Jenyfer Matthews

It’s getting cold enough in Cairo that I can wear some of my winter clothes. Including my very favorite sweater of all time.

Dare I tell you how old my favorite sweater is? (14!) My sister bought it for me for Christmas (by request) the year I graduated from college. It was love at first sight. It was stylish and hip then, and like most really classic designs, it still is.

She bought it in a mall in Louisiana and I brought it along to Ohio and to North Carolina before packing it up and shipping it to the United Arab Emirates. Okay – not a real wintery place, but I thought it might get cold in the desert at night. (It does) Because of the fact that I have lived in such warm places, it gets worn infrequently and I *have* to lay it flat to dry because we don’t have a clothes dryer. Perhaps it has held up better than it might have over time because of these things.

It’s the color of oatmeal so it goes with nearly everything. And it has a fun dangly fringe along the bottom. It looks good layered and on its own. I can’t wait to see how it looks with my new shoes This isn’t all in my head – I still get compliments when I wear it.

I have to say that there are few pieces in my wardrobe that have had such longevity. Things either wear out or go out of style or I simply get tired of being seen wearing them. One benefit of moving so much is that I have an ever shifting audience so in my mind, my wardrobe feels “fresh” even when it’s not.

That last fact perhaps is in my mind. I was wearing the sweater recently when an American neighbor of mine complimented me on it. She kept looking at me and then said, “Did you get that sweater at {store name}? In the early 90s? My sister had one sort of like that.”

I guess if nothing else, the above encounter does demonstrate that it’s a sweater that definitely makes an impression!

Oh no…. I found another way to waste time while on the computer….. You can even make your own pictures!!!

So my plans for today included some Christmas shopping. Since I get around mostly on foot and I can never predict what exactly I’ll find in which shops, I have to get organized now. I’m feeling the pressure already and it’s not even December yet.

But the universe had other plans for me. I woke up to a refrigerator on the fritz – for the second time in two months. Though the fan was running and the light was on, the freezer wasn’t even cold enough to keep my bread frozen.

After an emergency evacuation of the costlier items in my freezer to a kindly neighbor’s apartment, I called housing and told them I needed a new fridge. They said okay – they would bring one on Sunday. Since it’s colder outside than in my fridge I told them that wasn’t good enough. They promised to try harder.

A repairman came and of course by then the fridge had recovered somewhat. I think it was the rocking blow I dealt it earlier on. Hey – it works for vending machines. The repairman only spoke Arabic so I couldn’t explain any of that to him. I simply smiled and nodded and sent him on his way. I did get a call saying my new fridge was on the way.

When this happened before, housing brought me a loaner fridge while they took mine for repairs. For any newcomers here, I live in a fourth floor walkup. Take a look at my stairs:

Since it seems ridiculous to keep taking the same fridge away to “fix” it, I hope the new one is actually new and will last a bit better. I’ll bet the housing guys do too!

In the meantime, since my plans for going out were shot, I did some shopping online. Made a fair bit of progress. It’s a good thing I didn’t buy my sister’s present in person or I would have kept it. I can’t tell you what it is because she might peek! (Sorry sis!) And you know that I had to get myself a present as well – not sure what the psychology is, but I seem to buy myself a pair of shoes every December and say they are from my mom.

Aren’t they gorgeous? (Thanks mom!) I’ll have to wait until January to get them because getting these shoes required some elaborate shipping and retrieval planning involving neighbors who are spending the holidays in the US, but I think they’ll be worth it!

Between frying my brain doing edits and writing blurbs, etc and the sudden flurry of holiday socializing that has already started, I have to admit I haven’t done any writing beyond my blog in more than a week. (Shame on me!) But I got a note from my editor over the weekend telling me that ALL THE WAY HOME is scheduled for release

So exciting! That news along with my gorgeous new cover makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Poor Aurora has been languishing for some time now, and she’s getting impatient for me to pick up her story again. It was just starting to get really, really good too. I’ll have to get back to that soon because the kids get out of school for three weeks starting December 19th and you *know* I won’t get much done at that point!!!

Normally, I wouldn’t set foot in a store the weekend after Thanksgiving. I broke that vow this year – but only because shopping at the Khan al-Khalili bazaar in Cairo is a very different experience than Black Friday at Walmart. And when a friend with a car and a driver offers to let you tag along, you don’t turn them down!

