Archives - Weekly Update

May in the tri-state area has been such a washout when it comes to the weather. I am hoping June gets the memo that it is supposed to be sunny and warm! Yes, I did head to the garden center again last weekend (flowers and plants are a bit of an addiction for me), and Karyn came and planted for us yesterday. The peonies still are popping, but the rain also means that they are dropping petals on the ground. Drat. We have a brilliant yellow peony flower this year that looks stunning for a while when cut, but then, as if on command, all of the petals drop in quick sequence.

As I write this, the temperature is stuck in the 50s, which is not giving me Memorial Day weekend vibes at all. I am so ready for the long weekend, though the weather here has been so much cooler than I would like. I rescued the peonies that you see above before the rain arrived and scattered petals all over the ground. They are really stunning but such delicate flowers! I feel like this happens every year. As soon as the peonies start to pop, the rain comes pouring in, and the petals fall to clumps on the ground.

I feel like I am living in a sitcom.

Outside of our house, there is a bird that loudly tweets exactly five times. I thought I was the only one hearing this, but then my friend, Karyn, was outside planting flowers here the other day. I asked her, “Did you hear that?” She exclaimed “Yes!” and we tried to spot the bird. It has a call that is out of the norm. My husband, Tom, then walked outside, and I asked, “Do you hear the bird?” He replied, “You mean the bird that started chirping five times at 5:10am?”

Wow, what a week! I was at author programs on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, two of which were in New York City, and there was a celebration of Jesse Kornbluth’s life (also in the city) on Thursday night.

Monday night kicked things off with a fun event at NeueHouse Madison Square in the city, where I was joined by Tom and Francesca, along with my friends Beverley and Annmarie. The publisher Zando hosted “An Evening with Gillian Flynn & Friends” in celebration of their Gillian Flynn Books imprint. Yes, the Gillian Flynn, who wrote GONE GIRL.

Where did April go? I am going with the theory that April showers bring May flowers. We DO have a lot of flowers popping up. I need to find the map of what was planted where.

I had a fun time meeting Georgia Hunter last weekend at the Montclair Literary Festival. I loved hearing her talk about her research for ONE GOOD THING. I also enjoyed meeting her mother, who had accompanied her on her research trip to Italy. I shared what I would like Georgia to take on next. Let’s see if it happens!