My Recent Comments

Ack, I stayed away for a day and now I'm paying!  lol  I skimmed. 

Just thought I'd check in quickly to say hello, and I bought a purple shirt for national...yay me, I'll be in style! lol 

And I'm debating which night to wear which dress and which shoes.  And I need a new bra.

And I need to go to Target to pick up random travel stuff.

And about 40 other things in the very few days that are left before national.  Eep, I'm sinking!

Amy

Christyne, *sigh* the car is a used Lexus.  Nothing with so much personality as you'd imagined, I'm afraid.  (My dad loves Lexuses...Lexi?  This is his 73rd bday present from my mom.  My present is that HE won't be riding with us.  He and I together on long car trips...not such a good mix.)

Jeannie, the visual I'm getting is...quite um fetching.  LOL  But good to know.  I think my shoes are big enough...I bought them non-tight, but the problem is the heels.  There's just no getting used to those.  I used to be able to handle them when I worked in the evil corporate world but that was the first thing I gave up when I got pregnant and eventually quit the job.

So I'm annoyed with dear ol' dad right now.  My mom told me today that seeing the Grand Canyon is on her bucket list.  I said, it's only an hour and a half out of the way (one way)...we need to go see it.  She was all excited.  Well, my dad is upset.  HE wants to see the Grand Canyon.  So he's going to rain all over my mom's parade because god forbid SHE gets to do something he doesn't.  Never mind that we're driving his car home for him...something he honestly couldn't handle without about a week to do it.

Okay, vent over.  You see why I can't have him in the car.  I'd need a little sound-proof plexiglass window between me and him. *g*

Amy

Ami, UPS would work or Fed Ex, which is my favorite.  They may cost a few bucks more but they've always gotten my ms to Toronto overnight, even when I "only" pay for priority. 

Tasha, I definitely burn more calories the more I sweat.  No one tell me differently, please.  Enjoy the quiet morning!  My boys are at tennis right now (due home any minute.)  My mom offered to take them which is doubly appreciated since the heat index is already 88.  Ick.

Kay, your MIL would be enough to MAKE me drive home instead of fly.  It's been said I'm contrary but I don't know why. *g* We'll have room in the back seat! :)

Roz, have you tried looking online for a silver top?  You might pay more to get it shipped on time but I bet there's one out there with your name on it! 

Amy

Susan gets the award for the Voice of Sanity of the day!  You suitcase people are giving me hives, making me hyperventilate.  (Ellen, you fit in on the sane side.  Lots of time yet to dig out the suitcase.)

Tasha, thanks for the rain thoughts.  They haven't worked yet.  Last night when I came home from kickboxing at 8pm the bank sign still said 104 degrees.  And in case anyone is wondering, the air conditioner at kickboxing did NOT keep up.  Add that to the instructor who thoughtfully gave us an extra-hard workout and...yeah.  I was wilting.  For the rest of the night.

Kay, a late happy birthday to your offspring. :)

Susan, my chiro appt. is tomorrow.  And I should probably make one for the day I get back as well.  All that crazy dancing and all...(oh, and the heels.  I thought about putting mine on like Beth and Jeannie but then thought, nah.  Ouch.  I don't believe any amount of wearing them will make them not hurt me. lol)

Anna, funny about your daughter's room.  Got me thinking about stealing a kid's room for an office too...only problem is my kids are 6 and 8 and probably not leaving the nest anytime soon.  (Okay, really, I like the kids more than I want my own office.  Most days.)

Marcie, I hear you on having trouble sitting down to write every day.  Something that helps me is to form a routine.  Try to write at the same time every day.  And make a little ritual when you sit down that signifies, this is my writing time.  Light a candle, or read some motivational quotes, or mix yourself a special writing drink.  (Kool-Aid, of course.  Not a margarita.  That would just be...naughty.)  Anyway, just something you do every single time that doesn't take much time and tells your brain, okay, time to get working.  Just a thought...and before noon, I don't have a lot of those. *g*

I had booked a flight home from national but now I'm not going to be using it.  Instead, my mom and I are flying to San Diego to pick up a car my dad bought.  Then...we're driving from SD to Kansas.  So I'll be gone a few extra days.  If we have any energy we might try to make a photo tour of our drive home, stopping at all the funky stops that you normally don't take time for.  Energy is the key word here.  Should be fun though!

Off to get some work done...

Amy

PS Ronda if you're out there, thank you so much for the Doctor in Her House comments!  I'm still smiling! :)

Plotting charts...it sounds so anal and scientific but I've tried most of the methods mentioned, including post-its (lol Jeannie, about finding them on your elbows...too true.  I have a photo of a double closet door covered with post-its for one of my stories.)  Kay, the time I really need a chart is when I'm revising the living snot out of a story.  And then I use Excel.  And to track subplots or characters, I highlight each line in a different, appropriate color.  Don't know if that will help you but that's the hardcore thing that gets me organized.  (Which is a tough feat.)

