What the girl's been up to . . .

 If you read my last post you'll know Annabelle and I are home alone.

I, in jest, muttered about "what's a girl to do while DH is out of town."

Those who know me know I've never had any difficulty entertaining myself.

Perhaps that comes from growing up as an only child.  Or being a bit of an introvert.  Or simply being content with my own company.  

I know some people need a good bit of socializing to keep them happy.  I know some people who think staying home alone is boring beyond words.  And some people just need to be out and about and doing stuff.

My lifestyle of happily being at home, sometimes, for several days at a time, seems weird to some.  Oh, well.  To each his own.

When the urge or need hits, believe me, i will get up, go out, and do stuff.

In the meantime, Annabelle and I are fine fine fine.  She has, by the way, started speaking to me again.  We're pals.  She is sticking pretty close.  ❤

We chat with Donald a couple times a day and things are going well with the move.

I did order a bag of scrap fabric from amazon, and pulled out all the other items needed to make my own version of the scarf I mentioned in my last post.

While waiting for the fabric to arrive I've done a little bit of cooking (thank you, Greg Herren for that Sloppy Joe recipe!  The BEST!). 

I've read a couple of VERY good books, and watched a couple of movies.

Books have let me down this year.  Some that sounded good didn't hold my interest.   Some I was looking forward to disappointed.

But.

Thanks to NetGalley.com I did read two that I loved.  Started and could not put down (I love being retired).

Want to hear what they were?

Neither have been released yet but you can pre-order them.

Check 'em out!!!

Next up is . . .

Movies I've (re)watched are Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris, Practical Magic, and Midnight in Paris.

And, that, my friends, is what's happening in Meat Camp, North Carolina.

Life is good.

A few vacation highlights

I still have lots and lots and lots vacation photos and stories -

here's just a few more highlights with more to come.


I was able to spend a little time with one of my oldest and closest friends.

Jackie Aaron McGlaughlin and I lived down the street from one another as little girls.  A lot of time has passed and a lot of miles separate us most of the time, but, we're still sisters of the heart. It was good to be able to spend a little time with her, not as much as I would as liked though.

We got to see some cousins.

Pat, Laurie & Joani greeted Donald with a hug (to which he had no objection)

We got to see my Aunt Shirley, one of my mom's sisters, and one of the closest.  While we were there my cousin Donnie showed up along with her daughter Courtney and Courtney's little boy aka "Lil' Man"





I stopped by the Dorchester County Public Library and brought home a few books from the Friends of the Library sale, AND spotted my Whimsey in the stacks.  Was that a highlight of this trip?!  Pfft.  You better believe it was.





I was able to attend a book event hosted by my friend David Magayna at the Stevensville, MD library where he interviewed Allison Leotta and Lisa Unger.  I also got to visit with pals Kristopher and Michael, and buy a couple books from one of my favorite booksellers on God's green earth - Kathy Harig, owner of Mystery Loves Company in Oxford, MD.




All in all, I'd have to say it was a perfect vacation.  


We had lunch with David in Easton, Donald got to meet Belle the mascot corgi of the Oxford Ferry, and we also got to have lunch with my cousin Bill along with Joani, Laurie and Pat.

I ate a lot of crab this vacation.  

 And, I was able to buy a painting I am totally in love with.

A painting done by friend and former classmate, Patti Lucas Hopkins.

Nice to have a piece of The Eastern Shore back home with us in Boone.

Stamping Out The Saying "I Don't Read Women," One T-Shirt At A Time

Writers Rock.  

The mystery community has a reputation for being a generous, gracious group.  In my experience that reputation has not been exaggerated.

A recent effort in this spirit of generosity is Karin Slaughter's on-going SAVE THE LIBRARIES project.  The first library campaign event was Atlanta, and was a huge success.  There are more to come.  The next event for be held in June in Boston.

Alafair Burke was one of the many supporters of that event, and now Karin Slaughter is on-board in an event that Alafair is spearheading - along with bestselling authors Lisa Gardner, Tess Gerritsen, Laura Lippman, and Lisa Unger.

With Alafair's permission, I'm sharing a note she posted at the DorothyL mystery discussion group recently telling us about  her latest project.

“Real Men Read Women” promoting youth literacy.  

The website for buying items to raise money is here:  www.printfection.com/readwomen

All profits from sale of these items will go to youth literacy.

It's a wonderful project with one very cool graphic -

Here's what Alafair had to say:

"I frequently get emails from male readers who say, “I don’t like women authors, but I do like you.”  Appreciative yet perplexed, I started asking readers why they thought they didn’t like women authors.  I know there have been related conversations here on the list,but usually I'd hear that women weren't hard-boiled enough, or that there was too much romance and not enough action.  Or they simply believed that women writers were writing for women and not men.
 

I'd like to stamp out the saying "I don't read women," one t-shirt at a time.  I also want to promote youth literacy.  Like chocolate and peanutbutter, the two ideas have come together beautifully with "Real Men Read Women" gear.  I’ve enlisted just a handful of some of my favorite female writers in this fund-raising effort to support youth literacy.

Thanks to bestselling (and super cool) authors Lisa Gardner, Tess Gerritsen, Laura Lippman, Karin Slaughter, and Lisa Unger, “Real Men Read Women” t-shirts and other gear are available online at www.printfection.com/readwomen.  There's also a shirt that says "I like boys who read books by girls."

If this is a hit, I'd love to enlist other writers to lend their names to the effort down the road.  I hope you all don't mind my posting a plug for the gear here.  All profits go to youth literacy."

Thanks!
Alafair Burke
author of Long Gone and official t-shirt peddler
(www.printfection.com/readwomen)