Tuesday

Wow, look at me. A regular blogger.

Well, today was my doctor's appt. I got good news - he said I don't have to come back anymore and my foot is 75% healed. We got to see the x-ray and it looked good. He even put it up side by side with the first x-ray so we could see the healing. He said I can wear that surgical shoe if I have any pain, but I can slowly start to resume my normal life. The swelling is normal, he said I banged the hell out of my foot and it could be as long as six months before it stops swelling. He suggested physical therapy and I told him I would look into it.

So I'm happy. A little sore. But basically, relieved that everything is feeling better.

I need to send that doctor's office a thank you note. They have all been so kind and wonderful.

The new Pack book is going well. I like the story so far. I'm excited to be writing it.

Monday

Oy, what a Monday! The ad ran in the paper, the phones went nuts all day, and our regular customers had to vie with applicants. The bad thing is, we spelled out the qualifications both in the ad and on the phone, and out of thirty resumes, only three were remotely qualified. Sigh.

But - good news here - I wore a regular shoe *all* day. Yep, no boot. I did wear the compression hose on that foot, but only a little discomfort and no real pain.

And this morning I started the new book. Spent the weekend reading editor notes and brainstorming. Got the plot nailed and went with it. Five pages, and I enjoyed it.

Tomorrow I have the Underwriting manager of one of our insurance companies coming in for a meeting AND a doctor appt. Busy day, and I'm kind of dreading it. I'm so far behind at work.

I did speak with a couple of companies about on-line applicant testing (both skills and personality profiles) and am considering that.

Now though, I'm going to go off and read....

New Stories

Hey, tomorrow I re-start writing a new story, my next Pack book, Cry of the Wolf. I love fresh starts and new stories - like starting the first day of school when you were a kid. Exciting and frightening all at once.

I spend part of the weekend reworking the plot and planning the story. Now I think I'm ready to write

Also - and I'm not whining - I didn't wear the cast/boot much this weekend. Spent most of today and yesterday without it. Only wore it when we went out to eat and when I went to get groceries. Yay. There is some slight pain/discomfort and I need to ask the doctor about that, as well a some swelling, but I feel much better about the prospect of finally getting healed.

Tomorrow is another work week. The newspaper was supposed to run an ad for a new employee, but for some reason they didn't run it. Grrrr. So I've got to call them and see what's up with that (though quite honestly, I'm kind of glad not to have to be getting hundreds of faxed resumes and starting to interview.)

Ciao for now!

Reading material

Hey, no more whining about the foot (I promise.) I went to Barnes and Noble last night and used the gift card I got for a Christmas gift. I bought three books (yes, I had to put in my own money too.) Wicked by Gregory Maguire, The Forest House by Marion Zimmer Bradley (loved, loved, loved The Mists of Avalon even if that was a loooong time ago), and Why Do Men Have Nipples by Mark Leyner and Billy Goldberg, MD.

Everyone has been talking about Wicked. My brother was reading it over Christmas (haven't talked to him yet to get his opinion. On-line writer's groups are buzzing about it. So I decided to give it a try. And - since I have thousands of books (literally,) I just realized I already HAVE the Forest House. Ever done that? Bought a book you've already read? My bad. I wonder if they'll let me return it. Guess it doesn't hurt to try.

The last book I saw on line (Why Do Men Have Nipples) and found it amusing. Nice waiting room reading material, if you know what I mean.

Oh, and my friends are getting their RITA books to judge, so I will soon have 6-7 books to read fast. On top of my towering TBR stack, LOL. And of course I have Judith McNaught's new book on order, as well as Stephen King's. I'm still trying to finish up Dean Koontz's latest Forever Odd. And John Grisham's The Broker was next on my list.

Sigh. Too many books, too little time. And - I've got a book to write. Better get to it, huh?

Whining about the foot

Okay, so I've been good about not whining (and did I mention in my last post that I can be dramatic?) So now, I'm going to whine. This broken foot thing is a pain in the ass. Seriously.

You don't realize until something like this happens how much you take for granted. I walk fast. I bound down stairs. I dance to music I like. Or, I USED to. Can't do that now.

On top of that, it's been eight weeks since I've put this boot (or walking cast) on. EIGHT WEEKS!! All the web sites say 6-8 weeks, with eight being the end time. Yet I'm still having problems.

