On The Road, Spring 2012: Oh, The Places I’ve Been!
Thursday, May 31st, 2012

I didn't drive across the country, but I sure did fly across it - several times! Here I am at a car show in Santa Barbara, where I did a talk in May..
As readers of this blog know, my publisher sent me on a book tour this winter when The Story of Beautiful Girl came out in paperback. Between Feb. 10 and March 3, I spoke in bookstores in Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Texas, Florida, Georgia, Connecticut, Delaware, and Virginia. After a few days to catch my breath, my speaking engagements for The Story of Beautiful Girl began for the spring and I was back on the road. At that point, I traveled to Ohio, Indiana, Missouri, Wisconsin, New York, Texas, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Toronto, California, and Minnesota. I returned from the last talk for the season on May 25.
Or, to be more concise, between early February and late May, I did 40 events in 21 states – plus Canada.

Words Bookstore, in Maplewood, NJ, had a reception for book clubs before my actual talk. I'm the fuzzy head in the middle. This was in May.
Of course, I always try to work in extra visits with my many far-flung friends – some of whom drive great distances to meet me. I also always try to make new friends. And I usually take long walks so I can learn about my surroundings, burn off calories, and stay energetic. So whenever I travel, my days are packed.
I know, I know, I’m describing a very demanding schedule. The friends who’ve been following on Facebook and Twitter have been admonishing me to slow down, take a break. And I’m happy to say that I’ve heard you. This summer I’m taking some down time at long last.

On the drive from the Kansas City Airport for a talk in Columbia, MO, Brent and Laura Jackson took me to Kleinschmidt's, a famous western wear store with stuffed animals. This was in March.
But before I sign off, I want to share some of the highlights of this spring. Not every highlight; I wasn’t able to take photos at every program, and I would overwhelm you if I showed you all of the pictures I have. (Though I wish I could! Sorry not to have you here, Tom and Rita O’Neill, Betsy Kachmar, the Arc of Stark County, Loui Lord Nelson, Carol and Derrick Dufresne, Laura and Brent Jackson, Kate O’Neill, Gary Blumenthal, Susan Ashworth, Betsy Small, Harriet Redman, Gretchen Raab, Anne Strainchamps, Teri Derry, Mark Davis, Joseph MacBeth, John Raffaele, Ann Hardiman, Ann Genaro, Ellen Morosoff Pemrick, Genie Cohen, Lee Sherman, Charles LaRussa, Yona Lunsky, Karen Calzonetti, Richard Oldfield, Lori Jasper, Sue Hayes, Nancy Peterson – and so many others.)
So look at these photos as just a small glimpse of my many adventures this spring. May they give you a sense of how exciting and fulfilling the last few months were for me – and why I now need the solitude and silence of this summer.
Enjoy these warm months, and I’ll see you back here in the fall!
Events and Sights – In No Particular Order

I was the dinner speaker for 150 people at the Sunset Soiree for Hillside House in Santa Barbara. It was held in in a beautiful outdoor garden in May.

Me in Boston in March. I did a house party there, as well as talks in Worcester, MA and Peterborough, NH.

The fantastic Renaissance Bookstore - used books! - in the Milwaukee airport. I was here in April, between talks in Wisconsin and Ohio.

The view from the gorgeous Sagamore Hotel in Lake George, NY, where I spoke for 300 people at the NYSACRA Conference in April.

While I was in Neenah, WI for the Fox Cities Book Festival, in April, I went to see the house where my friend Donna Hanchett once lived.

Speaking for 100 people in Toronto for Itanu, the inclusion initiative for the Jewish Federation, in May..

I flew to Toronto in May by on Porter Airline, which brought me to an island in the city. This photo is from the ferry.

Keynoting for 500 at OPRA in Columbus, OH. This was the second time I keynoted for them. Great people! April 2012.

Life-sized model in the Fort Wayne, IN airport, which also had an aviation museum. The Midwest has a few of them.

The view of the Mississippi from my hotel room in St. Paul in May. I had the same view last June, 13 stories lower.

At some point (when? who knows?) I flew through my beloved Detroit Airport. A stranger snapped this picture.

While in Columbus in April, I visited this replica of the Santa Maria. It was tiny - and they crossed the ocean in it!

The book signing line at EuroNest, in St. Paul, MN, where I spoke for Opportunity Partners in May 2012.
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Friends, Old and New

The night before I spoke in Toronto for Our Jewish Community Reads, Itanu Toronto invited me to a dinner party.

In Columbus, in April, I visited with Al Maag, a family friend from long ago. I had not seen him since I was 9.

At Brighter Futures in Philadelphia, I got to visit with old friends Jim Conroy, Greg Pirmann, and Jean Searle.

In May, I spent the night at the house of my new friend Shelly Christensen in the St. Paul area. She and I co-wrote the book discussion guide for Jewish Disability Awareness Month.

Sue Barbella, who studied writing with me in the late 1990s, went to great lengths to see me speak for the AAUW in Lower Gwynedd, PA in April.

The lovely Rosi Amador, who went to college with me and who lives in Cambridge, MA, hosted a house party for readers of my books.

My old friend Dan Szczesny came to see me when I spoke at Toadstool Bookshop in Peterborough, NH in March.

My cousins, Simone Tumarkin and Andrea Iskowitz, came to see me at Words Bookstore in Maplewood, NJ in May.

Kami Simpson, my best friend from nursery school and then boarding school, came to see me in Maplewood, NJ in May.