Happy 3rd Birthday to LazyDay Publishing!

Happy 3rd Birthday to LazyDay Publishing!!!

Deep Freeze

When we moved to Texas four years ago, I was really excited. You see, I had had it with cold weather and snow. I looked forward to sunshine, hot summers and mild winters. Imagine my disappointment when the first year we lived here, we had thirteen inches of snow in one day. Granted it melted the next day, but I know for a fact, that I was the only one who didn't have a snowman in my yard. (We still have our snow shovels and I used them to clear out the driveway.)

You see, Dallas doesn't have snowplows. They don't use salt, they use sand trucks. Needless to say, those trucks don't even come close to the town I live in.

I forgot to mention the first Christmas here, we had a small ice storm. Our neighbor tried to thaw out his frozen pipes and ended up setting his house on fire. It took four neighboring communities fire department to reach us because the roads were a solid sheet of ice and the trucks could not negotiate the roads. The house burned down to the ground.

Then let's not forget the fiasco of the Super Bowl held in Dallas. The weather was snow and ice, crippling the roads for days. After that, the city of Dallas did purchase some snow plows.

Question is. where are they now? We have been stranded now for four days in a deep freeze. Those brave enough to venture out have found that the food stores are empty. Roads are impassable. I can hardly walk outside without falling down.

The good news is that I was able to turn in my edits earlier than normal for Flag on the Play due out 1/31/14. I figured I'd better get them done while I still had power.

I guess these experiences have made me a stronger person. But I can't complain. Welcome to Texas!

Thanksgiving

I hope everyone had a very good Thanksgiving! We did. This year, it was only the three of us which was fine.

After a scary morning with me getting dizzy, I slowly bounced back and was able to help put up the Christmas decorations. I am not a sickly person at all, so for this to happen to me was really frightening. My blood sugar had dropped to 71 and I don't know why. My husband is a borderline diabetic and he has the sugar test device which enabled me to take my blood sugar count. I have a call to the doctor on my to do list for Monday.

I did get my second round of edits on the 25th and they are due back on 12/9. I have already gone through them the first time, mulling things over. I took Thursday and Friday off but worked on them again. I really appreciate everything the editor is saying and the suggestions she has are great. I need to work on my too many dialogue tags which does take some thought. I want the conversation to run smoothly so the reader doesn't get confused. When I write, I really get into the story and my fingers fly over the keyboard. It does help when another set of eyes looks at what I've done.

Weather finally warmed up but will get cold again this coming Friday. Last year, we wore shorts putting up the outside decorations. This year, we had to wear jeans and a light jacket. I think we are in for a cooler than normal winter. Bummer! After living up north for so many years, I really liked the mild winters here. Oh well. Live and learn.

I am so excited! Got the Cover Art for my next book, Flag on the Play! I can't wait to share it with you!

It is cold here in Texas. We have an ice storm on its way which means, everything will be closed tomorrow!

As much as I love Texas, I have to admit, we have the worst drivers ever. Using a turn signal around here is a sign of weakness. Cut in front of you is the only way they drive. Yikes! I thought people in New York, MA and Jersey were bad, but no! Try driving around here!!!

I wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Hoildays!

Crazy weather! Went from our first freeze on Tuesday to a balmy weekend with summer like temps. What does that mean? It meant yard work. One last mow; pulling the dead annual plants and cleaning the gardens for winter. I can barely move today. Ugh. And to think I work out too! I shouldn't be this sore. I used muscles that I never knew I had!

Also, this week, I mailed out my Christmas cards. I am known for being the first Christmas card that is received. It has become a tradition. I used to mail them the Wednesday before Thanksgiving while I lived in PA. Now in Dallas, the card to PA takes at least three days, so I try to plan it that way.

Why did I mail them out so early this year? I am not sure when my next set of edits are coming for Flag on the Play, which is why. I did my mail merge (the best thing since sliced bread!), printed out all of my labels and put them on the cards. I still write in all of my cards and sign them. I planned on doing maybe ten a day which turned into thirty and before I knew it, I was done. I went to the post office and bought the stamps and while watching the news, I stamped them all. The pile (160) sat on the counter and I said what the heck? I might as well mail them. I think maybe I'm OCD?

I think I'm back into my routine! Not only did I have to adjust to the time change, I had to adjust from vacation mode to work mode.

I got my edits in on time! I celebrated! Just waiting for the next round to come. I certainly have to thank both Staci and Liz for the things I'm learning from them!

Now, it's back to the book I'm currently writing....where was I with it?

Relaxation!

It has been a fabulous week! As I stated in my last blog, I had received the first set of edits of my third book, Flag on the Play. They are due back on 11/7. I worked on them all weekend because, for my significant birthday, my husband bought me a week's vacation to Maui! I didn't want to take the edits with me on vacation because I thought, I'm on vacation! I want to enjoy! I will have 2 days to work on them when I get back.

But me, being me, did bring them with me and surprisingly, I'm glad I did! After two days of relaxation, I took a whole morning and worked on them with a fresh outlook. I finished them and sent them home. Now, I will have time to take a second look at them before I submit them back to the editor.

Maui is awesome! This is the second time I've been here and it's just as beautiful. We've gone on a Sunset Cruise and attended a Luau. Met some really nice people and some not so nice people. But with the not so nice people, we know we'll never see them again. The others have all exchanged email addresses.

Rode along with my husband while he played golf and I got some awesome photos. It did rain, but at least it's a warm rain.

Also, there was a shark attack on a surfer the other day, so they closed the beaches for that morning. I will walk along the beach, maybe stick my toes in, but the pool does look inviting!

There is a huge Mardi Gras festival here on Halloween night. It's located on Front Street and over 35,000 people attend. We went the day before and people were already decked out in their costumes. We ate at the Hard Rock Café and our waiter Solo, dressed and looked like Johnny Depp. He was a trip! I don't do crowds well since I'm so short, so we skipped the festival and had a lovely dinner on the beach up north. Nut crusted, fresh Mahi-Mahi served with caramel sauce. To die for!

Now it's pool time to work off everything I've eaten!