Lessons Learned from a Girl's First Writing Conference

Last week, I got to attend a fabulous three day writing conference at BYU. Although I have pages upon pages upon more pages of notes all about wonderful things I learned, here's the things I learned that didn't land in my notes:

1) I learned that when a famous author of over 50 books, 8 of which were New York Times bestsellers, singles me out for a lighthearted chat about a movie he just presented, it can give me a high for days. Even if I haven't read any of his books.

2) I learned not to assume that a really large hairy man encroaching on my space is smelly. And, I learned that he might even be wearing a jacket with very soft sleeves.

3) I learned something from another author of over 50 books, 12 of which are in my husband's ALL TIME FAVORITE series of books that he reads and re-reads quite often. This fine author sat at a table for a booksigning, looking regal in his three piece suit, complete with a handkerchief in his breast pocket. He had an air about him that suggested "Sir" should have preceded his name on his book covers. When he pulled a gift out of his bag for me to take home to my sweet hubby and then signed it, I learned that all of my previous inclinations of how to act around someone who looks like they must have been knighted at some point go out the door. "You are so cool!" burst from my lips followed by a very girlish giggle. I hope he took my exclamation and titter for what it really was: me, bowing so deep in gratitude and respect that I could almost kiss the floor.

4) I also learned that when I tell this same author what MY favorite of his series' is and he says "Then you will probably like this book, too," I quickly buy it without question. And remind myself to act proper as he signs it.

5) I learned that when I walk up to the one author I respect above all other authors and give him the exact compliment that he most wanted to hear, it is magic.

6) I learned that when I sit on the first row, right in front of a panel of men and women who are giants in their field and who are willingly sharing their knowledge with me, I have to keep reminding myself "Self, people get weirded out when strangers give them hugs. Don't do it."

7) I learned that when I am in the presence of a huge room full of people (published and unpublished) who have the same compulsions to write that I do, the resulting feeling is beyond words.

Mathematical Birthday Magic

So, I turned 36.

Thirty-six.

I have a hard time believing it, but the math doesn't lie.

But it is a pretty cool age to be. What's so cool about 36, you ask?

Well, for one, it's a highly divisible, very cool number. It has a plethora of factors-- 2, 3, 4, 6, 9, 12, and 18.

What else is pretty dang awesome? As of today, I am exactly
3 times Kyle's age, 4 times Cory's age, and 6 times Alecia's age. How cool is that?

100th Blog Post: 100 Random Things

Today I make my 100th blog post.

It comes almost a year to the day from the first blog post. I didn't make the first few posts myself--- thanks once again to wonderful friends who gave me this blog for my birthday, complete with a few posts. To celebrate this {ahem}... historic event, ;-) I'm posting 100 random things that you are in no way obligated to read:

