Surgery Successful!
This is just a quick note to let everyone know that Debbie’s surgery was successful and she’s recuperating at home. She is grateful for everyone’s prayers!
Renate
Hot off the Press
How was Your Day, Honey?
On Monday I crammed as much as I could into a single day. After three radio interviews, a videographer took footage of me for a one-minute video greeting and then he and I traipsed about town for the last of the Cedar Cove Readers’ Group questions, also for video. I visited the doctor for my pre-operation appointment, had blood work done, managed to actually work on the revisions for 20 Wishes (my 2008 hardcover) and then raced over to Bremerton with my daughters Jody and Jenny to meet my dear friend, June Scobee Rodgers.
Home Again
I'm back! My intention was to blog every day that I was on tour for KNIT TOGETHER, but so much for that. There was plenty to write about, too. I ran into tornados, flash floods, rain like I’ve never seen – well, other than Florida, plus lightning that put the Fourth of July fireworks display to shame. And that was just Chicago. The storms followed me to Cincinnati and St. Louis, too, with spectacular thunder and lightning displays.
On the Road Again . . .
I'm off for the next ten days on business, starting with meetings in New York City. From New York I head for Detroit and the start of the tour for KNIT TOGETHER. I’ll be in five cities in as many days. This is a form of speed touring, which should work well. I have a secondary goal, other than meeting my wonderful readers and autographing as many books as possible. My quest is to find a baked potato. As I wrote earlier in the week, the much-loved baked potato has disappeared from
From a Cell Phone to a Blackberry
I might not have a technical mind but I am not a stupid person . . . or so I thought until I purchased a Blackberry. I should have recognized I was in way over my head when the “phone” came with not one but two instructional CDs. It required an entire CD to show me how to turn the phone on. (I am not making this up.) As for voice mail and text messaging . . . I’m going to need college level classes.
Bring Back the Baked Potato!
I’m wondering if anyone else has noticed what’s happening in restaurants all across America. They’ve done away with the baked potato. I wonder if Idaho knows about this. Read more
A Frustratingly Good Week
I’ve had the most frustrating and yet wonderful week of my year. Frustrating because I really haven’t accomplished much of anything work-wise. On the other hand , it’s been a good week because I’ve been enjoying meeting with family and friends.
How to Avoid Temptation
Reader Bonnie Arnold mailed me a chatty letter about her summer adventures. She mentioned she’s on a new diet, and in an effort to avoid temptation she avoided the route to work that took her directly in front of the town bakery. Then one day she forgot and drove past. Sure enough, the bakery window was loaded with delicacies. Her resolve wavered, Read more
Be Sure to Moisturize!
I’ve been reading Nora Ephron’s book I Feel Bad About My Neck and laughing myself silly. The book bemoans the problems of aging and what we do as women to slow down the process.
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Gettysburg
I’m really not much of a Civil War buff, but Wayne is and he jumped at the opportunity to tour Gettysburg with our friends the Roches from Florida. I figured I’d ride along with Wayne and Gary, who is a certified guide. Thinking I’d probably be bored, I brought along my knitting to help occupy myself while Gary explained the details of the battles. It didn’t take long for me to set my knitting aside and get caught up in the tales of the conflict that so divided our country.
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Too Old for Bingo
I’ve often wondered if any of my children would develop the desire to write. All four are wonderfully creative, but to this point none has shown any inclination toward the written word. Just recently, however, my eight-year-old grandson James, started writing stories.
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Debbie Throws out the First Pitch!
A New Knitter in the Family!
I signed my granddaughter Maddie up for Knitting Camp this week. The way I figure it, I need to turn at least one other family member on to knitting so she can inherit my yarn stash. I have more yarn than any one person could possibly knit in a single lifetime.
