Feelings, sports, awards

1. Tonight I talked to the children (and myself) about the importance of expressing our feelings rather than going off in a huff. I think it helped. We shall see. I'll try to set a good example.
2. We had a busy sports day with our son on Saturday - with squash and soccer. He came runner up in his age group for the regional squash champs which was wonderful. His squash was some of the best I've seen him play. He really believed in himself and pictured himself doing really well. Great to see children grasping those concepts well. In this first soccer game of the season, he scored his team's only goal which made him very happy. The team lost 8-1 but the goal helped!
3. The NZ Post Book Awards announcements and awards ceremony in Wellington is drawing closer. I'm really excited, as you can imagine. My husband and I fly to Wellington for the awards on Wednesday 16 May and return the next afternoon. The week before that, I'm away from May 6-9 on an authors' tour in association with the awards. I visit Rotorua and Tauranga, speaking to school children about my work. I'm also looking forward to that very much.

Pool party, roosters, school

1. We had an impromptu pool party on Sunday afternoon which was a great success. We decided a couple of days out to invite lots of people and see what happened. It went well and the weather was great. The party was mainly for those who hadn't seen the finished pool yet, especially those who helped with the work.
2. The hen/rooster update is that we have/had 3 roosters and no hens at all - which explains the incessant crowing. The person we got them from came to get them today and we will hopefully get some definite hens soon.
3. It was back to school today after a very enjoyable two week holiday. I had a kind of do nothing day - although I'm proud to say that I did two lots of exercise so I did achieve something!

Neighbours, friends, dvd

1. Did I tell you we have new neighbours in the orange house which was built next door? Well, we do. They seem a lovely couple and I'm looking forward to getting to know them better. I took them brownie as a welcome gift. Today she returned the favour and the container filled with yummy biscuits. The soft, chewy, full of choc bits kind! Did I say we have great new neighbours?
2. The children played with friends today. The boys were here. The girls were at the friend's house. I did some cooking and cleaning but mostly lolling and mooching. I'm not exactly sure of the meanings of those words but they sound quite descriptive of today's mood.
3. The highlight, for me, was the arrival of a DVD of the tv programme that I appeared on a few weeks ago. We don't get that particular channel so it was my first chance to see how I appeared on the programme. I was pleasantly surprised at what I looked like, although I never do like seeing my profile. The best part was what I said. It actually made sense! You would swear that I have done that kind of thing my whole life. It was very spooky. I actually couldn't really believe it was the same me as the one in my head. What's that about?

Lotto, books, skype

1. Someone in our very small town won Lotto. Well, at least someone from somewhere bought a winning lotto ticket at our small town's small lotto shop. So, well done to whoever you are. No, it wasn't me. Sadly.
2. At the risk of reiterating what I've probably already made abundantly clear, I love books. Any books actually. I don't even have to read them. And, just between you and me, I don't read many. I skim them, or just look at them. I can just love them without even opening them. In fact, I enjoy judging books by their covers. One of my most favourite places (other than a cafe sipping moccacino that is) is to be in front of the "new books" section in the library. Now that's heaven.
3. I had an interesting phone conversation today with my close friend who's living in Belgium at the moment. She phones me using skype. I can't explain that for those who don't know. Just trust me. It's a phone thing. Anyway, the thing with skype is that there's a slight delay and it can also have a hollow tinny ring to it. But, once you get used to that, you can cope. But, because of the slight delay and the fact that my friend and I are both the chatty, talk over each other types, we have devised a method of having a sensible phone conversation via skype. No one can speak unless the previous speaker has said "over" or "finished". Not even ooh, ahh, wow, gosh, yes, or other minimal encouragers. It's a great test of listening skills. I kind of passed but only because I'm good at sticking to rules. I wanted to butt in lots of times. However, I was a good girl and I learned a few things about listening. Hope I can remember them - even when I'm not on skype.

