Sterrett Like many, Delphi resident Gloria Sterrett is a working woman. She juggles job and life, trying to make ends keep meeting. Though exactly what she does and how is unique to her, in many ways her life closely resembles that of many women across America.

Sterrett said she felt it was important for women to support and communicate with each other in light of how tough their days can be. A way she found to do so was to join a women-only online forum.

Sterrett said the forum was helpful but she never expected one thing that came about from her joining. Some thoughts she shared on the site attracted the attention of another forum member, Joni B. Cole, who asked Sterrett to consider writing an entry to submit for a book. Cole and her friend B.K. Rakhra, both of Vermont, were working on Water Cooler Diaries: Women Across America Share Their Day at Work.

The co-authors invited women to chronicle their activities, thoughts and feelings in a one-day journal entry March 27, 2007. From hundreds of entries, Cole and Rakhra selected those that displayed the wide variety of lifestyles of American women and how they managed, or did not manage, to balance their careers and personal lives.

By women, for all A one-day journal entry written by Delphi resident Gloria Sterrett about her life, thoughts and actions was selected to be published in the pictured book, Water Cooler Diaries. Sterrett's entry was one of 35 selected from hundreds of submittals by women across America. She said she felt privileged to be part of a book that dealt so directly and honestly with issues women face every day. Comet photo by Kevin Schnepp To her surprise, Sterrett's day diary entry was one of 35 selected. She found out the book was published when she received a copy from the co-authors in late February.

"I never expected to be published in anything," Sterrett said. "It was really a surprise and I'm thankful my entry was chosen. There are a lot of interesting women and stories in the book."

Sterrett's entry, titled School Custodian, was based on a day she spent working at Delphi Community Middle School as a custodian. She worked there for six years before taking a job recently at Indiana Beach. She shared frustration about her job and boss, family situations, happier moments when she returned home after work and aspects of her work as a clown.

The book contains entries from women who are race car drivers, fashion bloggers, actresses, surgeons, models, boxing promoters and others. A copy is available for check-out at the Delphi Public Library.

Sterrett said she was pleased to be part of a book that shared so openly about women's lives.

"I felt very privileged," she concluded. "All the women in the book were important."