I'm in the process of studying for a final. (No, there isn't an education-related addendum being written to Schooled. Although I can confirm that these hobby-esque classes will be tied into the subject of currently half-done book two.)

All this Kindle talk has made me think about Kindles. And how I don't have one. It seems like a must-have for any reader, but here are the reasons why I have not yet jumped on the bandwagon …

Well, it's that time of year again: The time of year when Starbucks brings out their festive red cups. I'm not a coffee drinker myself, but I love those red cups (I suggest a Hazelnut Steamer if you don't care for coffee).

I've been traveling this week, and it's the first time in probably years that I didn't bring a computer with me.

I began my Christmas shopping this weekend. So far I'm spending way too much per gift (as well as spending way too much time in each store), but that's neither here nor there.

I was in Pittsburgh this past weekend, a city I visit fairly often. I love the donut shop in the strip district, I love that Pittsburgh houses both the closest IKEA to me and also the closest Tiffany & Co., and I love that it has the same industrial blue collar feel as Cleveland but is infinitely more lovely with all those rivers and bridges. I might live there if they had an NBA team. Yet, I digress.

I was in the fifth grade when Bill Clinton beat out George Bush for the presidency. I remember because I found out at school. On the playground. Not that any ten-year-old has anything resembling political allegiances, but my parents were Republicans, and all the election-related comments I'd overheard from them had strongly favored Bush.

When I think of New York, I think of it as a very bookish city. From the Barnes & Noble on Fifth (yes, I looked myself up on their computer) to the little indies like this one I photographed in the West Village, people there love to read.

There are worse places to be, surely, although it's somewhat torturous to be in a city as fabulous as this one and have there be absolutely nothing to do. And I really do mean nothing. Everything is closed, all transportation at a standstill.

I was traveling last week for work, and the majority of the time was spent recruiting. I don't normally recruit, but once or twice a year the company sends me to the universities where I attended college and graduate school. Recruiting itself is a bit unsettling, mostly because it feels almost like playing God.

I meant to put this up last week, that I had such a good time at Beehive Books. As far as indie bookstores go, Beehive is a relatively new one.

I had a dream about high school last night, that I was back in it. The reason, no doubt, is a review of Schooled that popped up this week, one that was quite critical of my story.

I recently answered some questions for a small local paper, so I thought I'd put the link up here in case you want to check it out.

When I originally wrote this for Schooled, I didn't like the way it turned out, so it didn't make it into the book. It's a hard topic to feel like you have any business writing about.

A friend of mine took this picture, and I confess I was surprised to learn that such things were even in the paper at all. Not that I was really planning on discussing my book yesterday...it was just a signing.

As a lover of memoirs, there are a few in particular that I would love to see done. I'd love a lunch lady memoir, a veterinarian memoir for the new generation that perhaps isn't familiar with James Herriot (I should really talk to my parents about this), any teacher memoir is dynamite, and I'm always a sucker for the memoirs of writers themselves (think Eudora Welty, Annie Dillard, Michael Greenberg, Larry McMurtry).

I was pleased to learn this week that my wonderful book designer (of VMC Art and Design) is entering Schooled into a design competition. It'll be in the book cover category, and given how much I (and everyone else) love the cover, I'm hoping she does well.

Wanted to say a few words about the Cedar Fairmount Festival, which I was fortunate enough to be able to participate in thanks to Appletree Books.