What Do I Want To Do When I Grow Up?

I came back from Bloomington in July feeling challenged and championed. That's what you get when you hang out with some of the smartest, goodest girls on the planet. I brought Zach back to Bloomington, stayed with Jeff and Mimi, and let some more of that good Bloomington juju rub off on both of us. Zach is seriously going to apply to IU, which I think may be a match. Thank you, Dr. Z, for that. If he goes IU I swear I'm going to buy a house there. My midwest sensibilities have been revived.

Senior year is here and I am already grieving the loss of my last spawnling. I have vowed to work on disengaging from a happy co-dependency with this particular son. There are projects, concerts, retreats, college trips, one last mission to the DR...a monsterous amount of "last things" to walk through. But everything points to a winning year.

John will turn 21 in December and soon will jump from being a commuter student to his first apartment, so I'll be losing 2 pups around the same time. I am contemplating my retirement from the mom thing and am attempting to plan and cope by writing at least 300 words a day (a la Anne Lamont) and, no lie, have started seeing a therapist (but we like to call him a "life coach" cause it sounds oh so much nicer).

Anyhow, I've been writing. Thanks to Allison I'm trying to take myself seriously here and have been reading, reading, reading, reading and checking out writing options without tipping over the marital shopping cart. That's where the therapist comes in. For the first time in my life I am exploring the extent to which I may be ADD and whether I can organize my life outside my role as a mommy in a focused, productive way. Start praying, girls, it's gonna be a bumpy mid-life ride.

I am looking forward to a cycling trip in Maine in a few weeks. Have been working toward this all summer. Also will be taking the pup up north to check out more schools. The fall will be a zoomer. But I hope to be faithful in communicating and may send some drafts of my stuff your way. In the meantime, carpe diem.

On the Go

After our fabulous gathering in Bloomington I headed farther east for 3 weeks of friends and family. Most of the time was spent at the house on Cape Cod (hope we will be having one of our reunions there soon). John and I celebrated 31 years of marriage in Provincetown where we met Kristin's boat from Boston and had a delectable dinner; the advantage of working daughters is that Courtney and Kristin picked up the check! I did get some good pics so I will try to upload them here soon. Home now and regular routines have returned including bridge, paddle, yoga and walking with my little companion, Rocky.
This past week I shipped Cathryn back for year number 2 at Princeton and hopped on a plane to Denver. A friend of mine invited me to join her in Vail for 3 days of hiking and biking. I think I like it even better than winter; probably because the summer sports require less skill than skiing.
My bag is unpacked momentarily while I wash and iron and decide what to wear on my next junket. I leave Thursday for 2 more weeks on the road. I guess my goal is just to see how many airline miles I can rack up! After a big chill weekend in Essex with friends from my Chemical Bank days, John and I will head back to Cape Cod. He will not stay long,returning to put in some hours at his new firm. I will stay on through Labor Day followed by trips to Boston, Princeton for Cathryn's first game and Farmington for golf with my Dad and visit with my Mom.

Back to Indiana

Eventful summer. Announcing that I am going back to Indiana in the Fall to Bouchercon (http://www.bouchercon2009.com/) -- the largest convention of mystery/crime writers and fans. Last year it was in Baltimore, where we talked a lot about the wire. It's great fun and since I've been on Twitter (hey, come follow me @allisondavis531), I've met a lot of interesting writers. I may even "tweet up" with some in new orleans when I'm there in October.

I held a "coming out" party -- a house concert for myself really, and had Judy Butterfield (http://www.judybutterfield.com/) and Mindi Hadan (http://www.mindihadan.com/) accompanied by Ken Muir (http://www.kenmuir.com/) and a wonderful jazz trio (Brian Hill, Jeff Ardziejewski and Spence Murray). It was Saturday...I made all the food and arranged the room. I had friends set up the sound system and stage. Here's some more pics:

I made cerviche, boiled shrimp, potato salad with no mayo, guacamole and these fabulous skewers of heirloom cherry tomatoes, mozerella and basil...I made nearly 100 of them. All got eaten!

new era

Fog out my bedroom window at 7 a.m. this morning before I went to market. This is my "writing window."

Ok, I'm going to get better about the blog. I don't do facebook, but am totally stuck and sold on Twitter -- found a community of women writers and we support each other. Vicky, you need to get attached to the cobweb.

