Hair? What Hair?

Today my kids come home! Woohoo! They've been gone for a week and I was supposed to spend the time resting and writing. Well...I got a good bit of the writing part in there, but resting was out the window. There's still a ridiculous amount of snow on the ground, but at least I can get out of the driveway now, thanks to me, my back and a shovel.

And I'm so close to finishing SERATI'S FLAME I can almost taste it. One problem - I'm royally stuck! Two chapters left and I'm stuck on the ending. It's already outlined but I'm still struggling with it. Perhaps my heroine will just go ahead and pull her hair out...oh wait, she's already done that. Okay, maybe she'll declare she has a headache and just go to bed, leaving the ending up to the hero?

Hmmm. Somehow I don't think that'll work. But it's the last day of the year, it would be fabulous to end it with TheEnd.

I look forward to next year. We had some fabulous things happen, like my debut book, followed by three more releases, plus two contracts for 2007. But we also faced some serious challenges that I am so ready to be done with.

I can see the light at the end of the tunnel (and I'm sure it's not a train) and 2007 is going to be one of the best for me and my kids! Why? 'Cause I said so :D

TJ
www.tjmichaels.com

The Reading Blitz

Over the Christmas holiday break I've had a chance to do some extra reading. My husband is happy about this since my to-read pile is looking decidedly dangerous. Most of my reading has been in the paranormal and urban fantasy genres with a few m/m romances along the way. I tend to binge read in one genre before moving on to read another. I'm heading toward romantic suspense for my next binge with books by Virginia Kantra, Anne Stuart and Lauren Dane on the top of the pile.

A lot of the books I've read have been ones that other people have raved about. Some have worked for me and others haven't. I thought I'd mention a few of the ones I've really enjoyed over the last couple of weeks.

Slave to Sensation by Nalini Singh ( a New Zealand author. Nalini is a friend but I loved this book because it is a little different from the other paranormals currently available. I highly recommend it!!)

Moon Called by Patricia Briggs (heroine is a coyote shifter)

Greywalker by Kat Richardson (heroine sees ghosts - this was also a bit different)

Without Reservations by JL Langley (m/m romance - two werewolves. I liked JL Langleys western set m/m books as well)

Twice the Cowboy by James Buchanan (m/m western set romance. Normally I prefer m/m romances written by women but I enjoyed this one. The author has done an awesome job with the setting. I was IN the rodeo arena with the cowboys)

Magic Study by Maria Snyder (fantasy with slight romance elements. Second book in series. The first one - Poison Study was also really good.)

The good thing about the books I've listed above is that most of them have sequels or loosely connected books coming early in the new year. Oops - looks like that pile is going to grow again. Please don't tell hubby!

What books have you read lately that you've really enjoyed?

New Year's Resolutions!

Well, with another blizzard blowing into Colorado I couldn't think of anything to blog about except the weather.

Then I remembered that a new year is coming (duh!). So, I thought about making some resolutions, but then changed my mind. I'll just keep doing what I've been doing, with the exception of getting more sleep (I tend to stay up late) and increasing my fitness level by adding one more day at the gym. That's about it.

So...I'll keep writing, working at my job, working out, and looking after my teenagers. Hell, that's enough. I certainly don't need to add anything to such a list :D Thankfully, I do a pretty good job at it...well, I could wash dishes more often instead of making my kids do it...Naahhh! No way!

Resolutions, anyone? Oh, and hot hunky men are automatically included in every female's resolution wishlist, so no need to note them *wink* (You know I'm kidding - the men of our dreams are always of note!)

TJ

Coming Soon: SNAP! by Shelley Munro

Here's an excerpt from my upcoming release, SNAP!
Snap is due for release in Jan 2007 from Triskelion Publishing and is a contemporary erotic romance set in New Zealand. As usual with my books, there's a bit of humor in there as well. Enjoy!

Shelley


BLURB:

An inheritance should be something pleasant, like money or jewelry or a personal memento. That’s exactly what accountant Alice Beasley is expecting the lawyer to announce at the reading of her aunt’s will—a nice surprise to ensure her future security.

