Sigh of relief...

Got the tests back this evening. No covid. That pretty much makes the whole day.

Finished the last bit of revisions on the new short and will give it one last read-through before dropping it into circulation tomorrow.

Spent the rest of the morning attending to my Personal Representative gig for Mom’s estate. That, working out, and waiting for phone call from young Matt.

Leaving for the mountains early tomorrow, looking to cut down this years Christmas tree. Figure the roads to be clear what with everyone gathering for Thanksgiving.

Looking forward to getting out, seeing some scenery.

Schlepping along...

Got some traction. Out of bed early, made some revisions on the new short, wrote a letter to my boys in Pittsburgh, and got in a decent workout in the garage.

Starting to lift again. Not much, but enough to make the bicep remember what it’s there for. The new weights are great, and should work out well. Have a long way to go to get back where I was, but with the whole winter ahead of me I should do all right.

FaceTimed with Jackie this afternoon. Hadn’t seen or heard from him in a while, so it was nice to catch up. Will have to see if I can lock in with Matty later this week.

Thinking about driving out to Leadville earlier than planned. Figure Thanksgiving’s down the tubes, so why not get the Christmas tree early? Pack lunch and a thermos of coffee, and hit the road. We’ll see how the next day or two goes.

No symptoms. Test results should come along soon. Meanwhile, knock wood.

On a roll, sort of...

Knocking wood. Still symptom free. No word back about the test yet—that should come on Wednesday or Thursday—but feeling good, allergies aside.

Pushed to the end of the book today. Did a little more clean-up, but feel like I’m one quick pass from having a reader copy. Gonna let it sit for a few days and get back to work on the N stories, and other projects that’ve been sitting on the back burner.

Got out to the park today to jog the stairs at the soccer park. Felt good, being outside. Weather was warmer than I expected, so did most of the work in shirtsleeves.

Feel like I’ve got some momentum going.

Hope I can carry it over into tomorrow.

So there it is...

Just when I think I have the hang of it, an entry disappears.

Anyway, tested yesterday and awaiting the results. Should come in a day or two, Not presenting with any of the common symptoms, so hoping it all goes well.

Meanwhile, coming to the end of another edit on the novel. With luck, might have it finished tomorrow.

Pushed another N critique out the door, went for a short walk, and otherwise wasted the day doing not much of anything.

Baking a corned beef tonight. Haven’t had one of those in a while. Figure to hit rack early, get in some reading, and see what tomorrow brings.

Wake up call...

The curse of 2020 continues.

Crummy night’s sleep, later-than-usual rise, less-than-productive day. Did manage to make some good headway with the book, but lost all the emotional ground I’d gained when I got a text from my buddy Sol, over at the gym saying he tested positive for COVID. Been concerned about PT with the big county-wide spike, and now it turns out I had good reason. Going in for a test tomorrow morning. Even if negative, will be forced to self-isolate for 14 days. Fingers crossed that’s as bad as it gets.

I think I'm getting the hang of it...

More of the same.

Early rise, early day at the keyboard. Brief interlude with the jump rope around noon, then off to PT. Can’t say I accomplished a whole lot else, except for a brief walk and a bit of reading.

Pretty day today. Warmer than I figured it would be. If I’d known, I might have gone fishing again.

No big plans for tomorrow. Just more of the same.

A new Salman Rushdie story in this week’s New Yorker. Gonna get after that tonight.

Blue skies all day...

Early rise, early to work. Read-through of the novel going pretty well. May have a reader version of the thing pretty soon.

Cut loose around eleven to do some fishing down on the Arkansas. Found a bag with some vintage streamers and decided to try them out. Found a nice stretch of water that should’ve produced something but came up empty. Haven’t been skunked in a while, so I owe myself another outting the next time it’s nice again.

Meanwhile, gotta get moving on the N reviews. A new story showed up in my queue yesterday.

PT tomorrow. Not sure what time. Wish I could see my way clear to working out with the weights, but afraid the gym’s off limits until the numbers die down appreciably or the covid vaccine gets released. Heard on NPR this afternoon inoculations might start as soon as December. Don’t figure I’ll the likes of one until 2021, but fingers crossed anyway.

Here’s goodbye to a beautiful day.

A case of the slows...

Still plugging.

Rough night’s sleep with the arm, but up early to work at the keyboard. Feeling good about quality, less so with output. But we’ll get there. Got a long list of things to do, and figure to start chipping away at them tomorrow.

Mussels in white wine and butter tonight.

Can’t do better than that.

A solid effort...

Moving along smooth and steady. Up at a good hour, off to the cottage at a good hour, and put in a nice morning’s work.

Big headway on revisions, and progress on the N stories. Sent off a critique mid-morning. New pieces came in, which should keep me busy over the weekend.

Long FaceTime chat with Matty this afternoon. Got a chance to catch up with Jack as well, though the conversation was a bit more brief. Nice getting to talk with them again.

Made a trip out to Costco to do a little longterm shopping, but bailed when we saw the long line running out the door. Maybe the county Covid numbers are sending folks into a panic.

No workout today, but will make up for it first chance I get. Big winds coming in tonight and staying until late tomorrow.

Hanging back tonight. Figure to chill with a bowl of soup and a glass of wine. Hit the sack early and get some reading in.

Thursday...

A day of hits and misses.

Was up early after a decent night’s sleep, and made good headway with revisions. Took a time out a bit past noon and skipped rope in the garage. PT later. After that, home to field a few phone calls. All in all, a pretty uneventful day.

