Another Week, Another Friday

FRIDAY FREE-FOR-ALL aka Friday Crazies
No, I don't have special plans for the weekend.  Weekends are a lot like weekdays around here.  Just because it's Saturday or Sunday or even Friday evening, one day is much the same as others.  I work, no matter what day it is.  Now that Game of Thrones has finished its fourth season, I don't even have a MUST-WATCH TV show.

The grass needs mowing.  Thanks to the rain we've had, the backyard is a jungle.  Last Saturday, I pulled and cut the bigger weeds, in hope that we might get to actually mow at some point.  Yesterday we replaced the primer cap on the mower - - - that's the little button that has to be pushed to prime a pull-cord type mower so it will start - - - and it still won't start.  But the Weed Eater is working again, now that it has new line, so we might manage to blaze a trail of some kind through the jungle.  I'm not holding my breath.  Temps are expected to be in the 90s, with humidity to match.  Ugh.

New neighbors--or maybe only one--to the south of us are making life, well, interesting.  A pitbull has been ensconced in the backyard there, complete with small dog house.  That would be well and good, but the poor dog is attached to a leash, giving him little freedom.  Not to mention that I learned yesterday that it's illegal in this fair city for a dog to be tied up for more than an hour, four times a day.  This dog has been tied up 24/7 for 2 1/2 days.  I had to find out from the neighbor to the south of my south neighbor that anyone was actually living in the house.  I don't make a habit of clocking the habits of neighbors or even knowing who they are.  I rarely saw anyone there, but when I did, it was often at the strangest times---3:30 a.m., mostly, when headlights from a car pulled into the driveway, which would shine in my bedroom window.  In spite of several Facebook friends thinking it might be a drug house, the new neighbor is an older Hispanic woman who doesn't drive and obviously never steps out of the house, either. le sigh

Let me make it clear.  I like dogs.  We have a dog, too, but Max the Pekingese isn't all that crazy about
going outside, especially when it's raining, snowing, hot or the grass is tall. When he does allow us to boot him out, we then have to carry him back in, especially at midnight.  Max is L A Z Y and S P O I L E D.  The dog next door is tied to his dog house ALL THE TIME.  Said dog also isn't crazy about being left alone ALL THE TIME, so barks, moans, whines, and every other sound imaginable ALL THE TIME.  The past two nights have meant being awakened far too often by the barks and whines of the dog.  And I've yet to see anyone in the backyard to check on him.  Do I call the authorities and report this?  Or maybe I should simply leave a copy of the City Law that states New Ordinance Makes it a Crime to Keep Your Dog on a Chain 24/7" in the door for someone to find.  I'm about to set the dog free, when no one is looking.  However, I'm not sure how friendly the dog is or isn't.

So it's summer and it's Friday.  I'm a few pages from finishing a new manuscript.  I need to get busy on plotting a new series for Harlequin American, set in a Texas ghost town.  But my #3 daughter and her hubby are stopping by this evening with a present for me.  They consider it a present.  I consider it one more mouth to feed.  A couple of weeks ago, said daughter picked up her cat Tosca, who's been living with me for the past several years, since daughter couldn't have a cat where she lived, and they're now living at least 2 hours away.  Yes, I'll miss Tosca, but she tends to keep to herself and she apparently is enjoying her new home and humans.  So daughter has decided to give me one of the kittens born in one of the race cars at the shop. (Her hubby is a race car driver.)  Just what I need, right?

There's a problem with new kitty.  He's a he and will have to be, um, fixed.  And daughter named all the kittens after candy bars.  (Yes, I'm serious.)  This particular kitty was named Kondike.  Yeah, like a Konkdike Bar, which is actually ice cream, not a candy bar.  I decided to name him Dave.  Yes, Dave.  My youngest daughter is having a fit.  PETS CANNOT BE GIVEN HUMAN NAMES.  Which isn't exactly true, since Toby, her cat, has a human name.  She wanted me to name the new kitten DaVinci, which is how the name Dave came to be.  Or Tyrion, seeing that I'm a GoT and Peter Dinklage fan.  Or anything but Dave.  #3 daughter says I can name kitten whatever I want.  Her hubby likes Dave Kondike, Used Car Salesman.  They're the ones who gave me a fish for my birthday and named him Charlie Manson.  Creative, aren't they?

