Author Archives: Just Call Me Mel

2 down…

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My ride to work was kinda like being a part of a portable petting zoo. Ruby always sits on my lap…and Mayhem decided that she should, too. Col. Mustard, he perched on my shoulder. Guess he’s gonna be an “up-high cat”.

The Kittehs are on their way to their new home today…where they will live on a farm and be well-loved little barn kittehs. Ahhhh what a life. And endless supply of mice and milk. Seriously, who could ask for more?
Charlie Chaplin will be making her way to my friend Jeanne’s house tonight and hopefully Birdrunner still wants Kitty G. If so, then we are done because the boys and I have decided to keep Chicken Nugget. He loves himself some Ruby, so he gets to stay.
I’m gonna miss the little kittehs. They’ve been hysterical these past few days. There’s nothing more fun than watching them flump around (flump is my new favorite made up word. That’s totally the sound kittehs make when they wrestle). And I love it when they jump straight up in the air just because the wind blew.
I won’t miss Ruby’s constant whining. She wants to be with the kittehs all the time, but we can’t keep them in the house all the time because WE WOULD NEVER SLEEP. So they’ve been sleeping on the screened in porch. And when it’s time for them to retire for the evening, Ruby camps out in front of the door, staring at the crack between the door and the floor, and whines. It’s like she totally expects them to squeeze under the door and come back inside. Sorry, Ruby. They’re kittehs, not cockroaches.
IT’S ALMOST FRIDAY! You have no idea how ready for the weekend I am…

I like very much this books BITE ME and LOVE SUCKS

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No, Borat didn’t review BITE ME! but I like to imagine that he read it and loved it. Along with Chuck Norris. And Mr. T. And MacGyver. And Han Solo.

Anyway, Lauren over at Lauren’s Crammed Bookshelf DID read BITE ME! and she loved it. You should check it out.

Here’s some tidbits:

Just when I thought vampires were officially over, Bite Me! ended up in my hands, and boy, was it fantastic (or fangtastic. Get it? Yes, I know my jokes are lame)! It definitely is one of my favorite paranormal romances of the year!

[more awesome stuff in between]

In all, Bite Me! is a romantic, funny, and unique debut book that I can’t suggest highly enough to all you paranormal lovers out there! I’m definitely looking forward to reading more by Ms. Francis.

Is very nice. (and heeheehee she called me Ms. Francis. *snort*)

She also reviewed LOVE SUCKS! but it’s only posted on Amazon right now. Hopefully it will be live on her site soon, but here is a little tidbit from that review:

Just when I thought Melissa Francis’ books couldn’t get any better, her sophomore novel came out and it was nothing short of amazing, good-old fun, making the Bite Me series one of my current faves!

[lots more awesome stuff]

Lastly, Melissa’s writing is even better in this one, because it brought not only the plot to life but the characters as well.

In all, Love Sucks!, as well as its predecessor Bite Me!, are pure fun vampire fluff! I’m truly hoping there will be a third one, though I’m sure that whatever Ms. Francis comes up with next will be just as great, if not more amazing!

Aw yeah. I love me some awesome reviews. Thanks, Lauren! I’m so glad you enjoyed the books!!

Please don’t forget the Give a Little, Get a Little contest I’m running.

in which she begs…and then offers prizes!

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Okay, she doesn’t beg, but she is going to introduce you to a fabulous charity and ask you to donate.

It’s a really good cause and unlike any other I’ve ever seen. My friend Christian is participating and is trying to raise $15,000 for Spin for Kids. Look at what they accomplished through last year’s donations:

  • Opened the new Will-A-Way Campsite in Winder, GA. Their second fully-accessible overnight campsite with cabins, medical lodge, accessible swimming pool, archery, high and low ropes, adventures courses and much more.

  • Added over 1,000 campers to their roster this summer. 1,000 new children in one summer!

  • Added Selby’s Tree house to the Rutledge Campsite; an educational nature experience center and overnight camping facility.

  • Increased all around capacity for Overnight Camping Programs and extended Camping Programs (think “traditional” summer camp experience).

  • Added drum and percussion lessons as well as group musical sessions. This is a huge favorite with the children. Try to picture 100 disabled little fellas with various ethnic pecussiom instruments in a drumlines. That’s amazing.

