"I Know The Author"

I attended my Triad Networking group this morning and a member approached me and said he went for a massage the other day and as he walked into the room the massage therapist was reading my book.  He said, "Hey, I know the author," and the woman talked so much about how funny the book was that this member--a (gasp!) non-cat loving guy--bought 4 books from me this morning to give as gifts to friends.

That's the thing with Lessons In Stalking.  People love it once they read it-it's just getting it into people's hands that's the struggle. Book sales off my website are almost non-existent at this point.  Purely my fault, as I have slacked on marketing. I'm going to work on kicking it into high gear again once we return from England. Being realistic, I know I just won't get that much done on it before then.

I've been practicing my speech for next Tuesday's competition.  It's the darndest thing.  I never have trouble remembering speeches.  I just think of it like telling a story.  But even after rounds of practice I am still struggling to remember the correct order of this speech.  I have no idea what will happen on Tuesday.  I hope to do well and advance to the next round but I'm not overly confident like I typically am when it comes to my speech-giving abilities. We shall see...

I'm heading to the beach this weekend for a writing session with two of my critique group buddies, Bernie and Maggie.  I've been looking forward to this weekend for months. We're sharing a room but going to plant ourselves on the beach (weather permitting) or in the hotel lobby or area cafes and just write our little hearts out. I'm hoping to get through several chapters of Millicent.  I'll set myself a word count I have to write for the weekend to make sure I get accomplished what I need to.

As for today, I've planted myself in the Green Bean for a 2 1/2 hour writing session before my weekly Toastmasters meeting. Then I have an hour to make phone calls before I meet my friends Pam & Michael for lunch, then home to apply another layer of red paint and move from "bloodbath" (see yesterday's entry) to "almost there."

I wish everyone a happy and productive Wednesday.

Countertop Chaos - Decorating Diaries

We're back with our next installment of Decorating Diaries. When we last left, Dena was gnashing her teeth over the now almost 6 months worth of delays in putting together one itty-bitty bathroom.  It's been several weeks since we last checked in with our heroine.  Let's see how she's doing:

Dena: "I am gnashing my teeth over the delays with this stupid bathroom."

There you have it, folks.  An exhilarating and entirely unexpected update on the bathroom progress.  Remember, you heard it here first.

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All right, a little less sarcasm may be in order (but just barely). Some progress has been made.  The tile is done and looks stunning. We've painted the walls and trim.  I chickened out on the red walls I was planning and went with a non-descript beige color.  However, when you enter the bathroom there are built in shelves in little nooks on either side of the door and we have decided to try painting this small area red, to add a burst of color.  It's hard to tell how that will turn out. 

If you've never worked with red before, let me offer some advice.  The first coat almost always looks like cotton candy. The second coat resembles something like a bloodbath--streaks and smears make it appear you blew someone away against the wall (perhaps the contractor?). The third coat is where you'll be able to get the first inkling of whether the red you've selected is right for you, and the fourth coat is the finale. Red is a lot of work. I've only put two coats of red on in the nook so we're in the "bloodbath" period right now.  Very relaxing.

The countertops were delivered late yesterday, around 6pm.  Delivered, but not initially installed. That's because the sinks--ordered by the contractor who's made such a mess of everything else in this bathroom--were too big.  Once the granite was fitted to the cabinets, there wasn't enough room to install both the sinks and the faucets, unless I left off my backsplash.  Not an option.

So the countertop dude called his supervisor and I called the woman I ordered the sink from and then we all stood around for about 20 minutes. Finally, the woman called and said, "Just cut the backs of the sinks. That's what my other installers always do." The countertop guy hesitated b/c the sinks are porcelain and he thought they might shatter. "No, no, just cut," came the instructions. So cut he did.

Good news/bad news.  One sink made it in. The other cracked. So a new sink must now be ordered and cut and installed. I am no longer surprised by these delays. The bathroom gods hate me.

And I'm trying to retain perspective. It's a countertop. It's not like I just lost my job or am being thrown out of  my home. Aren't I fortunate that I get to worry about problems such as my new sink being cracked during installation?  How many people in the world would love to have this being the problem in their life? These are the mantras I repeat to keep calm.

And the countertop is lovely against the cabinets.  

