mary e. pearson

Lots of catch up today.

First and most important,  I want to bring to your attention that author and editor Deborah Halverson, is walking in the Susan G. Komen  Breast Cancer 3 Day Walk for the cure.  I've talked before about what a difference cancer research makes.  It will save the life of someone you love.  Please hop over to her site and support her.  Every little bit helps. 

And my gosh, you gotta love the name of her team, The More the Merrier Walkers for Knockers.

more news . . .

The Mission Viejo Reader Festival this past weekend was so much fun.  Alyson Noel has a picture on her blog and talks about how great the librarian, staff, and volunteers were.  I have to say, DITTO.  You would have thought they had done this a hundred times instead of it being their first festival ever.  Kudos to them all. One funny thing, knowing that Henry Winkler would be there, I took a copy of the picture of the Bronze Fonz that lisaalbert took for The Miles Between tour, thinking I might show it to him.  Because of my panel time, I didn't get the chance, but one of the awesome volunteers showed up and brought it back to me signed!  So funny.  Love it!




Film update for The Adoration of Jenna Fox:  I heard from my agent and they expect the screenplay to be finished by the end of the month.  Hooray!

I've been amazed at the response to my post What YA Lit is and isn't.  I guess a lot of us have run into these misconceptions.

For my cat loving friends, a pretty funny video.  Who says cats don't like water?  Thanks to my sis for this video.

Remember, Walkers for Knockers.  Every.  Little.  Bit.  Helps. 

oh my!

I'm back from a short vacation, where I shared a room with several geckos.  They were quiet fellows so I didn't mind.  Actually, I loved it.  And just outside our door were giant toads, mynah birds, egrets, and in the cove just steps away, sea turtles.  I didn't get a lot of pictures this trip, but I did take a few for wallpaper on my computer. I like to use those throughout the year to at least mentally take me away. I will post those in a few days for anyone who might want some tropical wallpaper to warm them on a chilly day.

But hey!  While I was gone, Kris took away the crown!  I know I am a little late with this news, but it is worth saying again. I don't think it was the guyliner at all.  I think Matt Lauer on the Today show got it right--the judges all but crowning Adam before  America got to vote, had a negative effect.  Worse, it backfired on them.  I feel bad for Adam but I know he will do well.

I am doing lots of other catch up too--a lot of people have written to say they are on board for The Miles Between Road Trip.  Yay!  Tomorrow is the last day to  throw your name in the hat so if you want to be part of the ARC tour, let me know!  I will draw names Thursday morning.

Now to go unpack and do laundry.  And figure out which clothes still fit me.  The loose ones, I know.  No more macadamia nut pancakes, papaya, pineapple, and mai tais for a while.  Oh, and those deadly caramacs.  hm, hm.

 

It was hot here yesterday--95!  So all our doors and windows were open and just before it got dark I heard the yowl of a peacock.  Or maybe it's called a hoot.  I don't know what it's called but it sounds like an odd yell.  We have peacocks in our neighborhood these days.  Driving in one day, I saw one on a neighbor's roof.  It is a rather odd sight.  They're big, ya know?  Like a turkey.  At least these ones are.  I took this picture of one roosting in a tree a while back when I visited Leo Carrillo ranch near us.



That is where they are from--apparently decades ago, Leo Carrillo brought in a bunch and they have thrived and their little flock has grown into a large one and now they are venturing out into surrounding neighborhoods--like ours.  Last spring we saw a whole little flock of babies walking around our sidewalks.  So cute.  Now they are big with long tails.  It is pretty amazing.  So far, none have graced our roof or yard which is probably a good thing.  Our dogs might not fare well against those monsters.  Very pretty but big and with some pretty hefty claws.  But I have to admit, I do enjoy seeing them walking down the street like they are just one of the neighbors.  Which I guess they are now.
 
May 31  Laguna Beach Books! Kick off summer with SIX authors talking about books, writing, and cupcakes.  Oh yeah, there will be food.  And when you get six authors together they never behave.  Should be fun. 1:00  More info to follow soon.

