C. Leigh Purtill's Blog, page 17
August 21, 2009
Random Thoughts on a Friday
4 Surprising Things That Changed When I Got Older
1. I got taller. I swear. I used to be 5' 5". I remember my very first driver's license listed me as 5' 5". And now, many many many years later, I am 5' 7". For real. The good thing about this is that - apart from being taller which is AWESOME - when I start to shrink as a little old lady, I'll get back to my original height.
2. My hair got curly. I swear. I used to perm my hair when I was in high school - sometimes curly, sometimes wavy, s
1. I got taller. I swear. I used to be 5' 5". I remember my very first driver's license listed me as 5' 5". And now, many many many years later, I am 5' 7". For real. The good thing about this is that - apart from being taller which is AWESOME - when I start to shrink as a little old lady, I'll get back to my original height.
2. My hair got curly. I swear. I used to perm my hair when I was in high school - sometimes curly, sometimes wavy, s
August 18, 2009
Just tell me what to think
It's hard to think for yourself. It's hard to gather all of the evidence and form your own opinion. It's time-consuming and complex and usually involves sorting through political agendas and stripping away personal vendettas. It requires that you ask the difficult questions and be prepared to hear the uncomfortable answers.
Can't you just tell me what the answer is? Can't you make it easy for me, simplify all the issues, deliver it to me in sound bytes?
The problem with allowing other people to
Can't you just tell me what the answer is? Can't you make it easy for me, simplify all the issues, deliver it to me in sound bytes?
The problem with allowing other people to
August 14, 2009
Random Thoughts on a Friday
4 Questions I'm Asking Myself This Morning
1. Why did they let Squeaky Fromme out of prison? She tried to kill a President! She's only 60. That's not a life sentence.
2. How can I clone myself so I can be in 3 places at once? Not just two but 3. There's the Leigh who teaches dance, the Leigh who writes, and the Leigh who runs errands - and all 3 of them are busy these days.
3. Is the whole world really that interested in Jon & Kate's disintegrating marriage and the inevitable negative effect i
1. Why did they let Squeaky Fromme out of prison? She tried to kill a President! She's only 60. That's not a life sentence.
2. How can I clone myself so I can be in 3 places at once? Not just two but 3. There's the Leigh who teaches dance, the Leigh who writes, and the Leigh who runs errands - and all 3 of them are busy these days.
3. Is the whole world really that interested in Jon & Kate's disintegrating marriage and the inevitable negative effect i
August 11, 2009
Heehee, I won a book...
Check it out! I never win anything, I swear. I never enter contests or buy lottery tickets because I'm just not lucky that way. But thanks to Liviania's blog, In Bed with Books, I've won 2 books this year: John Marco's "Starfinder" and JK Rowling's "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows."
I think the key to winning both books (in separate contests) was not realizing I had entered. I follow Liviania's blog simply because I love her posts so I'm always there to read and comment.
Voila! We have a
I think the key to winning both books (in separate contests) was not realizing I had entered. I follow Liviania's blog simply because I love her posts so I'm always there to read and comment.
Voila! We have a
August 7, 2009
Random Thoughts on a Friday
4 Things I've Learned This Summer
1. They have monsoons in Arizona. I always associated "monsoon" with a tropical clime like Hawaii or the Fiji Islands. The word sounds so much more romantic than simply "thunderstorm." But when we visited in July to see my brother and his family, we actually witnessed one. Not very romantic, I must say.
2. Clear self-tanners sound like a great idea - but they're not. You can't see where you've put the lotion! Duh! It took me three tries until I got my legs c
1. They have monsoons in Arizona. I always associated "monsoon" with a tropical clime like Hawaii or the Fiji Islands. The word sounds so much more romantic than simply "thunderstorm." But when we visited in July to see my brother and his family, we actually witnessed one. Not very romantic, I must say.
2. Clear self-tanners sound like a great idea - but they're not. You can't see where you've put the lotion! Duh! It took me three tries until I got my legs c
August 5, 2009
Interview at a new blog!
