Kitchen Table Purchase

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Blair and I went shopping today for matching bedside dressers and came home instead with a new kitchen table.  That's typical of us.  We're very much the impulse buyers which has not always served us well in the long run.

There was the decision,  for example, to purchase a beautiful taupe and mint blue scenery throw while on our trip in Savannah.  The fabric is like cashmere and the threading intricate and beautiful.  However, there is not one room in my home where a beige and blue throw would even vaguely fit into the decor.  Yet I managed while standing in the store to convince myself that if I bought pieces I loved, somehow they would all find a home.  Yeah, not so much.  The throw remains folded into a square and tucked away in a drawer where I'll probably pull it out every 8 months, remember I have it, wish once again for a place to display it, then hide it away again.

But I digress. Back to the table.

We've had a heck of a time finding anything to fit the space.  It's a narrow rectangular room, small, but with one wall of windows and 3 door openings, and odd angles creating a hexagonal feel.  A closed off fireplace juts into the middle of the room from one wall, making it near impossible to fit any sort of regular sized table in there.  One decorator advised us a 32 x 32 square table would look best.  Have you ever tried to find a 32 x 32 sqaure table?  I have, and unless it's for a child's dollhouse, they don't make them.

So we were intrigued when we found a 24 x 42 round table with leaves that can be folded down to shove the table against the wall (Iif for some reason in life it would become necessary to shove my breakfast table against the wall.  I can't imagine any such reason, but it's nice to feel prepared).

We took it home and it actually fit and looks great.  A little on the country side, but we're looking to de-formalize the look of our house and as long as I don't cross over into dried flower arranagments, I'm okay with a little of the country look.

The question becomes what to do with our old table.  It's from Blair's bachelor days and is a This End Up table that is near indestructible.  And big.  We'll probably see if any friends with kids need a sturdy piece of furniture and offer it to them.

Publications International, Ltd. - New Book?

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About 2 weeks ago an e-mail came across my cat writers site, advertising that a publishing company wanted to put together a compilation book on cats and dogs and was requesting submissions. I copied a few of my stories, tucked in a cover letter and sent it off, hoping perhaps they would include a prior work of mine in the book.

I got a phone call a few days later from their acquisitions Editor. They weren't looking for contributors. Rather, they needed an author to oversee the book and contribute 15,000 new words to a book that would be based on photos and short stories about unique or interesting dogs and cats.

"When's your deadline for book completion?" I asked.

"We're aiming for August."

"Thanks for calling."

I can't find the time to get done what's already on my plate. Add in an August due date and I'd be living on Starbuck Mochas. I did tell Blair about the offer though, and he agreed that it did seem too much, too soon.

"Yes, but everything comes into your life for a reason," I said. "Maybe I should consider this."

"Maybe the reason it came into your life is to teach you how to say no," he said.

Fair enough. I let it drop that night but kept thinking about the project. Finally after a few days I decided it was too late. They were submitting names of potential authors and I had missed the boat. All for the best.

Until my phone rang at 11am today. Same editor, calling back. She didn't exactly remember me but said she had received my work and really liked it and had we talked at all?

"Yes," I said. "I'm the one that ran screaming from the room when you mentioned the August due date."

"Oh," she said, sounding disappointed. And then darn it all, my ego kicked in.

"But I've been thinking about the project and wondering if I was too hasty in declining," I said. I could almost hear her sit up straighter on the other end of the phone. "Tell me again what you're looking for."

I didn't get a whole lot more details, mainly because I think I'm too afraid to press for them and find out what I may be getting myself into. At this point, I've agreed to have my name submitted as a potential candidate as author.

I do believe offers and people come into our lives for a reason and the fact that this one has popped back up after I wasn't sure rejecting it was the right move in the first place...someone's trying to send me a message.

I have no idea how the pay, author acknowledgement, or any of that works. What draws me to it is:
*Ego. Yes, I admit it. It would be nice to have another cat book to my name
* Networking. This company is also a children's book publisher. I write children's books. True, their books are more education oriented vs. novels, but I would assume they have some industry contacts.
* Cross promotion - getting this book out may also be another means of promoting Lessons In Stalking.
*The Challenge. Tell me I HAVE to do something and I'll find any excuse not to. Make doing the same task an option, and I'm all over it. I don't have to do this book. But how intriguing to see if in one year I could work on 3, maybe (fingers crossed) even 4 books: Lessons In Stalking, this cat book, my public speaking book (still in the works) and my Millicent middle-grade novel, still being reviewed by an editor.

If all 4 of those books come to pass...wow, I don't even know what. Catnip for all.