So, first up is the Nebula Weekend and LA Times Book Festival!  Lots to get ready!  Hope I see you there.

So last night, the kids are all here for dinner, and I ask them want they want for dinner on Easter Sunday.  Usually I always make a lamb and a ham.  But I thought I would forego the ham this year since we end up with so much left over that doesn't seem to get eaten and maybe make lamb and a beef roast (two of our kids don't eat lamb which my husband and I love so I have to have an alternate)  A nice beef tenderloin seemed like a good alternate, right?

Um, no.

Before I know what is happening, they are all gabbing about having something else entirely.  Not an Easter alternate at all.  Not in my world anyway.  Until now.

It seems that on Sunday--the day I usually drag out my China and cloth napkins, we are going to have . . .

hot dogs

okay, I guess my mom isn't going to see this so I will say it again, kind of in the loud voice I used last night:

Hot dogs!?


Yep.  But I bow to the consenus.  They want a whole hot dog bar.  All the toppings from here to there.  My husband was the worst of them, naming about ten different toppings we could have with them.  I mean, how many hot dogs can any one person eat?  hmph, I may still drag out the China and napkins anyway.

On another note, a friend sent me this warning about holiday identify theft this season.  Consider yourselves all warned.  Be careful out there:








Watch our for those imposters!

I'm glad you all enjoyed the amazing picture yesterday as much as I did.  I did a little nosing around the web this morning and found out that this is the Blue Morpho Butterfly.  It's wings are five to eight inches across!  If you go to this site  you can see what the underside of its wings look like. Quite the transformation from that brilliant blue, no?

In book news . . .

The Miles Between is starting to be read!  (yikes!) Thank you professornana !

Also, apparently VOYA has released their Best Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Horror of 2008 list--33 titles altogether.  I was thrilled to see The Adoration of Jenna Fox on it! Yay!

Back to work . . .

I've acquired quite a few blue butterflies over the past year (including a beaded butterfly purse!) but today Little Willow aka slayground sent me this picture and it took my breath away.  At first I thought it was some kind of sculpture but then I saw the fluttering out-of-focus butterfly in the foreground. 

They're real!?! 

But I do remember reading that in the Amazon forest (?) there were these brilliant blue butterflies.  Well, sheesh, it looks like they are having a butterfly convention! 

Amazing, huh?

Making good progress on WIP.  I am still in honeymoon phase--lasting longer than usual--I haven't pulled out a single hair yet.  And that's amazing too.  At least for me.

I was gone for two weeks--seems like a month! First stop: Paris. I love everything about that city. I won't bore you with all the usual tourist pictures (and I have plenty of them) but a few of the more unusual ones.

I took this at Marie Antoinette's farm at Versailles. Something very metaphorical about this tree, don't you think?

Barely teetering there on the ground but still stubborn enough to thrive. I have more pictures that I will post over the next few weeks as the opportunity arises--including a few bloopers. Oh! And some interesting "art" at Versailles too. Still shaking my head on that one.

While in Paris, I had the opportunity to meet with my French agent and publisher. We chatted at an outdoor cafe near my hotel, and I learned a little more about publishing in France. Luckily, both agent and editor speak English way better than I speak French. The French version of JENNA will be out next October. Hm, I wonder if I could go back for a signing . . . I can dream, can't I?

Still on the foreign front, when I got home I got the good news that The Adoration of Jenna Fox had three more foreign rights sales: Chinese, Korean, and Polish rights. I couldn't even begin to pronounce the name of the Polish publisher, but I am thrilled that JENNA will be published in still more languages.

And still more foreign stuff . . .
I came home to find the Australian cover in my mailbox.

Is this beautiful, or what? I love the bright blue eye and just all the mystery and intrigue that the whole cover suggests.

One more picture from the farm at Versailles:

I know, this could be anywhere America, but it is halfway around the world and this donkey speaks in French, so he is special. And very cute. I don't know what he is saying--probably something like "Americans!" But after all the grandeur of the palace at Versailles--the farm and its animals, trees, and ponds were exceptionally beautiful and relaxing.

