Best day I’ve had in a while.
Biggest snow we’ve had all year coming tonight.
Potato leek soup on the burner, bottle of wine on counter, firewood stacked in the grate.
Gonna take it real easy tonight and get an early jump on tomorrow.
Picking up the pieces...
Felt like high gear all day. Well, high gear for these times, anyway. Up early to work, then out to the side yard to bind up the arbor vitae so the coming snow doesn’t damage the limbs. Managed a workout somewhere after that, along with a trip to the Post Office and a side trip to the grocery store. Picked up the fixings for the weekend, then came home and made a pot of potato leek soup for tomorrow night.
Trip to Denver tomorrow shouldn’t be too bad so long as the snow stays in check. They say the heavy stuff won’t start until after dark, so we should be tired but fine on the return trip.
K landed in Pittsburgh early this afternoon. Boys are excited about seeing here. Hope S and I get a chance to break away too sometime soon, but we’ll just have to wait and see.
Meanwhile, lots to do, lots not to do, and plenty in between.
I'll take what comes...
Woke early but couldn’t find my way out of bed. One of those days where you ask yourself what’s the point. Of course, there’s always a point, so I did get up, and even managed to get some good work done.
Got a chance to catch up with one of my old buddies mid afternoon. Put in a decent workout, too. Read the second to last of my N stories, took a short nap, and made stuffed peppers for dinner.
Holding all my extra energy in reserve for all the snow that’s supposed to visit us over the weekend. They’re saying three feet now. Three. Feet.
I was misinformed...
Thought I had a handle on this one, but it got away.
More of the same, only different.
Wrote, read, worked out. Early afternoon appointment came and went without much fanfare. A lot of stuff still up in the air.
Took a short nap—the arm woke up before I did—then went out to shop for some dinner fixings.
Brief FaceTime with Jack.
Tied pull-ropes to the upper branches of the locusts in back so I can shake the snow from them if it gets too heavy this weekend. Whatever happens, don’t need another collapse like last spring. We’ll see if the weather people are right. Meanwhile, better safe than sorry.
Wish I were in a better place. But so do most people, I guess. Gotta keep trudging toward the light and believing things will look better in the morning.
The Daylight Savings Time Hangover...
Lazy rise after a late night. Just as well. Probably needed the sleep.
Got to work around 8:00, maybe a little earlier, picking up on some of the revisions I’ve been working. Still haven’t gotten back to the novel, but maybe that’s okay, too.
Caught up with my sis, worked out in the garage, made a run to the P.O. and came home for a short nap.
Good to have the house back to ourselves again. The company was terrific, but everybody was tired after the weekend’s doings.
Appointments tomorrow and Friday. Snow, too, on Friday. Gotta get on top of the new N stories tomorrow, or I’ll fall behind.
Pretty day today. Took a while for it to come online, but once it did it felt like spring. The news folks say the Peak is going to get upward of fifty inches of snow by the weekend. Down here, we’re only supposed to expect three, tops.
Guess we’ll see.
Time change a comin...
The last week feels like a badly written paragraph, punctuation gone to hell. But here we are, ready to start a new one. Hope the fact it’s starting out with the close of Daylight Savings Time is a good omen.
Got a day off yesterday, and took my fly rod down to the Arkansas for some early spring fishing. Water was a little low, and very clear, and I got into some beautiful runs but didn’t get so much as a single strike. Even so, a nice day.
Dinner at K’s last night, and tonight we’re returning the favor. Or at least the venue. Caitlin’s cooking, and I hear quiche is on the menu. Haven’t eaten this well in a long time.
Was able to do a little writing this morning—more that I’ve gotten in all week, I think—and made it count. Put in some good work at the keyboard.
Caitlin goes home early tomorrow morning. Will miss her.
Just trying to keep up...
Lots of goings on.
Had Caitlin and Kath for dinner last night. Or should I say they had us?
Another long day driving up to Denver—this time in a snow storm—but made it back before eight, and hit the rack early for a halfway decent night’s sleep.
Didn’t accomplish much this morning, but then didn’t expect to. Had a nice long talk with my buddy Bob back in Wisconsin, and that was pretty much the highlight of the day.
There’s another Denver appointment tomorrow, but I’m told I’ve been dismissed as driver. They want me to go fishing instead. Just might take them up on it.
Found five new stories in my N queue this afternoon. I’ll get around to them this weekend.
Easy, it's just me...
Took it easy this morning. Had coffee in bed before heading down to the cottage.
Revised for an hour or so, then went to work on the N critiques. Finished all of them by mid-afternoon, and got in a workout, too.
Clients over through the afternoon, other happenings.
Went out and bought some pork chops for dinner. Gonna take it easy tonight, get up early and head to Denver for another look-see.
Wild times.
Wild times, indeed.
Dylan’s birthday coming soon. Wrapped his present, but still haven’t found a card yet. All in good time, right?
The here and now...
Spent the past two days shuttling back and forth to Denver. Came home with a lot to unpack and a lot to sort through. For the moment, it’s just good to be back in the Springs.
An easy Saturday...
Slept in a bit this morning, but not too badly. Caught up on the news, drank a couple of cups, and headed out to the cottage around 8:00 am. Did some good work at the keyboard.
Still haven’t gotten back to the novel, but figure to rectify that tomorrow after I get a start on another short that’s been spinning around in my head.
Went to the movies this afternoon. Had a nice time. The big XD theatre had maybe four other people besides us, and the popcorn was tastier than usual.
Tried to catch up with the boys when we got home, but they were off galavanting. Put in some more work at the keyboard instead.
Sitting home with a pizza and a bottle of wine tonight.
Dreaming of untroubled waters...
