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  • Friday Favorite – The Lovely Ladies of Vail

    Last weekend I went to Vail with several dear friends. The in-laws of one of the girls graciously allowed us to use their condo for the weekend, so 6 of us hit the road for a weekend of fun and exploration in the mountains of Colorado. Here’s a photo tour of our weekend. (Except, I missed pics of all the ice cream we ate and games we played. Congrats to Ashley B who finally won a hand of killer uno just before midnight on Saturday! And here’s to Grace, who tried to sabotage AB’s winning by passing her the biggest hand of the night.) 🙂

    Oh no! The bears got Ted!
    Oh no! The bears got Ted!
    Kelly, Ashley, and Grace up for some Irish pub fare
    Kelly, Ashley, and Grace up for some Irish pub fare
    Me, Katie, and Jo--not discussing our male waiter's crocks.
    Me, Katie, and Jo--not discussing our male waiter's crocks.
    Grace, Ashley, and Johanna getting ready to hit Vail Village.
    Grace, Ashley, and Johanna getting ready to hit Vail Village.
    Gorgeous arcitecture!
    Gorgeous arcitecture!
    Takin' a break!
    Takin' a break!
    Love the covered bridges. So beautiful!
    Love the covered bridges. So beautiful!
    The Betty Ford Garden - the flowers weren't what I expected, but the waterfalls were so cool
    The Betty Ford Garden - the flowers weren't what I expected, but the waterfalls were so cool
    My dream home. Doesn't it look like a fairy tale house?
    My dream home. Doesn't it look like a fairy tale house?

    Wishing I was back in Vail until next time. -LJ

    In honor of tomorrow!

    So tomorrow is a big day for me! I get to meet Brandon Heath. Finally! 🙂 If all goes as planned.

    Huge shout outs to Lauren and Ashley for making it happen. These girls are amazing!

    In honor of Brandon and his concert/retreat at the Glen, I’m happy to present the video for his 3rd number 1 hit. Congrats, Brandon! Looking forward to many more.

    Teaser Tuesday – Before the Season Ends

    teaser_tuesdays1MizB of Should Be Reading hosts the Teaser Tuesdays weekly event

    Here are the rules:
    * Grab your current read
    * Let the book fall open to a random page
    * Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12
    *You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!
    * Please avoid spoilers!

    This week’s teaser is:
    “She looked very pretty in full evening dress with the long, empire-waisted white gown and matching white gloves that reached her elbows. Her hair was done high and upon her head and she was standing, with a small smile upon her mouth, looking at Mr. Mornay as if he were an angel.”
    pg. 97 – Before the Season Ends by Linore Rose Burkard

    – I’m 40 pages into this book and still not sure what I think of it. It’s so different from anything I’ve read in a long while. It breaks all the rules of modern writing, using omniscient point of view (that’s head-hopping for all you non-writers out there) and the detail to action ratio is higher than anyone I’ve read in recent years. Yet there’s something compelling about the heroine. I look forward to seeing how it all works out.

    beforetheseasonends

    Friday Favorite – Friday Nights on USA

    I love Friday nights on USA! Especially with the start of the new seasons of Monk and Psych.

    This is Monk’s final season, and I’m really going to miss the OCD detective. If you’ve been hiding under a rock for the last 8 years, you probably don’t know that Tony Shalhoub has been nominated for an Emmy for his role as Adrian Monk nearly every year since the show started. You might remember Tony as the taxi driver from Wings.

    Anyway, our dear detective has been solving crimes against all odds–like having to leave his house–for 8 seasons. What I really love about the show is that I always know who the killer is. I mean, usually it’s revealed early on, so the enjoyment of the show is all about how Monk will figure it out. The crimes are really creative, and for a suspense writer, it’s a great way to stretch my brainstorming.

    monk

    Directly following Monk is Psych–pretty much the funniest fake-psychic detective show, ever! Shawn Spencer’s dad was a detective for the Santa Barbara Police Department, and he taught Shawn to pay attention. To everything! Shawn has honed his photographic memory and makes a fantastic detective.