  • Audited at 78% of donor money going directly to Camp Twin Lakes programming. 78%!!

Please go to Christian’s personal donation page, even if you can only donate $1. It’s a worthy cause.

And…if you donate, come back and tell me and you’ll be entered into a drawing for both of my books and a $25 gift card to Amazon. Tweet or blog this and you’ll be entered twice–just leave a link in your comment. So give a little and get something back in return. The contest runs until October 1. How awesome is that? (pretty awesome, tyvm)

In other news, this song has been in my head every morning for the past week…now I shall give you my early morning ear worm:

a picture is worth a thousand contacts

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So, I signed books in Oxford this weekend and had the best time ever. And I would LOVE to show you how much fun I had by posting all the pics I took (all 3 of them) but…

I lost them during an epic iPhone update.

And for a brief panicky moment, I also lost all my contacts. Yes, all of them. But they came back, as did all of my photos up to 80s Bunko. But I’ll gladly lose a few photos to keep all my contacts…

So you’ll just have to take my word for it. I looked cute, I signed books, I had fun, and the Razorbacks won. (yeah, that last one had nothing to do with the camera…but you know me and my piggies)

Since I lost my pics from the weekend, I’ll post 2 pics from my drive home. You’ll notice I really need to wash my windshield…

The sun setting over the Mississippi River. It was spectacular. This pic doesn’t even remotely do it justice.

We’re baaaaack!

Hope y’all had a great weekend!

I heart halloween

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I love Halloween. It’s the best holiday on earth! And I’ve already started working on this year’s costume…

Here’s a hint:

Any guesses as to who I’m going to be this year?

Have a great weekend, ya’ll! If you’re in Oxford, come to Square Books, Jr. today at 5:00 to see me!!!

tomorrow, tomorrow! I’ll see Oxford, tomorrow!

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IT’S ONLY A DAY AWAY!

When: Friday, September 17 (tomorrow)
Where: Square Books, Jr.
Time: 5:00
Who: ME!

Please come see me!

I had the best time with one of my pals, Stacey Jay last year. We signed books, drank wine, signed more books, drank more wine…

Wait. Anyone beginning to see a pattern here? I LOVE SIGNING BOOKS!

I can’t wait to see you guys tomorrow. It’s gonna be a big time full of sparkly goodness.

In other bits of random…

I was checking my website stats and seriously, somebody in Boulder, CO googled I HATE MELISSA FRANCIS. That’s just mean and hurtful, yo. I’m good people. Don’t be hatin’ on me!

I’ve also had some weird search terms on my website search bar. Like one day a month or so ago, someone just kept searching for KILL and HATE.

So this is what my report looked like:

08:17:30 2010 Kill
08:17:28 2010 Kill
08:17:23 2010 Kill
08:17:22 2010 Kill
08:17:16 2010 Kill
08:16:24 2010 Kill
08:15:46 2010 Kill
08:15:10 2010 Kill
08:14:31 2010 Kill
08:11:35 2010 hate
08:11:34 2010 hate
08:11:31 2010 hate
08:11:30 2010 hate
08:11:29 2010 hate

dudes. Seriously. That’s just not nice! I don’t blog about killing and hate so why are you searching for them? Also, I know people and I know things. And I know people who know things about people. So, watch it. mmmkay? This is my sandbox. Don’t throw sand at me in my own box!!! Besides, I’m all friendly, and sparkly, and fun to play with. Haters are not allowed.

And in Kitteh news. 2 are promised (Charlie Chaplin and Kitteh G) and 2 are maybes (the boys) but my kids wanna keep one of the boys, so I’m not sure what we’re gonna do about that.

I probably will be scarce tomorrow. If I think about it, I’ll pre-post a blog. But I may not think about it. We’ll see.

Have a great weekend if I don’t catch ya mañana!

free to good home and I’m not talking about me (this time)

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Meet the Kittehs. They are all litter trained and eating real food. They are fun and purry and affectionate and are ready to be adopted. (I’ll even bring them to Oxford with me on Friday if anyone in the area wants one!)

Here are the boys. I’m showing this view first so you can see the difference in their color. Chicken Nugget is the light one; Col. Mustard is the darker.

