Yesterday was another quiet day, just steady work. I had a lot of email to get through, wrote up script coverage, read another script. I have one more coverage to write up today. I’ve made my nut for this pay period. I’m giving myself off from reading until late Sunday night, when I’ll read the scripts to write up on Monday.
Remote Chat was fun, but then, it always is.
I handled some administrative stuff. I tried to get the heat on in the apartment. The thermostat says it’s on, but nothing is coming out of the radiators, so I have to find out what other switch has to be flipped, and where it is. It’s too cold and raw to be without heat. Plus, we’re paying for it, so if I want it on, I should be able to turn it on.
Finished reading the book for review, and will write that up later today.
I kept waking up Tessa and Charlotte during the day yesterday, played with everyone vigorously before bedtime, and they let me sleep until 4:58 this morning. Big improvement.
Meditation starts in a few minutes, and then there are errands, and then I have to get in touch with someone about the heat. I want to work on almanac articles today, too, and get some baking done. Knowledge Unicorns is tonight, too. Tuesday’s session went well, and I’m sure tonight’s will, too. We are in a good rhythm. Every day’s news about schools having to go back partially remote or daily testing in the schools because someone was exposed reinforces our decision to keep the kids out of school this year. I don’t understand parents who are sending their kids into danger every day, and then act all surprised when their kid gets sick. What did you think would happen? There is NO safe in-person learning for unvaccinated children yet. At all. Anywhere. It’s not even truly safe for vaccinated teens. Or adults.
Tomorrow is the first of October, which means it’s a major decorating day for Halloween/Samhain/Day of the Dead. I’m looking forward to it.
Yesterday was a calm, quiet day. I did my script coverages, I read more scripts, I read part of the book for review. I caught up on email. I worked on the novel, and on some notes. I answered necessary emails. I got some unpacking done. Got some research done on a project.
Nothing major, just a day with a nice rhythm to it.
Overnight, now, that wasn’t much fun. Charlotte woke me a little after one. It took a bit to get her settled down. Then Tessa got me up at 10 to 3. If they were quiet, it wouldn’t matter so much, but they are noisy, and I don’t want to disturb the neighbors. I tried putting Tessa in “her” room and shutting the door. Louder howling. I put Charlotte in the sewing room and took Tessa in my room, but Tessa rummaged and lectured and fussed until I gave up at 4:30. I fed them all, and then Tessa and Charlotte fussed at each other. I don’t know what to do to keep them quiet at night. They’re perfectly healthy; they’re not hungry. They’re just awake, and want me awake, too. If we were still in a house, I could just let them yell all night and ignore them, but I can’t do that to the neighbors here. By giving them what they want to shut them up, it gives them permission to keep doing it.
By the time I left for the laundromat, I was already exhausted. But I was the first and only one there, and got my laundry done quickly. It’s a little creepy at first, but I stay alert and am ready to bring out the New York if necessary.
Script coverage today, some LOIs, some short articles. I might run some errands, or I might wait until tomorrow.
Nothing earth-shattering on the home front (other than not getting enough sleep). They got used to being up with me when I woke up in the middle of the night to worry for all those months. Now that I want to sleep through the night, it’s no longer their routine. So I somehow have to gentle them into that kind of routine again.
I like having quiet days, where I can work at my own pace and not feel rushed or overly stressed. Now, if I could only get enough sleep. . .
Yup, Mercury went retrograde yesterday, and will go direct on October 18. So buckle up, buttercups, we have seven retrogrades until October 6, when the planets start turning direct again, and we get some relief.
Yesterday’s post on the GDR site is about how I’m trying to form a better perspective on things.
The weekend was pretty good. I had to finish one last script coverage early Saturday morning. Once that was done, I attempted to put together the shelving unit. But that was defective, too. So I returned those units. Only got a partial refund, because they’d given me a gift card as part of the last purchase. I offered to return the gift card, but that was “too hard.” So, in other words, I paid for the gift card. To a store in which I don’t shop often.
Headed to a thrift store nearby, just in case, to see if they had shelving. They didn’t, but they did have a train case. In blue. It’s a Featherlite, sold by Sears back in the day. I have wanted one of these for decades. It was only $7. Because they were having a sale on certain items, it was only a little under $4.
The same style of case sells for $58 on eBay.
It’s a lovely condition. I was so happy, and it more than made up for the shelving issues.
I went through some of the art books from the college library. There was more good Canaletto information; I may be done with the play about his sisters, but I’m interested in writing something about his family and the Bibiena family and their stage designs.
I paged through a volume of AMERICANS IN FLORENCE, about the ex-pat artists community in Florence around the time of the Impressionists. That got me going on a few different ideas: the Fabbri family interests me, and I might pitch a play about Ernestine and Cora to 365 Women at some point. I was also interested in William Morris Hunt, and the female students he took on, called “Huntites.” That gave me an idea for a steampunk piece, and I spent some time writing a few pages of notes.
While I was doing that, an idea that’s been niggling at me for quite a few years decided it was time to spew forth enough information for a few pages of notes on that, too. It takes place starting after WWII, and running as long as it wants to run, about a couple who marries right after the war, the husband remaining in the military, and how they have to navigate their relationship through the huge changes that came after the war. Originally, I was going to have the wife be a quiet, smart, dedicated homebody, making her home a work of art wherever they live. I’m keep those aspects, but adding in that she was a ferry girl during the war, flying planes within the US. And that she misses flying.
