What If The Characters Of The RGI Novels Were Real?

It’s very embarrassing to admit this, but I broke a child’s arm yesterday. I want to make it clear that I was NOT drinking, and that it was not malicious. It was a complete and total freak accident.

That doesn’t make me feel any better, though.

Rowan and I are friends with the Tanis family, and they have four kids. The kids are all just reaching their early teens now, so we usually end up playing some sort of group game together in their beautiful back yard. We’ve played Adults vs. Kids touch football, baseball, and other games for a few years now, and the kids nearly always soundly beat us old folks.

One of the Tanis kids decided to play field hockey, since she plans to try out for her school’s team next year and wanted to get some practice in. I had some trouble adjusting to the rules–I’m used to being able to pull the ball up to my hands and swat it in camogie, and that’s not allowed in hockey–but after about half an hour, I started to get the hang of it.

We were having a grand time, and M. was doing quite well “showing up” us adults. I turned a little too quickly to join a play and smacked right into her, knocking her awkwardly to the ground. I heard the snap, and even though M. bore it like a warrior–she didn’t even shed a tear!–I still feel awful.

The doctor says she’ll be just fine by tryout time, but she’s going to lose so much practice time between now and then. I feel terrible!

I promised her I’d do a photo shoot for her to make up for it. She wants to take group pics of her entire group of friends. I told her she’s got the entire day; she picks it and I’ll reschedule anything else I have going that day.

I don’t think I’ll be playing any more games with the kids now. They’ve nicknamed me “The Celtic Tiger!” I’m going to go hide in the darkroom for awhile.

-F

I’ve got my laptop back! Just in time, too; my little vacation ends today, and I start back to work tomorrow shooting for a motorcyle shop and a wedding fashion magazine. I enjoy those wedding shoots. The “couple” always seem to get into the spirit of the moment, playing bride and groom for a few hours. There’s something about putting on a wedding dress that makes you feel like a queen, and men suddenly view you in a completely different light when you’re wearing one. When the shoot is in a secluded natural setting, it’s even more beautiful! This shoot is in one of the nicer hotels in the area. Not exactly a natural setting, but it does have some beautiful architecture.

Rowan’s been working like a madman, and it’s starting to show. He’s tossing and turning in his sleep, getting little chance to recharge himself before he’s up and tapping away at the keyboard. I keep telling him to take a break–we’re both freelancers, after all, and he can take a nice, long vacation like I did whenever he wants–but he mumbles that he “has to stay busy.” We’re not in desperate need of finances, but he’s been intensely driven lately. He seems very distracted by something.

I’ve been spending a lot of time at the gym with Constance, who’s been out-of-sorts lately, too. She and Ben have such a strange relationship, and they’ve been in the “I can’t stand the sight of you” stage for about three weeks now. Ben’s usually pretty quick to anger, but quick to calm down, too. Whatever happened between the two of them right after New Year’s must have been something pretty big. The longest I’ve ever seen the two go without talking was about four days until this.

Oh, dear. Salinger just came up from the basement tracking cream paint all over the floor. Gotta go!