Susane Colasanti - Journal

This sign was hanging in the deli section of a local grocery store:


What does this mean?

Some hypotheses:

1. Cheese was misspelled.
2. It's referring to the place with all the chicken.

Added to entry: My friend pointed out that chix is an abbreviation for chicken. I'm down with that. But then why does the chicken wall have to be full every night? Do people eat that much more chicken than other meats? Is cheese not as popular? What about plastic covering for the other items? And why is this such an inflammatory issue that someone needed to put up a sign about it?

So many questions.

Angela Chase's dad from My So-Called Life keeps showing up. He was on Private Practice and I just saw him in 24. I am convinced that this is a message from the Universe. Cancel quality shows, the dads of those shows will haunt others.

On a related note, I'm interested to see where this season of Private Practice went when it comes out on DVD. I like the show, only it seems to have already run into a similar problem as Grey's Anatomy did in season four: getting a bit ridiculous with all of those romantic entanglements (e.g. people marrying people they should never, ever marry). Does everyone have to hook up with everyone else? Seriously? I really can't wait for the new Grey's season to come out, though. My devotion will not waver.

Happy Blogiversary to Book Chic! He (yes, he) interviewed me, along with author Robin Palmer. You go with your fine self, Book Chic! Celebrate with a cupcake.

Wearing flip-flops last week was such a tease. It has been raining forever. There's a flood warning today, so I even took out my boots. The taking out of boots in June violates several of my policies, but it's desperate times over here.

Question: Why is it that every time I go to a movie, Popcorn Cruncher sits down right next to me? It doesn't matter how many empty seats there are. Popcorn Cruncher likes to crunch loudly in my ear. Actually, Popcorn Cruncher was absent during the last movie I saw. Instead, Dude Who Sits Right In Front of You When There Are Like Eight Hundred Empty Seats was in the house. Combine these guys with the $12.50 ticket price ($12.50! For one movie!) and I'm all set with Netflix, thanks.

Hey, a new heavy element has been discovered. The Periodic Table will now include element 112. Par-tay!

You know those American Express ads in magazines with people like Tina Fey and Ellen DeGeneres where they list things about their life? I'm not sure if these ads are still out there. But I was going through some old Real Simple magazines and saw a few of those ads and I was like, Fab meme alert! So I've taken some items from the ads and added a few of my own and presto. I'm calling it the AmEx Mix Meme.

first memory: thirst

childhood ambition: science teacher

strange fascination: water towers

retreat: palm trees

wildest dream: west village brownstone

soundtrack: garden state

proudest moment: when it happens on the shelf

biggest challenge: inertia

alarm clock: displays lights in changing colors

perfect day: npr/gym/writing/learning/time with friends/life-altering film/reading in bed

recent impulse buy: paddywax candle - fresh grass scent

first job: secretary for the local senator when i was 16

indulgence: the office

weakness: whipped butter

inspiration: stay gold

you're it: carriejones

I recently updated my Facebook status to: Susane is bummed that she's too old for trick-or-treating. Some comments came back insisting that you're never too old. But really? If I showed up at your door with my pillowcase, would you give me a fun size Milky Way?

And what would I be?

Some costume ideas that come to mind are on the obscure side. Like this one:



I could go as an eyeball fish! This is actually a photo of microscopic marine life near Hawaii. That's a swordfish on the left and a sunfish on the right. I'd go as the sunfish. Photo by David Liittschwager.

Or I could go as Honk-Honk-Ashoo:



Isn't he so cute? He's a pillowhead from the book by Ralph Cosentino.

The ultimate costume would be to go as the Pam half of Jim and Pam:



Except SP doesn't watch The Office. And we're going to see Speed-the-Plow tonight, so we can't be anything anyway.

What are you going to be?

Ashley of Ashley's Bookshelf reviewed When It Happens. Her site has been reviewing books since June, so go over and show her some love.

Pop quiz! What did I get at New York Hotdog and Coffee on Saturday?

a. hot dog
b. coffee
c. waffle

If you picked a., then you missed the part where I'm a vegetarian. That's okay. Anyway, they now have veggie dogs, so you might have thought it was a trick question. I really liked creating trick questions when I was a teacher. Because the more you challenge your noodle, the sharper your noodle becomes. That is called a win-win situation. Michael Scott would even take it one step further and call it a win-win-win situation.

Or maybe you picked b. Well, their coffee is tasty and they have decaf, but that is not the correct answer. The correct answer is c. Waffles at New York Hotdog and Coffee?! Those wacky kids! The owner's daughter, Jane, told me where the idea for that unlikely hot dog/coffee combo came from. One day, her mom was eating a hot dog. Then she had some coffee with it. She was like, "Hey! These two things taste great together!" And that was it.

