8/13/2008
DOGS RULE! CATS TOO!
Over the weekend, the local animal shelter, Humane Society of Knox County, held their annual Art for the Animals silent auction. Friday night was a live auction for some of the higher priced items, like signed prints by Jamie Wyeth and other artists. Then the silent auction went ahead on Saturday and concluded Sunday with fierce bidding on hundreds of items ranging from a wooden rocking horse to original watercolors and other paintings to cultured pearl earrings and sea-glass jewelry to various sets of books--including a basket of romance novels by members of the Maine Romance Writers. I'm proud to say that seven of us donated books: Diane Amos, Lori Libby, Cindy Kirk, Kelly McClymer, Judi Phillips, Pam Strout, and moi! The auction was a huge success, raising more money than ever for HSKC, a no-kill shelter. I don't know how much the basket went for, but there were lots of bids in double figures.
Anyone who'd like to donate to the HSKC, you can go to the website and click on How You Can Help. Here's the URL: http://www.humanesocietyofknoxcounty.org/
Email Susan
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8/7/2008
SUSAN
SRS Authors on Powell St.
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WHAT I'M READING: Lean, Mean Thirteen, by Janet Evanovich WHAT I'M WRITING: Revising an old manuscript while I ponder and process a new project.
SUSAN'S SIX - Things I loved about San Francisco
1. The wine country tour. I went west a day early to do a wine country tour with RWA friends from Phoenix Linda Style, Connie Flynn, Cathy McDavid, and Libby Banks. We were on a bus with a guide, so there was no need for a designated driver after the wine tasting. The guide didn't sip. I watched. The day dawned foggy and cool, so my pics of the Golden Gate Bridge were of fog with glimpses of red-orange grid. Not scenic. But when the bus took us inland to Napa County, we had sun and warm weather. We visited four vineyards--V. Sattui (my fav, but they sell only locally or by internet), Chandon, Andretti (owned by Mario), and Rutherford Ranch. Each was different and did the tasting differently. At Andretti, we could wander through the vineyards, and at Chandon we had a tour of how they make the sparkling wines. You get enough wine in a tasting to enjoy but not enough to feel for more than a few minutes. I bought a great poster of California winery doors.
2. Restaurants. Hmm. I'm sensing a theme here. LOL. The other Maine gals and I (Judi Phillips, Barbara Howard, and Lina Gardiner) went out to dinner together on Wednesday night. People had recommended John's Grill, not far from the hotel, and they were right. John's is where the mystery writer Dashiell Hammett scribbled out a draft of The Maltese Falcon. The restaurant had pictures of Hammett and other writers, along with Humphrey Bogart as Sam Spade. Great food. I had the seafood cannelloni. Then in the Crab House at Fisherman's Wharf, I ate salad with grilled shrimp. Yum.
3. Sightseeing. Chinatown, Powell Street on a streetcar, Fisherman's Wharf. All were scenic and fun to visit but I didn't have much time for any because of the RWA Conference. Chinatown was crowded and colorful, with shops selling all sorts of things from China--silk dresses, T-shirts, jade jewelry, lucky frogs, fans, coffee mugs, etc. My friend Linda Style and I took pictures of each other and of the crowded streets. My one ride on a streetcar was after a breakfast with seven other Silhouette Romantic Suspense authors, seen above in the picture. Left to right, we're Kimberly Van Meter, Nina Bruhns, Loreth Ann White, moi, Beth Cornelison, RaeAnn Thayne, and Gail Barrett. With Nina and Beth, I rode from the restaurant to the end of the line, near our hotel. Fisherman's Wharf at Pier 39 was mostly shops and restaurants but it was a treat seeing sea lions lounging on floating docks.
4. Shopping. Wednesday before the Literacy Signing, Linda Style and I went to Chinatown. Yes, I bought T-shirts--a Chinatown one for me with calligraphy and an Alcatraz one for the dh. Also silk bookmarks for some friends here, Ghirardelli chocolates, and postcards for the pictures I couldn't take. I needed more comfortable shoes for evening functions and I found them across the street from the hotel at the Aerosoles store. Dressy flats with slingbacks. Cute.
5. Books. Books. And more books. I bought only three books at the RWA Literacy Signing but I managed to meet two of my fav romantic suspense authors, Barbara Freethy and Rita Herron. Our RWA tote bags had five books and there were others given away at publisher signings. Then at every luncheon and dinner, there were at least two free books on the seats. I had to ship my stash home or I'd be overweight for the airline. After all that food, I'm overweight anyway. To the gym for me.
6. Fellow writers. Last but not least. My very favorite thing about any RWA Conference anywhere is schmoozing with fellow writers. I met new agents and editors I'd wanted to connect with. I had a chance to chat with my Wild Rose Press editor and socialize with another Wild Rose editor who'd invited the authors for a get together. At the Harlequin party, I danced and chatted (hard, above the music and whooping) with Cindy Kirk, Sue Swift, Rita Herron, Nina Bruhns, RaeAnn Thayne, and Kristin Higgins, who won a Rita the next night. I could go on and on but I'll stop.
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