The Peace, The Quiet, The Pencil Shavings?

The first week back at school… what a wonderful, magical time for parents!

I’d managed to quash Rhia’s insistence that we shop for school supplies in June, then again in July and then while she was away in August (hardly seems a month since she was in Saska-where) there were no hourly requests to go shopping. In fact, as it turned out I did the shopping without either girl in tow – and I did it in a killer ten minutes at Pharmasave in Mo-Town. There are still some things that I’ll have to get more of and yet another dictionary replacement (don’t get me started, I might not stop…) plus the art kit that must be purchased through the school. Other than that, it was ten minutes.

Rhia and Care couldn’t sleep the night before classes started. Of course not – they’d become accustomed to sleeping all day and staying up all night. I made them get up ‘early’ over the long weekend…still, they were too excited and too conditioned to get to sleep before 2. They were both up at the crackafrickindawn, too. The pair of them were almost completely ready to leave by the time I was up and making coffee. Care had even done her hair. Tired or not, they left the house a little before 8, leaving me wondering what tornado had left Kansas on my bathroom floor.

Rhia did fine the first day, although she thought maybe the bullies were trying to rile her up, she was too busy noticing the new student. Er…students. ;) But one student in particular… (swoon). Since she did so well, she decided she would just keep on going, teeth or no teeth.

Care was fine, although – yes, it turns out the – creatureteacher – is homerooming the 8′s for at least two months. Thankfully, she’s NOT teaching math and whatever else she does, I think I can kybosh pretty quickly. Still, Care came in looking like a thundercloud after school.

All in all though, they were both satisfied with the first week. Rhia has two of her favorite teachers, and Care has already decided her new math teacher (Ms. McGill – read this * below) is just the world’s greatest teacher ever. Oh, and of course there’s always Mr. U. I can still hear all the teenage girls’ hearts going pitterpatter. From here. At 4:30 AM.

Oh, and Rhia had the wax ‘dummy’ of her teeth fitted on Thursday. She’s got a nasty overbite, which can cause problems with bridging the way they do, but there’s nothing to be done about it. There is no space between them, which is what makes them look so much bigger than the old ones, even though they aren’t really and actually suit her. Maybe I just got used to her having the gaping hole in her mouth.. AND I still haven’t heard back from the hotel. I don’t think I will. *sigh* I’m giving it one last shot this week, and after that – I’m sending a letter to the Winnipeg Free Press, as well as posting to every hotel recommendation site I can find – I’m going to review it. < weg > If Rhia would let me, I’d use a shot of her mouth, too.

* How’s this for creepy-weird: Care has a new math teacher named Ms. McGill. My YA novel, the one I’m working on now and started in July of ’06, has a math teacher named Ms. McGill. Freaked me out a bit when I got to that part.

As for the Weekend Catch-up, here’s the most recent breakdown:

¤ re-send rejections and holding notices for Courting Morpheus (no, Jeremy and Kevin, you are NOT going to hear from me yet. ;P I like making ya wait and squirm)

¤ pick up remaining CM submissions for perusal

¤ post note to blogs about the “piss off an editor” article

¤ work on YA novel

¤ pick up Apex slush

¤ edit (partially)

¤ write first week at school post

work on cover art proposals

¤ read slush

¤ reject…er…hold…er…slush

¤ dishes (oh god, the mold has grown legs and is after me!)

¤ laundry

¤ = completed

A Legend Passes

I can’t begin to say how “Wrinkle” made a difference in my life. I read it first at 7, then at 11 for school as most grade 6 kids do. I’ve read it twice since.

She will be missed.


HARTFORD, Connecticut (AP) — Author Madeleine L’Engle, whose novel “A Wrinkle in Time” has been enjoyed by generations of schoolchildren and adults since the 1960s, has died, her publicist said Friday. She was 88.

L’Engle died Thursday at a nursing home in Litchfield of natural causes, according to Jennifer Doerr, publicity manager for publisher Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

More Information: http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/books/09/07/obit.lengle.ap/index.html

Weekend Catch-Up

It’s going to be a very busy weekend.

I’ve got two editing projects on the go, one substantial and one proof. Then I have at least fifty slush to wade through for both CM and Apex (although, if I get ‘em all done I get a break from CM for a month and I’ll grab more Apex slush).

I have five books on/in the review files. Most of which are sitting comfortably…but the authors are giving me the eyeball..I can feel it.

I have to get back to work on another project for a contest that’s deadlined at the end of this year. Not much time to write another 50K, edit, first-reader it, edit and get it out. Gah…anyone want to volunteer their eyeballs in late November?

Numerous articles must be written this weekend as well. I promised new material for ALL of the sites. And I feel article-y this week, so it’s a good time to get working.

Finally, I have some cover work to do. :)

Geez. I think you’re all right, I AM crazy.

PS – will be writing about the girls first week back at school, as well as catching up on email as well. :)