Sunday, April 13, 2014

Tour, Week 2 (Texas Big Hair & Other Random Thoughts)

I "Booked" a lady working the gas station's deli counter today. She seemed a little tired. Like she could use a random act of kindness.

In return I got the biggest baked potato I've ever seen, and a smile to match.

I love Booking people. It just makes my day!

One girl I Booked outside a restaurant messaged me after realizing that I was the author of one of her favorite books. I was already gone. Whoosh! I'm like a ninja gifter--swift, and maybe a little scary.

Probably a lot scary.

I know I was to the family trying to eat donuts in the 70/70 (temp/humidity) Texas morning outside Round Rock Donuts in (you got it) Round Rock, TX. When I Booked 'em there were donut bits lingering on chins and big bites halted mid-squish.

At least nobody choked.

There was a woman in a gas station/food mart bathroom that looked like she could use a cheering up, but somehow getting Booked in a bathroom seemed like it might not go over too well.

(I'm chuckling here, thinking about handing one under the stall divider. Yeah, that would be a little psycho, even for me.)

Other random thoughts, to share with you, my blogettes...

I understand why a lot of Texas women sport big hair. It's not just to keep with the "everything's bigger in Texas" motto. Uh-uh. It's the humidity. You should see my hair. Limp-Locks here has Texas-sized hair. It's up and out and proud. Like a head of six-shooters sticking out every which way, ready for action.

(There's no taming Texas hair. Just go with it, girls. You fight it, you will lose.)

The guy who announced us at BookPeople in Austin was crazy. (Random thoughts, I tell you. Don't expect segues!) He stood on the table to announce us, and the introduction was so funny. And he instantly laced the Sammy Keyes shoelaces I gave him into his high-tops. 'Nuff said!

Laundry.

That's all.

Well, other than that it's drying right now.

Tumble, tumble.

Living out of suitcases is an art.

I'm in the finger-painting phase.

Still.

Toll charges in Texas are confusing, stressful, and unfriendly. No instructions. No booth people to approach for clarification. Just confusing lanes and flashing lights and honking horns. If we come home to tickets for toll violations, I'm gonna march my Texas hair back to the Lone Star State and have some big words with the Toll Rangers. Their system stinks.

And that is all for tonight! Tomorrow is a huge day, with 3 presentations and a long drive into Louisiana.

It is also our son's birthday.

The first one we'll have missed since his birth-day.

And before I get all sad about that again, let me say thank you so much for checking in, and good night!

10 comments:

Jessica said...

70-70? That's not even humid! People complain about the humidity in Atlanta, but that can't touch the humidity of a coastal summer (especially when you're ten miles inland and don't get any of that cooling sea breeze).

But I totally get the hair thing. When I went to Ireland, I understood that my hair evolved for that climate -- the fine mist collected on top of my nicely-behaving-actual-curls, but my scalp stayed dry. I wouldn't trade my constant frizz for that kind of weather, though!

The image of you Booking someone under the stall divider cracked me up.

When/where do you want me to send food/running route recommendations for Atlanta? (It's actually really sad how little I have to recommend for a place I've lived so long... but there is one absolute must-see "farmer's" market. And too many awesome running routes, really, to even narrow them down... we have a lot of green space for an East Coast city.)

Random comments for a random post, I guess... One of my sister's nicknames among her friends was "No Segue Girl" because she jumps from topic to topic (sometimes back-tracking), but I think that comes from growing up in a big family where there were always several things happening at once, and you just learned to keep track of them all.

Kylie said...

The whole booking someone in a bathroom makes me laugh. Do you just have a book in your bag waiting for someone who you feel needs it?

I really love this whole booking concept. It kind of reminds me of this assignment we had in English called love week. Three weeks ago one of my schools teachers died of a heart attack so my teacher wanted us to put love back into our community. Our assignment was to do one act of love. Some kids made signs that said take what you need and hung them around campus. Others walked around with free hug signs. Someone tapped dollar bills all around campus with inspirational messages written on them. It was an amazing week to say the least. It showed me how much a little act of love can change so much.

I have always been interested to see what my hair would be like in humidity. Seeing as it is flat a piece of paper I would love to see what humidity does to it.

Today I looked up a map of all reststops in the USA and let me tell you there are a lot of them. Have reststops become your new best friend? With some providing some really nice showers (at least the ones in Arizona that I have been to) and the food.

Hope your trip continues to go well. Hopefully your CDs with be waiting for you when you get to Main Street Books!

Have a great week everyone!

Kylie

Unknown said...

As a Health & Safety instructor for the American Red Cross, I hope you have brushed up on the techniques for saving a conscious person from choking if you are Booking around food. Seriously, sounds like you guys are having a blast and Booking is just the coolest...but yeah, refrain from Booking under the stalls in the bathroom.

Wendelin Van Draanen said...

Jessica! Once we figure out where we're staying, I'll want green space run recommendations :-) I will expect my hair to be pouffy in Atlanta, then, too!

No Seque Girl sounds like a superhero. With English Teachers quivering in fear?

Kylie: That put-love-back sounds so nice. And thanks for mailing the CD!

Gael: Okay, I'll refrain :-)

Thanks for checking in!!

Unknown said...

Sigh. In humidity, my hair goes completely flat - even with mousse and hair spray! Found that out while in Austin in July... and it was 100 degrees!

FYI: Best way to do laundry while on vacation is to find a laundromat with "wash and fold" service. You drop your clothes off in the morning, they wash and fold it, and you pick it up that evening. You are charged per pound and it's often less, even including tip, than you would have paid if you'd done it yourself! AND, you don't have to spend hours in the laundromat!

Yusa said...

I want to try booking people with books i just enjoy!

Happy Birthday to your son!

Trying to keep up with your trip through Twitter but boy are you moving fast! I can barely keep up and Im just reading about it!

Keep us updated!

--Yusa

Mrs. Byrne said...

Wendelin,
I'm a local English teacher. I have a junior that wants to write was wondering if there may be an opportunity to intern, shuffle papers, with you now, over summer, sometime? She's bright and committed and I'd like to see her feel what writing looks like even if only for a month or two. It would be good for her as she starts figuring out what's next. She's top of her class and kind. Let me know. Dbyrne@righetti.us and thank you

Wendelin Van Draanen said...

Kylie! We've got your CDs and they're awesome. You're awesome! Having a great time listening to your choices. Cruella DeVille! Mark couldn't believe I knew all the lyrics...

Mrs. Byme, I will e-mail you when I get back from book tour. And I'll be thinking about what an internship might look like between now and then!

Yusa said...

Wait is that possible when im a couple years older could i possible maybe ever internship for you?

And Kylie! I hope to hear your CD blasting when she visits our town (hopefully) in the next part of the tour!

Kylie said...

Yay! I am so glad that they made it there safely! I have been slightly worried that they got damaged. I just realized that I put the wrong version of Wake Me Up on there, but hopefully it is okay.

My friends can't believe that a know the whole sound track for Frozen, Tangled, Princess and the Frog, Tarzan, and Mulan and then most of the songs for all the Toy Story Movies, Lilo and Stitch, Aladdin, Lion King, and well almost all the disney movies.