Category: Meanderings

Good morning!  This morning In New York is warm and overcast.  I am in the hotel lobby having my COFFEE of course, oatmeal and scrambled eggs. I feel good.

Yesterday was another whirlwind day.  We were at the convention by 8 am and I spent my morning and early afternoon talking to publishers and authors.  Grabbed a few books along the way – shipped two boxes of books home and will have a third to do that same with today.

At 2:00 pm Kathy from Bermuda Onion, and I, met with author Sarah Pekkanen.  She is just a wonderful,fun, full of likfe person.  We went to her publishers office at Simon and Schuster and were toured by the assistant to her editor.  We sat in the editors office, and were each given a bag of new released or soon to be released books.  (Oh, but more on that later!)

We were back at the convention center by 4 pm where I met my two newest of the roomies – Kim from Sophisticated Dorkiness and Care from Care Online Bookclub.  Both are super fun!

We were at the Blogger gathering from 4 to 6 pm and it was a nice mix between authors and bloggers and I just had a lot of fun mingling and meeting.

Afterwards we all gathered back at the hotel and Esme (Chocolates and Croissants) had an invite from an author for all of us to join them for dinner so we did.  That was a lot of fun as they asked us questions on blogging, reviews, tips for authors and marketing.  Did I mention I just the mix of authors and publishers and the conversations between us all.  It’s like we are one big team!

Then back to our room for a wonderful earlier night then we have been having.  I think we were all zonked out by 10:30 pm.

Today is the Blogger Convention and I am excited to see the panels and take notes.  I am charging up Flip Video and have my camera ready to go!  Hope you are all having fun – would love to hear what you have going for the weekend!

GOOD MORNING!!! 😀

You may have noticed that I am not posting reviews for the afternoons like I usually do and said I would continue as the BEA week went on.  In fact, you may notice that even my morning meandering has a little sleep in its eyes this morning.  BEA is beyond fantastic.  I am having so much fun talking with authors, picking up books, and meeting other bloggers.

I am not even sure I can put into words how much fun I am having.

My lack of review posts is that honestly, I am not around.  I have been going to BEA (yesterday Reagan and I were there at 5:30 am) to get tickets to author signings).  I run around all day seeing publishers and authors and going from event to event.

Highlight reel of yesterday:

• In BEA from 5:30 am – 2 pm

• Meet Adrianna Triggiani at 2 pm.  (So much to tell you about this tea I had with her but it will have to wait.  I will just give you a one word hint now:  Limo.)

• Back to BEA at 5:30 and back to hotel to clean up by 6 pm

• Blogger Party at 7 pm – and so much fun!!!!!

• Had a late dinner with Reagan (Miss Remmers Reviews), Heather (Age 30+… A Lifetime of Books), and Barbara Drummond Mead from Reading Group Choices.

Basically – I was back in the hotel at 11:00 pm at night completely shot but had so much fun I wouldn’t have traded a second of it!

And today… I will do it again.

Coffee Cup and I are currently in the hotel lobby grabbing a quick bite to eat and a rare relaxing moment.  Next stop is the post office where I am going to sent a media mail box to my house of the books I have picked up.

Today the new room mates come in!  Reagan went home this morning, Esme is still here and Kim (Sophisticated Dorkiness) and Care (Care’s Online Book Club).

So now I am off to another day of adventures!  Enjoy your day, stop in and say and know that soon it will be business as usual and will be back with reviews and posts that I cant wait to share!  😀

I will be more detailed later about who is in this picture but for now – Adrianna is in the middle!

Hey all!   I am so tired.  And having so much fun.

And tired.

But fun.

But oh so tired.

I am only putting up one picture today for the honest truth that I have had such busy days that I have had no time.  Today we were up at 5:30 am and to the Javits Center by 8:30 am.   I sat in on a panel and afterward, Regan, Maltaise, and I went to a YA gathering of authors.  It was a lot of fun and not a lot of people were around this morning so we really had a chance to chat with these wonderful women.