Instead Alice inherits a condom company called Fancy Free along with numerous associated problems: elderly board members who are more preoccupied with eating cake, drinking coffee, knitting and frank discussions of sex; worrying troubles with production and design, the attentions of a stalker with a costume fetish, and then there’s the manager—James AKA Mr. Dashing. He makes her very nervous indeed.

It’s clear to Alice she has fallen down a rabbit hole into a chaotic Wonderland, and she’s waiting for someone to pinch her awake. Alice wants normal, she wants security and love, but what she gets is fun and passion and physical pleasure while bad boy James teaches her about managing a condom company…

EXCERPT:

“Are you really all right, dear? You look a little flushed.” The knitting lady again.

Alice jerked back to the present to find every one of the six board members staring at her again plus the admin lady and worst of all, the manager, James Bates. He wore a grin. It was almost as if he knew what she’d fantasized about and relived only seconds ago.

Oh, my. Steven was right. Her morals had fallen by the wayside. She was a wicked woman and was going to hell. Realizing she had yet to answer, Alice blurted, “Fine. I’m...ah...concentrating.” And how. If she concentrated on sex and condoms any harder she was going to self-combust. An x-rated version of Alice in Wonderland. Who’d have guessed?

“How’s the security?” Richard Maxwell asked. “Have we had any more breaches since we installed the security cameras on the roof?”

“The alarm hasn’t been tripped, but we’ve had a lot of problems on the production line recently. Supplies going missing and Scott, the floor manager discovered someone had changed the settings on the packing machine. Most of the boxes packed this week were short one condom. Of course we only found this out after they’d left the warehouse. We’ve had to recall them.”

“More money off the bottom line,” Sam Glengarry muttered, fingering his chin in a thoughtful manner. “Not good.”

“We’ll have to set up covert cameras on the floor,” Richard said. “I didn’t want to do that.”

“We’ll do what we have to,” Katarina stated. “Besides, I want to buy a red coupe with my next payout. Can’t do that if we don’t have profits.”

“Red?” Ben asked. “I’d get a black one. I heard on the radio today that the most desired car color in Britain is black.”

“Humph,” Katarina said. “It’s a bugger to keep clean. Fingerprints all over the paintwork. There’s nothing worse.”

“Can we get back to condoms?” James demanded with a trace of impatience.

Joseph Craig nodded, even though it was clear his mind was on bonuses. “That’s a bit rough. Too much money invested in the X-100. We must sort out our security problems before the public gets wind of it. Can’t have the consumers losing confidence in the integrity of Fancy Free’s products.”

Everyone around the table nodded. The board moved on in discussions.

Rita Jamieson, the admin lady produced another life-sized penis made of fiberglass from a padlocked wooden box, placed it on the table and competently rolled on a teal green condom with purple dots. Harriet Te Whare glanced up from her lime green and canary yellow knitting. “I’m not sure about the color selections.”

“Rubbish,” Ben Kumar stated. “Purple is the new black. I suppose we could have black dots since that color is so popular on cars.”

“Of course we’ll have several colors,” James said. “A matching palette. These are just two examples.”

“I’m more worried about the design.” Joseph Craig picked up the model to survey it from all angles. “And I’m still not sure about these dots. What have the people in the trials said about comfort?”

“The raised dots are fine,” James said, picking up the other model. “I’ve used it myself. See the way they move when I touch them? It’s like a mini vibration.”

“But they’re much bigger than our regular raised dots model,” Joseph argued. “We’re using extra latex in the design because the dots are larger.”

“No. We have the right amount of latex.” James picked up the fiberglass model. “Pretend my hand is the woman’s vagina. See how the dots fan outward like tiny brushes?”

Alice stared, her mouth pursed in astonishment and partial shock as he showed the rest of the board how the new condom functioned. His fist acted as the woman’s vagina while he used his other hand to thrust and demonstrate how the raised dots functioned during use. They didn’t bat an eyelid but paid close attention and asked intelligent questions. Alice leapt from one shock to another and learned more about the theory of sex and the practical application of condoms in the course of the day than she’d soaked up in all her twenty-five years.