1. I sometimes wish I lived by the ocean.
2. But I could never leave my mountains.
3. I used to love to swim— I did it 8 times a week as a child.
4. Now, I hate jumping in cold water, and I kind of wish my kids wouldn’t want me to join them in the pool.
5. As a kid, I hated pretty much ALL lunch and dinner items.
6. I could’ve eaten breakfast items for every meal if my parents would’ve let me.
7. Meerkats make me smile.
8. I have finely honed the ability to procrastinate. I’m now qualified to teach the skill at a masters level.
9. I don’t think milk chocolate or dark chocolate should be combined with fruit flavors.
10. I think white chocolate should, and it makes me sad that they don’t more often.
11. I find it disturbing when a self-flushing toilet flushes when you are still sitting on it.
12. I get excited when snow comes down in big chunks.
13. Just like when I was a kid, when the community education pamphlet comes, I salivate.
14. I had my first cheeseburger after I was married. Before then, putting cheese on a hamburger seemed nasty to me.
15. Lance has introduced me to many, many new foods, most of which I love.
16. As a kid, I hated two perennial kid favorites– watermelon and cheetos.
17. I like to be well rested, but I don’t like to sleep.
18. I do, however, like to lay in bed and think for a while before I get out of bed in the mornings.
19. When I was about 8 years old, I learned that some people only need five hours of sleep a night. Since then, I have been so jealous of that. Think of how much more you could get done in a lifetime if you had an extra three hours a day!!
20. I hurt my knee falling off a tricycle when I was three years old. It still hurts every time the weather changes.
21. The home I lived in when I was born was about a block away from the home I moved into when I was 5 years old.
22. That “block” wasn’t a through road– it was a very magical place I named Vilcabamba. I have some incredible memories playing there with my brothers.
23. I am writing a book inspired by Vilcabamba.
24. I hate how a banana, even if it isn’t peeled, can still flavor everything it is near.
25. I don’t like the taste of bananas, but still choke one down every now and then. They are, after all, superfood for the heart!
26. I always thought I’d be a teacher when I was a kid.
27. I can’t teach.
28. When I was a teenager, I wanted to be a stockbroker.
29. I think I really just wanted to wear the cute jackets and slacks.
30. I don’t get impatient with other drivers. They rarely tick me off.
31. I wish I had as much patience with my kids as I do other drivers.
32. I love to close my eyes and smile up at the sunshine.
33. I got glasses when I was eight years old. I am well beyond what is considered legally blind without my glasses or contacts now.
34. I think I got bad eyes from smiling up at the sun WITHOUT closing my eyes first.
35. It might be hereditary; I think my son got glasses for the same reason.
36. I hate cooked peas.
37. I LOVE raw peas (the baby ones). They remind me of eating grass.
38. I think I have the coolest kids on the planet.
39. I only had short hair once in my life— when I was in seventh grade.
40. I think if everyone lived in a community like mine, the world would be a happy place.
41. Whenever I need to figure something out, I fold clothes.
42. I love the sound a hard back book makes when you open it for the first time. In fact, the first 10 or so times are great. Sometimes I just close my eyes, and open a new book several times and drink in the sound.
43. I love how a hard back book lays open flat on a table.
44. I wish I had grown up in a musical family.
45. I wish my kids were growing up in a musical family. But alas, musical I am not.
46. I like to draw but I hardly ever do.
47. I used to eat dirt as a kid.
48. I still love the smell.
49. I have a hard time breathing normally when I watch a show with people in a submarine.
50. Or a cave.
51. Or some other tight, trapped space.
52. Whenever I hear a phrase, I feel the need to figure out where it came from originally. Ones that still stump me: “Who let the cat out of the bag?” I’m wondering why someone put the cat IN the bag in the first place.... and when people refer to a “laundry list” of things. Are laundry lists normally that long? Whites, darks, inbetweens, delicates.... Wouldn’t “grocery list” make more sense?
53. I love male singing voices much more than female voices. Male voices are happiness to my ears. So, if you see me in sacrament meeting with my eyes closed, it’s because I’m enjoying the male half of the choir singing, not because I’m sleeping!
54. I sometimes lurk outside the priesthood room just to hear them sing.
55. Although I respect their abilities, you’ll never catch me listening to artists like Mariah and Celine.
56. I love homework. Do now, did as a kid. I don’t always love the timing or the pressure, but I love the work itself.
57. I have lived in exactly four houses in my lifetime.
58. None of them are more than 3.8 miles from the house I grew up in. (This one is for you, Shauna! ;-))
59. I ditched school a lot in 11th and 12th grades.
60. I really wish I hadn’t.
61. Some people get a high from seeing their favorite color or seeing something sparkly.... I get it when I walk past the book section in a store.
62. I love to paint. I just don’t do it.
63. In high school, I had Viking blue eye glasses. Talk about school spirit!
64. I have broken lots of toes and ribs, and even my foot, but I’ve never had a cast.
65. It’s a good thing, because I think cast encroaches on claustrophobia territory.
66. There were three girls and three boys in my family growing up (just counting the kids).
67. Until I graduated from high school, some of my best friends were my older and my younger brothers.
68. Now, my younger sisters are among my best friends.
69. My mom has been my one of my best friends all my life. Even through my teenage years. It’s a testament to how great she is that I thought she was the world’s greatest mom even then.
70. I can take a huge amount of criticism on my writing now, and it doesn’t get me down.
71. When I was a senior in high school, I dropped my honors English class because I couldn’t take my teacher’s criticism.
72. I feel unbelievably fortunate to have Brandon Sanderson as my creative writing teacher this semester. It’s one of those “Make an outlandish wish that couldn’t possibly ever come true, and then it does” kind of things.
73. I worked for a fast food restaurant for 3 ½ years when I was in high school.
74. To this day, it is the funnest job I have ever had. I loved working there.
75. I worked as a janitor in a school for 3 weeks once, more than 21 years ago. To this day, I cringe when I think about it.
76. I think people that have lots of kids and do it well are some of the most amazing people on the planet.
77. I admire optimism in others.
78. I love my kids being the ages that they are. I love the conversations we have.
79. I love diet coke. I really wish it wasn’t bad for me.
80. I can memorize a string of 50 numbers in 5 minutes.
81. I hated the movie “Peggy Sue Got Married.” I’ve never seen it, but for years after it came out, I got asked if my middle name is Sue by hundreds of people.
82. My middle name is ANN.
83. I’ve convinced myself to like tomatoes. They are so pretty! I just had to get over my dislike of them.
84. I think everyone should own a carpet shampooer.
85. I love the TV show Bones.
86. It’s the only tv show I watch.
87. I don’t watch, listen to, or read the news. It messes with my belief that all is right with the world.
88. Unless a news story is on msn.com’s home page, I don’t know about it. So if something major happens, call me!
89. I found out about the twin towers collapsing hours after the rest of the world. I was hanging out in my house, blissfully unaware until my friend called.
90. I went nine years after having my first kid before all of them started sleeping through the night.
91. People always thought I should just make them not wake up. It didn’t bother me so much, because it gave me a chance to make sure they were all okay during the night.
92. Once my “irrational” fear of something happening to them during night time hours passed, they magically started sleeping through the night.
93. If you are still reading this list, then I am quite impressed!!
    
94. I’m a jack of all trades, master of none. Except for procrastination, of course.
95. I love the smell and taste of cinnamon.
96. I like to do cartwheels. Especially in the halls at church.
97. I worked in the same company as my husband for over 4 years. For 2 ½ years, we were in the same team. It was pretty dang awesome.
98. I love being a mom even more than I thought I would. It’s the best job in the world.
99. I always thought I would know exactly what to do as a mom. I was wrong.
100. My family is the most important thing to me in the world, and I would do anything for them.

One of the reasons why I like having children from both sexes

Because under what other circumstances would you walk in a room to find both a TANK and CARE BEARS defending your castle walls?