I didn’t actually buy all that much. Frankly, I was overwhelmed by the choices before me. Take a look at the pictures and you’ll understand:

An Aladdin’s cave of copper and brass EVERYTHING!

I thought that I was going to make it out of the bazaar with nothing more than lovely pictures when this table caught my eye. It’s a perfect little side table for those times when we have people over.

My very own Egyptian TV tray!

So I shopped, but I didn’t make much progress on my Christmas shopping this weekend. How about you?

Saw this on my way back from the grocery store early yesterday morning and couldn’t resist taking a picture (or two)

So sweet, aren’t they? I hope everyone enjoyed their meals and companions as much as these little ones.

The weather is turning cooler in Cairo. Cool enough that I’ve had to bring my laundry drying rack inside and run the room AC on “heat” so that the clothes will actually dry in a day. With a little boy as active and messy as mine, keeping up with the laundry is a must! Not exactly the height of room decor, but we do what we must.

I’ve started working in earnest on the Christmas quilts for my children – and it’s cold enough now that I’m actually looking forward to curling up under one in the evening while I quilt! Pictures coming soon.

Pomegranate season is drawing to a close but I’m happy to say that the strawberries are here. I haven’t made any juice yet – they don’t last long enough! Mandarin oranges too. So tasty.

I’ve recently discovered how to look at the search terms that lead people to my blog. The word “pomegranate” brings a lot so don’t be surprised if I toss that term in from time to time for no particular reason. So far my favorite search was “deliver bitches to Egypt”. Intriguing and inexplicable at the same time. I doubt that my blog was what they were looking for. Anyone have any suggestions as to what that might be though??

I almost hate to add a new post because I LOVE my new cover so much I want it to stay up top!

I spent most of last week with only myself for company as I madly finished the first edits for ALL THE WAY HOME and also prepared my quilts for the bazaars. This week will be no less hectic, though much more social.

Monday: brunch at my place for the mothers of the third graders at DD’s school (2 classes) I’m not totally crazy – it’s potluck! Volunteered for this back when this week looked mostly clear, LOL. Will make my no-fail chocolate cake, ever popular banana bread muffins, set out a cheese tray and provide beverages.

Tuesday: bazaar at local pre-school in morning, back-to-back parent-teacher conferences in late afternoon.

Wednesday: craft bazaar

Thursday: Thanksgiving. I am thankful for many things in my life but at the moment I am mostly thankful that we were invited to join a group of friends so I only need to contribute to the feast, not provide the entire thing myself!

Friday: COLLAPSE!

So if I’m not around much this week, you’ll know why. And see? I knew there was a reason I didn’t sign up for NaNo. I didn’t get anything new written last week and doubt there will be anything new this week either. One good thing is that my mind wanders while I quilt and Summer’s younger sister Skye has been revealing herself to me bit by bit. Getting a handle on how to tell her story – as soon as I finish up with Aurora.

What are you up to this week? Has the holiday craziness started for anyone else??

It’s been a hectic week but I’m happy to say that I finished the edits for my next book. This round anyway. I went through once to address comments and issues that my editor brought up and then read the entire manuscript again out loud, which is the best way I know to find all those pesky typos that multiply the minute I turn my back. I’m a little hoarse now, but at least I’m finished.

To celebrate, I thought I’d post MY NEW COVER (!!!) a blurb and an excerpt from ALL THE WAY HOME. I’ll update you on the release date when I know something.

BLURB:

Maggie and Sam grew up in the same town, knew each other in school, admired each other from afar, but never dated. She was just a little too straight and narrow for this bad boy. Now they’re all grown up and back in their hometown – she to deal with a family crisis, he to prove that he’s changed his ways. Neither can deny their attraction but they’re still at odds. She’s down on family life – can he be the one to convince her to settle down?

EXCERPT:

“Melanie! Where are you?” Maggie called as she stormed into the kitchen, letting the screen door slam behind her. Even the scent of freshly baked blueberry muffins didn’t soothe her temper.

“I’m here, hang on,” Melanie answered as she came down the stairs. “Where were you? I made breakfast for us.”

“I took the dog to the vet. By the way, did you know that Sam Callahan—Sam Callahan from high school—was the vet?” Maggie demanded.

Melanie didn’t bother to suppress a smile. “I did actually, yes.”

Maggie gaped at her. “Then why didn’t you tell me, for god’s sake? You could have at least warned me.”

“I thought it would be more fun this way,” Melanie answered. When she saw Maggie’s scowl, she laughed. “Oh my god, you don’t still have a crush on him do you?”

