The Accidental Columnist

By Jeannie Yee Davis

On the brink of a new phase in Sandy’s life, she realizes that all she knows how to do is exactly what she does not want to do. As she attempts to postpone her doomed career, she finds herself bound to an old family tradition, one that she hates more than her major. With horrible arranged dates, a cute and interesting guy, and split careers, will she be able to live life the way she wants?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jeannie Yee Davis
• Release date: Oct 15, 2009
• ISBN: 9781452349282

Jeannie Yee Davis

Jeannie Yee Davis is a freelance writer. She writes from her home in South San Francisco, California, where she resides with her husband, Mark. Her short stories appear in Long Story Short, e-Clips and Applecart Magazine. She authored two columns for The Voice, her church’s newsletter, entitled, Pleasing God 24/7 and A Moment in His Light. She is currently working on her third book. Contact the author at [e-mail]

Book preview

The Accidental Columnist

Jeannie Yee Davis

Smashwords Edition

Copyright © 2009 by Jeannie Yee Davis.

Smashwords Edition, License Notice

All rights reserved. This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it., or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

What others are saying about The Accidental Columnist.

Loved it!, October 1, 2009

By Karl Ortis Read For Life (SF Bay Area)

Great read. Moves quickly and fluidly through a wonderful and enjoyable story of love and emergence. Ms. Davis tackles issues of real life with grace and insight. Definitely worth the purchase. Too bad its not Kindle-able!

Pure Escape, August 20, 2009

By Noreen Im a bean counter/book lover (Seattle, WA)

Stories told in first-person allow the reader to live vicariously from start to finish. It is a wonderful escape to be 22 again, fresh out of college with big hopes and dreams for the future along with the realities that there are others in our lives that must get involved in some way! Jeannie Yee Davis's Sandy in The Accidental Columnist allows us many opportunities to imagine the emotional roller-coaster and thrill of anticipation of someone special through the eyes of a loved one setting us up... it's a fun read with a pace that doesn't stop.

Asian customs & influences, August 16, 2009

By Book Maze (California, USA)

Sandy is a young & naive girl who lives in San Francisco. She finds herself in a tangled web of waiting for the right guy, pressed upon her by outer influences, like her mother, uncle, and friend. They were all setting her up on dates for their own individual reasons. She judged people mainly on appearances. After she found out her cute old boss liked her, though he was unable to express himself because he was so self conscious, love made him nervous & clumsy. She rejected him even though part of her thought she could like him. Later Sandy went on a date she felt was exceptional, with a very handsome man, that her mom arranged. She did not see the similarities to her being nervous & clumsy as well. This time she was rejected. I think a lot of people can relate to this feeling when you feel chemistry toward another, sometime it's hard to express. I'm not sure she made the right choices in the end, but I will have to wait & see when the next book comes out.

Nancy's review, August 11, 2009

By Nancy A. Thompson

Jeannie Yee Davis sends us on a fast track through San Francisco in her romance filled novel The Accidental Columnist. Sandy finds it hard to deal with the Chinese traditions of a fixed marriage but not wanting to hurt her mother's feelings she plays along. This debut romance novel of Ms. Davis is funny at times and easy to read. I found it hard to put down long enough to do my daily routine. I hope her next novel will be a continuation of this novel. If I had to break it down into one sentence it would be I loved reading this novel and didn't want it to end.

Brilliant Character Development, August 9, 2009

By E. Allen "The Poet

Jeannie Yee Davis presents an exceptional first offering. The Accidental Columnist is a charming, light-hearted read. Yee Davis taps gently into Chinese traditions and culture while maintaining an up beat, humorous tempo. The central characters, Sandy, her mother, and Uncle Ho, are skillfully developed. Sandy's mother is unforgettable. I look forward to reading the next installment. Wonderful novel!

Robert Lee Thompson--Author of Riding the Florida Time Line, Riders of the Spew and Stragglers of the Spew, July 29, 2009

By Robert Lee Thompson (Bristol, Ct.)

