Dragon Girl with the Eleven Tattoo

I am a woman who likes to find omens. I search for signs and clues that there is an Unseen Force greater than me at work in my life. When Unladylike was being scheduled for release, I relished the idea of the original release date of 11/11/11.  How prophetic is this date! A once in a lifetime, in a millennium for the 11's to be dated in triplicate. 

I have an interesting history with eleven that began with a dream. Several years ago I dreamt that I was getting a number eleven tattooed on my right hand, the hand I write with. But instead of getting an eleven, I changed my mind at the last minute and got a tattoo of a rose on my hand instead. Ever since then, the number eleven and I have bonded. It pops up in my life in the most random places. I look at the clock frequently right when it's 11:11. My father, when he died, was transported in a hearse by Palm Mortuary that had the licence plate, Palm 11.  I finally had a tattoo artist ink me with a little eleven on my arm. This number has become like a friend that keeps showing up in the most unexpected places.

 My friend Mimi is going to host a book release party for me at her relative's coffee house. It's called Cafe 11.

And today, the release date of my book, I met up with Elizabeth and the number we were given for our order was...you guessed it, Eleven. 

I blogged about the number eleven back in June of 2007 when I went on a personal retreat at a monastery. I reflected on my walk around the stations of the cross on the grounds:

At risk of sounding as if I am into numerology, which I'm not, I'm into Jesus, but I have to say that the number 11 has been occurring in my life for over two years. It first showed up in a dream, an 11 tattooed on the back of my hand...and since then it pops up in all kinds of random ways, like when I glance at the clock and it reads 11:11 (many, many times this has happened) and seeing car plates and addresses and so on with Eleven. It's a great number, but I don't know why it's stalking me.

Then there I was, staring at the pierced hand of Station 11,     remembering my dream of two years ago of my own 11 scarred onto my hand. Is 11 the number of grace? I don't know... So I just stood there, and felt the wind of God's presence breeze through me. The veil on my heart fluttered like a lace curtain in an open window. God walked with me.

 While I had to let go of my 11/11/11 publishing date due to simply just not being able to pull it off, I am pleased with the number eleven still managing to find it's way to me today at that little restaurant with Elizabeth.

But there is something else special about today, January 23, 2012. Not just that it's the official launch date for my book, but it also happens to be Chinese New Year.  The Chinese zodiac depicts each year as being marked by characteristics of an animal. This is the year of the dragon. I was born in 1964, also a year of the dragon. And my book is being born today, Year of the Dragon.  This day has turned out to be dripping with omens!

I adore what my Canadian Chinese friend Esther posted on my Facebook today. She is my Dragon Sister:

...your book is released on the first day of the Chinese New Year of the Dragon - isn't it our year, lady? Were you born on the same year as I was - 1964? If you were, then you are also a dragon girl! WOW!! That signifies something - to have your 1st book released on the 1st day of the year of the dragon! It represents your unusual love and care for the Chinese people, too. Oh, I am so happy....

I love that Esther remembers how much Chinese people and other Asian groups are deep in my heart. I lived in Hong Kong for nearly seven years and have traveled a bit around Asia including Thailand, Cambodia and China. It is my favorite region of the world. If I could not have 11/11/11 for the publication release for Unladylike, the next best omenesque date is Today.

Today is done. It will be eleven o'clock soon. I need to sleep.

One last thing. If you haven't yet ordered Unladylike, consider doing so Tuesday, Jan 24th. Apparently Amazon favors Tuesday book buys.  Available in print and on Kindle! (click here for PRINT, and here for KINDLE. For some reason, the two are not yet integrated together, though reviews are showing up on both no matter where you post!)