The new paperbacks are here!! That's right. Today is the official day of the paperback launch of Up for Renewal - just in time for your last gasp of summer reading.
And, just how did I kick off my big day? Kind of how I memorialized the hardcover release. Taking care of a friend's, um, pets. Today, gentle reader, I tended to the dietary needs of the local squirrel and pigeon population. My neighbor, you see, has a weak spot for critters. She's like a German Snow White. Rescuing injured birds and scabies-laden squirrels. Because of her love of animals, I am happy to have her watch our cat Raymond when we're away. She plays him classical music on the radio and throws every toy in his play bin around. He loves her.
So now it's my turn to return the favor. When I went over to her place to learn the ins and outs of squirrel feeding, she was particularly anxious to tell me that she allows the squirrels to run about freely in her apartment. She opens the window and sometimes sprinkles peanuts on her living room carpet. "They come right in!" she announced, and, seeing the look of sheer terror on my face (I'm not sure the last time I was inoculated against rabies), she added, "they don't bite."
She suggested I come do the feedings at 6 AM, when the white squirrel normally drops by for breakfast. I'm almost tempted to set my alarm. An albino squirrel? In Washington, DC?
And so, as I contemplate another Ripley's Believe it or Not, I urge you all to run right out to your favorite bookstore, purchase your hot-off-the-press paperback. The first person to send me a photo of themselves waving the book over their head wins a FREE autographed copy.
And maybe a photograph of the rarely seen albino squirrel.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Paperbackpalooza!
Just a few more days until the paperback release of Up for Renewal and the past few weeks have been a whirlwind of hardcore pimp ass promoting. It's hard out there, yo.
Karl and I leave for NYC at the crack of tomorrow morning and I can't wait. We're staying at The Algonquin with Dorothy Parker (heh!) and I'm appearing on Better TV Monday morning (check your local listings!) and will be wearing my brand new dress for the occasion. If the weather holds, we'll be filming the segment from the station's roof top studio. If my armpits hold, I won't have huge sweat stains by the time the cameras roll. (We all remember what happened to my underarms last year, on The Today Show.)
Next up, I'll celebrate the impending release with my agent, editor, and publicist with lunch at Saks. (Sandwiches and shoe shopping - the only way to celebrate a book launch!)
Then, I will scour Madison Avenue for a decent Goyard knock off. Another reward for a job well done.
If you'd like to read something other than my book, please visit my homepage and click "In the news" and "More by Cathy" (I think these are what the links are called...) and you can check out recent pieces of mine in the Huffington Post and The Washington Post as well as some nice articles written about me in Smith Magazine and The Examiner.
And please send your good mojo my way on Monday! No Richard Nixon-esque sweating for me!
xo
Karl and I leave for NYC at the crack of tomorrow morning and I can't wait. We're staying at The Algonquin with Dorothy Parker (heh!) and I'm appearing on Better TV Monday morning (check your local listings!) and will be wearing my brand new dress for the occasion. If the weather holds, we'll be filming the segment from the station's roof top studio. If my armpits hold, I won't have huge sweat stains by the time the cameras roll. (We all remember what happened to my underarms last year, on The Today Show.)
Next up, I'll celebrate the impending release with my agent, editor, and publicist with lunch at Saks. (Sandwiches and shoe shopping - the only way to celebrate a book launch!)
Then, I will scour Madison Avenue for a decent Goyard knock off. Another reward for a job well done.
If you'd like to read something other than my book, please visit my homepage and click "In the news" and "More by Cathy" (I think these are what the links are called...) and you can check out recent pieces of mine in the Huffington Post and The Washington Post as well as some nice articles written about me in Smith Magazine and The Examiner.
And please send your good mojo my way on Monday! No Richard Nixon-esque sweating for me!
xo
Sunday, July 12, 2009
marco! POLO!
Last night, I attended my first ever polo match in veddy veddy fancy Middleburg, Virginia. It was a twilight game, beginning at 7 PM, when "Heart In Hand" played "Rock Hill Farm." And here's the thing. When we got there, I was expecting the place to look like Churchill Downs, all manicured lawns, food pavilions, and, naturally, real bathrooms. Come on, we were in horse country for Nellie's sake.
But, Great Meadow, is, as the name suggests, a great meadow. And the playing field was more suitable for a rodeo. In fact, in between the second and third quarters, a tractor, like a Zamboni, rolled in to smooth out the dirt. And, help me baby Jesus, there were Porta-Johns everywhere.
And not a Julia Roberts/Pretty Woman hat in sight. The crowd looked mostly like tailgaters at a minor league baseball game.
Our friends, Ray and Miguel, had lobbied hard for a viewing box. I had recently watched a Nationals game from a sky box, so I was prepared for air conditioning and a private bathroom. No such luck. The box was just a picnic bench on the other side of a low wall made out of wood, the only structure separating our heads from the swinging polo mallets. (Actually, I almost got hit in the head by a polo ball, which grazed, instead, the head of one of our box mates. It was okay, he was completely trashed.)
Did you know that there are 3 players on a team? Neither did I. I thought each team would consist of at least a dozen. Like a giant soccer game, but on horses.
This is what goes down on the playing field. I believe this photo is from the main event, 1st Chukker versus Golden Zebra (I am not making this up.) I was personally rooting for Golden Zebra, whose players had better, more impressive-sounding names. Names like Gonzalo Fucci. I think they're all from Argentina. But quite frankly, I did more socializing than horse watching and don't know who won either game.