Maggie stared. “What are you talking about? I never had a crush on Sam.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“I was just surprised to see him. So surprised that I couldn’t remember how to speak properly and made a fool of myself.”

“Maggie at a loss for words, now there’s a first. You do still have a crush on him,” Melanie said as she retrieved two coffee mugs from the cupboard.

“I do not! And why are you saying ‘still’? Who said I ever did?” Maggie asked as she paced.

“Oh, come on, Maggie. I read your diary. Why else were you writing ‘Mrs. Maggie Callahan’ over and over and over?”

Maggie felt like she’d been hit with a brick for the second time that morning. “You read my diary? My private and personal diary? How could you?”

Melanie shrugged. “Isn’t that what little sisters are for?”

Maggie was so angry couldn’t speak. She left the kitchen and let the screen door slam behind her, stalking across the driveway back to her apartment over the garage.

Melanie followed her. “Come on, Maggie, it was years and years ago. Don’t be mad.”

“It may have been years ago but I only just found out that all of my private thoughts weren’t so private after all. So, did you have fun? Did you share them with all your friends?” Maggie fumed.

Melanie bit her lip. That told Maggie all she needed to know.

“Try to understand what it was like for me, Maggie. I was the little sister always two steps behind you. I just wanted to see what it was like to be grown up. I’m sorry if you feel like I invaded your privacy. I didn’t do it to hurt you.”

Maggie harrumphed. “Well, I guess it’s no good denying I had a crush on Sam. But ‘had’ is the operative word. As in past tense.”

Melanie held up her hands. “Okay, whatever you say. I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you about him. I never thought you would get so worked up about it. He’s still pretty hot, huh?”

Maggie only glared at her in reply.

Melanie moved toward the boxes that were still stacked up near the small bookshelf. “Hey, you didn’t unpack your books yet. Need some help?”

“What? Oh, no, thanks. I’ll do it later on sometime. I’m not really in the mood to read that stuff right now anyway.”

Melanie sat down in the reading chair. “Okay, now I know something is wrong. You don’t want to work? What gives?”

Maggie sighed and sank down on her bed. She closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. “I guess I’m just burned out at the moment. I’ve been working so hard to finish up my degree and have been focused so long on writing and then defending my dissertation that I just don’t even want to think about any of that stuff for a little while.”

“Are you saying that you don’t want to be a professor anymore?” Melanie asked incredulously. “It’s all you’ve been working for all these years.”

“What do you care? You always thought what I was doing was boring anyway,” Maggie replied.

“That’s not the point,” Melanie answered. “I can’t deny I couldn’t see the appeal of studying all those long dead artists and all the dull and dry history that went along with it—”

“Thanks a lot.”

“Let me finish. You obviously saw something in all that stuff that I didn’t. So why are you just tossing all that aside now? Do you want to just quit?”

“No, that’s not what I’m saying,” Maggie answered. She fell back and lay on the bed. “At least I don’t think that’s what I’m saying. Hell, I’m tired. I don’t know what I want to do anymore. But what I do not want to do is read those books. Not now anyway.”

“I have an idea.”

“This ought to be good,” Maggie muttered.

“Smart ass. I should just let you lie there and wallow,” Melanie said, preparing to leave.

Maggie sat up. “Okay, I’m sorry. What’s your idea?”

“Why don’t you paint? You were so good at it and it’s what got you interested in studying art in the first place. Why not get your hands dirty again? It might be just what you need to get over this rough spot.”

Maggie smiled. “You know, you’re pretty smart for a bratty little sister. Thanks.”

{…}

“Now let’s go eat, I’m starved. After breakfast, we’ll go to the library and get you a couple of big juicy romance novels. That should clear the cobwebs out,” Melanie said, wiggling her eyebrows.

“Sure,” Maggie answered half-heartedly. But she didn’t think she’d get any romance novels. That was the last thing she on her mind right now.

Join me at the Romance Junkies blog today. Leave a comment and you might just win a copy of my book, One Crazy Summer!

A little Wine, Sunshine Help Boost Women’s Health

“The data showed that, in comparison with the baseline period, consumption of both red and white wines increased serum [blood] HDL cholesterol (often called ‘good’ cholesterol), which suggests a cardio-protective effect,” said the report in the November issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.Add in the antioxidants from chocolate and this is a lifestyle I can truly embrace!