Danielle Steel's Blog, page 36

4/18/16, Internet Manners

Hi Everyone,

I recently had an experience, which I wanted to share. Times have changed with modern communications. Most people don’t write letters anymore, they send texts and emails. I miss the fine art of letter writing. I love books with love letters in them, or funny letters. Writing a great letter used to be an art, which almost no one bothers with anymore. Some people worked hard on the letters they sent, and I’ve always loved books which include letters, and am sorry letters have gone by the wayside. It’s a lost art now. And text and email is certainly faster and often more convenient, though less eloquent and less elegant. My agent writes some wonderful letters, and I always admire the elegance with which he can turn a phrase!!! My own letter writing is a little rusty these days. Who has time to write a great letter? Most of us don’t.

And a definite downside of sending emails or texts is that people don’t take the time to measure their words, or even control their emotions. Nothing brings greater relief when you’re angry than firing off a furious letter to the person who has offended you in some way. But in days gone by, people would write an angry letter, and put it aside, think about it, edit it, maybe soften it a little, or not send it at all. A letter gave you time to think and weigh your response before you sent it. An email is an immediate response or reaction, you can write a white hot furious email of reaction, hit ‘Send’, and instant gratification: you can drop a verbal bomb on someone within seconds. BUT that’s not always so wise. There is no cooling off period with email, no time to think or reconsider, you can nuke someone who pissed you off instantly!! It may feel good for a minute, but it’s not always the smart, or even the right, thing to do. It encourages people to be impulsive and sometimes over react. And once the email is out there, it’s too late to do anything about it once you calm down.

The other feature I don’t like about angry emails is that there is a great anonymity and facelessness about the Internet. As useful as it is in many ways, and as much really helpful information we can learn from it, it is also fertile ground for bullies and cowards to write some really appalling emails to people in the stealth of darkness and anonymity—–and with that protection, some people really go nuts and write some shockingly vicious stuff to other people anonymously. I don’t think that’s a good thing. If you’re going to be nasty, you should at least have the guts to own it, not slither around in the shadows.

I recently had an email from someone who didn’t like something I said in a book. They assumed my opinion (incorrectly), didn’t like my point of view, and unleashed an amazingly nasty email on me, and rounded up a bunch of their “internet friends” to also dump all over me. What I received was a slew of the nastiest, rudest, most insulting, inappropriate emails I have ever seen. Unseen, unknown, they felt safe being as rude as they could be, with safety in numbers to be even ruder as a group, calling me names, etc. It was shocking and unnecessary—-but the Internet opens the door to that, people seem to feel remarkably free to be as rude as they want by email under the cover of anonymity. Good manners no longer apply, anonymity carries the day, and some people feel entirely free to be as violent, threatening and aggressive as they want to, and the rules of correspondence, reason, or basic courtesy don’t even apply. We live in a violent world unfortunately, and that kind of no holds barred free form, violence and hostility seems like a very bad thing to me. We should at least be polite to each other, no matter how angry we are. I was shocked at the emails I got and the nastiness that group of people thought was okay, the terrible manners, and the violence of their words. It really was shocking. And it reminded me that good manners still need to apply, and common courtesy. Emails shouldn’t be a license for people to treat others with disrespect. I am all for writing a well worded letter of displeasure, but rounding up a bunch of angry strangers for a lynch mob to verbally assault you and beat you to a pulp lacks elegance and decency, to say the least. I don’t think the internet should be an excuse for people to be rude to others.

It’s something to think about. We all owe each other courtesy, respect, and good manners…..whether on a post card, in a letter, an email or a text. And sometimes the old manners and standards for decent behaviour to our fellow man really are best!!!

love, Danielle

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4/11/16, Fun Evening

Hi Everyone,

I hope that all is well with you, and relatively peaceful. We seem to be marching into Spring. I had such a fun evening recently that I had to share it with you!!!