Here is a photo of Karl and our friend Miguel, who is a talented artist and laughs exactly like Ricky Ricardo.
Can you tell them apart? White shirts are important polo attire (although, Karl was informed by the guy in the background with the white collar, who is originally from Saudi Arabia and ships oil for a living, that he should tuck in his shirt.)
Here is a photo of me and Miguel. I am not in a white shirt. However, my pants are white. Which was a lucky coincidence.
Other than white shirts, cigars are ubiquitous in the world of polo spectating.
To wit:
And:
This is Ray. The thing hanging from his waist is not, as you might think, a black dildo. It is a miniature lantern, which came in handy when they shut off the lights on the field and started up the disco music. People who like polo also like strobe lights.
Needless to say, I had the time of my life.
But, Great Meadow, is, as the name suggests, a great meadow. And the playing field was more suitable for a rodeo. In fact, in between the second and third quarters, a tractor, like a Zamboni, rolled in to smooth out the dirt. And, help me baby Jesus, there were Porta-Johns everywhere.
And not a Julia Roberts/Pretty Woman hat in sight. The crowd looked mostly like tailgaters at a minor league baseball game.
Our friends, Ray and Miguel, had lobbied hard for a viewing box. I had recently watched a Nationals game from a sky box, so I was prepared for air conditioning and a private bathroom. No such luck. The box was just a picnic bench on the other side of a low wall made out of wood, the only structure separating our heads from the swinging polo mallets. (Actually, I almost got hit in the head by a polo ball, which grazed, instead, the head of one of our box mates. It was okay, he was completely trashed.)
Did you know that there are 3 players on a team? Neither did I. I thought each team would consist of at least a dozen. Like a giant soccer game, but on horses.
This is what goes down on the playing field. I believe this photo is from the main event, 1st Chukker versus Golden Zebra (I am not making this up.) I was personally rooting for Golden Zebra, whose players had better, more impressive-sounding names. Names like Gonzalo Fucci. I think they're all from Argentina. But quite frankly, I did more socializing than horse watching and don't know who won either game.
Here is a photo of Karl and our friend Miguel, who is a talented artist and laughs exactly like Ricky Ricardo.
Can you tell them apart? White shirts are important polo attire (although, Karl was informed by the guy in the background with the white collar, who is originally from Saudi Arabia and ships oil for a living, that he should tuck in his shirt.)
Here is a photo of me and Miguel. I am not in a white shirt. However, my pants are white. Which was a lucky coincidence.
Other than white shirts, cigars are ubiquitous in the world of polo spectating.
To wit:
And:
This is Ray. The thing hanging from his waist is not, as you might think, a black dildo. It is a miniature lantern, which came in handy when they shut off the lights on the field and started up the disco music. People who like polo also like strobe lights.
Needless to say, I had the time of my life.
Monday, July 6, 2009
A night with some Renewbies
Okay, so I'm not arrogant enough to say that I have groupies, but what else do I call the women who have chosen my memoir for their book club and then invited me to come hang out with them so they could ply me with wine and pummel me with questions? Renewbies, of course!
And last week, I spent an evening with some super fun and enviably adorable readers in Arlington, Virginia. And let me just say, they went all out. If their book club was a science project, they would all have received A-plus-pluses. For example, the dining room table was set with magazine-themed food, as in:
and:
Also, they had actually typed out questions to ask me. Usually, the conversation devolves to sex in my cubicle and just continues on a downward spiral (in direct proportion to the alcohol imbibed). But these women could really hold their Cosmopolitans (what else would they drink on a night like this!)
Their questions were thoughtful and intelligent and CHALLENGING. Especially the ones that centered on Bruno (whom I never like to think about), and my ex husband (whom, small, teeny, tiny, microscopic world, one of the members actually works with!) It's hard to comment on my miserable life back then from the happy vantage point of today. But whenever I do, I just appreciate over and over how much can happen in a year, and how, with dedication (and a book contract!) anything can change a life that's ready to be changed - even mine, even Cosmo!
A HUGE thank you to all my new friends: Suzanne, Audrey, Emma, Elliott, Allie, Elizabeth, Anna, Michelle, Jessica, and Alexa.
Come on - how cute are they?!
And last week, I spent an evening with some super fun and enviably adorable readers in Arlington, Virginia. And let me just say, they went all out. If their book club was a science project, they would all have received A-plus-pluses. For example, the dining room table was set with magazine-themed food, as in:
and:
Also, they had actually typed out questions to ask me. Usually, the conversation devolves to sex in my cubicle and just continues on a downward spiral (in direct proportion to the alcohol imbibed). But these women could really hold their Cosmopolitans (what else would they drink on a night like this!)
Their questions were thoughtful and intelligent and CHALLENGING. Especially the ones that centered on Bruno (whom I never like to think about), and my ex husband (whom, small, teeny, tiny, microscopic world, one of the members actually works with!) It's hard to comment on my miserable life back then from the happy vantage point of today. But whenever I do, I just appreciate over and over how much can happen in a year, and how, with dedication (and a book contract!) anything can change a life that's ready to be changed - even mine, even Cosmo!
A HUGE thank you to all my new friends: Suzanne, Audrey, Emma, Elliott, Allie, Elizabeth, Anna, Michelle, Jessica, and Alexa.
Come on - how cute are they?!
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