YOU are cordially invited to promote this baby!

MEGA-THANKS to All Commenters

Or shall I call you "commentators"?

"What commentators?" you may well ask, as this blog has received so few comments. Well, mostly I'm talking about the 13 good souls who allowed the "50/40" excerpt at BoomerCafe.com to climb so high on the site's Most Discussed list. These (lucky number) 13 include our publicist Kim Corbin; my dear friend Diane Arnold; my sister Kathleen Imes; an old (okay, middle-aged) classmate of mine, Angela Beauchman Palmer, with whom I went to school from first grade through senior year; Gina Pera, a former editor of mine (and, for a long time now, a very good friend) who happens to be closing in on the publication of her own book (Is It You, Me, or Adult A.D.D.?); Lindy Gold, one of my dearest Albuquerque friends, who handles marketing for Classical KHFM; Reina Romero, a mom from my kids' school; and Stephanie Freeman, one of my friends from San Diego days (and today!). We also received comments from some of the BoomerCafe folks themselves, including Cindy La Ferle, David Henderson, and last but not least, "BoomerCafe Guys." Thanks, everybody!

Wait! You count only 11, you say? Yes, well, Peg and I make 13. I guess I can thank us, too! Why not?

Now.... WHO wants to leave a comment right here at the "50 Ways" blog? Come on... don't be shy!

Love, Love, Love,
Sheila

Look--- we made "me*"!

Check it out! From page 33 of the May/June issue of me* magazine, a publication of the National Association of Baby Boomer Women, it's a sweet little review pairing us with no less a bestselling author than Richard Carlson, Ph.D., he of Don't Sweat the Small Stuff fame. Yahoo! Thanks me*!

(*Oh yeah, about that asterisk... The mag's lower-case title, according to its cover, stands for both "My Entertainment" and "My Empowerment." And also, of course, "me" in the traditional, "gonna-take-some-time-for-me" sense.)

BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE!

Check out what appeared in the March 24th issue of The Sun. Can you believe this? Please know that the headline was their idea, not ours. And no, that offer of "$2400.00 a month forever!" has nothing to do with our book.

But this is some mighty nice exposure, just the same. Our thanks to everyone involved -- especially our publicist, Kim Corbin.

What do these reviews say, you wonder? Yeah, they're pretty hard to read as little, tiny jpegs, aren't they? Well, let me fetch my spectacles and see if I can make the articles more readable, below.

Love, Love, Love!
Sheila


The me* article:
50 Ways to Leave Your 40s -- Living It Up in Life's Second Half
By Sheila Key and Peggy Spencer, M.D.

"50 Ways to Leave Your 40s" is one of those books you can pick up from time to time and sift through it like a treasure box, finding a different gem each time.

Divided into four sections---Body, Mind, Soul and Heart---the authors use inspiring and funny real life examples that encourage boomers to enjoy the ride and the wisdom that comes with age. Each chapter includes an essay, as well as activities to encourage living life to its fullest. The entertaining writing style and intriguing sidebars make this an irresistible tonic for midlife blues.

(Parenthetically, the review of the Richard Carlson effort reads...
Handbook for the Spirit
Edited by Richard Carlson, Ph.D., and Benjamin Shield, Ph.D.
Written with the premise that a spiritual foundation is the basis on which all the elements of our lives rest, "Handbook for the Spirit" is a collection of admired spiritual leaders of our time, writing about their relationship to the Divine. The book includes a wonderfully diverse collection of original writings from 25 visionaries, including Mother Teresa, the Dalai Lama, Rev. Michael Beckwith, Shakti Gawain and Wayne Dyer, Ph.D. Each shares what it is like to have a personal relationship with God, how this relationship developed and how it manifests in his or her life, relationships and career.")

The article in The Sun:
New book reveals how you can...
STAY YOUNG FOREVER!
By Gina Barlow

LIFE only gets better after 50 -- so why not celebrate it?

That's the inspiration behind 50 Ways to Leave Your 40s: Living It Up in Life's Second Half (New World Library), a new book full of ideas, inspiration and advice for staying fit, focused and full of fun into midlife and beyond.

Writer Sheila Key and University of New Mexico physician Peggy Spencer, M.D., aim at turning the senior years into a celebration.

Here are just a few of their tips:

JUST KEEP BREATHING -- Exhaling with a deep, audible sigh relaxes your whole body -- and the more you practice thinking about your breathing, the less stress you'll experience.

