It’s been a few weeks since I did one of these; however, I do have a reasonable excuse—a deadline. Yes, folks, I was racing against time to get the latest Philly Barker written and to the editor—and got there … by the skin of my teeth.
At the beginning of each year, I book with my editors, both structural and copy. This is partly because they are both busy women and do not hang about waiting to receive the latest missive from me. It’s also because I need a date to aim for. Without goals such as these and commitments to other people I would drift. Notice I said commitments to other people? I’m far less concerned about the commitments I make to myself - and yes, I know how that sounds.
Anyways, Philly no. 3 - The Mystery at Deverell Grange - is done … which means I’m ready to start something new - a new Clementine Carter - due (in case you’re interested) by the beginning of December. No pressure.
What else has been happening?
I’m currently in Wellington, New Zealand, visiting my bestie. She works mainly from home, so while she’s working, so am I, and when she goes into the office, I head into town for a wander.
I love this city, and I’d say it’s one of my favourite cities in the world. As far as cities go, it’s small, but it punches well above its weight in terms of vibrancy. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve visited in the last twenty years - maybe two dozen? - and each time I see or try somewhere different.
This time we’re doing some Wellington On A Plate events. We have an “immersive” event tomorrow night (which I’ll tell you about next week) but yesterday I attended a workshop at Pravda Cafe to learn how to make their famous cheese scones (while I got the recipe, I won’t be sharing it here … you’ll have to come back next year and book in…).
We’ve also indulged in a few of the special edition burgers the restaurants, cafes, and pubs have created for Burger Wellington - and are off to do another today.
The other day I took the pic below of a picture-perfect Wellington afternoon and just half an hour later watched as clouds engulfed the airport, the wind roaring towards us, the temperature ahead of the front dropping 10 degrees almost immediately. Wind gusts were, apparently, over 100km/hr. Very dramatic.
Olympics
Like everyone else, I’ve been watching snippets of the Olympics. I also particularly liked this article about weird things that Olympic medallists got. I particularly love how, in 2021, Indonesia’s badminton gold medallists got five cows, a meatball restaurant, and a new house.
Reading
I’ve recently finished:
Judy Leigh’s Foul Play at Seal Bay and
Cecilia Ahern’s Into The Storm (an advance copy from Net Galley)
This month’s book post will be posted on the blog on Friday.
Hi Jo, just catching up now and have loved seeing all your Wellington shots. We have been to NZ twice in recent years but never got to Wellington so will add it to our list. Your photos look great and that windswept hair do is just the best!! Great news about Philly Barker and your next Clementine Carter book being in the pipeline. Fabulous! #TeamWWWhimsy
LOVE the ways in which you have captured Windy Wellington. It's so good you and your bestie get to catch up like this. I love the look of the cheese scones...and with butter I could eat there. I love the name "The Ramble" by the way. Denyse #TeamWWWhimsy