I’ve been watching soap operas the last couple of weeks. I know, terrible time wasters (not as bad as the new online Scrabble game, though), but I do some chores while I watch. See, I’ve been watching All My Children and Days of our Lives for decades. I don’t watch during the school year, so I don’t remember a lot of the connections.

On All My Children, Jeff Martin is back. He used to be married to Erica, right? What are they saying about Erica having another biological child, other than Kendall and Bianca? And Kendall had Ryan’s baby? Where’s Greenlee?

And on Days of our Lives – Jack and Patch were brothers??? I don’t remember that at all. Does everyone think Patch is dead or something? What’s wrong with Jack? Why did they bring Jack and Jen back only to split them up? Could someone please feed Hope a milkshake or something? Who is the little bimbo that’s Bo’s daughter? Bo and who? Didn’t Belle (one of Marlena’s kids, right?) used to be with Shaun Douglas? And now he’s with…? Where is Marlena and who is she married to now? And I thought Carolyn Brady had left her husband for Viktor Kiriakis. Is Austin the DUMBEST man in the soap opera universe? What happened to him and Carrie? And the short mean one, Kate’s son? He’s with Carrie now?

I’ve been watching this season of Grey’s Anatomy, and I get alternately irritated with the different characters. Usually Meredith. Though after watching these earlier episodes, I get the Meredith/McDreamy dynamic more. It’s so complex, the trust, the respect.

But I do have to wonder why she’s so compelling to all the men on the show. It’s another instance of worthy heroines – she’s too whiny to be worthy. Of course, some of the heroes are pretty winy, too.

The Burke and Christina thing – he works so hard for her. Is it the challenge? Why is she so guarded? I absolutely love her character.

Even Izzy got on my nerves in some of the episodes. And she’s my favorite favorite. I love her backstory, from the trailer park. I loved her dynamic with Denny. I think she forgave Alex WAY too easy.

George is my other favorite. He got too needy with Meredith at the end of the season, and for heaven’s sake, of all people, he should know what she does when she gets down, so he can’t blame it on her so much. But he was absolutely hysterical in the Thanksgiving episode and the nurse strike episode. I don’t like him with Cassie, though.

Bailey is a hoot – the first bomb episode where George and the chief are so excited that she’s back – that was so great! And I loved the Thanksgiving episode where they had a visiting attending who was looking for “The Nazi” because he thought it was a guy. And that Bailey knows everything going on in the hospital so even the chief comes to her for answers.

I also actually really like Addison. The episode where Mark comes back and McDreamy said he hadn’t forgiven her just broke my heart. I think it would be less cruel of him to just leave her.

I love to hate Alex. Mostly I hate that they don’t motivate him – or let us in on his motivation.



Meredith’s mom is just wicked mean. I don’t know how Meredith survived being raised by that woman.

Okay, I’m done.

I’m also blogging at Wet Noodle Posse today. Do I know what I’m blogging about??? Nooooo. I get blogger block when I go over there.

And it’s also my sweetie’s birthday today!

I bought another formal.



I'd seen a Grecian gown at Neiman Marcus for $900, and loved it. (It was regularly $3000!!!) I thought about making one, but I didn't want to take the time from my writing (SNORT) to sew. When the Chadwicks catalogue came, I saw this one for $100, and I had a 40% off coupon (we won't talk about shipping, okay?) so I bought it. And it looks great. And I thought I might possibly have a publisher party to go to.

So, more revisions on Hot Shot. Maybe not on the publisher party.

And what did I spend the day doing? Playing Scrabble Blast online. You want the link? You know you do ;)

I spent the weekend at loose ends after sending Hot Shot and DLB to my agent. The plan was for me to start working on a book I wrote in 2004 and never submitted (long story). I'm going to revise the partial and have it ready to go after my agent reads (and likes) those 2 books and Surface.

So....I have this lack of urgency, at the same time I have this urgency. It's summer after all. I should be writing.

The plan my cps helped me come up with was to revise 3 partials, at the same time I work on Alex. I made a calendar, giving myself deadlines for each partial (remember, these books are complete, just need revision.) Still. Easier said than done. Saturday I sat down with neon colored notecards and started writing scenes, etc, hoping to get enough feel for the book again that I could write a good synopsis, because frankly my old one stank. I also went through the scenes that have already been through critique group (the good thing about writing 17 manuscripts is that you always have something to send to critique group.)

