Midweek missive...

Forewent the election news last night and watched “The Fellowship of the Ring” instead. Best choice I’ve made all week. Woke refreshed this morning, and ready for work.

Put in time on a new short. Didn’t make as much headway as I’d have liked, but suspect it was because said piece was a fetid pile of garbage. Lesson learned.

Had a good workout, then came home, went for a walk, and promptly retired for an afternoon nap with the kitties.

Big winds moved in this afternoon. Suspect a cold front is on the way, though I haven’t heard any weather reports.

Need to catch up on paperwork tomorrow. Take care of some general housekeeping around the office, too. Like to think I could maybe push a new story out the door this weekend if all goes well.

Making the most of what's ahead...

Put together a pretty good morning at the keyboard. Making headway on the long piece, but itchy to get back to the two or three shorts I abandoned before going to Pittsburgh.

Good workout, good PT session afterward. Checked in with the oral surgeon late afternoon, then came home and went for a nice long walk. The weather’s cooled off, but it’s still good for getting outside and enjoying the fall air.

Picked up a chicken and a bottle of wine for dinner. Figure to look past the election news until tomorrow.

Gonna try and ignore the papers, and keep to what’s in front of me for the next few weeks. Too many good things to think about and too much work to accomplish to spend any more time fretting after things I can’t change.

Wish I cared...

I’m fighting though this stuff, looking for light, but at the moment it isn’t there.

Sent letters to the boys today. Worked out. Voted, and all the rest.

Even so, tired.

Gonna try and get a good night’s sleep and come at this thing with teeth grit.

Making plans...

Daylight Savings Time.

Woke in the dark, and went directly to work. Tomorrow should be a different story with the sun coming an hour earlier.

Put in a long day of edits and reading. Also finished a critique for an N essay. Otherwise, squandered the day with a nice walk, a short nap, and the start of a new novel.

Still feeling off from the cold or whatever. Wish I could get a handle on this thing. Sore throats in the morning, fatigue, and weird flu-like aches later in the day. Have taken two Covid tests already, but am tempted to take another.

Need to get on my letter-writing tomorrow. Catch up with my bud, G., too, to see how he’s doing out there in Labrador.

Hoping for a good start to the new week.

Small victories...

Okay day.

Didn’t let the bad night’s sleep get in the way of my writing. Put in a good three hours before heading out to the gym.

Still, this cold’s got me down.

Had a nice talk with my buddy, S. He sounded good. Wish we could could get together for another day of fishing.

Daylight Savings Time tomorrow.

Friday night...

Another bad night’s sleep. The throat keeps waking me up. Two tests, back to back, say it isn’t Covid. But it’s sure as hell something.

Jostled in and out of the office most of the morning, so left for an early workout. Put in as much as I could before throwing in the towel.

Took a long walk and a short nap before ferrying Kit off to the vet. Good news is, his thyroid number seem to have improved, and his attitude as well. Will have a conversation with the doc on Monday, but feel pretty good about the way things are going so far.

K’s in London tonight, Italy tomorrow.

Those of us with less ambition are going to hang around home, and watch a movie or two.

Hoping to feel better tomorrow.

Ramblings...

Slept poorly. This thing, whatever it is, is driving me nuts. Took another covid test this morning. Good news is, no Covid. Still, sore throat, listlessness, and all the rest.

Didn’t get much writing done, but did manage a workout and a few words with my buddy, Sol. Otherwise, a quiet day.

Tried a nap this afternoon, but couldn’t get there, either.

Read a long essay for N. Good? Yeah. Great? Not really.

Tomorrow, a late afternoon vet appointment with Kit.

Breaking camp...

K coming for dinner tonight, and a brief pill dispensing tutorial.

Short day writing, short day at the gym, but managed to clear all the necessary errands before leaving.

Mixed feelings about getting on a plane, especially with the kitties being stressed, but they’re in good hands with K, and I wouldn’t want to miss a chance to see the boys.

Don’t figure to bring my laptop along to Pittsburg, so I’ll be off the grid for a while. Hoping for a good trip, and an uneventful return.

