Notes...

Don’t know what it is—maybe two nights, back to back, up late—but it’s a little after 5:00 and I’m already dragging.

Caught up with my buddy G, early this morning for coffee over at Kairos. Great time, as always. Good to see him doing well. Got home a little later than usual, and begged off writing in favor of cleaning house. Yeah, I know. But it happened and it’s over and now I can go on with my life again. At least for another two weeks.

Summoned up the energy to go to the gym, but didn’t have much in the tank afterward. Did some grocery shopping, then came home and put in time researching stuff no one on the planet but me cares about. In the process, ran across an account of the late Jesse Winchester on the Appalachian Literary Review website. Nice piece. Brought back a lot of memories. Was sixteen or seventeen, working at a dog grooming/kennel in Brinklow, Maryland when I first heard him. Used to call in the local radio station from the office phone and request the song “Yankee Lady” at least once a day. Saw him live at the C.S. Fine Arts Center a year or two before he died. What an incredible singer-song writer.

And speaking of music and musicians, what a terrific concert last night. Always amazed at what a talent JS is.

Waking the dead...

Woke to snow yesterday morning and figured Halloween to be a loss. Decorated the front porch in case a few stragglers dropped by, but left the rest in the living room. Lo and behold, the morning cleared, much of the snow melted, and by 4:30 I was standing on the roof with the Wicked Witch of the West. Carved five big pumpkins for the occasion. Dressed out the graveyard and crypt, fired up the fog machines. The works. Glad we stuck with it. Probably had seven hundred visitors, including J who appeared sometime around seven in a superhero costume.

Dragged all of the skeletons, ghouls, hobgoblins and whatnot back into the house for the night, then woke early and returned them all to storage until next year. Quite the operation, though most of it’s organized mayhem so it was more time-consuming than anything. Tired from the late down, early up, but have tickets to see J. Standish in concert tonight at Stargazers. Also have an early morning coffee with my buddy George tomorrow. Guess I’m just gonna have to suck it up and wait till the weekend to sleep.

Baby, the rain must fall...

Dark, and it’s just started to spit a cold rain.

Spent the early part of the day writing, the rest resurrecting Halloween goods from the basement and getting them in place. Spent the afternoon shopping for odds and ends, then driving out to school to pick up the boys.

Sky’s got a wintry feel to it. The weather folks might get one right for a change, predicting snow. Three to six inches they say. We’ll see. Anything significant and we can figure on a light turnout for Halloween. Hope that’s not the case after dragging all of the skeletons out of the closet, but judging from what’s coming down, gonna be prepared.

Lot of dark dreams last night. Wonder what that’s about. Whatever, looking forward to a quiet sleep tonight.

Ready to jump back in on the long piece. Been too long since I looked at it.

Winding up...

Up early. Had a quick cup of coffee before young J woke, then off to IHOP for breakfast. What a terrific sleepover. Ate ersatz chicken valeria for dinner, watched Monsters, Inc., and read Kipling’s “How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin.” Much happiness all around.

Got a little bit of writing in during the afternoon, but spent most of the day getting the Halloween decorations out of storage and hunting for new accoutrements. Pretty weather. Hope a little of it lingers for Halloween night.

Lots going on tomorrow. Need to start pushing harder. Feel as if I’ve been on vacation since putting the long work down.

Pens and needles...

Nice morning to write. The new story keeps getting stronger in revision. Hope to have a reader draft soon.

Read the NYer’s latest bit of fiction and found it wanting. Sorely wanting. Maybe it was me, maybe it was the day, I don’t know. But I found it so perplexing I had to email TJ about it and ask his opinion. Had a partial response within an hour. More to come, the note said.

Hit the gym a little after 1:00 for a brief workout, then off to make copies of the landman papers and get a flu shot at the new pharmacy.

Home now and ready to catch up on the day’s news.

Young J comes tomorrow for a sleep over.

Wild Thursday...

