April 14th Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

Happy Monday Morning! Even though it’s Monday, you can’t be too bummed when it’s such a glorious day. It’s over sixty degrees already, and the sun is shining. We are supposed to reach a high of seventy-seven today. {{{Clapping my hands.}}} *\0/* Doing a happy dance. *\0/*

It’s going to be tough to sit inside and writing all day, but I gotta do it. It was a busy weekend, and I didn’t get as much writing done as I should have. So today, I need to buckle down and crank out a few chapters. After I do, then I’ll take a little break and run to the grocery store – something else I never got to this weekend.

At least all I have to get is cold cuts, bread and milk. I don’t need to get any dinner items at all. Wanna know why? Because, somehow, at some point after I had gone downstairs to retrieve a Digorino’s pizza on Friday for dinner, the freezer door opened. I don’t know if I didn’t close it all the way, or if I had dislodged something, and after I closed the door, it hit it and opened the door. Several items thawed out completely, but were still cold, so I’m hoping they are still good. UGH! I hate when that happens!

I forgot to tell you yesterday about one other person I met at the Princeton Author’s Day. His name is Ravi, and he is a marketing guru. He has such fabulous ideas about how I should be marketing my books, and he is also looking to write his own book. He spent about twenty minutes chatting with Keith and me. This will be great, we can give Ravi tips and help with his writing, and he can give us tips and help us with our marketing. Man, I love networking and bartering.

After church yesterday, I went with Rebecca to the mall. Yeah, I know your saying, “Christina went to the mall?” because you all know how much I hate and try to avoid the mall at all costs. There’s a true glimpse into how much I love Bec, if I was willing to deal with a mall for her. Anyway, she is starting a new job, one which requires true business attire as opposed to business casual, so she needed to shop.

Since she hates the mall almost as much as I do, we decided to slay the beast together. Thanks to Macy’s, we had a productive day. We did find two tops in Lord & Taylor. Then we hit a couple of other stores with no success. We were about to give up, but I said, that since we were there, let’s just go to Macy’s. At that point we were both tired, and a little discouraged, but we trudged to the petite department.

After about five minutes of looking around, we gave up, partly because the foul odor in the department. I swear it smelled like someone had peed on the floor, it was disgusting. We were walking out, when something caught my eye. I pulled out a few tops, Bec tried them on, found one she liked and purchased it.

So now we were done, and headed home. We walked a little further, and something else caught my eye. I pulled down two more tops for Bec to try, and that’s when she remembered the brand name of some tops she liked. We asked the sales lady where those tops were located, and she sent us to another department. Pay dirt! Not only did Bec find several more tops she liked, I found a top for Easter, and for only $22. 

Oh, by the way, the one I got at Kohl’s did not look right, and it’s going back, so I ended up wearing an oldie but goodie to the PPL Author’s Day. (I still haven’t received any pictures from the day, as soon as someone sends some, I’ll post them for you to see.)

I also splurged a little. Vera Bradley sent me a 40% off coupon in the mail, for my birthday, and since my current pocketbook has seen better days, and I had some money from my mother in law for my birthday, so I indulged. I got the “Mandy” bag in “Petal Paisley” and a wallet to match, since my wallet’s pretty shot as well. It’s been a while since I have treated myself to something frivolous and pretty, so I’m a happy girl.

Okay, enough of my “warm-up”, time to do some “real” writing. I hope y’all have a wonderful day, and happy writing!

Your Last Challenge was:

A reunion they’ll never forget…

‘Twenty-five years, where had the time gone?’ was a common phrase heard from the 1989 Culver High School graduates, as they reminisced with old friends, or gave fake smiles and platitudes to their old nemeses. The former “nerds” and “unpopulars” gloated and berated the former “jocks” and “populars”; the guys were all fat and bald, and the gals were funding either Miss Clarol, a plastic surgeon, or both, while they had all become one of the “pretty people” or incredibly wealthy.

As nostalgic music began to play, the dance floor filled, and only a few grimaced or commented on how terrible music from the eighties had been. The houselights dimmed, the mirrored ball began to rotate, laser lights began to bounce around the room, and the fog machine’s mist blanketed the dance floor. The conversation was loud, the music was louder. Then, above the cacophony, a scream silenced the room.

The crowd parted. Someone brought up the houselights. There, lying in the middle of the dance floor, blood trickling out of his nose, ears and mouth, was Jeff, the Raging Rooster’s star quarterback, the kid who had lead Culver High to back to back state championships in ’88 and ’89. He was motionless and most assuredly dead, but how? He was drinking, laughing and dancing just moments before.

Your Next Challenge is:

Does this taste funny to you?

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.