A chance sentence in a book inspired an idea for a short story set in the afterlife. Made a few notes on that, too.
It feels good to be creative again. It’s nice that the Idea Fountain is turned back on again.
I needed to relax, so in the afternoon, I started reading CASE HISTORIES by Kate Atkinson, which was recommended to me. It’s a very different type of mystery, stylistically, and I enjoyed it, because it was so different.
Puttered around and managed to put away some more Winter Holiday decorations. I need the shelves in place before I can really rearrange things. But I also have to take my time and find the right shelves. Or, possibly, build them, if I can get the lumber at a reasonable price.
I’m getting a little tired of the cats getting me up at 4. 5 is fine, I like starting my day at 5, but 4 is just too damn early.
But I was up way too damn early on Sunday. I got in an excellent first writing session the novel. Saturday’s was okay, steady progress, but Sunday’s was actually good.
Cooked a salmon Eggs Benedict for breakfast.
I opened the train case to give it a good clean, inside and out. To my surprise, I discovered three decks of cards and a hunk of modelling clay inside it. All of which had price tags on it. I wondered if someone had put everything together and meant to come back for it. But wouldn’t they have left the case behind the cashier’s desk?
I went through the decks of cards. One deck has all but one card; but there are several cards that have been marked, so that deck was used, somewhere, to cheat. The other two decks were intact.
The modelling clay was something I had planned on buying over the next few weeks, so it made sense.
I contacted the store, when it opened, to tell them what I found and offer to pay, but they said it was their mistake for not checking when I paid, and I shouldn’t worry about it. Which was kind of them.
I gave the case a good cleaning, and am using it to store the extra Ipsy bags I’ve accumulated. When I travel, you can be darned sure I will use it; and I’m sure it will turn up in some of my writing.
I decided to pack away the summer dresses and shirts from my closet, so that I had some room for fall/winter stuff. I ended up unpacking six boxes still in my room. I found a bunch of stuff, including winter shoes and boots.
In other words, I don’t need to shop for clothes this autumn. Which is a good thing, considering how many carloads of stuff I donated before the move. I have plenty of pieces I like, that look good on me, in which I feel comfortable.
I rearranged some stuff in my room, too. I’m keeping some of my summer shoes in the moving boxes, until I can either bring up the shoe rack, or find a pretty bin for them. I still have two boxes of stuff to unpack, and then the bedroom is basically unpacked. I still have to figure out how to fit two more large suitcases in the room. They were in the closet in the sewing room, but I removed them so I could put in the decorations, and now I need to figure out where to stash them.
I’m adding one Samhain decoration to the porch/living room windows every day this week; then, on Friday, October 1, I’ll do the big decoration for the season.
I’ve been having a terrible time getting my tablet to charge. It’s my preferred way to read the scripts for coverage, because it’s easy to enlarge the font; with the amount of reading I’m doing at the moment, my eyes get tired. But the tablet wasn’t charging beyond 53%, even when I had it plugged in all day.
Just for the heck of it, I plugged it into my phone charger, and it charged. We’ll see how long that lasts, but every day helps. Never buy a Linsey tablet; it’s crap.
Yesterday, I was up again, way too early. I couldn’t get as much done as I wanted on the novel, because I have to do some research that will directly affect the structure and information in the scene. Can’t use placeholders.
The coffeemaker had a hissy fit. Every Mercury Retrograde, there’s an issue with the coffeemaker. Maybe I’ll stick to the French press during the retrograde.
I had to go to the college library across the street to drop off books. I looked for information on William Morris Hunt, but didn’t see anything. I did get a book of some of Bernard Berenson’s diaries, which should be interesting. My allergies were acting up, so I didn’t stay to search the academic network library catalogues.
I went to the public library to drop off/pick up a book. The book came highly recommended, but it’s in present tense, so it goes back unread. I loathe present tense in novels, and will only force myself to read it if I’m being paid so to do.
Contacted Berkshire Health Systems to see if I could take my mom up the street for her Pfizer booster. The woman I spoke to was very nice; they were having their meeting that day to figure out how to manage the boosters along with the regular vaccinations. She asked me to call back by the end of the week. I thanked her and said I would; she was surprised that I didn’t argue. Why argue? They’re doing the best they can.
By this time, my allergies were out of control. I’m not usually a mucus machine, but this was bad. For a few minutes, I wondered if I had a cold, or, heaven forbid, the plague (COVID). But I could smell and taste, and, if anything, my appetite had increased, so I figured I was okay.
I took some Benadryl (that I bought in Europe, not any of the milquetoast US stuff). It started drying me up. I wrote up the two script coverages due, and went back to reading the book for review before the Benadryl knocked me out. I took a nap for about an hour and a half, then staggered into the kitchen to reheat some pasta. I felt dopey from the nap, but definitely better.
The Tamed Wild box arrived, and it’s lovely. It also has a booklet of herbs used in medicine, which is good, since all my herbals are still packed in storage.