Let's face it.  There's never a dull moment here.  Four daughters, each with her own distinctive personality, always make life interesting.  And if they should fail, humanity will always fill in.

Best wishes to anyone who has bothered to slog through this rambling mess.  Have a wonderful weekend!!  Pics of Dave Kondike, Used Car Salesman will be posted on Monday.  I hope. ;)

The human race has one really effective weapon, and that is laughter. ~ Mark Twain

It's Not What You Think

No, I was not on vacation last week, although I truly wish I had been.  Sometimes work and deadlines and family completely take over life, and other things must take a backseat.  In fact, I shouldn't even be here writing a blog.  I should be working, but my conscience is bothering me, so, well, here I am.

It's a good thing February is a short month.  By the weekend, we'll have run the four weeks of the second month of this new year and be on our way to what will hopefully be spring.

Does anyone remember Spring?

We've been on a long run of cold and ultra-cold this winter.  Polar Vortexes, included.  I'm yearning for warm.  Not hot, mind you, but a nice 75-80 degrees to thaw my feet, hands, nose...  On the other hand, as I complain about the cold, and the snow, and the sub-zero temps, I realize that it could have been worse.  I could live in the Northeast. ;)  Blessings to all of you who have had a rough winter.  May you thaw quickly and soon!

I'm impatiently waiting to see the first green buds on trees.  They will come, as they always do each year, but sometimes the wait seems eternal.  Spring, it's been said, is eternal, but this year I'd have to say that Winter has been.  This week is supposed to be another cold one.  Not frigid, as some of them in the past couple of months have been, but still cold enough to wish for a few more days of 60 degrees, when a jacket is all that's needed.  I'm more than ready to put away the long, down coat, gloves, three pairs of socks and the rest of the layering.  I yearn to sit barefoot at my computer.  If I tried that now, I'd have a severe case of frostbite.  I'll even try to be grateful when my 6" fan, buzzing away on my desk, is needed to keep me cool.  And I know it won't be long until I'm complaining about unstable weather and threats of tornadoes, along with power outages.  Although I hope this year those outages don't cause another computer monitor to die.  Which reminds me, I need to find a chimney for my oil lamp.  One more thing to add to an ever-growing list of needs, thanks to the weather.

As I sit here, I gaze longingly at the photo above.  How I would love to have a hammock, where I could rest and dream!  I've been so busy, even dreaming has crowded into that backseat with work and deadlines and family.  But I have given myself permission to watch college basketball.  Our beloved WSU Shockers are now the only undefeated team in the nation.  I'm convinced that's the only thing that has kept me from complete insanity.

Oh, have no fear.  By May I'll be whining about storms and tornadoes.  By mid July it will be the heat.  By August it will be the need for school to start again.  If only I could learn how to accept and enjoy each season, each turn in life as it speeds by, faster and faster.  Maybe I'll work on that...when  spring arrives.  And maybe, if I'm really, really lucky, I'll get a vacation, even if it's a working vacation.

Now back to trying to dream about that hammock and the beautiful beach with a gentle, cooling, tropical breeze...  Dream on!

I'd like to dial it back 5% or 10% and try to have a vacation that's not just e-mail with a view. ~ Elon Musk

Summer is Winding Down

You know when the beginning of  a new school year is just around the corner, when school supplies start appearing in stores.  Because I'm big sucker for all things that can be stuffed in an office, I've been scoping out what's available in the Back-To-School aisles for a couple of weeks.