    Problem is Shawn doesn’t want to be a detective. So he and his best friend Gus (played by none other than Dule Hill!) have opened Psych–the psychic detective agency of choice for the SBPD–with Shawn as the psychic. Gus is a rather reluctant partner, after all he has a day job as a pharmacutical salesman. The way these two play off each other is so funny! And the one-liner zingers they toss back and forth are hilarious. Stir in a little unrequited love from Shawn to detective Juliet O’Hara, and it’s the perfect show! I laugh. I cry (because I’m laughing so hard). It’s a beautiful thing. And it doesn’t hurt that I have a little crush on Shawn.

    psych

    I do love Friday nights on USA. Hoping you’ll tune in next week, too. 🙂 Until next time. -LJ

    Booksigning at B&N in Colorado Springs

    Just wanted to give a huge shout out to my great friends (both new and old) in Colorado Springs who made my booksigning on Saturday at the Barnes and Noble in Colorado Springs such a big success. We had a great time, and the lady at Barnes and Noble, Mary, was delighted with the turnout. We sold about 25 books, which isn’t too shabby at all.

    A couple pictures from the event for you to enjoy (or make fun of).

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    Me and my good friend Johanna!

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    Me and my two roommates–Tracy and Amy.

    Huge thanks to Amy who stuck with me the whole time and brought me some water. Thanks, friend!

    Teaser Tuesdays – Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

    teaser_tuesdays1MizB of Should Be Reading hosts the Teaser Tuesdays weekly event

    Here are the rules:
    * Grab your current read
    * Let the book fall open to a random page
    * Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12
    *You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!
    * Please avoid spoilers!

    This week’s teaser is:
    “The worst had not happened yet: Voldemort was not here. He was, Harry knew, for he was fighting to resist the vision, in some strange, fortresslike place, at the top of a tower.”
    pg. 455 – Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling

    – I’ve succumbed to my whims and have decided to reread some books that I haven’t read in a long time. After seeing the 6th Harry Potter movie, I was so in the mood for the 7th book. And so I have begun rereading it. I’m loving it! Again!

    harry-potter-and-the-deathly-hallows1

    Friday Favorite – Less Than Perfect

    So a couple months ago Katie and Stephanie informed me that there was a show I just had to watch. It stars Zachary Levi (of Chuck fame). Being a fan of Mr. Levi, I decided I’d give it a try. Trouble is, it’s not available on dvd. But then they informed me that Lifetime is airing reruns of the show.

    Thus Less Than Perfect entered my life. With a little help from my dvr, I’ve made it through the first three seasons, and sure enough, it’s a hoot!

    less-than-perfect

    Less Than Perfect stars Sara Rue as Claude Casey, a young temp at GNB, who ends up getting the prime spot as the assistant to Will Butler (played by Eric Roberts, who is actually Julia Roberts’ brother. Who knew?). Will is the on-air talent of the tv station, and everyone wants the job that he offers to Claude.

    Claude shares an office with Kipp, our insatiable Mr. Levi, who is an absolute hoot! He’s so funny as the snobby guyzachary-levi-2 who’ll do anything to get ahead. Kipp’s best friend in the office is Lydia (Andrea Parker from The Pretender), who wants to marry rich and will do anything to be rich. Add in goofy characters played by Sherri Shepherd and Andy Dick, and it’s a free-for-all laugh-fest.

    I think my favorite part of the show is the witty one-liners that Claude and Kipp offer. For example:
    Kipp: Hurry! Quick, quick, quick quick, quick!
    Lydia: Are they coming?
    Kipp: No, it’s just really creepy down here. Somebody brought a lunch from home! 

    or

    Lydia: Your scent is supposed to linger, not change global weather patterns. 

    Just so funny! If you’re up at 7am and looking for something to watch, I definitely recommend Less Than Perfect.

    Thanking Lifetime for airing such a great show until next time. -LJ