All this did was overwhelm me.

Sunday I was getting over karaoke and getting ready for company, so I didn't write, but Sunday night I had a brainstorm. I would literally cut the partial into scenes and work on one scene at a time. So yesterday morning I did just that, and found I had 8 scenes to revise. Okay. Manageable. I put each scene on my calendar, and then the synopsis the last three days. So I revised the heck out of that scene last night.





How do YOU get ready to revise?

Bad news - I didn't get any written on Alex. I reset my Excel spreadsheet and I want to write 6 pages a day. Hopefully today will be better, though it doesn't take much to get me off track. I wish I had Trish's discipline.

I watched Kiss Kiss Bang Bang yesterday, which I thought would be a buddy movie with Robert Downey Jr and Val Kilmer, but it was more of a noir mystery. Then last night The Last Samurai was on, so we watched it. Good movie. But no wonder I didn't get anything written on Alex.

Today, I'm getting Eight Below! I've been dying to see this movie.

For Trish, because she isn't feeling good:

Top ten reasons I love San Antonio

10) We have short winters.

9) We’re a hub – all major highways in Texas run through us.

8) Cost of living – I was looking at real estate porn, and you can get a really nice house for a couple of hundred thousand.

7) History – not just Texas history (though I get choked up every time I go in the Alamo) but my family’s history is here.



6) Entertainment – we have a museum that’s free every day, two that are free on Tuesday afternoons, we have a wonderful zoo, Sea World and Fiesta Texas.



5) The Spurs. I’m not a huge fan, like I used to be, but I love seeing people get all worked up for the home team.



4) Fiesta! A week-long party, with food on a stick, parades and everything, just for my birthday! (Okay, to celebrate the defeat of Santa Ana, which was on my birthday WAY before I was born.)

3) Food – no matter what you like, we have places that are good at making it – Mexican, barbecue, steak. Not seafood, though.

2) Diversity – We’re a regular melting pot!

1) Friendliness – no matter where you go, SOMEONE will talk to you.


What do you love about your hometown?

I hope everyone had a lovely Father's Day! We had a nice dinner last night - everyone was shocked to look up and see it was almost nine!

I have something different planned for next week…stay tuned!

My sister in law called yesterday and asked if I wanted to go to a karaoke bar last night. I've only ever sang karaoke at her house - she has a professional set-up - but her sisters and everyone wanted to go out. And they invited me.

It was SO FUN. It took me 2 Cape Cods to get up and sing "Walking After Midnight" by Patsy Cline, and another 2 to sing "These Are the Days" by 10,000 Maniacs. The 2 drinks made a difference ;) My SIL is REALLY talented and she sang 3 songs, my brother even sang one. I wanted to sing "Jackson" with him, but he didn't know it. How could he not know it - my mom used to play Johnny Cash ALL THE TIME. I told him his homework is to learn that song before we go back ;) My SIL's older sister (who I adore) sang 3, her younger sang 2 with her fiance, their friend sang 3.

What was fun, and had me there till 1, was watching what other people sold. The last guy that sang, if you saw him walking on the street, you would never peg him as a karaoke guy. He sang "Sailing," a song I can't stand, but he did such a good job.

There was a young guy who sang a bunch of country songs, then "Summer Nights" with another girl at his table (there were 2 birthday parties in addition to the ten of us, and a bunch of smaller groups.)

There was a guy in a rocker shirt who sang "Rose Colored Glasses."

There was a large woman who, damn, had a set of pipes and sang "Natural Woman" like she belonged on American Idol. In the top 5.

There was an older lady who sang a Carpenters song without looking at the words, and she was awesome.

There was this girl Kim who sang really well, and she brought her boyfriend up on stage with her and he was awful, but he had so much fun, we loved him!

So I think I could be addicted.

Do you like karaoke? If you go, do you sing songs you know, that you think you'll be good at, or fun songs, or what?

It's been awhile since we've seen Gerry.

Stacy...Sensibly Insane: The Anatomy of a Story

VERY cool analogy.

From Marianne’s blog

1) my house

2) a job I love

3) 17 completed manuscripts

4) a dog

5) a car less than 2 years old, three couches, a debit card or a DVD player

6) a blog

7) a writing chapter

8) a computer with color monitor and a printer that ISN’T dot matrix

9) a contest final, a request from an editor

10) a child in school

What about you?

