Pack Your Bags!

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GASP!TWO UPDATES FROM ME IN LESS THAN A WEEK?HOLY COW!I felt as though I would make a quick blog post to share some news! But first...Check out breakfast for dinner over here!Bacon (and yes, it's regular bacon, whoops), scrambled eggs, fruit salad, and the Cinna-Yums from one of Joy Bauer's cookbooks. DELISH. Also, A LOT. Could probably do with about half of everything, but that is a lesson learned for next time.Monday marks the halfway point for the Dietbet. I WANT TO DO IT! I WANT THAT MONEY!!Also, tomorrow, I am attending an educational technology conference. I'm super excited! There are door prizes, grand prizes, and the coolest of all... FOOD TRUCKS. I won't go crazy with the food trucks, but I may just have a teeny-tiny breakfast to make up for it...Tomorrow is my first Sisters in Crime meeting! I am excited to attend after having just joined the national organization a few days ago. Can't wait to be a part of a chapter. There is supposed to be a retired police officer there to tell us about crime scenes. Woot!This morning, I had a hit of inspiration for a short story. It's actually romance, and it is set in the same universe as the novel I am currently drafting. I'm excited about the story, and hopefully I can get it written up before I lose the drive!Okay, now... on to the news I mentioned at the beginning of this post...Drum roll, please...*drum roll sounds*Today, I booked plane tickets to visit my cousin who is earning her Master's degree at a university in Germany.GERMANY. FOR SPRING BREAK!It'll be a whirlwind of a trip, but I am excited to go. Not only that, but I will have a nice little stopover in DUBLIN.YES, DUBLIN.I DID THIS ON PURPOSE TO GO TO A PLACE I'VE ALWAYS DREAMED OF GOING!Of course, less than 24 hours isn't enough to experience Ireland...Ah well, that means I'll just have to go back!I'm going to be absolutely whooped by the end of this trip, but you know... life's too short. I can catch up on sleep over the summer! Just in time for the Romance Writers of America conference which I will be attending with my BFF in NYC!Kathryn and Jenn take Manhattan!Sounds like a good movie, doesn't it?Ciao, friends!

Happy Weekend!

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I am back with a new blog post FINALLY! So much for at least keeping to one post a week. Whoops...Last Saturday, I attended the Suffolk Mystery Authors Festival. It is a free festival, open to anyone, and a great way to support local mystery authors. I went last year and won the grand prize of their Clue-like mystery game. Unfortunately, they did not have one this year, mostly because the headliner is the one that organizes the game.You want to know who the headliners were this year? Well, you may recognize the name of one of them, and that would be the one and only Charlaine Harris.Please forgive the crappy quality of this picture, but that is Charlaine on the right!If I'm honest, I didn't particularly get excited over the Sookie Stackhouse books. However, I LOVED True Blood. I know, I know... True Blood deviated from the books, but they were still Ms. Harris' characters. If Alan Ball hadn't picked up Dead After Dark, there wouldn't have been a True Blood.It also doesn't help that I'm not fond of cozy mysteries. They're too clean-cut for me. I need some grit and some darkness! I need a tortured soul! I need angst!Anyway! I had a lot of fun at the festival, attended a couple of panels, and spent well over $100 on books. Hella convenient that I got paid the day before...If you happen to find yourself without something to read and you love mysteries, I would suggest:

• Scandal in the Secret City by Diane Fanning

• Swiss Vendetta by Tracee de Hahn

• Lady of Ashes by Christine Trent

I purchased all three at last year's Suffolk Mystery Authors Festival, and only now just got to reading them. I blame the fact that my "To Read" pile is about a mile high. I enjoyed the first two immensely, and I'm almost done with the third, but have liked it enough to give it a plug! I bought the sequels to all of them, and more, at the fest, so I can't wait to dive in.Speaking of...How is your own writing progressing, Jenn?Well, friend, I'm glad you asked! I just finished Chapter 6 of my manuscript, and am teetering on the edge of 11k words. Honestly, to most writers, it may not seem like a lot. To me... it's an astounding amount. I've hand drawn a map of my setting and I've written out the administrative structure of the shady corporation. Not to mention my Post-It note outline...Le gasp!Yes, an outline! I'm a self-proclaimed pantser, but it's nice to have a rough outline. I actually feel like I may finish something! AMAZING!Now, updates on the healthy lifestyle journey...My mom and I have taken to sitting at the formal dining room table, and eating by candlelight. It actually is a lot of fun.

As you can see in the pictures above, we also have a visitor to our nightly meals. Minerva 

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eyed up our food, lemme tell you...You know, it's kind of amusing when you don't exercise for a week and you drop about 2 pounds which is more than you lost while exercising nearly every day!HOW DOES THAT WORK?I have decided to exercise every other day now, but still, of course, stick to counting my calories and making healthy eating choices.Remember when I said I made a bet on myself to lose weight?Well, my Dietbet challenge is nearly halfway over and I'm halfway to winning the bet! The pot is at $3,465 and there are 99 of us playing. The pot will be split amongst the winners, so I'll be anxious to see if I can win this bet!I think those are about all the updates I have for you. I promise that I will try my best to be more consistent in posting!Before I go, though, I want to leave you with this gem of a text conversation that I had with my little brother the other day:

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I think I'm

hilarious

.Ciao, friends!