This is this...

Emptied my N queue today. That must count for something. Was making headway on the new story, too, but got sidetracked somehow and forced to give it up. That’s the way things go these days.

Got out for a nice walk before noon. Almost three miles. Folks are still in pretty good spirits, which is nice, and there were paper products at the store, which was a hopeful sign, too.

Missing the boys. Jack’s birthday is just around the corner. The time we were supposed to spend with them is off the table, as it should be, but it doesn’t make the pill any easier to swallow. Just hoping it won’t be forever before we see them again.

Gotta get back to work on the new long piece tomorrow. Get out a letter or two.

For what it's worth...

Okay, so, another one behind us.

Up early working on a new story. Then went to work revising “Blood from Stone.” A few small things here and there before shipping it off.

Got in a long walk around noon—getting to be a habit, isn’t it?—then home for more revisions, research, etc.

Somehow the whole thing filled up the afternoon.

Sitting here now after 6:00 wondering where the day went.

Tomorrow (or maybe the day after) back to the long piece.

Lots of reading today. Also, packed up and shipped off two N critiques, which puts me pretty close to the end of my to-do list.

Like I said, more tomorrow.

All quiet on the western front...

Walked through downtown yesterday singing “Little Deuce Coupe” in full throat, and didn’t get arrested. That’s how dead the town is.

Up early, writing. Then editing. Then working on reviews.

Took a two-hour walk mid-afternoon, enjoying the good weather before it dashes off. Pretty day out there. Not much foot traffic, which was kind of surprising under the circumstances.

Came home and took a nice peaceful nap.

If it wasn’t for money running out, a guy could get used to this lifestyle.

Need to start shaping up. Working with a schedule. Not doing badly at the moment, but a little more discipline wouldn’t hurt.

We’ll see what tomorrow brings.

Easy, easy Saturday...

Nice visit over dinner last night with K. She cooked up a splendid chicken cacciatore, and we celebrated the night with a couple of bottles of red wine and lively conversation.

Out early to work on the new story.

Chugged along pretty well until we got another call from the boys. Two in as many days! For all the virus has snatched away, this is the one thing it’s started to give back in spades. Had something akin to a two hour playtime with the two of them. J was working on schemes to get us out there. M was just happy to make noises and babble. Can’t think or even wonder when we’ll see them again, but it’s nice to know they still remember us, still miss us.

Took a long walk around the CC campus after we got off the phone. Reacquainted ourselves with the grounds, the buildings. Scouted out the new doings and had a leisurely walk back. Settled into a new essay, then a nap when we got home.

Pretty day. Blue sky. A little chilly when the wind gusted up, but nothing to complain about. Saw it was raining in Pittsburgh. Lahui, too, probably.

Short and sweet...

Long day short on work.

Up early to the King Soopers in the hope of scoring some cleaning products. Was met by a long, long line of equally-destitute looking seniors. They let 100 of us in.

Made a side trip to Calicrate to pick up some beef.

Got in a long walk afterward.

Posted a few letters.

Dinner at K’s tonight. See if I can’t relax a little more, get an early to bed, and pick up tomorrow.

Sunny day, dream away...

Went to work on a new story this morning. Thought I’d change things up after devoting so much time to the long piece. Felt good to get into something short again.

Walked earlier than usual, thinking to heed the forecast of heavy early afternoon winds. A good choice. The sun was out and the weather was perfect for strolling around the block. Worked a little more when we got home, then hooked up with the boys via FaceTime. All in all a pretty good day.

Read and napped later in the afternoon. Also nice. Then, to cap the whole thing off, found an acceptance slip in my email box from the Owen Wister Review for “Unseen,” a story that was a finalist in the Tucson Festival of Books, and pleasantly reviewed by a number of literary magazines, but never published before.

Just when you think it’s over, right?

Looks as if I’ll have some interesting work going in to the weekend. Happy about that. Happy, as always, to be busy.

Worth noting...

Yeah, the days bleed into one another. But it’s good to keep an eye out for the odd detail that makes them different. Not just to mark time, but to remember why it’s important to hold on and appreciate. Didn’t do much of anything today but write. Even so, the time was well spent. Got in a nice walk around noon. Had a nice slice of Irish cheddar. Felt the sunburned skin on top of my head and remembered why I should wear a hat while fishing. No complaints, no worries, no expectations. Just taking it one day at a time and being thankful everyone I know is healthy.