Grandkids have spent the summer confiscating my pens, so trying to find a tool to jot down a note or make a simple list has become an effort in futility.  I've already replaced two of four of my favorite pens that "disappeared" and decided to buy a pack of ten inexpensive ones for .99, hoping they'll last more than a week.    Use a pencil, you say?  Have you tried to sharpen a wood pencil lately?  The lead breaks off before it can be used.  I suspect they've been made less sharpenable so people buy the more expensive automatic pencils--the click kind.  I've managed to hang on to a few of those--nice ones--but it's time to buy more lead.

Then comes all the rest of the wonderful things that can be found.  Not that they'll always be used, but what the heck!  If it fits in a drawer or a plastic bin--don't get me started on those--I "need" it.  I use plastic sleeves in my 3-ring notebook "bibles" to keep book information in one place.  (see my blogpost Taming the Series Beast)  Because I ran out a few weeks ago, a trip to Wally World down the street was a must.  I did get a good deal on them and will have enough to last a while.  Unfortunately, the notebooks I use aren't on sale right now, but I did pick up a nice 1" 3-ring binder in purple, although for the life of me, I don't remember what I planned to do with it.  Last night, in addition to the pens, I found plastic pocket folders with brads for 50 cents.  I bought purple (yes, I like purple---Go K-State!), blue, neon orange and neon green.  I had a purpose for one.  The rest?  I'll find a reason. ;)  I controlled myself and didn't buy dividers, although it was tempting.  Oh, yes, there's also a new ream of copy paper.  I'm a bit OCD about printing, evidenced by the need to purchase a new printer cartridge two weeks ago when I ran out of ink while printing 3 copies of a 20 page contract.  And before anyone asks, I recycle paper.

Scissors, Sharpies, white board markers, highlighters, index cards, paper clips, binder clips, rubber bands, push pins, magnets, sticky notes and non-sticky notes, scratch pads, legal pads, notebooks, spiral notebooks...  The list is endless.  A few years ago for Christmas, a friend gave me a set of binder clips in different colors that say crap on them.  I love them!  I blame my mother for all this stuff.  She owned her own business when I was growing up, and she always had all kinds of things I could use to play "office."

I'm in heaven at this time of year. No need to make a stop at Office Max or Office Depot.  A good thing, because when I drop in to buy one, small item, I end up spending $50 or more.  "Oooh, look at this!  I need it!"

What are your must-have office supplies?

The best part of this time of year is that school will start.  Thirteen days and counting.  Quiet time, at least for a few hours each day, meaning I don't have to stay up until the wee hours of the morning to make word count for the day.

Oh, and that 20-page contract?  It's for the last of my Desperation, Oklahoma, series.  For those who have asking if Erin, the sister of the two heroes of A NANNY FOR THE COWBOY and DESIGNS ON THE COWBOY, will have her own story!  Then one more to wrap up storylines and answer questions--Just why is Esther chasing Vern all over town? and Will Aggie and Hettie have their own HEAs?--and then Desperation and its characters will ride off into the sunset.  Or will they?

"Dream on, dream on, dream until your dream comes true..." --Aerosmith

It's Friday?

Holidays do this to me.  My inner calendar is off. Not that it doesn't happen all on its own and far too often, without the benefit of a holiday.  Don't take me wrong.  I LOVE three-day weekends, especially when they're the more "official" ones, as Memorial Day was this week.  Why?  Ah, because those official ones are days I don't hear the pitter-patter (and blood-curdling screams) from the younger set.  Their mothers get to hear it. ☺

Just to catch up anyone who wondered if I made that 40 page goal by last Sunday, the answer is yes. Total count was 78 pages for the week from Sunday through Sunday.  Yeah, I was amazed.  And that Monday-holiday wasn't even in the count!  *patting self on back*  One scene of about 8 pages and a short epilogue to write, and this baby will be done.  Well, except for the editing.  But I'll be putting this project away for a week or so and move onto something else.  Writing every day, if possible, kicks in the after-burners and makes writing easier.  Let a chunk of time go by with no writing, and it's hard to get back into it.

Now back to today being Friday...