I've got a great doctor. Doctor of Podiatry Medicine, all that. Nice guy. Young, intelligent, witty. Kind of cute too. Seems to know what he's doing. Yet my foot is still swollen (won't fit in my shoes, and today was the day I got to take off the cast and put on regular, albeit flat-soled shoes). But since I couldn't, I called the doctor's office yesterday to ask the nurse if that was normal, she said she'd ask the doctor and call me back. He ended up calling me back (nearly setting off a riot in my office, btw - he has a great phone voice and when my female employee answered the phone, she was practically shrieking about this debonair, suave, Pierce Brosnan sounding voice on the phone!) He told me to go buy compressive stockings (like older people wear.) So I did, even though they cost $32. I wore them today. My foot actually HURT. Not discomfort, like I told the doctor. But ached and HURT.

Wah. (I know you're thinking, what a whiney-baby, but wait until it happens to you!)

I was so looking forward to shoes. Real shoes. Not a ten pound, cast iron boot. Okay, that's an exaggeration, but bear with me.

And, because I a) don't want the doctor to think I'm insane, I can't call back and ask if it's normal for these compressive stockings to make my foot hurt and b) don't want to risk setting off another round of women going nuts over this guy's voice, I will wait until Tuesday, when I have an appointment.

But still, I want my foot back.

Lots of reasons, some of them listed above, some of them utterly feminine and sort of silly, like this. I got the Victoria's Secret annual shoe sale catalog (I know, they're not known for shoes, but I buy a lot of stuff from them and they actually have KILLER shoes.) I can't buy shoes now, especially heels, which I adore.

Okay, so I'm whining. Sorrrrrrrry. But heck, where else can I whine?

Will keep you posted.

Life and Stuff

Hey - how about this? Only a week since I've posted! I'm gettin better, yes?

I've been thinking about blogs. Mine's not controversial or cutting edge. Kind of boring, actually. You can tell from reading it that I love dogs. Love to write. Not much about me.

I'm never going to be able (or willing) to have a controversial blog. Don't have the time or the energy. Life is too hectic for me to devote that much time to trying to stay cool .

So, what do I want you to know about me? What am I willing to share? Well, for one, I love being my age. Mid-forties are a lot of fun. Liberating. Unreal, actually, until you get there and realize a lot of the stuff you worried about in your twenties and thirties doesn't really matter.

I love to read and camp and fish. I love my husband and my daughter. I value friends, but don't forget or forgive easily when they treat me poorly. I enjoy laughing and dancing and flirting and having fun. I cry at sad movies or even tv shows, and sad songs. I find romance book ideas in the most unlikely places, the most recent in a Nickleback song, number 5 on their newest CD, which puts me in mind of my newest angel books.

Speaking of music - I like all kinds. Hard hitting rock. Ballads. A few country songs and singers. Alternative. Even classical. Nothing I like better than driving in my car with the sun roof open and a great song blaring on my stereo (Bose speakers, the best!!!)

I work hard at everything. Running the insurance agency, managing employees, training new people. Excercising (which I miss like HELL since I still have the broken foot - sigh). Writing.
Keeping my marriage fun and interesting. Keeping my family happy. And shopping for pretty clothes and jewelry and shoes - when the darn foot gets healed . I love to read and finding a new author or a great book is as good as it gets.

I'm intense and dramatic at times and quiet and reflective at others. I find people fascinating and scary and like to watch from a distance so much that I have to remind myself to get involved. And still it's difficult sometimes.

I donate to animal causes. I want to adopt every stray dog and cat, but know I can't, so I cry.

I admire my daughter, who has a special bond with children, and is a teacher. Though she may not realize it, the impressions she makes can reverberate throughout their entire lifetimes.

I admire my husband, because he focuses on his goals and goes after them. But mostly I admire (and envy) his easy camaraderie with people - he likes everyone and they seem to like him back. He really *cares* about people, no matter who they are, and they sense this. When he becomes someone's friend, he will do anything for them. He says he cannot NOT help a person in trouble, and where I tend to look the other way and mind my own business, he's the first one in there to offer help. He's a great husband.

Ok, hmmm. Back to boring me.

I spend far too much time on the internet. I love a good margarita on a Friday night, especially with chips and salsa. I love mountains and shadows and fog and really miss being able to go out in the sunlight (see my post on skin cancer.) Ok, to clarify, I miss *laying* out. I still go out, albeit with SPF 45 on. But basking in the sun - no can do.

Other than that, I'm comfortable being with myself. I don't have problems eating alone or shopping alone, though I miss having a close girlfriend to hang with. My friends are mostly other writers, and we see each other at conferences. A lot of them are loners like me, and when we get together, it's usually in the bar .

Hmmm. I'd like to buy a big motorhome someday and travel around the country with my hubby, dogs in tow. For now, we have a 27 foot camper trailer and we enjoy that. I'm trying hard to like our new boat (see earlier post,) but I sort of wish we had just a pontoon boat, as I'm not much for water sports.

Whew. That's all the soul-bearing for now. Hope I haven't bored you too much!

Later.