antony john

All my adult life I have wanted a MINI Cooper and I totally got one this year, which is awesome and amazing. The MINI itself is cute and small and huggable. Yes, my car is huggable.


Trees can be huggable.


Weird faceless green things can be huggable.

Why not MINIs?



However, yesterday at the post office, I realized that there are certain issues that come with buying a MINI Cooper. I got my mail out of my po box and found a yellow slip that said I had a package.

I thought, "YAY PACKAGE!"

Hoping it was a Christmas present for me, because I am like that. I like presents. A lot. Kind of like the kids in CHRISTMAS STORY. I am like that.

Out of all the famous fictional characters out there, I am ashamed to admit that I am the most like Ralphie.

Anyway, I went to the counter and the post office lady who is super nice said, "Oh, Carrie. You have a huge package. Can you come to the side door?"

So I squeed and people laughed and I went to the side door. And there was a package that was as big as me.

"What is it?" I asked, thinking it was maybe a leg lamp or something.

Thought it might be this! *crossing fingers*
"It's from Amazon.com," she said. "Do you think you can carry it?"
And then I said, "Um...."

And then I said it again, "Um..."

And then she said to another nice post office lady who was pretty strapping looking, "Why don't you bring it to door 4?"

This was the point where I realized:
1. That it wasn't a present for me. It was presents for this family that I heard about on the radio who needed help this winter. So, it was a couple comforters (Transformers and Disney) and dolls and Wow Wee Cubs, and an electric razor.
2. That it definitely wasn't a leg lamp.
3. That it wasn't food from Harry and David, which nobody sends me anymore. Sadness.
4. That it wasn't going to be easy fitting it into my MINI.

So, I hopped out of the post office, into my MINI, drove the MINI to the back cargo door. The lady at the door started laughing.
"Oh man..." She grabbed her stomach. "Oh man... How are you going to fit that? Oh man..."
And the thing is I already had the gear of Em and Belle who are both on the swim team crammed in the backseat and I had groceries in the trunk.

"Don't laugh," I ordered laughing post office lady. People in the parking lot had now joined her.
"No," I begged, "Seriously, don't laugh."

And then I said, "Hey? Does anyone have a knife?"
At this point everyone stopped laughing, but some crazy man gave me his knife. I did not turn it on the laughers, I swear. Instead, I slit open the box, took out all the contents and crammed them into my back seat, earning semi-respectful glances from the laughers.

This is why if someone wants to send me a leg lamp, it would be much better to send it to my home address.

Kody Keplinger is organizing something called Agent Appreciation Day, and it's totally today.

I know that I've posted a million times about my agent of awesomness, Edward Necasulmer IV, but I mean... I still have to honor him today! He is that worthy.

Here he is:
Edward: Oh, Carrie, I am so honored that you chose to honor me.
Me: Yay!

That's really what our conversations are like. Edward speaks in nice full intelligent sentences and I squee.


Edward: Carrie! I have fantastic news. Are you ready?
Me; Squee!

He is very different than me. He lives in NYC. I live in Maine. He has never worn flannel. I have never worn a tie. But he still gets me.



Edward: Carrie, I have strep. And I have still not worn flannel, nor will I until you make the bestseller's list.
Me: Gasp! You will NEVER wear flannel.

Not only does Edward put up with this. He actually doesn't seem to mind. I've read a lot of blog posts about how you are supposed to have a very professional relationship with your agent. I do. But... there's something more. When my daughter, Em, went to NYC, Edward VOLUNTEERED to hang out with her for a night.

Did you hear that? He volunteered! And Em loved him. Em is very picky.

Em when she was little, thinking about whether or not Mickey is hug worthy. That is how picky she is!

When I am sad he texts me.
When I am at a conference overwhelmed by FURRIES he offers to chopper me out.

I always tease him about being a knight, but that's what he is. He champions me and his other authors. He is Madeline L'Engle's agent, but he still makes me feel important. That's how cool he is. He is good at contracts and he is good at people. He loves books and literature and he champions good books for kids. Why? Because books are imporfant to him and KIDS are important to him. He is made of awesome. And I am ridiculously lucky.

Maggie S. just had a great post about why she sets goals.
Meg Cabot just had this great post about putting on your big girl panties and dealing with things.
Lisa just had this post of awesome about how you should follow your bliss.

Which made me think. Note: Me thinking is somewhat dangerous. But it made me think about what I want out of life and I realized that I have no idea what my bliss is or how to follow

Yes, I am blissless!

I mean, I am not like Eeyore and looking sad and finding negatives everywhere.
Eeyore: I can't believe you used me as an example.
Me: Sorry Eeyore.

I am a pretty happy person actually, but I have never consciously thought to myself: SET GOALS. FOLLOW YOUR BLISS. PUT ON YOUR BIG GIRL UNDERWEAR.

Does anyone else not like the word 'panties?' I really don't like that word. Especially when men over 72 say it.

Anyway, I just sort of live and not worry about bliss and it's worked for me.

But now I want to have some bliss to follow. Not a Tiger Woods kind of bliss where I eschew all responsibility and just sort of follow my libido to the land of porn stars and cocktail waiters, because... um... EW!

And I have to wonder... Am I the only one out there who doesn't know exactly what her bliss is? I sort of just find bliss all the time, in random things like Tala rolling in the snow...
Tala: Hey! This isn't a snow picture.
Me: You blend in with the snow in all the snow pictures.
Tala: True. I will give you that one and add that my bliss is basically these things: squirrels, cats, squirrels, Lover Boy (my doggy boyfriend), when chicken falls on the floor, car rides, belly rubs, squirrels

Sorry for the Tala digression.

But I find my little bliss moments with her or the cat humiliating herself by not being able to jump up on the table...

Lyra the Cat: I am going to sleep and pretend you did not mention that event, which should never not be mentioned, Human!

Or getting to touch my first hardcover copy of CAPTIVATE, which came in the mail yesterday...
Yes, this is a plug for my book. It was so cool to actually hold it in my hands for the first time. I almost passed out.

But maybe finding little bliss all the time isn't how I should be. Maybe I should working for a big bliss, a followable bliss.
Do you all have a bliss?
Is it silly even to ponder this?
Should I just put on my big girl underwear and move on?

How clueless an author am I?



Oh, pretty clueless, but not soooooooo clueless that I do that with my gum.

Anyway, it turns out the NEED paperback comes out today!
This is NEED.
YAY!

*nervous nail biting*

It's kind of embarrassing not to know this, actually. Luckily the awesome Deb Shapiro (the director of publicity at my publishing house) emailed me and told me.

Yay for Deb!

I am so scared that it won't do well. I mean, I know that the hardcover did well, but I am super scared that the paperback won't. Is this normal? Have I been actually repressing the fact that it's coming out in paperback so I don't have to be nervous.... Hm....

Maybe I could just time travel back to the 1980s and not have to worry about anything other than Flashdance pants and stuff.

I took this from volleypop .

A hospital in Portland created this video to help promote Breast Cancer Awareness. It was all Emily MacInnes Somers' idea. She is obviously made of awesome. It is really awesome and cute.



Edited to add: Thanks Melodye for telling me about the million-dollar donation hoax thing. You are awesome. That's sad that there is a hoax component though. Sigh.