PLEASE MAKE A NOTE OF IT -- Boost your memory by carrying a pen and paper with you everywhere! The more you write down, the better your brain retains memories.

GET YOUR HANDS DIRTY -- Don't avoid mundane work, celebrate it. Whether it's planting a tree or building your own business, let your labor bring your dreams to life.

ACT AGELESS -- Stop thinking about how someone your age should act., and just get active. Think of sports-medicine professor Thomas P. Martin, who celebrated his 50th birthday with several 50-second stretches, followed by 50 jumping jacks, 50 push-ups and 50 sit-ups, then biked 50 miles from the shore of Hawaii to the summit of Mauna Kea -- the highest point in the 50th state!

MAKE THE CALL -- Time heal all wounds. If there's someone who was once close to you but who split away years ago, mend the rift. If you can't write a letter or make a call, then just concentrate on "beaming that sentiment out there," letting the universe know that you forgive and seek forgiveness.

(The photo and caption are meant to tie in with the article. The caption reads, "PLANTING a garden is a great way to use your hands and enjoy the results.)

Correspondence, correspondence, correspondence, ret-set-set!

Remember that old camp song? What was the "real" word? Sarasponda Sarasponda Sarasponda Ret Set Set --- something like that.

Anyway, I'm babbling. That would be because I spent this whole week printing and folding and stuffing and stamping and, on occasion, REprinting and REstuffing -- oh yes, and driving back over to the office supply store for yet more ink cartridges. If I knew how to spell that big, in-whooshing sound, I'd put that next, because my Canon PIXMA iP1600 SUCKS! And not just in terms of ink. I spent much of this week also getting error messages, pressing "cancel print job," and rebooting the computer. Long (and I do mean long) story short, I have just, minutes ago, "dropped" what must surely rank among history's most expensive 200-piece mailings. May it go forth in all directions and do some real good in this world!

Okay, so... watch your mailbox! Because you may just be among the two hundred! And if not, just wait. I'm now tweaking the thing for online-posting purposes---"the thing" being a fun little birth announcement about 50 Ways to Leave Your 40s---and will post it here just as soon as it's ready. Stay tuned.

TTFN (ta-tah for now),
Sheila

Climbing the Charts at BoomerCafe!

An excerpt from 50/40 ("Okay, Have a Crisis Already!") is still the Featured Post at BoomerCafe.com and, at last count, had climbed to #2 on the site's "Most Discussed" list, with 15 comments to its credit. What's more, in one of those comments, the BoomerCafe Guys themselves wrote:

We apologize that the Most Popular function of our site has not functioned until today. Had it been earlier, this story would rank among the most popular.

Golly! I know I speak for Peg as well as myself when I say, "Thanks to EVERYBODY who is helping to make 50 Ways to Leave Your 40s a success!"

Join us, won't you?
Go to BoomerCafe.com and leave a comment of your own! (Cool thing: no need to register as one of their members or whatever. Just fill out the comment form, click submit, and that's it!)

Famous Fifty's

Thought you might enjoy news of how some folks are "taking" this 40's to 50's transition. We'll add links to this post as we hear more stories.

Jamie Lee Curtis

Ellen Degeneres

Carolyn Kennedy

This Book-Launch Party was a "Gift from the Gods"

...Because I won it! Remember my new business card, with the book cover on it? I blogged about it back in late Feb... Well, the very first one of those cards that I "deployed" went into a fishbowl at ONE UP RESTAURANT & LOUNGE (301 Central SW, 2nd floor, in downtown Albuquerque), on 2/28 ---coincidentally the day amazon.com started shipping the book----and darn if someone from One Up didn't eventually pluck my card out again, thereby winning me a Happy Hour for 15 Fab Folks. Hooray!
Of course, my esteemed coauthor, Dr. Peggy Spencer, was there --- as were at least a couple o' margaritas!

"This one goes out to the one I love!" Looks like I'm pointing at the book, but in fact I'm pointing at Richard Towne, my mate of 28 years. (Notched that mark just last week, we did!) As manager of legendary Albuquerque public radio station KUNM, RT was plenty ready to celebrate, as on the very day of our anniversary, he completed a gruelling 3-year project to sign on FOUR brand-new stations, to carry KUNM's signal strongly into Secorro, Española, Las Vegas (NM), and Taos! Congrats to us both!
Mike & Kathy Lord, our dearest friends in town -- the ones we never hardly see, because they don't actually live in town -- had to shove off early, back toward their lovely A-frame in the Sandias, and a dear & diabetic dog. So great to see them! Kathy's in the book, by the way -- she kicks off "Way 36: (En)Lighten Up, Dude!"