Friends have a great blog on writing tips: http://www.murderati.com/ -- my friend Louise Ure and Cornelia Read among others.

Tonight having dinner with new friend Alice and we are going to try and start a writing "group" -- just to have goals and deadlines. Otherwise I languish in dreams with little reality here.

Book is at Reece Halsey right now being looked at -- sometime in the next couple of months -- by Kimberley Cameron (http://www.kimerberleycameron.com/) so will have some solid feedback. Still fixing typos and the like in the complete manuscript (she has first 43 pages). It's all a process.

Since Indiana, did a book conference (where I gave Kim the book), a work conference, spent 4th of July at the old Mendocino property with the tribe and the ex husband (yes, it was totally weird).

Work is ok, but last week was like trudging through sludge. Spat of depression I suspect. So will work through it this weekend....tomato and avocado salad and gnocchi for dinner party tonight. Lots of wine. Should wash out all the bad juju.

Indiana here we come

I know, I know, I have been bad about the blog, but I am trying to get my book out to agents and I can't believe the time it sucks down. also, I'm doing twitter (lately completely glued to the info coming from Iran as Twitter is one of the few places you can actually get photos. See: allisondavis531 posted on twitter: (see the photo at the site – @madyar http://twitpic.com/7ki6e - This tweet can be found at http://twitter.com/allisondavis531/status/2201323089

So I can't wait to see you all and swap stories and get ideas and generally relax. Tell Lisa and Mimi they have to relax, too, and can't get all nervous about entertaining us (we're such a hard crew -- ha ha). I think we're going to the musical, which will be loads of fun. I just want to sit around in summer weather in my shorts and flip flops. Need my parka in SF.

I have some fun pics to share and will try and post them before I go...jazz fest, giants at Wrigley in Chicago, camping....all good. xxo

So Many Choices- So Little Time

Stravinsky, The All Night Strut, Picnic with the Pops! It all sounds too good to be true. Thanks, Lisa, for going to the trouble of giving us a run down on all the possible activities. I am delighted that we are all able to be together again. I am up for anything but have listed my top 3 picks above. As I said to Lisa earlier, I think some distractions are good but we seem to all enjoy it the most when we are just sitting around and chewing the fat with a glass of wine. Preparing dinners together and having pajama parties (with good music for dancing) seem to be big hits also!

I had the pleasure of spending last weekend in San Francisco with Jeff Garrity watching Jonathan sail for Harvard; his last hurrah before graduation. It was very interesting to see the tactical manipulation necessary to win these races. We crossed our fingers and muttered under our breaths as the wind shifted and boats spun around each other. Perfect weather and according to Jeff, the perfect venue, as the sailing took place close enough to shore that we could actually keep track of our favorite sailor. In the evening we feasted on yummy treats, wine and sake before having a fabulous meal at Allison's famous Blue Plate. I urge all of you to dine there on your next visit to SF. It was fabulous.

Ok....so 'til we meet again which will be very soon!

Things to do in B-town

The blog has been silent for too long. I just got back from an art show that will still be up when you arrive, a juried exhibit co-sponsored by IU's Kinsey Institute and the School of Fine Arts. I will leave the rest up to your imagination (remember, KINSEY....). After that, I went to a cycle of original short plays at our local Bloomington Playwrights Project. On any day or night, there is a bunch to do, so we are going to have to make some choices!

Just a preview of fun in B-town:

FRIDAY - SUNDAY

Title: Kinsey Institute Art Exhibit "Eros in Asia: Erotic Art from Iran to Japan"
Date: Jun 26, 2009
Time: 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Calendar: IUB Arts & Entertainment Calendar, IUB Museum & Gallery Events
Contact: Send e-mail
Description: This exhibit features a variety of erotic artwork from Iran, India, Japan and China.The Kinsey Institute was founded in 1947 as a private research institute affiliated with Indiana University. Its mission is to promote interdisciplinary research and scholarship in the fields of human sexuality, gender, and reproduction. Its resources include a research library and an art, artifact, and photograph collection.
More Contact Info: (812) 855-7686
Location: Indiana University; Morrison Hall; 3rd Flr.
Web site: http://www.kinseyinstitute.org/services/gallery.html
Cost: Free