Keep coming back to the new story because each pass brings at least one unexpected improvement, but need to lay off a while until I can decide on the ending.
As luck would have it, have other work. The novel, first and foremost.
Read the last of the N stories in my queue this morning, and made good notes that should help me finish the critiques this weekend.
Worked out a little after 1:00, then went off in search of medication and groceries. Got home and started a pot of cream of cauliflower soup.
Hadn’t realized until yesterday my fishing license is good for another month. Who knows, with a little luck I might get a good day to head up into the mountains.
Putting it down as I saw it...
Woke to something between five and six inches of snow. Just once, I’d like to see the same sight at Christmas.
Shoveled the walks, said hi to our neighbor Robin, caught up with our neighbor Laurie and had a pleasant but uneventful morning.
Took S to her ophthalmology exam, and spent the rest of the afternoon cooking and reading.
Can’t lay claim to much else.
Got to FaceTime with Jack and Matt late in the day.
Overall, not a bad showing.
Get out the snow shovel...
Slept in again—a little.
Went back to work on the new story for a couple of hours, then did a little reimagining of the future. Worked out early afternoon, took care of some bill paying, took a leisurely drive through the Garden of the Gods, and read from the Last Tycoon.
Need to get back to the novel, but find myself hesitating. Not ready yet to revisit the act of literature I may have committed. Guess I’'ll come to it when I come to it. Meanwhile, need to get a jump on the N critiques.
Understand it’s going to snow hard tonight. Hope so. Trees need all the moisture they can get. Lawn, too, but I’ve got less sympathy for it, the way it’s been dogging me the past two summers.
Oh, well. No grudges.
Head up, eyes open, I’m only looking at tomorrow.
The long and short of it...
Went to bed last night thinking I’d lay off the stories for a day or two and get back to the novel, but after a late start I took care of other business instead.
Got cards off to the boys, cleaned house, went to the gym for the first time in a long time, and settled some HSA business at the bank.
Fell short of getting done everything I’d wanted, but it was good to get out and clear the head for a day.
They’re saying snow again tonight. We’ll see.
Thinking ahead...
Another warm day, old snow melting away.
Was up to work early, but got distracted by machinery and voices. Neighbors were having their big old ponderosa removed after watching it die back the last couple of years. Sad to see it go. It had a twenty foot lightning scar that ran jagged down the east face of the trunk, and red tail hawks used the top limbs for a hunting roost. Not sure what caused its demise—old age, maybe—but its absence will leave a sad looking hole in the sky.
Made reservations today for our trip back to Pittsburgh. Gonna be late March, ten or so days after our second Covid shots. Boys don’t know yet. Figure to keep it a surprise until the last minute.
Have put in about as much time as I can stand on the new story. Taking a break from it tomorrow and redirecting my attention to the novel.
Not sure what sort of year the short fiction will yield, but so far it’s been slower than usual. Got a bunch of pieces out there close to a year in consideration.
A taste of spring...
Strange dreams in the middle of the night. Woke and stayed awake probably two hours before falling back to sleep. Up later than usual as a result, but still made some nice headway on the newest story.
Got in a nice workout a little afternoon, and a pleasant walk around the neighborhood afterward. Beautiful day. Lots of sun, lots of warm. Supposed to snow again mid-week, so we must be getting close to spring.
Coming close to the end of The Last Tycoon. Glad I decided to pick it up again. The notes on the text aren’t quite as extensive as I’d like, but they’re well presented and even more interesting this time around.
Arcadian Nights is also proving to be an entertaining read.
Have some new stories in my N queue. Have read all but two, and need to get on the critiques.
Looking forward to another quiet evening.
Taking it easy. Again.
Up early. Worked on the new story, then went off to a movie.
Not much in between.
Hoping to maybe make headway tomorrow.
Getting closer all the time...
Found an end to the new story this morning amid other comings and goings. Not sure it works yet, but not especially worried about it. The piece is enough of a story to find a alternate/better end if need be, so I’m just going to ride it out and see what happens.
Got in an okay mid-morning workout. After, went off to settle some unsettled business. Spent the afternoon running errands to the bank, the pizzeria, gym and grocery store.
Temps got warmer today, melted a lot of the snow that came in the other night. Not sure what tomorrow’s supposed to bring, but Spring doesn’t seem that far away. Hope not, anyway.
Looking for an early start tomorrow, then an afternoon movie. A nice quiet weekend.
And then some...
Woke up to a beautiful, quiet snow. More than we’ve had in a long time.
Worked a little on the new story before lacing up the boots and shoveling. Pretty morning with a high blue sky.
Got in a nice workout around noon, then drove down to Fountain so S could get her first Covid shot. Took a while to get the thing done, but we managed and now we’re only a few weeks away from being able to travel again.
Took care of some old business when we got home, then did a little pre-emptive homework for some of tomorrow’s projects.
Have some new N stories to attend to, some old reading to catch up on, and some critiques to write. Tonight, just gonna hang back.
Give and Take...
This is, in some way, a time of great disappointment. People both close and close enough have let me down in ways I never expected. Not in small matters, either. But as the world’s been at odds with itself, and everyone in it, for a while, I’m willing to turn the other cheek. Got the first of my Covid vaccines this morning (Moderna) and all’s suddenly, infinitely more tolerable. S gets hers in two days, and before the end of March we should be able to breathe a little easier. Who knows? A trip to Pittsburgh to see the boys might even be in order.
Need to get back to work, I think. Finish the shorts I’ve started, finish work on the novel, and get moving as quickly as possible on something new.
Also need to order that fishing license.
Cold snap’s broken and the skies are blue, and the temps should hit the mid-forties before the end of the week. All I need now is a winning lottery ticket.