The local TV news showed up, which was mighty impressive, I must admit -- at least until we realized they were only there to collect opinions from the party next to ours, about crime in the downtown area. Ho-hum!


Paul Ingles opened right up to the chapter he helped me with: "Way 23: Shake It Up Baby, Now!"

"Mmm, decisions, decisions!" Peggy and Mary B pore over the menu. Appetizers a'plenty were part of the prize.




And now I see that a whole middle section of photos went missing, while I futzed to get the text in there (almost) properly, up to this point. So let me call this Part One and ask you to scroll on!

"Come Lounge by the Pool (Tables)!"

That's ONE UP's tag line, though I'm terribly tempted to change it to
"Come (Book) LAUNCH by the Pool (Tables)!"
Hey! There was even a band. Didn't get their name, sorry to say. Tell you what: Let's just call them THE EXTREMELY LOUD BAND. Or, wait! How about "Middle-Aged Deaf"? By today's post-punk standards, that'd work as a band name.
(Say, what do you suppose Richard and the waitress are cooking up?)





Turned out two of my friends -- Maria and Kathi -- already knew each other from before.


"Your shoes are divine!"
(By the way, this is as close as I got to snapping a picture of Kathi's partner, Leann.)


SO COOL that the guests were READING!!! That's Kenna, along with Paul, and Mary B.

The final guests to arrive -- bringing us up to a perfect 15 -- were Molly and her daughters Ciera and Paloma. They enjoyed a game or two of Eight Ball...

HEY! I recognize that pool hall tush!

"The party's oooooh-ver
It's time to goooooo." Thanks, everyone, for helping to make my BIG WISH come true (and Peg's, too!) That's Mary B's friend Paul Suozzi holding the very artifact!!!

Didn't think to snap a picture of HEATH SHEPARD, the manager of One Up, but I'd like to ackn0wledge him, thank him for a swell time, and vouch for his combination restaurant/nightclub/pool hall ---- stop by, if you happen to be driving our little stretch of old Route 66!

Love, Love, Love (a.k.a. Way 47)
Sheila

TCM Review

"TCM Reviews for Book, Ebook, Audio Book, and Braille Reviews in Every Genre"

50 Ways to Leave Your 40s
Sheila Key and Peggy Spencer, M.D.
New World Library
ISBN: 978-1-57731-545-2
Non-Fiction, Personal Growth
Reviewed by Dr. Tami Brady

It wasn’t so very long ago, when 50 was deemed the beginning of the end. Soon you’d retire and then wait to die. Fortunately, times are changing. Better health care options mean that we are not only living longer but our so called golden years can now be spent doing what we want to do.

50 Ways to Leave Your 40s is essentially about celebrating a new phase of life and making the most of it. Perhaps, this is something we should do at every stage of life. Just take a moment to celebrate and look to the gifts that each age brings. Still, for many, 50 is the start of a whole new way of thinking and being. They’ve spent there entire lives focused on making money, getting ahead, succeeding in their careers, and taking care of family. Suddenly, all of those things seem to take on a different hue. It becomes more important to take care of oneself and have a little fun. Sometimes, it can be a very difficult transition. 50 Ways to Leave Your 40s provides the reader with 50 ways to celebrate, enjoy, and explore this new existence.

Radical Radio!

Sheila has done a TON of radio interviews all around the country. We'll post links to them here, in case you would like to listen in!

The Morning Drive - AM 800

Conversation with Vicki St. Clair - KKNW Seattle 1150 AM

The Maria Sanchez Show - KVTA

Kajama Website

Kajama website has three exerpts from the book. Click the links below to read them.

Okay, Have a Crisis Already!

Make the Call

Touch and Glow

Boomer Cafe

Boomer Cafe website has an exerpt from the book.

