The latest

I basically spent the entire weekend staring at my laptop, alternating between doing revisions on a manuscript and obsessively trying to figure out what happened to that damn Malaysian Airlines flight. I get like this sometimes.

I like doing revisions. I like them, first of all, because I'm narcissistic and I enjoy re-reading my own work. I mean, you know, it's good to read something you wrote six months or a year ago with a fresh set of eyes and get a sense for what worked and what didn't.

I like doing revisions, second of all, because it means an editor is interested enough in a manuscript to ask for them. That's exciting for obvious reasons. Gotta have irons in the fire.

I like them, third of all, because editors tend to have pretty good ideas about how to make a manuscript better. Despite my narcissism, I tend to hold children's book editors in pretty high esteem. As long as it's still ultimately all about me.

I did manage to go for a run in the park on Friday evening (in daylight!), have brunch with Jennifer at Nice Matin on Saturday morning, buy paint at the hardware store with Samuel on Saturday afternoon, walk the dogs to the deli with Ethan on Saturday night, go for another run this afternoon, and have a sushi dinner with Jennifer a few hours ago at Haru.

The biggest non-Todd news over the past week:

Samuel got new 3D virtual reality goggles called Oculus Rift. He was up until 3am last night. Of course, now, at midnight on Sunday night, he's frantically trying to finish his homework for tomorrow morning.

Also, we finally got rid of our shabby old dining table that we've had since 1990--it was so shabby that when we put it outside by the curb, no one took it. We replaced it with an antique Arts and Crafts oak table that looks great with our Mission chairs. Every fifteen minutes I walk through the living room and remove whatever books or coats or bags or papers have been placed on the table by family members who are not as enamored of it as I am. Ah.