Sibling Rivalry

JOSHY: Two and two is four.
And five and five and five is... uh, ... a lot of fives.

God, that kid is funny. He tries SO hard to keep up with his sister who is 15 months older.

When she was able to swim without a vest, he said, "No vest."

But, Joshy, you can't swim.

Yes, I can.

Sure enough, within a week, he was a fish.

When she got a two wheeler, he said, "No more trike."

When she went skiing, he went skiing.

But the one thing he absolutely cannot keep up with her on is reading. And it kills him.

One night in bed, Jordan read a book to all of us. She read it beautifully. She may have hesitated on one word, but she got it without help. When she was done, Joshy said:

Terrible, Jordan. Terrible.

I really want to write a PB on sibling rivalry. Some editors say that topic is overdone. But I actually can't think of any great picture books on this subject. If you can, please share!

I'm a Great Pretender

I once dated a guy who told me he couldn't marry me because I was a little bit too crazy.

I did what any nice Jewish girl in NYC would do. I told my shrink.

And my shrink said something that I never forgot. He said, "You're not as crazy as you pretend to be."

He went on to say that my "boyfriend" was actually a lot crazier than I was. He's the one who dated someone for five years without ever telling his orthodox parents (because she wasn't Jewish). Yes, I dated some real winners.

Why am I writing about this? Because it recently occurred to me that I pretend I am a writer. I sit at my desk all day reading and commenting on blogs and researching agents to submit to, but I don't actually WRITE!

This is a problem. The question is... what am I going to do about it?

Friday Five

1) I think it's safe to say I've gotten my groove back. Five posts in five days. (Now if I can only catch up on laundry!)

2) I've been reading a lot of excellent posts lately. I usually tweet when I see one I want to share, but I'd like to link to Karen's Climbing the Writer's Staircase, for those of you who are non-tweeters. It is so lovely.

3) I have come to the realization that I need a sister. (How can anyone who reads Lisa and Laura's blog not have sister-envy.)

4) I am long overdue for a contest. In fact, I have been blogging since November and I have NEVER had one! I am going to have to put on my contest thinking cap and come up with something good.

5) I'm having dinner Tuesday night with agent extraordinaire, Stephen Barbara! Not just the two of us, but still... now I just have to hope I don't choke like I did at lunch with Editor X in June (That's figuratively, not literally. No Heimlich was needed)

What's new with you this week?

Brand Spanking New

I'm going to interrupt all this talk of islands and beaches to talk about... picture books. I missed Write a Review Wed, which is okay because I don't really do reviews. But I do like to talk about picture books, especially those by new writers. So, here are a couple of new releases.

Two of a Kind
This book is brand spanking new! (Oh no, LiLa, now my blog will come up on "spanking' searches!) It was released on July 7th and it is Jacqui's second PB. I can't tell you how great it is because I haven't read it yet. But I can say, if you have never been to Jacqui's Room, you are really missing out. Jacqui's posts always crack me up.

Maggie's Monkeys
This first book, by Linda Sanders-Wells, came out in April. But Linda's blog, Swell Books, is brand spanking new. She started it yesterday! And guess who she is crediting for giving her the kick in the pants that she needed? Yup, me :) If I had a Hop! Plop! sale for every person I got started blogging, I would have the Amazon ranking of The Help. Okay, not. But it would be a lot better than where it currently is at almost a million.

So check out these two books and these two blogs. And someone please review them so I know if I should buy them! (Kidding. I plan to order from Amazon right after I check my sales ranking)

Diving in the Caymans

Okay, guys, this is the sea turtle I saw on my first dive at Hammerhead Hole. Just kidding. I did see a sea turtle, but I don't dive with a camera. I didn't even being one to the island. Sorry.

I can tell you a cute story though about how Hammerhead Hole got its name. There are no hammerheads and no holes there.

A group chartered a dive boat for a week to do shallow reef dives only. The first day, they went to Holiday Inn Reef. The divers went down for 25 minutes and came up complaining, "That was the worst dive site ever!

The dive masters took them to other neighboring reefs, but on the last day, they ran out of spots, so they brought them back to the first site and told them, "This is called Hammerhead Hole." The divers went down and came up after an hour saying, "Wow! That was awesome! Best spot of the week. Why didn't you take us here sooner!" And from then on it was known as Hammerhead Hole.

Ah, the power of suggestion. Pretty funny, huh?

Running Up a Down Escalator

I only got one thing crossed off on my To-Do list today and now I have to uncross it.

I applied to the Rutgers One-on-One Plus Conference.

A lot of my friends attended last year, but I somehow didn't know about it until after the fact. I heard it was an amazing mentoring experience. So, I wanted to be sure to apply for 2009.

I waited until today, because the deadline is July 8th, and my motto is "Why do something today if it can be put off till tomorrow." I filled out the application and attached my writing sample. I used my last stamp and got it in the mailbox before the postman came so it would definitely get postmarked by the deadline.

Then I realized a few minutes ago that I didn't include a check.

So, now I have to print and fill out a new application. And tomorrow morning I will be going to the post office to buy stamps and get it postmarked.

I don't know what's sadder-- the fact that I accomplished nothing at all today... or the fact that my husband isn't the least bit surprised.

P.S. Maybe while I am at the post office I can ship back the Victoria's Secret clothes I ordered in May that don't fit? Who am I kidding? It'll never happen.

Can't Get My Groove Back

I've been on vacation for so long, I have forgotten how to blog! We returned from The Cayman Islands at 2:00 AM on July 1st and then left later that day for the Berkshires with our kids for the July 4th weekend. I am finally home and I can't come up with a single interesting thing to blog about.

So, I guess I'll just ease myself back in by recommending the book I read on my trip: The Help by Kathryn Stockett. Now, Ms. Stockett does not need a shout out from me. This book is #4 on Amazon. Yes, you read that correctly. Not 400 or 40. F-O-U-R! But this book is so good, it would be a shame to miss it. So, I am mentioning it for your sake, not hers :)

For a synopsis and review, check At Home with Books.

Alyce sums it up very well here:

What impressed me the most about this book was that even though it was about a serious topic - the civil rights movement in Mississippi - it never overwhelms the reader with depressing imagery. The story is well-balanced between infuriating and heartbreaking injustices, and the sacrifices and acts of selfless kindness of the main characters.

Even though there is some very disturbing content in this story, Stockett manages to keep the focus on the characters' triumphs and leaves the reader feeling inspired, rather than depressed.

It also wasn't lost on me that I was reading this civil rights story poolside at the Ritz Carlton hotel while people with dark skin were serving me cold drinks and offering to move the heavy umbrellas so I'd be in the shade. Ah, the irony.