Internet On the Fritz

Apologies for the delay between postings.  The cable connection to our Internet is giving us trouble and I haven't been able to log on all weekend. It's up now but we've got a service technician coming out tomorrow to look at it.

Not a terribly exciting weekend to report on anyway. It rained most of Saturday and Blair and I holed up in the house. We made the mistake Friday night of thinking we would watch "just a portion" of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. We put the first movie in and now we're hooked. We spent Saturday watching the 2nd movie and watched half of the third movie last night. I expect we'll wrap it up tonight and be able to move on with our lives once again.

We also cooked all weekend. Four years ago (I kid you not, it's been 4 years) my sister gave me a recipe for Shrimp  Fettuccini Alfredo with Mushrooms. We finally got around to making it Saturday night and it was delicious. We made glazed ginger salmon for lunch on Sunday and grilled scallops for dinner. We are fish-ed out for the week but very proud of our cooking efforts for the weekend.

I have so much stuff coming up I don't know which way is up. I've got a radio interview this Wednesday (local AM station), a seminar Thursday morning, a workshop all day Saturday, next Tuesday I start an 8-week Dale Carnegie course, a speech with my friend Pam at the Fall NC NOW seminar on the 26th, a 20-minute speech for Toastmasters on the 30th that I have no idea what I will speak on and then I'm gone the 1st - the 8th at a writer's retreat in the mountains (more on that later). In between there I have meetings, critique groups, and--oh yeah--work. It's good, as I like a busy schedule. But this morning as I face my desk I feel like I should take a deep, deep breath because who knows when I'll come up for air?

I hope everyone is having a productive Monday! 

What Do You Read?

Feeling a bit uninspired this morning so I am blatantly copying a blog entry idea from my friend Pamela King Cable.  These same questions are posted on her blog entry here and I'm sure her answers are much higher-end than mine so be sure and check them out. Meanwhile, if anyone feels inspired to post their own answers to the book questions below, feel free.

 One book that changed your life.
One Day My Soul Just Opened Up by Iyanla Vanzant

One book that you’ve read more than once.
 The Diary of Anne Frank (I read annually)

One book you’d want on a desert island.
"How to Get Yourself Off A Desert Island in 30 Days or Less."

One book that made you laugh.
Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris

One book that made you cry.
Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane / Night by Elie Wiesel

One book that you wish you had written.
The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger (Run, do not walk, to buy this book and read it...)

One book that you wish had never been written.
Any cat humor book that competes with MINE.

One book you’re currently reading.
I just finished "Saving Fish From Drowning" by Amy Tan and am now reading a YA novel by Joyce Carol Oates called "After the Wreck, I Picked Myself Up, Spread My Wings, and Flew Away."

One book you've been meaning to read.
Gone With The Wind

What You Say May Come Back to Bite You...

I am half amused/half mortified at the responses I've received from my "Sick of Volunteering" post two days ago. A few friends e-mailed me and wrote, "Hey, I'm sorry I haven't gotten ________ to you or never followed up on ______." They were extremely sweet and concerned they had caused me stress. The funny part is that I wasn't even remotely thinking of these people when I made that post. The mortifying part is they didn't know know that and may not believe me when I tell them that really, it isn't them...

No more boo-hooing. I have it too good in life to moan and groan. Proof of this being that today for the first time in almost two weeks our house hit the 75 degree mark. Whopee! I'm hoping this means our AC unit is on its way back to life. If we can get one or two days of lower temperatures, I think we'll be back in business without having to spend money on a duct-work overhaul.

I now have 4 hours before I need to leave for my writers critique group and I have about 8 hours of work piled on my desk beside me, so I best get started.

Hugs to all my wonderful friends for the sweet notes they sent me.

Dena

Um...sorry.

Well. That was quite the little hissy fit I threw on-line yesterday wasn't it? I thought about deleting it but eh, you had to find out sooner or later I'm not perfect so you might as well start dealing with the pain and astonishment of it all now. (It's okay. I'm here for you.)

Things perked up later in the day. I think I found a replacement speaker for me at JobLink which eases the guilt of cancelling. Also, part of my volunteer work yesterday involved setting up speaking schedules for two authors who are going to speak to the community on behalf of the WGOT (Writers Group of the Triad) and when I spoke to one author she was so cheerful and gracious that it put me in a much better frame of mind.  

I'm in high spirits today. In an effort to combat the tired feeling I mentioned in an earlier blog I've been going to bed early. VERY early. Like at 9 PM. But I've been getting in a full 8 hours and I feel fantastic.  No more nodding head syndrome, no more forcing myself on to the next task. Instead, I feel rested and energized. It makes a huge difference throughout the day. 

Still running. Was out this morning and Sunday morning for 52 minutes which is probably around 5 miles. I hesitate to track my mileage because once I know how far something is, I psych myself out. "It's 3 miles as soon as I hit that stop sign. That's good enough. Maybe I'll stop." Where if  I don't know how far I've run, I'll keep running.

This month my goal is simply to run 4x/week. Come September, I'll need to take it up to 5 days and increase my time.

I better get a lot of sleep before then. ;)