A friend invited me to the Symphony, which was very tempting. I’ve been writing a lot lately, there has been so much unrest around the world, which touched close to home for me. I hesitated before accepting, I had a book to edit, and also because I work so hard, and keep such late hours when I’m writing that if you put me in a dark place, movies, symphony, theater, ballet, I fall asleep in the first five minutes, especially with good music!! I’m usually not a big symphony-goer, and prefer theater and movies, but the invitation was so nice and so unexpected that I decided to go. So I accepted and off I went, and it felt like a real treat to be “out in the world” and not working at night for a change. I was expecting serious classical music, and had a terrific surprise when I got there. The performance that night was a showing of the movie “E.T.”, which I hadn’t seen since it came out, but loved then—-they were showing the movie at the symphony and the whole philharmonic orchestra was going to play the music score. What a fantastic idea, and instead of the serious crowd of classical music lovers, the audience was filled with young people, families and kids—-right up my alley, and it seemed like so much fun!!! Everyone was in a great mood.

I loved the movie…ET, phone home….the whole thing is so sweet, Drew Barrymore was an adorable little girl then, and I totally enjoyed it. The music wasn’t distracting, and it added depth to the movie. And I thought it was brilliant of them to show something that the masses can enjoy, and a less sophisticated audience, and make it appealing to everyone. I didn’t even fall asleep, I loved it so much and had so much fun!! It was a totally unexpected evening and a real treat, and I LOVED the concept of a popular movie with the philharmonic orchestra playing the score in full force. It was fantastic and the most fun I’ve had in a long time. It was a real gift from the friend who took me, and I had a ball!!! If they do something like that again, I will run to be there!! I can think of so many movies where that would be fun, and it introduced a whole new group of people to the symphony who never would have gone otherwise….Pure genius and a really, REALLY fun time!!!Have a great week!

love, Danielle

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4/4/16, “Compassion”

Hi Everyone,

I hope that all is well with you. I’m having a serious moment. When very serious or bad things happen, it sometimes takes me a while to talk about them. I have to digest them first. And some things take longer than others. I am feeling rocked to the core by the act of terrorism that occurred in Brussels on March 22nd. Destruction of that nature is so huge, as an act, a message, and in its results, that it’s hard to get one’s mind around it. The recent acts of terrorism in Paris last November were like that, so shocking, such a wake up call (but to what?) that it sombered the city, the country, and the world, as we witnessed the events and the results on TV. There is something mesmerizing as well as heart breaking about events of that nature. You can’t tear yourself away from it once you start watching, as again and again you ask yourself why. And now it has happened again in Brussels, in Pakistan, in other countries, a steady stream of attacks on innocent people. And I have discovered now that as we read the statistics, we don’t fully understand what they mean. We read the death toll with horror and grief for the families and loved ones of those who died, and sadness and relief about the numbers of injured, thinking that at least they survived. But survival is no longer so simple with the kind of bombs and weapons that are used. And sometimes the event comes tragically close to home. This time it did for me and my family.

Among those wounded at the airport that was blown up in Brussels was a 16 year old member of my family, a young girl left in devastating condition, still alive, in a coma and hanging by a thread. Her body riddled with shrapnel and metal from the explosion, her internal organs damaged, limbs injured, her face and body burned. Suddenly this is not just news or a statistic or a video, or a political act that makes no sense. Suddenly it is a child, a loved one, family, and for some a friend. It becomes an act that is all too real and makes no sense. Women, children, babies, young people, men, their lives destroyed or forever affected by those who wish to deliver a message, an angry statement and hurt us by killing or injuring the people we love. It is shattering to think about, and not what we expect of our fellow humans, this wanton destruction of young lives, and even old ones. It truly makes no sense.

My heart aches as I share this with you. I have no message, no conclusion, no answers, no solutions. No idea how the world can turn back to something more civilized and humane again. I have never focused on politics personally or professionally. I care about people, families, children, the human race. I try to live and write about a message of hope, that transcends the hard things that happen to us. Losing someone we love is always hard to understand. But losing loved ones, or seeing them so devastatingly injured so needlessly, so wrongly, so cruelly and wastefully shocks us to our core. Not knowing what else to do, I turn to prayer at times like this, and I turn to you, baffled, saddened, crying, confused. How can this happen? How can something so wrong take place again and again, all over the world? As Mother Theresa said, “We cannot do great things, only small ones, with a great deal of love”. I pray for you, for your families and your loved ones, for your safety and well-being. I pray for wisdom in those who would hurt us, for compassion among all of us, for lives to be saved not lost. And I pray for the child of our family, that she may live and be whole again. I pray for your protection, for all our protection from acts of terrorism and hate. May there be more light and love and hope in the world.

