MissMeliss: Escribition

I just got off the phone with my mortgage company. They’d sent a letter that made me panic momentarily, but the woman I spoke with straightened everything out and reassured me, and was extremely warm and outgoing, and we actually had a real conversation, for which I hope she doesn’t get in trouble.

I know it sounds weird to say that I had a delightful conversation with a person in a call center, but you see, we talked about books. I mentioned that I’m a writer and that I love my job, but had been frustrated because of my wire not showing up until after Labor Day - not my boss’s fault, the bank cut short their wire hours - and stuff like that.

She asked, “What do you write?”

I explained what I did and she shared that she writes romances and mysteries, and asked me for my web address, so that she could leave a note and tell me who she is, and I hope she does because she seemed like a really interesting person, and I’d love to know if I’ve read her work and maybe interview her for Bibliotica. She is also a former employee of that big financial company whose name rhymes with Pretty Tank.

I told her that I was working on getting my cafe series ready to query agents with and told her a bit about it, and she seemed really receptive to the concept, which is good, because it’s one thing to hear such things from your friends and family but quite another to hear it from a total stranger.

And so, with renewed vigor, I am writing reviews this afternoon, and later tonight, I will eat steak and salad, and work on my own writing, after taking for the dogs for walkies, which I’d planned to skip today because my knee is a bit sore, but the weather is divine, and being outside should not be missed.

Okay, time for more coffee.
Then, back to work!

I said today was a better day, not perfect.

GOOD: Air Conditioner repair guy will be here in about half an hour.

BAD: Coffee maker decided that counter top and not carafe was appropriate place for brewed coffee to be deposited.

GOOD: Well, it did stain the counter a lovely shade of brown. . .

Sometimes you can tell from the first moment you open your eyes in the morning, what kind of a day it will be. Or at least, I can.

Yesterday, I knew the day would be a trying one, because I hadn’t slept enough, had tasks I didn’t want to face, was stressed over Fuzzy being in the air, which I know I can’t do anything about, but I always worry til I know he’s on the ground.

Even before I went to bed last night, however, I knew today would be better. One sign was that I received a “click-n-ship” notification from Black Phoenix letting me know my most recent perfume order was on its way to me. If you’ve never experienced the wonder that is BPAL, you may not understand how exciting this is, but trust me, it is.

This morning, I woke to a soft gray sky, an outside temperature below seventy degrees, and the news that a piece I wrote for a site that doesn’t take pieces from just anyone will go live on Sunday. My boss told me I rock, and that I make his job easier, and there were no presents from the dogs on the bathroom floor.

As I write this, my coffee is about to finish the brewing process (this morning’s blend is Starbuck’s new “Joya del Dia” blend, which is a bold, dark roast with chocolate overtones (but NOT flavoring), and even the neighbor’s leafblower is striking me as “cozy” and “neighborhoody” instead of “horrible” or “jarring.”

Yes.
Today is a better day.

Excuse Me?

I’ve never been to North Carolina, except in books, and my fictional visits have never centered around Wilmington NC real estate, as much as they have beach houses on the Outer Banks, but even though I’ve never visited, it’s a place I’m drawn to.

I blame Anne Rivers Siddons. Her novels, slightly more romance than chick lit, but only slightly, always have these creative women who live at the beach, and don’t care if their hair is crusted with salt, or their khakis are ancient and worn, so long as they can enjoy the sun and the sand and maybe see a turtle or two.

The thing about Siddons, though, is that she makes all the east coast beaches feel amazing, better than the beaches of California, and far more wild and rugged than they really are. When you’re reading a Siddons book, you don’t have to think about how polluted the water is, or that people are overfishing, or that you’re as likely to get a fish hook embedded in your toe than a perfect summer tan glowing on your skin.

It’s escapism, but it’s escapism that carries with it the scent of salt air.

The ocean is in my thoughts more and more as summer draws to a close. Tourists may love the shore in summer - I always preferred it in fall.

Someday, I want to be one of those salty-haired women who live at the beach.
I want to look out at blue water, and write.

But I’ll write about creative women who sip designer coffee in trendy cafes.

Sitting in the summer sun, with a bottle of cold water in my hand, I watched my dogs basking in the sun. Zorro likes to be on his side, and will toast one half of his tiny body, then roll over and toast the other half. Miss Cleo likes to flatten herself into a black and white puddle of fur, but she’s easily distracted by butterflies, birds, bees, a leaf blowing across the deck…

Turning my head, I watched a writing spider spinning a new web. They can shake the web when they feel threatened so I watched as a bird flew close and the web began to reverberate like a plucked string. I try to keep Miss Cleo away from that corner of the yard.

The wind was a warm, friendly presence as I had my sojourn in the sun.

The air conditioned house felt too cold, by comparison, so I made a pot of coffee, and returned to work.

…is what Fuzzy and I just had.

Friday night, when he finally got home, and I’d finally decided that even another minute at the computer would be a Very Bad Thing, we ate dinner (spinach tortellini with this really amazing pasta sauce that, I confess, not only came from a jar, but was purchased because I liked the shape of the jar) at the kitchen table for a change, and then played the 2-person version of The Starfarers of Catan until bedtime.

Saturday, we each puttered on various projects, after sleeping pretty late. I played with the dogs, and surfed Blogathon sites, and made a few pledges. Later, we went to Dallas because I was on the liners for ComedySportz. I made stupid choices/mistakes in Blind Line, but overall it was a great show. The crowd was totally into it, our ref rocked - he even let us play one of the new games he brought back from tournament - and I had fun. Afterwards, we all went to Fridays, where several of us made a pact to never go to Spaghetti Warehouse again, and I had a delicious margarita that was only slightly smaller than a swimming pool as we sat under the stars. (I also had a burger and a salad, but it’s the margarita that matters.)

Today, I’ve already posted about - shopping in the rain, puttering at home, froufrou coffee, grapes, flowers, and during dinner we watched the first night of SHARK WEEK (Ocean of Fear). Any moment now, we’ll be turning out the light.