2009 Goals

Ian and I once heard from a very successful couple that the best way to get the things you want out of life is to write them down. Having a visual reminder of what you want to achieve increases your motivation. This also has to do with the psychology of commitment (sorry, I spent a whole quarter learning about social psychology.) Essentially, when you write something down it becomes a more binding commitment than a verbal or mental pact. Once something is fixed in a tangible means of expression, it’s hard to ignore. Pretty cool, huh? (If you want to read more about how to get people to do what you want, check out the book Influence by ).

Ever since Ian and I heard that piece of advice, we’ve been making lists of our goals. We make a fresh list every Christmas, so we’re already focused on the year ahead. I like the term ‘goals’ instead of ‘resolutions’. Resolutions, to me, seem about fixing what’s wrong with you, not bettering the good things. Anyway, some of the goals are short term and some are long term, but they’re all something we can work towards in the new year. Usually the more specific the better (exercise 3x per week vs. exercise more.)

So here’s a partial list of my 2009 goals:

Send out YA m.s.

Finish MG m.s.

Write a new book

Book 20+ weddings (check out www.distinctphoto.com)

Graduate (at long last)

What are your goals?

Reading is a family experience

Ian went out to Zion National Park in Utah yesterday, so I spent last night pet-wrangling  and editing away.  I love seeing my book take shape, but editing is utterly exhausting for me.   I took a little break and found this photo of me and 2/3 of the pet clan.   It makes me smile:

Everyone likes to get in on the fun.  In the photo we’re reading It Sucks to be Me by Kimberly Pauley.  It’s a fresh new twist on the vampire book (less doom and gloom and more teen drama), and it’s a lot of fun.  Check it out.

“We’re going to Disneyland”

All I can say is that I completely admire the stamina and patience of every parent who takes their child to Disneyland. I got Ian tickets to Disneyland for Christmas, so on Saturday we made the trip to the happiest place on earth. Or should I say, the one with the longest lines to do just about everything. Including lines for the rides, bathrooms, and even a ride to get ketchup for my chicken nuggets.

We got to the park around 10 and had to wait awhile to get tickets. I would have been savvy and saved time if the ticket I wanted was actually available online. In a clever marketing scheme, the park only offers the more expensive tickets online, hoping that you too will spend more to wait less. Instead we stood in front of a man who yelled at a woman with a stroller and two toddlers because she wasn’t moving fast enough. Dear God, people, haven’t you heard of the Christmas spirit?

Disney was all fancified for the holidays, and the decorations looked great. We strolled around people-watching for awhile, and then hopped on the Jungle Cruise, Pirates of the Carribean, Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, and Honey I Shrunk the Audience. Yes, it’s sad but true. Ride count for the day: 4.

Nonetheless, we had a great time. On the Pirates of the Carribean ride, which was my favorite of the day, the boats guests ride in bang together. During one such collision in a pitch black tunnel I heard the cry from behind me, “Mommy, why don’t they have seat belts on this ride?” I laughed for a good ten minutes.

Probably our favorite part of the day was having a nice relaxing lunch. There was no seating at the restaurant we had chosen, so we wandered around and finally sat by the edge of a lake. We fed some ducks and even a coot (Ian’s favorite bird.) And there among the reeds popped up a feral cat. Ian tempted him away from the mouse he was eating with promises of hamburger. So that’s us for you: easy to please. Did we have to spend $100+ to play with stray cats? No, but it wouldn’t have been as fun anywhere else.

Brr, I said it’s cold in here…

This morning I banged up my hands scraping a quarter inch of ice off my car.  With a manila folder.  Why a folder?  Because living by the beach where it’s supposed to be seventy degrees year-round I was not prepared for below freezing temperatures and my ice scraper was M.I.A.  And I was running late with no time to find it.  The guy across the street digging out his car like a normal person kept giving me strange looks.  What a great morning.  There are a lot of reasons I moved to Southern California, and frost is not one of them.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!  Today Ian and I are planning on a relaxing day at home.  We’re checking in with my family back East, who is doing a White Elephant gift exchange.  They’re usually pretty fun so we’re joining in from across the country via a new webcam that was an early Christmas present to ourselves.  The webcam is super sharp and now we can use Skype!  Apparently we are two years behind technology, but it’s still fun.  Ian and I used webcams to stay in touch when we first started dating and lived across the country, so I am definitely a big fan.