Wait! It's Tuesday?

Opening day jitters? Who knows. Thought I was ready to bring home a nice fish dinner, but got skunked down on the Arkansas for the first time in a long time. No matter. Had a great day getting out and getting away from it all. Air was a little cool early on with the wind blowing through the canyon, but it got better as it got later in the day. High clouds, blue sky, sun. Had a big brown chase my fly to the bank, but it was the only fish I saw all afternoon.

Canon City was dead like everywhere else, but I was happy seeing it that way. The fewer parades and rallies we have the better.

D’s birthday today. Forty-five. Called this morning and got rolled into voicemail, but left a message wishing him the best. Be nice if we could catch up sometime, but I’ve learned it’s not up to me in most of these things. You do what you can, and leave the rest to whatever.

Read a terrific essay by W. Kittredge last night. An old piece that must have found its way into a magazine in the early seventies. Wish I could remember the title, but I can’t. Anyway, an eye opener.

Still here, still kicking...

Quiet for a Monday.

Up early, writing. Then out for a short walk. Saw my neighbor, R, which was nice. The block was quiet otherwise, and when I got back I wrote a couple of quick letters, paid some bills, and took it easy.

Tried making a deposit at Ent, and ended up stranded at the drive-thru for something like forty minutes. Expected a wait, but not that long. When I finished the transaction the nice clerk said I could have used the walk-up at the front of the building. I didn’t even know they had a walk up.

Definitely going fishing tomorrow. Hard to know what, exactly, is going on but heard the Gov of NM is putting a lock on certain kinds of travel tomorrow. Gonna hit the water before the same happens here.

That’s it. The rest can wait till tomorrow.

Well, okay. One more thing. Made it to the end of the new piece this morning. A tentative end, of course, but an end. Looking forward to what comes next.

You live, you learn...

Did some decent work early on at the keyboard, then made the mistake of driving off to Calhan to see the “Paint Mines.” Drive was nice, but if a quiet stroll in nature was what you were after, you would have done better taking a jog down 16th Street in Denver. Would have met with fewer people. Not exaggerating when I say there were well over a hundred sight-seers out there trudging through the gumbo. And I mean people who looked like they hadn’t been out of the house in years. But the day was nice, if a little cool, and everyone was well behaved. So…lesson learned. Packed a couple of corned beef sandwiches in the hope of having a small picnic lunch out on the prairie, but ended up wolfing them down in the car on the way home. Not all adventures work out the way you hope.

Killed the rest of the afternoon reading and napping. Which makes for a good day, anytime. Cooking up the chicken marsala tonight and cracking a nice bottle of pinot. Not sure what’s going on in the rest of the world, and don’t really care at the moment. Have too much out in front of me to do anything but press forward with eyes open and hope for the best.

Toying with the notion of going fishing this week. Yeah, sneak down to the Arkansas and see if I can’t catch dinner. As long as gas prices are low, why not? Silver lining isn’t always where you expect it to be. Maybe it’s never where you expect it to be.

Critique off to N. One story left. Set it aside after the first read thinking maybe it had the right stuff. Gonna find out tomorrow.

Here we are, Saturday...

Well, can’t say I lost my arm-wrestling match with the day but then I didn’t lose ground, either.

Up at a decent hour and off to the cottage to write. Did pretty well, pushing the new ms word count over 65,000. Should be able to reach the end here in a day or so. The end, that is, of the beginning. But before I leap into revisions, I’m going to go back to the shorts I left in a state of despair and see if I can’t shape one or two into a decent story. Also going to get in some added reading time.

Read an old essay by L. McMurtry this afternoon. One I hadn’t seen before—Take My Saddle from the Wall: A Valediction. Caught up on some other pieces as well, before tending to another N. critique.

Was wondering about the boys when we got a FaceTime call from Jack while out on a late afternoon walk. They’d cut off all his hair! He looked like a lifer in the orange top he was wearing! Good, so good, to hear his voice again. Matty was wild, as always. Neither one let on any disappointment about not coming out. They seem (or Jack does, anyway) to realize people are sick and travel is dangerous.

Miss the hell out of the both.

Nothing to do but bear it.