Read two scripts after dinner, then went to bed early. Slept through the night, although Tessa woke me at 4 again. Fed them all, tried to go back to bed, but they weren’t having it, so I took the featherbed and moved to the couch, and everybody settled down.
By breakfast, Tessa and Charlotte were both on the couch, buffered by the featherbed, in temporary peaceful co-existence.
We’ve started closing the door to the porch, so it doesn’t get so cold at night. Pretty soon, we’ll have to put on the heat.
Decent morning’s writing session on the novel. I realized I hadn’t done the research I needed to do for the next scene, but the conversation took an unexpected turn, so I bought myself some time (even if I cut that conversation in a future draft).
Lots to do today, especially since I’m behind on emails, and on the short articles. The allergies are starting to act up again; let’s hope it’s not as bad as yesterday. Benadryl knocks me out, and I can’t afford to lose a few workday hours again.
I had planned to do laundry this morning, but didn’t feel up to going to the laundromat, so that’s been pushed off until tomorrow. I’m hoping to play a little with ideas on the short story, too.
Yesterday was a mixed bag. Meditation was great, of course.
Then, I hauled the heavy, flawed bookcases down the stairs and got them loaded into the car. We drove to Target in Lanesborough, and the return was drama-free, thank goodness.
Since we were almost in Pittsfield, we continued on to Re-store, looking for bookcases/shelving. As we entered, the manager was yelling at someone to get out and off the property, for being inappropriate with a female employee. The manager later came around to apologize for the ruckus. While I’m grateful he stood up for her and kicked the guy out, it was still unsettling.
But there wasn’t anything that was what we were looking for, so that was that.
We went to some of the box stores on Hubbard Street – I popped into Barnes & Noble to take a look, we got a small picture frame at Michael’s, and we did some shopping at Price Chopper. I’d never been in a Price Chopper before. Some stuff is good, but most of the low prices are for their generic store brand. Otherwise, prices are similar to Big Y and Stop & Shop here, although Price Chopper has Stonewall Kitchen products. I got a Rewards Card to use there, just in case.
Home, unloaded. In the afternoon, I wrote up some coverages. I still have a lot to write up today, the thought of which is a bit overwhelming. But I will just work my way through them. Read scripts later in the day; one was a stage play that was quite good.
It started raining in the evening, and poured all night. I’d like to run a few errands today, but don’t want to be out if it’s bucketing.
I do, however, like to lie in bed or on the couch and listen to the rain. It’s soothing.
Charlotte was the catalyst of being up way too early this morning, setting Tessa off. So I fed them at 4:30, and then curled up on the couch to doze for an hour or so, before starting my day.
Good first writing session, and spinning some ideas for what to teach at the conference next summer.
There are times when I skip scenes as I write the novel. Not because I’m working out of order, but because the reader doesn’t need them. Normally, I’d write them, and then cut them; in this particular book, I think them through, so I know what happened, but the reader doesn’t need the scene, so I move on to write the next scene the reader needs, and then integrate any information necessary from the unwritten scenes into the upcoming scenes, but without info dumping.
Knowledge Unicorns went well last night. We’re going to do some work with virtual museum tours around the world, to discuss the art and then create stories, poems, dance, etc., inspired by various paintings.
The kids who are now homeschooled are much calmer and more focused than the ones who are doing online learning with their schools. As one of the homeschooled kids said, “I don’t have to worry about dying from the virus because some classmate has a stupid, selfish, anti-vaxx relative. I don’t have to worry about being shot at school. I can actually LEARN.”
The kids who are doing virtual learning through their school are under a bit more pressure, both to return in person, and because the hours are set for schooling, whereas the homeschooled kids have a more flexible schedule based on the day, and on the remote work their parents are doing. Every style of learning has its challenges, but I’m glad we’re all sticking to the decision that NONE of them are going back in person this year.
I should be able to get my mom set up for her third Pfizer shot right up the street soon.
I hope I can get a bunch of unpacking done this weekend. I’m getting a little tired of my bedroom and my office being stacked with so many unpacked boxes.
I want to do some more world building and work on the outline for the piece I’ve been developing. It really wants to start spilling out.
If the weather’s nice over the weekend, I hope to spend some time at the lake, too. Take a book, take a notebook in which to do some writing.
I got a nice big bag of apples yesterday, so I’ll probably make an apple cake, too, this weekend. And I’d like to make bread.
Have a good one, friends, and I’ll catch you on the other side.
Yesterday was nowhere near as productive a day as I’d hoped. I got some work done in the morning, between script coverage and other small projects.
I’ve been invited to present next year at the Cape Cod Writers Conference. If it’s live, I’ll be down there for a weekend (it’s a paid gig, plus meals and accommodations). If it’s virtual, I’ll do it from here. Either way, it will be fun. Think of how much money they’d have saved all the years I lived right down the street from the conference center (they wouldn’t have had to pay accommodations). I have about a month to come up with what I want to teach. Their workshops are about rolling up the sleeves and writing in class, so I’m going to create or re-slant a workshop that focuses on the writing.
I started to put together the bookcases for the sewing room, only to discover that they weren’t properly prepped for assembly. Instead of being a single tall cabinet, they are built/broken down into two smaller units that need to be stacked and then fastened together. Only one of the units lacks the capacity to fasten it to the other.
