Dear Reader

Dear Reader Column 3-31-05

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Dear Reader,

I was practically down on my knees--begging--the last time I was in New York City.

Every time I go there, I stay at the same hotel. I love it, and I feel like royalty when I check in. "Oh, Mrs. Beecher, I see you stay with us frequently. It's so nice to have you back again. Let's find you a room with a view."

But the last time I tried to check in, the front desk clerk only said, "Mrs. Beecher how would you like to pay for this today?" I told him I'd already paid for the room. I booked it online, like I always do, so my credit card was billed instantly.

"Well, I know for sure that's not the way it works," he replied. And he just stood there, repeating: "I know for sure--I know for sure--I know for sure." This wind-up guy was really starting to get on my nerves, and I had an appointment to get to.

"Why don't you just give me my key and check on it while I'm out?" I suggested. But nope, he wanted to be right.

"Please, please, don't do this," I was pleading with him by this time. "I want to be able to come back here again. There's a market nearby, a Starbucks, and a drugstore within walking distance. Everything's so handy. I'm begging you--don't screw this up for me."

I told him that he was acting like a jerk, which didn't resolve the issue, but at least it gave him new material, "I can't believe you called me a jerk. I can't believe you called me a jerk."

After my appointment, I checked my email. There was an apologetic message from the hotel manager telling me that my room was paid for, and everything was taken care of.

Guess who was behind the desk when I returned to get my key and check in? Only this time, the man behind the desk sang a different tune: "Hello, Mrs. Beecher. It's so nice to see you back again. Let's find you a room with a view."

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

P.S. Once upon a time. . .a storyteller arrived at a house in the Irish countryside. And after a fine and lengthy meal--the storyteller hadn't eaten in days--he. . .well, you really should read a bit of Frank Delaney's, Ireland for yourself.

Go to: http://www.emailbookclub.com/alt/ireland/ Then email me and tell me what you think of the book. I have 10 copies to giveaway to readers.

Dear Reader Column 3-30-05

Join my email book club. Over 280,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

A classic suggestion from my Email Bag:

"Hi Suzanne, I'm a sophomore at the University of Pittsburgh, and I've been a member of your book clubs for a little over a year now. I wanted to suggest another book club that would focus on books that people have always meant to read, but never got around to it. A Classics Book Club.

I thought of it when, for some reason, I picked up 'The Moonstone' by Wilkie Collins--expecting it to be rather dull and verbose--but loving it so much that I finished reading it within two days. I don't know if you're up for all that extra work, but if you are, I think it would be successful." --Mary Beth

(Suzanne responds:) Mary Beth, I like your idea. I can't take on an entire Classics Book Club right now, but you have got me thinking about making it a "Classics" summer at the book clubs. I could feature some of the classics in my column for readers to sample. I'll "noodle" a bit more on it and let you know.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

P.S. Once upon a time. . .a storyteller arrived at a house in the Irish countryside. And after a fine and lengthy meal--the storyteller hadn't eaten in days--he. . .well, you really should read a bit of Frank Delaney's, Ireland for yourself.

Go to: http://www.emailbookclub.com/alt/ireland/ Then email me and tell me what you think of the book. I have 10 copies to giveaway to readers.

Dear Reader Column 3-29-05

Join my email book club. Over 280,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

I have my own writing muse and I couldn't imagine life without her, but she's getting a little demanding lately. Nothing like the importunate character that Sharon Stone played in the movie "The Muse". Her creative services required a suite at the most expensive hotel in L.A. My muse, on the other hand, only refuses to listen to country music.

Let me explain.

When I write, I listen to music. And when I was reading a draft of a column over the phone to my muse the other day, she stopped me mid-sentence, "Is that country music you're listening to?"

"Well, it's one of those 'new country' tunes," I told her.

"I don't like country music," she replied, "turn it off. Would you like to know why?"

And she continued with this story:

"My dad died in a car accident when I was four years old and my mother died when I was twelve, so that left five of us kids alone. My aunt and uncle took us in, which really made for a house-full,
because they had four children of their own. They didn't have a lot of money--they were poor really--so the only transportation that could fit all of us, was a big pickup truck.

They carpeted the bottom liner in the back of the truck, and bolted down the front and back seats from a car, so we'd have a place to it. And then they hung big, blaring, speakers in the back, and covered it all with a huge truck cap. I got car sick when we traveled, so I always had to ride in the back of the pickup. I have many memories--did I tell you they were country music fans, Suzanne?--and they're not fond memories, mind you, of traveling down the road listening to wailing country ballads, while I felt ready to throw up at any moment.