Sandy, an attractive twenty-two year old woman of Asian descent, is finding it hard to deal with the family traditions of a fixed marriage. She is finding it hard not to hurt the feelings of her mother and uncle who insist that it is up to them to find her a husband. Sandy has her own feelings to consider when she meets the man of her dreams and at the same time finds out she has feelings for her former boss. I found myself trying to decide which man I wanted Sandy to spend her life with. At other times I was on edge wondering if she was going to make the wrong decision. This is a must read for those who enjoys a good romance. Before the end I was wondering if Ms. Davis didn't have to go through this herself since she knew so much about it.

delightful!, July 29, 2009

By Corinne H. Torrance *writer (southern CA)

Sandy's story of her experience as a young professional neatly captures the whirlwind of romance and career, with the added pressures from traditional Chinese mother and uncle. What a fun read! Situations are realistic and funny, with intriguing twists and surprises. This light-hearted look at a young woman's struggles will keep the reader entertained from start to finish.

DEDICATION

To Mark,

who is an invaluable player in my life,

whose belief in me gave me the courage to believe in myself, whose strength I pull from when I feel like I’m just not going to make it, whose encouragement spurs me to get started,

whose motivation gives me that little push I need to get going, whose shoulder rubs keep me glued to my chair,

who doesn’t mind reading my stories, sometimes many drafts of it, who bought me a beautiful writing desk to write on,

who is as excited as I am that my dreams are coming true, and who completes my life.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Dear reader, thank you for buying my book. I hope you will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

My gratitude to Chris Baty for writing his book No Plot? No Problem! and for founding NaNoWriMo, which spurred me to not only write my novel but, for the first time, to finish it. Thanks to Chris, I no longer file incomplete novels in the back of my drawer.

Lenore Laumann, my longtime friend, my soul sister, and my mentor, whose namesake I borrowed for my character. She had to be in my novel since she’s such an important part of my life. She truly cares about what happens to me. She has seen me through the happy times and the trying times. She genuinely shares in my successes, and she comforts me through my misfortunes. She envisions my dreams alongside me. She is fearless in giving me honest feedback and excellent suggestions, but she always does it with kindness. I admire her and appreciate her for that. She constantly reminds me not to compromise writing in my own voice for the sake of publication. Her ceaseless encouragement to write and to keep writing stories that are important to me, and not what sells, has kept me grounded. Thank you, my dear soul sis, LLL!

The Happy Writers, Corinne Torrance and Robert Thompson, my dearest writing buddies who I would be lost without. They meticulously combed through my stories in preparation for submission. They are my cheerleaders in times of glory and my pick-me-ups in times of rejection. They have added invaluable insight to my writing life. They are great sports for never complaining about my crazy schedule and for joining me in the NaNoWriMo challenge at the last minute. I am forever grateful to Corky for founding Happy Writers, for I could never have taken this journey without the two of them. Thank you, my wonderful writing buddies, Corky and Rbt!

I am thankful that my mother finally accepted my passion for writing. She now encourages me by asking how my writing is coming along and by praying for me. Thanks, Mom!

And most importantly, I give praise to God, for without His blessings, I wouldn’t be able to do anything.

Chapter 1

You’re next, Uncle Ho said without taking his eyes off my sister, Charlene, who was positioning herself to throw her bouquet. I snickered, thinking he was kidding. But was he? With him, you could never tell. He’s one of those people who always had a happy face. I stole a quick sideways glance at his face, but he looked genuinely sure of what he said.

Auntie Carol came running toward me, and before I could look her way, she grabbed my arm and led me to the crowd of giggling, chattering single ladies. Stand up tall. Keep your eyes on the bouquet. Don’t look away now. You have to catch it. You’re next. And she sailed me over to where the other girls were gathered in front of the Japanese Tea Garden. She stood nearby, preventing me from running off. I glared at her as I considered an escape. After all, her five one was no match for my five four. I could outrun her easily if I weren’t wearing these impractical three-inch sandals that were necessary to keep this silly floor-length apricot gown off the ground. Besides, how far could I run before my upsweep that took an hour to put in place became a down-sweep in this early afternoon wind? You’re next, Auntie Carol repeated softly, calling me back from my thoughts.

There it was again. What? Why am I next? I stared at her but she gently shoved my face forward.

Look at Charlene’s beautiful bouquet. She stepped side to side on her tiptoes, trying to see between the beautifully clad girls.

Be a good girl, Sandy, and don’t lose the bouquet. I glanced and saw my mother, who must’ve just come up behind me.

