Anne Browning Walker

For the past month (or more, as it seems like), my husband and I have been making the transition from fast city life in DC to the suburbs of Kentucky.  While I can’t say that the road has been completely smooth (ahem leaky washer and dead mole in the pond), it’s been fun to make our new house into a home.  And as anyone who’s ever moved before knows, that’s a long-term work in progress.

But I’m not here to bore you with the details of my move or how many boxes I’ve unpacked.  I’m here to tell you about the sweet side benefit of moving: one night at Inn BoonsBoro in Maryland.

You may not know it, but Inn BoonsBoro was financed and dreamed up by romance superhero Nora Roberts.  It’s featured in a recent trilogy of hers, fittingly called the Inn BoonsBoro trilogy.  I happened to read them all, but imagine my surprise when it turned out that the inn featured didn’t only exist in our heads!  I found out via Washington Post article that not only did the Inn exist, many of the other shops mentioned in the trilogy did, too.  And, as it happened, it was right on the way from DC to Kentucky.  Brilliant!

It was a long day before we could get to the Inn, though.  Our movers arrived bright and early in the morning, and moved until early evening, during which time I discovered there was a cringe-inducing amount of dust in my apartment.  (Word to the wise: pack the Dustbuster LAST.)  So, come 7:00 PM, I was tired, a little emotionally wrung out, and very grimy.  My wonderful husband packed me into our full car and we were off.

We arrived in the picturesque town of Boonsboro about an hour later.  We checked into the Inn and were given a tour of the premises.  For those of you who haven’t read the books, each room is named after a famous literary couple, and the room is decorated accordingly.  Each room also has its own scent.  We stayed in Jane & Rochester from the classic Jane Eyre.  There was an enormous four-poster bed and a bathroom the size of my current bedroom.  Crazytown.

But before I could jump into bed, I realized I was starving.  My husband and I headed across the street for a pizza at Vesta, fictionally owned by the second book’s heroine.  I scarfed down a pineapple, ham and cinnamon pizza: a house special.  Then it was back to the Inn.  We picked up a DVD of Sabrina (the new version) in the library and went to our room.

My first order of business once back was a shower.  Did I mention how much dust I had encountered that day?  And ohmigod was that a shower.  There were about a gazillion jets and water everywhere.  I doubt I have ever been so thoroughly washed in my lifetime.
I donned the Inn’s bathrobe and climbed (literally – there was a step stool) into bed.  My husband had turned on the fireplace and the light danced around the room.  We slid Sabrina into the DVD player and I fell asleep quickly.

The next morning, I almost wanted to take another shower, but I refrained and headed to the breakfast-included part of our stay.  There was tasty French toast, bacon, and a melon I’d never heard of before: casaba.  It combines the best of honeydew and canteloupe, in my opinion.  Check it out.

A quick trip to the bookstore Turn the Page (fictionally owned by the first heroine in the series) and purchase of a new JD Robb (how could I resist?) completed our stay in BoonsBoro.  It was the perfect waystation to our new life in Kentucky.

It’s taken a long time, but it seems that spring has finally sprung in Washington, DC.  The temperatures are getting warm enough for you to spend some real time outside without wanting to dash in for a hot beverage.  And, as every DC denizen knows, you’ve got to get outside now, because pretty soon, every time you are outside, you’ll want to dash in for a cold beverage.

So here’s my list of fun favorite things to do during the spring in my fair city.

1) Walk Rock Creek Park.

While everyone else is busy crowding each other to see the cherry blossoms on the Mall, take a stroll/run/bike ride down in Rock Creek Park.  You can see spring coming alive in its wooded banks, green starting to cover an old cemetery, and a rushing rivulet.  To me, it always seems cool down in Rock Creek Park.  And if you get hungry, take an exit near Georgetown and walk up for some refreshments before descending back into the cool stillness of the park below.

2) Visit the monuments at night.

When all those children are sleeping, go check out one of the most impressive of Washington’s assets.  Lit up, the monuments look even more impressive and beautiful than they do during the day.  And if you’re lucky enough to be there when the cherry trees are blooming, they will add an ethereal, ghostly quality to the whole experience.  I highly recommend it.

3) Check out the National Zoo.

Spring is a great time to walk the Zoo, which is always free.  The animals are more likely to be in their outside habitats.  And if you’re lucky, you can watch an orangutan pass over the walkway on the O-Line!  Here’s an insider tip for those entering and exiting via the Zoo’s main entrance on Connecticut Avenue.  The Zoo sits on a very long hill.  On your way in, stick to exhibits on the left side and avoid the Asia Trail, which winds its way on the right side of the zoo almost toward the base.  Then pick up the Asia Trail at the bottom and take it all the way back up the hill.  The climb is so much easier if you get to see fun animals like the Sloth Bear on the way back up!

4) Grab ice cream sandwiches at Sugar Magnolia.

Boy, are you ever in for a treat!  Near the Zoo in Cleveland Park, Sugar Magnolia is a side arm of nearby restaurant Ripple, but if you’re in town on Saturday and Sunday (hours: 12-5), be sure and check it out.  They have really tasty and innovative ice cream sandwiches.  You can try out the waffle cookie with maple bacon ice cream, coconut macaroon with coffee ice cream, or gingersnaps with pumpkin ice cream.  And don’t worry.  For the faint of heart among you, they have traditional chocolate cookie, vanilla ice cream options.  Make sure to go in with an open mind, though.  Flavors change often.