With all my love, Danielle

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3/28/16, Robin Rocks!!

Hi Everyone,

I hope you had a lovely Easter, if that’s something you celebrate, or maybe even got to organize an Easter Egg Hunt, if you have little kids, or dyed some eggs in cool colors. This is the first year that I didn’t spend at least 2 weeks after Easter with purple, pink, red, green and blue fingers, from dyeing Easter eggs. I miss it!! That’s always so much fun. I had brunch with my children, which is how I like to spend it, a quiet, low key day, with an excuse to spend time with my kids. When I was a little kid, my parents gave a very fancy Easter brunch for their friends, everyone got very dressed up and there was dancing with a band. I used to dance with my father, which was fun for me, and my mother always wore a fabulous hat for Easter, the lunch they gave was very formal. She was very beautiful, and I always remember the gorgeous hats she wore. She had been a model, and was a very striking looking, remarkably beautiful woman all her life, and her hats were very glamourous!!! No one gets that dressed up for Easter anymore, but it was fun then.

I had THE MOST WONDERFUL experience a week ago. About once a year, if I’m very, very lucky, I get invited to be on Good Morning America, to promote one of my books, and the best part of it is being interviewed by Robin Roberts, who is truly one of THE NICEST people I’ve ever met. She exudes warmth and kindness, and is truly one of those people who just shines from within. She makes the guest feel totally at ease, warm and comfortable, and interviews you so kindly that she makes you feel ten feet tall, and so at ease you can put your best foot forward. Many interviewers have big egos, and the show is really more about them, and they are not particularly warm and cozy with their guests. Robin makes you feel like the most special person in the world. She is an absolutely beautiful woman, and she makes the whole experience fun and happy and exciting, you feel like a fairy princess for the minutes that you’re on.

The whole positive experience begins from the minute you arrive at the show, everything is set up to perfection, the producers are kind and welcoming, their assistants equally so, and then, there is the absolutely fantastic experience of sharing a few minutes with Robin. She makes every moment you are with her fun.

I had to be at the studio at 7:45 am, which is about a half hour from my hotel. So I had to leave the hotel on a snowy day at 7:15 am, and in order to be ‘camera ready’, the hair and makeup people came to my hotel at 4 am—-after I had just flown in the day before from Paris, so I looked and felt bleary eyed at 4am while getting my make up done. But by the time you get to the show, and stand in Robin’s remarkable aura, you no longer care how early you got up, how little sleep you had, how tired you are, it’s all worth it when you’re at the show with her!!!

I can’t say enough about Robin’s kindness, I have enjoyed the interview every time we’ve met, and I just hope I am lucky enough to see her again sometime soon. And until then, as my children would say, She ROCKS!!!! I just had to share that with you!!!

love, Danielle

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3/21/16, Resurrected, Refreshed, Reborn

Hi Everyone,

I hope that all is well with you. Unless one has young, school age children, or is religious, I know that the Easter holiday isn’t always a big event in the States. It’s a bigger deal in Europe, in the Catholic countries, where everyone has Good Friday and Good Monday off, so it becomes at least a 4 day weekend. My two youngest children attended a Jesuit university in the US, and even there they didn’t get Good Friday or Monday off, and it was just a normal weekend. And although religion has always been an important part of my life, it’s a very personal choice, and I don’t press it on my readers. For both family and religious reasons, I love everything about Christmas and what it stands for, and getting my family together for Christmas. And although we enjoy Easter too, I think that the symbolism of Easter is an important one, whether one is religious or not. The essence of Easter, and the ‘high point’, the whole point, is ‘resurrection’, the rebirth, the rising from the ashes, from an extremely dark time, into rebirth and renewal. I cherish the reminder every year, and love to share it with you, while I remind myself of what it means.

