City Sophisticate: Fashionably Punctual

I'm on time, always, for everything... and I mean everything. If not, I'm about 20 minutes early. Late? Never. Well, ok, so maybe if some sort of unexpected occurrence transpires, like a flat tire or god forbid I accidentally drop my keys down the garbage chute in a frenzy to be on time, I may be late. In such circumstances, however, I become anxious and worry-filled as if some horrendous punishment is awaiting me at my destination. I'm not just talking about work-related obligations either. I get the same uneasy feeling when attempting to avoid lateness in all scheduled engagements whether a social get together with friends or a dinner date; even a dentist or doctors appointment where when I arrive 10 minutes early, the doctor is generally a half hour late, causes me worry while racing against the clock to get there.

Perhaps I should see someone about this, or I suppose I could just chalk it up to being a driven and time- conscious individual. It's also a bit of self- inflicted competition that has me constantly attempting to achieve set goals, even those involving time management and punctuality. So I refer to myself as fashionably punctual . By times the "fashionably" portion of this self-selected label is used in the loosest sense of the word as it's sometimes necessary to put stylish clothing selections to the bottom of my list of priorities if it means getting my butt out the door on time.

So evidently, as I'm approaching the date that I had intended my novel to be ready for launch (end of June) my stomach is in knots. Will it be ready to go? I have my fingers and toes crossed that it will, yet the publisher keeps setting me straight by doling out the negatives in regards to possible additional design revision rounds and formatting items etc. Really they are just attempting to encourage me to be realistic and stop being so stringent about a deadline as it really isn't a deadline but an unveiling. Not a death, but a birth. This view on the situation does allow me to step back a bit and stop being so damn hard on myself, but when I get a plan set in place and visualize things panning out a specific way, my often dormant type "A" side awakens. For real, in most situations I'm as carefree and take-it-as-it-comes as one could possibly be. Type 'A' in the grand scheme of things, I am not.

Being fashionably purposeful and fashionably punctual is a balance that I love to strike. Striking poses often accompanies or follows....

So what does this mean for the designated launch date? I have absolutely no freakin clue. It's all in the process and all out of my hands since I handed all that I've worked on for the past year over to the design team and publisher this past week. She's out of my hands and I've got a wonderful assistant waiting in the wings to start the party planning, I'm simply awaiting the go ahead from the ones in charge at this point. Mark the last weekend of June on your calendar, my peeps...better yet circle all of June and July, because my intended exact date has now become a ball park suggestion and I'm taking a deep breath while letting go of being fashionably punctual, if need be, when it comes to my baby's arrival.