Speaking of early Christmas presents, last night we couldn’t wait and decided to open up our Blu-Ray player.  I had made Ian wrap this and put it under the tree in hopes of holding out till Christmas, but we are bad at waiting.  Last night after a super tasty meal we watched the new Batman movie.  The blu-ray version looks amazing so there might just be some more movie watching in our future today.  I hope you have a wonderful, safe, warm, and dry day!

Six Degrees of Separation

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh – I just found out that my hairdresser cuts Steve Harvey’s hair every two weeks.  To most people this may not seem big, but this is a way cool new development for me.  Not only does this give props to Tommy, my hairdresser, it makes me not feel so bad about the $17 hair cut at Fantastic Sam’s.  And more importantly, it now means by six degrees of separation I am connected to nearly everyone in Hollywood!  Yes!!! I’m practically famous.  And to think before today I had only had two celebrity sightings since moving to LA…

Wait a minute. Strike that. Reverse it.

Sorry, I couldn’t resist a little Willy Wonka there.  Yesterday began the read-through/revising process of my YA manuscript.  It’s amazing how quickly I can read through something that took such a long time to produce.  It’s a little sad, and it really makes me appreciate all the time and work that goes writing into each book I read. (Not to mention all the work by agents, editors, and publishers!)  I’m excited to begin this stage but also a little nervous.  As soon as I stop actively creating, my mind wants to focus on new things.  I’ve got a couple of ideas rumbling around, as well as a half-written middle grade book that I need to finish.  But one thing at a time – I want to get this book out the door.  My deadline is January 15th.  Wish me luck.

Holiday cheer

Yesterday Ian and I made the venture to go find ourselves a nice Hanukkah bush (Ian’s dad is Catholic and I celebrate Christmas as a family holiday with my siblings). Last year we had purchased a potted mini tree from Target and it lived 11 solid months until it died this November. We wanted to get something similar in the hopes that a new tree could live 12 whole months and make it through two Christmases. (I am pretty sure there is a rule that no potted Christmas trees can ever live a full 12 months. Ever. This rule is most likely enforced by Christmas elves and evil retailers.) Sadly, Target had no mini trees. I was devastated.

Distraught, I took Ian to a really cute garden center where I had purchased our pumpkins for Halloween. There were no mini trees, but there, among the ten foot firs we found ourselves a perky six-footer. And my super-de-duper husband bought it for me. Yay! We managed to get it home in one piece and set it up in the corner of our living room. Surprisingly, our mini collection of ornaments filled the tree out so not only does it smell good, it looks pretty too.

This was an inspiring Christmas development, so I got motivated and made a big pot of minestrone soup and about four dozen sugar cookies. The cookies were a good idea and fun to make, but you know you’ve eaten too many when they don’t taste good anymore. The cookies needed to leave my house ASAP, so my coworkers, at least, stood to profit.

The Perfect Friend

Two years ago Ian and I bought our rabbit, Bunny, a goose stuffed animal as a toy.  We gave a similar toy to our dog last year and he ate the stuffing out of it.  Bunny, however, fell into sudden and unexpected love.   She’s maintained a faithful bond with her inanimate best friend for the past two years.  Bunny grooms Goose on a regular basis and puts Goose’s head in the food bowl so Goose can “eat.”  In the heat of summer we give Bunny frozen water bottles to keep her cage cool.  When one is delivered, Bunny makes absolutely sure that Goose is propped up against it before she settles down herself.

It’s a remarkable display of affection.  Ian and I have debated getting Bunny a rabbit friend when we have a little more room.  Rabbits are social animals so they need companionship.  This explains why in our house it is the littlest prey animal who bosses around the dog and the cat.  She obviously has a lot of love to give.  But at the same time, I can’t help but feel like getting a real live friend might set Bunny up for disappointment.

After all, right now Goose is the perfect friend.   Goose is there for a heart-to-heart at all hours of the day and she never complains.  Goose is a warm body to snuggle with, she never talks back, and Goose never eats the last bite of food.  She will never leave Bunny and never die.  How can anything else compare?

Raccoon: 3, Coworker: 0

The raccoon is back at my coworker’s pond. He has avoided rat poison, two traps, and wire mesh to eat another two koi fish. $14,000.00 down. Smart, smart raccoon. He has earned his dinner.