 Nora's
Carolina
Moon Tour 2000
Sam's
San Diego, California
Sunday, March 26
Tour Reports
Lynda
Beware: Long-wynded
Report Below
because that darn Sue
put the pressure on for details so I decided to
tell every
damn thing and didn't
even check for typos
Nora had two signings scheduled for the San
Diego area: Sam's Club in Vista and Bay Books in
Coronado. The Costco in Tustin is Orange County -
neither San Diego or Los Angeles. How come nobody
asked me about locations? <g>
I wasn't planning on going to the Vista signing
(at a Sam's club about 30 miles from home) because
the report was for rain. And as much as I wanted to
see Nora, a Wymzee doesn't drive in rain, if she
can help it, due to last year's altercation with a
freeway off ramp, slick road, and a clumsy Buick
Regal that didn't know it was bad manners to
pirouette 360 degrees in the dark.
My plans changed when Jenn4Cubs (a Sanctuary
original whom I affectionately refer to as Baby
Girl) called to say she was flying down, with her
best friend Jeff, to see her cousin Lisa and go to
lunch and the signing.
The storm front off the coast continued south
and missed San Diego all together so when a cute
and groggy Jenn called Sunday morning (too much
partying the night before?) to let me know where I
should meet everyone for lunch, I was all set to
go. What better way than to forget the woes of
having just lost a diamond earring down the
bathroom sink drain? And there was a bonus - an
ex-boyfriend of Jenn's, who I knew, was going to
join us.
I pulled into the Chevy's parking lot and saw
someone who looked familiar at the restaurant
entrance. As I approached my mind went blank (a
common occurrence these days) and I couldn't
remember his name. But I certainly remembered his
nickname. Lol. So, when I approached I smiled and
said, "Officer Cuffs?" This very handsome young
man, with killer dimples, looked at me and said,
"Excuse me?"
ohgodohgodohgod ... maybe this isn't him! I
said, "Jimmy?" He said, "No." OHGODOHGODOHGOD. I
said, "You don't work for the police department?" I
swear if the kid wasn't sitting down he would have
fallen down. He said, "Which one?" My brain is
screaming by now. "I don't know which one." I NEVER
KNEW) My face must have been scarlet by now. I took
a deep breath. "You're not Officer Cuffs?" His
brows furrowed just as my memory kicked in.
"TOMMY!!!" Now his eyes were wide open. I sat down
next to him, put my hand on his knee. Poor poor
boy. Lolol. There was a crazy woman touching him. I
decided to put him out of his misery and explained
who I was. Thank God he remembered. We were
laughing pretty hard by the time Jenn showed up.
Lunch was pretty uneventful. Officer Cuffs rode off
into the sunset. Jeff and Lisa took one car and
Jenn rode with me up to the signing.
We tried to catch up. I filled her in on the
names she asked - wanting to know how the people
who touched her life 3 years ago fared. Jenn's life
is soooo busy. She exhausts me just talking about
it. School, real estate sales, one day a week at
Chili's ... where the hell does she get the energy.
If I could go back to my 20's, I'd still be
creeping through life rather than reveling in it.
She's one of my life treasures.
The Sam's Club was pretty empty. We were about
15th on line, two people behind me. What's wrong
with these people? Where are the throngs? I know
Sam's hadn't advertised in the San Diego Union book
section -- there's an entire column for signings.
And Bay Books didn't advertise there either. The
woman in front of me advised me that Sam's did
advertise ... "Why, there's been a sign outside for
two weeks." Great, I thought. So only people who
have a Sam's Club membership knew Nora was coming.
Idiots.
Anyway, as I approached Nora I "got ready." In
hindsight, I wish I'd had Jenn snap a picture
because I knew, if nothing else, I was about to
make The Queen giggle. I had dressed very
carefully. Under my raspberry linen blouse, I wore
a navy blue shell with raspberry-colored writing.
It was a Nora promotional shirt from way back. What
did it say? <eg> It said ... Divine Evil. No
big deal right? Well, it is if you approach your
pal and, while she's signing your book, you say ...
"Look what I got on eBay." Then she looks up and
you flash the Divine Evil shirt and say, in perfect
seriousness ... "Only $200.00." <EG> A moment
of shock crossed her face. That's when I wish the
camera had flashed. I started laughing immediately
and Nora said, "No you didn't." No. But for a 1/2
second I had her. Lololol.
Sidebar: She was wearing a lovely
black leather jacket that matched the lovely black
leather chair she was sitting in. Black slacks,
white shell and that beautiful vest with the
stripes on one side and peacock-like feather eyes
on the other (more about that later) She had very
comfy looking shoes on her feet - very very similar
to my Nordstrom Rack Easy Spirits that I bought for
14.00. Hmmmmm ... nah! Gold bracelet and gold
heart. A very classy ensemble.
Because the idiots of Sam's didn't advertise,
Nora finished early and we all were able to spend
quality time together - laughing as usual. We took
a group picture in front of a huge cardboard Oscar
statue - will get that developed eventually. Nora
showed us that a button from "the vest" was gone. I
mentioned all the quilting Broads that would
happily create her a new one (PLEASE DON'T!! lolol)
but my own thoughts are that somewhere, someone, a
Roarke fan perhaps, is coveting that button. :-)
Now about that radio show ... grrrrr.
Unfortunately I was in a car and supermarket during
most of it. During its entirety I had wished I
could get to a phone. I didn't like the "hostess"
from the beginning. Any woman who needs to
enunciate her T's ad nauseum, but loses the accent
when flustered (yay, Nora) is a phony. And what she
knew about romance novels and, imo more importantly
- romance readers, you couldn't fit on a grain of
sand. My sentiments were the same that I had versed
in my Time letter ... Shame on you for not taking
your subject matter seriously! When she mentioned
Noraholics, I really wanted a pay phone, a cell
phone. I would have been happy to give that woman a
dose of what "WE" are about - none of us "a typical
reader." IDIOT. Nora handled the woman wonderfully
and gracefully, with the teeniest, most wonderful
edge to her voice at times. I was in the car "Whoo
Whoo Whooing." The kicker? Only two calls came in.
A guy who got more of an answer than he probably
wanted :-) and a woman ... my ex-critique partner
(NOT Joan--aka JJ--aka Frolic1313--aka Lisa's
MIL--who is still my critique partner) - who, with
all the questions in the world at her feet, the
ability to forward the cause of romance writers, or
the joy of commenting on the STUPID questions she
had heard from the hostess,asked HOW MANY PAGES
NORA TYPED A DAY? Rofl. Nora was kind, saying that
the number doesn't matter, what does is what's on
the paper. She also congratulated the caller on her
book being published later this year. As much as I
hate cell phones, I would have killed for one that
night.
Went to bed trying to think of the perfect
question to ask Nora the next day at the Bay Books
signing and discussion. Decided that, though I
didn't care how many pages Nora typed a day, I
could always ask how fast she typed. <eg>
Yeah ... that'll work.
Wym
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CAROLINA
MOON
TOUR > Wym's
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