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Chicago
Chicago was fabulous. I signed my knitting pattern books at the Leisure Arts booth at the Craft and Hobby Show. Walking around the show was an insight into what’s hot in crafts in America. Definitely, scrapbooking is king. Who knew? I visited with the good people at the Lion Brand Yarn booth. They have some wonderful new yarns coming out that really impressed me. What can I say? So much yarn and so little time . . .
On the Road Again!
I finally unpacked fromReno and was carting my suitcase downstairs when I realized I’m leaving for Chicago in the morning. I swear, I’m meeting myself coming and going.
I’ll be at the Craft and Hobby Show in Rosemont, autographing in the Leisure Arts booth. I’ll be signing the pattern books based on the Blossom Street series. (This is a trade show, so I’m sorry to say unless you’re a member of the Craft and Hobby Association, you won’t be able to attend.)
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Beef Roast and Coffee
I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before, but as often as possible I swim in the mornings. Unfortunately, I wrenched my arm on tour while carting my 100-pound computer (that’s only a slight exaggeration), so lately my swimming has been slow and painful. I mention all this to tell you that there’s an entire group of us who water-walk after swimming our laps. We visit and exchange recipes. I tried a new one r
A Reno Weekend
Wayne and I had a glorious weekend in Reno with seven of the grandkids. I’ll admit it was a lot like herding monkeys and we were grateful our two daughters and one daughter-in-law were there to help. The highlight of our trip was in Virginia City where the two oldest boys got T-shirts from the Bucket of Blood Saloon and we watched a staged Old West shoot-out. We returned from Circus-Circus with an entire suitcase filled with stuffed animals and memories that will last a lifetime.
The Cleaning Bug
Wayne caught the cleaning bug. I’m proud to say all the sorting and organizing I’ve been doing appears to have rubbed off on him. Last week he decided to go through the garage. I was grateful. While I was able to park my car, it was becoming increasingly difficult to open the door and climb out.
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Thursday, June 14, 2007
The flair for drama runs deep in my blood. In fact, I’d go so far as to suggest it’s a family trait. Certainly my children and grandchildren inherited it. The reason I mention this is because I had a doctor appointment yesterday afternoon. During my recent tour my knee started acting up again, and I wrenched my shoulder carting my lap – top computer on and off airplanes.
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Wednesday, June 13, 2007
I’ve made a momentous decision – I’m cleaning out my closet. It’s stuffed to the gills, and there’s no room to unpack what I brought home from Florida, not to mention the treasures I picked up along the way during the tour. My daughter, Jenny, is responsible for this life-changing decision. She was over with the grandkids, and I was showing her my new shoes, when she started lecturing me about how disorganized my closet is.
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Monday, June 11, 2007
The tour is finished. I arrived back in Port Orchard on Sunday afternoon and was instantly immersed in real life. No one was there to cart my luggage or take my order for dinner. In fact, as soon as I unpacked my suitcase I was off to the grocery store.
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Friday, June 8, 2007
Last night’s Sacramento Bee Book Club signing was fabulous. It has held at the Arden Fair Mall, right in front of the Nordstrom store that just happened to be having a sale! My feet wanted to make a bee line for the sale tables, but I had to stay on course. Almost 400 people came, and I signed for more than three hours. Thank you to everyone who came. I had a great time!
Thursday, June 7, 2007
I flew from Charlotte to Sacramento and met with friends Larry and Penny Raven, who drove from Fresno to have lunch with me. We went to Old Sacramento and ate on the waterfront. Larry and Penny picked me up in their new Rolls Royce, which comes complete with a refrigerator and picnic trays in the backseat! We toured a candy store that sells several hundred kinds of salt water taffy. I swear, every piece I bought is for Wayne! (I’m discarding the used wrappers.) Read more
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
I’m in Charlotte, North Carolina, a beautiful city of Southern charm. I arrived on Sunday with almost an entire day free, so I boosted the local economy with an excursion to the shopping mall and a movie. In case you’re curious, I saw "Knocked Up," a great movie, except for the language.
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