RWA Nationals was an amazing, high energy experience--my first as a Golden Heart finalist--and a time I'll never forget. Along with a special retreat, workshops, group dinner, events, rehersal and celebrations, it also gave me a taste of what it's like to juggle two careers.
As I was enroute to Newark, I learned a wildfire back home was threatening a major nuclear labratory. At The Golden Network Retreat the next day, word came that the city of Los Alamos and the lab were being evacuated. Very sobering news for anyone living in my state, but even moreso for a person responsible for the budget of an emergency response agency who is most definitely out of the office, and with just days left in the fiscal year to correct it.
As it turned out, the fire didn't destroy the lab, and although some homes in the area were burned it wasn't the absolute nightmare scenario it could have been and sufficient budget was secured just minutes prior to the deadline. *whew* With a few breaks for phone calls and emails to answer questions and provide information--and a great lesson in how to compartmentalize while devoting necessary attention to both events--I was able to do a bit of long distance consulting.
As a writer, and hopefully soon-to-be author, learning to balance two careers is an important part of my education, so 2011 RWA gave me a valuable life lesson in addition to the tsunami of writing-related information.
I'll be back later with a few tidbits from Nationals and what I came away with.
Eeek, scary! but glad to hear it wasn't as serious as it could have been. Also glad to hear you had a good time. :)
ReplyDeleteHi Pippa. Oh my, yes. Such a good time it took me a week to recover. :) I can't recommend RWA Nationals enough to my fellow writers and authors. So much fun, education and opportunity packed in a week and you come away with so much.
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