Chicken Nugget
Col. Mustard

Here are the Calicos:

Mayhem

Kitty G

This black and white little girl is Charlie Chaplin. She’s been promised to my friend Jeanne, but I couldn’t post pics of her siblings and leave her out!!
If you’re interested, please contact me via email. First come; first serve!
oatmellow [@] gmail [.] com

changing seasons

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I’m a little torn this year about moving from summer to fall. I’m not quite ready to give up my pool and lake time. I’ve had a great summer with friends and I’d really like to keep it going. Sunshine makes me happy. (it makes Ruby happy, too! and when the pug is happy, Everybody’s happy…)

That said, I’m also ready for fall. Sometimes there’s nothing better than waking up and having a cup of coffee on my screened in porch with a little chill in the air.

Or sleeping with the windows open! I love the fresh air and the battling sounds between city and country life.

And then there’s red wine. Mmmmm. I don’t drink it Alot a lot in the summer, but man in the fall…I can drink me some Pinot Noir or Cab Sav. Mmmmmmmmmm. Momma like.

And we can’t forget Foozball. I’m so ready. I do love to watch a good college game on the weekends and even head to the bar on a Monday night with my friend Jenn C. when the Ravens play. (I’m just supportive like that, you know.)

You know what else I love but haven’t done in FOR-FREAKING-EVER? Fall camping. I’d love to tent camp for a night or two, go hiking, cook some stew in a dutch oven over an open fire…have some Hot Damn to warm my inside parts. You can’t do that in the summer here in Arkansas. It’s just too bloody hot! But starting now through October and sometimes mid-November, you absolutely can.

So I’m not ready to let go of summer yet, but I am so ready to start participating in my favorite fall activities. I guess it really doesn’t matter what I want though, does it. The season will change with or without my permission. I guess Mother Nature didn’t get the memo that I’M IN CHARGE NOW, BITCH. Hmph.

a fangastic time was had by all!

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My book signing for LOVE SUCKS! was yesterday. Check out my new fangtastic ring that my sweet friend Ell-Bell gave me. (She also is the one who gave me Count Smurfula. She is my favorite girl in the world)

The signing was a success. 65 copies of LOVE SUCKS! were sold, 12 copies of BITE ME! we sold out of BITE ME! but that didn’t stop people from ordering them! YAY!
I had several friends from high school come to support me. I’m truly blessed with wonderful people in my life.
I owe a huge thank you to Fishdog for designing my new bookmarks (which are wonderful) and taking care of all the printing for me. He also designed the table top sign for me.
Books-a-Million in North Little Rock is the best damn bookstore in the state. Pam Houk and Chris Barton and all the other awesome associates seriously rock my socks off. If you live in central Arkansas, you should be making all your book purchases from this store. Trust me. They are awesome.
I posted these pics at Fictionistas today, but I’m gonna repost here for your viewing pleasure.
The first pic is me and my rotten boys. The 2nd is me and some of my classmates.

I had the best day and the greatest weekend. I have surrounded myself with a fabulous circle of friends and am truly the luckiest girl in the world.

dangerous curves ahead.

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Do you know how strong my will power is?

Here, let me show you it:

My will is SO STRONG that I managed to walk away without buying this Spongebob skully and glove set. I wanted it. Oh, my how I wanted it. But I didn’t succumb to the bright yellow siren call. I walked on by.

Yes. If this were Oh Brother Where Art Thou, I would not be turned into a horny toad because I resisted the lure.

I did manage to do some damage at Forever 21 yesterday though (no age comments from the peanut gallery…I am NOT too old to shop there, so suck it.) New jeans and a gorgeous one shoulder assymetrical sweater that I will wear with my brown pencil skirt at my signing on Sunday. I’m gonna have to wear a Dangerous Curves Ahead warning sign. Eat your heart out Christina Hendricks! (haha! Ok, maybe not quite…but a girl can dream, right?)

Oh and btw, I’ve now decided that when they make a movie about my life, Christina Hendricks will be replacing Jennifer Coolidge (aka Stifler’s Mom) in the starring role. Because DAMN that it is one curvy, hot red head. It’s my dream! Let me live it!

I’ve got a big weekend planned with fun, friends, and football. If you’re lucky, I’ll post pics on Monday. 🙂

Y’all have a great weekend and Woo Pig Sooie! The Razorbackses is up in here…