You know you're in a small town when cats and dogs are lounging out on the sidewalk unattended. Like I said, Los Olivos is tiny. Five minutes up one side of the street, and five minutes down the other. Well, unless you stop to see the sights. Like cats.

I admit, I am not a cat person. Not by choice but by allergy. By sister-in-law has cats and it is all I can do not to pick them up and cuddle them. But I have learned the hard way that it is not a wise thing to do. I swell up and itch and it ain't pretty. But that doesn't keep me from loving to watch them and their antics.

I came across this contortionist who was so intent on his grooming he couldn't have cared less that a stranger was watching.

A dog would never ignore you like that. They would be right in your face, probably licking it or wanting you to scratch behind their ear.

A little farther down the street we came across this fellow lounging outside a real estate office:



He was gorgeous and BIG. It is hard to tell from the picture but he was a chunk. And "I think" he was the friendly sort, because right after I snapped this he jumped down and came after me. (or maybe he hates the papparazzi?)
But I think he just wanted to be petted. As much as I was tempted, I quickly walked away. Swelling and road trips don't mix well.

But isn't he a beauty?

First stop, Chicago! My mom's home town.

I had a great time. Overall the weather was perfect, flights on time, and readers enthusiastic. Couldn't have asked for more. But I got more! Lots of special touches beginning with a pet in my hotel room:

I named him Rover because he actually did flips for me when I returned to my hotel late at night (okay, maybe that is a bit of exaggeration or delirium from lack of sleep, but I think he was glad to see me)
The rest of the room wasn't bad either.

I stayed at the Hotel Burnham which is a restored office building. The door to the room looks like an office door with an old fashioned glass pane. Lots of nice authentic touches. And I had a view of Lake Michigan.

I had a package waiting for me when I arrived--books and discussion guides. I hadn't seen the guides yet, so that was a nice surprise!


Next I was off to Skokie. My first visit was at the Skokie Public Library--drat--I forgot my camera, but it is a huge beautiful library that my media escort and I actually got lost in! We met with a Mother Daughter Book Club who had already read The Adoration of Jenna Fox It was really fun to be able to talk freely about the book without being careful about spoilers! We had a great discussion. It was really interesting to hear the different viewpoints of the moms and daughters. And our host, Librarian Linda Sawyer even had refreshments for us. Cookies and books--great combo! : )

The next day, back in Chicago, I had lunch with librarians and other book folks back at the Atwood Cafe in the Hotel Burnham. It is a beautiful restaurant and restored to the era like the rest of the hotel. The food is great and they even set the table with Biogel Blue glasses. Wasn't that nice of them?


Again, everyone had read JENNA so we could talk freely. So often I have to tiptoe around what I say so as not to spoil the story, so it is wonderful when everyone can just let loose with their opinions and ideas! And we did! One librarian even pegged some of my background based on the book. Fun conversations that I can't share because I don't want to spoil the story for you. But get me in person around a table of food . . .

More of the tour tomorrow!

My sister takes a lot of beautiful photos, but sometimes she takes ones that are just plain fun. I love this one. How can you look at it and not smile? Of course, I have a thing for ducks as some of you read about quite some time ago. Not too practical for me to have a duck since I already have two bird dogs (though the dogs might beg to differ) but I love everything about ducks--from the noises they make, to the way they waddle, all the way down to their floppy orange feet.

Admit it, they make you smile too.

Thanks for all the comments on my cover. I'm really happy with it. Glad to hear you like it too.

A friend noted the tattered wings of the butterfly and that it was missing a chunk of one wing. I hadn't even noticed at first. I guess I was so happy with the final product that I didn't pay attention to the smaller details. But that missing chunk makes it even more perfect.

And gypsyrobin, being the butterfly expert that she is, noted that it was a monarch butterfly and a female one too. She also said that the ones with tattered wings have usually traveled many miles and survived predators, cars, and other unfortunate events. Very interesting.

