writer
Did all right for a Saturday. Was up early and writing after tending to the kitties.
Put in some decent revisions on a story, and wrote four critiques for N.
Went to a movie early afternoon, then over to K’s for tea and conversation.
No heavy lifting, but that’s okay. Made progress, which should make tomorrow’s work all the easier.
Kicking back tonight. Omelettes and asparagus for dinner.
Getting harder and harder to sort out the days.
Was up early, to work early, and off to the gym early. Of the three, I remember the gym because my shoulder still aches.
Anyway, did some good work at the keyboard, including the writing of a handful of notes for my new N critiques. Gonna be busy with other people’s stories for the next day or so, but that’s okay. Looking forward to reading work that isn’t my own.
I think I’m still adjusting to daylight savings time. Or maybe it’s the epidemic. Either way, I got knocked off stride somewhere, somehow, and haven’t been able to regain my footing.
This, again, is why there’s tomorrow.
Tonight, pot pies and a bottle of wine.
Trying to find the center of things.
Messed up day for the most part. Got in a workout. Read a little. Rest of the day wasn’t worth talking about, except for a brief FaceTime with the boys.
Will give it another shot tomorrow.
Been trying to focus on what’s in front of me.
Did some good revision work today, and a had a nice workout, too.
Rest of the day full of ups and downs.
Not sure if I’m making progress or falling behind, but I guess that’s the argument for living in the moment. You don’t really care.
Sent another N critique out the door. Two to go. Probably see another landslide of submissions before the month is out.
Dylan’s birthday tomorrow.
Time sure flies.
Well, the snow caught up with us. Got about five inches overnight. Wet stuff. Was worried about the locust tree in back that suffered the big hit last winter, but it was fine. No issues throwing the bolts we put it back together with, and no new branches down.
For all the accumulation, the sidewalks were wet but clear. In all, it turned out to be a good thing for the grass and trees.
Worked hard on finishing one of the new stories, but didn’t quite make it to the end. Soon, I hope. Had a couple of kitties in my lap, trying to speed the process, but in the end it had the opposite effect.
Put in some rehab today, and it felt pretty good. That is, the pain wasn’t bad and I learned a few new tricks along the way. Like to kick it into high gear, but still a bit hesitant fearing I might re-tear something. Guess it’ll all come in its own good time.
Talked to my old buddy S this afternoon. Been a while, and it was good to hear from him. Got a chance to swap some new war stories.
Also heard from the Belmont Review. They’ve accepted my piece, “Devotion.” Nice way to end the day.
Early rise for a change. Managed to drag myself out of bed a little after six. Made some good progress on the stories, wrote letters to Matty and Jack, worked out.
FaceTimed with Matty and Jack a little later in the afternoon, and got in a little more writing time. All in all, not a bad day.
The late afternoon rain turned to snow. Then it turned back to rain. Probably turn back to snow again if it lasts much longer.
Feeling like we’ve high-centered on something and can’t quite get free, but hey, that’s the lump sum of the past year, isn’t it?
Head down, shoulder to the wheel. That’s the antidote for the moment. Or the diversion, anyway.
Looking ahead to a quiet evening.
A day of many doings.
Up early to the keyboard, then off to the WalMart in Fountain to get S. her second Covid shot. Things went pretty smoothly, and we were back home by 10:00.
Put in a few more revisions, then showered and traipsed off to an early afternoon movie, The Courier. Felt good to kick back in an empty theater and do nothing for three hours.
Took a short walk when we got home and left the rest of the day to fend for itself.
Nothing of any urgency on the table tomorrow, so hoping to get in some quality early-morning writing time.
Saw the first robin of spring yesterday. Fingers crossed tomorrow’s expected snow isn’t too wild.
Still a day behind in my reckoning. Could’ve sworn this was Saturday.
Good night’s sleep, early rise, pleasant day.
Trying to work through a synopsis for the book, though I don’t know yet if the book is the book.
Pulled away from the keyboard to take a nice, early afternoon walk, then worked out, went to the grocery store and showered.
Side effects of the vaccine gone today. S gets hers tomorrow. Think we might take in a movie afterward, just because.
Nothing special going on tonight. That’s good, right?
Blur of a day.
Nice day, but a blur.
Got some information, answers too. Big picture’s still a little fuzzy around the edges, but that’s to be expected.
After effects of the Covid shot: headache, dizziness, joint pain, and fatigue. None of it bad, though the late afternoon napped helped.
So, progress. Up an hour earlier than yesterday, and straight to the cottage to work.
Hammered away at the keyboard till it was time to go off to WalMart for my second Covid shot. Mission accomplished.
Got home and worked a little more, then worked out.
Talked to Jack via FaceTime later, and had a quiet day otherwise.
Pretty day today, though the wind took some of the starch out of it. Wanted to go for a walk, but didn’t manage. Denver tomorrow, so we’ll see what that brings.
Meanwhile, onward.
Understand it might be nice enough to do some fishing this weekend. We’ll see.
2nd Covid shot tomorrow. St. Patrick’s Day. Boiling the corned beef brisket as we speak. Hope I’ll be able to partake.
Figure to have a quiet night.
Didn’t accomplish much today, but managed a few lines, some posts, and a bit of research. No workout. Did have a nice walk around the neighborhood, though, which was almost better.
Weather started out well, but took on a distinctly dreary face toward the middle of the afternoon. Not sure if we’re supposed to get rain or snow tonight, but something’s brewing.
Slept in again this morning. Woke up thinking, “And this is bad, why?” I believe I’m forming a dangerous and possibly fatal habit. Gonna have to do something about it—and soon.
