Jamie Wakefield

(If you are an agent, possibly drawn here by my query letter, please look to the right and see the link "The best artciles on this site" and read some of those first. Thank you.) Apparently the quest to become the ultimate metrosexual is endless. Wendy has asked me multiple times if I wanted to go to the gym with her. My reply has always been “no.” My logic has always been: I need to run, and I need to do pushups and I don’t need to pay for anything. If I can focus on that, I can be in the shape I want. And now, I am so exhausted I can barely type. For some reason, the other day I said “yes, I will go to the gym with you." It’s a new very modern gym that we just wanted to check out with a free day pass. Wendy did an aerobic dance class and I did free weights. I used to work out a lot. Not a little, a lot. Of course, I was in my twenties then and I am forty-four now. But, doing bench presses was like embracing an old friend. I grabbed the bar and I was surprised how much ...

Having completed my travel memoir titled "I'm not an Alcoholic, I'm just European!" I am now spending my days researching agents that are interested in this type of a book and my writing style. I came across one this morning from a great agency and this is listed under "What I'm looking for:". "Nonfiction: I'm crazy about memoirs, especially if they're set in a different country or expose me to a different culture. I'm also a sucker for voice. If your style is fresh, sassy, funny, and/or just has a great personality, chances are I'll want to see your project. I also really (really) like narrative nonfiction, including adventure stories or anything having to do with space exploration. I'm also interested in seeing non-fiction proposals that deal with parenting, family, relationships, pets and any issue that affects women." Um, did she just describe me and my book or am I delusional? I pray to God she likes my query letter and...

We have plenty of time in the morning to get ready before the taxi comes. Traffic is heavy at the time we are leaving and our normally twenty-five Euro taxi ride ends up being ten more than usual. (Or fares have gone up, our return taxi trip home with no traffic cost the same.) Who cares? Get to the entertaining part Wakefield. The end of the trip is all about speed. After waiting for three and a half hours for our connecting flight in Athens we board rapidly. I notice that the jet engines on this medium sized plane are enormous. They dwarf the wings and look like they belong on a 747. We sit for about ten minutes on the runway and then back up and start taxiing down the runway with G-forces like I have never experienced. In ten seconds we’re in the air, and in forty-five seconds we’ve achieved our cruising altitude, a process that usually takes five minutes or more. “That is the fastest we have ever taken off!” Wendy remarks. “I know. That was insane how fast that thing went from zero...

Sorry about the lack of updates. Wrote for an hour yesterday and two hours the day before, but just notes about the trip. It needs to be cleaned up a bit before it is in good enough shape to post. Updates will resume with their normal haphazard schedule next week. Now I'm off to Camari and their black beach for a day of backgammon, reading, floating in the ocean and a tattoo.