I find this fascinating.

Also fascinating: the Rubik's Cube. I don't know about you, but I can never get enough Rubik's Cube solution tricks. How stoked was I to find this dude on YouTube, dropping some serious Rubik's knowledge?

I'm so into organizing it's unreal. I've been like this all my life. Even when I was a little girl, my stuffed animals always had to be arranged a certain way and my books had to be in a specific order. When I was in college, I had work study as an administrative assistant. While I hated that I had to work so many hours, I secretly liked going into the office when I had a big organization project to do. Same with being a personal assistant when I was in grad school. That job was way more fun. I worked at a big financial firm and basically took over executives' offices and completely whipped them into shape. I organized drawers. I went through towering piles of papers. I redid filing systems. I took everything off their desks and started fresh. And the best part was I could order whatever I wanted from office supply stores. True, it wasn't for my own office, but I lived vicariously through all the others.

It was awesome.

Now that I work at home in a small Greenwich Village apartment, there's not much to organize. It's already done. But see, that's not good enough. Because I feel the need to organize what I've already organized. I'm like, Dude! I can organize it even better! I recently bought a new shiny, white file cabinet with white hanging folders to match and I'm in heaven. I filed away all of my school stuff (lesson plans, handouts, exams) and all my other papers that I had in those clear Staples folders with the tie thing. Next comes upgrading all of my stuff that I've stored in various document boxes (manuscripts, financial records, assorted randomness) to a streamlined set of new document boxes. It's just a matter of identifying the best new boxes for the job.

Well, there's a new issue of Real Simple calling me. Laters.

1. Vampires have taken control of my stereo again. I was just minding my own business, listening to some Death Cab, when all of a sudden the volume went from 10 to 3. What's going to happen when I start reading Twilight?

2. Today is one of those exciting work days for me. I'm almost finished with the draft of my fourth book, Something Like Fate. It's only the first draft and there are many more revisions ahead, but the end is in sight and that's super thrilling. It's also great timing, since the copyedits for Waiting for You will be ready for me soon.

3. My neighbors across the street have a bird in their window that sounds like a sheep.

4. Congrats to Nico Medina on his shiny new job! Nico was my most excellent copyeditor. Sadly (for me), he's left Viking for the next stage in his career. I miss you already, fam.

5. The other day I was looking for some yellow flowers. All of the yellow flowers were corroded, so I didn't get any. Then SP shows up to dinner with yellow roses! How did he know? He also brought me blackberries because he knows that I will be missing berries for the next several months. How awesome is he? Pretty frickin' awesome, that's how. I documented the blackberries, seconds before eating:

 Meme of threes (aka Three About Me) from literaticat .

Three jobs I've had in my life:

1.  Sleep-away camp counselor
2.  Tutor for child actors 
3.  The bear who gives out balloons at the Ground Round

Three places I have lived:

1.  Philadelphia
2.  New Jersey
3.  Astoria

Three TV shows that I watch (on DVD only):

1.  The Office
2.  Grey's Anatomy
3.  Degrassi

Three places I have been:

1.  Malta
2.  Paris
3.  La Jolla

Three people that email me regularly:

1.  Laila
2.  DailyCandy
3.  Urban Word

Three of my favorite foods:

1.  Pasta with pesto
2.  Berries (assorted kinds)
3.  Cupcakes with pink icing

Three people I think will respond:

1.  midnight___star 
2.  wishfulsky 
3.  eluper 

Three things I'm looking forward to:

1.  Montreal and Toronto in October
2.  Sweet vacay in Grand Cayman
3.  My new desk

Have you heard that Polaroid is the new Brontosaurus?  Polaroid is going to stop making its film and all of those cameras will be obsolete.  You don't have to be a lover of all that is old-school to understand the enormity of this announcement.

My friend Eric Luper eluper recently posted an update on the condition of my Colasanti Tree.  He planted my special tree last summer so I would feel better about turning on the air conditioner when it's mad hot (like, above 90 degrees - temps below that get the fan treatment).  I am happy to report that the Colasanti Tree is thriving!  You rock, Eric.

I'm getting to the end of The O.C. in my Netflix four season marathon, and I have to say that the last season is quite lacking.  I mean, they all end up not in college?  Come on!  Is that really the best those fine writers could rustle up?  It's just hard to accept the demise of this show, what with the totally brill creation of Seth Cohen and all.  I'm going to miss you, Cohen.



Antoine de Saint-Exupery is the author of my all-time fave book, The Little Prince.  One of the most fascinating things about him is that he disappeared into the sky, just like his Little Prince did.  And now, the man who shot him out of the sky during World War II has been identified.  Reason #73,285 why war sucks butt crack.