Breakdown of day…

1/2 hour watching M pull his zipper up and down

1/2 hour taking “sharp” and “danegeress” objects from M

1/2 hour strapping M in car seat

1/2 hour riding escalators at the Citadel

3/4 hour attempting to feed M a hearty and nutritious lunch

1/2 hour dueling with plastic cooking basters

1 1/2 hour at gym, trying to unlive the horror of the early part of the day

1/2 hour listening to M whine

3/4 hour grocery shopping with M

1/2 hour listening to M squawk “My chicken!” while ferrying him and his brother around the block in a wagon

1/2 hour searching for “lost” Matchbox vintage Corvette that only moments earlier was sitting safely on the dining room table

Summary: Tomorrow’s flu shot is looking more exciting by the second

Midweek Missive...

Up later than usual today, but made the most of it. Got in some good edits on the new story, which I’ve tentatively titled, “Money Shot.” Nice to have another piece in works.

Came downstairs to a light rain this morning. Perfect timing after having winterized the lawn(s) on Monday. They say it’s going to be a long, dry winter. I hope not. But this year I’m going to water once a month, just to be safe.

Sent off my N reviews before heading off to the gym. Two nice essays. Had been in a dry spell for a while, but these pieces turned things around. Hope the good luck keeps running my way.

Plan to hit the sack early tonight, get a head start on Thursday. Need to give Mom a call first, which may undermine that ambition, but here goes.

A Sunny Sunday...

Up early to work on the new short piece. Still feeling good about its possibilities. Put in at the keyboard until 11:00, then drove down to Phantom Canyon to do a little dead tree hunting. Found a couple of good-looking Gambol oak, long deceased, and tossed them in the bed of the truck and brought them home as backdrops to the Halloween “graveyard” tableaux.

Got back early afternoon and spent the rest of the day teak-oiling the doors and patio furniture. The new Wyoming gate looks especially good.

Pretty fall afternoon. Would have preferred to spend it fishing, but the work needed to be addressed and it’s always better to do it while the weather’s nice.

Gonna turn in early tonight. Been thinking about changing my routine and hitting the gym early again, but have gotten used to the morning writing routine and hate to give it up. We’ll see. Meantime, I’ll stick with what I have and make the most of it.

Today's hustle...

Slept in this morning. Put in some revisions on the new short for a while, then took off for Tinseltown to see a movie. Quiet day for the most part. Did some grocery shopping, and picked up a few items for tree pruning and yard clean up. Beautiful weather again. Sunny, shirtsleeve warm.

A much needed distraction...

Woke at 5:00, but decided to go back to bed and get some extra rest. Hit the keyboard around 7:00, and put an end on the new short piece. Think it’s going to be a nice story after I get everything in place. Hope so, anyway.

Took off for Bighorn Sheep Canyon around 11:00 to do a little fishing. On the water three and a half hours without a single strike before calling it a day. Beautiful day. Water was down quite a bit, but the sky was blue and the sun was out, and the temps held in the 60s. Had a good time.

Hodgepodge...

Up and writing by 6:30. Dark and quiet walking out to the cottage at that hour, but the rest isn’t bad given the cold hasn’t set it in yet. Young M arrived early, ready to go. Had a nice day today.

Took a break mid-morning to help my neighbor Hank move furniture into his Air B&B. They’ve done quite a job with the place. Quite a job.

Elections four weeks away. Be glad to get that behind us. Tired of all the negative news, though it’s hard to remember a time when it wasn’t negative.

Feel as if my thyroid Rx is off. Tired, sore. Black mood. Maybe I’ll take a kitchen pass and go fishing tomorrow. Might be the antidote. That, and a movie on Saturday. Sunday’s reserved for a drive through Phantom Canyon.

Tired. Need to hit the sack earlier tonight.

There's always tomorrow, right?

Okay. So the up-early thing paid off, but the dividends weren’t quite as big as I hoped when I learned we were having a surprise visit by the mayor and his film crew. Even so, got in some good edits on the new short piece.

Took off for the gym while the crew took over the house, and had a nice leisurely workout. Did a little grocery shopping afterward, then came home and wrote upstairs on the laptop.

Been fighting this inward-turning feeling for a while. The blues? Can’t put a name to it, but can’t say I like it, either.