I mentioned this when I was writing about Blue Smoke, about how some writers are just too dark for me these days. It is probably just my perception – I hardly watch sad movies or police procedurals anymore, and the other night when I was watching Serenity, well, I had my face turned from the screen most of the time. I swear, if I didn’t know I wasn’t pregnant, I would think I’m pregnant (Pregnancy cured me of my love for scary movies.)

I have written romantic suspense. I have written from the POV of the villain (once, I think, and he was a wicked evil stalker rapist). Like Toni was talking about the other day on her blog, I want to know why people do the things they do.

I just don’t know if I want to crawl into their heads to find out.

I read my first Lisa Gardner book last summer and it really had me squirming. I read another, and then just decided she was way too dark for me – lots of suspense and very little romance.

Tami Hoag used to write amazing romantic suspense books (though maybe if I went back to read them now, they might make me cringe.) But after Night Sins, I think, or Guilty as Sin, there was no longer romance, and the evil side of humanity was just overwhelming to me.

Anne Stuart’s Black Ice was way more suspensey than romancey, and that “hero” was something else. I was not compelled to read more of her books.

I used to read Catherine Coulter back in the day when she wrote all those interconnected Sherborne or Sherbrooke people, remember those? And when she started writing contemporary, I followed her along. But it seemed to me her villains’ POV became just a place where her own dark side could run amok.

I wonder if that’s part of why writers write dark, to look into their own darkness. Maybe that’s why I can’t write a villain’s POV – maybe I don’t want to see that side of myself. Maybe that’s why I can’t even read it.

So clearly, I like romantic suspense light ;)

I am very anxious to hear your thoughts on this.

Mary Beth , I dreamed you sold two books to Intrigue.

I just finished reading the sweetest love story. Betting Hearts, by Dee Tenorio, is a best friends story, which I love, and this one is so emotional, you just squirm right along with the hero, Burke.

Cassie is one of the boys. She works in a nursery, plays poker and hangs with her brother Hayne and his best friend Burke, who is als her best friend. She’s content with her life until her former fiancé, a snake from the lowest level of hell, returns to town. He’s left her weeks before her wedding, leaving a note that he was gay. Only now he’s back with a woman, planning another wedding, claiming Cass isn’t woman enough. So she decides to transform herself into a girl, and she gets Burke’s help to do it because he’s the only one she feels safe with.

Burke has been warned away from Cassie by her brother, and he’s never had to take the warning seriously till Cassie shows up on his doorstep, drunk and needy. Now he’s trying to protect her from her rat-fink fiancé, his own unworthiness, all the while fighting his attraction.

Watching Burke suffer as he becomes aware of Cass’s attributes is priceless. He’s just stunned she’s a girl. The reader feels his struggle, his longing. And when he has to come face to face with the rat fink and defends her, the reader falls in love with him.

The sexual tension is thick as, well, as the heat here in SA. The love scene is fulfilling and heartbreaking.
Secondary characters are great and real, twists of phrase make you smile (and wish you’d written them) and the last scene is fabulous.
Betting Hearts is Dee’s first book from Samhain Publishing.

The other day Mary Beth was commenting on her blog about how she knows her heroine better than her hero, but that the hero is more important to romance readers. That may be true, but it’s also so important to have a heroine the reader can root for, like Cassie. I think the hero can be forgiven a lot (at least I hope – the hero in my WIP is being a jackass) but the heroine has to be worthy, so that the reader can say, “You jerk, why can’t you see how great she is?” Agree or disagree?
Anyway, read the book and tell me what you think!

For Revenge...Or Pleasure?
by Trish Morey



What It's All About...

Real/fake?
Jade Ferraro is a cosmetic surgeon at an elite Beverly Hills clinic. But to Loukas Demakis she's a fraud.

Revenge/pleasure?
Loukas plans to seduce top secret information from Jade, and then discard her when he's done.

Money/truth…
Loukas buys Jade dinner — for a donation of one million dollars! But will the cost of the truth be worth the price of his heart?

What Others Are Saying...

"Trish Morey's newest release from Harlequin Presents, FOR REVENGE... OR PLEASURE? carries a lot of heart. This is a story with a strong 'wow!' factor and a compelling plot that is hard to forget even after the book is finished. Ms. Morey has crafted an intensely sexy novel with unforgettable characters who tug at every emotion in the reader's heart. Laced with gripping narration and plenty of passion, this book is a winner from start to finish. Don't miss it." ~ Leena Hyat, Senior Editor, The Best Reviews

WARNING: Rant ahead, not directed at any of you folks!