Living it Up in Life’s Second Half

Book Review

From Boomerful: Beauty and Being for the Best Years of Life:

50 Ways to Leave Your 40s

A book review by New Product Editor Mary Kellenberger

----------------

50 Ways to Leave Your 40s

by Sheila Key & Peggy Spencer, MD
Publisher, New World Library

My first thought when picking up this tidy little book was "what a great title!" Maybe this help-make-getting-older-not-quite-so-depressing collection of advice will be better than most of the articles I've read in those check-out counter magazines whose cover titles scream "Help! I'm old and I can't get up ... or get down ... or this is how we can help you get up and get down." I'm not saying they offer bad advice. Mostly, it's good advice, poorly packaged.

So, I was delighted from nearly the first page of "50 Ways to Leave Your 40s"! In fact, this book is just fun-filled great advice! In line with its delightful title that immediately tuned Paul Simon into my brain, Sheila Key and Dr. Peggy Spencer kept the beat going with music/memory-evoking chapter titles such as "Take a Load Off Fanny" and "Break on Through to the Other Side". Great music with the right advice to go along with these wonderful songs in my head. The Band and Jim Morrison probably never saw it coming!

I must admit, though, that I haven't finished the book yet. There are lots of wonderful sidebars in each chapter:

* "Cool Moves" - lots of simple exercise moves to tone, strengthen and even alleviate pain.

* "Things to Try at Least Once" - just what it says and I love what I've seen, so far.

* "Doc in the Box" - good advice on subjects from stinky feet to bad breath - head to toe coverage, so to speak.

* "Scribbles & Doodles" - to get us on the road to the healing and joyful habit of journaling.

This is truly a primer on how to feel good about living longer and better. But, it's also more than that. It's a great, laugh-out-loud (and at yourself) read. I may always keep it near as a refresher on living right and right now.

Chicago Tribune Mention

Published in last Sunday's Chicago Tribune Q section, under "5 Things We Learned From..."

50 Ways to Leave Your 40s:
Living It Up in Life’s Second Half

By Sheila Key and Peggy Spencer, MD (New
World Library, $14.95 paper)

Five million people turn 50 each year—
more than 12,500 every day—and must
come to grips with that milestone.
Whether it marks the start of the decline
or the beginning of a new life is up to the
birthday boy or girl, say the authors, who challenge readers
to consider aging in new ways.


1
Our metabolisms slow as we age. Use your 50th birthday to
prompt you to increase exercise, which, in addition to
myriad other benefits, boosts metabolism.


2
It is natural to acquire more stuff throughout our lives,
but crucial to know when to empty the closet. Purge! “How
gratifying to move into life’s second half without a ton of
dead weight from the first.”


3
Sometimes it’s better to act your shoe size, not your age.


4
“Musical memory is stored in the brain differently than
other types of data.” So sing. It strengthens the brain in
ways other forms of stimuli cannot.


5
While we can grow rigid with age, it is important to “be
open-minded, openhearted, physically unblocked, and
earnestly open to serving the common good.”

—Chris McNamara

Review on Longevity: About.Com

The Bottom Line

50 Ways to Leave Your 40s provides a seemingly endless list of ideas and things to do that can make 50 and beyond more exciting. If you are looking for a way to shake things up, this book will have it.

Pros

• Tons of ideas, tips and advice
• Fun style

Cons

• Some ideas are trite or impractical [author's comment: sometimes trite and impractical are FUN!]

Guide Review - Book Review: 50 Ways to Leave Your 40s, by Sheila Key and Peggy Spencer

From rethinking aging to offering advice about eating, 50 Ways to Leave Your 40s provides tons of ideas and tips for making the second 50 years of life better than the first. As you read through each section, you'll notice that some of the advice is familiar, though some of it does bridge new territory (often drawing on New Age approaches).

As each section ("Way") begins, there is often a story or cultural reference presented to ground the section. Examples of "Ways" include: "Just Keep Breathing," "Spurn Your Bra," "Go With the Flow," "Act Ageless," and "Touch and Glow." Each section seeks to inspire the reader to rethink aging and take action.

The book incorporates a good deal of New Age and alternative approaches -- which may be a turn off or a turn on, depending on the reader. The style of the book, too, may be a love-it-or-hate-it characteristic. It is quick and a bit choppy and at times, making it hard to follow, but it is also funny, fast-paced and surprising.

For the reader looking for a quick read and lots of ideas, this book is great. If only a couple of the ideas jump off the page and into the reader's life, this book would be worth it.

link to webpage with this review

5 Things You Can Do to be a Part of the “50/40” Book Launch

1. Tell everyone about 50 WAYS TO LEAVE YOUR 40s! Stay “in the know” about our tour schedule and media appearances, by getting on the list to receive our “Hot Flash” emails. (To do so, just email Sheila.)

