HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2015 was in many ways a fantastic year!

"Cervix With A Smile" GOT PUBLISHED!  I will love the folks at the Exit Press forever.

I did a lot of writing!

I PERFORMED FOR THE FIRST TIME IN YEARS!  Last year's resolution was "perform once".  Achievable goals, folks.

We went to the Jersey Shore.  Fantastic weather, great swimming, and food, food, food.

A dear friend sent me a tin of homemade chocolate truffles, most of which have now been eaten.

Another dear friend went with me to my doctors' appointments and kept copious notes.

My first trip by myself, to Chicago, with a roomette on the train both ways.

I got to spend another year with my wonderful spouse.

2015 was in many ways a sucky year.

I started the new year in the psychiatric ward at Roosevelt Hospital.  Nothing says "Happy New Year!" than a paper poinsettia placement and a cupcake with blue frosting.  Then I spent several months with my brain not working quite right.

I got breast cancer.  That blew.

Our cat Rupert died.

I've gained weight, partly from eating most of the homemade chocolate truffles.  Actually, that's not really in the "sucky" column.

Bring on 2016.  I'm waiting for you, sucker.

My Play Anthology is going to published at last!

Last week I called my publisher at Exit Press about "Cervix With A Smile," having sent back the last batch of proofs.  (Dragging my feet is one of my finest skills.)  He told me we're "almost there," just a few small things and:






Interesting factoid: this glitter graph is from a MySpace generator.  So MySpace is still out there...

Twitter Is Not Good For Me :{

Whenever someone asks me if they should get on Twitter, I always say, "don't". Like Facebook used to be, Twitter is a massive timesuck in which you have "convos" with dozens of imaginary friends. It used to be that I did roughly ten minutes in the morning, ten minutes at night, maybe a little bit during the day. But now I'm hanging around like it's the parking lot behind the grocery store where they have some old benches and a picnic table. Me and my Twitter peeps.

With the "notifications" feature, it has become a major addiction. I already tweet a lot, so to see "notifications" -- ah, the satisfaction of being favorited! Retweeted! A random stranger tweeting "LOL"! 

How else would I promote my novel?  And my fabulous self?

I'm Miss Addictive Personality. After almost 16 years of being sober, having to eat less and drink less coffee, it's like all of my vices are being taken away. But--TWITTER!

This would be easier if I didn't have a desktop PC. So when I'm tweeting I'm confined to my desk; not making dinner, or riding the subway, or lazing on my couch watching TV. On recent occasions I have spent several hours on Twitter. Afterwards my eyes hurt and my brain has that weird fried/empty feeling too much internet gives me.

It's so much fun to post pics like this - HOW CAN I STOP??

I have met some great people on Twitter.  Thoughtful interesting people with whom I can enjoy phone calls and even real life meetings.  How do I stay in touch without being on Twitter, and searching their timelines for fun stuff?  I only interact with people I consider smart, funny, and original.

BUT Tuesday night, after Supernatural's enjoyable episode "About A Boy," I spent two hours on Twitter progressively wrecking my pleasure in the episode. The show has a lot of problems, I know that. But focusing exclusively on the same old same old subjects, getting angry, frustrated where I didn't START that way...the next morning I felt kind of crappy.

I don't know if I can curb my addiction. Any time I have to do something, I click Twitter. There I can make jokes, silly observations, and respond to tweets. I crack up over other people's comments.  Most of you are on Twitter, you know how it is.

It was even hard to write this without clicking on Twitter. Maybe I should deactivate my account--but, but I have 2200 followers!

They like me! They really like me!

I feel pathetic right now.

Real Life-Type Entry, With Extra Stuff!

Let me kick this off with the best one. My publicist, Stephanie Schroeder, is sending copies of The Abortionist's Daughter to various experts for cover blurbs.  She got one two days after she sent out the PDF:

"Truly entertaining and entertainingly true, DeCarlo's novel gives us the unforgettable and flawed Melanie Daniels, a heroine not only of her time, but of every time that women struggle to be fully human."  –Ruthann Robson, Professor of Law & University Distinguished Professor, CUNY School of Law, author of Dressing Constitutionally: Hierarchy, Sexuality, and Democracy

BOO-YAH!

Also, for those who care, the e-book edition of The Abortionist's Daughter is on discount on Smashwords during "Read An Ebook Week," ending March 8.  The Abortionist's Daughter by Elisa DeCarlo smashwords.com/books/view/171 … 75% off through March 8!

We watched the Oscars.  So glad that "12 Years A Slave" won!!  I was also hoping the leading actor would win, but Matthew McCounaghey was so brilliant in "Dallas Buyers Club" I'm okay with it.  (Noblesse oblige and all that.)  Too bad they stuffed in that bzuh? tribute to "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz."  But it beat those usual "Tribute to Hollywood" crappy production numbers.  And HOW AWESOME WAS U2??  Then I stayed up and watching The Walking Dead.  Earlier on Sunday, we went to one of our local art cinemas, which was playing "20 Feet From Stardom," which won best documentary!   It's good, a history of black back-up singers.  Some became stars (Darlene Love), others did not, but they kept singing.  And some didn't.

So Monday, I was no good at all.  But today it's not as ass-freezingly cold and the laundry is done.  How are all of you?