You can't blame me, really, and I'm still giving you music at the end of the post.

So today I'm gonna start with a little self-promotion that just may carry on through for the next few weeks. My latest books, "I WANNA" are coming out on Simon & Schuster on June 6th. You can pre-order I WANNA Make My Own Clothes on Amazon. And you should if you know any 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 or 15 year old girls who are crafty or have a remote desire to be crafty. This is the start of a series of four books. There is one on making Clothes with no more than a needle and thread (#1) and another on re-doing your Room (#2), again with no real big tools or equipment. They both release on June 6th and yes, that's in like two weeks. Then there is one on making Gifts for all your friends and family (#3) which is my favorite and it releases in October and another on Accessories (#4) and quite frankly I don't know when that comes out. I'm done, I can tell you that much. My illustrious book career has been anything but, however this will make NINE books I have published which I am proud of, even if very few people have actually purchased them. Have I guilted you in to pre-buying yet?

Oh, there is a website, too.

FYI- A few years back I also wrote a fiction series for the same age group called The Goddesses, which are about the Muses, you know from Greek mythology, and how three of them piss off their pops (Zeus) and he sends them off to Athens as punishment, only he's getting rusty at that God stuff and accidently sends them into the future. And to Athens, Georgia.

No, seriously, that's what it's about.

It's pretty funny for middle reader fiction, I think, and you can still get them on Amazon. In fact, wanna buy Goddesses Book #1: Heaven Sent now? Heh heh. My first book is out of print, but I have a zillion of them in my garage. It's called Hey Day: 365 Ultra-Glazing, Super Amazing Things to Do, Make & Ponder. Or something like that. Same age group, maybe a touch older. An excellent tome and you can get one, just email me. Maybe send me a few bucks for postage if you're so inclined.

Now on to the music.

I thought I'd just do a basic indie pop hits for kids post today. The family went out this weekend and trolled one of our favorite neighborhoods, a place now called "South Park" but really is just the northern end of Golden Hill, a neighborhood I lived in for like eons pre-marriage / child. It's got more and more cute shops and cafes now and it is home to our favorite record / CD shop M-Theory. Inside one of their outposts (they have two in the neighborhood) my daughter pogo'd to the song coming out of the speakers and loudly and proudly announced that "We have this song." It was the Raconteurs, "Steady As She Goes." She makes her Mom proud.

Later that same evening we danced up a storm to a new playlist I made for working and a favorite of that set was the outrageously poptastic sounds of Belle & Sebastian in the form of "Funny Little Frog." Such a great song, such a smash pop hit. I know that my wild dancing to the song makes her like it even more. I got so crazy, I hurt my toe and we got to watch it swell up before our very eyes! Good fun I tell you.

Lastly, a song I got off a blog recently and I am sorry I can't remember whose, but it's by the also poptastic Apples in Stereo and it's their "Theme Song." You can never go wrong with a snappy theme song. Oh, made a rhyme! I do it all the time! Somebody call a mime!

The Raconteurs, "Steady As She Goes"
Belle and Sebastian, "Funny Little Frog"
Apples in Stereo, "Apples in Stereo Theme Song"

More info: The Raconteurs, Belle and Sebastian, Apples in Stereo, Clea Hantman's book world

Purchase: I WANNA Make My Own Clothes; I WANNA Re-Do My Room Goddesses Book #1: Heaven Sent; Goddesses Book #2: Three Girls and a God