Spring Cleaning

No, it's sunny and warm today. This pic is from a few days ago.

Sometime soon, this weekend maybe, I'm going to cut off those seed pods. The gillia need tending also. And the whole secret garden needs clearing out. Time to clear the way for the new.

So, yesterday, I held to my ritual and I did not turn on my phone until after I finished my wordcount. Then I turned on the Blackberry and watched the email messages stack up. And then, wow! A voice mail!

I confess I felt a thrill, dialing in waiting for the voice of RWA to tell me that I'm a special unique snowflake.

But no.

Staples.

Yes, the office supply place that has never, ever called me before, calling to warn me that my order had been delayed until 3/25. For those keeping track at home, yesterday was 3/25.

Just a little cruel jab from the universe, mocking my little dreams.

And apparently the universe couldn't get enough of the joke: I received two more calls yesterday morning, both from numbers I didn't recognize, one being a wrong number and the other being Staples, AGAIN. This from a cell phone that doesn't ring for days.

The great lottery goes on. Allison didn't final either, with the manuscript that just snagged her an agent and a three-book deal, so that gives you an idea of how well a contest like this predicts publishability. Amusingly, blogger doesn't believe that's a word.

An agent who has my manuscript Tweeted from the Bologna Book Fair that what's "in" are angels, zombies and dystopias. None of which are in Obsidian. I envision that all across Twitterville, writers were brainstorming post-Apocalyptic landscapes with zombie angels.

Nothing new under the sun. Chasing after the wind. Don't call me angel of the morning.

Staples called me one more time in the late afternoon, asking if my order had arrived. I said, why no, but I was in no hurry. He asked me what time it was for me and I said 4:09. He told me the driver had until 5 to deliver the package. Okay, I said, though did I mention I don't care. He tells me that by law he's required to make sure it gets delivered by 5.

I'm wondering if this is part of the Health Care Reform.

After all this? No, my printer ink never arrived. Not that I care, since I'm all set right now and was planning ahead for when the ink in the printer runs out. I imagine that, when I turn on my phone, I'll have a voice mail from them.

I'm thinking about submitting my manuscript to Staples. At least I can be sure they'll call.