What is the line between confidence and arrogance? How much pride can we show in our accomplishments before we cross the line? Is it because we’re women that we’re accustomed to downplaying our accomplishments? And is it because we’re women that we’re taken aback when someone raves about their own successes?
Let me clarify, because recognition is hard to come by in this business ,and if we don’t promote ourselves, who will? But there’s a difference between celebrating our accomplishments and having a sense of entitlement to those accomplishments. There is something in the tone of the emails of the people who have this sense of entitlement that just turns me off. I’ve left lists because of it, and I feel like a small person because of it.
Am I the only one who gets these bad vibes? I know it’s hard to convey our true tone in emails and blogs, but I don’t think I’m imagining it.
And if you ever think I’m being too arrogant, please slap me!

A few weeks ago, Esri wrote that being a writer was like being a relationship. I think starting a story is like a relationship.
First, you’re thinking about the story. All the time. You learn everything you can about it. You can’t wait to get it alone, go on a “date.”
Then you meet up, You’re so afraid of what you’re going to say, that you’ll say the wrong thing, make a fool of yourself. So conversation is a bit stilted.
So maybe you’re a little cautious about being alone with your new obsession. You want to be with him, but you don’t quite trust yourself. You go to the movies, on double dates, anything as a buffer. As much as you like him, or the story, being alone is too dangerous, too overwhelming.
But then you gain confidence and you don’t want to be apart from him. Every waking moment is consumed with thoughts of him. You skip work to be with him. You can’t wait to make love to him (writing the first love scene), or if you haven’t waited, you can’t get enough of him. Everything is going smoothly and then…your first fight (writer’s block).
He stops talking to you. You’re not sure where you went wrong, or if you can undo it, start fresh, get back to how it was before.
You may work through it, but it’s not the same. The intimacy is deeper, though, the commitment, because you’ve worked through your problems. You’re invested.
Things get more serious. This relationship is work now. This is still the one you love, but it’s no longer carefree. You start thinking long-term. This is The One.
You start thinking about where to live, how many kids you want. (word count, where to submit)
You are married.
Now you have to make adjustments – you want to put your best face forward. You may have input from the in-laws (editors and agents) but you have to determine how hard you want to work at this relationship.
And if you work hard, you will have something that will last forever.
Something that came to life because you believed.

Separated at birth?

Pat Benatar and Nora Roberts





Martin Henderson and Gerard Butler





Mark McGrath and Ethan Hawke





Lee Lee Sobieski and Helen Hunt



KD Lang and Kyle McLachlan





Bono and Robin Williams





Justin Bruening - Jamie from All My Children - and Justin Chambers from Grey's Anatomy.




Anyone else you can think of?

I mentioned I got the Mary Engelbreit magazine the other day. Every month she interviews a creative person, either a writer, a designer, someone. Always the same questions. She calls it "Inspiration Quotient." So using those questions, I'm going to interview myself. Then you - like tagging, only I'm not naming names ;) (By the way, the June/July issue also has a write up on romance novels - not big enough for you to rush out to buy, but a nice treat. Considering Entertainment Weekly NEVER has romance novels!)

1. When the well runs dry, how do you recharge your creative spark?

working in the yard, watching certain movies (I like YaYa Sisterhood, I don't know why, makes me want to write), going to museums and just letting it fill me

2. What is your motto?

See top of page ;)

3. What fictional character is most like the person you wish you were?

Any of my heroines, which is why I write them, I guess. Is that too arrogant?

4. The biggest enemy of creativity is....

either time bandits or the internal editor

5. My best ideas come to me when I'm...

About to go to sleep!

6. What is your ideal work environment?

My back patio with my Alphasmart. All the plants have been watered and deadheaded so nothing will pull me out of my chair.

7. What accomplishments are you most proud of?

Today...my son and the kids in my class who came so far this past year. I'm also pretty proud of my contest finals.

8. No one is better than I am when it comes to...

Beating myself up.

9. I still can't quite get the hang of....

sleep. And discipline.

10. The only thing I know for sure about the creative process is...

it's HARD!

