Who was it that told me to schedule two writing events on two subsequent weekends? Oh, wait, I remember. I told me.

Actually, it's not too bad. I had such a great time in Ohio, and while it did take me a couple of days and a couple of naps to recover, I also had a productive five days this past week. I got two first steps for "possibles" out the email door, and my co-author (Lee Lofland) and I sent the LAST CHAPTERS of our kids' book about police officers off to the editor. (Happy Dance!) I'm sure there'll be revisions to do, but there's a definite feeling of DONE around my office today.

Good timing, too, since today I'm off to Southern California, to moderate a panel for the monthly meeting of Sisters in Crime, Los Angeles. The panel consists of authors Betty Hechtman,  Gay Toltl Kinman, Kathryn Lilley, and Gerald Schiller. We get to spend the whole meeting talking about writing mysteries for both kids and adults. My life is just so tough these days. :)

And the nice thing is, I'm not getting on an airplane. Not once. Normally, I love flying. I even like airports. But having just done it last weekend, and having done a LOT of sitting around listening to other travelers on their cellphones, explaining why they weren't where they were supposed to be yet...well, the car is sounding pretty nice. My parents live halfway between here and LA, so I'm breaking up the trip down at their house tonight--dinner, good company, and an early Mother's Day gift drop. I think my parents are still pretty amazed that their shy daughter actually goes out and talks in front of people (the daughter is pretty amazed herself, sometimes), so it's probably a good thing to stop by and reassure them that I haven't actually been taken over by aliens!

Then Sunday, I'll head down to the meeting and spend the night in Pasadena. Monday will be quite the drive--straight up California's central valley on Highway 5. For all the decades I've lived in California (pretty much since the day I was born), I've never driven 5 all the way from the South to the North. If any of you know the area, you'll know that, as dotted as the roadsides are with all sorts of green and growing agriculture, it's not exactly the most stimulating of routes. That's okay. I've got music and a couple of books on tape, including Bill Cosby's greatest hits. If Bill can't keep me awake, nobody can.

So think of me this weekend, and if you're cruising along 101 or 5 yourself, watch for a woman with frizzy wild hair laughing her head off as she drives.