January Updates!
Wow it’s half way through January already! Christmas is a distant memory. I don’t know about where you are, but we are living through a deep freeze here. It sounds like a lot of people are having unusually cold weather this year - apparently iguanas are falling out of trees in Florida because they’re frozen!
I just came back from a few days in Chicago, where people were complaining about the cold too. (Actually so was I, but I felt like a wimp when I got home and it was even colder.) The first day I was there was beautiful, it was actually raining a bit and there was NO SNOW which was not what I wanted to see. But I have now experienced Chicago in the winter. Michigan Avenue is beautiful at night with all the little white lights in the trees. Here's a pic of the river...
I also went to a hockey game at the United Center, which was super cool! My Winnipeg Jets were playing the Blackhawks. Sadly it wasn’t the greatest game, and we lost 2-1, but it was still a great experience (and we’re still ahead of Chicago in the standings!) Some differences between an NHL game in Chicago and in Winnipeg:
- While announcing the opening lineup, they misspelled and mispronounced Shawn Matthias’ name (it’s not Matthais)
- Everyone cheered and clapped through the American national anthem so you couldn’t even hear it. That seemed odd.
- After Chicago scores, everyone sings Chelsea Dagger. I have to admit, it’s a damn good goal song and I approve of this tradition, however our Jets goal song Gonna Celebrate is good, but not really singable…
- The girls in the Chicago Ice Crew wear little short skirts. I knew about this, but again it’s different than Winnipeg where the girls in the Ice Crew wear the same pants and jackets as the guys. Also, the girls in skirts skate around in a half-hearted way, scraping lethargically at the ice with their shovel.
Biggest difference:
- There are a lot of Stanley Cup banners hanging from the rafters!
I went to the game with fellow hockey romance author Kate Meader. She did a fantastic recap of our evening on Facebook. It was so much fun hanging out with her!
I also did some setting research and a little shopping so it was a fabulous trip. Now I’m home and need to get caught up and back to writing!
Only one month until release of Long Shot, the last book in my Last Shot series! Woop!
Things I’m loving this month
Loving this wine! It's aged in oak whisky barrels and it tastes amazing. Here's how their website describes it: Double Barrel Shiraz has a full and generous palate with a beguiling mix of sweet red fruits and dark chocolate indicative of its origins as Barossa Shiraz; Subtle toasty vanillin.
My wonderful assistant Stacey Price sent me this for Christmas - she knows what I like!
My new purse I bought in Chicago!
Stay warm, everyone! Good time to curl up with a good romance!