I am not a big spider person. I like nearly all wildlife, but spiders and snakes are two I am happy to pass on. Still, this time of year it seems right to see a few gobby webs around along with the other Halloween decorations. And, er, a few gobby spiders. Like this one. It is hard to get perspective from this picture but this guy who decided to build a huge web right outside my dining room window, is large enough to eat a family of four.



I felt pretty brave to even get this close to take a picture, but then I thought, I wonder if he can jump? I pictured myself wrapped up tight as a mummy in his web. Luckily he didn't jump. His web is pretty messy now because he's been there a while, but if he builds a new one, I will try to take a new picture of it when the dew is hanging on it. Even for a non-spider admirer like me, I have to say their webs are something to wonder at.

So this is a Halloween decoration and chill from me to you.

Boo!

whew. I'm back from vacation, trying to get up to speed. While in Maui I never opened a newspaper or turned on the TV. Instead I was doing things like kayaking in the ocean . . .



This was off Makenna Beach on the south part of the island. The water off of Makenna is so clear. We would jump out of our kayak and snorkel and see things like this:



The turtles seemed especially abundant this year, and a little more curious than usual. They are an endangered species and you are not supposed to get closer than ten feet, but sometimes they come up to you . . .



and we found ourselves trying to swim in reverse to gain a little more distance. They are absolutely magnificent creatures. We saw one in Honolua Bay who honestly, was the size of a small Volkswagen. His shell looked five feet across at least.

When we weren't out kayaking, swimming, or snorkeling, we were on our lanai enjoying the view. Every night the sunset was more beautiful than the last. One evening a brilliant gold . . .



and the next a swirl of rose colored clouds . . .



Boy, did we need this break. But now we are back to reality. And autumn! It arrived in spades while we were gone. So now, over the next few days I will finish transferring everything to my new computer and doing other chores I can no longer put off, plus doing some musing on my next book. Whatever that might be. I have some ideas on the kind of book I want to write, but no characters are stepping up to the plate yet. Maybe they've been on vacation too.

Ever feel like you’re being watched? I walked out my patio door this weekend and saw this gorgeous dragonfly taking a rest. He let me snap several photos of him. His wings simply amazed me. Oh, and that great big eye of his too.

Another amazing thing: Coleen Salley. I had never seen Colleen Salley before but this past weekend she made a surprise appearance at the SCCBA dinner. At the end of the evening she graciously got up and did an impromptu performance of The Night Before Christmas–Louisiana style! She had everyone holding their bellies. She is truly a gem. It also made me feel a bit nostalgic. She reminded me of one of my grandmothers–a southern gal who could tell a good story too.

Another fun thing about the evening. I got to sit with marperez and dlgarfinkle. It was their job to let me know if my makeup wore off and revealed my shiner. It held!

. . . have flown the coop!




This is Kelly
(being scolded by Aflac–you remember that bossy little guy?)



Kelly deserves one of cynthialord’s tiaras for all of her devotion to these three quackers. No delicacy was spared–mush, crickets, worms, Kelly made sure they had it all. And her care showed in how healthy they were, in spite of their dirty detour. She even kept giving them bigger swimming pools as they grew.




Kelly even found them the perfect home–a protected pond (they still can’t fly) that was already home to a black duck who loved them at first site and took them under her wing. (And there is not a sewer in sight!) Hurray!

Now get your mind out of the sewer. Leave that for me. That’s where I was. In the sewer. My hot Friday date was with a duck in a sewer. Now mind you, there are very few things in life that could ever coerce me into the wet, stinky, very creepy cavern of a sewer, but a peeping duckling happens to be one of those things. Sigh. Why wasn’t I hard of hearing? My husband lifted the manhole, I swiped away the cobwebs that I could, and down I went. (Yes, hubby offered, but I figured I would be a better aim with the butterfly net.)

