Today Only! A Tour of the Land of Unfinished Projects

If, like me, you find yourself among the three people in town who did NOT head to the beach for Labor Day weekend, I present you with an alternative form of entertainment: A tour through the land of unfinished projects. No ticket required, just a deep burning desire to feel superior to someone who is even more behind in life than you are. I hope this helps.

STOP #1: The Never Ending Pile of "Stuff"

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Dressed for... Well, just DRESSED

Today I had the option of hanging out all day in pajamas, workout clothes or (my personal preference) a combination of the two. Lots of work to do, but nothing that required me leaving the house. I'd worked out, showered, and stood with dripping hair, pondering whether it was really worth it to blow dry and apply mascara when my chances of conversing with my cats was much stronger than chatting with a human being face-to-face. 

At this stage in my freelance career, I know better. I did full hair and makeup and grabbed the last bit of life from some dressy white pants before the Labor Day ban on white begins. Why all the bother? Because I had a busy day. Huzzah for freelancers who can work from bed. I'm not one of them. If I want to get anything accomplished, I'm much better off if I dress the part of a professional. I'm more likely to make phone calls, tackle to-do lists, and be flexible with my day. 

 And as it turns out, I did leave the house today to run to the bank, drugstore, and to meet my egg dealer for a drop. Nothing earth shattering, but if I'd had no makeup, frizzy hair, and pj bottoms, I would have put all the errands off, making some day in the future busier than it needs to be. 

I've also charged through today's work. Looking professional (well okay, I'm a writer so looking semi-professional with a little bit of artsy leeway thrown in) means I act more professional with my time. 

Anyone else experience this? Or has everyone except me mastered the art of working in t-shirts and fuzzy slippers?

Cheers,

Dena

Blatant Promotion for A (Funny) Friend

[Hmm. See a pattern in recent blog post titles? Nope, me neither.]

Brought in the mail yesterday and found my friend Ron Culberson's new book awaiting me, signed and including a snide remark about cats. (Let it go, Ron. Cats rule.)

His inexplicable preference for dogs over cats aside, Ron is a good guy. More than that, he's funny. Damn funny. Like, spit your coffee out laughing funny. All the really good jokes in my new book? Ron's ideas. We've been editing each other's work since we met years ago at an Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop. Ron makes my writing funnier and I try to dull his work down so I look better by comparison. It's a great relationship.

My Kneecap Seems Too Loose: 365 random thoughts to inspire deeply shallow thinking is the perfect book for those of you who've ever wondered why it's necessary for coffee shops to announce they offer "fresh" coffee or why we say "Go!" when we look at a stopwatch. This book makes the perfect gift for a college grad, best friend, neighbor, or anyone you just want to mess with. If you can overlook the puns (Ron knows how I feel about puns), you'll love it! 

If you don't want to take my word about how funny Ron is, check out his websites: FunnierSpeeches.com and FUNsulting.com

We Pause Now For Blatant Self-Promotion

Friend and fellow toastmaster Jean Bailey Robor invited me on her blog-talk radio program, Celebrate Life! as a guest this past Monday. We had a lovely 15-minute chat where Jean asked me about being a writer, what motivates me, and details about the upcoming release of Who Moved My Mouse? Many thanks to Jean for a lovely interview and for allowing me to work off some off that blatant self-promotion that builds up in every author. (You either have to go on a talk show or run laps to work it off.) The interview is 15 minutes and Jean has exciting guests each week. Be sure and check out her show!