Today is the kick-off for our city's annual River Festival.  This evening will include the Sundown Parade, followed soon after by my favorite event--the Twilight Pops Concert, featuring the local and excellent symphony orchestra on the banks of the river and ending with Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture complete with cannon fire and fireworks.  That's followed by more fireworks with coordinated  music.

There's more to the 9-day festival, although we don't go to as many events as we did, long ago.  And I do mean long ago.  We've surpassed 40 years.  The festival began as a centennial celebration in 1972, then grew into an annual celebration.  Back in the '80s, the only time my daughters and I missed the Sundown Parade was when it rained.  Imagine trying to corral four girls, one a baby in a stroller, through a crowd of many thousands.  It was a trick to keep track of them, but we managed.  "We" being me.

One year, I ran in the River Run.  Okay, I mostly walked the 2-miles, but I finished.  Another year I was part of a tug-of-war team, held on the sandy shore of the river in one of the parks.  I've hunted for the medallion, watched hot-air balloons launch, gone to concerts--the best being the 5th Dimension, who I'd seen when I was much younger--and sat through more men's softball tournaments than I care to remember.  They've discontinued another favorite, the bathtub race, and I miss it the most of the activities and events that have been left behind.  But there's still plenty to do for everyone, with Children's Theater productions for the little ones, rides, and recently a zip-line across the river for older ones and grown-ups has been added.  Not my cup of tea, but it's fun to watch.  These days, runs and tug-of-wars are behind me, too, but it's nice to sit on the sloping, grassy riverbank and just relax, waiting for the concert as the banks along both sides fill with people of all ages.

This is my vacation.  One or two days of walking and walking and watching fireworks.  If it rains tonight, I'll be disappointed.  I look forward to the Twilight Pops and firework from year to year.  But if rain or wind should ruin the night, I'll be found amid the chaos of my office or maybe watch a little TV.  It's going to be my Friday Off, and I intend on making it a good one.

Kick your weekend off with a bang and ENJOY something close to your heart!

Life is like a roller coaster, live it, be happy, enjoy life. - Avril Lavigne 

Laboring Away on Labor Day

Sounds like a catchy song, doesn't it?  If it was, I'd be playing it, because that's what I'm doing.  However, Santana singing Black Magic Woman will have to do.

What I'm doing isn't back breaking labor or even labor I'm being paid to do.  I'm working on making my office work for me.  That includes cleaning and sorting papers and things--especially things that don't belong--in my office.  I have several boxes of paper ready to be taken to the recycle center and wonder if there'll ever be an end to it. There are a couple of boxes that I'll shred here later, and then take to the center.  Books need to be shelved, surfaces need to be cleared, and the floor needs a quick vacuuming.  Instead of storing things I haven't looked at or used in a while, I'm trying to throw away more.  If this works well, there are other areas of my home that can stand to be streamlined.

One would think a writer with a computer wouldn't have boxes and piles of papers.  As the 7-Up Un-Deer said in the '70s, WRONG-O!  A computer and printer can mean even more paper than a typewriter did.  It's so much easier to simply print a research article on the Web than it is to make notes.  It's so much easier to spot mistakes in a manuscript for someone like me who has been reading the printed word for--well, let's say over 40 years, but has only been watching a computer screen for maybe 20 at the most.

Hey, I'm a creature of habit, and my habit tends to being a bit shy about throwing things away.  I'm working on changing that habit.  (A weekly dose of Hoarders helps.)  If that means working on Labor Day, then so be it.  After the office, the next thing on my list is to rebuild a bookcase for the living room, and then dive into a bedroom-sort.  By then it may be time to start dragging out those cooler weather aka fall/winter clothes and put away the shorts.  Frankly, after a summer of record-breaking heat, I can't wait!

Hope you're enjoying your Labor Day this year!  And remember, Christmas is less than 4 months away. ;)

Taking the Heat

We're having a heat wave...  A tropical heat wave...  (Marilyn Monroe did it best!)

So what does a writer do when July hits with hot, hot, hot temps?  It's the perfect time to stay inside and make some progress.  Whether it's working on a current WIP or just making the writing life a little neater and easier, this is the perfect time to do it. 

