When he signed Elaina, I knew we had a chance. Not to single anybody out or take away from the team, but when we got Elaina, we knew we had a better chance of reaching our goal.

It was such a great moment. I remember John was in shock.

We were a lot looser, No. 1 because we weren't expected to win. Having a lot of younger players loosens you up. I don't want to compare Terry to John. Terry built the foundation. John's one of those guys with the we-have-nothing-to-lose attitude. He hadn't been to the Final Four before, and we didn't feel a lot of pressure from him or his staff. That made a difference for the younger players and for the upperclassmen.

We can spend it on spay and neuter, we can spend it on the general fund, or second chance. Now that we're doing so much (more volume), we're going to consider putting at least half of what we take in from our recycling program into the building fund.

It's 2010. I'm forty-three years old. I've just turned in the final draft of what will be my third novel when I decide I want a tattoo. Maybe it's a middle-age thing. Or maybe now that my kids are nearly grown and I have a career in place, I'm finally coming into my own.

Predictability is boring! I want a book to take me someplace I haven't been before, show me sights I haven't seen, make me ponder questions I may not have pondered before.