11. What was your first job?

I worked at Winn's, a five and dime, in the candy department. I asked to be transfered to the fabric department, where I spent all my paycheck on fabric that was 99 cents a yard. Then I'd go home and sew an outfit for the next day.

12. Earlier in your career, how did you deal with people who tried to discourage you from pursuing your dreams?

No one ever really has, thank goodness!

Okay, now you - let me know and I'll come read!

I’ve been looking forward to reading Blue Smoke, have had it in my TBR for months. You know me – I love reading about firefighters. And I love love love Nora Roberts.



Blue Smoke, not so much. In fact, if it was another writer, I probably would have stopped reading it. The heroine is annoying, the book is depressing and the romance doesn’t start till almost half way through the book!

The heroine, Reena, wants to be a fire investigator from the time she’s eleven, when a tragic event shakes up her life. She’s like a sponge, absorbing everything, noticing every detail, and it’s kind of cute when she’s a kid, which she is in the beginning of the book. By the time she actually becomes a fire investigator, about a third of the way through the book, it’s just annoying. Plus she talks in short hand, starting most of her sentences with verbs. And she’s really really cocky.

As for the depressing, well, it’s about a pyromaniac who has it in for Reena. Only Reena. Not her family. He targets her. And La Nora describes what he does in gory detail. And the language – there are just some words I don’t want to hear Nora say. Urgh.

The romance…we meet the hero in his POV at almost page 100, but he doesn’t meet Reena, just sees her from afar. And again about 40 pages later. They don’t meet face to face for a long time. Meanwhile, Reena has three lovers. And they say I don’t write romances?

So, very disappointing book. I hate when that happens.


This should make me feel better….

Valerie Grace is a fallen angel, only she doesn’t know why she’s been kicked out of heaven. All she knows is that she’s stuck in Niagara Falls working as a maid in a seedy motel and avoiding a sexy Tempter demon while trying to find her way back to heaven.

Help comes from an unexpected source, hope is offered and snatched away. Her chance to get into heaven becomes a threat to the balance of good and evil. Now her quest to get into heaven becomes a quest to save the world.

To do this, she has to turn to the one person (being?) who threatens her chance for heaven, her sexy Tempter demon Nathaniel, who has issues of his own. Their journey takes them to the Underworld which is not what you’d expect.

That’s what I loved about this book – nothing was what it seemed, and nothing was what you expected it to be.

The quest was exciting and fun as Val and Nathaniel bumped into problem after problem. Val was a great heroine, capable of holding her own with the demon population, determined to get back into heaven, not only for herself, but for the other fallen angels she found.

I loved the secondary characters, the petulant child psychic, a talking rat, a witch who works at McDonald’s. And WAIT till you meet Lloyd! Best. Secondary Character. Ever.

Michelle Rowen’s dialogue snaps with wit and she brings terrific visuals to the page – a purple WalMart robe over a McDonald’s uniform, a sign that says “Welcome to the Underworld,” a “demony-bachelor pad.” Her imagination runs rampant with the monsters, villains and other demons.

Maybe it was just me, and that I read her blog and know she loves Buffy, but I got a Buffy-esque vibe from this book. I saw Nathaniel as Angel and Julian as Spike and Lisa as Faith….

The ending was terrific, weaving all the threads together in a clever and satisfying way.

This is my second Michelle Rowen book (coincidentally, hers as well ;) ) and it will not be my last!

I went shopping with Mom last night after dinner – something we NEVER do during the school year, so it was kind of a treat. When I was gone, I MISSED my new book! I didn’t feel guilty for not writing, but I missed my book!

I’m giving a workshop in September with another SARA on contesting, and I’m wondering what I can say that hasn’t been said. There’s the reason why people enter, how to prepare an entry, what to do about the comments, right? And I can offer more insight as a judge and coordinator. But I’m not sure what to offer that hasn’t been done, especially since Jessica Trapp came and spoke to us just last year on contesting.

I’ve never done a workshop before, though Trish and I are doing one at National on how to be a successful unpublished writer (we’d hoped that would be a misnomer by July…) so I’m not sure what to do to stand out.

Any thoughts?

When I was a tween, all my allowance and then some went to teen magazines - 16, Teen Beat, Tiger Beat, remember those? I devoured them. They were everywhere. I would get so excited when I'd see a new one on the shelf, and my grandmother fed my indulgence. When I'd get tired of the magazines, I'd cut out the pictures of my latest crush and tape them to the wall. Robby Benson, Shaun Cassidy and John Schneider have all been up there.