2. Ask for the book at your library and favorite bookstore(s). If they don't have it, ask them to order it. It's available through the following distributors (and chances are very good your library and bookstores use one of these): Publishers Group West, New Leaf, The Ingram Book Company, Partners West, Baker & Taylor, and Dempsey (Canada).

3. Post customer reviews. (YOU get 5 stars for this!) amazon.com and barnes and noble.com are the biggies, of course, but GOOGLE THE TITLE! You'll find that the book is available at lots and lots of obscure little online shops. We're betting they'd appreciate your customer review, too! Heck yeah. Play your cards (er, reviews) right, and you could end up with FIFTY stars!

4. Blog with us at www.50waystoleaveyour40s.blogspot.com. OH! Here you ARE! Well, thanks for coming. Click by often, would you? Post LOTS of comments (or at least one -- please?). Watch for contests and prizes. And send the link to everyone you know, so they can blog with us, too!

5. Come to a book-signing event. And bring your friends! Or, hey! Help us book an event in your area. Email us, if you have any "ins" anywhere.

Thanks & Love from SK & PS

Scenes from a Book Launch

Garcia Street Books, Santa Fe, NM
March 19, 2008

Garcia Street's announcement board.

(Many thanks to Peg's dad, Dr. Steven Spencer, for taking all but the last of these photographs. The last one's by Sheila -- who's always on the look-out for a metaphor come true!) Enjoy! Wish you could'a been there!

Do we look excited or what?

We were excited, alright -- not least because we found the place only minutes before "show time." Thanks for driving, Peg! The fault was all mine. I just had to make 50 different bookmarks for the occasion!
Peg here: Notice how full this bookstore is. They don't waste a shred of space! Our attendees sat on chairs tucked in between the islands of books you see here and shelf-covered walls. Very cozy!


This is us (Sheila, L, Peggy, center) with Andrea, one of the bookstore workers. So lovely of her to greet us with such a warm smile --- and wine to calm our nerves!
My Dad noted that Andrea and her colleague, Aaron, were smiling throughout the event. And that in spite of us staying an hour past closing time! They were very gracious and generous. And they sold a bunch of our books, too!

While the two of us signed books, audience members enjoyed some of our toys. The woman in the foreground is looking at the "twin scales" she's weighing in on -- to see if she's literally balanced.
To the right is Peggy's sister Sally, trying out our Loofah-on-a-Stick. (You whack yourself with it --- feeeeels sooooooooo gooooooood!) And her son, Peggy's nephew Jaden is there in the middle, putting the Hoberman sphere through its paces. Yes, we had a grand old time, authors and audience alike. Didn't break out my guitar pillow, but.... next time!
We passed out Sheila's beautiful home-made bookmarks, each of which has a Way (chapter) title and brief description, then the audience members enjoyed reading their pick out loud. We also used these nifty souvenirs to help us randomly pick sections of the book to read aloud. The folks were very game, even getting up from their chairs to try out one of our "cool moves," a Key favorite called "Lasagne Loca!"

And finally, here's that "metaphor come true" -- Peg's and my BIG WISH to finish the doggone manuscript... so New World Library could make it into a book... so stores like Garcia Street Books could sell it... and so we could actually go there and "meet our public" (even if they were mostly Peg's family that night!). Thanks to everyone who had a hand in making our BIG WISH come true!

Media Whirl!

Heavens to Betsy, where have we been these past three weeks, Peg and I? Well, I'll tell you. We've been to Garcia Street Books, in Santa Fe, to launch our book tour. We've been to KCHF TV-11, also in Santa Fe, to tape our first television interview. (Watch for it on YouTube -- seriously! As soon as our publicist gets a hold of the tape, she'll be uploading it.) We've been to Classical KHFM 95.5 FM, right here in Albuquerque, to tape our first radio interview (with the charming Kip Allen). And we've been "live" in Ventura, CA, during afternoon drive-time, no less, on "The Maria Sanchez Show," on KVTU 1520 AM.

Those appearances involved the two of us together. Plus, I (Sheila) have been on the air, mostly live, and mostly on the AM band, on the following stations---since launching our media campaign on St. Pat's Day a couple Mondays back. (Major thanks to Peg Booth and Brittany Cohen, of Booth Media, for lining up this radio campaign -- and to New World Library, and especially our publicist Kim Corbin, for making ALL our media coverage possible!)

