Contests and Indoor rowing update

First of all, my thoughts are with all those threatened by Gustav and my prayer is that if it does hit New Orleans the levees hold.

There are a couple of contests on for An Impulsive Debutante -- at Liz Fielding's blog and also at Unusual Historicals. Leave a comment and you will be in the running for a copy.
My newsletter should be going out later today. And its big contest will be for a hardback of A Question of Impropriety. The paperback will be on sale in November. Set in 1813, it is a proper Regency but as it is set in the North East and has to do a little bit with the development of the locomotive, it is also different. You can read an excerpt here.
The newsletter will also have my recipe for plum chutney. The Victoria plum tree is once again overloaded. The tree is the best in the neighborhood for producing Victoria plums and we regularly get over a 100 lbs worth. Yesterday's culinary discovery was that plums make a good substitute for apricots in Moroccan dishes. It is the sweet tartness.

After the second week of indoor rowing, my weight continues to go down and my energy levels increase. Mentally I feel sharper and more focused. A recent study in the US showed that people are more mentally alert after 30 minutes of exercise. Another study (this time from the University of Pittsburgh)showed at overweight women needed to do 275 minutes exercise per week to achieve sustained weight loss. This is about twice the current recommendation. I have been reading my dh's Runner's World.
For a number of reasons, I have now ordered the deluxe seat. The current seat gets uncomfortable when you are rowing for longer than 15 minutes. I have resorted to sitting on a small pillow...
I have also discovered that intervals are killers but are useful. As my times are going down and my ability to row for lower periods is going up, I feel that I am achieving something. But the thing is that it must be kept up. It takes 6 weeks for something to become a habit.
My weight and poor fitness did not come on overnight and it will not disappear overnight, but through steady work Patience and perseverance.

My current wip is almost finished. I can just about taste the end. I think when all is said and done, it will be a good story.