You know that writer whose blog is read and referenced far and wide?  The one run by a faculty member at Vermont College of Fine Arts (the finest grad school in all the land) where you can’t believe she has time to learn about and connect with so many professionals because she also is hugely prolific as a writer and has many devoted advisees?  I’m talking about Cynthia Leitich Smith and her blog, Cynsations (obviously.)  And I am honored to say that I am today’s New Voice–the new writer she interviews for her blog.

That's Cyn. She's a hoot.

Some come on down to Cynsations, read what I have to say about outlining vs. plunging into the story, how teaching has influenced my writing, and writerly self-promotion.  And then stick around and click through to read some other new voices!

(On a side note, the playwriting program I teach for is called New Voices.  We’re just voicey all over the place here!)

And on a p.s. note: On Monday, I talked to 250 kids at Scribner Middle School in Indiana!  They were awesome.  The auditorium was huge and I walked with my hand-held mike up the aisles, just like Oprah.  Photos of that to come.

On Saturday, I did one of my first authorly Events, the Big Brothers Big Sisters Friendship Celebration.  I have been a Big Sister for over 4 years now, and it’s been a fantastic element in my life.  I love being able to help someone directly, without any interface, and of course I love my little sister, who has grown from 8 to almost 12 in the time that I’ve known her (and she’s retained her sweetness—amazing!)  Naturally, I was thrilled to have a Nice and Mean Event for an organization I care so much about.

An Event is a somewhat different beast than a reading or school visit.  At an Event, you have a table representing Your Book and You, and you are the sole staff member (well, unless you are a bigger type than myself.)  You might sell books, and you might not.  Mostly, you are there to drum up enthusiasm for Your Book and You and to Meet People.   I have no problem with this. I like meeting people, especially kids and teachers, and this gives me a chance to interact.  But to do this, I have decided, I need a Gimmick, and my Gimmick is Nice and Mean Memories.  (Apparently my Gimmick for Talking About This is Capital Letters, but anyway.)

In addition to erecting my little area with books, bookmarks, and information on how to bring me into your school, I created a little clothesline to which people could affix their Nice or Mean Memories.  I had some left over from various bookstore appearances, but those are going to get retired, because I got so many great new ones from the Little Brothers and Sisters and their Bigs and parents, too!  I told them I’d put their words on the internet and make them famous by Monday night, so here I am, making good on my promise.

I’m starting with the mean memories so you can end on a sweet note:

Mean Memories

When my mama had got lock up my godmother cut my hair when I was 13.

5^th Grade—I was proud of my new gauchos…until I saw the “popular” girls giggling about them.

My mom had a dozen roses stolen from her.

Nice Memories

I the best student and the nicest.  My name is Demetrius.

My favorite nice memory is when my 10-year-old brother wrote me a letter for my 18^th birthday telling me how much I mean to him!  I love you, little brother!

A friend came to visit me & gave me a hug after a hard day at the doctor’s office.

When my mom tooke me and my mom’s friend and daughter to Six Flags!!

Me and all my family went to the zoo.

My best friend, John Mark, getting the ENTIRE cafeteria to sing HAPPY BIRTHDAY to me on my 16^th birthday!

All the time that me and my big sis cook together.

Joe is my friend at church and he is nice to me.

I did chors to help mi mom.  (Editor’s note: I feel compelled to remark that that was written by a 5-year-old on his own!)

———————————————————————————————–

I was surprised that so many more people wrote Nice memories than Mean ones.  I personally might have liked to vent (maybe this is why I am a writer?), but I guess they wanted to think about something happy on a Saturday morning—and who can blame them?

Mostly, though, I just felt good reading and re-typing these.  It’s such a good reminder, too, that even something as simple as taking your family to the zoo can count as a nice memory.  It’s possibly indulgent and self-referential to be inspired by things inspired by your book, but I did feel inspired, and honored, at the memories people shared.

If you have any Nice or Mean memories to share, feel free to add.

I was thrilled when Jessica guest blogged on my site, writing a fantastic song. Now, I’m so excited to return the favor. The segment’s title alone—On the Scene with Nice and Mean—makes me feel super cool. But, I’ll let you in on a secret. I wasn’t always the starlet before you. I know it’s a shocker, but such is the world of girls. Boys will tell you what they think to your face (unless you’re dating them; then they play games—but that’s another post altogether). If a guy dates his friend’s ex, they may come to blows with their fists. Or, he may just tell him, “Dude, that’s not cool.” They’d have a few other choice words, and end of story. But not girls. Girls may have it out with you too, but just when you think everything is fine, poof and abracadabra. The mean girls appear.

