I just finished writing Year of the Dog ! It had a massive plot hole that I had to fix which turned out to be more work than I expected. Here’s a snippet: “Hey, Auntie Nell.” He wrapped his arms around her, bussing her on the cheek and breathing in pikake flowers and shortbread cookies. And suddenly he was nine years old again, and her solid presence had made his chaotic world stable once more. “What are you doing here?” He usually took her to dinner on Wednesday nights, but today was Tuesday. The edges of her smile faltered a little before brightening right back up again. “What, I can’t visit my nephew?” She angled around him to enter his home. “Is this your new house? Looks lovely.” Which was a blatant lie, because the fixer-upper was barely livable, much less acceptable to a neat-freak like his aunt. She also left four matching pink and purple floral suitcases on the stoop behind her. Only then did Ashwin notice the cab driver standing slightly to the side of the walkway. “Can ...
Captain’s Log, Stardate 05.23.2006
Blog book giveaway:
My Thursday book giveaway is ONCE UPON A CHOCOLATE KISS by Cheryl Wolverton.
My Monday book giveaway is A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND by Kristin Billerbeck.
You can still enter both giveaways. Just post a comment on each of those blog posts. On Thursday, I'll draw the winner for ONCE UPON A CHOCOLATE KISS and post the title for another book I'm giving away. Stay tuned.
Unequally yoked: I have a lot of Christian friends married to non-believers, or who used to be non-believers. I can’t even fathom the kinds of issues they have to deal with on a daily basis.
This new blog Spiritually Unequal Marriage is for encouragement and practical advice. It’s a totally awesome ministry. Even if you’re not in a spiritually unequal marriage, please go show your support and say a prayer.
TMI:
Writing: Several friends insisted I need to reward myself for finishing my manuscript, so I went to Safeway and bought four pounds of bing cherries. These were not cheap, mind you. I love cherries. This is one of the best parts of living in California.
The cherries are in a Japanese bowl I got as part of a set for my wedding.

Diet: Not doing too badly considering I’ve been busy. No over-2000-calorie days, anyway, but I’m also not exercising, which is bad. I have to get back into the rhythm of that once my workload eases up.
Blog book giveaway:
My Thursday book giveaway is ONCE UPON A CHOCOLATE KISS by Cheryl Wolverton.
My Monday book giveaway is A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND by Kristin Billerbeck.
You can still enter both giveaways. Just post a comment on each of those blog posts. On Thursday, I'll draw the winner for ONCE UPON A CHOCOLATE KISS and post the title for another book I'm giving away. Stay tuned.
Unequally yoked: I have a lot of Christian friends married to non-believers, or who used to be non-believers. I can’t even fathom the kinds of issues they have to deal with on a daily basis.
This new blog Spiritually Unequal Marriage is for encouragement and practical advice. It’s a totally awesome ministry. Even if you’re not in a spiritually unequal marriage, please go show your support and say a prayer.
TMI:
Writing: Several friends insisted I need to reward myself for finishing my manuscript, so I went to Safeway and bought four pounds of bing cherries. These were not cheap, mind you. I love cherries. This is one of the best parts of living in California.
The cherries are in a Japanese bowl I got as part of a set for my wedding.

Diet: Not doing too badly considering I’ve been busy. No over-2000-calorie days, anyway, but I’m also not exercising, which is bad. I have to get back into the rhythm of that once my workload eases up.
Comments
They're really expensive in Japan -- like $5 for 4 oz or something. >.<
I also love that boowl. Reminds me of my almost-see-through china tea set. I love that color of blue with white and the yummy red cherries. Even a feast for the eyes.
I couldn't image marrying a non-Christian. In some ways it would probably be almost more difficult to become a Christian while you're already married. The conflicts could be staggering. I'm having a hard time coping on my own so I can see why you're always praying for your friends who are in situations like that.
I grew up in a Christian family and it's still amazing to me sometimes how other people live who don't know Jesus as Saviour. I didn't realize how sheltered I've actually been from a lot of life's realities. Even when I lived alone in Europe, that lifestyle stayed with me: no bar-hopping, going dancing or things like that. I've never minded going into restaurants on my own and except for a few incidents, I've rarely even come close to trouble. He's really been watching over me and that is such a freeing feeling--as long as you don't do anything that people might misinterpret.
I finally figured out how to get back to your blog...like duh! I just want to thank you for your encouragine words on my blog too! ... those cherries are not in season are they??? they make my mouth water! Did you get or desire the cherry element I made earlier? let me know and I can always email to to you! Barb
On my blog, I show a green-tea mug served to me in Tokyo. I think I prefer cherries to matcha. : )