So I took it all apart again and put it back in the box and tried to contact Target to arrange a return. Only Target tries to force phone calls. The claim to have a live chat option, but it kept going around in circles and not letting me enter. What they sent me was a “customer experience survey” which I filled out and gave them a zero.
I also dug out the email address from the corporate office that I used last year, when UPS lost a mail order. I contacted them, explained the situation, and asked for something in writing to allow me to return both boxes and get a refund. Because, you see, Target’s stated refund policy is that they only return goods in UNOPENED boxes.
One of the bookcases is in an unopened box. But there was no way I could have known that the bookcase was improperly prepared without opening and starting to assemble the one in the other box.
I heard back from the manager of the Target, who wanted to talk on the phone to “make it right.” What part of “I don’t do business on the phone” is so hard to comprehend? I told him, no, we were not talking on the phone, as I stated in the previous email, and that the only thing I wanted was to return both bookcases for a refund.
This morning, I got an email from him stating that I could.
Now, I lost 2 billable hours getting the damn bookcases in the first place; I lost 3 billable hours trying to put them together, and now I’ll lose at least another 2 billable hours returning them. That’s almost a full workday lost. But they’ll be returned, and I’ll head to Re-store to see if they have something that works that’s already an actual bookcase and not a bunch of shitty, overweight particle board that’s flimsy while being heavy.
Before anyone starts with “what do you expect from a cheap Target bookcase?” – the answer is I expect a cheap Target bookcase that will sit in the sewing room, not look too bad (I’d planned to embellish it), and hold the items I need it to hold for 2 years or so. I’m not looking for heirloom whatever. I wanted a simple bookcase to hold stuff. It shouldn’t be this much drama around it.
Because I lost three hours of worktime yesterday, I ended up working until 10:45 last night, not something I want to become a habit.
Autumn Equinox dinner was good: Cornish hen with apples and sage, sweet potatoes, spinach.
Simple Equinox ritual,
We’re having too much kitty drama, too, lately. On Cape, Tessa always stayed with me in my room and slept on my bed (since she was a kitten). Charlotte was shut out of my bedroom. In this place, Tessa doesn’t like my bedroom (no carpet, and I’m not unpacked yet) and doesn’t want to stay there. Besides, she likes to roam around at night. So Charlotte now sleeps on the bed with me.
But, by 4 AM, Tessa is hungry and lonely and starts howling. If we were still in the house, I’d let her howl and not get up until 5. But I can’t have her waking the neighbors. So, she gets what she wants, and I stagger up to feed her. But when I try to go back to bed, she starts howling again as soon as she finishes her breakfast. I move to the sofa and try to doze off again, and she’s fine.
She gets plenty of attention during the day, but she wants the day to start at 4 AM, and that’s too early for me. I’m fine with starting at 5. But 4 is too much.
Meditation was good this morning, and now I have to figure out how to get the heavy bookcases back down to the car and go back to Target. Urgh. I have a lot to do today, so I have a feeling it will be another day of work rolling well into the night.
I still haven’t gotten the paperwork sorted to switch over the car registration and our licenses. Since Mercury goes retrograde on Monday, that’s all going to be even more of a nightmare than it needs to be. Urgh. Again.
Well, nothing for it but to get to it.
The house on Cape has an offer pending on it. I’m sure my former landlord is relieved, and I hope whomever buys the place is very happy there.
Got some work done early, then headed out to Target to get a pair of white bookcases I need for the sewing room. Normally, I don’t like white anything, but these bookcases will flank the vanity table I’ve converted to a sewing table and hold fabric, sewing books, etc. I have to put them together, and that’s a project for the upcoming days.
What puzzled me was that two guys who worked at the store and helped me get the bookcases first into the cart and then into the car struggled with them. With one guy, I’m thinking, “Dude, I’m old enough to be your grandmother and I can handle them.” I didn’t say anything except, “Thank you.”
Handle the bookcases I did, getting them from the car and up to the stairs to the apartment BY MYSELF.
The afternoon was split with reading script coverage and a phone consultation with an ex-client. I’d worried about the conversation, but it went well. She basically needed an audience for decisions already made, although I pointed out some ethical elements she needs to add in.
Up early this morning, thanks to the cats. It’s the Autumn Equinox, and I’m busy with that, plus I have a lot of script coverage to write up.
And there’s Remote Chat later this afternoon, to which I look forward.
On the writing front, I had a decent first session on the novel, I’m doing research on a couple of pieces, and some world-building for another piece. Not much I can really talk about until I’m deeper in the process; while I don’t mind talking process, if I talk too much about what’s in draft, it loses creative energy. It’s one reason I don’t participate in social media games that ask too many questions about a WIP. That energy needs to be reserved for the actual writing. Speaking too much about a project publicly instead of writing it dilutes it.
I am happy to say that the weekend was less stressful than I expected. Which is a good thing.
I was in touch with my friend on Friday to find out if he was coming by to drop off the carload of Christmas decorations, or if he needed to move it to a different weekend. First he said he wasn’t; a few minutes later, he was back in touch to ask if he could. So we were back on.