We ALL have dark times in our lives. I don’t know a single person who hasn’t had them. Some people are very lucky, and nothing too shockingly awful has happened to them. But for most of us, we’ve taken some hard hits in our lives: the loss of people we love, the passing of our parents, the loss of a child, or a best friend, or a failed marriage and divorce, the loss of a job we counted on, or some really shocking blow that left us reeling from a loss or a betrayal. I’ve had my share, and probably you have too. It is a common bond we all share, the loss of my son to suicide at 19, the loss of two marriages I cherished, some bumps in my work life, the betrayal of a friend, an embezzlement I experienced several years ago from one of my most trusted employees. I worry about my kids, myself, my life, our health, my kids’ happiness, our home. We’ve all had some disappointments, and life can look pretty dark for a time, while you struggle through it. Sometimes, it looks so dark, you can’t even see the tunnel, let alone a light at the end of it. I’ve been there, and I write about it. And I’m sure you’ve been there too. And what I LOVE about Resurrection, whatever your beliefs, is that it is a reminder that not only will you make it through the tunnel, but that sometimes after one of those dark times, the light at the end of the tunnel is so bright, it’s almost blinding—–the reminder that you will be revived and reborn and renewed and refreshed and come out of it stronger than ever. Wow!! I LOVE that!! Not only can we survive the dark times, but we can rise above them, and recover from them. We can be better than ever. What could be better?

I’ve watched my kids go through hard times too, at every age, small problems when they were younger, and real life challenges as they get older: a divorce at the end of heartbreak, physical challenges, the loss of their brother, the death of their father, my late ex-husband who was a wonderful person we all loved. They didn’t always get the jobs they wanted, or into their first choice colleges, they’ve had breakups with their partners, lost pets they loved, and several of them have lost friends to accidents or illness. No one is exempt from hard times and dark times…..and just as I have seen in my own life, I have watched my children come through these dark challenges, struggle to their feet and rise again, with a feeling of rebirth and renewal, and find the strength and courage to come out of the pain of a dark time, and feel resurrected into a new phase, to go on with hope again. Resurrection is a powerful force and phenomenon or us all, and a great thing to remember while we go through the tough stuff. And every year, with Easter, we get the reminder again that life is not about crucifixion and suffering, although that’s part of it—-but even more importantly, life is about resurrection into hope and newness of life again. We get to heal, and walk away from the hard times. We have a chance to be resurrected from whatever challenge we’ve been through. It is the essence of hope.

What I wish for you, as I always do, is resurrection and renewal, recovery, healing, rebirth…..and the revival of hope in your heart again. May you feel resurrected, and may you feel brand new and alive again. And may hope be born in your heart again, and again, and again.

love, Danielle

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3/14/16, Hermes/Chanel

Hi Everyone,

I hope everyone is fine, doing well, and enjoying some decent weather somewhere. I am ready for some warmer spring weather, but not finding it in any of the cities where I live. When is winter going to be over? (I’ve seen snow in Paris twice recently, some big gorgeous lacy snowflakes. And several days of hail!!). Spring soon please!!!

In the meantime, this is the time of year, when I get to indulge my frivolous side with the ready to wear fashion shows. And they are fun!! I reported on the Celine show last week, which was very ‘fashion’, as the French say, much of it oversized and avant garde, which makes it not so easy to wear, but looks great on the right people.