Can you believe that I - lowly moi - am the subject of the inaugural interview at blogger Reggie's The Undercover Book Lover? Check it out!
Reggie contacted me about an interview last week, telling me she loved ALL ABOUT VEE, and asking me if I would answer a few questions. They were fun questions - and ones I actually had the answers to! But I didn't realize I would be the very first person interviewed on her site. Whoo-hoo Me! She has since interviewed other great authors, so check them ou
Reggie contacted me about an interview last week, telling me she loved ALL ABOUT VEE, and asking me if I would answer a few questions. They were fun questions - and ones I actually had the answers to! But I didn't realize I would be the very first person interviewed on her site. Whoo-hoo Me! She has since interviewed other great authors, so check them ou
August 3, 2009
GI Joe waved to me!
Another "Only in LA" moment...
On Sunday, HH and I were relaxing at the Santa Monica beach ( a little chilly but a beach is a beach and you have to appreciate its presence so close to you) when a helicopter swooped by very low and close to the water.
Cops? Nope.
News crew? Nope.
Coast Guard? Nope.
It was an advertisement for the new "GI Joe" movie which is coming out soon! The helicopter swung past once and then away and we said, Huh, that was kind of boring. And I was a tad ticked at the huge c
On Sunday, HH and I were relaxing at the Santa Monica beach ( a little chilly but a beach is a beach and you have to appreciate its presence so close to you) when a helicopter swooped by very low and close to the water.
Cops? Nope.
News crew? Nope.
Coast Guard? Nope.
It was an advertisement for the new "GI Joe" movie which is coming out soon! The helicopter swung past once and then away and we said, Huh, that was kind of boring. And I was a tad ticked at the huge c
July 30, 2009
Is this the WORST REVIEW EVER?
You tell me.
Alexa Young's Awesome Blog
A couple of years ago, I got this review from a teen reviewer for VOYA and it definitely left a lasting impression on me. So much so that when Alexa Young (author of the sunny, funny YA novels Frenemies and Faketastic - both titles which I love) launched her blog, WORST REVIEW EVER, I had to search it out.
Alexa has asked her fellow author friends to come forward with some of their very worst reviews, from professional reviewers as well as Amazon and Goodrea
Alexa Young's Awesome Blog
A couple of years ago, I got this review from a teen reviewer for VOYA and it definitely left a lasting impression on me. So much so that when Alexa Young (author of the sunny, funny YA novels Frenemies and Faketastic - both titles which I love) launched her blog, WORST REVIEW EVER, I had to search it out.
Alexa has asked her fellow author friends to come forward with some of their very worst reviews, from professional reviewers as well as Amazon and Goodrea
July 29, 2009
More to Love premiere
Did everyone watch this brand new show last night on FOX? Normally I don't like dating shows because they feel so contrived and inevitably, I end up saying about each contestant or bachelor/ette, "Really? You couldn't get a date?" I mean, come on, most of the men and women on these shows are in perfect shape with perfect teeth and hair and tiny waists.
But these 20 women and 1 man come from different circumstances. Many of the women claim never to have had a boyfriend. One had never been on
But these 20 women and 1 man come from different circumstances. Many of the women claim never to have had a boyfriend. One had never been on
July 27, 2009
Influential books
Sometimes you read a book that so impresses you as both writer and reader that you hang your head in your hands and wail, "Why can't I write like this?"
Many of the classics do this for me - I feel particularly humbled by John Steinbeck and Edith Wharton - as do newer genre writers like Ray Bradbury and Stephen King. Then there are my contemporary favorites who never fail to amaze me: Anne Tyler, Elizabeth Berg, Michael Chabon, Alice Hoffman, and many, many more.
When I read YA, I read mostly for
Many of the classics do this for me - I feel particularly humbled by John Steinbeck and Edith Wharton - as do newer genre writers like Ray Bradbury and Stephen King. Then there are my contemporary favorites who never fail to amaze me: Anne Tyler, Elizabeth Berg, Michael Chabon, Alice Hoffman, and many, many more.
When I read YA, I read mostly for
