Back To Unpack

We returned from Europe last night and today is laundry and bill and errand day to try to get on top of things before I leave Tuesday for the RWA National Conference, this year back in Dallas.

The trip was fantastic. London’s always brlliant but I confess, I loved Rome best. Venice is exotic but far too crowded, and numbed by tourism to the point of rudeness. My son Jake liked everyplace. My son Ty hated Rome, too hot, but didn’t want to leave Venice, and I was just happy to have the two weeks with the kids.

Happily I was able to check email now and then at internet cafes in London, Rome & Venice as Grand Central Publishing in the middle of putting together my Fall ’07 book tour for Odd Mom Out and doing the cover for Alpha Mom in August ’08 so I’m fairly on top of things business wise (although there is that nagging issue of writing the book that’s coming out in August 2008…).

Early reviews on Odd Mom Out continue to come in and this year Kirkus Review gave me a thumbs up which is very nice, especially as they destroyed Flirting last year. My publicists also are working very hard on PR and the book tour which means I’m far calmer now about Odd Mom Out’s release than I was a month ago.

I did love being away from my desk and computer and cell phone. It’s always a vacation when I can only check email once a day, or even better, once every two or three days. And the only phone we had on the trip was one my sister bought and brought and it was for emergencies only so there were no calls, other than the ones my boys made to their dad every night, which really is freedom.

The best part of an extended trip is the discovery that the world is so much bigger than our day to day concerns. And the next best thing is the reminder that while technology is good, it doesn’t necesssarily make our lives easier or better. It just keeps us busy.

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