Cook.

Yes, I know it sounds like a cop-out, but seriously it’s just too damned hot to cook.  I don’t know how people stood it in the olden days, when they had to fire up a wood stove in order to make lunch in the summer.  If we ever build a house, I’m going to have twice as many vents installed in the kitchen than anywhere else in the house.  Who wants to preheat an oven for a pipin’ hot batch of cornbread when it’s 100 degrees outside? 

I sure as hell don’t.

I’m thinking this is going to be the Summer of Salad.  Tuna Salad, Chicken Salad, Ham Salad, Taco Salad, etc….

Sheesh.  And to think I was ready for warmer weather.  What the was I thinking?

This is the beautiful River Orchy.  My mom would have had a heart attack had she seen me on these rocks, even though they weren’t slippery and I wasn’t as close to danger as the picture implies. 

Me and Nessie.

In all seriousness, though this was the closest we came to a Nessie-spotting, Loch Ness was absolutely beautiful.  And the shopping rocked, too.

My whine for today?  I’m sleepy!  I did fine the first few days I was home–kept waking up early.  Today I feel like I could sleep through until tomorrow.  But I can’t.  Because I need to work.  Damn those pesky bills!

Loch Fyne in Inveraray.  Lovely, no?

I am still too tired to do a proper post, but wanted to pop in and let you all know that a.) I made it home and b.) I had a WONDERFUL time.  It’s a beautiful country steeped in rich heritage and if it weren’t for the midges–little biting bugs that swarm–and the lack of ice, I might be tempted to live there.  As it were, I hated those little bugs and I am addictied to ice, so….   Nevertheless, I would love to go back someday. 

The Playfriends were fabulous companions (special thanks to Danniele for patting my back while I tossed my Full Scottish Breakfast a block of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh after a short but memorable ride on a double decker bus and to Kim, for braving those tiny roads and round-abouts and planning the trip to start with.  Kira, I would thank you for the horseback riding, but we all know that would be a lie.   Andrea, Navigator Extraordinaire, I forgive you for that pointless trek up the side of the mountain.  You couldn’t have known neither my aversion to walking up tall things or that the path was blocked AT THE TOP.  In any case, you’re hysterical and a constant source of entertainment.   Singing Georgia Satellites’ Keep Your Hands To Yourself at the top our lungs on the way back from the Orkney’s was a particularly fine moment.

At any rate, I had big fun. 

I’m off to Scotland this morning, so the blog will be quiet while I’m gone.  Sorry!  However, if you want to know where me and the Playfriends are then click out to their blog at The Writing Playground for a daily update of our whereabouts.

Needless to say, I am THRILLED, OVERWHELMED, EXCITED, etc…and can’t wait to see, well, everything.  My only concern at the moment is how to keep my mouth from falling open while I sleep on the plane.  (Hey, it happens, people and it ain’t pretty.)  I’ve considered a file band beneath my chin and anchored to the top of my head and a surgical mask, neither of which is attractive or feasible.  Tape?  Probably not.  No doubt I’ll think of something, though.

At any rate, ya’ll have fun without me and I’ll be back to tell you all about it–with pictures!–on the 24th.  Until then…

It’s 9:14PM here at casa de Rhonda and guess what my dh is doing?

CUTTING GRASS.

Seriously.  I kid you not.  It’s dark, people.  We’re in the middle of one of the most terrible droughts our area has ever seen and yet…I hear him out there, mowing down the last remaining parched but determined blades of pale green stuff left in our crispy yard.

Clearly this is a man thing.

1.) Scotland.

2.) National Conference in Dallas.

3.) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix movie.  (Am going to see this with Precious, Julie Elizabeth Leto and Jill Shalvis, fellow friends and Potterheads.   )

4.) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows being released.  (Am equally happy and sad about this.  I love the books and can’t wait to know what happens, but there’s a certain degree of sadness with knowing there’s nothing else to look forward to out of the series. )

5.) New episodes of Man vs. Wild.

What about you?  What are you looking forward to?

Son and daughter are in the pool playing Horse with the basketball.  Daughter misses her third shot.

“Ha!  You’ve got an A.”

Daughter snorts at son.  “I don’t have an A.  It’s an R, idiot.”

“You need to go back to first grade,” son sneers self-importantly at daughter.  “Listen closely.  H-O-A-R-S-E.”

Daughter and adults laugh, causing the smile on son’s face to waver.  “What?”

“That’s how you spell hoarse if you’ve throat hurts or something,” someone explains.  “You’re playing HORSE, as in, the animal.”

Son ponders this for a minute, then smiles a bit sheepishly.  “Oh, well,” he says.  “You’re closer to losing then.”

There’s always a bright spot, I guess.  Note to self: make children READ all summer.

For a writer, getting the Call for the First Sale is the biggest milestone imaginable.  One of my buddies and a fellow chapter member has officially sold her first book to Blaze and they’re partying on the Writing Playground to celebrate her much deserved success.   Click on over and give her a hearty congratulations.  Trust me, you’re going to be enjoying this author’s books soon.