 5) Check out the Washington Nationals

Nothing says spring like the beginning of baseball season.  Wander over to Southeast DC to check out the team and the relatively new stadium.  With some of the best selection of food in a ballpark (including DC classics like Ben’s Chili Bowl),  you should come with an appetite.  Whether you’re root-root-rooting for the home team or you’re in town to cheer on the challengers, stick in your seats for the President’s Race in the middle of the fourth inning.  Choose your favorite from George, Abe, Tom (Jefferson), Teddy, and now Bill (Taft) and cheer him on!

This morning, I joined the Blog Talk Radio show, “Who You Calling Old,” to speak with some great women – Cecile and Chamein – about romance novels, writing, and politics.  You should be sure to check it out!

Here’s the link.

We talked about the possibility of a new subgenre of cougar romances.  What do you think?  Could be fun!

I came across a very interesting article in Jezebel today, called “Feminism May Be Nearing Her Expiration Date.”  In it, the columnist, Tracy Moore, cites a piece by Hanna Rosin in Slate Magazine about the term “feminism,” and women’s reluctance to identify themselves as feminists.

Clearly, as my character Trip in The Booby Trap points out, there are stereotypes of feminists out there as man-hating women actively rebelling against the status quo by refusing to shave or wear bras.  But surely, educated women don’t feel they ought to be subject to these stereotypes just by identifying themselves as feminists?

A book I had as a child

My mother was a feminist.  She was a baby boomer and believed strongly in the revolutions in the sixties and seventies related to race, gender, and sexuality.  I recently found a picture of her as a young mother, with me, wearing an “ERA Now” t-shirt.  But my mother certainly didn’t adhere to the stereotype.  She wore bras.  She shaved.  She worked part-time or not at all while my sister and I were young and my dad brought home the bacon as a doctor.  And, as far as I know, she didn’t feel any less deserving of the title “feminist” because of that.

So, for me, being a feminist has never been a scary thing.  My mom taught me that I can do anything a man can do and vice versa.  She taught me that we define our own responsibilities, that we work out with our partners who does what.  Maybe that means that the woman stays home to take care of the children.  Just as likely, it could mean that the man does that.  She taught me that “feminism” isn’t about women being better than men; it’s about women being equal to men.

So my question to you is what does the term feminism mean to you?  Do you consider yourself a feminist?  If not, why not?  Is there a better term to define how you feel about the roles of women and men in our society?

Are you stumped about what to get your Valentine this year?  Are you a procrastinator who waited to the last minute or a perfectionist who kept looking but just couldn’t find the right thing?  Well, that doesn’t mean that you can’t have romance today.  Here are a few last-minute ideas that will make your Valentine feel special.

1) Letter campaign

Pledge to spend the next year writing a letter or note every day or every week to your Valentine.  Love letters are a lost art, and a great way to express how you feel in an intimate way.  Make sure you sit down and put pen to paper.  As messy as your handwriting may be, it’s a piece of you that your loved one will cherish.  And who knows?  Your kids or grandkids may be reading those letters years from now and sighing over how romantic you were.

2) Story of our relationship

Did you start your relationship in the digital age?  If so, then search through your inbox and text messages for what got everything started and print them out for your loved one.  Design a cover.  If you’re feeling ambitious, you might even wander down to your local copy center and have them bind the book together!

3) Day for you

Can’t figure out what will make the man or woman of your dreams perfectly happy?  Then ask!  Design a day around what s/he loves to do.  Allow the person to choose all activities from the early morning to the late night.

4) Photo Album

It’s so easy to take pictures now that cell phones and cameras are one.  But do you find your pictures languishing on your phone or your computer?  Do you kind of sometimes forget they even exist?  I do!  Well, that stops right now.  Go down to your drugstore and print those babies up right away.  Buy a pretty album at a local store and put the pictures in.  If you’ve got time, add captions or favorite quotes so you and your Valentine can remember all the good times you’ve had together.  You can even leave a space open – fill it with a ticket to an event later in the year that you can attend together, where you can take more pictures to add to the album.

Hope you have a very happy Valentine’s Day, everyone!

Often, when people hear that I’ve written a book, they ask, “Why romance?”

Well, I’ve loved romance novels ever since I picked up my first one, Silver Springs by Carolyn Lampman.  But last weekend, I realized that, perhaps, I was destined (doomed?) to romance from the beginning.  And the reason why is not pretty.

I was out to dinner with some friends who have known me forever.  We started talking about those shows that we loved as children, and wondered how we ever lived life without the internet as a companion to our TV watching.  Now, as fans, we have so much more information at our fingertips.  You can find spoilers on almost anything if you just can’t stand the summer break between seasons.

Well, I’ve never yet succumbed to that.  I don’t look ahead to the end of the book, and I don’t spend so much time wondering what’s going to happen on my shows that I give in and allow myself a spoiler or two.  It’s just not me.

Except once.

I was more than a little obsessed with the show Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman.  At the end of season two Clark proposes to Lois.  I could not handle the suspense, so I wrote an ending for them.  I was reminded of my stint as a fangirl over dinner last week.

Thankfully, I don’t have this, nor do I really remember what I wrote.  But looking back, I think I should have known that this was a sign that my urge to write a romance wouldn’t stay hidden forever.