In the afternoon, Reagan and I walked to Central Park and sat in the park and read.  It was fantastic!  A beautifully warm day and a great way to unwind.  I finished reading Opposite Of Me in Central Park.  I loved the book – but more on that later.  🙂

When we got back to our room we had time to change and then we walked the 30+ blocks to the YA discussion tonight and book signing.  That was really fun and we met a lot of fellow bloggers.  Afterward 12 of us went to dinner together and it was a blast.  It was really fun to hang out and meet some fun people.

Back to our room after 10 pm and that explains my tiredness.

This morning Reagan and I are heading to the Javits Center at 5 am(ish) to get in line for author ticket signing.  I know…. a bit crazy (as I am thinking how tired I am) but well.. when in New York 🙂

Later today I have the tea with Adriana Trigiani and that will be exciting!  Then I get back to the Javits center around 4:30 and we will go back to the hotel and get ready for the Blogger Get together at 7 pm.  I think I may need to nap in there somewhere.  🙂

So that’s what is happening here in New York.  Again, I have many more pictures and I will do a recap when I get back with lots detail….

Have a great day everyone!

Hi everyone.  I am having a blast in New York.  As promised here is a little picture “highlight reel” of what we have done so far.  There will be a full BEA recap when I get home, but for now… here is a sampler:

Reagan and I went to Strand Book store on Monday afternoon to check out this book.  Literally wall to wall books.

… and floor to ceiling.

Then we went to the Teen Author Carnival (SO MUCH FUN!) and…..

Squeeeee!!!!  She was so amazing!  I can not wait to read and review her book.

Squueee!!!  She is so down to earth and fun!

Super Squeeee!!!   Sarah was so awesome and I bought her book and I got is signed 😀

Violet was just fun to listen to her talk….. picture a younger JK Rowling.  She is very “Londony” and I fell in love with the idea of her book while listening to her passion about telling the story.  I now have a signed copy.  SQUEEE!!!!

And finally just a fun moment at the carnival….

I met Amy and Natasha in person, two bloggers I truly admire.

So…. today – we are at BEA in the morning and tonight at 6 pm – Class of 2010 Debut authors event.  So excited about that one too.  Really I am just like a kid in a candy store.

Hope your day is super wonderful!  I will be back with a review in the afternoon.  🙂

Hello from the  Minneapolis airport.  I am sitting here at 5 am with fellow blogger buddy Reagan from Miss Remmers Reviews.  (And yes…. she is as cool in person!)  🙂

We fly out at 6 am…. goin’ to Milwaukee, then on to New York.  Super excited and SUPER tired.

Before I log off here this morning I have to share this funny cartoon I found on-line a couple of days ago.  Maybe it is just my humor (or wierd sense of…) but I thought this was funny:

I will be on later….  Have a great Sunday!

So what is happening at the DeChantal household this morning?

Packing.  Working out.  Laundry.  Cooking.  Cleaning.  Call to Grandpa.  And maybe a bit of mowing too if the weather holds out for me.  🙂

I leave tonight at 5 pm for Minneapolis where I will meet up with Reagan from Miss Remmers Reviews.  We are staying overnight there to catch our 6 am flight to New York.  I may need to pause a moment to read that last sentence….

………………………………………………………….

Wow.  Three books are making the journey with me.  Yes, that is conservative of me.  😉

Annie Freeman’s Fabulous Traveling Funeral by Kris Radish.  This is our book club read for June and it sounds like the perfect plane/hotel read.  (click on picture if you want to read more about the book)

The Threadbare Heart by Jennie Nash arrived in the mail yesterday.  I have heard good things about this one!  (If you want to know more about the book click on the picture)

The Opposite of Me by Sarah Pekkanen.  I won this authors NYC package giveaway and while I have seen the book around I have not read it yet.  As I am meeting Sarah in New York, I want to have read this.  I think it looks like a story line I really will enjoy! (Click on pic for more details on this book)

So that’s what is in my carry on.  I still am prepping reviews and a tour for next week that will continue to go on as planned.  I will also have Lap Top with me so I hope to give you morning updates of what is happening at BEA.

