Would You Like to Buy Some Cookies?

It is that time again. Girl Scouts are out to ruin our diets with their innocously named cookis. A "Thin Mint" doesn't sound dangerous right? How can an "All About" be harmful? Every cookie has a Girl Scout virtue baked right in.

Last year I was the cookie manager for my daughter's troop. I've retired. Once was enough, I was far too stressed. The leader is taking it over and I told her I would help. I much better in a supporting role. Each girl has a goal to sell 200 boxes of cookies. My daugter wants to go out door to door and sell cookies. Ughhhh....Which means I get to go door to door selling cookies. I'd rather get a root canal.

Oddly enough I still have cookies from last year. I got real tired of cookies. But I don't think it would take much to get me hooked into the cycle again. And they've introduced the "Lemon Chalet" cookie, a sandwich cookie with lemon cream. Yum. Course this little thing has 80 calories per cookie. Yikes.

Do you like Girl Scout cookies? Do you have a favorite? Were you in Girl Scouts?

I'd Rather Be Writing

Greetings from Cookie Central! I'm taking a quick break from cookie duty to post. I picked up 66 cases of Girl Scout cookies and now I need to divide them up between the girls. Ugh!
I started a new story and I'm eager to immerse myself in it.

I'm struggling with writing what I want and what I think will sell. Unfortunately, I found myself not focusing on what I want to write but what will do well in the market. Big mistake. One thing my agent liked about "Tamsyn Unbound" (that's the name of my book) was she got a sense that I had a good time writing it. And I did. I didn't worry about the market when I wrote it, I just thought it was a fun story to write. Now I need to work on something new and I could feel the doubt crowding in. How was I going to write something that would sell? Talk about missing the point. I started a few things and I was dissatisfied with them. I was worried too much about the elements and how I thought they would fit in the marketplace.

This time, I went with how I felt, wrote the book the way I envisioned it. And I'm having fun. Because isn't that what its all about?

Anyway, hope everyone has a great weekend. Wednesday was my husband's birthday and today is my mom's. We are going to Benihana's this weekend to celebrate. Tomorrow is picture day for baseball and we are going to scrimmage another team. That should be fun. What are you up to?

Island in the Sea

I don't know what it is, but I have an overwhelming desire to run away to an uninhabited island (except for a five star resort) and do nothing except read. Reading is the ultimate escape for me, like a security blanket or Valium.

And yeah, I want to escape.

Things are getting busy at the ol' casa. Thing had her kindergarten shots this week. I register her for school the first week of March. Her school has cut down the number of kindergartners next fall so it is essential I get there the first day. My school district has open enrollment. As long as you live in this city, you can register your kid for whatever school you want in the district. For some reason, my kids' school is the tres chic school. I have the advantage of having two kids there already and I'm active with the school. However, I don't want to take any chances. Girl Scout cookies come in next week and my house is going to be Cookie Central, until March 12.

March 12 begins the remodel. My contractor was here the other day doing some final measuring. The project has grown from being just the kitchen to doing my dining room, living room, hallway and bathroom. He tells me he can get it done in 3 weeks. We shall see. While I can't wait to see the results, the chaos is going to be immense. And lets not talk about the money. When he told us the cost, I left the room and found something alcoholic to drink.

Baseball is in full swing. I am way too old to be doing this. I'm so tired after practice and I'm just coaching. But it is going to be a fun season, I can tell.

I've got the first 3 chapters done on my sequel book so now I can start on something new. I'm struggling. I have a fantasy in mind with a character who is about 5000 years old. How the hell do you do a character arc for someone that old? What can they learn? How can they change?

Hope everyone has a great weekend.

Cookie Monster

The time is coming, as inevitable as the sunrise, bringing its own warmth and goodness. Yes, it is time for Girl Scout cookies. Sales start next week. I am the designated cookie monster (manager) for my daughter's troop. No one else volunteered and at the time I waved my hand in the air, I didn't know I was going to be starting a major remodel at home or that I would actually have a writing career that showed some promise. But I took on the obligation so I will see it through. To be honest, a decent Excel spreadsheet will solve much of the issues. Hopefully the parents will help out with the girls. The Girl Scouts take this cookie sale seriously. They get big money from it. Troops themselves get money out of it as well. So I will be doing my best. Plus, I knew in my snobby heart of hearts, I could do it better than some of the other moms. I've got experience in this arena so I didn't think it would be too tough.

Not only do we have cookie seaon approaching, we also have baseball. We had sign ups in December and last night hubby took a team. Diva plays and this will be her third year. Her division is non-competitive, they don't keep score and is geared for 7 & 8 year olds. It is coach pitch with a 4 man outfield. I really enjoy the games and my hubby is totally in his element out there. He loves working with the kids. It also means our spring ramps up to constant activity. Little League has two games a week plus practice. Diva is still doing horseback riding and, of course, brownies. I'm definitely going to be a chaffuer for awhile.

My laptop is still unconnected from the network. I've called in the calvary but they haven't called back. Boy, I forgot how much I loved my desktop.