I'm glad Kay mentioned 2 pairs of shoes aren't enough!  I'll be taking at least 4.  Three of them black, but what I find is that if I wear a pair of shoes for more than a day, my feet start hurting from those shoes, and I can wear different shoes to get different hurts, to kind of spread the pain.  *g*  I do try to get comfortable shoes but any kind of heel at all is not comfortable for me.  But with my stumpy legs, I need to wear heels.  The science of packing for national.... lol

Tasha, the date sounds good until the deer. :(  I once hit a squirrel with my car in high school.  I was with a friend and we got out and made sure it was dead, then got back in and both started crying.  I'm no help, am I.  Glad you and the hubby are okay.  And I totally owe you an email! :)

Someone with rain, could you please send some our way?  It's supposed to be 97 in Kansas today with high humidity.  The grass is brown.  (Imagine this after the flooding of June.)

Must go help the hubby cook lunch.

Amy, driven by hunger

Sam, I agree about Whedon.  And don't forget dialogue.  LOVE the dialogue.  Of course, that credit may go more to the writers of his shows but I think his genius is in there in every bit.  We finished the whole Buffy series and are almost done with Angel. *sniff*

Ellen.  Watch Buffy.  Really.

Deb, my January book is THE SECRET SHE KEPT.  I finished the line edits and am just inputting them to send.  Yay!  I look forward to yours.  Your "different" description has me most curious! :) 

I believe i'm a petween/t too.  5'4"ish and sometimes I wear petites and sometimes I don't.

Which reminds me of my very successful shopping trip today.  I found a MAJOR sale and got not one but TWO new dresses.  And get this.  One is NOT BLACK.  I'm the queen of black dresses, even though I set out to get something not black every time.  So today I got one black and one not.  Plus some awesome shoes that had a retired woman telling me they were "it" and "sexy" lolol. And some dressy capris and a PURPLE shirt (I am so busting out of my color comfort zones.  I may need therapy.) 

Can't believe national is only a little over a week away!  So much for losing that weight...*sigh*  But can't wait!

 Amy

You guys were BUSY yesterday!  I thought I was only away for half a day but it must've been 1 1/2 because last night there were 45 posts!!!

Carrie, I do have Dr. Crook's book and have read about half of it.  I have a couple other books about candida as well and have read parts of them.  I'm a non-fiction flunkie, completely, but I agree, his has really good info.

Ellen, thanks for the rec of Friday Night Lights.  We're going to finish the whole Angel series soon and I think that might be next.

Jeannie, fried foods and vacation also.  Definitely.  It's a job to eat healthy and when I'm on vacation I don't want to work.  And I didn't, other than some writing. *g*

Holly, caffeine is the secret, huh?  I knew it!  lol  I'm sooo not a coffee drinker, think it is the most vile beverage ever, and I'm currently off of pop, so I'm living a terribly caffeine-free life.  It's painful.  (Yes, looking for sympathy here. LOL)

Hi Beth, great to see you here!  Can't wait to meet you in SF. :)

Deb, you're ahead of me on the January book.  I'm working on line edits and the reader letter now.  Congrats on getting yours done! 

It's interesting the things that make us happy sometimes.  I found out this week that they're going to start offering kickboxing Mon-Thu in the fall.  Right now it's only 2 days a week.  I'm SO excited to go 4 times!!  I love it and am getting addicted (and could definitely use more than 2 workouts a week.) 

Amy

Jeannie, here's to no blown tires.  Two at a time?  *shudder*  I would freak with one.  Sounds like your horse will have a good home and job, maybe with lots of apples from a cute little girl.

Susan, hope you feel better soon.

Holly, please send energy.

Ellen, the wedding sounds fun.  We got married in '94 too. :)  Have, um, fun in training this week.

Meant to say the other day that I've been thinking about trying Friday Night whatever, the football show...after hearing you guys talk about it, I think I must.  :) 

Marcie, I missed the beginning of your creepy guy problem but just wanted to say eww, and good luck dealing with him. 

Lots of stuff I forgot but the brain isn't functioning 100% yet.  Need caffeine.  Can't have any. 

Amy

Happy Birthday, Christyne!  And have fun adopting your pup!  I'm a big fan of adopting from shelters too.  All four of our cats are from the Humane Society. We've been really lucky with them...only one is really psycho. *g*  (She was abandoned in the foothills near Albuquerque as a kitten.  We use that as her excuse.)

I just got done mowing the lawn...gorgeous day here and I got lots of other work done too, including some writing.  But not all of it, so I'm off to work on it some more, then line edits. 

Hope everyone had a good weekend!

Amy

I'm back from vacation and tried to skim.  Read lots of great snippets but most importantly, CONGRATS, CHRISTYNE!!!!  WOOOT!  You sold almost the same day of the year as me...I got the call on July 6, 2005.  :)  Can't wait to meet you...at the HQ party if not before! 

And Carrie, huge congrats on the job!  I can imagine what a relief that must be. 

Kim, the special diet I'm on is supposed to get rid of candida.  Yep, it sucks.  We've made it a month so far (but we totally fell off the wagon on vacation.  I'm sorry but vacation and sugar just go together.)

Susan, good luck on the job hunt.  Not a good job market out there for anyone, I don't think.  It's so depressing to hear of all the layoffs.

Welcome, Jody!  I'd like some chocolate cheesecake please! (Oh, I'm on a no-sugar diet. :( )

I'm off to do some writing while I listen to the night sounds outside my window...very soothing. :)

Amy