Holly Black blackholly linked to info about how to fnd a four-leaf clover.  That's hot.

Attention math geeks!

Using four fours and any operations, can you write equations to equal each number from 0 to 100?

Example:  (4 * 4 + 4) / 4 = 5

Get the answers.

Seeing - 5th Avenue & Washington Square Park:  Pink flowers on two trees.  The best evidence is evidence of spring.

Also seeing - That grassy area where Miranda and Steve got married:  White flowers on a tree.  More evidence.

Tasting - Crumbs, East Village:  Carrot cupcake.  Which has an iced carrot on it.



Missing - South Beach, Miami:  Happy palm trees.



Admiring - World Financial Center:  The Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef.  The New York Times calls it an "environmental version of the AIDS quilt."



Collecting - Facebook:  Pieces of Flair.  They're just so dang cute.

Meme from Dirty Librarian dirtylibrarian
You.
Can.
Only.
Type.
One.
Word.

No.
Explanations.


1. Where is your cell phone? nonexistent

2. Your significant other? napping

3. Your hair? straight

4. Your job? awesome

5. Your strength? belief

6. Your favorite thing? love

7. Your dream last night? plot

8. Your favorite drink? tea

9. Your dream/goal? brownstone

10. The room you're in? happy

11. Your ex? clueless

12. Your fear? illness

13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? village

14. Where were you last night? nostalgia

15. What you're not? sporty

16. Muffins? warm

17. One of your wish list items? desk

18. Where you grew up? country

19. The last thing you did? revision

20. What are you wearing? white

21. Your TV? nonexistent

22. Your pets? memories

23. Your computer? apple

24. Your life? ideal

25. Your mood? anticipatory

26. Missing someone? yes

27 Your car? never

28. Something you're not wearing? headgear

29 Favorite store? produce

30. Your summer? sizzle

31. Like someone? peace

32. Your favorite color? seafoam

33. When is the last time you laughed? always

34. Last time you cried? recently

35. Who will/would re-post this? star

Elizabeth Scott elizabethscott has three young-adult novels coming out this year.  I do not know how she did this.  Her latest book, Perfect You, was just released.  I had the privilege of reading it months ago and was dazzled by abundant warm fuzzies.  Elizabeth is running a special contest on her blog.

Some early reviews are out for Take Me There.  Here's one from And Another Book Read.

I played a wild game of Uno with my friend Anton the other day.  It was a rager.  This one game went on for like three hours and five deck reshuffles.  Did you know there are like a zillion versions of Uno now, including the Muppet Show and Elvis?  Wild.

And speaking of old-school games, SP gave me a gorgeous backgammon set for Easter.  It didn't exactly fit in my basket.  It's the kind of backgammon set that sits on its own table, if you live in a house.  And I gave him this fuzzy bunny bag (with removable ears you can wear!) containing many tasty treats, as seen here by an ominously shaded photo by my friend Gerard:



Oh, and March 22 was World Pillow Fight Day. 

For those of you who celebrate the vernal equinox like I do, the party's not over yet!  I even busted out the noisemakers this year, I'm so freaking excited.  Not that it was the excruciating winter the Farmers' Almanac predicted here in NYC.  But you know.  Any excuse to be weird.

Here's what's going on.

1.  Sorry to bust out with bad news on such an auspicious occasion, but the price of stamps is going up again.  Didn't they just go up?  Yes, they did.  But they're not done.  Because on May 12, stamps will cost 42 cents (and then 43 cents soon afterward).  But if you buy Forever Stamps before May 12, you do not have to bother with annoying 1-cent additions.  I declined to purchase more stamps today because the only available design was this boring bell deal with tired colors.  As a philatelist, I find this offensive.  I'm waiting to see what else they can offer me.

2.  While I was having lunch with my editor yesterday (sweet restaurant choice, Anne!), Jane Krakowski was sitting at the bar, waiting for her takeout.  She's one of those celebs who always looks fabulous, even when she's just out doing errands in the neighborhood.  But I have this problem with not looking at the people around me enough because I'm too busy looking in people's windows and drooling over things like expensive bookshelves and space, so I usually miss out on the fun.  Like when Chris Noth was sitting next to me at Zen Palate or when Matt Damon was sitting behind me in Chumley's.  Who knows what else I'm missing?  One of my husbands could walk right by me and I wouldn't even know it.  Lesson learned:  Take it all in.

3.  There's some exciting Barnes & Noble news regarding the release of When It Happens in paperback and Take Me There, both in May.  But I can't officially share it yet, so I'm just being annoying.

4.  I'm starting the revision of book three, which will hopefully be released next year.  I'm stoked.

5.  Much cupcake eating has been taking place recently, which I'm documenting for you.  Photos coming soon!