A Day with Rebecca, or Let Them Eat Cake!

One of my favorite people came to visit on Saturday. I first met Rebecca Elson through her blog The Magical Buffet and other online venues, and then finally in person when she came to visit me one year at the local Spiritual Arts Fair, which I took part in at the time.

Addendum: Rebecca scolded me for not putting up the picture of Magic the Cat's "Oh, no, it's HER again" face. This is the look Magic gave Rebecca when she walked in the door:

 

Rebecca, me, and author Gail Wood, another one of my favorite people

She lives just far enough away that we don't get to see each other nearly as often as we'd like to, but HURRAH! she came to visit for a few hours on Saturday, and we had a wonderful time together as always.

Mostly we just sat and talked, catching up on life stuff, career stuff, and the rest. But of course, she had to try out the new desk.

 Hey--get your feet off of there!

And I made us one of my signature uber-salads (this one had chicken and corn I'd roasted on the bbq, plus avocado, tomatoes, and lettuce, spinach, and herbs out of the garden) and my new favorite discovery, sparkling pomegranate juice. Firefly fans, please note the cool "Brown Coat" hat she is wearing.

As usual, Rebecca and Magic had a serious discussion about whether or not Rebecca gives cats tidbits off her plate. (Magic is in favor. Rebecca is not. Hence the look.)

We had to have a salad, because afterwards we ate some of this, which Rebecca brought with her from her (and now my) favorite bakery, Dolce & Biscotti in Albany.

 

It is apparently called "Ultimate Chocolate Indulgence Cake" and the name is not an exaggeration. It was fabulous and sweet...just like the company.

Of course, being the silly folks we are, this led to a hearty round of "Cake or Death" jokes. (Eddie Izzard, for the few of you who haven't heard this stuff yet.)

I hope you had fun this weekend too, and that you got to spend at least part of it with someone special. And just a suggestion, but if someone offers you "Cake or death," pick the cake. Just saying.

Feline Friday: The Coming Weekend

How the heck did it get to be Friday? For that matter, how the heck did it get to be July 11th? *blinks*

On the other hand, I have fun plans for this weekend--I'm REALLY looking forward to a visit on Saturday from one of my favorite people, Rebecca Elson of the The Magical Buffet blog, which is less about magic that it is about life. (Although she did just do a review of a book on goddesses that sounded so amazing, I went right out and bought it. Thanks a lot, Rebecca.)

I plan to cook up a simple BBQ for us, and as usual, we will probably just sit around and talk for hours about anything and everything. Rebecca will undoubtedly have her usual argument with Magic the Cat about whether or not cats should be allowed on people's laps at the table. And then, of course, Saturday night is full moon, which I'll be observing by myself because everyone in Blue Moon Circle is off doing something or other.

Then Sunday will be all about catching up with the yard, garden, and writing. Big surprise, right?

So what are you doing this weekend? I suspect that around here, we'll have a lot more of this:

 Reading (That's the new Donna Andrews book, The Good, the Bad, and the Emus)

 Napping (not on Saturday, since Rebecca will be here, but hopefully on Sunday)

 And checking out the new desk

I hope you have plans to do something fun!

The New Desk Declaration

Most Americans spent this weekend celebrating the 4th of July, when the Declaration of Independence was signed (still love you Britain, with your Doctor Who and your Sherlock...friends?). I, on the other hand, spent most of my weekend declaring my independence from my old desk.

Don't get me wrong--it was a lovely desk, and served me well for years. But its configuration really didn't work for the way I am writing these days. Most of the actual writing is done on the laptop, sitting in my magic red recliner (which is much easier on my back and the tendonitis in my arms). The main desktop and office is now primarily used for the business side of writing: emailing, organizing projects, and keeping track of obligations.

Samhain practicing thinking writerly thoughts.

The high profile of the desk also made the room seem smaller and more crowded. So I commissioned a new desk from one of the woodworkers at The Artisans' Guild (the shop I run). Naturally, since I had planned to spend the long weekend relaxing and working on the novel in progress, I got a call on Thursday saying that the desk was ready. Most of Friday was spent installing the new desk (with Glen, who made it) and the rest of the weekend was used for reorganization and perfecting the space. It was well worth it!

Here is the old desk being dismantled. (Mystic looks like he is saying, "What the heck is going on?")

Here is the new one:
Naturally, Magic the Cat had to claim it right away. We witches call that the "butt blessing." (Okay, I just made that up.) Isn't the wood beautiful? It is hickory, to match the counter top on the other side of the room (between the dining room/office and the living room) Glen built for me a number of years ago. The desk is actually two separate tables, in case I decide I don't want to use the whole thing somewhere down the road.

Here's the desk, all set up, with the wall boards reorganized (multiple times), plus an emergency run to Office Max to get new organizer thingies for the desk.

I finally got back to the writing and copy edits on Sunday night, but I'm pretty happy with the end results of how I spent my weekend. The room seems so much more open and airy, and for the next five minutes, anyway, everything is organized and neat.

How did you spend your weekend? And what is your work area like?

Another Fabulous Weekend!

I know--it is shocking to think about it, but I actually had two weekends in a row that were not solely dedicated to writing, cleaning, tending the garden, or other "work" things. Last weekend I had a lovely Saturday visit from my friend Robin and her kids, Sophie and Nate. (You remember the pumpkin decorating, right?)

This past weekend, I got a spur-of-the-moment visit from pals Terry and Glen. Terry and Glen used to live here in Oneonta, many years ago. Terry and I went to the same college and took a bunch of the same classes. My boyfriend at the time was in Germany studying for his Masters, and Glen was in the Army, stationed in Alaska. Terry and I became bosom buddies, something that never changed over the years, despite their eventual move to Connecticut. Terry is a big-deal in business now, and Glen is a social worker, but they are both some of the nicest people you could ever hope to call friends.

We didn't do anything special, really--went into town so they could visit the shop

drove around town to see their old stomping grounds, enjoy the scenery (Oneonta has some amazing old houses), and admire the colors of the changing leaves. Then we went out to a lovely dinner, came home and...yes, you guessed it...decorated pumpkins. What can I say? I had so much fun doing it with Robin and the kids last weekend, I've decided it is a theme for the season. You walk through my door, you color a pumpkin.

You can't tell we were having fun, can you?

There is nothing like spending time with the people you love. What did you do this weekend that brought you joy?

Feline Friday: Magic the Cat Version

Yes, cat lovers, it is that time again. Well, Friday, of course, but also a day when I am so exhausted (from thunderstorms all last evening and on and off all night) that the only way I can manage a post is to simply put up cute cat pictures. Thankfully, I have a never-ending supply...since Magic the Cat is happy to sprawl all over the house being photogenic.

Here ya go, and happy Friday!

Here is Magic lying on my shiny new copy of Alex Bledsoe's Wake of the Bloody Angel which I finally wrestled away from her so I could read it. And man, was it worth it. This book is GREAT!

So, what do y'all have planned for the weekend? I'm going to be out in the garden and yard (once the next batch of thunderstorms passes through this afternoon and evening--gah), going to the dump, and working on some nonfiction projects so I can clear my plate and get back to the current novel. Yes, my life IS glamorous, isn't it ?