Are you bored?

I found two great places to play:

1. Literature Map. You type in the name of an author, and the site shows you other authors whose work somehow connects. This is what happens if you type in me. Play with this and let me know if you come up with anything funny or weird. Also – can anyone figure out how this works?

2. Shelf Life, a reading blog written by Laura Ryan of the Syracuse Post Standard. This is my new favorite place to go for news about authors and books.

I am writing today. Life is good.

Applicious MacWonderful

I HAVE MY COMPUTER!!!!!

::rolls on floor with glee like a cat on a mountain of catnip::

I have one million gazillion emails to answer plus a lot of other stuff, but it is all possible now because I HAVE MY COMPUTER!!!

:: more rolling and gurgling with happiness::

A deep bow of gratitude and humble thanks to Bobby and the rest of the crew at the Apple Store at the Carousel Center Mall in Syracuse. They went above and beyond the call of duty to take care of me. Remember that old-fashioned thing called customer service? This is the last store in America where you can see it practiced every day.

(If anyone out there has been trying to email me, please be patient. This is going to take a while, plus the next three days are crammed with speaking stuff.)

Thoughts while waiting for the coffee to brew

Happy Birthday, Wolfgang!

After a slight wobble when she called CNN two weeks ago, Oprah retakes the crown as Queen of the Known Universe. Thank goodness. Did anyone actually see the show?

I had a moment last night when I was IMing three of our four kids at the same time. It was so cool I could barely contain myself.

I have another massive list of books for BH to fetch home from the library for me. I’m going to need new glasses by the time this research is over.

I keep looking for situations in which I can say “Gotham” and “dolt”. Do you ever do that, obsess over a word for a while and try to shove it into sentences where it doesn’t belong until your friends scream “Cut it out! God, you’re such a dolt!”

Hee.

Finally… my resolutions

The fact that I am twelve days late figuring out what my resolutions are should give the reader some insight into my current state of chaos.

::shakes head with world-weariness and self-loathing::

Here we go:

1. I resolve to make all deadlines in 2006. This includes deadlines for books, articles, publicity requests, timely email and fanmail responses, and returning my library books on time.
2. I resolve to work ten hours a day until I get caught up on everything I am behind on so I can accomplish Resolution #1.
3. I resolve to read more for fun.

That’s enough. I can never remember more than three things at any given time.

The weather has been totally weird here. The temperature has been in the high thirties and forties. I am not amused. I like winter. If I wanted to see mud and grass in January, I would have stayed in Philly. I need a blizzard, something that will snow us in for four or five days. I want to use my snow shoes. And I am sure my family wants me to stop whining about this, so will the joker who moved the jet stream too far to the south please put it back where it belongs? Some people, I swear.