I am feeling more pulled together this morning than I was yesterday. Not making a 5:30 a.m. trip to the bus station after getting up at 5:15 (because the alarm didn't go off) helps with that.

Instead, I'm sitting cozily in my red bathrobe, drinking my one small cup of coffee, listening to sheets churn in the washer, listening to T sigh and clank his saucer and think about getting dressed, listening to the neighbor's car grumble and mutter up the street. The temperature is 52 degrees, and all of the downstairs windows are closed. Autumn is here, and little Alcott House feels tucked up, drawn in on itself.

Today I'll be back to editing, but the house is tidy now--bathrooms scrubbed, floors washed--and that always helps me feel more settled in my mind. I can't bear to work in dirt and clutter. In the afternoon I'll do some yard jobs and freeze beans, and this evening I'll go out to write. A plain and steady schedule. I'm looking forward to it.

Yesterday I spent time updating the Events tab on this blog, working on a newsletter, otherwise trying to pull myself together publicity-wise. Let me know if you've got other proposals. I'm especially interested in ideas about NYC gigs around the date of the NJ reading. It would be nice to tag-team that stuff into the same bus trip.