It's late, but it is still Saturday! This week was another one of those weeks where I had something scheduled every single day after long days at work, but I survived to tell the tale and am better off for all that hard work. 

I don't often do them, but having published 4 books and counting, I often get asked a ton of questions, to which I often simply refer them to my book Hard Earned Lessons Learned: A Guide On What I Wish I'd Known When Self-Publishing. It basically covers most things I know about publishing.

However, when asked nicely and people are willing to pay me for my time, I'm willing to answer questions one on one. I've had some great calls with people, so I continue to do them, thought I don't advertise them. 

I also have a writer's circle that I'm a part of as I continue to work on Madamn. I've made some huge progress and have started working with an editor one on one in addition to these weekly meetings. They have really helped to keep me on track and I adore the women I meet with every week. 

I do make some time for myself and have indulged in a crochet course with another friend who is teaching me the basics. I'm loving this and in addition to my ever present book obsession, I now have a thing for yarn. 

As late as it is, I do have some updates to make to my novel for my writing group and lots to do in between, so I'll keep this short and sweet this week!

Hope yours is wonderful!

Crunch Time!

Hey friends, sorry I'm late again! This past week and this coming week have been so intense. It's been productive, but there has just been a lot. 

Over the weekend, I went to Salt Lake to be with several friends and run a few errands. It was a quick 24 hour trip, then I came home to do dishes and laundry and a few other things around the house before starting the work week. 

The sad part is, I know I had big exciting things to share and that there was a funny TS story or two, but it's all gotten lost in the shuffle. 

This week isn't shaping up to be much better, I have appointments every night this week and while it is all super exciting, I'll have to give a better breakdown once I've had a chance to breathe. 

In the meantime, I hope your week is awesome and I'll update when I can.

Kintsugi & Paula's Antics This Week

Hey there friends!

I have been thinking a lot about Paula lately and how all of this got started. The blog, the books, and especially the lessons I've learned. You see, I've been invited at work to speak on a panel they are calling "Pride in Disability."

So I'm going back to the basics for people who don't know me or my story at all. I only have about 15 minutes to cover a topic I could speak on for at least an hour. 

The funny part is that Paula gave me some new stories to share this week. She is obviously also quite excited. 

Take for example yesterday at work. It was a little slower as we are getting to the end of the day and my boss made a comment that another coworker pretended to be offended by. My boss responded by saying she is the funniest person in this building. At which point, of course, Paula had to chime in, loud and argumentatively. 

So my boss continued, "Except for Paula!"

Because she really is. I know that I have been so lucky with my particular version of Tourette syndrome and not everyone has an alter ego with such great comedic timing and personality. 

Then again, that's not really the point. The point is more about utilizing experiences for your benefit, regardless of the experience itself. 

Experiences happen. Sometimes they are pleasant, sometimes they are not, but the point is that we are always made better for them if we can figure out how to utilize the experience. 

It's like the Japanese art of Kintsugi (sometimes called Kintsukuori). When a ceramic piece is dropped and broken, it was often put back together with gold, making it more valuable for the experience.

Take for example this beautiful pot that I got for my plants. I came home and didn't even have it inside before the handle on my bag broke, thereby breaking it. 

My sweet husband glued it back together before I could investigate a kintsugi kit (there are some available for purchase!), so to get the right effect, I painted over the cracks in gold paint. 

The first photo is the first coat, the following two after multiple coats and the overall finished effect.

This is absolutely how I approach life as a direct result of my Tourette syndrome.

Whoops! and Reader's Escape "Report"

 Soooo, I missed my blog post last week. Sorry about that. But it was for good reason.

I had run away to my Reader's Escape! It was a bit short, but oh so lovely. While there, I realized this is the FIFTH one I have led! and I swear they just keep getting better and better. 

This was also my first FULL retreat. I had no available beds. Not only that, I still had people interested and will have another one in August!

I'm so tickled to see these become such a hit and to keep growing. 

There are certainly still things I'm learning since every retreat has different people and a different dynamic, but they are always just so good. 

As much as I love having a retreat that is super close, I don't know that I'll do one here again. 

I much prefer the house we used last September. 

At the same time... I've had an idea. An itch in the back of my mind that seems to be pushing it's way forward to become a reality.

As I've started thinking about next year's Escape, I realized that I will also be (FINALLY!) publishing Madamn in August.

Which might make it possible to make the Escape much more interesting. 

Em's chateau is currently used as a business retreat space. Who wants to go to France???

In the meantime, here are a few pics from the Escape:

Simple Pleasures

I've had a rough week. Except I think it has actually been a couple of weeks. It's hard to tell anymore. 

