today did not start off well. i woke up a little late, and i am not good at hurrying in the morning, and, anyway, i missed the bus that was supposed to take me north on shattuck (the closest main north/south street to me; it's like a quarter of a mile from the house), so i thought, hmm, i bet if i walk it i can still get there in time to catch my next bus. HOWEVER i underestimated how long the walk was (IT WAS ALMOST A MILE), so by the time i got there i had missed not only the bus i had originally planned to take, but also the next one. so i was starting to freak out. but then the bus came at 9:2o, and i thought, ok, even if i'm a little late to work, everyone will understand. (the trip planner website said the ride would take 15 minutes, plus a little walking.)

the bus got to my stop at like 9:30! i got to the office at like 9:34! and i didn't even have to rush!

the bus driver did get a little snippy with me when i didn't know what to do with my bus pass, and i almost told him i hadn't done this before, but i didn't want to talk to him. he had a mean face.

the rest of the day picked up. i wrote some copy for the fall catalog in the morning. i was so hungry (i have been too nervous to eat breakfast, although today i was able to choke down some tea), but going to lunch was easy and guilt-free because i reached a good stopping place in my work and everyone else in the editorial department was in a meeting, so there was no one to trip me up by asking me to xerox things. which i am more than happy to do.

after lunch, i got to work on publicity stuff! for the first time! i was going through author questionnaires, trying to pull out some stuff that we could use as hooks for advertising or that would help promotion, and i came across the following:

15. Please list any awards or prizes you think your book may be eligible for, and we'll look into nominating it if appropriate.

Well, Hitchens was nominated for the National Book Award, and my book is much better than his.

bahahaha. then my pregnant editor told me she had a milkshake for lunch. there was much yelling at the office today; people were knocking things over and having aggravating phone conversations right and left.