I’m here in Huntington, West Virginia, a day ahead of the official start of the conference. The flight was uneventful and a helluva lot shorter than the one to Seattle earlier this month.

I almost didn’t make the trip. Restless me decided yesterday would be my “girlie” day. There was my first mistake. I don’t do girlie very well. Still, I suffered through a pedicure where I nearly kicked the “nail technician” into impotency (I’m very ticklish). I was so thrilled with my pretty toes (he painted flowers on both big hammers), that when I got home, I decided to give myself a facial.

I’m still wondering what the hell got into me. I found an ancient tube of a natural masque, applied it to my face then settled down to watch TV while it dried. I didn’t last a minute. My skin burned and itched and I ran to the bathroom to wash it off—but the damage was already done. At midnight last night, my face looked like a dimpled purplish raspberry.

When I got up to start getting ready, most of the welts had deflated. I still have bumps that look like a normal-ish skin rash and my face burns, but dammit, I’m gonna have a good time.

When I deplaned in Huntington, I met paranormal mystery author, Shirley Damsgard in the airport. We shared the shuttle ride to the hotel, then decided to go to lunch together. She’s lovely, funny and smart. I hope we keep in touch.

Since I have Internet access, I’ll try to let you guys know what’s happening here at Lora Leigh’s RAW!

Later! Need to head back down and see if I recognize anyone.

I’ll post yesterday’s winner later. I pre-posted this blog because at four AM I’ll be heading to the airport! Squee!

All right, soooo not excited about the early wakeup call, but I love Lora Leigh’s Readers Appreciation Weekend. If you’ve never attended one, you must. If you love talking to other readers about the books you love and meeting the writers who write those books—this is the conference for you.

And it’s so laid back. No rushing around for meetings. Just lazing by the pool or in the hotel lobby. Lots and lots of conversation. Maybe a crazy party or two—depends on if anyone brings any booze in!

And there’s a booksigning on Sunday! So if you are in the Huntington area and want to drop by the Pullman in the afternoon, come on down!

If you’ve followed this blog for long, you know I’m always experimenting/studying alternative metaphysical and spiritual traditions. My friend Shada Royce gave a presentation at the Diamond State Romance Authors meeting on Saturday, which included something about animal totems. She sent me to Lin’s Domain to learn more. The following are the the very interesting results of my totem reading, which I did under my real name. Lin chose nine animal totems for my spirit guides, each having significance for the “directions” they guide me. There are a ton of animals she could have chosen, but look at which ones popped up.

The East totem guides you through spiritual challenges. Your East totem is:

Frog: Transformation
The frog is the totem of metamorphosis. It symbolizes coming into your personal power. It reminds us not to become bogged down with day-to-day living. It is the totem of water. Its voice calls forth the rains. Emotions are associated with water and a frog totem may be telling you to get in touch with your feelings. People with frog medicine give support and energy where it is needed. They can cleanse the negativity from an environment.

How wierd is that? You all know how much I love water—my pool, rainstorms. How many times have I chased frogs around my pool to rescue them when they can’t escape? I love to hold them, love the look of them, have froggie earrings and pins. Huh

The South totem protects the child within and reminds you when to be humble and when to trust. Your South totem is:

Coyote: Wisdom, Folly
The Coyote teaches you how wisdom and folly go hand-in-hand. In the folly of others, we see our own foolishness and we learn from their mistakes. Coyote energy is tied to simplicity and trust. It stimulates and renews innocence and reawakens a childlike wisdom in the world. A Coyote’s howl touches your soul, reminding us of our primal connections. Coyote people are very adaptive to new situations and have close-knit families, especially when children are involved.

Before I received my reading, I thought about what animals might be my spirit guides. The first that popped into my mind was the frog. The second was a dog/wolf—so coyote feels right to me! And since I’m both smart and ditzy, the wisdom/folly thing really fits.

The West totem leads on your path to personal truths and inner answers. It shows you the path to your goals. Your West totem is:

Crocodile & Alligator: Primal Energies
The Crocodile or Alligator totem contains the unbridled creative forces of the world, the fury and ferocity of Primal Energies. It is the symbol of creation and destruction. The Crocodile or Alligator is the keeper and protector of all knowledge. She is the primal mother in whom all knowledge rests and waits to be born. People with a Crocodile or Alligator totem have the opportunity to develop new wisdom but they must be careful not to be consumed by this wisdom. Study each bit of knowledge carefully before going on to the next. Care of the eyes is important for Crocodile or Alligator people. Also beneficial are breathing techniques like those practiced in Yoga. When a Crocodile or Alligator shows up look for an opportunity to touch very primal energies. There will be an opportunity for new knowledge and wisdom.

Unbridled creative forces? Primal energy? Sounds like what I write, right? Care for the eyes? Let’s see, I wear glasses, have Graves disease and have to worry about developing the accompanying eye disease. I also was recently diagonosed with a mini-stroke that blotted out part of my vision—not that I knew it!
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First, I know I said I wouldn’t share any more pictures of my obsession, but with all the rain we’ve had in recent days, these beauties popped up. They sat at the base of the huge oak tree in my backyard. Love the colors against the dark moss and bright green ivy. And don’t they look like cinnamon rolls? They’re just about as big. Oh, and they’re mushrooms if you hadn’t already guessed.

It’s out of my system. Now onto the progress report.

Good news—the releases of Frannie ‘n’ the Private Dick on Monday, then Altered States on Wednesday.

Not much accomplished on the writing front, I’m afraid. I finished a chapter and half on one project. Mostly, I researched castles, Medieval clothing and maps.

I’ve been looking at my plans and trying to figure out where my effort would be best spent. It’s a tough time in the publishing business and contracts are harder to come by. Trying to figure out what will hit next is like reading a cloudy crystal ball—so I ordered a new set of Tarot cards.
🙄

I’ll be in Little Rock today meeting with the Diamond State Romance Authors. After that, I’m housesitting for the night at a lake house in Hot Springs. What can I say? I love the water.

Here’s a question to keep you thinking…

If you were to die tomorrow, what would you want people to remember you for most of all?

A winner has been selected, but I’m gonna show off my good time first! read to the bottom.

I know most of you have watched Grey’s Anatomy a couple of times at least, right? And you’ve seen the opening credits and probably wondered what dreary city they filmed. Well, it was Seattle. Not that I think Seattle is dreary, but the crew must have given up on seeing a sunny day.

Did I get pics of the road and the port or even of the lovely green mountains? Ha! I went underground. If you’re reading this in Facebook, you’ll have to go to my blog to see it.

For those of you who don’t know, Seattle was originally built at sea level. When the town started to grow, they built a public sewer system. When the tides rolled in, people had to be wary about flushing, because they’d get geysers erupting from the their toilets. So when much of Seattle was destroyed by fire, they built the roads high, encouraging people to build their shops and houses with deep basements so that their upper floors were accessible from the street. As a result, there were shops and walkways underneath the streets and sidewalks that you either had to access by ladder or through the shop’s stairways.

Today, much of the Underground is walled up. This is one entrance and where the official tour begins. I trekked down into the bowels with Sasha White, my cousin David and his partner, Greg.
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Uh, yeah. That’s the title of today’s blog, but you’ll have to read it over at Access Romance’s blog! Hope to see you there! ~DD