Sisters

I love my sister.

We don't have a lot in common, but the interest we do share, we share with a passion: words. Whether book, song, movie, or television, we both adore a good story. We're trying to figure out how to play Scrabble on line with each other -- I won't pay for Pogo, and she loathes Facebook. We'll work it out.

But our e-mails consist of such topics as:

• "Why didn't you tell me the new JD Robb was coming out next month?" 
• "Sorry, have you ever read Lisa Gardner?" "Of course. I have all of her early stuff." 
• "Did you see Downton Abbey this week?" 
• "I have to lend you two versions of Pride and Prejudice, I can't believe you've never seen it!"
• "Guess what I got from the library today? Neener, neener, nee-ner." 
• "Have you ever heard Adele? You have to listen to her!"

She's also my original and most trusted beta reader. Because she is a reader. A lover of words.

And if that's all we have in common (besides family), I can't think of anything else I'd rather have.

Love you, Sissy!

Goal Check

One of my 2013 goals is to reclaim my music. To that end, I want to have my guitar restrung and start playing again, a minimum of 30 minutes per week. That may not sound like a lot, but I work full time, am editing part time, and I am still writing. Trying to squeeze in 30 minutes a week can be a challenge.

Last week, I looked up the telephone numbers of two music stores in the area. This week, I called them both.

Had I known paying someone else to restring my guitar was so affordable, I would have done it years ago!

Clumps

Ever notice how things seem to happen in clumps?

Example: my sister & husband say celebrity deaths come in threes.

Yesterday was a clump day for me. The topic: flashing lights.

My first errand was accomplished without incident. As I drove to my second stop of the morning, my initial reaction was that the road was closed, but my depth perception is fading with age. There was what appeared to be a water main break with several DPW trucks flashing amber lights.

I didn't think any more of it until four blocks later when I came across the clean-up of a car accident. Either state troopers or county sheriffs and lots of strobing blue and red lights.

When I reached my third destination, there were amber lights again, this time a postal truck being towed.

I arrived at my fourth stop a bit early, so sat in my car and read. Something in the rear-view mirror tagged my attention. More flashing red lights, this time at the head of a funeral procession.

That's when it struck me that the theme of my day seemed to be flashing lights.

The drive to my fifth destination was uneventful, and I forgot about the whole thing. But when I was driving home, there was another automobile accident. There were so many vehicles with lights going it was difficult to tell which lane of the highway I was supposed to be in.

So what kinds of themes have you noticed in your life lately?