Dear Reader

Dear Reader Column 05-03-06

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Dear Reader,

My husband and I had been out of town for a long weekend and when we came home there were orange cones lining our street and a "Flagman Ahead" sign pushed off to the side of the road.

Our neighborhood road has been a bumpy ride for a couple of years now, so I was thrilled that it was being repaved, and I didn't mind a bit when early Monday morning I heard the beep, beep, of dump trucks backing up. In fact I went out to "see the sights".

When I was a kid, my Grandpa Hale worked for the county and sometimes I'd ride along with him on his gasoline route. His job was refueling all of the equipment for the road crews--guys building new roads or repairing old ones. I guess that's why I've always been fascinated with big machinery, and so I pulled up a lawn chair to watch the guys working.

It was quite a show; four dump trucks, the smell of blacktop being laid down further up the road, and a long, flat, milling machine, center-stage in front of my house, eating and grinding up the old road.

Watching heavy machines do their thing--it's becoming a habit with me lately. When my grandchildren visited over spring vacation and we were out for a walk, we discovered a huge backhoe chewing up an old house. It was crushing up the lumber, so it could be loaded onto a truck and hauled away.

We stood there for over 30 minutes. It was fascinating to watch. The driver would back the machine up, pull on some levers, open the mouth of the backhoe, reach down into the huge pile of rubble, and crunch, crunch, crunch, the metal teeth would quickly open and close several times, breaking the wood into "smithereens"--as my grandson put it. The bucket would lift up into the air, swing to the side, and drop the compacted wood into a dump truck and repeat the process all over again.

When the driver shut off the machine and got out of the cab we applauded. It was quite a good show. He smiled, took a little bow and invited us back, "If you think that's something, come back in two hours because I'm going to tear down that house next door."

Lawn chairs, popcorn, soda, a backhoe and an old house. Who needs reality TV?

It's funny, if I'm in my car driving and I see a "Flagman Ahead" sign I get tense, and think, 'Oh no, it's gonna be a long journey.' But sitting in my lawn chair, watching the flagman and listening to the rumble of dump trucks, 'Hey, it's gonna be an interesting afternoon.'

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

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected] 
http://www.DearReader.com

READ THE CLASSICS: The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and enter the free Penguin Classic's Drawing: http://www.supportlibrary.com/nl/users/master3/mweb/path17-1.html

Dear Reader Column 05-02-06

Join my email book club. Over 330,000 people read 5-minutes a day. To see what books I'm featuring this week, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/

Dear Reader,

Thanks for taking the time to write. I appreciate it so much. Summer is almost here. Remember to keep the book club fun. Read what you want, hit the delete key when you need to. This is guilt-free reading. Enjoy yourself!

From my Email Bag:

"Dear Suzanne, it's been a couple of months since I've been able to sit down and read my book club selections. I started reading this morning to catch up on your 'Dear Reader' column and thought I should drop you a note to encourage you to work on your book. It's needed in the world.

Sometimes the things you write resonate so strongly with me, and judging by the comments you print from your readers, it has the same effect on a lot of people. You must seem to others as if you always know what you are doing and where you are going. You must have a lot of drive to do what you've done. But you also share with us all the times you question yourself and the times when emotion triumphs over rationality.

I think a lot of us live life as if one day, we'll get to the perfect point where we no longer doubt ourselves, or have questions. Certainly there is a big business in self-help, where gurus encourage you to believe that if you use their method, you will one day arrive at that 'magical' place. You'll be rich, good-looking and confident in ten easy steps - you know the drill.

What I learn by reading your columns is more self-appreciation than self-help, and a lot of the time it is exactly what is needed. Someone who says it is 'ok' to not get it right--all the time--even if you can't help trying and wishing that you could. Thank you. And hurry with the book." -- Valencia.

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

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected] 
http://www.DearReader.com

READ THE CLASSICS: The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and enter the free Penguin Classic's Drawing: http://www.supportlibrary.com/nl/users/master3/mweb/path17-1.html

Dear Reader Column 05-01-06

Join my email book club. Over 330,000 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 sitting in the waiting room at the optometrist's office this morning. I need to get new lenses in my computer glasses. The receptionist is very concerned, afraid I might have to wait an hour because they're so busy.

"Not to worry," I told her. "I have a Nano (IPod), plenty of paper and my pens."

When my kids were little I always carried a bag filled with stuff that could keep them occupied. Kids don't do well when they have to wait, and even though I'm taller, and older, I need a keep-me-from-going-nuts bag, too.

My oversized purse always has my Nano, a power bar (even big kids get gnarly when they're hungry), paper--lots of paper--and three pens; a silver fountain pen, a cheap fountain pen, and a fancy blue pen (the one my husband bought for me when he came along on a business trip to New York City). I was a little uptight about my New York appointment and I'd commented to my husband that I didn't look too "uptown" carrying a blue Bic pen. When I got out of the shower, there laying on the bed, next to my suit jacket, was a box wrapped oh-so-pretty, and inside was a classy blue pen.

The receptionist is looking my way again. I can tell she's getting worried, but really I haven't even noticed the time. Bent over in my chair, writing copy like crazy on the yellow pad in front of me, Nano plugged into my ears, and every now and then I come up for air. The next thing I know my foot and the leg attached to it, is pounding up and down on the floor, keeping time with the music--Keith Urban really gets me jazzed when I'm writing, and I'm muzzling my urge to sing the refrain. I'm in another world.

And I think that's what the receptionist thought when I walked up to the counter and inquired, "You wouldn't have a thesaurus back there, would you?"

The other people waiting, must think I'm nuts and are probably dying to ask the question that I'd ask if I were them, "What the heck are you doing?"

Writing a column. It's so much easier when I'm out of the office. Maybe I should do this all the time? No need to have my own office. Just buy one of those briefcases on wheels, and every morning, I'll roll on into someone's office and pretend I'm "waiting".

Donuts, coffee, water, a climate controlled room, and a bathroom just down the hall. Best of all, no interruptions, no pressure, easy writing--but I better bring my own thesaurus.

"Your glasses are ready Suzanne."

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

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
http://www.DearReader.com

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READ THE CLASSICS: The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and enter the free Penguin Classic's Drawing: http://www.supportlibrary.com/nl/users/master3/mweb/path17-1.html