Then I was into fashion magazines. Seventeen (remember the back to school issues? It was like a BIBLE!) Glamour, Madamoiselle, Marie Claire, Elle. Fortunately, I worked at a drug store so I could try before I bought. I usually bought anyway.

Then I got married, and it was decorating magazines, usually with a country theme - Country Living, Country Home, Country Marketplace. This trend lasted the longest, encompassing Martha Stewart Living, Romantic Home, Country Sampler, Country Gardens....I still have a ton of them, because frankly, decorating stuff doesn't go out of style like clothes. I only subscribe to 2, and buy the others only very rarely.

Now I've kind of come back to the people...I subscribe to Entertainment Weekly. It was free with my Blockbuster Reward card, but it's still something I look forward to every week. (This week's was bleh, though it did have a TEENY picture of Justin Chambers.)

What magazines do you get?

I never did tell y'all about X Men 3, so I thought I'd do a movie post.

First, this is the movie I showed the last two days of school:



It is SO FUNNY! I've seen it probably a couple of HUNDRED times, know most of the lines by heart. It's the Tiny Toons, and it starts off with them waiting for the clock to strike three to dismiss them on the last day of school. My class and I sang this one over and over. The funny bits - the road trip from hell with Hampton and his family, to Happy World Land. Elmira's quest for a kitty that leads her to Wild Animal Safari Zoo. Fowl Mouth at the movies. Hilarious. A bit dated - I think I first saw it when I was teachjing second grade about 15 years ago. But still so funny.

This is what I watched when I got home the last day of school.



Something New with Simon Baker. Structured very like a Temptation, I would say. African American woman who's had the best of everything, lived in high society, who falls for her white landscape architect. Hello, who wouldn't? He was hot. And he wore this necklace, and when he was making love to her, the necklace swung down between them and....I never realized how sexy that could be.

I don't know if I mentioned watching Munich.



It was a terrific character study about a man seeking justice for his country, the things he has to do and the toll it takes on him. Just incredibly done. (And yes, Eric Bana has the butt polyester pants were made for. OMG.)

This was a cute movie.



I thought it was probably too slow moving for my class to see, but I enjoyed it, the character growth of each person. The little boy looks like my dh did as a kid. My dh was probably more of a stinker, too.

This movie was too frantic for me.



I'm not a Mel Brooks fan, though. I didn't really get why they didn't want the play to be a smash, but dang, Matthew Broderick can dance! Watch it for the dancing alone. Though the Will Farrell bits were funny. I can't believe I just said that.

And finally:



I loved it. I cried. Not many laughing bits, like in the others. Logan was forced to be the leader. Not enough Rogue. I liked Magneto - I like how you can ALMOST root for the bad guys. McSteamy from Grey's Anatomy had a few bit parts ;) Now, my dh hated it. He said it went against the comics, that that wasn't how it all happened. IF YOU GO, make sure you stay all the way through the credits. There's an extra scene at the end.

What movies have you seen lately? What are you looking forward to?

I thought I'd give you guys a short review on the book No Plot, No Problem. I really liked the tone of the book, very humorous. He talks about the birth of NaNoWriMo. Not much new information, especially if you've ever done a book in a week session - plan meals ahead of time, clear your schedule, etc, etc. The second half of the book you read as the weeks progress - a chapter for week one and what to expect, another for week 2, and so on. So I'm not actually finished reading it, but I am enjoying it.

Went to a party last night, going to another this afternoon. Tomorrow, shopping at the outlet malls!

Before:



After:



I cried. Fantastic Sams was fantastic - they will package the hair and mail it to Locks of Love.

I get to start a new book!!! It's been a year. I have the first scene in my head, just ready to get down on paper. I know my hero pretty well, and I kinda know my heroine, though I'm holding back on the revelation of her true external goal. I have about the first third of the book synopsized. I don't have a title, and I don't know how happy I am with her name....Sara. May have to change it to something a little more exotic, because she is. But I won't need her name for a few pages - it starts in his POV. So, off I go.

I'm not 100% happy with 30 of the last pages of DLB, but I'm waiting till my critique meeting. Haven't heard about the revisions on Hot Shot.

The dh woke up late for work - he should have been there ten minutes ago and he left five minutes ago.

And today is the day of The Haircut. I'm going to cry, y'all. And I will post pictures.