To this day, I won't ride in the back of a pickup truck, and I won't listen to country music. Change the tune and let's get back to work."

So I put on a little Motown to appease my muse, but later when I was writing this column, I switched back to the song Complicated by Carolyn Dawn Johnson. Shh...please don't tell my muse.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

P.S. Once upon a time. . .a storyteller arrived at a house in the Irish countryside. And after a fine and lengthy meal--the storyteller hadn't eaten in days--he. . .well, you really should read a bit of Frank Delaney's, Ireland for yourself.

Go to: http://www.emailbookclub.com/alt/ireland/ Then email me and tell me what you think of the book. I have 10 copies to giveaway to readers.

Dear Reader Column 3-28-05

Join my email book club. Over 280,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

I have a special book for you to sample this week, Frank Delaney's "Ireland". When I saw the cover of the book, I thought it was going to be a serious read and I wasn't too sure how I'd take to it. But when I discovered that Delaney had written about a storyteller--the very last storyteller--how could I resist?

Once upon a time...a storyteller arrived unannounced at a house in the Irish countryside. And after a fine and lengthy meal--the storyteller hadn't eaten in days--he invited his hosts and their neighbors to gather around the fireside and...well, you really should read it for yourself.

Sit back and enjoy the read. Go to: http://www.emailbookclub.com/alt/ireland/

Oh, and I have 10 copies of "Ireland" to giveaway--five hardcover copies and five audio books. Let me know if you liked the sample as much as I did. I'd love to send you a free book.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 3-25-05

Join my email book club. Over 280,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

I'm having trouble writing this morning, because "thinking" is getting in my way. To be more accurate, I'm trying to "avoid thinking" about something. A friend of mine has received some sad news. No one has died, but his life will be changed forever. I need to ask him about it, but I'm secretly hoping that I don't run into him soon.

I know how to be a good friend, and I will be there for him. I want to pick up the phone. I want to ask, "How are things?" But I know his answer is going to take me to a place I don't want to go. Grieving is hard work and I don't want to sign up for the job right now. Can't somebody else go first?

I want to be angry, at someone, at something. It's unfair. He's a wonderful person. I know all the psycho-babble: what doesn't kill you will only make you stronger; and there's a reason for everything; and that it will all work out in the end. But grieving is such a long, hard road to walk. It's so sad, I don't know if I can make the journey. But knowing my friend like I do, he's probably already started down the road. So I guess it's time for me to join him.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 3-24-05

Join my email book club. Over 280,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

You don't always have to finish what you start. Sometimes just the act of beginning something is all that's required, and the rest will come later. I didn't grow up with that message, so I've had to teach myself that lesson along the way.

When I'm writing, sometimes the lines come pouring out of me, and I can't get them down fast enough. But then the intense fanfare abruptly comes to an end. That's it. That's all I've got for the moment. The column's not finished, but apparently that's all I feel the need to say--for now. And so I put it aside.

Setting things aside will probably always be a little unsettling for me. If I start something and don't finish it within the illusory timetable I've set for myself, I feel like I'm being lazy. "There's no good reason why you shouldn't finish that right now, Suzanne."
It's a voice from my past and I hear it each and every time.

But I'm beginning to understand that sometimes things need time to "noodle," as my friend puts it. Who knows, maybe the part that I need to wrap things up is on backorder, and it will be a couple of weeks before it shows up. But whatever the reason, the timing just isn't right today.

Learning how to set things aside requires me to trust myself. Do I trust myself enough to know that I'll finish it when the timing's right. Or on second thought, maybe the real creative genius is in what's left unfinished. Norman Rockwell started his painting, "The Dugout" in 1948, but he never finished it. It sold--unfinished--for $345,000 dollars.

Let's see, how many unfinished columns do I have sitting around?
Where's my calculator?

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 3-23-05

Join my email book club. Over 280,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

"Help Wanted: Newspaper Carrier". When I read that ad in this morning's paper, I actually toyed with the idea of applying for the job, because it brought back such good memories.

I'm just plain tuckered out today, because I worked in my flower gardens all weekend. It was nonstop, physical labor--my muscles ache, actually they're kind of humming--but it feels good. And, when I saw the ad, it reminded me that I used to feel this "hum" every day.