Season's Greetings from New Zealand

Here's wishing you a wonderful and safe festive season. Boxing day is almost over here in New Zealand. Yesterday we dropped in on friends before having lunch with my family and we rounded off the day by spending time with my husband's family. For a change it wasn't raining and today has been just beautiful.

I've had a few days away from writing and have read lots of books and kicked back, but I'm starting to get fidgety about not writing. It's clear that writing is a disease where I'm concerned, and I intend to get back to my work in progress tomorrow - to save my sanity. I went for a bike ride today and stayed away from the crowds at the shopping centers who were attending the post-Christmas sales. There's nothing that I need badly enough to make me fight through through crowds of determined shoppers!!

How have you spent the last few days?

What Holiday Food are You?

At this time of the year my thoughts naturally turn to food. Yummy, delicious food with large helpings of things I don't normally eat. Sharing a special meal with friends and family is part of my holiday celebration and probably part of yours as well. Since it's summer down here we tend to stick to lighter foods with fresh vegetables and fruit although some families have traditional hot meals with a turkey roast and Christmas pudding. Thoughts of food led me to this quiz...

You Are a Trifle

No doubt, you have many intricate layers. But deep down, you're a little squishy.

What Holiday Food Are You?

The funny thing is I'm not a trifle fan but the description is probably fairly accurate. So tell me, what holiday food are you?

It's Almost Here!

Can you believe it? Three more days until Christmas. I swear it seems like the year just started, and I'm not quite ready for it to be over. Of course, the year doesn't care whether I'm ready or not. It's leaving, period! At least the blizzard that left a couple of feet of snow in my driveway is supposed to blow out today. This is the view from my front door. And yep, I'd have to trudge through two-and-a-half-feet of brrrrr to get to the end of the front walk...which you can't see :D

Since we got so much snow, we're going to do something fun with it. Well, what could be more fun than building a snowman? The answer: Building a BEN & JERRY'S Icecream snowman! Yum!

For fun, you can build your own right here:

BUILD A BEN & JERRY'S COOOL SNOWMAN!

I got tagged earlier this week and had to tell Six Weird Things About Me. So, what'd I do? I tagged Lise Fuller! Lise writes for the Cerridwen imprint of Ellora's Cave. Her latest release, Intimate Deceptions, is to die for. If you like cowboys, kick-butt heroines, and nail-biting suspense, be sure to check her out.

And I did successfully weasel Six Weird Things out of LISE FULLER:
****************************************************************************
1. I actually like fruit cake--no! not the store bought variety--the one you actually make. It's good and potent, if you do it right!

2. My husband is 13 years younger than me and we've been together for 17 years.

3. My husband proposed to me during the first Gulf War over shortwave radio while he was in the Iraqi desert with the 82nd Airborne division. Yes, I had to say "over" all the time so the ship-to-shore radio people could flip the switches.

4. My eldest grandchild is only one year younger than my youngest child. They think it's hysterical to talk about my son as "Uncle".

5. I love lifting and will do another contest this Spring (bodybuilding).

6. I'm a writer, how much weirder can you be? LOL!

****************************************************************************

Merry Christmas, everyone!

TJ

Piggybacking on Lauren - Mystery Prize Winner!

The winner of our mystery prize is....ESTELLA!

Send me an e-mail to tj@tjmichaels.com and I'll tell you what your choices are! Congratulations, chicklet. Actually, it's a choice of downloads or a goody bag, but with the mail the way it is this time of year we wanted to give you some choices :D

TJ

PS - You have one week (until 12-28-06) to claim your prize :D

I've Been Giggled

I hop over to Mrs Giggles' website now and then to check out her latest reviews. She does snark like no one else and is one of the original online snarkers. Each book is marked out of 100 and she doesn't hold back. Well, today I see I've been giggled!

Check out the review for Dreams of the Oasis III here.