First of all - look! I slept till 6:15! Okay, not entirely true - I woke up at 4, but went back to bed and fell asleep.

Today is my favorite day of the year. Right now, every minute of summer vacation is in front of me. I haven't wasted any of it.

I'm a big believer in goals, and I was planning to list my goals for the summer, as well as the schedule I want to have every day. Only I started, well, kind of getting anxious about it. I mean, it's my VACATION. Do I really want to put myself under that kind of stress? Yes, I want to try to write a book in a month as a challenge, just to see if I can do it. But do I want to add my house cleaning and exercising and all that and write it down? Will I be setting myself up for failure?

I do know I write more and better if I have a schedule.

What about you guys who are writing full time? Do you have a set schedule? Do you feel guilty if you don't follow it?

And yes, I'm a little teary. These children made me want to come to work every day. They made me laugh, they made me proud, they are going to make me miss them.

I'm so glad I'll be having them again next year. I'm ready.

What I'm NOT ready for is ending this year. I woke at three, thinking of what I need to do the next two days (we get out at noon tomorrow, if we're done. Which I plan to be.)

I need to:

Put copies of the report cards in the PRCs and the stickers on the front.

Have a meeting with my principal about one of my students whose mom never came for the parent conference.

Get more boxes to pack my desk.

Put my room number on all the furniture, so when they take it out to wax the floors, I get the same furniture.

Cover my bookshelves with butcher paper.

Get my check from the office - both my paycheck and a check to reimburse me for $$ I spent in the classroom.

Defrost my fridge so I can bring it home.

Bring home my microwave and rocking chair and bookshelf (I would leave them there, but we're having summer school at our campus, and I don't trust other people with my personal stuff.) And my one closet has a file cabinet in there. I don't know why. And I can't get it out. The problem is, I drive a Scion. The dh won't let me take my Land Cruiser because it's overheating. Maybe Baby Brother can follow me in his truck tomorrow.

Okay, well, written down, that seems doable. Too bad it's too late to go back to bed!

Remember earlier this month I wanted to revisit times in my life when I was more connected to my son? I got my wish yesterday.

The boy came with me to school because I needed an extra pair of hands (we had Game Day, a Faculty/Fifth Grade kickball game and a Sundae Party). I figured the boy would be handy, AND could help me pack my room.

I woke him at 5:45 - WAY early for him, and we left the house by 6:30. We stopped at the grocery store to pick up lunch and the ice cream for the Sundae Party, then went to Starbucks so he could try the new Banana Frappacino. On the drive to school, we talked. I found out he's more committed to donating his hair to Locks of Love because one of his very good friends (he had a crush on her earlier in the year but now he says he loves her like a sister) was diagnosed with cancer. I don't know what kind, and he said he hasn't known very long, but she's on the medication and is losing her hair. So this weekend, we're going to get his hair cut.

He talked about music, and school, and being on the newspaper next year. He talked about maybe being a high school teacher so he could connect with the kids like his favorite teacher does.

We got to school, and everyone oohed and ahhed over how tall he was and how long his hair was. My little girl from New Orleans was scared of him (he is pretty big - I think he's past 6'2 now) but once we got back into the classroom and set up the games and the boy sat with her and played, she got over it.

He watched the kids while I played kickball with the teachers - we won!! 15-6! I had a sacrifice RBI. Then we went back in, played more games. I loved watching my boy with my kids. He explained things so patiently, and let them hang on him (my student who is his name twin wouldn't leave him alone ;) ). My boy moved from game to game, playing, and the kids were so thrilled when he sat with them. They wanted him to eat lunch with them, but he ate with the teachers. One of the kids brough Scrabble and we both got hooked. I said we'd get the game (though we have a closetful of games we rarely play.)

After school, I'd promised we'd go to the Witte Museum because it's free on Tuesdays and he wanted to see a special exhibit they had there called In the Dark. The commercial had said it would be there through June 4, but when we got to the Witte, the exhibit was gone - Monday was the last day. So we went to the Science Treehouse.

Let me tell you, the Treehouse is cool, but mostly full of little kids. But my big, tall boy had the best time playing on the green screen weather wall, banging on the Stomp-like percussion, playing with air pressure. I actually ran into one of my students and her dad and brothers there. The dad thought my boy was 17! He's only 14!

