Fourth of July and Other Explosions

Happy Canada Day, a little late, to you!

And Happy Fourth of July, a little early, to you as well!

My work schedule is finally settling down, and I can't work on my most current projects until I get feedback on them, so I'm in a kind of limbo. However, it is giving me time to plan my next knitting and writing projects, so that's been good.

I'm also doing some more author visits, and will be at the Orem Public Library on August 1 at 2 pm. If you're able to go, I'd love to see you there!

In other news, the roads were nuts today. Everyone's out shopping for barbecue food and supplies, and fireworks, and ice cream because it's hot as Mordor out there this week, and, of course, Provo does the biggest Fourth of July festival I've ever seen (and I'm from Philadelphia!), so there's a carnival in town here, another festival in Orem (Colonial Days), and people setting up for tomorrow's parade along the streets.

See the tents? The blankets? It's like this. For miles. The parade is tomorrow morning.

So, roads are packed, and people are slow since they're looking for parking that's at a premium. I'm driving home today and I'm behind someone going slow, slower than expected. I try to peer around them to get an idea of if there's a line of backed-up cars in front of that one. The car graciously gives me a good view of the nothing ahead of it by swerving to the left, and then to the right, and then back to the left.

Eventually I get my chance to pass this car and I look over. AND THE DRIVER IS ON HER EVER-LOVING CELL PHONE!

TEXTING, NO LESS!

I hate this so much. As someone how has repeatedly almost been hit, both in my car and out running, by people texting while driving, I'm not quiet about it. If you're talking, I get it. Some phone calls are urgent and there's nothing you can do about it except put the phone on speaker. But texts are inherently NOT urgent, and so you swerve and drive erratically and everyone behind you knows what you're doing.

Drive safe this holiday season. Put the freaking phone down.

Grrrrrrr.

Well, you wanted an explosion, right?

Here's a better one, courtesy of San Diego's 2012 fireworks mishap (they accidentally set off 18 minutes of fireworks in 15 seconds), followed by tomorrow's debuts. Happy Fourth of July, everyone!

Middle Grade:
Beth McMullen - Mrs. Smith's Spy School for Girls (7/4)

Young Adult:
Emily Bain Murphy - The Disappearances (7/4)
Kendra Fortmeyer - Hole in the Middle (7/6)