Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Day before Dark Moon
Uranus Retrograde
Neptune Retrograde
Jupiter Retrograde
Rainy and cool

And, of course, no heat, so, because of the damp, it feels even colder.

I couldn’t get my hair cut on Saturday, and, if I can’t find a place to get it cut before Friday, I can’t get it cut until November 18. Venus is retrograde from Friday until November 18 (when Jupiter also goes direct), and, trust me, you do NOT want to do any beauty procedures, including getting your hair cut, while Venus is retrograde! Also, if you’re in a relationship, make sure you really listen to each other and to what’s under what’s being said.

I unloaded on a local Senior Advocate about all the crap going on here, and he is looking into it. There is no reason my 86 year old mother, who has never missed or been late on a rent payment and has been an ideal tenant for 38 years in the same apartment, should be put through this torture.

Thanks Lara and Brenda, for the lovely book!

I put up a dozen books on BookMooch and 8 of them were mooched within an hour, so I’m making a big trip to the post office.

Almost all of yesterday was spent on listings and setting up appointments. One seemed too good to be true, and, of course, was. It was in an area that’s my fallback, but the house looked and sounded so good, I made an inquiry. Then I get an email about how it’s listed as a sale, but isn’t really, and this guy’s a volunteer in Africa and “can’t find” an agent to handle it — blah, blah, blah. Yeah, right, does he think I just fell off the turnip truck? “Scam” written all over it.

Another sounded perfect — a three year lease while the family is transferred overseas, but I actually know the company that they work for and it’s all legit — but the place is furnished. So THAT won’t work.

There were the possibilities that fell off the map pretty fast: “You have to get rid of one cat” (no, I don’t have to even look at your place), and another who expected me to get up at 3 AM and drive there in order to see the house before 7 AM instead of booking an appointment at that time the following day, when we’d actually be in the area. Then, there was the ad where they tell you how to speak over the phone to leave a message. All of these things are very telling, and they tell me that none of those places is the right match. A couple of agents offered to negotiate the multiple cat thing, but I said, look, either a landlord is pet friendly or not, and if something like that has to be negotiated from the get-go, neither of us will trust the other and the relationship is already strained from the start. It’s better to pass.

I don’t need fancy finishes — I’ve never been a finish whore. I need storage space, a room to write, a bit of a yard, and pet-friendly. In addition to the whole bedrooms and kitchen thing.

But almost all my slots are full for tomorrow, and most of Thursday’s slots are full, too. So, we’ll see what we come up with.

The stress is starting to manifest physically, along with the cold and the damp, so I’m trying really, really hard not to get sick.

Devon

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Waxing Moon
Uranus Retrograde
Partly sunny and cool

Busy day yesterday, but definitely a step up from the last few. Good writing day on the contemporary Christmas story. Stopped at some stores that didn’t have what I needed, paid storage, picked up the cheesecakes for the trip and the fixings for the shepherd’s pie I’m making today to bring up for tomorrow night’s dinner. Lunch with a friend, back home, some reading, some writing, some correspondence. Glass of wine and a snack with another friend. Worked on the grocery lists for baking. I need to build in a day to try the various stollen recipes somewhere, and I’m adding those supplies to the list (can you say a lot of yeast and a mountain of candied fruit)?

Writing going well on the new Christmas story. It feels right. In addition to the usual holiday issues of family and estrangement, I get in a few jabs at ignorance and injustice, but as a trusted friend pointed out, hey, Dickens wrote about the social problems of the time, too, so I’m in good company.

Today’s agenda consists of writing, baking, cooking, wrapping the presents that go up to Maine, and deciding what the heck to wear for the dinner. I hate not being packed the day before I leave — I like to pack ahead of time and not stress.

Bad headache today, but I hope it will dissipate as the day progresses. The constant leaf blower noise doesn’t help either. We had no heat for most of the day yesterday and it got a little raw in here towards mid-afternoon. Now, they’re turning off the heat BEFORE 9 am, when they figure people have left for work, and don’t turn it back on until AFTER 5 PM, when they figure people are on their way home. Because anyone who’s here during the day isn’t worth considering. Yes, it’s illegal, and no, they don’t care, because all that happens is a slap on the wrist, and they go back to doing the same crap.

At least I’m baking and cooking for most of the afternoon, so that will keep the place warm.

Devon

Monday, October 12, 2009

Monday, October 12, 2009
Waning Moon
Neptune Retrograde
Jupiter Retrograde
Uranus Retrograde
Sunny and cold

34 degrees (F) this morning outside and no heat. Gotta love the scumbags. Yes, that’s sarcasm, accompanied by an eyeroll. And, since it’s a holiday Monday (although they’ve got the workmen here disrupting our lives), there’s no one in any official capacity who can do anything. Again, they get their wrists slapped after the fact, but it doesn’t stop them from doing it over and over again.

The Muse Online Conference starts today. I’m excited. I have 81 people signed up so far. I doubt they’ll all post exercises, but, if they do, it’s 162 pages per day for me to read and comment on.

Rearranged the exercises so they build more logically.

Cut 3000 words from the essay. I’ve got to smooth out some transitions, but I think it’s good to go.

Didn’t make much forward progress in the short story today, although i had to go back and rewrite what I’d done, because it wants to be told in First person, not Third. The limited word count concerns me — it’s going to be quite the challenge. This story has a lot to say on several levels.

Going to comment some exercises and post Tuesday’s exercise, then head off to acupuncture. When I get back, I’ll work comment on some more exercises, write up the material for Confidential Job #1 (it’s due tomorrow) and go over the essay one more time before sending it out.

I’ve been re-reading Anne Truitt’s TURN. She’s a wonderful artist who published a series of her journals (DAYBOOK, TURN, PROSPECT), which are exquisite. I have to admit losing patience when she has trouble travelling on her own. Solo travelling is very different than travelling with a companion, but each offers enormous riches, if you’re wiling to accept them.

Busy week coming up, but I’m looking forward to it.

Devon