We went through the whole museum, talking and he was joking around. We watched the prarie dogs play (who knew?) and went to the log cabins out back and went BACK to the Treehouse (did I mention I was exhausted? But I didn't say a word because this was the day I'd been wishing for.) And on the way to the car, he saw the Texas Rangers museum and wondered if anyone went there, and said he'd like to go someday.

We stopped at Panda Express for dinner, came home and watched LOST and I could barely hold my head up. I was in bed before 9!!! (Of course, I woke up at 2 AM and couldn't go back to sleep.) But it was a wonderful, wonderful day.

It was the gel souffle that did it. Gel souffle! For your skin!

I've never been much of a girly girl. I mean, I wear make up and dresses and sandals and earrings and bracelets, but Bath and Body Works used to flummox me. Those counters at the departments stores? I didn't even glance over. And manicures and pedicures? Heck, I can barely sit still for a haircut!

Three things happened this year that shifted my way of thinking. First, Colleen sent me a goody bag with sugar scrub, bath oil, cuticle cream and nail polish. It was just such a fun surprise! And smelled soooo good (it was orange-y. I don't remember. I used it up pretty quick.) I got addicted to sugar scrub - a very nice exfoliant. I've made two batches of my own, though I can't make it smell as good as that batch.

Then, my friend Sarah at school is ALWAYS talking about girly stuff. She's very girly, and used to work at one of those counters in the mall. She's talking about lotions and salt scrubs and pedicures, and did I mention I adore her? You know how when you adore someone, some of the things she likes rubs off on you?

And then, JoAnn gave me a Bath and Body Works gift card for my birthday. I was going to be absolutely practical. I got my foot scrub. But I also got this sea silt or something for the bathtub. Uh, addicted.

My uncle gave me a gift card to Walmart for my birthday, and when I went, they didn't have any of the blouses I liked anymore. What did I buy? CDs? DVDs? Plants? Nope - nail polish and eyeshadow. And foot cream.

My brother and sister in law gave me a gift card to Target. I saved it till yesterday (can you believe it?) I wanted the resin Adirondak chairs they had on sale. They were out. (I TOLD my dh we needed to go Sunday - did he listen??) What did I buy? Scented candles, the summer scented ones (note to anyone interested - they are NOT very scented, not for $6.50 apiece!)

Then I had a coupon for a free lotion at Bath and Body Works. You had to spend $10 and you got a free $8 bottle of lotion, and Sarah was talking about the pomegranate martini lotion. What Sarah has, Mary has to have. Did Mary get the antibacterial soap, 5 for $10? No, but she wishes she had! I got the sample pack of all those sea silt products, including the gel souffle, which smells really good and also makes your skin feel soooo smooth.

So. I turned into a girly girl when I wasn't even looking!

Are you a girly girl? What do you indulge in?

Yeah, I don't know what that title's about. I know all I want to do is go back to bed. My sister in law and I are the only ones in the family working today. I know, I shouldn't complain- in a week I get 10 weeks off. But I'm tired and cranky NOW!

So, I kind of started this last week, asking about what ideas you have and how they're different from what you usually write. Sooo...here's what I have written:

A three-heroine/three hero story (600 pages!)
Two sports hero stories
A military hero story and a former military hero story
A single mom story
Two single dad stories (one is a sports hero)
Two reunion stories
One bad boy comes back to town story
One best friend story
Two firefighter stories (one is the best friend)
One amateur sleuth story
One futuristic (surprised me, too)
Two cop stories (one is a reunion story)

Here's what I've started:

A hostage story where a hostage falls in love with the hostage negotiator. It finalled in a contest - I don't remember which. I never finished it.
A Sex and the City type story.
A romance bringing Moulin Rouge into the present day
A story about a man whose father killed his mother. I tried to put romance into it and killed the magic. Stupidly didn't save the original.
An adventure story on a cruise

Here's what I want to write:

A Bermuda Triangle story - I just don't want to rip off Lost
A tornado chaser story - I know who he is, but not who she is.
A spy story with three potential heroes - including the villain.
A story about a mom who gives up everything for her kids, until she has a chance to make her dreams come true.

I've never written:

A story where the hero and heroine have a sexual relationship that turns to romance
A historical
A medical/office romance
A comedy
A secret baby/amnesia/marriageof convenience (though I have an idea for the latter). I did write a cowboy story when I was in middle school, though ;)

What have you written/never written?