I baked his favorite from my baking repertoire, lemon cupcakes with lemon frosting. I thought the frosting was a little too sweet; I need to work on my buttercream frosting skills. But, overall, they turned out well.
I also baked brownies, because I craved brownies, and, since I had the oven on anyway, why not? They turned out really well, too.
Saturday, I vacuumed and mopped and did general housework in preparation for my friend’s arrival. He and his family had decided to make it a day trip, but had gotten a later start than expected. No worries. I was caught up with everything and ready.
I worked on GAMBIT COLONY while I was waiting, re-reading the rest of Book 4 and what I’ve written so far into Book 5, making some edits here and there. But, overall, I’m pretty happy with it. It’s not the kind of series targeted to a general audience; it’s definitely for people interested in the arts, who can deal with large ensembles. And I want to have the first six books of the series submission-ready before I start pitching them. Those first six books encompass auditions, rehearsals, shooting the mini-series, and then the first season when it’s picked up. At some point in the game, I’ll get back to working on the series website. I don’t know if my publisher would even consider it, or if I should go pure indie.
Anyway, in the early afternoon, I heard from my friend; he had taken a wrong turn, and was about an hour behind where he expected. Again, no worries. I felt worse for him than for me.
He finally got here, and it only took 15 minutes to unload the car (under Charlotte’s supervision). He’d dropped off his family to do a short hike while he unloaded, and I gave him the cupcakes, which delighted him. They planned to go apple picking, and then stop at their favorite barbecue place on the way home. So they had a nice family day out, off Cape. Sometimes, it’s hard to get over the bridge, even when the traffic’s not a nightmare.
The day had started kind of rumbly and drizzly, but by the time they got out here, it had turned into a gorgeous autumn day. I was delighted for them, and so grateful for the carload of stuff!
My Kindle Fire is acting up; books I buy aren’t necessarily downloading. I believe this is Amazon trying to force me to buy a new Kindle (which they keep sending me emails about), which I don’t want to do, because I like this one. And hate Amazon. Customer Service wasn’t much help. No surprise there.
On Sunday morning, we were on the road by 6:30, headed back to Cape. It was a reasonably smooth ride down, and the weather was gorgeous. We arrived a little after 10, and I rearranged things in the main storage unit so that whatever we couldn’t get into the car would fit, and moved out of the second storage unit. The car was packed, but it was mostly light stuff (and yeah, more Christmas decorations). I also got the trunk full of yarn up, and the giant bin with all our winter coats. Once I empty that bin, I will fill it with the small boxes of holiday decorations, so that they are all safe and protected and in one spot, instead of in dozens of tiny boxes that have to be stacked like a weird Rubik’s cube.
I did the move-out paperwork for that unit, and we were back on the road by 11:28. Over an hour earlier than I’d expected. Unfortunately, the traffic over the Bourne Bridge was a nightmare, but we were still over before noon (the storage facility is just over the bridge on the Cape side).
The traffic was heavy all the way back to the Berkshires, but it moved, except for a messy patch around Worcester. We made it back by 4, and my leg only hurt a little. The relief at getting it all done is immense.
Unpacked, hauled everything up, and rested. Since the book I bought still wouldn’t download to Kindle, I started reading the next book for review.
Up way too early on Monday, thanks to the cats. But got in a good meditation session, and good first writing session. The cats were running and playing like loony tunes. But then, full moon, what do you expect? It was pretty funny.
There’s a bunch of new paperwork involved in getting the car registration and our licenses switched over to the new address, and I am frustrated with it. Also frustrated because Spectrum went down again in the afternoon. I fixed the problem myself from this end while I was waiting for the tech.
Got some work done early. Headed over to the college library to drop off books and check out some other books. Headed to the grocery store to get what I still needed for the Equinox dinner tomorrow. Unpacked the oversized bin with all the winter coats, and got those hung up. Refilled the bin with small boxes of fragile winter holiday decorations. I have to rearrange the big closet in the sewing room; I think most of that closet will house decorations.
Unpacked a couple of boxes of general decorations we’d never used in the Cape house. They fit better here. They are from our travels. Some of them definitely have the Deco/Nouveau vibe that works so well here. Stuff that we decide not to use is getting repacked, and will go back down when we do our storage run in spring.
Wrote up script coverage on two pieces, and read three others.
Trying to get into a more regular work rhythm for the fall and winter.
Found my favorite comfy pants pattern, and will make some fleece pants for both of us to wear around the house this winter. I’m looking forward to getting the sewing room set up and getting back to making clothes.
Have a bunch of coverages to write up today, more scripts to read, articles to write. An ex-client wants to talk to me, and I’m not looking forward to it. There are very good reasons this client is a former client rather than a current one.
My keyboard is now all wonky, too. I’m having trouble with all my devices. My Mercury has gone retrograde early. I better back everything up today.
Sigh. It’s going to be one of THOSE days, isn’t it? Hope you, at least, have a good one.
I’m preparing for the upcoming Mercury Retrograde.
The weekend was stressful, and I’m trying to recover, and this week will hold its challenges. I’m trying to meet them with as much grace as possible, one at a time.