Yesterday I worked on an old story that didn't fit the parameters of a specific line, so it's never seen "print."  It's always been one of my favorites, so I'm hoping I can do something with it.  There are others to follow, and I'm currently trying to work out a system of how best to keep track of what I want to do with them, how I'll do that, and then actually getting them ready to share.

Today I'm purging my office of paper to be taken to the recycle center tomorrow, along with getting ready to shred old bills and other things I'd rather do myself, and just doing an overall getting-it-together sorting and shifting.  It's an ongoing battle.  Paper seems to breed around here, no matter how much I recycle, shred, or simply throw away.  Just looking at the boxes of paper to recycle makes me cringe.  There's no denying that I've killed a lot of trees in my lifetime.  I try not to.  I've been teaching myself to edit on screen.  It's getting better, but I still need a hardcopy on paper for a lot of things.  Having a Kindle for book reading at least makes me feel a little better.  None of those books will end up in a landfill somewhere.

Because summer Fridays are library days with the grandkids, I'll take three of them to return last week's books and get new.  I'm a sucker for books, so I'll check out one for myself, too.  I'm hoping Inkheart will have been returned (it's due back today).  If so, I'll check it out and set aside some time to read.

Even though tomorrow begins a three-day weekend, it's still working time for me.  Because I'm between contracts, I need to take a look at what I want and need to do to make the best use of this time.  Thanks to experience, I'm learning that I need to keep writing.  Now to decide what to write! ☺

It may be hot out there and forecasted to stay this way far into next week, but life and writing goes on.

Have a fantabulous Independence Day weekend!

Summer Days

Over the past week or so, the g-kids and I have been trying to make a trip to the nearby playground a daily ritual. Even with no sidewalks for three blocks and the fact that we have to watch out for crazy drivers, we enjoy the four block trip. In fact, when I offer to drive, they all loudly refuse. They like to walk.

(Gavin swinging)

On our first trip, the kids were enjoying the equipment (2 sets of swings, a lopsided merry-go-round, 3 types of bars, and a slide), when I looked at the sky and saw that dark clouds had formed in the southwest, a sure sign of rain coming. We quickly gathered our things and started for home. We were half a block from my house when huge drops of rain started falling from the sky, accompanied by tiny pieces of hail. Jaxon and I walked faster, while Scarlett, Ally, and Gavin ran on to the house. Just as we stepped up on the porch, the sky opened up, then a loud crash of thunder made us all jump when we ducked inside.

(Scarlett with Jaxon on the basketball court)

I thought they might not be as eager to go the next day, so I didn't mention it. They did! Our second trip was even more enjoyable without the rain. And they'd still rather walk.

(Payton swinging)

The Five Days of June

Each year during the week after Father's Day, my daughter Lyndsay and her hubby go on a canoe trip in Oklahoma with his family and a few family friends. They leave on Wednesday and return on Sunday. Sabrina and her hubby, Chelsea and her guy have all joined them at one time or another. I'm the designated baby-sitter, with Mallory's help. I call this time of year The Five Days of June.

I've never gone on the canoe trip. I don't plan to. From personal experience, a camping trip means at least one very stormy night. At my age, rain, wind, lightning and hail are better experienced in a sturdy building, not in a tent.

Today is Sunday, the last day. Gavin, Jaxon, and Payton will soon be going home with what I expect will be exhausted parents. I'm eager to hear what Ally, who went on the trip this year, thinks of the trip. I suspect it might not have been as great as she'd hoped, but I could be wrong. Will know more in a few hours.

The bright spot in all this is that it'll be another year before we do this again. I'll have my bed back, instead of sharing it with Jaxon's feet in my back. I'll sleep the night through, not being awakened once by Payton's crying from the playpen next to my bed. And Gavin, well, thank goodness he sleeps like a log on the sofa. But we had some good times, and those are what we'll remember...until next year's Five Days of June rolls around again. :)