KRDO- 105.5 FM- Kansas City, MO (Host: Charlie Thomas)

WCMY 1430 AM, Ottawa, IL (Host: Karen Rhodes)

KSFR- 90.7 FM - Santa Fe, NM (Host: Diego Mulligan)

CKLW- AM 800- Bingham Farms, MI (Host: Mike & Lisa)

KLYC- AM 1260 - McMinnville, OR (Host: Eve Fuller)

WMMM- 105.5 FM Madison, WI (Host: Kitty Dunn)

KLPW- AM 1220 - Washington, MO. (Host: Diane Jones)

KJAN- AM 1220 - Atlantic, Iowa. (Host: LaVon Eblen)

WGAU AM 1340- Athens, GA (Host: Liz Dalton)

KBUR- AM 1490- Burlington, IA (Host: Steve Hexom)

WBZ - AM 1030- Boston, MA (Host: Laurie Kirby; Interviewer: Carolyn Firestone)

.... And there are a whole bunch more coming up.
NOT LEAST! This weekend... Peg and I will be heard live in as many as 38 states, all in one fell swoop of an hour, on "The Brad Walton Show," out of WCCO in Minneapolis, a.k.a. CBS Radio/ Twin Cities. We'll be talking to the Night Owls ( "Call me Bird of a Feather!"*), as we're scheduled from 1:00 to 2:00 in the A.M. -- and this time I don't mean the AM radio dial (though that is where to find WCCO -- at 830 FM, to be exact). Hope you can tune in. Or catch it streaming online at WCCO.

(* The "Bird of a Feather" line is from our Way #22: Seize the Night.)

Don't count yourself among the Night Owls? Okay. KCHF, that Santa Fe station where we taped our first on-camera interview, is making it a lot easier for people to "catch us" on the air. Our half-hour appearance on "Issues and Answers," with host Diane Kinderwater, will air on Channel 11, in Santa Fe (and on cable systems around New Mexico) five times, as follows:

Weds., Mar. 26, 4:30 p.m.
Thurs., Mar. 27, at 10:30 p.m.
Fri., Mar. 28, at 10 a.m. and again at 10:30 p.m.
Sat., Mar. 29, at 10 p.m.

Plus, as I mentioned, the "Issues and Answers" interview is coming soon to a YouTube near you!

Okay, that's the media round-up to date. Wait, make that the broadcast media round-up. We've got a few websites and (dare I say "old-fashioned") print rags to our credit by now. (Yes, I can say old-fashioned, by the way. Do it all the time. More and more often, it seems. Is that another midlife-ism?)

Stay tuned, will you? Peg has photos from our first booksigning event.

Love Love Love,
Sheila

March 4th, revisited

True story about March 4th a year ago. SO GREEN was our Christmas tree the holiday before last --- a beautiful ceiling scraper of 14 feet --- that when we carried it out of here (that is, as we marched forth with it, a year ago yesterday), the thing was actually sprouting new growth! Peg can vouch for this. She came over to work on the book that day, and I called her out to the compost pile to show her: our retired tree, stripped of its holiday bling, yet SELF-adorned with bright shoots of Spring Green, here, there and everywhere! A passionate part of me wanted to stand it right back up in water, but... well, it was March, for heaven's sake, and we'd already had more than one neighbor remark, upon seeing the gentle giant in our great room, still proud as a peacock past Valentine's Day, "Hey, I'd be happy to help you get that out of here!" So we decided to march forth on March 4th, out the back door, bearing the beauty to its final resting place, where it lay sprouting as it died.

Sigh.

Well, this year the winter holidays are long past, and I marked (er, marched?) the day in a manner much more in synch with the season: I shopped not one but two gardening stores. Mostly, I wanted a blooming bush of some sort, to celebrate the publication of 50 Ways to Leave Your 40s. Chose an orange rose named Rio Samba! Oooooohhh, I love orange. And I love roses! So there you go. Some onion sets hopped into my basket on the way to pay. Oh, and a small pot of shamrocks, to remind me of my papa. (Not only did he have Irish blood, but he was also a March baby who ended up dying in March. And he had an unusual take on the Ides of March. Stay tuned -- I'll tell that story on March 15th. Or perhaps the 16th!)