The next fashion show I went to was the Hermes show, a distinguished, very elegant brand, best known for its leather goods: handbags and shoes (they even make gorgeous saddles for horses, and are also famous for their elegant riding gear and equipment). Their handbags are the most coveted and desirable in the world, with their 2 most famous styles of handbags being the Kelly, made famous by Grace Kelly, Princess Grace of Monaco, and the Birkin bag, made famous by the model Jane Birkin. Those two bags are the most desired in the world, sometimes with a very long waiting list to obtain them, and with astounding resale value at auction. Hermes limits the number of bags sold, and people sometimes wait several years for either of those styles in the size or color they want them. They are an enormous status symbol worldwide in the world of luxury goods. An Hermes bag is a sure way to a woman’s heart!!! In addition to their famous bags, they make beautiful silk scarves, men’s and women’s clothing (some incredible alligator coats and jackets). They make household objects as well. And they have had a new women’s clothing designer for the past year. Their fashion show was at the stables of the police cavalry, in a beautiful old building, with the inner space decorated with lacquer stages, with the models walking around them, in simple wool clothing for the most part, in soft neutral colors. It was a very pretty show, attended mostly by the fashion press, and store buyers. Only twenty major clients were invited, among them Kris (Kardashian) Jenner, whom I sat next to, and enjoyed meeting immensely. She is a lovely, warm, very appealing person, and I thoroughly enjoyed chatting with her during the show.

The Hermes fashion show was very much in keeping with their image, of subtle, downplayed, muted, very simple elegance, which is the essence of their style, and the look of their clients.

In contrast, the Chanel show the next day, at the Grand Palais, a very grand Victorian glass structure, was all about bells and whistles, a huge crowd (at a guess, about 800 people were there. maybe more?) It was like the equivalent of an ultra elaborate wedding cake, with a million moving parts, and an extravaganza in every possible way. The crowd that attends a Chanel ready to wear show is a spectacle in itself. Russian beauties, Chinese starlets, fashionistas and fashion victims, along with store buyers and press—most of them having piled on as much Chanel clothing as they can get on one body, with a multitude of Chanel accessories. There are some wild and crazy outfits at the show. People go to be seen, as well as to see the clothes on the runway, and many of them slide over the frontier from chic or fashionable to outlandish, in crazy hats, huge glasses, and transvestites in women’s Chanel clothing. The decors are always remarkable: everything from a fantasy bistro to a fantasy supermarket and casino in recent years. Today was a huge, simplified version of the old salons where haute couture used to be shown years ago. The glass roof of the Grand Palais above, beige and mirrored walls, endless rows of ballroom chairs, providing aisles for the models to walk through. And the models were all very beautiful. The abundance of clothes shown at a Chanel show is striking in itself. Most ready to wear designers today show between 30 and 40 ‘looks’ on the runway. Chanel is bigger and more and over the top in the number of looks as well, showing close to a hundred looks, 95 in today’s show. And in sharp contrast to the simple, stark, oversimplified look of the clothes at Hermes the day before, or Celine on Sunday, they “laid it on thick” on the runway too. Colors of the clothing were bright in hot pinks, reds, oranges, purples, lavendars, black and white, with each jacket topped with a hat (kind of a modified slightly flattened bowler hat), sweaters, jackets, belts, clutch bags, dozens of necklaces on each girl and many bracelets. There was so much going on, both on and off the runway that it was somewhat dizzying. There were clothes I knew I probably would have liked, but I would need to pare them down a little to really see what’s there and if they suited me. And as crazy as it all seems and must sound, it’s Chanel’s look right now in the land of “A lot/maybe too much”, which all contributes to the spectacle and look of the show. And at the end of the show, as always, out came fabulous, genius, endlessly energetic, and incredibly talented 84 year old Karl Lagerfeld, the designer, to take his bow for yet another spectacular collection, which is a tour de force and totally unique. It is definitely a show worth seeing and a full experience and feast for the senses. And when it’s over, you wend your way through the hundreds of invited participants inside the building, and an army of people waiting outside in some crazy costumes. The whole experience has the feel of a 100 person band playing the music as loudly as they can, and not always playing the same tune!! But it is exciting and alive and fun to see.

The contrast between each show, and each designer, makes it all that much more fun!! I am always in awe of Karl Lagerfeld’s genius, creativity, boundless energy and talent, and I’m always glad I went!!