The first time I experienced this was when I was in sixth grade. I hung with the cool kids then (that is, they would become the cool crowd). We had sleepovers. I got invited to their parties. I played spin-the-bottle (although we didn’t really do anything when the bottle landed on us). We went to the local luncheonette for lunch (here, I knew I was part of something big because leaving school to go out to lunch was not something everyone did). Then, about midway through sixth grade, they stopped asking me to go out to lunch with them (they told me later, “Oh, we didn’t think you’d be allowed to go”). They told me my clothes were weird. The big thing then was that the color of your socks had to match your shirt. Mine didn’t. When a new girl entered our grade, I was really excited. We became friends, I invited her to sleep over. She never showed up. The mean girls adopted her. She told me later, they told her I wasn’t allowed to do anything fun at my house. They ended up ostracizing her too. By the end of the year, not only were we not friends but none of those girls were friends with her either. She signed everyone’s autograph book with the same phrase: “Sorry about all the fights.”

In high school, the mean girl thing happened again, only this time it was worse because I thought these girls would stay my friends forever (What? That’s how high school girls think. That’s what those BFF necklaces mean, so must be true.) Then, there was a guy. Isn’t there always? And a misunderstanding. Everyone stopped talking to me. The “friends” who were supposedly friends with both me and the girl in question (let’s call her Stella), said they understood both sides (they also knew what really happened) but did nothing to help the situation. One of them left Stella “real friends” in our senior will.

Why does this happen? Who knows? It taught me things, though. I’m not going to wax poetic and say I’m happy for all that happened, but the friends I got in college were true friends. I knew what to look for, could read behind the false exterior and see when people were really being friendly or setting me up for a fall. I talk to a few people from h.s., but mainly on facebook, and am only really close with one person from back then. Not surprisingly, it’s a guy. And other than a minor argument in high school, we’ve been good for years. Were things perfect? Nope. But if there was anything amiss, we talked it out. I never had to worry that he would tell a friend who’d tell a friend who’d tell a friend that he hated me.

On teen shows, though, everyone becomes friends—mean and non-mean girls alike. I wonder if that’s how it is now or is this just an alternate lovey dovey reality. On the original 90210, Kelly hooked up with Dylan while Brenda was away. Majorly hooked up. And Brenda and Kelly found a way to be friends in the later episodes. On the new 90210, Naomi and Silver totally ostracize Annie, and now she’s forgiven them all and they apologized and everyone is happy happy. One Tree Hill? Peyton dated Lucas behind Brooke’s back. They patched it up. Granted, it took a psycho killer to bring them together, but still.

Maybe that’s the answer. If you have girls, sit them in front of teen soaps, and have them take notes. Tell them real friends make things work. And if you become a mean girl, there are ways to reform.

Margie Gelbwasser

www.margiewrites.com

INCONVENIENT, Flux, November 2010

This would be me.

Hey there ravenous readers! I’m Susan Robertson, of Wastepaper Prose, and you are On the Scene with Nice and Mean.

I met Jess a few months ago at a book signing and apparently made an impression because she asked me to guest blog while she is away on her honeymoon (where I hope she’s having a blast). I was thrilled when she asked, but I can’t help but wonder if my being here is not a product of a brief lapse in her sanity. Regardless, I am here to fill her super-fabulous blogging shoes.

So far my On the Scene colleagues have brought you tales of niceness and meaness that have warmed your heart, made you laugh and possibly caused your high school PTSD to flare up. My story has less humor to it (my apologies for that upfront) and it’s the first time I’ve shared it publicly. But first you need a little background…

I have malformed digits. Translation: I have nubbins for fingers. The amniotic bands broke and were trapped inside my mother’s womb with me while I was still becoming Susan. They got wrapped around my fingers and toes and caused my birth defect. I never knew there was something wrong until some mean kids (and some who just weren’t very smart) decided to use that birth defect to insult or belittle me.

“What’s wrong with you?” “You’re a freak.” “Is that contagious?” I heard every insult a little kid could come up with and I cried over more than one of them. In high school, it only got worse. Mean girls carried on the trend of calling me a freak. They also called me a “fingerless witch” or at least something that rhymed with it.

