Hello - I’m probably the only person in the UK enjoying this wet weather (it must be awful for those of you who are dealing with flooding where you live). Anyway, I’ve mostly been indoors, trying to get with the times and set up a profile on Facebook (Myspace unnerves me for some reason). I am now on Facebook under my writer’s persona, Holly Amber Harvey, if you want to add me to your friends list - I think it might take me a decade or two to discover how it works and what the point of it is (by then there’ll be something more advanced like MyBrain, where you think of someone and their thoughts pop up in your mind…ok, maybe I’m exaggerating a little). Apparently my sister has ‘bought me a pint’ (what???) and she is a baby ninja (what the ???) - she’s my only Facebook friend at the moment…

I was in Borders on the Team Valley today (no copies of my book on the shelves, as far as I could see), and was expecting to have to fight my way past queuing Muggles, desperate to find out Harry Potter’s fate - nope. The only queue I faced was the one at the in-store Starbucks where people were desperate for a caffeine fix and a pain au chocolate (I say people; I meant me). Still, I’d love a penny for every pound the new Harry Potter book makes…

The people that know me know that I have an issue or two with Harry Potter - not the book, the film or the character (So why? For that you’d have to read my next book - there’s an incentive for you). However, my husband once made a promise to one of our nieces that he would take her to see each of the films as soon as they came out. As he couldn’t keep his side of the bargain this time, I reluctantly stepped in…and really, really enjoyed the Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. I was surprised…not just at how engrossed I was, but at how expensive it was to go to the cinema these days (god, I sound old!) I got a few pence change from £24 for two adult tickets and one child!!! No wonder I’m a couch potato… Anyway, I would recommend the film, although I think small children may find it a little scary (and jumpy thirty-two year old woman might, too).

I’ve also had a little browse on the internet and found that the local Libraries Service has some copies of Karma in stock (one in the Reference section) and are waiting for quite a few more. I thought that was a bit cool - I used to LOVE going to the library as a child! Yes, books were my friends when everyone else was still playing outside at 8pm and my parents thought that 8pm was a good bedtime “for a school night” - I used to read with the lights off, until it had gotten so dark I could no longer make out the words. I love the way that a good book can take you away from reality for a little while - and along those lines can recommend A Tale of Two Sisters by Anna Maxted and Amy’s Honeymoon by Julia Llewelyn. I needed some escapism and these two books really hit the mark!

Oh and Holly’s picking up a bit - thanks to all who asked. Both her and her sister are lying beside me as I type.

14th August is the date my ‘letter’ will appear in Best magazine…maybe I shouldn’t have told you that until I’ve seen it myself. Wish I’d known that before I sidled up to the magazine rack in the Co-op and tried to casually skim through the pages - I bet all the security cameras were trained on me! You now think I’m really cheap, as I could’ve just bought the magazine for 78p, but to my poorly dog, 78p is a contribution towards vet’s bills. Yes, my oldest girl, Holly, is poorly and I’m worried sick about the little mite - back to the vet’s tomorrow, with fingers crossed. Our vet is fantastic and my dogs love him - they actually fight to get IN to his surgery, rather than away from it. No matter what he does to them, he’s always rewarded with a lick and a cuddle (from the dogs, not me - I just say thank you)!

What else’s happening? The delightful Natalie has confirmed that the nice man at Borders is still interested in me doing some kind of signing - not sure when, but it’s still a positive, isn’t it? I was beginning to think they’d forgotten about me! Perhaps the local press might finally consider reviewing the book. It’s a longshot, but you never know, do you?

I was also delighted to get a call from my Counselling tutor, Penny, this week (aside from the fact I have more work to submit, when I thought it was all over). She was telling me how much she liked my book and that her partner was reading it too…and having a bit of a chuckle! It’s always good to hear that people are enjoying the book, but more so when it’s a man or someone who ordinarily hates ‘chick-lit’ ie someone other than the target audience. Though I find it hard to accept praise as genuine and deserved, I do enjoy it!!!

In an attempt to take my mind off what I will now refer to as “The Troubles“, I think that I may have gone too far. In fact, I think I could admit to temporary madness (at least, I hope its temporary…) What have I done? That’s a good question - one I will probably ask myself a million times between now and…then! Well, I decided to apply to be on the quiz show In It To Win It - it seemed like a great idea at the time. Well, at the very second I submitted my application it seemed like a good idea…the very next second it seemed like a stupid, stupid idea. And it got worse…

I have a terrible fear of heights - when my bus travels over the Redheugh Bridge in Newcastle, my journey becomes a white-knuckle ride as I grasp the handrail and close my eyes tightly, praying I’ll get over in one piece! I get queasy when, on films, the camera pans over the edge of a building and shows the ground below. I once held up the Revolution ride in Blackpool, when I made them let me off the ride because it was a lot further off the ground than I thought it was. Why am I telling you this? I decided that I wanted to do something for charity - yes, things have been pretty lousy for me lately, but there’s always someone worse off, isn’t there? I couldn’t do anything too physical (for obvious reasons) but needed to do something that people knew would take a real effort on my part. So, after doing a little research on the internet, I decided to sign up for the Marie Curie charity abseil off the Tyne Bridge in March next year. I just missed the one that ME North East did this month, or I would’ve done that one. I will be scared witless, just as I was when I did the BDMLR’s Marine Mammal Medic course (fear of water, that time). Actually, maybe I’m not scared of heights, as such…just the falling…and then hitting the ground!

Of course, I had hoped something book-related would come up to take my mind off “The Troubles“, but it hasn’t yet. I can keep on dreaming…or I would if I could get any sleep!!!