July 12, 6:18 pm.

Spent the early part of the day in the park, dressed as Roman soldiers wielding pikes and arrows and swords. No one died, and a splendid time was had by all. Looking to get all of our camping gear in order tomorrow in anticipation of the overnight in Elevenmile Canyon. Have a new tent to try out, and a new cot. Looking forward to spending a night under the stars, getting up early and catching some fish.

Had a little break this afternoon when the boys went to Aunt K’s for an afternoon tea. Worked on a new short I hope to have ready before long.

Been watching some Marx Brothers movies with Jack. I thought I was the only one left on the planet who liked the Marx Brothers, but the kid is a true afficionado.

Pizza tonight!

...Grandsons, Day 5

All good. Fished the Tarryall yesterday, caught a nice brown, stayed out of the smoke and had a grand time. Today, fished Green Mountain Falls. Got a late start owing to, well, sloth mostly, and was skunked as a result. Even so, a lovely day in the mountains. Got the boys new gear on the way home, upgrading their spinning tackle. Tomorrow, high temps and, if there’s a god in heaven, a nice cool movie theatre to wile away the afternoon.

...Big Day Tomorrow.

…good day, today. Productive. Boys arrive tomorrow, stay for five weeks. Never completely ready for the company, but it always works out.

Up early to mow the lawn, police the back patio, etc. Finished he housekeeping too. Then went back to work on the leather armor we’ve been makeing for the boys “Roman” war games.

Quiet night last night. Only a few fireworks diehards. Happy that, given all the fires. Read this afternoon the Aspen Acres fire has been sixteen percent contained. Good to hear since it’s already burned 89,000 acres.

Skies are hazy, but that’s the summer we’ve been dealt and nothing’s gonna change it. Gotta take what we have and make the most of it.

Working on the novel again. Made some decent headway, I think, between chores. Hoping to make an end of it before the new year.

...coming around to what's next.

…more nice news. My story “Long Player” went live yesterday on the Ginosko Literary Journal website. Unofficially, I believe “LP” to be my 100th published story. Officially, it may be my 101st. I’m not sure. Either way, yay me for surviving this long. I hope to live long enough to publish at least another 50, though that may be a dream too far.

Worked on the boy’s leather breastplates today, staining them a lovely dark brown. The armaments are now in good order, ready for the first battle in the park.

We’re still a long way from where we want to be with the chores, but with the kids flying in on Monday evening we’ll have to take our victories where we can get them.

The forest fires are bad. The Aspen Acres fire down in Pueblo is the worst. The governor has declared it a disaster. 50,000 acres so far. News reports say it won’t come under control for months. Not sure how it will shape the visit with the boys. Skies haven’t looked this bad since the Waldo Canyon fire.

...At a loss for words.

Quiet day. Wrote, ran the stair in Monument Valley Park, and met with my buddy, Solomon for coffee later in the afternoon. Also got a congratulatory email from my grandson, Jack, for the short story collection. Wow. Does it get any better?

Big News...

Submitted the manuscript of my short story collection, “The Outskirts of Nowhere,” to Cornerstone Press a week ago, Monday. On Friday afternoon, was told it had been accepted for publication. Still riding the high. Release date is tentatively set for March, 2028.

Not bad for a Friday...

Good day. Had an end-of-week surge in energy. Don’t know why. Don’t care.

Wrote well in the morning, had a strong workout this afternoon, and took it all home. Only wish I had was that I’d been smart enough to get out on the water today.

Checking in...

Changed my thyroid medication. Or should I say, the insurance company changed it for me. Haven’t felt right since. Been fighting fatigue, darkness, and all the rest. Gotta get back in touch with my PC, see if I can do anything about it.

Picking up lost time...

Looking to get back up to speed. April’s been a month of distractions.

Wrote this morning for the first time in two weeks. Felt good.

Made it to the gym, as well. Felt…not so good.

All in a day’s work.

P.Francis passed. Not sure why, but it got me down. One fewer good men around, I guess.

Pushin on...

Dropped a couple of stitches here, didn’t I.

Time to get myself back together.

Off to see the boys tomorrow. Excited. Excited to get going on some new projects when I get back, too.

Didn’t sleep last night. Hoping for better tonight.

Still need to get in a quiet day of fishing.

Be still my beating heart...

Nothing more fun that getting up in the dark to drive to the hospital. Especially after a half-assed night’s sleep. On the positive side, the tests went well and I made it home in time to get some writing in. Also got in an early afternoon walk, and a late afternoon nap.

Close, now, to getting two new stories out the door. Gonna shoot to do it before we head out to Silver Spring to see the boys. Like to get another gander at the long piece, too, and maybe even draft a new short.

Gotta hit the ground running tomorrow. Wanna get in some work at the keyboard before driving off to Denver, and that means an early go at running the stairs in the park. Busy week so far, but that’s okay. Things should thin out as the week goes on.

Saturday, 6:22 pm...

Woke up later than usual. Not too late, but not too early either.

Tuck was in a fever to get me downstairs. Why? I can only guess. Sometimes I think he remembers the days he’d charge down with Kit, looking for breakfast. Only, he doesn’t fancy breakfast the way Kit did, so maybe he’s just looking for company.

Anyway, had coffee then went off to write for a while.

Later, settled in with popcorn and watched The Fellowship of the Ring.

Quiet day all around, and that made it a good day all around. No plans for tomorrow, but hope it goes as well as today.

Ahhhh. Friday...

Easy one.

Easy as in, nobody messed with nobody.

Up later than usual, but got in some decent writing time just the same. Three new shorts in the eleventh hour of labor, and none of them wants to help with the final push. I know if I can get one out the door the others will follow. But for now, it’s grind away and hope for the best.

Had an easy workout at the gym today, and made up for it later at the massage therapist’s. Haven’t seen B. since June and, man, did I feel it. Hoping to sleep well tonight.