My Summer To-do List

Every New Year’s Day I make resolutions (doesn’t everyone?) and over the years, I have kept quite a few. Most, however, are recycled into the next year, the following year, and so on. I guess you can say that I am not meticulous about New Year’s resolutions.

What I do make and keep, on the other hand, is my summer to-do list. The list is always short and filled with things I really, really want to accomplish. This year’s list is no exception:

1. Biking.  I love biking. I feel free and calm, with the world rolling passed my eyes at a eisurely pace. I haven’t gotten to do it for quite some time due to health reasons, but this year I am treating myself to a brand new bicycle and touring the neighborhood.
2. Read a good book. I love reading, and there is nothing better than lazing an afternoon away in the garden with a good book and a glass of iced tea.
3.  Travel. I have not been able to travel like I used to (see #1 for reason), but that’s all behind me now. Long trip or short, I want to go to new places and do things I have always wanted to do with the one I love.

Do you have a summer to-do list?

How a vacation went from dream to reality

[St. Stephen’s Green Park, Dublin. County Dublin, Ireland] (LOC)

My dream vacation is actually a dream that came true, and I relive it every day. That’s because I met my husband while I was on vacation.

I wasn’t supposed to go to Ireland; I had planned on spending a week in Spain. I had paid for the tickets and everything. But then, one night I saw one of those commercials for Irish Spring soap on TV and I had an overwhelming desire to go to the land of jigs and brogues and cabled sweaters.

Needless to say, it was a chore to change all my travel arrangements, but it was worth it. The country was beautiful, the culture was charming, and the pubs were … fantastic.

On my last night of what had been the best vacation I had ever taken, a man walked into the pub where I was feeding my new addiction to Guinness Stout. I caught a glimpse of him standing at the door where he was staring at me. All of a sudden, he pushed his way through the crowd to my table and asked if he could buy me a drink (even though my glass was still full). I hate being hit on in bars, and had turned away several other young men that night, but I looked up at him and said “I’d like that.” It was like a scene from a movie and I knew in that moment he was the love of my life.

Twenty-five years later, he is still the most romantic man in the world who can sweep me off my feet with a smile. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how a vacation I was not supposed to take turned from a dream into reality.

Coming to You from Sunny Florida

I am in Florida right now, Boca Raton to be exact, on a combination vacation-slash-book tour. The wonderful folks at The Balancing Act (Lifetime TV morning talk show) have invited me here to talk about my current novel Once Upon a Moscow Night, and to give a few hints about my new work in progress.

Sure, I publicize my books every chance I get. Anyone who looks as if they might like a good romance novel and who stands still long enough is going to get a sales pitch, but to do it on national television is a first for me.

For days after contracting to the interview, I was like a little kid on Christmas morning. A goofy grin was my constant expression, and all I could think or do was related to my appearance on TV.

Then came the period of “Okay, let’s get it done already.” I counted the days, planned out the details of my trip (and the real vacation I haven’t had in way too many months), and become quite droll about the whole thing.

Then, as soon as I started on my trek south, the little kid was back. Every mile brought me closer to that Christmas morning feeling once again. And, as tired as I was when I arrived at the hotel, you guessed it – I couldn’t sleep a wink.

Sun and fun has not dampened the thrill of my impending interview. The calls from the production staff about logistics and suggested wardrobes have kept my level of excitement at a super high.

And now it’s the final countdown … just a few more hours until I step in front of the cameras.

I’ll need another vacation after all of this to come back to earth!