FRIDAY

Title: Jacobs School of Music: Festival Chamber Players - Atar Arad, Evelyne Brancart, Csaba Onczay, Chih Yi Chen, Erin Aldridge, and Cory Smythe
Date: Jun 26, 2009
Time: 8:00 PM
Calendar: IUB Arts & Entertainment Calendar
Contact: Send e-mail
Description: "An Evening of Sonatas" Beethoven: Noturno Grieg: Cello Sonata in A Major Schubert: Fantasy Stravinsky: Sonata for Two Pianos
Location: Recital Hall
Web site: http://music.indiana.edu
Cost: Free Admission

FRIDAY OR SATURDAY

June 11-13, 17-20, 24-27 and July 1-3 at 8 pm; July 4 at 7 pm;
June 14, 20-21, 27-28, and July 5 at 3 pm

A musical with Music and Lyrics by legendary American songwriters
Conceived and Originally Directed and Choreographed by Fran Charnas
Directed and Choreographed by George Pinney
“An entertainment machine…you’re guaranteed a satisfying selection” - LA Times

Your Brown County Playhouse season opens with The All Night Strut!, a classy, sassy musical celebration of the 1930s and ‘40s. This sensational show soars, sings, and struts to the matchless music and dynamic dances of the 30s and 40s, lifting you from the Depression through World War II to the post war boom on waves of blues, jazz, bebop, and classic song standards, including favorites by legendary composers of the American songbook.

There are songs of danger and of despair, heartbreak and homesickness, but also heroism and hope, love and romance, sweet sentiment, seduction, and just plain fun. And the dancing! From smooth moves to swing to jumpin’ jive. Full of sublime music that will never go out of style, dances that are as current as prime time television, and unbeatable energy, The All Night Strut! will thrill your heart, tickle your funny bone, and raise the rafters.

It’s perfect for every generation – the young and young at heart. And take note of our special curtain time on the 4th of July: there’ll be no better way to prepare for fireworks!

SATURDAY

8-12 noon BLOOMINGTON FARMERS MARKET: There are always musicians and often Morris Dancers as well as fresh fruit and vegies and other goodies.

EVENING

Title: Picnic with the Pops
Date: Jun 27, 2009
Time: 5:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Calendar: IUB Arts & Entertainment Calendar, IUB Alumni Events
Description: Since 1996, Picnic with the Pops has become the Bloomington Independence Day tradition! Gates open at 5 pm; concert begins at 8 pm concluded by the 1812 Overture and a dazzling fireworks display! Plan to join the Bloomington Pops Orchestra & Chorus for its 13th annual Picnic with the Pops on Saturday June 27 on the campus of Ivy Tech Community College. The gates open at 5 pm. Hear Indiana's only exclusive Pops orchestra play traditional summertime favorites and stirring patriotic music. Joining the orchestra and its guest artists is the Pops chorus, all conducted by maestro Chris Ludwa. This is a premier family-oriented event with fun activities for children. Magicians, pre-concert music, food vendors,a table decorating competition, a children's parade, recognition of the Armed Services, and a great time to visit friends and neighbors.

Admission is $10 for adult blanket seating. Tables for up to 8 are available for $150-$200.
More Contact Info: bpops@bloomingtonpops.org
Location: Ivy Tech Community College, Bloomington
Web site: http://www.bloomingtonpops.org/

SATURDAY EVENING

Title: Jacobs School of Music: Guest Recital - Hans Boepple, Piano
Date: Jun 27, 2009
Time: 8:00 PM
Calendar: IUB Arts & Entertainment Calendar
Location: Recital Hall
Web site: http://music.indiana.edu
Cost: Free Admission


SUNDAY AFTERNOON

Title: Jacobs School of Music: Faculty/Guest Recital - Weiss-Kaplan-Newman Trio and Guests
Date: Jun 28, 2009
Time: 4:00 PM
Calendar: IUB Arts & Entertainment Calendar
Description: An Afternoon of Mendelssohn D Major Cello Sonata (Clancy Newman and Yael Weiss) Quartet, Op. 13 (Mark Kaplan, Sarah Kapustin, Atar Arad, Clancy Newman) Sextet
Location: Recital Hall
Web site: http://music.indiana.edu
Cost: Free Admission

Then again, we could always just stay home and watch Mama Mia on DVD with a lot of wine....

Love, Lisa