Before I could say anything, I heard Charlene counting in a slow exaggerated high pitch with her back toward us. Oooone, twoooo, threee! Then she flung her bouquet, sending it high into the air over her shoulder. The ladies stepped side to side, preparing to make a move for the bouquet. Everybody was flinging their arms around and about, claiming her territory, occasionally pushing the girl who they deemed was getting a little too close to their personal space. Fingers wiggled toward the cloudy blue sky, hoping the bouquet would fall toward them. I couldn’t believe I was standing in the midst of these overeager females, vying for the same dumb bouquet, which reminded me that I was supposed to be looking for the bouquet.

I held my arms out in front of me, making sure I didn’t get rammed as I watched the bouquet. I heard my mother’s voice behind me saying in Chinese, Fi-dee, fi-dee, meaning hurry. I felt something poking me from behind. I turned my head and saw my mother with her arms stretched out between her and me, and I realized her fingertips were sticking between my shoulder blades. Probably doing the same thing I was or perhaps to make sure I didn’t run off. I turned forward and searched upward to see where the bouquet was, and about that moment, the bouquet picked up speed, and it was coming down. I waved my arms in the air, pretending to reach for the bouquet like the others were doing. I looked up, and if I wasn’t mistaken, it was coming right at me. There was no way I was going to catch that bouquet and prove everybody right. Just as it got to about a yard above me, I dodged to my left. I heard a plop. I turned around, and there was the bouquet in my mother’s opened arms. I stifled a giggle. Before I knew it, she tossed the bouquet into my arms. It happened so quickly that nobody saw what happened.

The sounds of disappointment swept through the tea garden as the party guests exchanged their own stories of how close they came to catching the bouquet. Gee whiz, why don’t you make me feel even worse than I feel? I wanted to scream at them. The little flower girl ran across the lawn to where I was standing and rammed into me to stop her flight. She caught her breath and stood in front of me pouting. I smiled at her and handed her the flowers. Her face lit up as she ran off with the bouquet.

Uncle Ho walked over. "See, you’re next," he said to me, but when I turned to look at him, I noticed his face was turned toward my direction but his bespectacled eyes were looking at my mother.

Uncle Ho, why do you keep saying that? I asked, rubbing some warmth into my bare arms with the palms of my hands. It didn’t make sense to me to wear a shoulderless gown in San Francisco, especially not at the end of spring when it was usually too cool or windy or both. My mother opened her mouth to say something, but the photographer came and led her away.

Because, Sandy, don’t you know how it works? I watched him with furrowed brows, waiting for him to continue. Josephine was married off to a man your mother introduced to her, and now Charlene just married a man your mother introduced to her. So you’re the only one left. He paused and then said matter-of-factly, wiggling his short stout fingers, which were clasped over his midriff, You’re next. He pressed his lips together and made a muffled hmpff sound. He stared toward my mother who was across the garden with the groom’s mother and the bride and groom posing according to the photographer’s instructions.

I knew that was a tradition in our family. My mother and her sisters were married off to husbands introduced to them by the matchmaker. My grandmother and her sisters had that done to them. My mother hated that tradition, yet she is doing exactly the same thing to us. I asked her about it once, but she didn’t answer me.

But, Uncle Ho, aren’t you rushing things a bit? I put my thumb and index finger together to indicate a little bit and stuck them in his face. We’re at my sister’s wedding. Can’t we have her get on with her life and perhaps let her have a few dozen kids before we talk about me?

Uncle Ho laughed. Just watch. I know what will happen. He stood, bobbing his head. I leaned my head to one side and watched this overly confident man. Who was this man who was so sure anyway?

Before I could think of an answer, my mind wandered off to what he said. Oh my gosh, if he’s right, that means I’ll be meeting the matchmaker, and they’ll be busy preparing me for that man that they’re so sure I’m destined to marry. I’m only twenty-two. I just graduated from San Francisco State last week, and I’ve got plans to travel, taste life and have some fun before I would even consider getting serious with any guy, let alone settle down.

At that very moment, I made a decision that I wouldn’t let anybody tie me down anytime soon.

Chapter 2

I woke up the next morning exhausted. Something about that conversation with Uncle Ho stuck to me like glue, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Why did he have to say all that about my being next? Why did he have to say it now, especially at the beginning of my summer? This would be the last summer that I could hang loose before it is expected that I begin my career in the accounting field. I wish I never listened to my mother