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that adults tend to say the most idiotic and hurtful things. While working at a bookstore in college I had more than one adult notice my fingers and tell me they would pray for me, as if I hadn’t been living with it for nearly two decades. Perhaps the most hurtful are the people who automatically assume the birth defect is my mother’s fault. “Is your mother an alcoholic?” People can be cruel, even if they don’t mean to be.

An incident with an adult – a teacher – almost drove me away from my passion. She was a keyboarding teacher at my middle school and keyboarding was mandatory. I was more than willing to try, but our first lesson was on “home keys,” and that one lesson started it all. The instant my teacher saw my fingers positioned over those keys, she decided I would be a keyboarding failure.

Using the home keys, your fingers home base on the keyboard, I was horrible at the keyboarding exercises. My words-per-minute count was pitiful. I tried to adapt and use my own method, but I was promptly told that if I couldn’t type properly then I would fail the class.

It wasn’t the first time that I had been told my hands and/or feet would keep me from doing something. But it was the first time it had been reiterated it so many times that I started to believe it. I started to believe that I wouldn’t ever be a writer because writing was all about typing and word counts, right? If my teacher thought I couldn’t succeed, it must have been true.

That was when my parents got involved and called on the principal for help. All I remember about that part was that there were numerous meetings and, when all was said and done, my teacher didn’t say much to me during class. I found out she was under strict orders to let me adapt, and she couldn’t stand to let me type my way. Somedays it looked painful for her to watch me.

Now, nearly 15 years later, I’m an award-winning journalist. I type everyday, using the tried and true method I developed in order to survive keyboarding. Two hands. Four fingers. My index, pinky and thumb on the right, and all the one on the left really does is hit Caps Lock, but it’s involved so I’ll give credit where credit is due. And I fly across the keys, though, admittedly, my speed stemmed from the discovery of instant messanging and not a desperate urge to become the fastest typist in the east.

So the moral of this story is three-fold, and you’ve heard it all before. 1. Believe in yourself because you’re the one who has to want it. 2. Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t do something because they may not know how amazing you can be, especially when challenged. 3. Never let off the gas. If you want something, go after it with everything you have in spite of the doubt and negativity around you. Those people, who doubt your ability and spout insults aren’t you, and you are all that matters when it comes to what you want in life.

Leave a comment below and share your tales of  niceness and  meaness. Tomorrow our final guest blogger, young adult author Margie Gelbwasser , will be her to share hers with you, so remember to stop back by!

It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Zu is  both.—  adapted from E.B. White (Charlotte’s Web)

When Jess asked me to guest post on her blog I admit a little thrill went up my spine. Nice? Mean! How fun to expose bad deeds and ill will… but as the date for my post approached I knew there was only one topic I could write about – the genuine embodiment of a true friend and a good writer- the nicest person I know- Zu Vincent.

Zu and I met at Vermont College and became fast friends. Her prose is spectacular, her yoga poses divine. Her novel THE LUCKY PLACE is not to be missed. But most of all I can count on my friend Zu, not just to do the right and good thing. Zu consistently goes way above and beyond, to do the very best thing.

Three weeks ago the impact of Zu’s kindness came around again… a story that started long ago and far away… once upon a time… when my picture book biography Soar, Elinor! was just a twinkle in my editor and my eyes. “Go to California and find Elinor Smith! Comb through every photo! Find something great!” my editor commanded and I was quick to comply. But there were yards of scrapbooks, and photo albums, and mementos. Boxes and boxes. I needed help.

Zu lives hours- time zones, practically- from Santa Cruz where I found Elinor’s son and her treasures, but Zu was there at the airport to pick me up, to drive me, and to help me comb through the pioneer aviatrix’s belongings. We scanned every scrap, then Zu filmed hours of interviews while Elinor and I talked and talked and talked. Elinor and her son loved Zu on first sight. Of course.

Is this woman nice? It was just the beginning.

I knew from the start that this book would take a long time. Picture books work that way, especially when the art is exquisite. I also suspected Elinor Smith didn’t have a lot of time. She was a spry 95 when Zu and I visited her, but 95 is, well, 95. Finally last summer I received the mechanicals (sort of a preliminary color proof of a picture book) It was gorgeous. I couldn’t wait to show Elinor.