What are your weekend plans and what book is going with you?

Oh wow – I can’t wait to share some news with you!  Go refill your coffee cups this may take a couple of minutes to get out of my between the “Squeee’s” and the cartwheels…. and possible another squeee….

Ok.  Ready?  Let me set the scene for you….

I am in my office yesterday afternoon.  We are doing a total office inventory so by mid afternoon my eyes are bugging out of my head.  I click on my personal G Mail link to see if anything new and exciting is going on in the world and I see this email titled:  You Are Going TO NYC For Free!!!

I figured it was some sort of scam advertising but clicked to open the email anyway.  (Oh come on, you would have opened it too!)  Turns out it is from author Sarah Pekkanen (Opposite Of Me) and I won her blogger giveaway for NYC!  I still can’t believe it so I find her website, and start reading the details.  I remember signing up for this much like if you are at a grocery store and they are doing a giveaway for a freezer full of food… you don’t think you will win, but you fill out the form anyway.

So by now (and remember I am still in my office), I am trying not to scream, I read through her email again and she asks me to either email her back or to call her for details.  I start the email – telling her I am so excited, then decide I want to call her too, think I send the email but forget to hit send and dial….

She answers.

I tell her who I am and we have this wonderful conversation where I am excited and bouncing and I think she may be too.  She tells me how they used random.org (I LOVE Random.Org!!!) and explains the package to me.  Since I have paid for most of what she is offering already, all I had to do was email her my flight info and hotel and she is going to give me a check to reimburse me.

I can’t even tell you how high I am flying off the ground right now!  The last couple of days I have been trying to plan how to do BEA and not spend a lot of money.  I was making little deals with myself like “well, if I take from savings I can put it back in with next months check….” and then knowing full well that wont happen as youngest son is getting an apartment when he goes back to college in the fall and he and I are going to look next month to start to furnish that apartment and I want to help where I can..

This is such a gift!

Be sure to look at Sarah’s website – it gives a lot of details of what the package consists of.

So bouncy girl, I mean I, am working out this morning, using a spa gift card this afternoon that my hubby gave me for Christmas for a manicure and pedicure – (I usually do not bother with a manicure because I am always doing stuff that would ruin it, but decided to use the Gift Card for BEA).

I have books to mail today.  Contests to end that I have been trying to get to all week.  Start to pack.  Date night with hubby.  And – in a few hours I have a post where I want to introduce you to a blogger that if you have not already met, you should.

Have a super fantastic day!  If you are going to BEA I would love to meet you so connect with me on Twitter (bookjourney) or email me at journeythroughbooks@gmail.com.

Oh I can just tell it is going to be a BE-A- UTIFUL day today.  The sun is already shining this early and I cant wait to be in it!

I have touched base with all BEA roommates and I am getting seriously excited. (Here is a little background music while you read this post).

Ok… LOL.  I had to do that.

I biked yesterday 18 miles instead of rollerblading.  Wendy has strep throat so had to cancel on me.  Thats ok, I havent had the bike out for a while now and it felt good to do the ride on a sunny day.  The big 150 mile is in June and I am seriously praying on nice weather for that two day ride!

I have so many reviews to write and such a busy schedule.  My plan was to be all caught up before I left for BEA and I hope I can still do that.  Books are read, I just got behind on the reviews.

On another bookish note I am ready for a new audio book on my IPOD.  I received my monthly credit from Audible yesterday and I have chosen The Eyes Of Darkness by Dean Koontz.  I loved Koontz in my early 20’s and read everything he had written.  I havent read him now for a while and I am excited about this new one!

I also think I am going to pick up Kiss by Ted Dekker.  Audible is having a 48 hour sale and this one is one of the sale audio that I would like to have.

We will talk more about audio one of these days!  I know many of you do not listen to them but I love them and I want to do a pro con post….  when I have time.  (Insert smile here).

Have an awesome day – as I type I am already late for the gym and I will have to catch up with Jennifer.