The best laid plans...

Put up some good work today. Wrote, worked out, got in my PT, and cleaned the house. Also bought a new drinking fountain for the kitties.

Saw the rough draft for the boys’ X-mas book. Looked terrific.

Lots of loose ends to tie up tomorrow before we head out to Pittsburgh, but nothing big and nothing to worry about. The stress is there, like it always is, but most of it’s owing to the hassles of travel.

Looking forward to a quiet morning of writing tomorrow. We’ll see. Meanwhile, gonna unwind with a bottle of wine and a little TV.

The long and short of it...

Home most of the day, working.

Had a terrible night’s sleep after the big winds blew up. Sounded a lot like last year’s blow when all the trees fell. Even so, got in some decent time at the keyboard.

Reviewed two of the new N stories and read a third. Then went out and pruned back the flowers in anticipation of the first freeze. Insulated the new fruit tree with straw we picked up from Good Earth. Hope it does it’s job.

Caught a little football this afternoon, then went for a walk around the hood. Big breezes still coming off the mountains. First time I’ve worn gloves in a year.

Doc appointment tomorrow.

Good start to the weekend...

Early to the keyboard this morning. Got in some good work. Been fooling around with a long piece, and seem to be making progress with it. Surprised? Man, I’m always surprised anymore.

PT this afternoon. Found time for a decent workout afterward. Napped for half an hour when I got home, then went out for a stroll around the hood. Trees are still pretty, but the wind’s done its bit to shake the leaves from them. High blue skies today, and plenty of sun. Not sure what the temp was, but it had to be mid-seventies.

N stories coming in again. Looking forward to reading someone else’s work for a change.

Nothing much going on this evening. Gonna sit back and take it easy. Start fresh in the morning.

Putting this one to rest...

Not sure where this one went, but it went fast and its all but gone.

Up early to work on the boy’s X-mas book, and take a deeper dive into the long piece. Did okay with the revisions, then headed off to the gym, and back home for a nice long walk.

I keep saying it, but the weather’s picture perfect. So far, it’s been a beautiful fall.

Was up late last night. Figure to hit the rack early this evening, and shoot for an equally early start tomorrow.

In the books...

Pretty day. Cool, but sunny with blue skies.

Wrote early, hit the gym, then spent the afternoon with Greg, working out the details on the boy’s Christmas book.

Took a long walk around the hood when we got home.

Still capable of being surprised...

Could swear a post or two fell through the cracks. Dunno. But here it is, Monday again, the weekend over.

Anyway, woke early from a good night’s sleep, and went to work on the long piece. Put in the final edits for the boys’ Christmas book, too. Meeting with GB tomorrow to talk about the layout, print times, etc.

Gym was quiet today, which was nice. Managed a nice workout without a lot of interruptions. Got in a walk, too, after I got home. Weather’s still holding strong.

Heard Stuart O’Nan’s got a new book out. Need to latch on to it. C McCarthy’s The Passenger is also due out in another week or two. Looking forward to each.

Not much going on the world of short fiction. Have a handful of pieces out in the mail, more than a few of them for six months or longer. With school back in session maybe we’ll see some progress.

Potato leek soup tonight.

Early bedtime.

Best new of the day? I’m now, officially and forever, a great-great uncle.

Pleasantries...

I don’t know how long these magnificent fall days will keep coming, but I’m gonna enjoy each one while it lasts…and probably long afterward.

Got in some good writing this morning. Good workout, too. Did some grocery shopping later in the afternoon, and took a long walk around the neighborhood, too.

Read a couple of fine stories in the interim. One of them Narrative’s Spring prize winner.

Need to start working on submissions tomorrow.

Tonight, wine and cheese.

The rest is yet to come...

The good weather abides. Sunny today. Blue skies and a nice warm breeze.

Put in a solid morning at the keyboard, then went off to the gym. Worked out, suffered through PT, then came home and went for a long walk around the neighborhood. Crickets have begun chirping earlier than usual.

All in all, a nice day.

Gonna settle in an watch a bit of news tonight.