A perfect day

sunny, warm, temps 28

Absolutely stunning day. Slight breeze - enough to chase away most of the deer flies (which can take huge chunks out of you)...and finally warm verging on hot. Quebec is a region of extremes, as you might have noticed in the books. We veer from minue 30 in winter to plus 30 in summer...which is, very roughly, minus 20 fahrenheit to 90 degrees. Often colder and hotter on some days.

We have a fan in our bedroom, on the ceiling, that Gary installed that looks like an art deco propeller. And noiseless. And yet, while it's way better than not having one and really cools the room, I find my sleep restless with it on. Not sure why.

Sometime in the night it almost always cools down enough to drag the blankets back up.

Had a wonderful day...had a few idea for fine-tuning the book. A sentence there, and paragraph inserted over here. Nothing to do with the actual plot, really...mostly character development and a subtler way of saying something without actually saying it. I hope.

Wrote up the Bradley interview. Just a few fact-finding questions I need to clear up with him. But the majority is done.

Linda Lyall - the most magnificent website designer in the world - and I have been working on the home page, and got an updated one up and running. And the newsletters all written.

It would be great to get everything done before August arrives. Then the only thing I need do is write that novella for literacy. But that isn't due until February 2010...but I'd love to have it written, edited and accepted before Christmas so I'm not heading into the New Year with something hanging over my head.

Beverley Haun, who I stayed with last weekend along with her husband John Moss, has been bidding on and buying rugs for me over at ebay. Trudy, god bless her, has managed to vomit or eat (often one then the other) most of our rugs. She's spared, thank God, the best ones, but that was more dumb luck than design. Anyway, we're in need of new ones and I a) have no expertise in the area b) have no desire to spend thousands on something Trudy or Buttercup or some future family member might enhance... so while visiting Bev showed me her fabulous Oriental carpets she got off eBay, in some cases for very, very little.

So now she's on the hunt for us. Since she a) knows rugs b) knows dogs she's perfect. We've been having great fun with it.

Off for breakfast tomorrow with Danny and Lucy, of Brome Lake Books in Knowlton... they're friends, and have hosted the launch of almost all my books...so we're scheming the local launch for THE BRUTAL TELLING. Come if you can!

Off to fire up the barbeque...burgers and salad, and what's left of Pat's blueberry and pear crisp, with vanilla ice cream.

Exhale