Once you've read that, I have a few questions for you: Do you visit review sites on a regular basis? If so, which one's are your favorites? Does a good review make you check out the book?

And just so you know my answers - I check out review sites more than I used to, probably part of the reason is that I find reviews for my own books and those of my friends and part of it is curiosity. Sometimes it's because I'm procrastinating! I like the reviews at Dear Author and JERR. Those are two that spring to mind at the moment, and yes, sometimes I'll check out a book after reading a review. It doesn't necessarily have to be a good review. I've checked out books that have two-star reviews as well as those receiving glowing ones.

~ Piggybacking on Lauren ~

Pressure - Pressure - Pressure...

It's 11:00 a.m. here in Colorado and... I just woke up! Now it's 11:45 and it's taken me almost an hour to get this post up. First I'm frantic, then I stop and think, "Well, geez, it's the first time in a LONG time I've slept this late, and also the first time in awhile where I've actually gotten more than eight hours of sleep. Yep, last night I got nine hours. And believe it or not, I'm still tired! "

Fitness is very important to me, but because of my goofy schedule (work is nuts, writing is nuts, kids are nuts - macadamias, I think) I have not made time to go to the gym or work out like I normally would. And ya'll, I'm really starting to feel it.

So I'm getting ready to start a new program with the hopes of becoming one of the few in my state certified to teach it. It's a style of samurai sword training designed for people who don't have a umpteenth degree black belt...like me. Do I have some martial arts training? Sure, but it's been so long since I've done any of that stuff I don't think I'm flexible enough to do a good round-house kick anymore.

I can lift weights and bodybuild 'til the cows come home, but don't ask me to kick my leg higher than my shoulder! This particular program should give me back some flexibility while retaining the muscle I already have. I'm not going to recommend it until I see if it works for me or not. I'll let you know how it goes...

So here's my question ...actually I lied, it's more like two questions: What do you think about fitness? I'm sure everyone thinks it's important and it clearly has medical benefits, but on the other hand, everything is not for everyone. So what do you enjoy or what would you like to try?

Second question: I just love good looking men (I know that's not a question, but I'm getting there :D). I love men with all shades of skin and hair color, BUT WHAT I REALLY LOVE to look at are gorgeous, muscular, golden skinned men. I don't care if they had to tan to look that way, or they have naturally tan skin, like Native American's (of which I am part Lakota and Blackfeet), or Japanese, or Middle Eastern. Heck, even Siberian men are naturally tan. Cold (bbrrrrr) but naturally tan (*wink*).

What wets your whistle? I mean literally makes you want to whistle out loud when you see it? You don't necessarily have to have it, but you sure like to look at it! This is Eric Schweig - Last of the Mohicans, Alessandro Juliani - Battlestar Gallactica, and Jason Scott Lee...uh, lots of movies, including playing Bruce Lee in The Dragon.



I'm trying to think of a contest to go along with this, but coffee is required. Go ahead and participate and your name will go into the hat for a mystery prize (mmwwaahahaha).

TJ *off to find a cup of something brown with caffeine in it*

Handbag Chaos

I needed to find my cellphone the other day. I needed it RIGHT now, but do you think I could find the pesky thing? I juggled my Christmas shopping and searched one-handed while standing in the middle of a busy street, muttering under my breath. It was definitely time for a clean out!!

When I took everything out of my bag this is what I found:

1 x wallet
1 x plastic folder containing lotto tickets
2 x glasses cases - sunglasses plus driving glasses
1 x envelope containing signed bookmarks
1 x small makeup bag containing mostly lipsticks
1 x packet of tissues
1 x business card holder - it's new and I'm still practicing opening it so my cards don't fly out in a whoosh.
1 x PDA - contains ebooks
7 x pens
3 x raffle tickets from Romance writer's meeting
1 x old grocery shopping list
1 x Tictac mints
1 x Lush lip balm
3 x flashdrives containing backups
1 x Susan Elizabeth Phillips promo notepad
1 x chocolate fortune, which says "A conversation will reveal a secret."
1 x cellphone FINALLY!

