Ten Questions Tuesday with Jane Bretl

Today the lovely and talented Jane Bretl, of Jane, Candid, a must read blog for anyone with a heart connected to their brain, will be joining us here at Miscellaneous Yammering for Ten Questions Tuesday. K: Good Morning, Jane. Thanks for coming in to see me! I like your top, that's a great color on you. J: Thanks, Karen for inviting me here! I'm glad you like my jammies. K: Are you ready to get started? J: Ready to rock steady! Ten Questions for Jane Bretl K: Which of these are more you? Chapstick or Lipstick? HAIR Bands or hairbands? Leather sandals or leather pants? Broccoli or Cauliflower?

J: I'm glad to see this interview is going to stick with weighty, thought-provoking issues. I wear very little make-up, but Chapstick is too waxy... can I go with lip balm in a sheer tinted shade? Since my internal furnace became stuck on a permanent HEATER setting about eight years ago, I must keep my hair off my neck all summer, so I'll pick hairbands. I've never liked men with nicer hair than mine anyway. Leather pants? Refer back to HEATER ON OVERDRIVE and you'll get your answer. I was excited to see that leather Jesus sandals had made a big comeback this summer, at least judging by the extensive selection of biblical-inspired footwear at our local DSW. I had a pair of leather Jesus sandals in 1982 and have always regretted ever giving them up. They were way ahead of their time. And, finally, I'll have to go with cauliflower, preferably prepared as the Indian dish Aloo Gobhi, thanks for asking.

K: You recently had a chance to go into a bookstore and autograph copies of the anthology book that contains your first published piece. How awesome was that? J: Actually, I have mixed feelings when I admit to doing book signings. I never dreamed that having a short story published in an anthology gave me the permission/expectation/right to actually sign books in a bookstore. My friends and I joked about it! Then I continued to find more and more examples of author signings for anthologies all around the country. Some publishers encourage it more than others. I also learned from authors like Joe Konrath that many booksellers like to have signed copies that can be displayed -- they sell faster. The savvy bookseller is always looking for ways to market the titles for better sales. I know personally I am more likely to buy a book if it is signed by the author. Apparently others feel the same way, even if Said Author is only on page 34-38. So, it was a learning experience. Now I know what to do the next time I appear in an anthology. I will be more confident and put myself out there for formal book signings, at least locally. For now, it was a thrill just to sign the stock on hand and see the clerk put the "Signed By Author" sticker on the front cover.

K: Best bumper sticker you ever saw?

J: "Lord, please make me the person my dog thinks I am." I also liked "Alternative Energy: the best Homeland Security" -- it stopped me in my tracks while walking through a parking lot. I still have "Vote like the fate of the world depends on it" on the back of my car, along with the darwinian ichthys fish sprouting legs. K: We both love to garden, which is more fun? Growing something to eat or eating something you've grown? J: The "eating something I've grown" is still an experiment in process. I find the most joy in growing a riotous tumble of color and beauty that I can look at every day. I also enjoy growing a show that makes people stop and say "whoa". K: Your cat was almost eaten by a coyote. Did you immediately invent something to prevent this from happening to others? And if so, is it marketable? (can I get in on that?) J: I scooped her up, nuzzled my nose in her soft white fur and told her not to get eaten by a coyote. She went back outside several hours later. You are welcome to split the profits with me 50/50. K: If you were a superhero, what would your super power be? J: Cook foods with ingredients that touch each other that are palatable to my offspring. And make mean people look deeply into a mirror. And bestow waists on women who lost theirs. That's three powers -- can I be that super? K: I know you have an aversion to frogs...which was almost a deal breaker for our friendship btw....so Frogs in ponds wouldn't be your reason for walking in nature...what do you look for that delights you when you go out awanderin?

J: My favorite thing about hiking is the opportunity the journey provides to take photographs. Frequent stopping slows the cardiovascular effect, but boosts my soul. K: Have you ever been in the grocery store and started singing along (loudly) with the piped in music? J: No, I am hardly even a closet singer. I did use my extremely pregnant belly to accidentally knock over a large pyramid of canned goods in a grocery store, but only once. I say accidentally in case any of you thought I might have done that on purpose. Anyone who had never felt 12 months pregnant, for example. K:You're flipping through the channels on tv...you stop on a movie that you would never admit to liking when talking with your friends who use words like "superfluous"....what would the movie be? J: Sorry, I would have to have control of the remote to be channel surfing... I have the enviable position of the lone female in a sea of menfolk. It is worth not having the remote.

And finally: K: At what age did you first say something to your kids that came from the index cards in your brain where all the things your mother said to you growing up are stored? J: I think that was at birth when I said, "Phew! Now that that's over…. Let's have some ice cream." K: Thank you so much for stopping by today Jane. I really got a kick out of all of your answers. And as always, out of you my friend! Good job keepin it clean for the tweens! J: Thank you, Karen, for including my yammerings amidst your miscellany. You are a funny lady.