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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.)

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And now I’m leaving again..

::sighing::

But this trip is shorter and closer to home. I’ll be speaking at the Fairport schools in Rochester Thursday and Friday.

Saturday should be a blast – I’ll be at the Rochester Teen Book Festival, along with LOTS of other YA authors. This one is definitely worth the drive, folks. And it won’t snow.

I might have huge news about the condition of my computer… stay tuned.

One more thing before I go:

Print this article out and bring it to English class. Discuss!!!

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Where am I?

Sometimes I wonder…

Actually, I’m in PA again. The great part about this trip is that I am able to see two of my daughters while on the road. Hung out w/ Stef last week, have been bugging Mer and her friends all weekend. The weather was cruddy yesterday, so I dragged Mer to a fabric store. I have decided it is time to get a hobby for the first time in a very long time. We fondled the fabric and contemplated cloth. I fantasized about quilting. When we went back to her dorm, she – being a practical child – handed me her pants that were in need of repair.

Being away from home so much makes you random. Random thoughts:

Oh my goodness.

My computer is still in critical condition. In fact, they had to airlift it to a trauma center in Texas. The tech guy muttered something about a motherboard. My computer had a major stroke. Thank goodness I bought the warranty. If the surgery goes well and there are no complications from the anesthesia, I’ll have my baby back in my arms in two weeks.

Warranties = health insurance

Maybe I should buy a typewriter.

I want to write poetry about frustration for forty-eight hours. I want to be very, very quiet for a decade or so and let all of my words come out my fingertips. I want the perfect croissant and the perfect cup on black coffee on a street in Paris that smells like flowers. I want to go back to waking up at 3:30 am and going to bed at sunset. I want to talk to my grandparents, but they passed over long, long ago.

I wish I could be three years old for five minutes so I could have the mother of all temper tantrums on the floor of the hotel lobby.

A student at Agnes Irwin asked me which superpower I’d like to have. First thing out of my mouth? Being invisible. My inner introvert really is ready to melt down.

OK, randomness over.

Bensalem Middle Schools tomorrow, Newtown Friends School Tuesday…. driving home (no speeding ticket no speeding ticket no speeding ticket) Tuesday night. Driving to Rochester for three more days of not writing on Wednesday.

What super power do you want?

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Wind-up Author Doll

A rather busy week. In fact, it’s been a blur. I am writing this from a library computer… I’m afraid if I wait too long to update, I’ll forget everything.

It’s already beginning to fade…….

Thanks to everyone who came to Moravian College Tuesday night. It was my good fortune to sit on a panel with David Lubar (one of the funniest guys on the planet) and new author (also a great guy), Paul Acampora. The highlight, of course, was hanging out with my daughter, Stef.

A couple of packed days and nights of school and library visits have followed. Today I am at the Agnes Irwin School just outside Philly. I spoke here a couple years ago, and it has been a delight coming back. When I’m done, it’s back on the road to Lancaster, PA, where tomorrow’s school awaits, as well as daughter Meredith and her friends at Millersville.

I’m still anxiously awaiting word on the condition of my computer. Maybe I should start a vigil. Oh, and there is a case of bubonic plague in Los Angeles. This is the kind of thing that freaks me out.

In honor of National Poetry Month, a quick haiku:

The bubonic plague
infecting with tendrils gray
Powerbook weeping

Not great, but it’s a start.