Speaking of not liking. Whoa. The Bill T dance troupe last night? What an incredible let-down. Self-indulgent. Ponderous. Ugly. The dancers were talented, no doubt about it. But the theme(s) was sophomoric and unimaginative and infuriating. Worst production of any stage performance since Buddy Guy. Sat up half the night fuming over it.

Anyway.

Never mind.

Doing the leg work...

Just jettisoned young M.

Busy day to say the least. Many comings and goings, including a trip to Spenser’s Market to pick up pumpkins.

No gym today, but got in a good walk this afternoon pulling the wagon around the neighborhood. Pretty day. A little cool when the wind came up, but not bad for a stroll. Sky was a beautiful blue.

Working through the newest short piece. Feel like I might have something good if I can manage not to horse it up.

Re-read Mavis Gallant’s “The Concert Party” this afternoon. Man, what a story.

Off to the ENT center tonight.

Another evening in...

Dinner at K’s last night. A nice pork tenderloin served with two young hooligans on the side. Well one, anyway. Highlight of the evening was watching a big brown bear eating grubs in the hollow down the hill from her backyard.

Young J slept over. Had a terrific time. Bad winds during the night kept knocking the windows open, and this morning we woke to a light dusting of snow. Temps supposed to drop into the teens tonight. Glad I bled the sprinkler system yesterday.

Looking forward to a quiet night tonight. Didn’t get much done in the way of writing, but figure to make an early jump into it tomorrow.

So this is what Friday looks like...

Up later than usual. Didn’t mean to sleep in, but by the time I opened my eyes the sun was up. Guess I needed the rest.

Went back to work on the new story, then took up the Philharmonic piece and shuffled the draft out the door early afternoon. Put in some time at the gym, then came home and made a big pot of mushroom soup.

Nice to see the sun again. Real nice.

Gonna be a busy weekend with the boys, etc., but as long as the weather doesn’t go completely south a good one.

Be cool if we could get another movie in, too.

Of time and weather...

Fall continues to come forward in its own cold, wet, overcast way. Pretty, but full of longing too. Weather report calls for the skies to clear by afternoon tomorrow. Expect if does we’ll be looking at snow on the Peak.

Up early working on a short piece. Got as far as I could before M arrived, ready to take the house apart. Had a good day, all in all, and even got a brief trip to the gym before driving out to the school to pick up J.

Project tomorrow for the Philharmonic. Nice to have some commercial work coming through. Wish I could work up something steady in that vein, but after thirty years in the business I know better than to think that’s possible.

Was thinking about Wyoming today. Wishing I hadn’t spent my time up there working. Next year it’s going to be different, even if I have something big going on. Gonna hike more, fish more, nap more.

Had a good time getting out yesterday afternoon.

Wish the stars would align so I’d be able get down to the Arkansas this weekend, but the good weather isn’t supposed to last. We’ll see. Stranger things have happened.

There you go...

A day of many goings on.

Up later than usual (6:30 am) by design with some slight variations at the keyboard. Put in time on a new piece of short fiction, and tacked a few pages to the ongoing memoir. In short, a nice easy morning.

Young M arrived just before 8. From there, a mixed bag.

Never made it to the gym, but hope to correct that tomorrow with an early workout before catching up with my buddy Scott.

Cold, wet, fallish day. Should build a fire tonight but probably won’t, ambition lacking after a full day of children.

Like to take J fishing on Saturday if it’s nice. We’ll see what the weather brings.

Getting there...

Pretty good morning of revisions. Knocked off just a few pages from the end. Figure to get at it early tomorrow, and if all goes as planned wrap things up for a while. Move on to something new.

Weather not so nice today. Light sprinkles, low cloud cover, dropping temps. Looking at more of the same in the coming days.

Got a lot on my mind. Need to make a better effort shifting gears. Staying fluid.

Attitude Adjusted!

Strange how a day of fishing can fix almost anything. Put in some good early-time at the keyboard, then drove up to Elevenmile Canyon and spent the rest of the day on the river. Caught some nice trout. Missed at least three, released two, kept one for my neighbor Robin. All’s right with the world again.