I've read studies about how stress can be addicting. I know people like that. There is always something and if there isn't, they find something small to stress over. 

However, I've decided a long time ago that I do not want a life like that. I want to life a life where I can deal with stressful situations, but still manage a peaceful life as much as possible. 

It is easy to get caught up in the stress and events as they happen.

Yesterday I got a bit of a slap in the face. I had tried to ship a t-shirt to a friend of mine. She lives in Peru, but was going to be in the United States (where I am) for a short window. 

So I made the design for the shirt, sent it to a place that does shirt printing, then a week later, learned they never received the design, so I had to resend it. No big, I just had to pay a bit extra in shipping. 

Which actually cost twice what the shirt cost. My mistake, so I'm still not stressed about it. 

What stressed me out was when the package claimed it was delivered and my friend didn't receive it. I spent the next 24 hours on the phone with the post office, with the hotel, doing anything I could to track down what happened to this package.

As time got closer to her checking out of the hotel, I started to feel the pressure of the time limit. 

I actually got so stressed that I mentioned to my husband that, "Now I have to call the police..."

While my husband is incredibly patient, understanding, and supportive, he knew where the line was. He stood up and told me that I would not be calling the police. It is a shirt. We can take the loss and we will be ok.

You know, it's funny, just 20 minutes after that moment, after some tears and me calming down...

I received a photo of this friend with a huge grin holding up her shirt. 

I've noticed from this incident that I have been working too hard and losing sight of the things that I do for the simple joy, pleasure, and fun. I haven't done that in a while.

The good news is that next weekend I have the first of two Reader's Escape events this year. 

Which is part of the problem ironically, next year there will only be one. 

But I'm so excited to run away and to simply read for the pure joy of it with people that I love. I can't wait!

Balancing Acts and Juggling Plates

I have a problem y'all. I have a tendency to get excited about things. Lots of things. Usually all at the same time. Then I feel myself getting stretched thin and have to become a bit of a recluse to follow through on commitments I've made and clear some of my bandwidth.

I was noticing last night that I have a lot going on right now. 

So much that things are getting forgotten and falling off to the side. Which is a shame because I was so excited about them when things first started. And I still want to do them, I just have to clean things up a bit. 

I mean that both physically and metaphorically. 

I had to move out of my cute office space that I loved so much (the building sold), so my office is currently in  boxes around my living room and in my car. 

There are so many exciting projects I want to do for my own business.

I'm beginning to realize that while I can say yes to all of these amazing things, they can't all be done and completed right now.

I have this awesome ability to see the end and love soaking up the rewards of a job well done.

Work is fun. I'm lucky like that.

However, there is the process of the actual work and the time it takes to complete a project. That is the part I forget at times.

When I get asked about a project or have an idea, I'm pretty good at stopping myself and saying, Is this something I want or something I want to do?

The hang up is that I'm always picturing the end result, and yes, I want those rewards and payouts. But it often leaves me juggling a lot of plates simultaneously.

Luckily, I have done this so often in my life that I've developed a bit of a talent for it. And apparently I love to stretch myself, so I keep adding more plates.

But there always comes a time when I get overwhelmed and drop a few plates as I'm scurrying to keep up. Guess where I'm at right now?

So for the next few days and/or weeks, I'll be simply trying to tie up loose ends and pull things off the spinning plates.

I'm needing closure and finishing energy if I want to keep moving forward without having a full meltdown.  

Summertime!

Y'all, I love summer so very much! It's kind of killing me to have a full time job right about now.

Not only do I love the warm weather and the sunshine, I love how green everything is and how everything is simply buzzing with life. 

I got to smell fresh lilac bushes today for the first time all year!

So maybe we are more into spring here, but still!

I got to also attend a local farmer's market and art festival. I love being around so many people. I feel a slight buzz myself (nope, no alcohol, thank you!). 

It's actually so much harder to sit and write because I am walking all over this festival, walking to the library, walking to this shop and that to prepare for the Reader's Escape coming up in just a few weeks (!), and trying to increase my own health and stamina while I'm at it.

It's been a rough year. Last year around this time I totaled my cute little red Ford Escape and I miss it so much.

Huh. I just realized how often this word escape keeps making it's way into my vocabulary. 

Isn't it interesting how all these things come together? 

In other news, my office building has sold and I have to move. It's incredibly tragic and I'm really upset about it. I ideally should have been out yesterday, but this week has just been a bit too intense, so we are just getting around to it. Meaning the sooner I'm out, the better. 

It's already so bare in here.

This has been my sanctuary for the past year I've been here. Here's to hoping my new place will be just as good. 

With those updates, I'm signing off for this week but I'll be sure to update you next week on how things are going!