So that’s the report from Paris. Going to the fashion shows is fun and different every time, whatever the fashion of the moment!! Have a great week!!! (I’m already back at my typewriter!! with the fantasy mood of fashion week already behind me),

love, Danielle

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3/7/16, Paris Fashion

Hi Everyone,

Thank you for your patience with me, after weeks of writing, (and a few days off for a bad cold), I’ve surfaced and am back in the human race, although not for long. I’m just taking a short break, and then will go back to writing again. But in the meantime, I’ve had some time to enjoy some of my children visiting me. I always feel lucky to share time with them!!!

I got my nose out of my typewriter just in time for Paris Fashion Week: the big ready to wear shows in Paris that highlight fashions for next fall/winter. And the fashion world is buzzing with gossip these days, after a number of recent changes. The House of Dior parted company with their designer recently, and is looking for a new one to design ready to wear and haute couture, that’s a mammoth job, doing both, with several collections a year. Lanvin parted company with their designer too and are also looking for a new one. The designer at Saint Laurent is also leaving. There are rumors that Karl Lagerfeld might retire from Chanel next summer, which will be major fashion news if that happens (I hope it doesn’t!! I want Karl to stay where he is forever. He’s too good to lose!!). And there are always rumors about the other houses and designers, trying to guess who might be leaving. So fashion is a game of musical chairs these days. So this is a slightly unsettled season. It was also the first fashion week since the attacks in Paris last November, and I think many Americans were afraid to come to Paris, because the crowds were a little thinner than usual. But the city put their best foot forward, and there is a great deal of security everywhere in Paris now, at every fashion show, and in every store, bags are opened and the contents checked, wands to check for metal or weapons are in use, and there are a lot of security guards in evidence, which is all a good thing and reassuring.

I began my fashion week at the Celine fashion show in a tennis club in the park, at lunchtime on Sunday. Their show is always held there, and we sat in bleacher rows as all the notables of fashion walked in. The Queen herself: Anna Wintour, the Editor in Chief of Vogue, with her signature bobbed hair, and dark glasses—-looking glamourous and beautifully put together on Sunday morning with sparkles on what she was wearing., Grace Coddington, also an editor of Vogue with her signature mane of flaming red hair, sat down in the same row as Anna Wintour and the American Ambassador to Paris, Jane Hartley, sat a few seats down, with Wendy Murdoch between them. People are there to see what’s coming up in fashion for next season—-the stores then order the clothes in advance and we’ll see them in stores next fall. But first, all the fanfare of the fashion show. The show began with the usual beautiful models (mostly in their late teens) pounding down the runway in flowing but clinging dresses, cocoon shaped jackets and coats, comfortable looking sandals and footwear, some belted coats, some very fluid looking dresses, everything beautifully made, and exciting to see coming down the runway. I will admit that I felt most of it would look great on my daughters, but less so on me. It really wasn’t my look, and was a little more fashion forward than what I can get away with. I tend to wear more classic clothes, and less avant garde. But Phoebe Philo the designer at Celine has a fantastic eye and sense of fashion, and it’s exciting to see what she produces. My daughters went to the show with me and loved it. Lots of whites and earth tones, some gold, and some striking pieces in black. And everyone was talking about how great the collection was when they left. We really enjoyed it, and it’s always an honor to be there, since the event is invitation only, and mostly attended by buyers and the fashion press. With a smattering of celebrities and movie stars thrown in for good measure.

It was all very fun to see, and fashion week isn’t over yet. There will be lots more shows to see and comments to make, and guesses about which designers will be going to work where, and which designer had the best show. The hubbub was tremendous as always, and we all left having gotten a bird’s eye view of what lay ahead. Stay tuned…..more shows to come!!!

love, Danielle

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2/29/16, Happy Leap Year

Hi Everyone,

I hope it’s been a good week since I last wrote to you!! Today is leap year—or is it Leap Day?