Meditation was good yesterday, as always. I recently doubt I should attend, sometimes, because we talk a great deal about compassion, for ourselves and others. However, my well of compassion has run dry when it comes to anti-vaxxers and right-wing extremists. I’m saving it for the people they hurt and murder.
Slow, fractured day, and not as productive as I would have liked. Got a little bit done on several different fronts, but not big chunks which I’d hoped.
Managed to do some unpacking, though, and some work on GAMBIT COLONY.
Knowledge Unicorns was fine. It has been fine ever since we started back. Because several states have removed the remote learning option from their schools, in order to force children into situations that could kill them, quite a few of the kids have been pulled out of school completely and are now being homeschooled. Regulations differ from state to state, but we’d all discussed and decided not to send the kids back this year, so, when necessary, parents had time to get the necessary requirements.
The homeschooled kids are feeling a lot less stress and anxiety than the kids doing remote learning, mostly because of the pressure on the remote-learning kids to go back in person. Considering how often classes/schools have to revert to remote learning due to COVID outbreaks in those situations for weeks at a time, the homeschooling makes more sense. Some of the parents are working remotely; others have made arrangements to switch off their work situations to a hybrid situation.
It’s not easy, but it’s better than sending the kids to die.
The kids decided they are creating a pageant this year, for the holidays. They’re going to write it (working virtually), rehearse it virtually, and perform via Zoom. Should be a ton of fun.
I uploaded a photo of the signature on the sketch to both Facebook and Twitter. A friend in Germany said that it’s written in the Sutterlin Script, and the name is “Konrad Poritz.” I’m not having luck in direct Googling, so I will get in touch with some museum contacts in the US and Germany, and see if they can point me in the right direction. The college library across the street has books in French, German, etc., so maybe I’ll find something there, too.
Lots of script coverage to work on today, and some errands. I have a stressful weekend ahead of me, and I’m trying to mentally prepare.
Greylock Federal Credit Union is, once again, making life difficult. There’s no reason for everything to take 10 steps instead of 2. I should be able to deposit a check without it being a production. I should be able to write a check without it being a production. I shouldn’t need FIVE security questions for everything, and constant haranguing by their staff on issues we’ve already settled.
Obviously, I made a mistake choosing them as my bank. I’ve always preferred credit unions, because the reason for their existence is to treat their members with dignity, not have the traps and fees commercial banks use, and to smooth the financial path for their members. Greylock does the exact opposite.
I can’t switch banks again for 90 days, but I’m looking into other banks. I may actually go in and interview them.
Because I am not putting up with this shit.
I went down a research rabbit hole for a project, which was fun, but set me back on a few other things.
Remote Chat was fun, although I was still in Grumpy Pants Mode from dealing with Greylock.
Windows keeps telling me I need an update, and then the update “fails”. I’m frustrated.
I unpacked a few things from the last storage run. One of them is an original sketch, signed by the artist, done in 1969. I’m trying to decipher the artist’s name so I can research the artist. I think it was a gift from my uncle, who was a well-known artist in Europe, done by one of his colleagues, because the name I think is one the sketch comes up connected to Hamburg, near where my uncle was based. I might post the signature on Twitter, so see if anyone can help me decipher it, so I can do the proper research. It’s a very atmospheric black and white sketch, and I want to find a place to hang it here. But I also want to know about it.
Found out that the house in which we lived for the past 10 years is on the market. For a lot of money. The landlord repainted the inside (which it needed, because hey, ten years) in sterile colors downstairs, and didn’t repaint the upstairs bedrooms. The old carpets are still there, and the lawn’s been mowed, but where’s all this “landscaping” he talked about? The broken boards on the steps of the deck where replaced, and the deck washed, and the back windows repainted (which he did while they were still there). But that’s it. So all the fussing at me, about how the work was going to take him six months and I’d put him so far behind wasn’t true. It took six weeks to slap on some paint and put the house on the market.
None of this should matter. But it’s still a wrench, because that place was my home for a decade, and, with all the ups and downs, I did love the house. But he was never going to sell it to me, even if I could have or wanted to buy it. And, with the way the neighborhood was changing, and how the Cape is changing, it’s not where I wanted to live out the rest of my life.
Yet, there are still complex emotions.
I sat with them in meditation last night, which helped a lot.
I do wish whomever buys the place is very happy there, because the house itself encourages happiness.
Meditation this morning, and then it’s back to work. I need to write up the scripts I read last night, and grab some more to read today, write some short articles, and start the next book for review.
Not much to say about yesterday, except that it was tiring. We were out of the house by 6:30, headed back to Cape for another storage run. The traffic was heavy, but moving.
When we got there, it was discouraging to see how much was still in the unit we need to get cleaned out. There’s no way all that stuff is coming up with us before winter. So I have to figure out what’s the biggest priority for the winter, and then pack the rest in the other unit, so we’re only carrying one storage unit.
Filled the car to the brim, mostly with holiday decorations, and were back on the road by 10:45. Unfortunately, the Bourne Bridge was a nightmare, and it took a half hour to get across.
Once we were over the bridge, it wasn’t a bad trip back. We were a home a little before 3, and unloaded.
I’d taken the dual action Advil in the hopes of preventing the severe leg pain. I also used the acupressure mat while driving. Unfortunately, the Advil made me queasy, so I didn’t take a second dose when we headed for home. The mat did its job well enough so I wasn’t in pain until we were almost back.
