Sooo many things to blog about! I just got back from spending the Fourth of July with the in-laws. My mom-in-law threw me the loveliest baby shower, and now we have all these baby-related goodies for the new bebe. I also bought the first baby outfit for my child–a fabulous tunic and gold sandals! Yes, it’s a girl!!! We are having a girl!!
We are beyond thrilled…Almost everyone I know said they couldn’t imagine me with a boy, and as for me, I’m just RELIEVED that I will have someone to pass on all the designer handbags, clothes, and shoes to.. because you know, we fashionistas always like to excuse our exorbitant purchases by saying “it’s for my daughter, someday.” Fashion economics!
That is, unless my girl is more like Sapphie from AbFab, who absolutely abhors fashion. Eeks. I love Saph, she’s such a great foil to Edina, and I do kind of want nerdy kids. Hey, nerds rule! I was a nerd. But I also do hope that she likes fashion in some way, otherwise all these Balenciaga bags are going to waste!
I turned in the first draft of ANGELS ON SUNSET BOULEVARD to my editor, and I’m just waiting with bated breath to see what she says… I’m a bit worried about this book, since it’s a little different from my other books. But I have to cast it out of my mind now, because I have to finish up MASQUERADE (ie Blue Bloods 2) at high speed.
It’s been a slow easssing back into the world of the fabulous vampires. Today I did a lot of administrative work, I answered a lot of reader mail, updated my weblist, paid bills.
By the way, thank you to everyone who has emailed! In answer to your questions, Blue Bloods is right now planned as a trilogy, with Masquerade pubbing next March, and Revelations pubbing March ’08. I planned it as a six-book series (two trilogies) so hopefully the books do well enough so that I can do the arc I had laid out in my mega-outline. I also have already written an outline for a fabulously tragic prequel, about Charles and Allegra’s past. (Oooh, it’s sooo good!!) Which makes it nine books in all. But these are author’s dreams, who knows if they will let me pub all of them?
As for THE AU PAIRS, we will have some good news on Book Four and the TV show very soon. Yes, I believe there is actually going to be an AU PAIRS 4 after all. Due to reader demand! I promise to update everyone as soon as everything is official!
I have been reading a lot of FOOD memoirs lately. On the plane, I read Ruth Reichl’s Garlic and Sapphires, about the time she was the NY Times Food Critic. And Jane and Michael Stern’s Two for the Road, about their adventures traveling the country eating good, down-home American food. Both were delicious reads. The Reichl book opens with her experience at Le Cirque. The first as an unknown tourist, and later as the powerful NY Times restaurant critic.
She realizes that one’s experience at Le Cirque depends on who you are, she was treated shabbily as a nobody, and spectacularly as a somebody (Even the raspberries on the tarts were bigger, she says.)
I’ve only been to Le Cirque twice in my life, and both times were magical. The first time was when I was 23, and my company was celebrating Christmas with a Christmas dinner at Le Cirque. I worked for a very small computer consulting company run by an eccentric and affable millionaire, Mr. Desmond. The company was based in Boston, but we were all assigned in New York, and Mr. Desmond invited his three new hires to celebrate the season with him and our boss (the VP) at the restaurant. We were all SO excited to eat there, we’d heard about it (from the NY Times review!) and we were prepared for the worst. After all, who were we but a bunch of computer nerds?
The reservation was at 6:00, that’s how “nobody” we were. There were only five of us at the table, and we were there until MIDNIGHT. We started with cocktails, moved on to wine, then after-dinner cockails…and after-after dinner cocktails…I can’t remember ever being so drunk and having SO much fun. The food was amazing, although I don’t even remember what I ate — although I do remember sharing a plate of sweetbreads (ie cow brains) and feeling very sophisti-ma-cated.
The highlight of the evening was Mr. Desmond handing us our Christmas bonuses, which I stuffed into my purse, and at the earliest opportunity, ran to the bathroom, ripped open the envelope, and yelped. Ten Thousand Dollars!! It was the most money next to my name I had ever seen. I IMMEDIATELY called my parents (from the bathroom stall) to tell them my happy news.
The other highlight was seeing the Victoria’s Secret model Frederique van der Wahl and Barbara Walters (not at the same table) eating in the restaurant. It was my first experience with bold-faced dining, and the food, the wine, the bonus, made for a very happy Christmas indeed. I think we ordered so much booze, they actually gave us extra desserts–and I also remember those lovely petit fours AFTER dessert, which seemed SO decadent. Dessert after dessert? And also I remember seeing Sirio Maccioni eating from untouched petit four plates that had been cleared from other tables. Kind of gross, but also kind of endearing.
The other time I ate at Le Cirque was for one of me and Mike’s anniversaries. I don’t remember if it was our “first date” anniversary or if we were married by then. But I do remember seeing Bill Clinton (the guy was ALL around New York after his presidency) dining at one of the tables. And Mike still raves about the absolutely perfect mashed potatoes they gave us. His eyes glaze over with fond nostalgia. I mean, this is why one goes out to eat right?? And we were total nobodies–our reservation was at 9 PM. I mean, seriously. But it was still awesome.
Anyway, it was fun to read Ruth Reichl’s book and remember all that…there’s nothing like a fabulous New York restaurant…
And now, back to the Blue Blood-suckers!
xoxo
Mel