Construction Vs Publishing with a Hottie Bonus

As the daughter of a contractor, I grew up on construction sites. During my 20s and early 30s, because I know how to read blueprints and order all materials from brick to cabinets, I even worked as a construction coordinator and field superintendent. Although it could get really uncomfortable in the triple digit temperatures of a blazing Arizona summer, it paid a lot better than what more "traditional" women's jobs did back then. And I loved the satisfaction of having someone's home or office building to show for all the hard work the crews and I put in.

We've had three of our five homes custom built. Since we moved into this house eleven years ago, we've done a major project each year. (The house was only seven years old, but I like putting my own stamp on things, plus, I've come to accept that it's pretty much become a hobby.) I'm sharing all this to explain, as I told my contractor -- while we stared at the disaster that was supposed to be an Italian glass tile wall -- I'm not your typical crazed, emotional homeowner.

This current master bathroom remodel began because I wanted to change the shower tile so we could sell the house and move back home to Oregon this summer. Well, life delayed that plan, but we decided to go ahead with the job anyway. Now, as most people in publishing know, I don't do synopses. Partly because I write to find out what happens and partly because I honestly don't have a carefully thought out sequence by sequence blueprint when I begin. This has worked just dandy for me since I sold my first novel in 1982.

Unfortunately, construction is not publishing. Trust me. . . . My "fly into the mists" method does NOT work well on a construction project. We're talking Murphy's Law in perpetual motion here.

However, as we all revisit the wall this week, I remain hopeful. Meanwhile, since my construction dust-clogged brain has forgotten what I'd originally planned to blog about today, I'm sharing a hottie I occasionally use as a page-in-progess marker on my website. Unfortunately, none of the guys who've been basically living in my house the past month look like this.