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Thursday, August 4, 2011

Changes: National Parks, Jobs, Hair, and Twits



Oh, hi.

So, this has been a summer of changes for me.

1. In which I changed my mind....

See, I was really, REEAALLY going to go to the SCBWI conference in LA  this year.  Really.  I mean, all year long I thought, this is my year, baby.  I even socked money away so I wouldn't feel guilty about the big ding on the old credit card when I hit the pay button.  And then I looked at my calendar and realized that the ONLY weekend the ENTIRE summer that my little family could get away and do something was the very SAME weekend.  I was torn.

But folks, these people I live with have been so awesome to me this past year.  They have given up a lot of mom/wife time so I could write/revise/edit/tour and, well, I realized how much I miss them--how much I miss just hanging out with them. Sooooo, we are crazily going to hop in the car and go to Yosemite tomorrow.  Do we know where we are staying?  No!  Are we bringing appropriate footwear for hiking? No!  Do we have any idea what we are doing?  No!  (Watch for our upcoming special on the Animal Planet Show:  I Shouldn't Be Alive.)

2. In which my job changed:


Um...yeah.
So, there are these things called budget cuts. Perhaps you've heard of them.  And though I've tried hard to fly under the radar, it is hard to stay undetected when you are selected as Teacher of the Year.  But times are tough. Thus, my job will look a little different this year and it appears I will have my own class again as part of it.  I am excited, but a tad saddened. Here I am holding one of the many notes from kids at my school, letting me know how much they will miss having me come to their classes each week to tell stories and teach about writing.

But don't get me wrong.  I am thrilled to still be employed.  Many great teachers are not so fortunate.

3.  In which I wonder what is happening with my hair:


For a while, my hair might have looked like Xeno's.




Then it grew even longer, more like Lucius'.


This is me this morning in a still shot from a vlog.

I mean...wha??  Are we like triplets separated at birth??  #needhaircutandormajorconditioningnow.

4.  In which I have a change of policy:

I have always said I wouldn't join twitter because I feared the sucking away of precious time.  And I still fear it.  Listen...slurp...slurp...that is the sound of time being sucked away.  But I caved.  The reason?  Well, I discovered a way that twitter could actually SAVE me time.  You see, there are lots of people I would like to say something to, or books that I would love to recommend to kids/parents/teachers/whatever, but when I write a blog, I tend to ramble a bit. (What?  Like you haven't noticed?) And thus, it takes me a long time to write a post, and my best intentions go by the wayside.  However, twitter forces you to be short and sweet. I can tweet (still feel funny saying that word) about #bookseverykidshouldread and I am done in like a minute! And I don't feel the addictive tug of it that I was afraid of.  So, yes.  I have become a twit.  @story_queen, if you are at all interested.

Whew!  Off to pack mosquito repellent.  If you are going to SCBWI, have a blast.  If you are with your family having fun, enjoy!

hrh






7 comments:

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

I was sooooo going to go to SCBWI this summer, too. But I moved, and then I thought I'd go for one day but they didn't have any one-day passes this year. Maybe next year we'll both get there.
And I love your hair. It is cooler than cool. Have fun at Yosemite.

Stina said...

I was going to go to LA this year too (even after I decided to go to the RWA nationals). But in the end I decided there wasn't enough YA stuff for me, and I wanted to spend the time with my kids instead. :D

It's a scary time for teachers. Layoffs are in the works here too (in my Canadian city).

Enjoy your time with your mosquito repellent (and your family). :D

storyqueen said...

Tricia-Yes! Next year will be our year!Although I have to tell you, I totally support the one day pass thing. I mean, for me to give up three writing days in the summer (since I work the rest of the year) is HARD! I wish they would offer a one day thing. Really.

Stina-I'm with you on the kids and husband thing. I just couldn't feel good about going when I knew that our only time together was the same weekend!

Christina Lee said...

hee hee--way to justify Twitter. You jumped right in like an old pro, though :D

Well, it IS a big change to have your own classroom--now you've got to teach all those "other" subject again. But I'll bet you'll be great at it (again)!!

HAVE A VERY LOVELY WEEKEND with your family! xo

MG Higgins said...

Heh. I like your hair buddies. Enjoy Yosemite--one of my favorite places on Earth. I think you made the right call by spending time with your fam instead of SCBWI. It will be there next year. (I enjoy your ramblings, BTW.)

Sarah said...

Well, I hope you and your family have fun at Yosemite. And plenty of people would love to have Lucius-hair :)

Catherine Denton said...

You totally beat Lucius Malfoy in the hair department. Glad you still have a job; that kid's note is precious. *sniffle*

Also, #happyyouweretwitterfied. It's made tweeting that much sweeter. (Or would that be Tweeter?) :)
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