Turns out there were THREE of them–and no Mama. The sewer itself had three tunnels leading into it and as soon as I went down, the little farts fled down one of them. Luckily, my little “duck whisperer” (my daughter) peeped from above and they waddled back long enough for me to nab one of them. The other two fled for Florida it seemed (which btw I was very glad I didn’t live in right now–alligators in sewers ya know? Yes, I was very creeped out and hoped no one let a pet alligator loose fifty years ago and it was waiting all this time for ME, but I digress) By now it was getting dark, so we called it a night and a nice neighbor who happened by took the first little stooge home since she has done wildlife rescue before and had a little aquarium/heater that would be perfect for him.

Well, the next morning I walked over to the sewer. All was quiet. I peeped, and darn if the little duckies didn’t peep right back. I guess we were going down again. But the funny thing is, on a Saturday morning a lot of neighbors were around and noticing these weird people going down manholes (or should I call them personholes?) This time I went down a sewer at the end of one tunnel and my husband went down in the sewer at the opposite end of the tunnel. And about twenty neighbors gathered around both sewers as word spread and it became a huge team effort–The Great Duckling Rescue.

These last two quackers were clever and stubborn and it took the brain and muscle power of twenty humans to match them (no comment). We tried everything–hoses, long poles, flashlights, even a fake quacking stuffed duck (good grief, I think the little ducklings even laughed at that one) but finally one neighbor came up with a brilliant idea. It’s a good thing too because the sewer stink was starting to get to me and I didn’t care how cute they were, I drew the line at crawling down the dark slimy tunnel on my tummy to get them. She suggested a beachball! Another neighbor ran to get one. It was just about the right size to roll down the tunnel with a little bit of water from a hose pushing it along, but it wasn’t so heavy it would crush them if they didn’t move. It took a few tries, but it worked! First one jumped out at my feet just ahead of the beachball, and then a relay team took the ball back to my husband at the other end who sent it down again. A few more tries and the last one finally came out at my end and I scooped him up in the butterfly net! Everyone cheered.

Gosh they were adorable and they were all so happy to be reunited with each other. We hope they all make it. The sewer is a pretty nasty place, but so far so good. As soon as they are old enough, the neighbor who is taking care of them is going to release them in a nearby lake–which is probably where Mama Duck took off to (we hope).

I would have taken a picture of them to share (did I mention how CUTE they were?) but I felt so gross afterwards I didn’t want to touch anything but a nice hot shower–with lots of soap.

I have "visitation rights" : ) so a picture might still be forthcoming . . .

There’s a frog outside my window.

Night One: I am delighted. I nudge my husband. Do you hear that? He does. I smile. I like the sound. It’s a sign of spring. Summer! He croaked all night long. He is loud. I didn’t mind. I hadn’t heard a frog in months.

Night Two: Ah, there he is again. I am hearing a pattern to his croaks. Ribit. Ribit. Ribbbbbbbbbbbit! All night long he croaks. Did I mention he is loud?

Night Three: My God, how can one little frog be so loud? And if he just croaked a regular rhythm it would melt into a background noise. But, no, he stops, he starts, he stops, he starts. And it is always ribit, ribit, ribbbbbbbbbit! Who is he calling? I start thinking of Ralph Kramden. Seriously. Alice? Alice? Aliccccccccccce! I am now picturing a very fat round frog.

Night Four: There he is again. His croaks are softer or my ears are numb. He only croaks a few croaks and then stops. For the whole night. I figure a) he is hoarse, or b) Alice clobbered him.

Ain’t spring lovely?

Everyone on LJ seems to have very unique lives. I don’t think I have five things no one has ever done. Hmm. Let’s see:

1. I’ve been married to my high school sweetheart for 30 years! And I still absolutely adore him!

2. I’ve been bitten by a black widow while sleeping in a bed (I was away from home, sleeping in a rarely used bed. I still have the quirky habit of looking under the sheets every night when I go to sleep.)

3. I went through rabies treatment when I was five years old (14 shots in the stomach!)

4. I’ve been eye to eye with a Moray eel. (And learned I can swim much faster than I thought.)

5. Um, hmm . . . nope. Just four things I guess.