I (Heart) CT State Troopers

What a long strange trip it's been...

Oh my gosh, I can't believe I'm home in LA. First of all, the visit to the east coast felt like it was a million months long. Was it really less than 3 weeks? Wow...time flies, huh? Well, first of all, there was the Wallingford PL event, then a reunion, and a Borders event, then a trip to NYC and Jersey, then some more meetings and a podcast and a holiday and visiting with friends from Boston and family from Connecticut and I did take a few great classes at the New Haven Ballet with Noble Barker.

And then there was the trip home. We were supposed to leave Hartford at 6:30 and get into LA at 9:30. Delay #1: 7:50 departure. Delay #2: 10:20 departure. Delay #3: 11:20 departure. Final departure: midnight. Arrival in LA: 2:22AM. Arrival in my bed: 3:45AM.

But there was a chance we wouldn't have even arrived in LA were it not for a big State Trooper at the airport in Hartford. Apparently, the airline told the TSA security people they could leave and go home and shut down security at 9:30 even though they KNEW the flight wouldn't leave until almost midnight. So we (and a bunch of others) showed up - post 9:30 - and found NO ONE there to screen us. A cop directed us to the airline (who shall remain nameless because they were completely LAME) headquarters and we found a bunch of people up in arms because they were being told they couldn't board a plane that HADN'T EVEN ARRIVED YET.

What??????

One trooper showed up and basically backed the airline because what did he know? We thought all was lost. One woman with a box of pizza was near hysteria.

But then a big state trooper whose name I didn't get (but not because he was lame) showed up and said, "Wait a minute. This doesn't make sense. We'll get you on the plane." So he called TSA and they argued for a bit but he was BIG, BIGGER than them, and he made them work something out.

We had to be escorted to the security table and back and we weren't allowed to touch anyone after we were screened but I have to say, this was the best screening experience I have been through. All the TSA personnel were super-nice and they actually smiled and cracked jokes and we were allowed to bring our suitcases on board instead of checking them, which ultimately helped us for time back in LA.

The airline personnel on the plane were also super-amazing and kind and the flight was awesomely smooth. If only we hadn't arrived so effin' late, it would have been an okay experience.

Random Thoughts on a Friday

1. Podcast followup:

What a blast I had doing the recording for the Cheshire Public Library's teen book board's podcast! Here is a photo of me with Loan Lee, my fantastic interviewer who had so many amazing questions. I won't spoil it for you by telling you what they were but I will tell you when it's available on their website. Thanks, Loan, and extra special thanks to Sarah Kline Morgan, the teen librarian at CPL!

2. Television followup:

Today I will head to the Time Warner studio in Topanga Canyon to record an interview with Connie Martinson for her show, Connie Martinson Talks Books. I can't express to you my full excitement about this! I will be in amazing company! She has interviewed, among many others, Barack Obama, Gigi Grazer, Al Gore, Gloria Steinem, Thomas Kenneally, Ray Bradbury, Lisa See and TC Boyle. Here's her site...

3. New book followup:

I have already started my brand new story which I wasn't sure I was ready for. I am so unbelievably thrilled about this one. I can't wait to immerse myself in this new world.

4. Happy belated birthday to LOVE, MEG!

You'd think I'd have remembered this one but it came out on 7/5/07, just 1 year and 6 days ago. Even after a year, she still looks great! She doesn't show her age at all...in fact, she's at college now! Here she is at the University of Connecticut Co-op in Storrs:

Time out for reality

Television, that is, not my own reality which tends to be a lot less interesting.

Did anyone but me and HH follow Hell's Kitchen this season? At first I have to admit I didn't like many of the contestants. They were shallow and petty and just not likable. The youngest of them seemed too inexperienced to run a kitchen, too arrogant to learn from those who were experienced and did I mention, just not likable?

As the season wore on and chefs were cut and cut and cut (and burned a few times), I began to like at least one of them: Petrozza. He learned as he went along, took in the criticism and got better, was a genuinely kind person who wanted the best from people, and never sabotaged anyone else. He was also very sloppy and kept a dirty station which Chef Ramsay hated but even Gordo recognized his skills as a chef.

I was thrilled he was a finalist. He completely deserved the honor. He was also 47.

On the other end of the spectrum was Christina. Very young, very arrogant, very opinionated and very shrill. The one thing she had going for her was that she was a consistently good cook. From the get-go, she was simply the best cook of the contestants. But I wouldn't trust her as far as I could throw her and her filet mignons. No, sir, not me. And I would absolutely hate working under her. Who would want to hear that squeaky, whiny voice yelling every moment of the day? No, thanks.

