I'm back, but I'm siiiiiiiick
I'm back from my visit to the Pocono-Lehigh RWA Chapter. It was a really fun weekend; I'm glad I went!It sprinkled a bit on the way--bringing on flashbacks of the last time I'd travelled in that direction, in my desperate attempt to get to the NJRW conference last October :-P--but the entire trip actually passed much more quickly than I'd expected, & thankfully without incident.
The hotel was great! They had a fitness center (only 3 machines, but it was still nice, & I used one of them Saturday morning), a small pool (I hadn't packed a suit, of course, but next time I will!), & continental breakfast. They also had coffee & hot water for tea available 24hrs. That was especially nice, since I was fighting with my sinuses & allergies all weekend, & having hot mint tea 'round the clock really helped!
Friday night, I had dinner with three of the PLRW members, which was fun. Then Saturday morning, I gave my talk. There were actually more people in attendance than I'd expected for Easter weekend. I'm so glad! I had visions of only 2 or 3 members showing up & the Chapter basically thinking my visit had been a complete waste of time. :-p
But they were a great group! They seemed to enjoy my talk & had lots of good questions afterwards. At the very end, I signed books & got a chance to chat more one-on-one with everybody. All in all, I'd say the weekend was a great success. :-)
After leaving the library where the workshop was held, I probably should have just headed home, but instead went downtown to the Crayola factory. I'd been hearing about it & wanted to check it out for myself. Well, the place was really set up more for kids than adults, but it was still neat. They even had a room where they were showing how crayons were made. I got there at the very end of the process & didn't feel like sticking around until they started over again, but that's one thing I actually would have liked to see. Maybe next time.
And would anyone be surprised to hear that I found the gift shops the most fun of all? Yeah, probably not. :-P Not the Crayola one so much as the one for the Canal Museum. (Everything was sort of connected, in this big building that took up the entire block.) I got the most adorable planter with about six frogs perched all around the edge, a set of three frog figurines that do the "hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil" thing (too cute!), & two pairs of dragonfly dangle earrings. I'm not even a huge fan of dragonflies, but I couldn't resist. One is what they call "swing" earrings, with both sky blue & turquoise stones...I know just what top I'll wear them with! :-) And the other has little amber teardrop stones...I have no clue what I'll wear those with yet, but I'm sure I'll find something.
Soon after that, I did head home, & that's when I realized I was in for the big C-O-L-D. (Now referred to as "The Cold From Hell.") I've had sinus trouble all winter--for some strange reason, since I've never, ever had sinus problems before--& just have not been able to kick it. Like I said, even before I left, I was fighting it & had a horrendous sore throat. I wasn't sick, mind you. I felt fine, except for those sinus symptoms that are more annoying than anything else. (And wouldn't you know that I've been fine the past few weeks, but they'd crop up again right before I was heading out of town for a speaking engagement. You know, the kind where your throat is kind of, um, necessary. 8-P)
So anyway, on the way home, I started coughing, & just from the way my chest felt, I knew I was in for a doozy. Sure enough, I am now sick as a dog. Whatever was rolling around in my nose & throat before moved down & has taken up residence in my lungs. I just hope I didn't make anyone else sick. I don't think I did, since I wasn't really close enough to breathe on them for long. And I swear that if I'd known I was getting sick instead of just dealing with a sinus infection, I would have warned them all to keep their distance. I'm also glad that I didn't feel like this while I was there because I probably would have just laid my head down on the table & said, "Here are my notes, pass them around." :-P
The trick now will be to get rid of this, whatever it is before I'm supposed to head out again for the WRW Retreat in Harpers Ferry, WV, next week. Ugh. I do not want to be sick for that! If I am, I probably won't even go, but that's an even more depressing thought than being miserable all weekend. It doesn't help, either, that everyone I talk to says that this (whatever it is) has been going around all winter & lasts for weeks. Sorry, but I don't have weeks. It's got three days, tops, to move on--or find another host body to infect. And I'm taking every over-the-counter cold remedy I can find to help it along. LOL
So that's the recap of my weekend. I hope you all had a Happy Easter...or maybe a good Passover...& are feeling better than I am.
As for me, I'm going to go lie down before I fall down. :-(