Absence, play, change

1. My absence from this blog has been brought to my attention by more than one avid reader. Apologies. I can't explain my absence except that I've been enjoying the school holidays and haven't been spending too much time at the computer. Probably a bit of laziness entered into it, as well. So, I'll try to improve my attendance record!
2. I wrote a play for a competition. I have no idea whether it's any good but I had lots of fun writing it, so that's the main thing. It's about my experiences at the rugby sevens in Wellington over the last couple of years.
3. I think I'll change something about this blog. I'm not sure what or when. I'm feeling a bit bored with writing something each day (as my absence makes clear) - it's turning into a bit of a diary and I was never a great diary writer, I'll have to admit. So I'm working on what I want it to be. Something that will inspire me as a writer, or you as a writer perhaps... I'll let you know.

Cricket, holidays, invention

1. I watched a wonderful match of cricket between Sri Lanka and England on television this morning. Well, the last hour or so, anyway. It was one of the most exciting matches I've seen in a while. England almost came back from a terrible position to snatch a win. But, unfortunately for them, it wasn't to be. Good luck against the Aussies, England!
2. The school holidays have arrived. I'm feeling happy and relaxed and will try to make sure we have some interesting outings that don't cost too much. Walking along with the river is a good one. I must remember that.
3. I've thought of a good idea for a new invention. It's kind of a game and I'm very excited about it. However, this happens frequently and my ideas very seldom get further than the idea stage. But you never know. This one could be IT!

Easter, my agent, lunch

1. For someone who loves chocolate, I am surprisingly calm about the forthcoming Easter eating binge. It's also the beginning of a two week school holiday for our children, so perhaps that's having an effect. Typically, any eggs I receive are eaten very quickly. I can't stand having any chocolate lying around uneaten. Anyone else in that particular boat?
2. I have the world's best literary agent. I got a wonderful email from her saying she liked my most recent story and was sending it off to a publisher straight away. She also updated me on other manuscripts that had been sent. I'm feeling strangely confident about the responses from publishers. Watch this space!
3. My friends came over for a casual lunch today and it was very peaceful and enjoyable. It was a great time to enjoy the new baby, a boy named Soia. Thanks everyone for a lovely lunch.

Rove, play, meetings

1. I'm so glad that Rove is back on television this Friday. For those who aren't in the know, Rove is an Aussie funny man who left our screens suddenly late last year when his wife died. I'm really looking forward to Friday. He's got my kind of humour and he's also cute.
2. I'm writing a play. Well, I haven't started yet. But I've been writing down some ideas and hope to get onto some actual writing on Thursday when I have a day set aside for it. Very exciting. I can't tell you what it's about though. Top secret!
3. It was a day of meetings for me. Mostly enjoyable but some tedious. I'm not that much of a meetings person but some things have to be done, don't they?

Limericks, story, song

1. Have you visited The Limerick Lounge? It's a blog of one of my word imps, Sonnjea B. You can find it by looking at the links on my word imperfect blog. It's a great place to read and write limericks. Good for the brain.
2. I worked for a good part of the day on a story that I haven't worked on for months. I got it out again today and liked it all over again. So I worked on an ending and finally completed it. I'll be sending it to my agent tomorrow.
3. I learned a new part of a Maori song today. I thought I knew the song well, but I had actually missed out quite a bit of it. And it was the fun bit too! I'm very pleased that I visited the kohanga reo and heard it.

Work, work, work

1. I had a "to do" list today. I achieved all but two things from the list. Well done to me!
2. One of the things on my list was moving 400 pavers from a trailer to another spot not far away. My wrists and hands can attest to the fact that this task got the big completion tick.
3. One of the smaller things on my list was something which has been left undone for too long. It's the linen cupboard. Well, it's now a lot tidier. I'm happy to report that things can actually be found where they're supposed to be. I'm now taking bets on how long it will stay that way. Hopefully at least as long as it takes you to read this blog post!