I was not as happy for her that she was a finalist. I didn't think she deserved the honor. She was 25.

So who wins? Of course, the young 'un wins cuz Ramsay thinks she has more potential.

Those of us who are getting older want to believe we all have potential regardless of our ages.

Let's take this big picture. Let's look at the Presidential election. Perhaps Barack Obama, being young and full of potential, will beat out John McCain, the elder statesman who isn't as in touch with the American public.

In this case, yes, I will take the young 'un over the old guy. Absolutely.

Podcasting from Connecticut...TV in LA...

This afternoon I'm taping a podcast with the Cheshire Public Library teen group for their website and I'm wicked excited about that. I've got some very cool media things lined up including a TV taping on Friday when I get back to LA!

To celebrate, here are me and HH in a classic pose at the Trader Joe's in West Hartford...hee hee!:

Sold out!

Am I a sell-out? Well, not if you're talking about getting big money for the commercialization of my work. Then, um, no, darn it, I'm not a sell-out.

Although for the right dollar figure...let's talk.

I mean, I sold out at my Borders event last week! How awesome is that? We had a great crowd (see pics above and below) who were polite and asked some terrific questions and then they bought all of the store's copies of ALL ABOUT VEE! A few even looked under the desk where I was signing and asked with sad faces, "No more?"

The store manager, David Battaglino, was super happy and said he would order some more copies so I could come back and sign them before I leave (which I very happily did!). Then he put the paperbacks of LOVE, MEG which I also signed, in the "summer reading" section in the center of the store (I'm right next to Jerry Spinelli's LOVE, STARGIRL and Gabriel Garcia Marquez's LOVE IN THE TIME OF CHOLERA!). And how thrilled was I about that?

Borders treated me amazingly well while I was there. David was so kind and generous, offering me coffee and taking care of me and HH and our guests. They served samples of a new frosty drink from Seattle's Best to all of the guests, who loved that on a very hot day! I can't say enough good things about them. So if anyone is in the Farmington/Hartford area and is looking for my books in paperback - signed copies with the little stickers on them! - please go to Borders down the street from West Farms mall and buy them there.

Thank you, everyone, and thank you, David!

All in all, this was a great trip to the east coast for me. We had a wonderful turnout at the Wallingford public library, great press in the Meriden, Hartford and Waterbury papers, and sold lots of books at the Borders in Farmington. How much better could it get?

Random Thoughts on a Friday

Red - is the color of Dexter, the best show on Showtime you're not watching because you think it's really creepy that a serial killer could be the good guy. If you have Netflix, you can watch the first season instantly on your computer. Will you do that?



White - is the color of the blank screen, the virtual sheet of paper that both excites and scares me whenever I'm faced with it. I have a brand new project in my brain that I can't wait to work on but I'm not sure if I'm ready.

Blue - is the color of my fingertips after I've eaten a handful of seedless black grapes, my favorite summertime fruit.

Happy Fourth of July!

Desert Island Books

You're shipwrecked.

You're on an extremely long vacation.

You're on LOST.

No internet. No phone. No iPod. No television or DVDs or even electricity. You're desperate for reading material. What do you hope the Universe will drop onto your lap?

Here is my dilemma: do I choose an author whose sheer prolificness (is that a word? maybe I should request a dictionary) means you have ample reading material for the length of your stay? Or do I choose books that I would gladly read over and over and over again?

Hmmm....

Can I have both?

No? Bummer. Okay, in the former category, I would definitely go for someone like Stephen King. Lots of books in lots of genres (well, okay, not that many genres but enough that I don't have a nightmare every night) that wil keep me occupied while I await rescue or death. While a writer like Isaac Asimov wrote something like 100+ novels, they're all s/f and I would need a break. King at least wrote some strictly literary material as well as nonfiction and some fantastic short stories.

In the latter category, I would choose a novel like Toole's "A Confederacy of Dunces," a novel I could read over and over again. I considered Eco's "Name of the Rose," which I also love, as well as Adams' "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" but Toole's work is especially poignant because he committed suicide and if I'm stuck on an island, I would want a book that spoke to the depth of a human condition while also being hilariously funny.

What about you? Any choices? Do you pick romance novels or graphic novels? Short stories or epics? Poetry? Haikus? A book of dirty limericks?