But I couldn’t leave my ill mother in Vermont. By this time Zu had become as close to the Smith/Sullivan family as I had. Without skipping a beat she insisted I mail the picture book to her so she could drive half a dozen hours to Palo Alto and present it to Elinor herself. This seemed like a crazy plan, but I mailed the package, and Zu made the drive, and she read the book, leaving a framed copy of the cover she made for Elinor. They both cried. I did, too, hearing their report, back at my house in Vermont. It was Elinor’s 98th birthday.

Of course, we hoped Elinor would hold the real hardcover in her hands- when I’d first contacted her she insisted she’d be ready for a book tour when it was time! Sadly, that won’t happen. The book will be published this October 12, but Elinor passed away on March 19, finally receiving the press and fanfare she deserved, attention she’d been denied in the eighty years since her many record breaking flights. Attention that Zu gave her, spontaneously and with no self interest. That’s the kind of nice that’s deep and good, genuine and true.

E. B. White was right. It is rare to find someone who’s both a good writer and a true friend. In my book, Zu Vincent is one of a kind.

~Tami Lewis Brown

These days, Zu and Tami are part of a group blog that focuses on the craft of writing for children and young adults, Through The Tollbooth. Zu’s posts always inspire Tami to be a better writer and a better person. She’s not saying they always work!

Hi everyone!  I am SO SO pleased to be here as part of Jessica Leader’s Honeymoon Guest Blog Special (which is what I’m calling this in my head.  Though I think she’s calling it “On the Scene with NICE AND MEAN” which rhymes and is catchier).  I spent a lot of time thinking about what I would post today, seeing as I’m part of a ridiculously cool line-up of bloggers and authors who are sharing fabbity fab stories of NICEness and MEANness.  And, you know, I could post about all the nice things I’ve done and how I’m a totally nice person and how nice it is to know me, but:

The wisened semi-grown up writing this post.

1. How many of you would believe that a girl who runs a blog called The Hate-Mongering Tart is actually nice to a fault?  I mean, seriously

2. Reading about how nice I am is, as Hassan from John Green‘s AN ABUNDANCE OF KATHERINES would say, “not interesting.” (Um, I read this book last week and it’s hysterical.  Just saying.)

So.  I have decided to tell you about the time that Mean Girls — real Mean Girls — tried to take over my life.  I mean, wow, who would have thought the Mean Girls would have been interested in me?  I was a sort of punk rocker with pink and black hair and I wore lots of non-matching clothes and glittery make-up and they were pretty much obsessed with, like, making sure they had color-coordinated their outfits…to each other.

But somehow fate would have it that these two would be the girls with whom I’d spend most of my time at the beginning of my sophomore year in college. And though I had been bullied/ignored/uncool as a teen, I had had a pretty decent time with friends in college (and later had an even BETTER time, post-Mean-Girl-pocalypse, in case you were wondering).  And these girls seemed to like me.  Little did I know — as the geeks of the world so often don’t, in real life — that I was their PROJECT.  You know, like in that movie, SHE’S ALL THAT?  Where a girl takes off her glasses and gets a haircut and — BAM! — she’s a Hottie McHotpants and the star of the Prom?  Yeah.  They wanted that for me, without the makeover.

So, I thought, so that future Proud Geek Girls of the world are not lulled into a sense of security when attacked by a tribe of Mean Girls, I would make you a list of warning signs.

You've seen MEAN GIRLS. Have you ever felt like Kady? Or Janice?

WARNING SIGN NUMBER ONE: Your new friends always say things like “you could look so pretty if.”
It may SOUND like a compliment, especially to those of us who have grown up being told that or just feeling like we are ugly or fat or weird.  Me?  I felt like a total freak for most of my adolescence and sometimes still I look at myself in the mirror and go WTF, Emily, why do you have to look ridiculous?  But you know what?  A real friend doesn’t tell you “could be hot” or “could attract that guy/girl” or “could look good” if you lost ten pounds/changed your make-up/bought different clothes/stopped wearing glasses.  A real friend may look different from you, but she doesn’t doubt for a second that you’re awesome.  Okay, now you’re thinking, wouldn’t a good friend, like, tell me if I had spinach in my front teeth?  Or tell me that a dress I like maybe doesn’t complement my figure?  Yes.  You’re right.  But that’s different.   A real friend wants to help you be the best you you can be, by working with who you already are.  For her, it’s not about making you a different you altogether.  Here’s a test:  if it would annoy you coming out of your mom/grandmother/critical female relative’s mouth, it’s not something your BFF should say (or that you should say to your BFF).

