Chili on my mInd

Spring left North Texas as suddenly as it came, with temperatures in the 30s last night. Jacob decided bed was the best place to be on a cold Sunday morning, especially since Juju had left the vent windows in the kitchen open. (There was a really cute picture of this to go there, even two, because the cat also decided bed was the place to be, but I cannot get them to upload and don't want to spend my evening on it.) Jacob and I made it to church, and after a waffle, a pbj, and a TCU purple cookie, he decided this was a good day. Tonight I have turned on the fireplace--I love not having to build a fire--as much for emotional warmth as physical. But I've been sort of cold all day.

Good day to think about chili, and I'm back to my chili manuscript. I've been emailing with Kathleen Tolbert Ryan all weekend and she's sent some wonderful information. Tonight Jay came over and spent about an hour giving me his impressions of the Tolbert cookoff at Terlingua. He goes every year, has judged in the preliminaries, and is full of information. His parting shot: "Don't go for the chili; go for the camaraderie."

So that's my project for tonight, weaving all those bits of information into the manuscript. Then I have short stories to edit and I have gotten deep into the novel I'm reviewing and I'm really appreciating it--a far cry from my usual escape reading of cozy mysteries. A good cool night to cozy in at my desk--except there's a cat in my face. Maybe food will help her.