new anthology, P.S. What I Didn’t Say: Unsent Letters to our Female Friends, was a great success. I’m still thinking about what an incredible experience it was to finally meet fellow contributors Michelle Goodman, Anna Cox, and Jane Hodges, and the anthology’s editor, Megan McMorris.
Megan did an awesome job introducing the book to the audience gathered at one of the nation’s most famous independent bookstores. She also got up prior to each contributor to give a flattering and comprehensive introduction before we read.
The reading couldn’t have come at a better time for me, and I thoroughly enjoyed getting out of town with my family and meeting such accomplished and intelligent gals. I’ve participated in readings before, but this was one of the best. The energy in the store was positive and fun, if energy could be described as “fun”!
I’m including the world’s tiniest picture of me reading. It’s not the best picture of me, which is (of course) why I’ve made it so tiny, but I thought it would be fun to share.
One thing I’ve been thinking about lately is how grateful I am to be surrounded by such a vast circle of amazing women. Cool chicks, I like to say. Sometimes it’s hard to work with groups of women, but not when they are as classy and confident as the ones I’ve been lucky enough to associate with.
I get (or have gotten) to work with editors and writers like Megan McMorris, Christina Katz, and Barbara Sjoholm. I also have cool writer girlfriends and an entire SCN women’s writing circle.
On the other side of the aisle, I have some wise Jazzercise associations. I’ve been blessed by the amount of sound advice that has come my way from these gals, especially during some difficult situations of late.
These women are all strong, able to communicate, and smart.
Have a wonderful weekend!
The Book Has Finally Arrived!
Happy Friday, Everyone!
This will be an exciting weekend. I was thrilled to discover yesterday that my two Contributor’s Copies of the book P.S. What I Didn’t Say: Unsent Letters to Our Female Friends had arrived in my mailbox!
I have (along with many, many other writers, editors, friends, and family) been eagerly awaiting the launch of this awesome anthology.
Upon opening the book, I was so pleased to see that everything was perfect: name spellings, writer’s bio, and the story itself. I also love the layout and design of the anthology.
Now, I’m looking forward to two things. First, sitting down and reading all of the stories in the book. Second, participating in our first live reading at the famous Elliott Bay Bookstore.
On the heels of a pretty up-and-down week that could have kept me down, this is wonderful news and a perfect reminder not to let negative and hostile people steal your joy in life and activities. There are so many more cheerful, positive, and energetic people to deal with, and they mean the most.
Without further ado, here is an image of the recently launched anthology, P.S. What I Didn’t Say: Unsent Letters to Our Female Friends.
Back to the Real World
Well, this is interesting. It’s been almost two years since I started this blog, and I only just realized I had color options for font. This is good news. Now, I just wish I had options for the font itself.
There has not been much to report of late. We took our annual family vacation, which also included our wedding anniversary and my attendance at the Jazzercise Instructor District Meeting.
It has been three years exactly since I got certified to teach Jazzercise, and I’ve only grown to enjoy teaching more and more as the years have gone by.
This is not to say it has always gone perfectly; it most certainly has not. It is hard working with so many strong personalities, varying lifestyles and values, and management styles. I’ve been surprised on occasion how thoughtless people can be. I’ve also been appreciative of how understanding people can be.
Fortunately, none of these ups and downs has ever dampened my joy in teaching. I love the music, my JazzerFriends, and the customers I get to laugh and work out with every day.
I’m posting a picture from our vacation. This is George and our 2-year old son, Vincent. When I look at this photograph and see the joy on my little boy’s face as he runs alongside his daddy, it warms my heart and makes me smile myself.
(p.s. I hope all the colors didn’t give you a headache reading this post :-))