Here's a list of what still  needs to be done:

• Ceiling painted
• 3rd & 4th coats of red paint in nook
• plumbing
• Electric --light fixtures
• Window Treatments
  
• Shower door installed
• Hardware installed on cabinets
• Transition put in between tile floor ending in bathroom and hardwoods beginning in bedroom
• Decorating (bath mats, etc.)

I'd say we'll be done by next October, no problem.  Now excuse me while I go stare at my bloodbath red paint and think evil thoughts about contractors.

Trying to Get Ahead

While some people operate in "catch-up" mode, I am constantly in what I consider "get ahead" mode. It's one reason I'm always checking e-mail--if I stay on top of it then I can deal with things as they come in and not let them pile up and voila!--I'm "ahead." Yes, I realize it rarely works that way. My constant e-mail checking instead allows me to put off doing the real work that actually would place me ahead.  

But this nagging feeling of "stay on top, don't fall behind," permeates into every area of my life.  Blair and I will be in the car and I'll be giving orders, "Hurry, we can pass that car. Go around this guy.  Hurry and we'll make the light!"  Blair always asks, "What's the rush? We've got plenty of time." And we do.  But I feel the persistent need to be ahead in case something goes wrong. I'm anxious in the grocery store if my line is moving slower than the others. I don't like it if the yoga class I attend doesn't start right on time because then we'll get out late and oh my God, it's like the end of the world to me.

I'm working on letting go of this feeling.  It's a hard process--like changing the core of your being.  Still, I don't want to go through life feeling like I'm racing against an unknown enemy.  This weekend, for example, I "let go."

Checking e-mail on Saturday, I received the edited versions of several written pieces I'd been waiting for.  My impulse was to dive in and compare the edited versions to my original ones, see if I had any comments and e-mail my reply.  I got excited about doing the work. Why?  Because if I cleared it off my plate now, then I'd be ahead for Monday. I took a deep breath and set it aside.

I received an e-mail from a fellow writer I've been trying to arrange a lunch date with.  I wanted to break out my day planner and check the date--just so I wouldn't have to deal with it on Monday. I gritted my teeth and moved on to the next e-mail.

In Saturday's mail, I received copies of two articles coming out in the next issue of a pet magazine, which reminded me these people are woefully behind in their payments owed me. I fought against racing upstairs and tackling that issue immediately. 

Now of course I could have done any of those items this weekend and yes, I would be ahead of the game in that I wouldn't have to deal with them today.  But looking at the big picture, I'd only be marginally "ahead" and I would have had to give up my weekend time to do it.  What I need to realize is there will always be tiny issues popping up and I will never be able to say I'm 100% fully caught up, because there's always something waiting in the wings. 

Which ironically circles me back to that slightly panicked feeling of "then I'd better do what I can now because who knows what really big event might come along to suck up all my time."

And yet, it's Monday, it's sunny, Olivia was in my lap purring a few minutes ago and I just brewed a pot full of Snickerdoodle decaf coffee and the smell permeates the house.  Life is good.  It will take less than an hour to e-mail the friend, fire off an e-mail demanding my money to the publisher of the magazine that owes me, and do a quick printout and comparison of my articles. Less than an hour.  Leaving me plenty of time to tackle the other Monday morning workday tasks that await.

Here's to not being ahead, not being behind, but instead, just enjoying the ride.

Dena 

Very Blessed

Okay, even I admit 3 blog entries in one day is a bit much and I promise this will be the last  (And they may have to tide you over the weekend).   But I am just  moved to say that I am so thankful for the people in my life.  I have some truly incredible, caring friends.  There are the lifelong friends like Trisha, there are new friends like the wonderful people in my writer's group, and there are those people I really only know on a causal basis say from Toastmasters or my Triad Networking group that still blow me away with their caring.  I've received numerous supportive e-mails from my Toastmasters friends on the content of my last speech and offering words of encouragement for the area competition.  Triad Network friends e-mail me kitty clips or videos they think might make me laugh. I just received an e-mail from a woman who wrote in to say she and her "bitchy calico" both loved my book.  (I cracked up laughing at that).  I know in my humor I tend to go sarcastic which often reads negative, so I thought I'd take a moment to just say I appreciate every single one of you out there for bringing your presence to my life.  I'm a better person for it.

Dena