And do you know what? After considering all the above, I decided every single thing was necessary and I put the whole lot back apart from the old shopping list and raffle tickets!!

Is your handbag in the same sad state as mine?

Shelley

Aaahh! She GOT Me!

She GOT Me!

I've been tagged! Fabulous author, Kate Davies, tagged me to answer a question that will probably take me twenty years! Why? Because the subject of the ‘tag’ is: Six Strange Things About You.’ Geez, I could name at least four hundred and thirty two thousand six hundred and fifty two things!

And since Kate tagged me, I’m gonna tag somebody else – Mwwahahaha! More fun for everyone! Soooo… I’ve tagged Cerridwen Press author, Lise Fuller!

So, here’s my Six Things:

1) I’m addicted to cinnamon. Not just any old cinnamon, only the best – Saigon fine ground cinnamon. I eat it with everything. I dip apples, pears and any kind of fruit in it. I dip cookies, cinnamon rolls and chocolate in it. Sometimes I put it in a little cup and just eat it! I love cinnamon! Uh-hem, excuse me, Saigon fine ground cinnamon.

2) I’m addicted to my eBook reader. I have an eBookwise reader that I take everywhere. And I mean everywhere. I have boxes and boxes of print books, but have to admit I haven’t picked up a print novel in ages. If I can’t get it onto my little toy I tend to procrastinate on buying it. I do get around to it, but I buy eBooks faster than print…then take the books to the bathroom at work, the bathroom at home, on the treadmill at the gym. Heck, even when I got to pick up my kids from somewhere, if I have to wait more than sixty seconds for them, I pull out the eBookwise.

3) I wash my face in the bathtub before I get in the shower. Who the heck knows why, but I stand on the side of the tub, feet firmly planted on the carpet, lean over and wash my face. Then I climb in the shower and wash the rest of me. I know…I need help.

4) I rub my feet together before I get in bed. I know, I know, my ex-husband thought I was weird too. Then one day he started doing it! It’s just that after walking about the house barefoot the thought of getting in bed with little dusties on my feet grosses me out!

5) I’m a hell of a cook but I won’t touch raw meat. I can cook anything and make it taste good. But if there’s meat in it, I call my daughter into the kitchen and have her wash it for me and put it in a bowl. Then I take a fork or whatever and handle it that way. Something about the feel of chicken skin on my fingers. Ewwww!

6) I love coffee but it takes me all day to finish a single cup. Serious, I’ll buy a cup of coffee in the morning and sip, sip, sip it. When two o’clock rolls around, I’m still sipping the same cup. Can we say ‘wrong’ boys and girls?

Shelley's Prizewinners!

I'll start my post off with some good news - remember a while ago when you helped me dress my heroine? Well, I heard yesterday that Ellora's Cave are buying Sarah's story. It was a great birthday present. Watch this space for more news of SEX, SPIES AND SAPPHIRES!

I decided to pick an extra winner since I'm having such a great month. And the winners are:

Denise
Liz
Lisa T

Your prize is a download of one of the following:

Live the Moment (contemporary)
Wild Child (contemporary)
Curse of Brandon Lupinus (shapeshifter)
Stray Cat Strut (gay/shapeshifter)

email me at shelley munro @ gmail. com (no spaces) with your choice of download plus format. For Live the Moment and Wild Child I only have PDF and HTML formats.

Oh, and I forgot to say. I'm a Selkie shifter, much to my disgust. I much prefer cats!

Sexy Red Heads?

I was asked to participate in my first workshop this weekend over at the Romance Divas forum. We're talking about Christmas paranormal stories, and since I have one coming this Friday the timing couldn't have been more perfect.

If you wanna visit, we're in at: www.romancedivas.com/divaforum
Scroll down to The Classroom, click on Class In Session and we're in the Paranormal Christmas Q&A Workshop.

Basically the readers and Divas are asking questions to me and several other authors with holiday paranormals coming. It's been alot of fun. Today is the last day so I'll be heading back over there in a minute.

