Dear Friends:

 SULLIVAN’S JUSTICE should be in the bookstores in paperback now, for all those who missed the hardcover. SULLIVAN’S EVIDENCE, my new hardback, will hit the stores in May. I’m pushing to finish the next book, which is one of the reasons I took so long getting out this newsletter. Please rush out and buy them. 

                                                                                PROMOTION

 If you send a receipt for either of the two books above, I will send you a free autographed hardback. Pick out the book you want from the “Buy Books” section on my website. I will even pay for the shipping costs. This offer is valid only for SULLIVAN’S JUSTICE and SULLIVAN’S EVIDENCE, and the receipt must be dated in 2006, or the offer will not be valid. Don’t forget to send your mailing address. I only have a limited number of copies, so hurry to get your free book. Send your receipt to the following address:

                                                          

NTR Literary Inventions, Inc.
4712 Admiralty Way, Suite 563
Marina del Rey, CA 90292
 

 It’s hard to believe that it’s already March. Time has been zipping past me. I spent a week in the hospital just before Christmas, which gave me a great excuse for talking my sister into preparing the holiday meal. My hospital stay ended in good news. My heart condition hasn’t changed from the year before.

 What has changed, by necessity, is my sedentary lifestyle. I started out walking several miles per day. When it got up to five miles, I had to start running, as I didn’t have enough time in my writing schedule. Since I have implants in both my leg and my back now, being able to run is a just shy of a miracle.

 My youngest son suffered an acute attack of pancreatitis in late January, and I flew to Dallas to be with him in the hospital. He’s doing well now, and hopefully, I can stay away from hospitals for the rest of the year.

 My oldest son who was going to turn pro as a golfer this year, decided to wait awhile, and is now in the process of opening two Golf Tek stores. No, I didn’t spell it wrong. Golf Tek is a computerized training program the pros use to improve their game, which is now available to the public.

 My beautiful daughter has been dealing with some serious problems as well. Her four old has been diagnosed with semantic pragmatic disorder, which sometimes is mistakenly identified as autism, and shares many of its symptoms. It’s ironic that I wrote a book called CALIFORNIA ANGEL years ago that featured an autistic child, and is even listed on the web under books on autism. I wish I could perform miracles like the character in my book. My daughter stresses the value of early intervention to anyone who suspects their child might have a similar problem.  

 My wonderful step daughter turned sixteen this year. I was curious as to why my husband asked me to drive us around a few weekends ago, and then I figured it out. He was practicing to ride with his daughter, probably deciding if he needed to get a prescription for a tranquilizer. He rode with her in rush hour traffic last Friday. I did see some new gray hairs, but he made it.

 

 For those of you who subscribe to my newsletter, you may know that I jokingly refer to my husband as “Dan Perfect”. He kept complaining about lights coming on in his Corvette until I was ready to strangle him. He works with sophisticated machinery on his job, where accuracy is essential, so I thought he was merely nitpicking. After a number of heated arguments over a stupid car, Dan finally explained that the “little light” as I called it, could designate a dangerous problem. Out of all of the people to get a lemon, it had to be Dan! GM is returning our money.

 See what happens when a Honda man is disloyal. It’s like cheating on your wife. My brother, an engineer, has never driven any car except a Honda. They were always red. A few years ago, my brother became wildly adventurous and bought a black Honda, one of the new sports cars. I hope everything has been going all right for him. I wouldn’t want him to have to go back to red. Dan’s previous car was a red Honda. If Dan buys another Honda, I’m sure he’ll feel much better.   

I think I have cracked a male code of significant proportions! This isn’t just another Dan story, although it does involve him. You guys should beware. Like many married couples, I talk while Dan drives. One night I asked him why he called everyone “sweetheart.” I’ve never been one for terms of endearment, and a girlfriend told me once that the only reason men call you honey, baby, gorgeous, dear, etc, is that they don’t want to take the trouble of remembering your name. So I told Dan I wanted him to call me Nancy more often. After seeing Brokeback Mountain, I was shocked me when he told me he sometimes even called men “sweetheart.” He said if he becomes annoyed at a guy at work, he calls them sweetheart. I needed more facts on this one right away. I know men say anything that comes to mind when they’re driving and we ask start asking silly questions. Dan explained that he was trying to order parts from a guy and he was giving him a hard time, so after they finished, he said, “Thanks, sweetheart.” So now we know the truth. “Sweetheart” is another secret man code along the lines of “dear.” Here’s the conversation. See if you recognize it.

 WIFE: “Did you take out the trash?”

HUSBAND: “Yes, dear.”

WIFE: Did you feed the dogs?”

HUSBAND: “Yes, dear.”

WIFE: “The doctor said I have only two weeks to live.”

HUSBAND: “Yes, dear.”

WIFE: “I smashed your new car into a tree.”

HUSBAND: “What the … (string of profanities).”

 This also reveals another secret about men. They possess selective hearing. Everything is screened out except for key words such as golf, cars, football, etc.

Regardless, we still love them.

 Sincerely, 

Nancy