This is me about 8 years ago. Being my goofy self. Arm belongs to a MEAN GIRL.

WARNING SIGN NUMBER TWO: Your new friends always have nasty things to say about your other friends and/or significant other.
Jealousy is ugly, for real.  And one thing all Mean Girls have in common is some funky green-faced action.  The truth is, and you may have heard this before but I’ll say it again, a lot of Mean Girls are secretly super insecure, like the rest of us.  And they don’t want anyone, even their Nerdy Girl Projects, hanging out with other people.  Unless its on their terms.  Like that time they said “We’re going to have a super fun lunch and then get manicures but you can’t come today because we’re having special us time.” (Yeah, that’s a bonus sign. Good friends don’t tell you about good times and then tell you you’re not allowed.) So when they find out you want to go to a concert on Friday with this kid they think is uncool/weird/mean/stupid/ugly, and even when you say “You’re welcome to come but I didn’t know you were into (insert style of music here),” they have to rag on your friend/date/acquaintance and how he’s not good for your reputation.   This?  Major sign your friends are mean girls.  Because a real friend wants to be a part of your life, meaning they want to know the other people in your life, even if they’re different.  (MAJOR EXCEPTION: If your friends don’t want you hanging out with someone because they are ACTUALLY dangerous, i.e., say, a drug dealer?  Or, like, history of violence?  That means they’re looking out for you, not just being jerks.)

The original Mean Girls movie was HEATHERS. Ironically, one of my Mean Girls' favorite films.

WARNING SIGN NUMBER THREE: Your new friends dole out “punishments” for breaking “rules.”
Yes this actually happens.  And yes, it’s happened to me.  And yes, most of the time, I didn’t realize it was happening.  You might not either, which is why I’m, like, filling you in and stuff.  Example: You eat breakfast with your new friends every day for a few weeks and then suddenly they tell you “We don’t know if you should eat breakfast with us today.  You talk a lot and breakfast is quiet time.” (This is verbatim from my REAL LIFE Mean Girl experience. Mean Girls, if you’re out there, I hope you feel SHAME. Um, I also hope you’re not stalking me.) You know what?  If you talk a lot, (or, you know, have some other quirk), that’s part of what makes you YOU.  And our friends aren’t going to like everything about us.  They might even get annoyed at us sometimes (mine sure do!), but that doesn’t mean they get to punish you.  If your friends make you feel  bad about being yourself, that’s a pretty big neon sign that they’re not really your friend.  Unfortunately, Mean Girls are pretty good at making you feel like it’s YOUR FAULT, hence the “rules” and “punishments” scenario.

Sure. Laugh at the Spice Girls. But they knew what it meant to have Girl Power. Girl Power means being there for each other, being true to yourself, and standing up for what's right!

WARNING SIGN NUMBER FOUR: Your new friends always want you to listen to them, but never have time to help you with your problems.
We all know her.  The girl who ALWAYS has something to complain about whether it’s a broken nail or a bad break-up.  And we listen to her problems because that’s what friends do.  We’re there for each other when times are hard, even if it is just a ruined manicure.  But what Mean Girls are good at is making you feel like any time you need to talk you’re interrupting/whining/being needy.  They can make you feel like your problems are not important.  You could be having a really bad day and a Mean Girl would tell you to leave her alone because she’s on the phone/channel surfing/watching paint dry and therfore doesn’t have time for your insignificant issues.  A real friend doesn’t dismiss your problems!  She might say, “Hey, can I call you back?” or “I’m having a bad day too and I’m just not in the mood to talk,” but she doesn’t ignore you completely.  She DOES call you back or hang out another time and LISTEN. Especially if she’s been known to call you in the middle of the night to cry over unrequited love/gaining two pounds/a mom fight.  Relationships are about give and take.  If you realize that all you’re doing is giving, and all your friends are doing is taking, they might just be jerks.  But if they are ALSO making you feel bad about needing someone to lean on, well, they might be Mean Girls, too.

On BUFFY, Cordelia Chase proves that Mean Girls CAN change their tunes!