What does any of this have to do with red hair? Uh, nothing really!

Actually I was watching Heath Ledger in A Knight's Tale. The plucky comic relief came from an average-looking flaming red-headed guy who kept threatening to deliver 'lot's and lot's of pain' to anyone who messed with Sir Ulrich Von Lichtenstein (Heath Ledger). But not since the days of Ritchie Cunningham and Happy Days (Ron Howard) have I seen a redhead MAN on television or in movies.

In romance novels you always read about the redhead heroine with a temper and wit to match. What about the guys?

My book, PRIMED TO POUNCE, features a gorgeous red-head hero with an awesome body. So does GIFT WRAP OPTIONAL. But real life...where are the gorgeous red-headed hunks?

A friend of mine, actually he's the guy the vampire Michael Bannon is based on in GIFT WRAP, anyway, he told me that he read a statistic that showed fewer and fewer redheads are born every year. I wonder why that is...

What do you think? Are you a redhead? If not, do you have any redheads in your family? Know any redheads? Know where to find any redheads? Can you tell this author is desperate *LOL*

TJ

Happy Birthday

It was my birthday yesterday, and it's my birthday today as well. Fascinating the way the international date line makes that possible. I had a lovely day with visitors, presents, a little shopping slipped into the equation and a really nice dinner.

Nothing much happening in my writing world at the moment. I'm in waiting mode...waiting to see what editors think of projects...and meantime I'm working on my next two masterpieces. TJ and Lauren will understand about waiting mode. It can be scary, frustrating, exciting - heck, just about every emotion gets a turn while an author is in waiting mode. The way I stop myself from going crazy is by working on other projects and sending them out, too. I figure the more projects I have in waiting mode, the less the sting will be if the worst happens and I receive a rejection. I work on the "hope in the mail" premise. That's what keeps me from going completely loopy. (I don't count talking to my characters as crazy BTW - that's completely normal!)

And finally, since it's my birthday I'll give away a download. The prize list is the same as the post a few days ago (the shifter post) All you need to do is tell me about the nicest present you've ever received or what you'd like for Christmas (it has to be something just for you and not for the rest of your family or anyone else - something big or small that you'd like for you. Money no object.)

I'll post the name for the winner on Monday, so you only have a few days. I'm also posting the shifter winner on this day, too. I hope everyone has a safe and happy weekend. Is anyone doing anything exciting?

Now...Let's Talk Entertainment

Gotcha! I bet you thought I meant movies or film!

Nope! I'm talking about having a bunch of people invade your house, eat your food, dirty up your livingroom, pile dishes in your sink, then sit back on your couch and fight the urge to snore. Sounds like fun, right?

I must admit, when I was growing up in San Francisco the holidays and gathering of family was what I looked forward to most. Even with grandma fussing about how lazy we were because we didn't want to spend the day cleaning, my uncles yelling to the top of their lungs that they hated so-and-so's sucky football team, and my grandpa putting money on the table to bet on who would finish eating first, it was still ridiculously fun. Dysfunctional? Yep! But still fun!

Gathering of family has always been an important event in every culture I can think of. So, as you prepare those recipes and get ready to chase other peoples kids off the top of your dining room table, just remember there's nothing like family!

This year, I'll be alone for Christmas for the first time in my life (waaaahhhh!). I live in Colorado and don't have any relatives here. My kids are heading back to California to spend time with the ex's side of the family. And I'll enjoy some quiet (my kids are awesome, but I do have to pay attention to them every now and then *wink*) Hey...maybe I can actually finish one of these four books I'm working on!

Now here's the question: What are you doing, or not doing, for the holidays? Visiting? Or being visited? Cooking? Or being cooked for?

Contest Winner - Holiday Music

Before I announce the winner of my last contest, I must say we have quite a mix of holiday music favorites. Some I've loved forever, some I was unfamiliar with, and others I'd forgotten about and now have a great excuse to go and buy them again!

And the WINNER is....LISA WILLIAMS!

