Thai Food Tastes Funny

When we were in Salt Lake visiting my brother, Scott, we went to a Thai restaurant. I ordered this noodle mushroom thing that even Mom thought looked good, but when it came, I couldn't eat it. She tried a bite and coughed, then asked the waitress if it could be exchanged. The waitress said in her Thai accent that on the menu it said it had jalapeno peppers in it.

I ate some of my little brother's sweet and sour orange chicken.

Then the waitress came back and said they'd make a different noodle dish for me.

I still didn't like it.

Mom boxed it up and shared it with my brothers, one of who has spent time with Cambodians, and thought it was pretty tasty.

I'll have a bacon burger, thank you.

Tropical Christmas

Well, it wasn't exactly a tropical Christmas, but we got to go to St. George where my brother lives for Christmas. I got an external hard drive to save my writing on, AND I got five new book ideas. I wish I could just plug my brain into my computer and have the stories download just like I picture them in my head.

Come on, someone, get with that technology, okay? Then let me know as soon as it's invented!

Slippin' Away

Mom tried driving in the snow yesterday. She got stuck in the driveway. I tried to get her to rock the car so I could push her out, but she didn't quite get it, so we had to get my big brother Zack to do it. Then Mom flipped a U-ey while coming home from church and got stuck in the slush. Zack and I got her car out and brought it home, then when she was going somewhere else, our 70-year-old next door neighbor had to push her car to get her unstuck.
It's a good thing I'm in the driver's ed car this week so I can my license and drive her wherever she needs to go.

Saving Mom's car

Mom took me to Emery County, Utah, for some school visits. I talked so much I wasn't sure I could talk again, but it was fun.

On our way home, we drove over Fairview Canyon instead of going around through Salina. It was shorter, but it also was more dangerous when Mom went around a curve and hit a rock. It scraped along the ground and she yelled, "Oh, no, I broke the car, I broke the car!"

"Mom, pull over," I said. I told her to turn off the engine and set the emergency brake, then I crawled under the car and pulled out a big, square rock that had fallen off the mountain. A lady stopped and drove Mom to a tow truck place while I stayed with the car. A truck drove by, slowed, took a look at the big puddle of oil running down the canyon road like dark blood, and sped up to leave me behind.

We got towed to a garage and Dad came and got us.

Mom says I saved the day.

I don't know about the day, but I'm pretty sure I saved her car engine.

Drink Faster

Warning: Sometimes when you want to do something funny to someone else, and it ends up back on you. For example, when my little brother was drinking out of a water bottle, I reached over and squeezed the bottle, saying, "Drink faster!" He started laughing, which broke the seal around his mouth, and sprayed water all over him, and me.

I'm not saying I deserved it, but still.

I went to the grand opening of a bookstore in Eagle Mountain called, "Dragons and Fairy Tales." There were a lot of people there, and I did a reading and signed lots of books. I also got to visit Hidden Hollow Elementary, where we had problems with my power point pictures going backwards, but I talked around it and it worked out.

Then I did a presentation at Gunnison High School for Career Day as a writer. It was fun.

Next week, we're going to Ferron, Utah, to visit schools. I'm looking forward to it.

And I won't be drinking from any water bottles my brother can reach, just in case.

Mom said I had to let you know

This lady at my dad's work bought a copy of my book for her granddaughter. When her OTHER granddaughter saw it, she said she wanted a copy. It seems that ever since I visited her school, she likes to read, where before that, she didn't.
Mom said I was inspiring.
Whatever.
(Okay, Mom, can I have dinner now?)

Fish Can Be Harmful to Your Health

I had a good time at Logan's school visits, book signing (on a snowy, snowy night!) and the Bone Warriors book reading. But the most exciting thing is that I got a new laptop. What is interesting is that my old laptop barely let me get my new book off it before it shut down. I still have notes on there for other books, so we may have to take it into a computer shop or something to try and get those off. All I can say is, it was time for a new laptop!

Apparently I'm better at traveling and speaking than being at home, because when I was carrying a jug downstairs to fill with water for my fish tank, I fell, somehow tearing the flesh pad off the bottom of my big toe. Dad took me in for stitches and I didn't go to school that day.

I got another thousand words done!