A kick in the pants from afar

"Okay, lady, when's your next entry?" wrote my friend, giving me an email kick in the pants from New York City. Yeah, where the hell IS it? Could it be...

1. I am wary of the blog, circling the adversary like an ancient warrior, figuring out my next move.

How do my blog and book fit together? Does the blog replace the familiar paper journal I write in every day? How often am I to blog?

2. I am busy being inspired. Who has time to blog when I need to watch Dead Poets Society again? What a gem of a movie. Boys chasing dreams and letting the humble heart - and grand poetry - be their guide. Yum. Carpe diem! Sounding a barbaric YAWP!

And you have to admit, Lindsey Vonn's warrior skiing was absolutely killer. Her power and determination were wonderful to behold. Getting my book published is my women's downhill.

3. My mother read my blog and said: "you sound like a mixture of Terry McMillan and Erica Jong." I didn't know what to make of that. Is that something I want? Well, ok: assertive, sexy, unconventional women doing what they please and writing about it. Yeah, I'm down with that. Or could it be...

4. I am scared shitless about going to Mexico.

But hold up. February 14 - the day of my blog launch, Valentine's Day - was also the start of the Lunar New Year. It's the Year of the Tiger. And a Tiger person is just who I happen to be. A fact gleaned from countless Chinese restaurant placemats! Tiger people are courageous and outrageous, going for the gusto and - to take a page from the Dead Poets - sucking the marrow out of life.

When the little voice says don't you think you could just go back?, I just turn the Gov't Mule up a bit louder.

Scared? Oh, fuck, no. Fearless.