Unloaded, headed to Burger King for our treat – bacon cheeseburgers, fries, and chocolate shakes. Tasted okay while we ate them (the shakes were good), but I paid for it later.
Too tired to do any script coverage at night, so I have to push harder today, since today is the end of the pay period.
Up way too early again, thanks to the cats, but at least I was out the door and at the laundromat a bit after 6:30, which means I had everything washed, dried, folded, and back at the house before 8. We’re supposed to have severe thunderstorms today, so I dashed out to Wild Oats and Stop & Shop for a few things. It was sunny and clear in Williamstown, but looks and feels like a storm (with breaks of sunshine) here.
Read a mediocre mystery set against a good backdrop. Worked a little on one of my novel outlines, and realized just how much worldbuilding I have to do before I write any scenes. Sometimes, I can write four chapters in, and then stop to worldbuild and outline, but this particular piece won’t work at all unless I’m firm on my worldbuilding going in. So I have a feeling I won’t get to do any actual writing on it until some time next year. Although the characters disagree.
Lots of emails to catch up on, lots of script coverage to handle, Remote Chat, and some other work. Plus figuring out where to put all the stuff we brought up yesterday. I will be glad when we’re done with these storage runs for the winter.
Tired, so I’ll pace myself by switching off on tasks to keep from burning out on any one thing.
Have a good one! The leaves are starting to turn, to glorious shades of yellow, gold, and red. It’s beautiful.
Busy weekend, but it felt like I’m getting back on track.
Friday, I worked on script coverage, and then my mom wanted to come on the big grocery run, so that’s what we did: Big Y, Wild Oats, Stop & Shop. People are masked in the stores, no one is fussing, and it takes so much pressure off shopping.
My reward for all that was to read Deborah Blake’s FURBIDDEN FATALITY, the first in her new Catskills Pet Rescue series. The book is an absolute delight! She takes all the best of the cozy mystery genre, and leaves out the annoying, overused tropes. I’m so excited for the next one, which comes out in November.
Saturday was the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. As a former New Yorker, who knew a lot of people who died, the anniversary hits me hard every year. It was helpful to see the Bidens, VP Harris and her husband, The Obamas, and the Clintons offer dignified, respectful mourning.
I watched The 9/11 Table of Silence Project. It is performed at the fountain at Lincoln Center, and this year, there was even a limited audience. It was beautiful and powerful. If you’ve never seen one of the performances, I suggest following the link to watch. I love the way they entwine dance, music, spoken word. The way the musicians move through and with the dancers during the performance.
After the piece was over, I had to sit quietly with it for about another half hour, because it was as filling as a wonderful meal, only for the soul.
Worked on script coverage. Dashed to Big Y to get cashews and butter. Made the Moosewood Recipe for White Bean and Kale soup. It also has fennel, potatoes, carrots, and sundried tomatoes in it. I don’t often use fennel (or kale) so it was an adventure. It turned out really well, and the leftovers will provide lunch for a few days. I’ve made a similar Portuguese version with sausage, and a slightly different version with ham hocks. This was my first foray into the vegetarian version.
I had hoped to go to a gem and mineral show that was in walking distance from me on Sunday. However, when I drove by on Saturday, no one was wearing masks to enter. It was inside, and nothing in the promotional materials spoke to any COVID protocols. There were kids going in. So I decided it wasn’t worth the risk. It’s one of the few reckless, irresponsible events I’ve seen since I’ve been here; people are usually more responsible than that. But why spend money at an even that could kill me? No, thanks.
In the afternoon, I read the next book for review. It was wonderful, and I couldn’t put it down. I rarely give a full 5 stars, but this one gets it.
Read three scripts for coverage in the evening. The college students are out getting drunk and coming home late, being loud again. But it’s only for a few minutes on a Friday or Saturday night, so it wasn’t bad. There was live music somewhere nearby. I’m not sure if it was at the lake, or at the pub down the street. There’s definitely a sense of life around here!
Eggs Benedict again on Sunday morning, and then I made our favorite orange rye bread. The recipe makes a loaf of bread and rolls. I like the way the rolls come out better, so next time I make it, I think I will do the entire batch as rolls.
I wrote up the coverages for the scripts I’d read the night before, and wrote and submitted the review for the book.
Because I lost two days last week (one for the holiday, one for the storage run) and will lose another day before the end of the pay period, I had to work through the weekend. But it was a steady pace, not a crazymaking one, so it was all good.
I made curried red lentil burgers for dinner. Not as bad as I feared, but not as good as I’d hoped. I felt good after eating them, though. My body responded well to the ingredients. I liked using chutney on them.
Yesterday was back to the “regular” workday, so there was script coverage and working on the short Llewellyn articles and LOIs and catching up on email. That deadline is coming up, and I’m behind where I’d like to be.
I’m working steadily on the novel, and, next week, will have a conversation with my publisher about getting the series books back on track. As soon as I’ve made more progress on the short Llewellyn articles, I will go back to steady work on the plays.
Last night, I had to miss the playwrights’ virtual circle I’d hoped to attend, because of script coverage stuff. I hope to make it there next month.
