Open Letter to the Jerk Who Stole My Planner

Dear Asshole,

You found my day planner in the kiddie-seat portion of a Ralph's grocery cart last Wednesday. You neglected to turn it in to the management of the Ralph's--why? I can't imagine. There was nothing valuable in it, except, I think, five bucks in the back. Big whoopee.

But now I have to get a new planner and try to remember which appointments I had written down in the coming months. I have to hope that you don't bother anyone listed in my very scanty address list. (Have fun calling my endochrinologist and my kids' orthodontist.

Thanks for all the anxiety and frustration. It's just what I needed at this time of year.

I hope you have a crappy holiday.

An Encounter of the Hirsute Kind

The hero of my new release, A Wolf at Her Door, is a werewolf shapeshifter. So, once a month, he goes furry. He gets a tail. He lopes around the wilderness on four legs.

However, when he's in human form, most of the time, he's a normal guy. But last night I got my copies of the published book and was happily reading it with a goofy smile on my face. (Trying to concentrate despite the fact that the rest of the family was watching FRINGE really loudly.) And what do I find? A MISTAKE. Good Lord. My editor and I combed through this sucker many times, but apparently we should have checked it one more time because this gem of a sentence appeared:

The hair on his hairs stood on end...

My first reaction was angry despair, but that was only for a moment. Soon after I was chuckling. The mistake is so silly I can only hope my readers will recognize that and laugh. I like to think of myself as pragmatic, and pragmatically there's nothing I can do about this. So, why waste the energy being upset? In fact, maybe I can turn this into a contest. "Fine the glaring error in Chapter Whatever and win a prize."

Anyway, the point is, my guy is a wolf shifter, but he does NOT have hair on his hairs. *snorts*

But this is a minor glitch in comparision to what my friend RG Alexander is going through with Hurricane Ike. Her book is being released today and she has no internet with which to promote it. So, a few of us are helping her out. Here's the cover. Here's a short blurb:

Twins Hawk and Val are Fianna warriors under the vengeful curse of a scorned goddess. Following the prophecy in the Book of Veils, they search for the one who can help them retrieve the Claíomh Solais before their enemies get the chance. Their quest leads them to Linnea. One touch and there can be no doubt that they have found their match. But will she accept them once she knows the truth?

Since I just finished writing a menage tale, I'm extra-curious to see how others handled it. I hope you give RG a try. (Or even a buy!) :D

Free vs. Fee

Question: Why can you get free internet at cheap hotels like Super 8, but at fancy places, like the Hyatt, you have to pay a fee? I just don't understand how that works.

Sucking the Fun out of Life

I'm reading one of my Woman's World magazines and come across this article "Do your kids bike? Read this!"

One of their tips was this:

Stash phones and iPods. Having a phone with you is smart, but keep it on vibrate so you won't be startled by its ring. And iPods can overpower the sound of a car's horn.

I don't know about you, but the sudden vibration in my pocket startles me much more than the ring of my phone. And there is such a thing as volume control.

Another tip they offered:

Insist on gloves! If you fall, bike gloves protect your hands from cuts and abrasions. They also absorb vibrations, giving you a better grip on the handlebars, so you stay steady on the road.

Sheesh. Why not recommend long sleeves and pants every time you ride a bike? I'm all for safety, but there comes a time when you have to look at the balance between risk and fun, and personally, I think insisting my kid wear a helmet is worth it. But making them wear gloves to prevent a scraped hands? Give me a break.

I don't believe in protecting against every bad thing in life. Prevention is all well and good, but so often these days I think people go overboard. Agree with me? Disagree?

Barbie Poo

Have you seen this latest Barbie thing? I just about shit (pun intended!) when I finally saw this commercial on TV. My boys tried over and over to get me to see it, but I only just did.

This is Barbie and her dog, Tanner. You feed the little brown food to him and then pump his tail and it comes out his butt as poop, which Barbie cleans up with her pooper scooper and dumps into the trash can.

WTF??? Can you imagine this product development meeting?

"Hey, I have this great idea for a pooping dog."

"Fantastic. But what about cat lovers?"

"I love that, too. We'll make the litterbox pink with a matching scooper. Then after that we can have Barbie and her pet parrot, that splats magnetic bird crap. We can include a little statue for it to decorate."

NOTE: I apologize, but I have cancelled the contest for the Martha Stewart Living magazine subscription.

Parental Responsibility

Excerpt from the San Francisco Chronicle article, "MySpace suit dismissed by judge in Texas
Family said site didn't protect underage users" by Ellen Lee
Thursday, February 15, 2007

A Texas judge has dismissed a lawsuit against MySpace that had blamed the popular Web site for not establishing enough safeguards to protect underage users.

The family of an underage girl -- referred to as "Julie Doe" in the lawsuit -- had sued MySpace last year after she lied about her age and was sexually assaulted by a man she met on MySpace.

But U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks ruled Wednesday that MySpace, like other online forums, should not be held responsible for what happened. "If anyone had a duty to protect Julie Doe, it was her parents, not MySpace," he wrote.

Thank goodness someone in the court system has a brain in his skull. I agree that the parents are the ones shirking their responsibility to monitor their daughter. She is 13 years old and she lied about her age, saying she was eighteen. This type of behavior is becoming more common in a society where people won't admit responsibility for their own screw ups. I'm glad this particular judge isn't encouraging more lawsuits like this one by allowing the case to go forward.

Sorry about the serious tone of this blog entry. I'm usually more upbeat and fun, but I feel strongly about frivolous lawsuits, society's tendency to shift blame, and irresponsible parents. Could ya tell? LOL

Mini-Rant: Food TV Trend

Sometimes I just have to get something off my chest. What's with the Food Channel? I love that channel, but it seems like every chef they have has to have a show where they travel around and eat food. Recently they've been really promoting Giada's Weekend Getaways. I can't help but think they all just want to see the sights and so they think of a show that will allow them to do that. Food 911 is the exception, because Tyler is helping people cook and obviously the people who need help are going to live in different cities. But otherwise, I find myself resistent to watching those shows because, although I might be wrong, I feel like I'm being used to support those TV chefs' travel agendas. Because, you know, it's all about me!