A CONTEST! A BOOK GIVE AWAY! A LONGING FOR SOME KIND OF NORMAL!

I've been snowed in for going on eleven days. During the last fourteen days we've had four snow storms – one of which was categorized as a blizzard – that dumped a total of 41 inches on us. More snow is expected tomorrow. My kids have been home eleven days. My husband has been home ten days. The power cord to my laptop spontaneously burst into (tiny) flames and my battery, fully charged, lasts only six minutes. I'm forced to sneak my husband's laptop, however inferior and lacking in my personal files, when he's shoveling snow. I'm down to my last gallon of milk and my last two nerves.

You know what that means...

A CONTEST!!

It's about time, don't you think?

So in honor of the large amount of google alerts I've received this week on "some kind of normal" in relation to the snow storms in D.C., I'm giving away a signed copy of my debut book, Some Kind of Normal, along with some very modest swag - postcards and bookmarks. Clever, eh?

I'm going to run the contest all week - each day a way to earn more points (hopefully really fun and creative), so come back every day, and then one week from today, on Monday, I'll announce the winner. It's entirely possible I'll do it on a vlog if I can steal my husband's computer long enough to figure it out. I'm not sure if a video of me pulling a name from an Austrian hat is incentive to come back or a deterrent.

Today we'll start easy.

1. You get a point just for following me. For a lot of you that's already done! For the others, how much easier could I make it? It's that little button over there on the sidebar. And leave me a comment that you've done it!!!

2. You get a point for posting this link on Twitter or Facebook - two if you do it on both! Let me know in the comment section that you've done that, too.

3. FIVE points for mentioning this on your own blog. As for the comment section... you get the drift, right?

4. And THREE points for finishing this sentence: writing is like snow because... (You can vary it if you're feeling really creative... writing is like a blizzard, writing is like shoveling your driveway, writing is like cabin fever... see? I'm just soooooo flexible here!)

I'm no tech wiz, so I'll be literally writing your name down on a piece of paper for each point you earn. You put this contest on your blog? I'll write your name down five times on five pieces of paper. Unless I can find a better way to do it. I'll give two points to someone who can point me in a better direction. :)

In any case, I need to know!! So make sure you leave a comment and tell me what you've earned so I don't short change you!!

Unfortunately, while the blogosphere knows no bounds, I do. I'm limiting this to my U.S., Canadian and Germany dwelling friends. I just can't afford to send a book to Armenia or Uganda. You'll understand, I hope.

So enter! Comment! And spread the word!! I don't think I could stand it if no one even wanted a FREE copy!  :)  Then come back tomorrow to add to your points with some new wacky point adders!

This is so much more fun than shoveling snow!