When I was in my 20s, I had 13 paper routes. Every morning, I was up at 3:30 and my first stop, on the way to pick up my newspapers, was a convenience store. I'd fill my thermos with coffee, grab a to-go box and pick out at least five or six donuts--the kind with the colored sprinkles on top. They were my favorite. When you have 13 paper routes and all of them except one, is a door-to-door walking route, you can eat anything you want. (Those were the good old days.)

It's my own theory, mind you, but I bet that people who have jobs that require them to dig in, and give their muscles a workout every day, have less stress in their lives. I know when I'm trying to yank a weed out of the ground, with a root that's two feet long, I only have enough energy to think about the task at hand. And by the time I throw in a couple of grunts and groans, (sound effects seem to increase my strength) I'm pooped. Too pooped to worry about any problems.

When I delivered newspapers, I remember the same thing happened. A stack of thick Sunday Editions piled up in front of you, tends to take your focus off of whether or not you're going to get home in time to meet the washer repairman. Because in the middle of delivering a couple hundred newspapers, I'm too exhausted to care.

Yep, when my body gets a workout, my mind takes a break. I may look a mess on the outside, dirt in my shoes, or newsprint on my hands, but on the inside, I feel oh, so good.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 3-22-05

Join my email book club. Over 280,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

From my Email Bag:

"Hi Suzanne, I have only been [in the book club] for one week, but I really enjoyed the ones I've read. I was wondering, could the ISBN number of the book be included? It makes it easier for me to search to order it."--Sallie

(Suzanne responds:) Sallie, yes we will. Right now, we include the ISBN with the PrePub Book Club read, and because of your suggestion, we're going to start adding it to all of the other clubs, too.

"Suzanne, I cannot tell you how many times my husband has heard me say, 'Oh! Guess what? I was reading my book club email today and...' I recently read 'Footsteps.' by Diann Mills and LOVED it! I started reading it on a Friday evening and finished it by Sunday! I don't know when the last time was that I got so into a book that I just couldn't put it down."--Kendra Parks

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Warm regards,
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 3-21-05

Join my email book club. Over 280,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

I just finished eating a strawberry that didn't have any taste. Last night I woke up in the middle of the night and wanted a snack, so I reached for a banana. The kitchen light wasn't on, and I didn't notice that the banana had a green hue, until I bit into it. Green does not mean "Go" when you're eating a banana.

Yuck. I didn't want to just toss it, so I looked for the positive Side and convinced myself that the vitamins were still there--ripe or not. It was not a tasty middle-of-the-night snack.

When I was walking through the produce section of the market the other day, it dawned on me that I don't have seven tasty food groups to choose from anymore. The fruit and vegetable category should be renamed the insipid food group. The tomatoes are pink, so hard-skinned that I'm sure I could volley a couple of serves with them before they turn into salsa ingredients. I routinely sniff through the grapefruit bin, hoping to smell something that vaguely resembles a sweet citrus aroma. And, I've had to resort to thievery because I'm tired of sour grapes--I always taste-test one before I buy. Tap, tap, tap, knock-on-wood, oh, that's supposed to be a pear?

When I shared my fruit and veggie dilemma with the produce manager, his suggestion was to put the fruit in a brown paper bag until it ripens. Well that's a problem, too. Brown paper bags are hard to come by nowadays. And when I told him that most markets--including his--don't use them anymore for bagging produce, he responded with that glad-to-be-of-service smile, "Ah, but we do 'sell' them in Aisle 5!"

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 3-20-05

Join my email book club. Over 280,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

When I was inserting quotation marks into some "Dear Reader" copy the other day, I got to thinking about my first time...

...the first time that I had to use quotation marks in a magazine article that I was writing. I'd finished the interviews, but when I started typing my notes, it suddenly dawned on me that I didn't know how to use quotation marks.

Most of my solutions to problems involve using common sense, and I admire other people who use the same no-frills approach. I read about this the other day: NASA spent bundles of time and money developing a pen that would write upside down in space. The Russians sent their crew up with pencils.

My article was due the next day, so my immediate solution for learning how to use quotes was to: Take a bubble bath and read through a "Time" magazine, carefully noting the various placement of quotations marks in sentences.

It worked. My final draft was barely touched by the editor's pen.

And you can "quote" me on that.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com