This week I am up to my eyeballs in stuff. Stuff like taking the kids swimming, going to the water park, playing more tennis than I’ve ever played in my life, getting tennis elbow, riding bikes, baking pies, getting in my 2 hours of writing each day, and generally getting ready to return to work. Tomorrow.

I said TOMORROW.

So I stopped at my new office today (new office! new school! new windows to see the sunlight!) and met one of the janitors there who quickly became my BFF. We all know that’s the way it works. If I ever expect to get my trash emptied and have him haul my boxes up to my new office, then I’d better find a way to make that man happy.

I meant with something like a nice lemon icebox pie. What were you thinking?

These last few hours of vacation are spent on important things like children, eating good food, going to the movies with a gaggle of friends tonight, and writing about shoes for BlogHer. And while I’m wrapping up my book and polishing off the necessary paperwork to go out and be rejected accepted by a publishing house, I was catching up on my Time magazine reading. They have a section where they ask people 10 questions that are supposed to be revealing in some way. What would you ask someone like Shirley Sherrod? I thought. Or that Old Spice guy, Isaiah Mustafa?

These are the zombie shoes I mention in that post. You should really go and read it now. Or maybe just order them online.

Then I came up with a contest. I like to get a sponsor for my blog contests sometimes, but others? Well, I like to do it my damn self. And I want to give away some of the books I’ve read to get my shelves ready for my own published book. SOMEDAY, right? A gal can hope.

So, ask your questions. I will try to answer them as honestly as possible and still keep some semblance of privacy. Ten will be chosen, but one of the ten chosen will win a box of books. From me to you. *Plus, a little surprise or two because I like to do that kind of stuff. It must be the Southern Hospitality my father instilled in me even though my Northern Hospitality mother is more likely to do this kind of thing.

Comments will close on Friday, July 30 when I look up from my desk at my new job and say, “Really? Only 17 people asked questions? Ok. Fine. I’ll still choose a winner.” and then I’ll answer the Ten Best Questions for a post on the following Monday.

This should be fun unless the fun is all in my head in which case I will just go an infuse some more vodka which is now a part of the summer fun in which I’ve been indulging AND OK I’LL STOP NOW JUST ASK SOME GOOD QUESTIONS.

*It is entirely possible that I might add goodies in this Book Box that have helped me have a good summer. Sunblock, tennis balls, infused vodka. (KIDDING. I don’t think that’s allowed. Is it?) I dunno. I’m feeling weird.

So, how’s the NaBloPoMo going? Is your MoJo still going? I’ll tell you what. When Mrs. Kennedy came up with this brainchild I was excited and I’m so happy to see some folks doing it along with me. I find my writing tends to speak more toward the ‘audience’ than normal. Remember the other day when I forced you to de-lurk? Yeah. Well, I got that all mixed up. It wasn’t until the 21st apparently. Don’t you want to SLAP me?

Here. I’ll make it up to you. 

In writing for 24 days in a row and finding out that it’s not so much work as it is commitment I’ve also gotten questions in comments that I’ve been really bad about answering. BUT, I do end up answering them in e-mails to people. Now, that? I’m pretty good about doing. 

One of my favorite things to read in Time each week when it comes delivered to my house is to read about the celebrities or political figures or writers and the 10 questions section. This last week it was about Zac Efron and let’s face it: I’m no superfan when it comes to him, but I still learned a lot about him in reading the answers he provided. Since I’m doing all this talking to you I thought I’d take the lazy way out give readers a treat and allow questions. Because if that isn’t the easiest way out I don’t know what is! Except writing lists!

Let’s do this thing. I’ll pick ten questions and then that will be my post tomorrow. I’ll answer questions and write them as they come to me. If it gets out of hand someone will have to throw out the Safe Word. That word is SANITY. Because after 24 days of writing, I’m pretty short on that.

Ready? Set? Hey! Are you ready? OK. Let’s GO. No slapping.

Today’s post is interactive and NO it doesn’t have anything to do with the fact that I’ve been neglecting my poor blog and NO it’s not because I don’t have anything better to write and NO… ok. Want the truth? I could use a silly laugh today. Yesterday was not at all a fun day at work what with taking weapons from students, dealing with the fire department junior division for a suspected arsonist, and the major depression in several of my students (by the way, today is National Depression Screening Day so please send the ones you love for help).

Since I missed the de-lurk and some readers still emailed me such nice happy thoughts I figured I would do it bass-ackwards and come up with my own. I’m leaving two words to start you off and your comment today must be two OTHER words to finish the thought. When I update later, I will take the comments and re-edit this post. That’s it, folks. Two words. Dos palabras.

