Things I Love, Things I Hate, Things in Between, Volume 4

See? Pi Day is a thing. I stole this picture from my
math nerd friend Mike's Facebook page. His math
nerd wife Elizabeth made this grasshopper pi(e). I hope
this serves as inspiration for Gianna tomorrow.

Thing I Love: Pi Day. Okay, nerds, tomorrow is Pi Day, March 14th (3.14). That means that Gianna needs to bring me pie. I love pie. Lemon icebox pie with the graham cracker crust. A warm peach and blueberry pie. The dutch apple pie with the crumb topping. Pizza pie. Fudge pie. I want pie. I'm sure that Gianna wants to bring you pie, too. You should email her all day tomorrow with your pie orders.

Thing in Between: Sales conference. I attended the Random House fall title sales conference a couple of weeks ago, in Sanibel, Florida. Sales conference is a bit of a challenge for me since it consists of multiple long days around people (even if I get along with those people). I need quiet time every day to keep from feeling overwhelmed. On the other hand, I get giddy when I see lists of books that I'll have the pleasure of reading and selling for the rest of the year. Jhumpa Lahiri. Margaret Atwood. Valerie Martin, who's a personal favorite author that more people should read.

The view at sales conference.
Or this would be the view if we
weren't in a conference room most
of the day.

There's a book on the fall list that I loved called Nostalgia by Dennis McFarland. I can't get it out of my head. It's a novel about a baseball player who chooses to enlist in the army when he realizes that he's having inappropriate thoughts about his sister, but finds out first hand how awful the battles of the Civil War really were. He suffers from what would now be diagnosed as PTSD and is sent to a military hospital to recover. He's worried, though, that he'll be considered a deserter and shot. Nostalgia is an incredible book with terrific characters and a compelling story. Yes, it's a Civil War novel and historical, but it is very much a contemporary story and deals with contemporary issues. The worst thing I can say about it is that you'll have to wait months to read it. Books like this make the fourteen hour days of sales conference absolutely worth every minute.

Thing I Love: A Constellation of Vital Phenomena. This book comes out in May, so the wait isn't all that long. Remember how we were right about The Tiger's Wife a couple of years ago? Trust me, this is the next great literary discovery. Author Anthony Mara is my newest literary crush. First, the book is set in war torn Chechnya. Second, the main character is possibly the worst doctor in the whole country, which makes him particularly compelling when he must convince the woman who is one of the best that he needs a job in her hospital in order to rescue his best friend's daughter. Third, this is a novel about unconventional bonds and the difficult choices people must make in extreme circumstances. Ah, yes, and Anthony Mara is a great storyteller. Add it to your list.  You're welcome.

Thing I Hate: That woman driving down the street over the weekend who was swinging her bra around through the sunroof of her car? Yeah, I pretty much hate her. South By Southwest should be held in August, when it's too hot to breathe and many fewer people will show up.

Thing I Hate: The lap child sitting in the plane next to me on the way to sales conference. I don't think I hate children any more than anyone else (in that I pretty much dislike everyone, old and young), and I think I'm fairly patient with kids crying and fussing. Nonetheless, "lap child" means that a supervising adult controls the child by holding it in his/her lap. In this case, the supervising adult allowed her kid to rub down my leg with a butt wipe (unused, thank god). She allowed her kid to spill water and cranberry juice all over the place. The kid pooped but the supervising adult made no effort to de-stink-ify my air space. And while I have no problem with breastfeeding in public or private, I'm a little uncomfortable with staring at anyone's nipple just four inches from my face. Gianna would argue that this is why I'm still single.

Yep, that's my arm, an iPad, and the wall
next to my colleague Pam's room. She loves
Mariah Carey in the morning. Who doesn't? 

Thing in Between: Mariah Carey. Yeah, normally Mariah would fall squarely in the category of a thing I hate, but in this case my colleague Pam hates Mariah more, so I had to rethink things. Pam happened to have the room next to mine at sales conference. I knew this, she did not. So it was a special treat for Pam to wake  up to "All I Want for Christmas Is You" playing through her hotel wall. I am sure it was a magical moment for her too.

Thing I Love: Did I mention that tomorrow is Pi Day? Gianna, I want my pie.