The second gardening store yielded strawberry plants and a hanging planter for them (so the pill bugs don't get 'em this year), two big packets of wildflower seeds, and --- oh, get this! This is a first for me --- pansies. Yes, this longtime herb-and-veggie grower is taking her first foray into flowers. I have transplanted blooming things into pots before, yes, but it was always for something or someone else. But this year, by gum, our property will be prettier with pots of pansies!

I p-p-peaked at the potatoes I have hidden in the dark pantry. Sure enough, they're sprouting eyes! Still no p-p-pea sprouts, though. I planted a couple different varieties straight into the garden two weeks ago -- was told the only secret to succeeding with peas around here is to plant them by President's Day -- and now I'm checking for sprouts everyday, even through the morning frost. It's been three years since I've gardened. Guess you could say I'm a little eager.

So! How does YOUR garden grow? Even if it's only the metaphorical kind, do tell!

Love, Love, Love,
Sheila

March FORTH!

Left. Left. Left-right-left.
The misspelling in the title is deliberate. After Feb. 29th, I'd have to say March 4th is my next-favorite date -- for its built-in, homonym-like call to action: "Get going," this date seems to say, "March forth!" So I had better, right?

Here are the headlines in the world of 50 Ways to Leave Your 40s:

THE BOOK IS HITTING THE STREETS. Even those who declined amazon's offer of overnight shipping are by now receiving their orders. Amazon sold out -- there's news! -- and were expected to have the book back in stock today. (March forth!) Oh, and the book has RECEIVED ITS FIRST CUSTOMER REVIEW!!! From Colleen Anderson, the sparkling soul who delivered the Answer of the Gods (in the form of the book's title) not one hour after I scribbled the Big Question: "I must write a book! What shall it be about?"

Yes, Colleen Anderson, whose own creative gifts are so numerous as to defy comprehensive description, did bestow FIVE FULL STARS on "50/40." Wanna read all about it? Click here then scroll down a ways. Thank you, Colleen! And give my love to Michael (Davis, her sweetie, and the guy who channeled The Answer in the first place.) Blessings on you both. Congratulations: You're GodParents!!!

BURIED LEAD (there's always at least one in my blog posts): The Chicago Tribune this past Sunday ran our book's FIRST MEDIA REVIEW. We haven't seen it --- HAVE YOU SEEN IT??? Peggy drove all over town looking for it on Sunday, but Albuquerque came up empty. Kim Corbin, our publicist at New World Library, has a call in to her contact at the Trib. And I, meanwhile, put out the call to a select subset of my email address book, whereupon Marty Ronish forwarded the request to her Chicago buds. Fingers crossed that someone will produce the clip --- and that what it has to say about the book is, you know, good!

Finally, what about those DAFFODILS in the photo up there? Well, I am kicking myself for not fetching my camera earlier and oftener, but this is how last Friday's (LEAP Day's) fistful of buds looks today. Actually, there were two fistfuls of buds, one of which I delivered to the doorstep of my beloved coauthor, Peggy Spencer M.D. Because I didn't know for sure she'd be home, I opted for buds rather than blossoms, lest they wilt and die before she discovered them. Of course, as soon as I did select buds about to bloom, I saw in them the perfect metaphor for our book going out into the world. "Let the blooming begin!" I wrote on her card --- and then on another one, for my family, more of my beloveds.

SURPRISE! They turned out to be daffodils. On a guess, I'd said tulips. But no. Sunshiny daffodils. So much did I regret the missed opportunity --- woulda, coulda, shoulda had a fabulous time-lapse film of "Bud to Blossom in Two Days Flat" -- that I went back over to the shop where I bought them, hoping to score another fistful. Again no. Sold out. (Another metaphor for the book, perhaps?)

OK, gotta go. Got a zillion things to do to be ready to be an author. Too late, I know, but I still "gotta." Keep in touch! PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT -- this blog could use a lot more comments! Take a moment, would'ja? Pop in and say hey.

EVEN BETTER: Join Colleen and leave a CUSTOMER REVIEW about 50/40 at amazon.com. There's also a place to enter useful KEYWORDS to help 50/40 come up when amazon's customers are looking for a particular kind of book. THE MORE THE MERRIER!

Whatever's on your agenda for today, do be sure to March FORTH! Ready to put your best foot forward? Left. Left. Left-right-left...

Love, Love, Love (a.k.a. Way #47)
Sheila