Hopefully, this will be really funny. If not, then I’ll reconsider my own idea of fun and it’s probably going to mostly consist of lighting my farts.

Ready? Here’s the first two words:

When my…

*Edited: Ok, so not funny all the time. The fart one was funny, but I loved Cyndi’s poem she made out of it.

When my mother died.

When my heart broke.

When my tears fell.

When my life changed.

When my mother died.

Her contribution brought two other words to mind: Staggeringly heartbreaking.

*Challenge taken, Belinda*

The game. Oh, the game. In fact, it should be expressed this way: The Game. That’s due to it being something I will never forget. Much as I want to learn to put my pictures in my actual entry and be able to expand them to a size where they can be seen, I just can’t. I’m far too challenged (oops – did I forget to mention that there would be self-depracatory sentences on this post again? Damn. There will be more I’m sure. Wait for it.) and just can’t seem to get it right. Honestly, I don’t have the patience. Someone needs to sit next to me and SHOW ME HOW TO DO IT before I can actually get it.

So here. Go here for the pictures from the World Series that I took.

Saturday was Kennimus’ birthday and I got him a win from the Cardinals.

The fun around here never stops, either. Just to challenge myself further (read: make myself more crazy than normal by posting every single day during the month of November) I have signed up for Mrs. Kennedy’s brainchild NaBloPoMo. It sounds like a Native American name or a communicable disease, but really it’s less stressful than the NaNoWriMo that I could never do without a lot of coffee.

No. Really. A lot would be required for me to do that one. So I signed myself up for the National Blog Posting Month and must write daily from November 1 through the 30th. Just to make it more fun for myself and make the neuroses I harbor linger closer to the surface of my psyche, I have decided to take Belinda’s suggestion to keep the “You Should…” titles going and maybe, just maybe, I’ll do it for the whole month.

Maybe.

You should talk me out of it.

Please?

Yes, we were rained out. But! In case you were the ones doing a little rain dance (I saw you, Queenie. You don’t fool me. And, NO, I shall not wear a “D” on my shirt whilst in St. Louis, thankyouverymuch. Unless it is to stand for “Diva” and really… do I need to advertise that any more? I think not.)

Luckily, our seats were covered from the rain but two rows right in front of us? Completely wet. It made for a lot of snuggling.

Which brings me to the snuggling I did while sitting in my seat eating a hot dog and drinking the most expensive beer I’ve ever had (best comment from our group last night: You know, the last time I spent $100 on beer I actually got to get drunk from it.) and stealing some nachos from my sister-in-law. No, I did not snuggle with Kennimus. Instead, I snuggled with the VERY LARGE MAN WHO SAT NEXT TO ME.

When we sat down there was no one else sitting to my right and I got to take over the armrest (a favorite pasttime of mine – see who moves first so you can keep the armrest all the way through a movie or sporting event… ’tis quite fun and amusing for me but I’m just this side of crazy, so don’t go listening to me) and when their group came through I was mostly thinking Don’t you dare spill my $8 beer while you get to your seat. Please don’t. Please. Don’t. Don’t! and I was spared because it was intact. But they they stood next to their seats for a while and milled around and I whispered to Kennimus “I’m totally getting this armrest when this guy sits down. Watch. It’s mine.” and he was all “Yeah, right.”

When Mr. Very Large Man finally sat down I couldn’t even SEE the armrest anymore. His girth took over the armrest. And some of my seat, too.

Damn. I hate losing.

Since it was so cold, however, he made for a fantastic personal heater so I’m here to publicly announce to the wonderful St. Louians that they kept me warm while waiting for the game to start.

Now, wouldn’t this be cool? If the game goes on tonight as planned and the CARDINALS WIN and then our tickets, which are now good for Friday night’s game, allowed us to see the final game if the CARDINALS WIN and I’m at the last World Series game of 2006? Yes, it would be cool.

No more rain dances people. I need good karma. Pass some good karma to me and I’ll share my $8 beer and my personal heater, Mr. Very Large Man. Oh, and I’ll bring Yadier to Belinda. He’s so small he’ll fit in my pocket. However, he is awfully cute so he might not make it down to you. You can come visit him at my house. (The soul patches? Geez. Don’t get me started. On the men I can take it. But the women? Let me say here and now: ALL KINDS OF NO.)

If you’re really good, I’ll snuggle with you, too…