Where this goes, who knows...

Another quiet day filled with little surprises.

Progress on new book, progress with reading list.

No walk today—snow and sleet—no anything. Quick trip to liquor store to pick up Marsala, a decent bottle of wine. Birthday card off to Dylan. Card off to Mark G.

Just trying to stay in touch.

Might try and get away tomorrow. Or Sunday.

The best of times, the worst of times...

Well, if I hadn’t heard it all before now, the Broadmoor announced it’s closing for 70 days. They did get killed with the Space Symposium canceling, but this won’t help the local economy much.

On the positive side of things, I’m 62,000 words into the new piece.

One the negative side of things, haven’t heard from my grandsons in weeks.

On the positive side of things, the weather’s supposed to break for the weekend.

On the negative side of things, I’m still worrying about my people.

On the positive side of things, I have plenty of things to keep me busy.

Passing the time...

Had a nice dinner last night with K and S. Nothing too special—just corned beef, cabbage and soda bread—but somehow it came off as a small feast.

Easy night, easy morning. Getting up later than usual, but it hasn’t seemed to make much difference. Work’s still getting done.

Miss the boys. Haven’t heard from them since we got back from Pittsburgh. Not our place to bitch, so I won’t, but I’m sure looking forward to seeing their faces again.

Got out for a walk this afternoon. Nice day, for the most part. Sun drifted in and out of clouds. Seeing more people afoot than a week ago.

Passed the 60,000 word mark on the new ms. today. Hope to finish soon. Looking forward to writing another short piece or two, then leaping ahead with revisions.

Still haven’t hit stride with working out at home, but trust it will come. Meanwhile, more of the same.

By any other name...

Getting used to this COVID-19 thing.

Skipped the gym today and went out walking. Came home, took a nap, and went back to work.

Read two new N pieces today. Made headway on the new ms. Everything else was blue sky and beautiful weather. Spring’s standing on the doormat, waiting to come in.

Made an early trip to the grocery store today to see if I could score some paper. No luck. The hoarding is still full on. No worries. Will figure something out when the figuring’s necessary. Meantime, glad to know everyone’s okay.

Signing off.

Social distance.

More of the same...

Still here.

Woke to the sound of chuh, chuh, chuh this morning. Was deep in sleep and thought I was dreaming. Got out of bed and turned up the sash to see my neighbor chipping ice from the windshield of his wife’s car. Came up with a description of them a long time ago: full half-assed. They never cease to live up.

Got in more good work at the keyboard, thought the output wasn’t as prodigious as yesterday’s. No complaints. Just happy to be here, writing. It’s gonna be day-to-day for a long time, I’m afraid, but I’m ready for it. Turns out all those summers in Wyoming, huddled in a tent during a three day rain, are paying off.

Grocery stores are still crazy. Paper shelves empty, chip shelves running over.

Bratwurst tonight. Chips? You bet.

Looking to another quiet night...

Back at it.

Up early, pounding away on the new ms. Looking to make hard run to the end, finish the draft, and start making new notes by the end of the month.

Ran out of thyroid medicine and had to make a trip to Kings Soopers this afternoon. Empty shelves everywhere. Glad I wasn’t on the hunt for food. People are taking his harder than I would have thought.

Took a nice walk around the neighborhood when I got home. Always gets to me, trouncing around the places Jack and I used to go, but it was good to be outdoors in the fresh air even if it was cold.

Worried about my peeps, here and there.

Hope we get this thing under control soon.

Friday!

Starting to feel the constriction. World’s closing in, but not altogether in a bad way. Folks are nervous, but mostly nice. Helpful.

Heard the boys’ schools have shuttered for a month. Expect others will do the same. Missing my people, but at the same time (knock wood) happy to know no one is sick.

Making headway on the long piece. Everything else in limbo.

Weather was good today. Then came the snow. Sunny tomorrow, if the forecasters are right. We’ll see.

Laying back tonight. Will take whatever comes when it comes.

Breathe...

Slept in till 7:30 this morning. Didn’t seem to be any real urgency to the day. Managed some decent draft time, then headed out the gym.

People are keeping to themselves, which is probably good. Quiet afternoon.

Weather’s supposed to change, snow tonight. Hope so. Need the moisture.

Some kinda sadness coming down.