I’m sure there is some very adult, astral explanation for why we get an extra day on our calendar once every four years. But the only one I’ve ever known is that on leap year, on the 29th of February, a woman can propose (marriage) to a man and she doesn’t have to wait for him to come up with the idea!!! Now I’m not entirely clear if a woman can only propose on February 29th, or does she get a pass to do it all year on a leap year? I suppose we could stretch the rules on that one!!! Why not? And get a pass all year!!! It’s interesting that, no matter how modern we’ve become, how feminist, or liberated, it still seems to be the tradition in traditional couples that a man is supposed to propose, and a woman is supposed to wait till he does, and I think even modern women stick with that tradition. I’ve never known a woman who proposed marriage to a man, but I’m sure there are some out there who have!! And proposals, among any and all couples of all sexes, are a BIG deal and a lot of planning goes into them, when and how, in what meaningful location, what special day, it’s a very important moment in one’s life and a memorable day. Some proposals are a big surprise, and unexpected, in other cases, the one being proposed to suspects it’s coming, but may not know exactly when. The current generation has an aversion to being ‘cheesy’. I was proposed to twice on Valentine’s Day and loved it, but when I’ve suggested it to younger friends, they make a horrible face and think that’s a terrible idea. Actually, several of the recent proposals I’ve heard about of people in their 30’s happened outdoors on a walk or a hike, which is nice for people who like the outdoors. Valentine’s Day at a dinner table (or in one case, at a fancy lunch) was more my style—I wouldn’t want to have to hike up a mountain to get engaged!!!

Which brings us back to leap day. If your true love didn’t propose on Valentine’s Day, if you’re a woman and holding back for that reason, you have a perfect opportunity on Leap Day!!! I think the Irish are very big on Leap Day. I’m not sure if they started the tradition or just enjoy it. There is a very cute romantic comedy called “Leap Year” with Amy Adams and Matthew Goode, (and yes, okay, it might qualify as a chick flick), about a Leap Year/Leap Day proposal. It’s a sweet movie and I really like it. I love romantic comedies when I just want to relax.

I’m not sure I’d have the courage to propose to a man, but who knows, maybe I would in the right circumstances (not on a hike though!!). And as much as some people are skittish about marriage these days, and either wait longer than they used to, or don’t do it at all, people still do get married, in all kinds of combinations and configurations, and The Proposal remains a major event in one’s life. So if Valentine’s Day didn’t pan out this year, then go for the Leap Year window of opportunity, and if you miss Leap Day, you can have a pass all year!! Whatever works, and whatever makes you happy. And for those of you brave enough to try it, Hurray!!! And good luck!!

I hope it works out just the way you want it to.

love, Danielle

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2/22/16, Busy Dizzy

Hi Everyone,

I hope you’re all well, and that good things are happening. I’m sorry I was a no-show last week, but I was busy writing, up to my ears in a new book. And I try not to do anything else when I’m writing. If I stop to do other things, it’s hard to get back into the story.

I’m not sure why but this has been a BUSY month. Travelling, flying, we celebrated my youngest son’s birthday, one of my kids was sick so I was worried about that but she’s fine now. Lots of projects as well as writing, and just keeping up with life. Some times are busier than others. And sometimes it’s just hard to keep up!!!

I’m always exploring other projects, like possibly putting some of my work or books on TV again. TV is so exciting now, with so many interesting shows on, and series that people love. So it’s interesting to check that out. At some point, maybe I’ll jump back into that pool, but I’m very busy with the books right now, especially publishing 6 books a year!!!. Blue, my new hardcover, came out and has been doing wonderfully. I hope you’ll read it if you haven’t yet!!! And I’ve been working on some new stories.

We all survived Valentine’s Day, and I hope yours was great!! I worked all day, and had dinner with one of my kids and a few friends, so it was friendly and warm, which was good enough and then I went back to work. We all exchanged silly presents, and ate a lot of chocolate!!! Any holiday that celebrates with large amounts of chocolate is a good one!!!

My daughters in fashion worked hard on Fashion Week in New York. The shows looked great and I was sorry to miss them. And Paris Fashion Week is coming up soon.

I’ve been sticking close to my typewriter so I get cut off from the world when I do, but I’ll be up and running, back in the world, and doing fun things soon. Stay tuned, and thank you for your patience!!

Much love, Danielle

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2/15/16, Busy Writing!

I’m working hard on a new book, so have a wonderful week and check back with me next Monday!

love, Danielle

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