Alright, readers.  This concludes the E. Kristin Anderson Guide to Avoiding Mean Girls.  I hope you found it both educational and entertaining.  Edutaining if you will.  No?  Can you only use that word if you’re like, an old person trying to be hip?  Well, crap.  I’m caught.   But feel free to leave me some comments on how YOU’ve dealt with Mean Girls (or guys).  Or tell me if you’ve ever caught yourself being a Mean Girl.  Because, you know what?  I think if we’re honest with ourselves, we’ve all been on both sides of that fence!  And, everybody deserves a second chance!  Anyway, I would LOVE to hear your stories!  Being a young adult is tough, and there’s no way anyone should ever tell you different!  The trick is to keep your chin up, and keep as many positive people around you as possible!

In any case, there’s plenty more awesome to come while Ms. Jessica is on her Honeymoon.  I’m looking forward to the rest of the posts!

And remember, even when it’s hard to tell who your friends are, stay true to yourself!  You WILL find the people who love you for who you are, just like I did!  And you can never have too many of THESE kinds of friends!  Peace Out from Austin, Texas, Y’all! <3

Me getting a face-hug in '07 from one of my BFFs FOR LIFE, Katy. Photo by Tony M. Harris.

I honestly never know whether people check blogs on Sunday or not, but in case you are inside on what might be a lovely day, here’s some news: I’m on my honeymoon! Somewhere warm with crazy creatures. (I may tell you about it; I may not. Sometimes a girl wants her privacy.)

Anyway, I couldn’t deal with the thought of letting the blog lie fallow for the upcoming (glorious) 9 days, so I enlisted some of my favorite internet-happy writer types to guest-blog for me, on the theme “On the Scene with Nice and Mean.” For the next few days, the following people will tell you their reminscences of niceness and meanness:

Monday April 12th–actually me, posting automatically, about Library Appreciation, thanks to a series created by Shelli Johannes Welles

Tues April 13th—author Micol Ostow (SO PUNK ROCK AND OTHER WAYS TO DISAPPOINT YOUR MOTHER, and lots and lots of other books)

Weds April 14th—Irene Latham (LEAVING GEE’S BEND)

Thurs April 15th— Emily Kristin Anderson (online as EmilyTastic)

Fri April 16th— Tami Lewis Brown (author or the forthcoming SOAR, ELINOR!)

Mon April 19th— Susan Robertson (blogging as Wastepaper Prose)

Tuesday April 20th–Margie Gelbwasser (author of the forthcoming INCONVENIENT)

…and then you’re back to me again! So please, stop by and savor. And if you want to know more about these authors before they blog, you know, I hear there’s something called Google that allows you to check them out. Yes, I should be linking to their websites and books. I know. It’s only polite. But would you rather I did that or cleaned the kitchen floor before I left so I didn’t come home agahst that I am married yet live in such gummedness?

Thanks, guest bloggers! Looking forward to it!

Thanks so much to everyone who entered the Nice and Mean ARC giveaway contest!  I loved seeing your enthusiasm and getting to know new potential readers through the internets.  I hope you’ll stay tuned to this blog and my Tweets–I will be giving away actual copies of the book when it is released in June!

And now, as they say in Little Miss Sunshine, the winners are…

Courtney and Snazel, who entered in the Marina and Sachi way, respectively.  They have won an ARC of Nice and Mean, a book from the S&S books photo below (please send me your first choice, and I will hope that they are different), and an array of bookmarks.

Alicia!  who has won second pick of the S&S books below (please tell me your top 3 prefs) and an array of bookmarks

Liyana! who has won third pick of the S&S books below (please tell me your top 4 prefs) and, you guessed it, an array of bookmarks

The following people win bookmarks!

Andrea C, Anja, Janflora, Amanda, Ari, Heather, Angie, Joyce (1st 8 to enter)

Kendra, Katie, Megan Chloe and Angel (last 5 to enter)

To receive your prizes, please email your snail-mail address to jess@jessicaleader.com  I will mail these when I am back from vacation on April 20th, so if you don’t get anything for another two weeks, don’t be alarmed.

Speaking of my vacation–I’ve created a line-up of great guest-bloggers to entertain you all when I’m away.  Their topic?  On the Scene with Nice and Mean–their own reminiscences of niceness and meanness.  More on the identity of those bloggers later.

Thanks again!

~ Jess