Why It's Important To Hang Out With Writers

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I miss my writing friends. These are the people who, like me, find it fun to sit around a table at a coffee shop for hours on end discussing plot, dialogue, and the newest crap out on the market and various theories on how this junk came to be published when no one will look at our obviously superior novels? (We writers are an egotistical bunch.)

But I've discovered that more than missing them, I need my writer friends.

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Earth Fare Sneezing Massacre

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So yesterday afternoon I'm in the high-end, whole foods, granola-lovin' grocery store Earth Fare. It is my desire to one day be able to afford to do all my shopping at Earth Fare instead of buying the occasional Madjool Date or sprouted organic frozen tortillas. But for the moment, I pop in once a week to buy that which is unavailable in more traditional markets. 

I'm roaming the bin aisle in search of nutritional yeast flakes when I feel a sneeze coming on. The aisle is semi-crowded with an Earth Fare worker loading shelves, a family of three at one end, and several single shoppers dipping into nearby bins. 

Wanting to be polite, as I know I'll soon be using my hands to grasp the bin shovels, I turn my face and lower my nose and mouth into my left shoulder/upper arm and give a delicate ah-choo. 

Only it didn't come out as delicate ah-choo. Instead, it came out more like a ahhh-PLBBBTTH complete with flying saliva and mucus. 

Yeah, just one of those moments you want to treasure forever. And yes, I pretty much high-tailed it straight out of there. 

Cheers,

Dena 

An Update On Those Self-Improvement Programs

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A confession: I have stopped and started so many self-improvement programs in the past 6 months even I've lost track of what I'm supposed to be doing... not be doing... etc. Am I a better person than I was six months ago? Marginally. (Maybe.) But I've had some fun in my attempts to improve myself and drag others with me along the way. So here now, a quick review of what's been stopped, started, put on hold or embraced. Based on a 5-star rating scale.

The 100 Push-Up Challenge: We're all familiar with this one. About 10 of us jumped on the "You bet!" bandwagon and developed an intimate knowledge of our floors. I was gung-ho on this program, especially when I tested right into week 3 of the 6 week program. Halfway there! How hard could it be?

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Point Taken

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Last night Blair and I were sitting on the couch, thinking about getting ready to go to bed.

"I have to do an 11-mile tempo run in the morning," I said. 

"I have to go to work for 10 hours," said Blair.

He wins. 

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I have to take a moment, though, and say this morning was a REALLY good run for me - the labor-intensive training is paying off. 11 miles at just under an 8:30 pace. I need to remember to GO OUT SLOW. I ripped through the first 5 miles at about an 8:12 pace and mile 8 was hit with fatigue. Slow and steady will take me farther, faster.