This daylight savings time stuff has really twisted my mellon. Didn’t get down to the cottage, and the keyboard, until after eight. And I was the first one up.
Worked on another news story till it was time to go off to the dentist for a checkup. Good news on both counts.
Put in an early workout too, which was nice.
Snowmageddon, or whatever they were calling it, never happened, and while we did get a pretty good fall, most of it melted this afternoon. Glad to have the moisture, but feel a little cheated.
Read some this afternoon, then took a long nap. Think it might be the only way I’m gonna find my way out of this time change warp I’ve fallen into. Can’t seem to finish what’s on my plate.
Hoped to make more of the day, but here I sit, empty-handed.
Thought daylight savings time was last week.
Anyway, up at a decent hour (or what would have been a decent hour a week ago) only to find that the predicted snow had finally arrived.
Wasn’t too bad. Maybe four inches down here. But it was wet and heavy and I’d had enough of it after shoveling my respective sidewalks.
Sent off a mess of N critiques this afternoon with two stories left in my queue. Also did a bit of research, FT’d with the boys, and managed a small bit of reading before calling it quits and taking a nap.
Cleaning appointment with the dentist tomorrow. Second Covid shot on the 17th. Hope that’s the extent of my contact with the medical world for the week.
Gotta shake off whatever’s eating at me.
Mostly maintenance today.
Slept in till eight, had coffee in bed, then went out the cottage to do a little work.
Big snowfall hasn’t come yet, and not sure it ever will. Didn’t see our first flake until late morning, and even then it wasn’t anything to talk about.
Worked out a little before noon, then drove out to King Soopers to pick up a couple of prescriptions.
Lazy day.
Caught up with some social media things, read a little, then spent the afternoon writing reviews for four of the N pieces.
Quiet around the neighborhood. Must be the snow. Which, by the way, is picking up again. We’ll see what the weather brings overnight, but for now I’m calling it quits.
Best day I’ve had in a while.
Biggest snow we’ve had all year coming tonight.
Potato leek soup on the burner, bottle of wine on counter, firewood stacked in the grate.
Gonna take it real easy tonight and get an early jump on tomorrow.
Felt like high gear all day. Well, high gear for these times, anyway. Up early to work, then out to the side yard to bind up the arbor vitae so the coming snow doesn’t damage the limbs. Managed a workout somewhere after that, along with a trip to the Post Office and a side trip to the grocery store. Picked up the fixings for the weekend, then came home and made a pot of potato leek soup for tomorrow night.
Trip to Denver tomorrow shouldn’t be too bad so long as the snow stays in check. They say the heavy stuff won’t start until after dark, so we should be tired but fine on the return trip.
K landed in Pittsburgh early this afternoon. Boys are excited about seeing here. Hope S and I get a chance to break away too sometime soon, but we’ll just have to wait and see.
Meanwhile, lots to do, lots not to do, and plenty in between.
Woke early but couldn’t find my way out of bed. One of those days where you ask yourself what’s the point. Of course, there’s always a point, so I did get up, and even managed to get some good work done.
Got a chance to catch up with one of my old buddies mid afternoon. Put in a decent workout, too. Read the second to last of my N stories, took a short nap, and made stuffed peppers for dinner.
Holding all my extra energy in reserve for all the snow that’s supposed to visit us over the weekend. They’re saying three feet now. Three. Feet.
Thought I had a handle on this one, but it got away.
More of the same, only different.
Wrote, read, worked out. Early afternoon appointment came and went without much fanfare. A lot of stuff still up in the air.
Took a short nap—the arm woke up before I did—then went out to shop for some dinner fixings.
Brief FaceTime with Jack.
Tied pull-ropes to the upper branches of the locusts in back so I can shake the snow from them if it gets too heavy this weekend. Whatever happens, don’t need another collapse like last spring. We’ll see if the weather people are right. Meanwhile, better safe than sorry.
Wish I were in a better place. But so do most people, I guess. Gotta keep trudging toward the light and believing things will look better in the morning.
Lazy rise after a late night. Just as well. Probably needed the sleep.
Got to work around 8:00, maybe a little earlier, picking up on some of the revisions I’ve been working. Still haven’t gotten back to the novel, but maybe that’s okay, too.
Caught up with my sis, worked out in the garage, made a run to the P.O. and came home for a short nap.
Good to have the house back to ourselves again. The company was terrific, but everybody was tired after the weekend’s doings.
Appointments tomorrow and Friday. Snow, too, on Friday. Gotta get on top of the new N stories tomorrow, or I’ll fall behind.
Pretty day today. Took a while for it to come online, but once it did it felt like spring. The news folks say the Peak is going to get upward of fifty inches of snow by the weekend. Down here, we’re only supposed to expect three, tops.
Guess we’ll see.
The last week feels like a badly written paragraph, punctuation gone to hell. But here we are, ready to start a new one. Hope the fact it’s starting out with the close of Daylight Savings Time is a good omen.
Got a day off yesterday, and took my fly rod down to the Arkansas for some early spring fishing. Water was a little low, and very clear, and I got into some beautiful runs but didn’t get so much as a single strike. Even so, a nice day.
Dinner at K’s last night, and tonight we’re returning the favor. Or at least the venue. Caitlin’s cooking, and I hear quiche is on the menu. Haven’t eaten this well in a long time.
Was able to do a little writing this morning—more that I’ve gotten in all week, I think—and made it count. Put in some good work at the keyboard.
Caitlin goes home early tomorrow morning. Will miss her.
