Yesterday was hot and humid–but 85 degrees here in Michigan in May isn't unusual, nor is the fact that it's only 50 degrees today. Love Michigan weather.

But today…rainy and cloudy and cold (got my socks back on, a sweater, and sweats)…is a perfect day to be curled up reading somewhere. Like bed. (I'm not in bed, I'm sitting in my office. Just FYI. But that doesn't mean I won't find myself there again…soon.) 

I started my re-read of the Harry Potter books last night. As many of you know (as I've mentioned it many times), I haven't read The Half-Blood Prince yet. I chose to wait until Book Seven (Deathly Hallows) was released, and so now I'm re-starting my journey with the students at Hogwarts.

Having read all of the other books only once, and throughout the years, it's fun to go back to The Sorcerer's Stone and meet everyone again. I'm also paying close attention to names and hints and such, because I know Rowling has had everything planned out from the beginning (unlike some other authors I know who write series and who shall remain nameless *cough*me*cough*), and so she's got to have hints and clues sprinkled throughout.

I'm really enjoying it, moreso than the first time, because of course, I know what's going to happen…so I'm reading for all the details that I might have missed before.

I also just finished reading the first two books in a new trilogy (third one is out in two weeks and I can't wait for it) by Robyn Carr. It's the Virgin River trilogy, and the first one is called Virgin River. Not only do the books have fantastic covers (which is why I picked them up in the first place), but they're really wonderful reads.

I devoured the first one, went back to Amazon to hunt up some of Carr's backlist while I was waiting for Shelter Mountain, and then glommed them quickly as I could. (Better hurry…they're starting to get pricey, those backlist books.) 

Anyway, if you want a great story about a small town in northern California, revolving around a midwife who comes from the big city, and a nice solid love story–plus a lot of interesting characters…check out Virgin River. It's wonderful.

So…what is everyone else reading on this Dreary Wednesday? 

I admitted it would probably happen, I just didn't think I'd succumb so darn quickly! Darn it. Talk about loss of self-control.

But when I saw these…well, I couldn't resist. 

Très cute, eh?

Found this pic today of the about-to-be-wearing-a-bright-orange-jumpsuit Paris Hilton–just leaving church.

Need I say more? 

Here it is Monday again. How did that happen so quickly? I had so many things to do this weekend, and so many things I wanted to do…and didn't. Sigh.

My kindergartener gave me the coolest Mothers Day gift. They took white, green, and blue clay and rolled them around into a ball about an inch in diameter, and then her teacher poked a hole in it and "baked it in the microwave" to make it hard, then strung it on a ribbon for a cool necklace.

The accompanying card said, "To the greatest mom on earth." And, so of course, she showed me that the bead was the earth. The white=clouds, green=land, blue=water. Love it.

So…speaking of the earth…what are you doing for her?

Here are the things we've got going on here; share what you're doing too! Some of them are easy peasy. Others…well, not so easy, but worthwhile.

1. We're replacing all of our incandescent light bulbs with the low-energy, curly flourescent ones.

2. I don't let the car run anymore. When I'm stopped and waiting for someone, I turn it off. Really bad for the environment to let it run.

3. We recycle everything. I've paid for an annual membership at our local recycle center, so I can make a run about once a month. We take all of our cardboard–from pizza boxes to computer boxes to furniture boxes–plus glass, plastic, and old electronics. I just need to find a place to take styrofoam packing peanuts….

4. We also have a place to dump paper: anything from cereal boxes to computer paper to junk mail. I have bins in three places in the house to catch these papers (also inclues magazines and catalogs!). Love it.

5. My Music Man bought one of those old-fashioned reel lawn mowers. We have an acre of yard, and it takes him less time to mow it with the reel mower than it did with the gasoline push mower. He has to mow it more often, but it's a great workout he says, and he loves it. And the grass still smells great when it's cut!

So…what about you? What are you doing to help Mother Earth? 

I have some…do you? Tell me! Let's enjoy our good newses together.

1. I got two absolutely fantastic reviews for Rises the Night today…

Romance Readers at Heart says, in part,

"Excuse me for one moment while I give Colleen Gleason a standing ovation. The second book in the Gardella Vampire Chronicles, RISES THE NIGHT, is a superb sequel in a series that is unique, sexy and definitely very intense.

If you haven’t read THE REST FALLS AWAY, the first book in the Gardella Vampire Chronicles, you don’t know what you’re missing. That book should be on every paranormal romance reader’s TBR list. It’s… Just… That… Good. So is its sequel, RISES THE NIGHT."

(Go here for the full review) 

And over at VampireGenre.com, Vicky London raves:

"Rises the Night is an incredible book. The story twists and turns so fast you won’t want to put it down and the plot is anything but predictable. It will have you on an emotional roller coaster from the depths of heartbreak to the heights of ecstasy."

(She also calls Victoria an ass-kicking lady of society. Gotta love that! Go here for the complete.)

2. The book trailer for The Rest Falls Away won a Cameo award for best paranormal romance book trailer from Readers Entertainment TV. I'll post a pic when I actually get the award–so cool! If you haven't seen the trailer, check it out–there's a link over…there —> in my sidebar.

3. I'm going to be interviewed on WJR (AM 760) tomorrow–which is Detroit's largest talk radio station, covering a radius of 200 miles (so that means into Windsor and down into Ohio). If you're not in any of those locales, you can still listen by going to wjr.com and clicking on LISTEN LIVE. I'll be on about 10:10 Eastern Standard Time tomorrow, Friday.

So…what's your good news?