Read and re-read the two of the N stories in my queue, and wrote one review. Will catch up on the rest tomorrow.

Been wasting too much time reading op-ed pieces. Need to start looking further ahead. On that note, made a batch of cauliflower soup for tomorrow night’s dinner.

Everything else is up in the air, as always.

Somebody call me a cab...

Woke up early with a sore arm. Kitties have migrated upstairs to share the bed, so things get a little tight. Anyway, up early, and away to the cottage for another decent morning of writing.

Skipped rope in the garage this afternoon, looking to avoid time at the gym. Worked out pretty well. Better than I thought it might, anyway. If I could get into a decent set of weights at a good price, I’d be in business.

Took a walk around the neighborhood later this evening. Weather wasn’t bad, except for a mean breeze blowing down from the north. Keeping a close eye on next Tuesday when the temps go up. If I’m lucky, I’ll be able to get in a full day of fishing.

Covid cases up all around the county. Can’t imagine what they’re going to number once Thanksgiving’s over.

Two new stories in my N queue. Need to get on them tomorrow. Other stuff, too.

Tonight? Same old, same old.

Tomorrow, PT, green woods and pastures new.

It was here a minute ago...

Hit the keyboard early this morning. Put in some good revisions, but the fewer there are the more difficult they are to put to rest.

Think I have what I need in the the new short piece. If if still reads well tomorrow, it’s going out the door.

Didn’t go to the gym today, but got out for a walk this evening. Haven’t heard anything new about the county COVID spread, though at last glance it suggested discretion might be the better part of valor.

Missing the boys. Gonna be a tough Thanksgiving for a lot of folks, but maybe tougher for grandparents. You only get so many shots at some point, and you want to make them count.

Weather’s cooled quite a bit in the past two days. Light snow last night, but it didn’t stick. Not on the walk, anyway. Not sure I’ll get a chance to work out the bum shoulder, but would hate like hell to rip it up again shoveling snow.

Funny, I keep thinking I’ll be back where I was by maybe Christmas. But maybe this is it. Maybe I’m just old and things are going to keep going downhill.

Guess we’ll have to wait and see.

Just keep breathing...

Slowly drifting back to normal. Whatever normal is. Up at a good hour to finish revisions on the new short. Thought I might take a walk when I’d finished, but didn’t dress warm enough to make a go at the soccer field stairs. Just as well. When I got home I’d forgotten I had a PT appointment.

Spent the early afternoon trying to get the shoulder in shape, then came home and took a nap when I realized i wasn’t going to have an office for a while owing to tech work being done in the next suite over.

Was feeling energetic until I woke up. Been trying to shake off the doldrums ever since. Cold weather…covid…cabin fever…they’re all getting to be a nuisance, aren’t they?

Heard temps are going to hit the sixties next Tuesday. Already put a pin in the date. Going fishing, for sure. Meanwhile, some new N stories to read and critique.

And we have a winner. I think...

Decompressing.

Got an early start, but let myself get waylaid. Didn’t accomplish much of anything today other a than a nice workout in an empty gym, and later, some reading. Guess I needed a break.

Took a FaceTime call from young Matt this morning, but missed Jack despite promises of a call back. The way it goes, sometimes. 2020, right?

Thought I might get in a day of fishing today, but I guess that’ll have to wait. No worries. New work came in over the transom, so I’ll stay busy other ways.

Election night, one more time...

Another beautiful fall morning.

Up early.

Worked in some revisions before heading off to the gym, then back again to read and make notes on my last N manuscript.

Cold weather predicted to move in tomorrow night. Not sure how much, or when, but I guess it’s coming.

Haven’t heard from the boys in a few days. Maybe we’ll catch up tomorrow.

Meantime, navy bean soup and a bottle of wine.

Still Election Night...

Got to work early this morning, avoiding anything in the way of news. Turned out to be a good thing in that, (a) had a good steady day of writing, and (b) the news improved as the day went forward.

Had a nice workout at the gym. Was the only one in the joint for a change, and was able to put in a lot of extra work. Rope skipping in particular is getting easier. Put in 500 reps today without straining the bicep or shoulder. If the pain stays manageable, may be able to get myself back into form before the end of the month.

Hard to believe it’s Thursday tomorrow, though it’s hard to believe a lot of things at the moment, good and bad. In a place of missing at the moment. Probably means I need to get out more while the weather’s nice. Did take a pretty walk this evening. Got a chance to breathe in some clean air.

Election night...

Well, it’s here. Election day. Did my best to avoid thinking about it, and in doing so had a pretty productive day. Got a lot of edits in place on the long piece, managed to push through PT without killing myself, and found time for some reading late in the afternoon.

Also had a brief, ten minute chat with the boys.

Also finished teak-oiling the furniture.

Looking to watch the returns, which may or may not make for a long evening. Eyes forward, as always.

Over and out.

Imperfect timing...

The clocks have orbited out of control.

Up earlier than I thought this morning, then out to the cottage for a decent day of revisions. Yesterday’s policing of the back patio had its way with the allergies, but the yard looks good and I’m ready to make the next pass at teak-oiling the furniture.

Sneaked away for a short workout this afternoon, then home for trip to Costco to pick up wine for tomorrow night’s long watch over the presidential election.

Pretty day today. Supposed to have more of the same tomorrow.

Wondering what the weekend’s going to be like, and weather there’s a chance of some fishing.

Keep dreaming, right?