Back Pain

Chronic back pain is something that dogs many of us, and I read something yesterday in Arthritis Today that got me thinking: Seems a number of studies have found that large doses of Vitamin D (up to 2000 in those with chronic back pain) have virtually eliminated back pain for many. As always, check with your doctor before doing anything. You might show him the article, too (Arthritis Today, Nov.-Dec. 2008). Hope this helps. Let me know.

Spending the day sifting through hundreds of SPAM e-mails is not my idea of fun. I need to be writing! Can anyone recommend a good SPAM filter?

12 Phases to an Enormously Successful Book Event

12 Phases to an Enormously Successful Book Event

A friend posted this to the Redwood Writers' site. Might be helpful...

Too Many Apps

I tried to link Pinterest to this site, but no luck. I'm WAY out of my depth. Come to think of it, I remember my dad saying, way back when he was dealing with transistors: "What in the Sam Hill is next? I can't keep up with all the reading on this stuff, things are changing so fast." He would have been totally surprised at how much I was able to teach myself about computers, given my lifelong aversion to machines, but I think I've come just about to my limit of understanding, if I do in fact understand at all. My technique is generally what my husband calls: "Sending the monkeys in."

10 Day Book Club

I am, obviously, a sometime blogger, but would love to follow yours. Good for you!

Health On My Mind

April 2011 issue of Consumer Reports has an article titled, Safeguarding Your Brain, that is worth checking out.

Also, the FAST method of checking for signs of stroke. F: Face—Ask the person to smile and look for droop on one side of the face; A: Arms—Raise their arms to see if one drifts down; S: Speech—Repeat a simple phrase, to determine if speech is slurred, and T: Time—Call 911 right away if any such symptoms are observed.

This is important stuff. Pass it on!

Taxes

Yikes! I haven't done my taxes yet!

Rainy Portland

Off to Portland to sit and watch the rain come down, and maybe get some revision work done on my next book.

Wanted to plant seeds before leaving, but maybe no time. There's always the Farmers' Market.

Chronic Pain

Coping with chronic pain is bad enough, but most of us still have to work while we cope.

As one who has had to deal with tendinitis and related repetitive stress problems as a freelance writer, I'd like to direct others with similar problems to Page 10 of the American Chronic Pain Association Chronicle this month, where there is a helpful diagram for those who work all day with computers.

If you don't know already, a proper workstation is of primary importance for both avoidance of and living with pain in your workplace.

Believe me, RSS (repetitive stress syndrome) is a lot easier to prevent than cure. Check it out, then email them at the address below to become a member. They do great good for those of us who suffer as we work.


email:

Sun!

At last! A crystalline day in Northern California! I rejoice and prune raspberries. Three chapters of my new book revised yesterday. Rainy days are good for writing—sunny days for gardening.

Post-Christmas Slump

Settling in to the post-Christmas blues. Actually, it's a relief that it's over. I'm sure I'm not alone in that. This Christmas was weird, however, as we didn't get back from a trip to the South Pacific until the 20th (I know, but somebody has to do it), and then spent Christmas at relative's, so made close to zero preparations for the holiday.

We enjoyed not having to lift a finger, though, and still ending up well-fed. Not going through the agony of decision over whether to buy or cut a Christmas tree was refreshing, too. We didn't put one up at all. This meant I didn't have to crawl on hands and knees to the back of the closet to retrieve ornaments.

This year, I was the Grinch.

Top 12

I'm happy and proud to report that my book, Accidental Cowgirl, was chosen as one of The Spirited Woman's Top 12 Books.

Work

My blogTour is over. It was fun, but also work. So much of life is like that. But if you love your work, what's the problem?

Do you love your work? Tell me about it.

Win a Copy of Accidental Cowgirl

Today is the day to win a copy of Accidental Cowgirl: Six Cows, Nor Horse and No Clue.

Check it out at Silver and Grace, where there is also a link to a book review.

Good luck!

Food

My article on food today on "This Mama Cooks!" might be if interest, as it deals with a subject we all confront sooner or later. If you garden, or even think about it, I hope you enjoy it.



Here's the URL: . Click on "This Mama Cooks on a Diet."

The Wine Country Word: Hear it Here First!

Here's the link to National Association of Memoir Wtiters. Enjoy!

Interests

Well, Joe, it looks like you have even more interests than I do. Where do you find the time? BTW, my daughter is a singer/songwriter, too, but you have me at a disadvantage, communication-wise, as I don't speak German.

Hear it Here First!

If you'd like to join NAMW (see below), Have I got a deal for you! Please go to their site and use the coupon below for special savings:

"In honor of Mary Lynn’s stop over at the National Association of Memoir Writer’s, we’ve created a coupon code for a $10 discount off any membership level at NAMW. This info isn’t published on our site, but as a member of NAMW Mary Lynn may choose to publish it elsewhere. This coupon can be used in addition to any other sale price offered on the NAMW website."

The code is FRIENDOFMARYLYNN
Expiration date: 8/31/2010

If you're interested in Accidental Cowgirl, please go to the National Association of Memoir Writers (NAMW) link above to hear me reading excerpts from the text.

"What, Me Ruralpolitan?

I'm pretty stoked! Please read my article on AOL News today. And check out Red Room, too. Gina Misiroglu of Red Room put me in touch with the AOL people, which is one of the great ways in which she's bringing traffic to Red Room and getting attention for Red Room's authors.




Pretty cool, huh?

The Wine Country Word: WOW! Women On Writing Blog: Mary Lynn Archibald, author of Accidental Cowgirl, launches her blog tour!

The Wine Country Word: WOW! Women On Writing Blog: Mary Lynn Archibald, author of Accidental Cowgirl, launches her blog tour!