I read the script for which I’d been requested. It was a script I’d really liked, but had a few minor notes. The writer made the changes, and asked that I be the reader again, with comments on the advised changes. It was excellent.
I got behind in the coverage because I got so caught up reading Angie Kim’s Miracle Creek, and I couldn’t put it down. Which is a good thing, but it meant I had to work longer into the evening to make my deadlines.
I need to set up my weeks so I’m not doing script coverage 7 days/week, because that just burns me out. Even with holidays or storage run days, I still usually read, and I just need a break for a couple of days every week. So I have to structure, as often as possible, not to do coverage on weekends. Whatever days I choose as my “weekend.”
But I made chicken chow Mein in the wok, and it was yummy and that made me happy!
The waxing moon was absolutely gorgeous. I could sit on the front porch and enjoy it.
A busy day ahead, so I’ll get to it. Have a good one.
GWEN FINNEGAN MYSTERIES
Archaeologist Dr. Gwen Finnegan is on the hunt for her lover’s killer. Shy historical researcher Justin Yates jumps at the chance to join her on a real adventure through Europe as they try to unspool fact from fiction in a multi-generational obsession with a statue of the goddess Medusa.
Buy links here.
When plans for their next expedition fall through, Gwen and Justin accept teaching jobs at different local universities. Adjusting to their day-to-day relationship, they are embroiled in two different, disturbing, paranormal situations that have more than one unusual crossing point. Can they work together to find the answers? Or are new temptations too much to resist? For whom are they willing to put their lives on the line? Available on multiple digital channels here.NAUTICAL NAMASTE MYSTERIESSAVASANA AT SEA
Yoga instructor Sophie Batchelder jumps at the chance to teach on a cruise ship when she loses her job and her boyfriend dumps her. But when her boss is murdered, Sophie must figure out who the real killer is -- before he turns her into a corpse, too. A Not-Quite-Cozy Mystery.
Buy Links here.COVENTINA CIRCLE ROMANTIC SUSPENSEPLAYING THE ANGLES
Witchcraft, politics, and theatre collide as Morag D’Anneville and Secret Service agent Simon Keane fight to protect the Vice President of the United States -- or is it Morag who needs Simon’s protection more than the VP?
Buy links here.THE SPIRIT REPOSITORY
Bonnie Chencko knows books change lives. She’s attracted to Rufus Van Dijk, the mysterious man who owns the bookshop in his ancestors’ building. A building filled with family ghosts, who are mysteriously disappearing. It’s up to Bonnie and her burgeoning Craft powers to rescue the spirits before their souls are lost forever. Buy Links here. RELICS & REQUIEM
Amanda Breck’s complicated life gets more convoluted when she finds the body of Lena Morgan in Central Park, identical to Amanda’s dream. Detective Phineas Regan is one case away from retirement; the last thing he needs is a murder case tinged by the occult. The seeds of their attraction were planted months ago. But can they work together to stop a wily, vicious killer, or will the murderer destroy them both?
Buy link here.
Full Circle: An Ars Concordia Anthology. Edited by Colin Galbraith. My story is “Pauvre Bob”, set at Arlington Race Track in Illinois is included in this wonderful collection of short stories and poetry. You can download it free here.
Archaeologist Dr. Gwen Finnegan is on the hunt for her lover’s killer. Shy historical researcher Justin Yates jumps at the chance to join her on a real adventure through Europe as they try to unspool fact from fiction in a multi-generational obsession with a statue of the goddess Medusa.
Buy links 
When plans for their next expedition fall through, Gwen and Justin accept teaching jobs at different local universities. Adjusting to their day-to-day relationship, they are embroiled in two different, disturbing, paranormal situations that have more than one unusual crossing point. Can they work together to find the answers? Or are new temptations too much to resist? For whom are they willing to put their lives on the line? Available on multiple digital channels 
SAVASANA AT SEA
Yoga instructor Sophie Batchelder jumps at the chance to teach on a cruise ship when she loses her job and her boyfriend dumps her. But when her boss is murdered, Sophie must figure out who the real killer is -- before he turns her into a corpse, too. A Not-Quite-Cozy Mystery.
Buy Links 
PLAYING THE ANGLES
Witchcraft, politics, and theatre collide as Morag D’Anneville and Secret Service agent Simon Keane fight to protect the Vice President of the United States -- or is it Morag who needs Simon’s protection more than the VP?
Buy links 
THE SPIRIT REPOSITORY
Bonnie Chencko knows books change lives. She’s attracted to Rufus Van Dijk, the mysterious man who owns the bookshop in his ancestors’ building. A building filled with family ghosts, who are mysteriously disappearing. It’s up to Bonnie and her burgeoning Craft powers to rescue the spirits before their souls are lost forever. Buy Links 
RELICS & REQUIEM
Amanda Breck’s complicated life gets more convoluted when she finds the body of Lena Morgan in Central Park, identical to Amanda’s dream. Detective Phineas Regan is one case away from retirement; the last thing he needs is a murder case tinged by the occult. The seeds of their attraction were planted months ago. But can they work together to stop a wily, vicious killer, or will the murderer destroy them both?
Buy link 
Ink In My Coffee 