List Friday: A few things I enjoyed this week.

March 4, 2011

I'm still sad about my kitty, Oz. It's been rough around these parts, and in the (edited) words of My Chemical Romance, "I'm not o-KOMO4ing-kay."

But blogging about sacks of sad isn't great for anyone, so I've made a list of things that I've enjoyed this week:

1. 100 Shows a Year blog. I know this guy named Jim who is a big-time theater geek in NYC. He sees over 100 performances a year and started a blog this past January cataloging what he sees as he sees it. I am not a big-time theater geek, but I love reading what he has to say. Truthfully, I'd probably be entertained reading his grocery lists, but since he happens to post about shows, those are what I read instead! They are often my favorite updates that pop up in my GoogleReader during the week.

2. Planet Fitness. My trial membership in Aim To Be Fit Boot Camp ended recently. I really loved going and definitely gained strength and muscle, but I can't afford to continue at this time. Dwayne and I joined Planet Fitness, which is a brand-new gym in our area. It's very affordable. I've gone only one time so far, but I think it's going to be an okay alternative. It's nice to be able to run beside Dwayne for once. He runs up to nine miles an hour, while I'm at about half that right now. At the track, we run separately, but on treadmills at the gym, we can be together!

3. Damn You, Auto Correct! This site takes submissions of the hilarious misunderstandings that crop up from typos and the auto correct function on phones. A good portion of the text conversations are (unintentionally) super vulgar, but I read them and laugh and laugh and laugh. I never get tired of them; even some of the ones I've read before continue to amuse me on rereads.

4. Book report for Freefall by PoshDeluxe at Forever Young Adult. The Forever Young Adult blog is one of my favorite book blogs out there. Their tagline is "for YA readers who are a little less Y and a bit more A," which is totally me! I find that I have very similar book taste to some of the reviewers, and like them--and many other women my age--I credit Regina Morrow from Sweet Valley High as being reason #1 why I never got into drugs. Anyway, PoshDeluxe a.k.a. Sarah read Freefall, gave it a BFF charm, rated it a seven on the swoonworthy scale, and is going steady with it! I'm really, really happy about all of these things. :-)

Guest post for Chick Loves Lit

March 2, 2011

I wrote about Kendall from Freefall and what inspired her character. You can read my guest post at the book blog, Chick Loves Lit. :-)

Goodbye to our Silky Jackass Oz Buh-bee.

February 26, 2011

Our cat, Oz, died today. I'm very sad. I wrote about him.

Dwayne and I moved into this house at the end of January in 2002. On February 8th of that year, Neko, a pregnant stray who was living at my old office, gave birth to her kittens. We brought them home and they've lived with us from that day on.

For at least six years now, Oz has had chronic urinary tract issues. We've known all along the he would never be fully cured. It's an issue of his anatomy not being quite right. We've tried treating him, though, switching to whatever regiment the vet suggested. We've had him on pills, drops, monthly injections, and special food, sometimes all at the same time. All of this has bought him--and us--more time, and when his insides weren't causing him troubles, he was living a normal, happy, pain-free, kitty-cat life.

But at 9:30 this morning, Oz's symptoms became life threatening, and Dwayne and I had to rush him to the vet. There, we had to make the decision that we've known for years that we would one day have to make.

We weren't ready for it.

We cried a lot. We held him. We kissed him. We told him we loved him. We said goodbye. Dwayne couldn't stay in the room for the euthanasia. For some reason, I couldn't not stay.

I've been sobbing off and on since even before we left today. I can't feel guilty for the choice we made because I know it was the right one. I'm just shocked and wrecked because he's gone.

He was such a personality. So strong, so smart, so obnoxious, so destructive, so funny. He was always getting into whatever he wasn't supposed to. He could even open doors. He hid behind the dryer whenever people would come over. Some of Dwayne's band members (who are over here about twice a week) never even saw him. He would "pet" himself by lying on his back and pushing himself across the ground. He would sniff people's socks and stretch his black lips into a hilarious expression that would make us laugh and laugh. His coat was satiny smooth. He would yawn so big it looked like his jaw was about to snap. He loved to sleep in open suitcases or burrowed under blankets. His nicknames were Buh-bee, Silky, and Jackass. He was Neko's favorite baby. He was a Ravenclaw. He was our Oz Solo and our Little White Paws. Already, we miss having him in our family, very, very much.

I have a new book deal

February 23, 2011

An announcement went up today for my second book! Here's the listing from Publisher's Marketplace: Mindi Scott's LIVE THROUGH THIS, following a girl as she embarks on her first romantic relationship at the same time she is trying to come to terms with the sexual abuse she's endured at the hands of a family member, to Liesa Abrams at Simon Pulse, by Jim McCarthy at Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (World English).

I am thankful for my agent, editor, and everyone at Pulse for all the support and good vibes regarding this book so far. It has been amazing to have so many people who believe in this story as I do and who want to help me get it out there for readers!

The tentative publication date is "Fall 2012," I believe. It sounds like forever away, but I'm going to be so very busy getting it finished during these next few months that I know I'm going wish time would slow down. :-)

Announcement: A new book deal for me!

February 22, 2011

From Publisher's Marketplace:

Mindi Scott's LIVE THROUGH THIS, following a girl as she embarks on her first romantic relationship at the same time she is trying to come to terms with the sexual abuse she's endured at the hands of a family member, to Liesa Abrams at Simon Pulse, by Jim McCarthy at Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (World English).