Lisa, dear, you've won your choice of one of my current or upcoming releases. E-mail me at tj@tjmichaels.com and tell me whatcha want :D You have until December 14th to claim your prize.

Congrats, chicklet!

TJ

Who Is Your Inner Shapeshifter?

I found this shapeshifter quiz online. Immediately I had to know which shifter I was because I love both reading and writing shapeshifter stories. My favorite type of shifter is feline with black leopard taking top spot. (Look for more Middlemarch Mates stories plus the odd tiger or two in the future!)
I get the feeling that TJ quite likes black leopards, too, while Lauren seems attracted to wolves.

I have a few questions for you and a prize for one lucky participant.

Do you like shapeshifters?
Which type is your favorite?
According to the quiz what sort of shifter are you?

If anyone can guess which shifter I am, according to the quiz, they'll get an extra chance in the draw. And the prize is a download of one of the following:

Live the Moment (contemporary)
Wild child (contemporary)
Curse of Brandon Lupinus (shapeshifter)
Stray Cat Strut (gay/shapeshifter)

I'll draw the winner on Monday. Have fun doing the quiz!

Carinian's Coming! Am I?

Gift Wrap Optional hits the sheets, er, scene next Friday! I can't wait for this book. It was fun writing a vampire Christmas story. Strangely enough, it's based on a man I know named Michael who is as tore up (and yes I said 'tore') as the vampire in the book. But boy does our vampire redeem himself. Can we say 'sheepskin rug,' boys and girls?

Carinian's Seeker is next up. It's a vampire multicultural story. Jean Luc Picard has a heroine who wants to meet him and she'll stop at nothing to make that dream as close to a reality as possible. Read a blurb here: Carinian's Seeker

Now this may sound strange, but there are times when I really think of all the things I want to do in life and know I don't have enough years to do them all. I'd love to see the first real deep space ship. I'd love to see transportation become more like Minority Report (interesting movie) where we can fly back and forth without using airplanes. I'd love to see the day when a woman can step into a holodeck and have her ultimate fantasy come true...then go home and tell the dishes to wash themselves!

If there was something you could hang around for what would it be? And no mushy stuff, we're being totally selfish here. After all, most of us have families and all kinds of other responsibilities to take care of every day. This is our place to play. So while I'd love to see my great, great, great, great, grandchildren grow into successful people, I'd also really like to date Commander Data from the Star Ship Enterprise. No batteries!

TJ..· ´¨¨))
-:¦:-¸.·´ .·´¨¨))
((¸¸.·´ ..·´ www.tjmichaels.com
-:¦:--:¦:- ((¸¸.·´* www.myspace.com/tj_michaels

The First Christmas Party

I'm off to the last meeting of the year for my chapter of Romance Writers of New Zealand today, and tomorrow we have a Christmas party/lunch up at one of the hotels in Auckland. It's my first Christmas party of the season, and I'm quite looking forward to it. The Christmas party is being held at our new Central Auckland conference venue (next year's conference) so it should be interesting. I'm going to check out all the good seats at the bar and the menu - that sort of thing!

Meanwhile I have 46 pages left to read on the galley for Snap. (Triskelion) Hopefully I'll manage to do that this morning before I head off for the meeting. I woke up really early with the fax squawking loudly. My husband is oncall and he'd already left for work but another job arrived for him so I had to leave my cozy bed and deal with the fax. The only one who was happy was the dog since she could come inside and hound me for her dinner. At the moment she's doing a good job of making me feel guilty - she wants to go for a walk and she's letting me know in no uncertain terms.

No biking for me today since my bike has gone in for a service. The seat keeps going down, making it too low. An uncharitable person would probably point out that I'm no lightweight and that I've crushed the seat into submission. In my own defence I'd like to say I'm sure there are lots of people heavier than me who ride bikes. And there's no shame in having a healthy appetite! Let's hope the bike people can fix the problem so I can bike with my head held high instead of hunched over like that humpback guy from Notre Dame.

Have you been to your first Christmas party yet? Are you looking forward to it or is it one of the duty ones where you have to go for appearances?