Time for another do-over...

Man. Today had some clunk to it, and not sure why.

Up at a good early hour making revisions, then off to lunch, and after that, off to the gym.

The revisions went as expected, lunch was a mild fiasco, and the gym—which has recently changed hands—is apparently being reconfigured to accommodate twenty year olds with yoga/and or/cage fighting aspirations.

Came home and shoveled dirt around the yard, prepping it for seed. Not sure when exactly that will happen, but with the hot weather coming, it’s got to happen soon.

Kath coming to dinner tonight. Gonna bake the trout from yesterday’s fishing trip. Looking forward to kicking back and taking it easy.

It doesn't get any better...

Spent the early morning revising the newest story, “Born Blue.” Think I’ve got something there. Figure to call it a reader draft by tomorrow.

Spent the rest of the day fishing the Arkansas. Thought it might be slow when I first put in, but it turned out to be one of the best days I’ve had on the water in a long time.

Brought home a nice brown and bookend rainbows, all big, all beautiful. Caught and released at least five more. Lost a magnificent rainbow just as I was trying to net it.

Weather was perfect in the canyon. Not much wind, high blue sky, lots of sun.

Great to get out.

Rounding the corner...

Decent day all around.

Revisions on “Born Blue” went well. Same with the new story.

Quit the keyboard around 10:30 and went back to work on the flower bed. Dug a lot of dirt, lugged a lot of stone, but finished up with the tough stuff by about 3:30 and went out for a Starbuck’s.

Arborist guys came late afternoon and fertilized all the trees. Another big job out of the way.

Next up, replanting and reseeding.

Weather’s shaped up, and figures to hold for another day or so. With any luck, I’ll get down to the Arkansas tomorrow for some fishing. Save the other work for the weekend.

April 28...

Helter skelter.

Up earlier than usual, out to the cottage to write, the off to the gym.

Got home and dismantled the old flower bed in front. A lot happened in between, but I’ll be damned if I can remember what it was.

Woke to grey skies, strong winds and threats of rain. Now it’s blue skies and sunshine.

Not gonna try and predict what tomorrow will bring.

Yeah, redo...

Morning took a big U-turn. Ended up canceling the fishing trip and sticking around. Made the most of day, despite the change of plans.

Worked out a few revisions on a short story, cleared the old flower bed, hit the gym, made a trip to Rocky Top and even got the mower into the lawn shop for sharpening and maintenance.

Cooking chicken cacciatore for dinner.

We’ll see about tomorrow.

Temps say summer's on the way...

Muddling through another Monday.

Close to finishing a reader draft on “Born Blue.” Think it’ll be an okay piece if I don’t mess up the end. Meanwhile, letting the long piece cool while I take on yard work and other chores around the house. Got the tree guys coming to fertilize soon, the surgeons to take down the cottonwood next week, negotiations with the house painter…and all manner of spring cleaning to deal with.

Which is why I’m taking tomorrow off to do a little fishing.

Gonna re-do the stonework flowerbed this week, too. See if we can’t come up with something a little more practical. Would’ve started on it this afternoon, but the neighborhood kids were out chasing around, and I didn’t want to see anyone get hurt.

Took a quiet drive down to the park after hitting the gym. Got a chance to sit back and chat a while, enjoy the day.

Out and about...

Dinner at Kath’s last night. A nice quiet evening.

Woke early, and went to work on the third of the news stories I’m writing. Made some pretty decent progress before putting myself to work in the yard for the better part of the afternoon.

Grass is looking better than I thought it would, but have a lot of seeding to do to get it back where it was two years ago. Gonna wait at least another week for the fertilizer to seep in, then give it a shot. Need to take the mower in for maintenance in the meantime.

Had a Sunday drive around the west side late in the day. Lots of folks out. Nice to see the streets busy again, but gotta say I’m not ready to commune with the public, maskless, until Covid stops making headlines.

Watching the Academy Awards tonight.

Taking it easy.

Thinking about fishing tomorrow if the weather holds.

TGIF...

Roller coaster ride of a day that ended on the upswing.

Made headway at the keyboard on the long manuscript, got FaceTime calls from Jack and Matty to bookend the day, and in between, hit the gym and found some time to read.

Had a nice walk around the neighborhood, too, to celebrate an unexpected victory.

I’ll take one this this anytime.

Moving on no matter what...

Writing this at end of day, as always. But more tired than usual.

Good day. Made some decent revisions, got in an pretty good workout, came home for a late afternoon walk, and cooked up a pot of leek and potato soup.

Also got to FaceTime with young Jack.

Biding time till the weekend now. New tests coming in tomorrow. Lots left unanswered for, lots more to come.

The true gen...

Woke to a dusting of snow for the third day in a row. Not sure if we’re stuck in a pattern here, but things are supposed to warm up by Monday. Maybe even enough to put down the keyboard and head out to the Arkansas and get in some fishing.

More edits on the long ms this morning, then on to a few more N critiques. Took a break mid-afternoon to clean the house. Picked up some groceries after that, and killed a little time prepping dinner.

Caught up with my buddy S today, and had a nice chat. Helped smooth some things out for me. Got a lot on my mind. Good to be able to check in with someone who knows what he’s talking about.

Not sure what tomorrow’s supposed to bring, except the garbage men, but at the moment I’ll settle for that.

Missed working out today.

Bring on tomorrow.

Just when you think you know everything...

Woke to another half inch of snow, but it’s gone now and, except for the cool air a pretty nice day.

Hit the ground hard this morning, and continued with the good luck streak I’ve been having (or think I’m having) at the keyboard. Revisions are coming along, and coming closer to the end. Or at least the end of this particular round.

Picked up another acceptance this morning, too. New Plains Review wrote to say they want “Money Shot” for their Spring 20201 issue.

I think that’s my third this year. Third? Forth? I’m not sure, but it came at a nice time and it’s a terrific pub I’m happy to have the story married off.

Got in a nice workout at the gym this afternoon. Only two other people in the place, so I got to move around like the old days. Felt pretty good. Came home to FaceTime with the boys.

Other good news, too. So a pretty okay Tuesday, all things considered.

Looking ahead...

I don’t know. I feel like I’m sinking deeper and deeper into this “place.'“

Even so, moving forward. Or moving.

Lawns were aerated today, fertilized with great love, and snowed upon later this afternoon.

Woke early, continued on with revisions, and was cold cocked with eight new N submissions, all of which were, blessedly, Six Word Stories.

Haven’t read many six-word stories before. So, eager to see what I have.

Meanwhile, went to the gym, the grocery store, and came home to a nice hot shower.

Easy night, tonight. Gonna take them while they’re here.

A likely story...

A little bit of the same.

Early rise, revisions, and some good reading followed by a long coffee break.

Still cool today, but warmer than yesterday and decidedly sunnier. Supposed to be cool all week, but maybe we’ll get some rain.

My fishing license is still sitting here on my desk, unopened, and I’ve gotta wonder if I haven’t jinxed things by not stuffing it in my fly vest and looking up for the task. Something to think about, for sure.

Meanwhile, got in a nice quiet workout at the gym with weights, the bicycle, and even the heavy bag. Didn’t push too hard. Don’t want to muck anything up. But all in all, it felt pretty good.

Be nice if a few other things turned the corner.

Looking ahead to an up and down week.

What week isn’t, anymore?

Briefly...

Earlier start than usual today. Made the most of it. Good revisions on the novel, good progress reading and critiquing stories. Caught up on some correspondence. Cleaned the house. Made a late afternoon run to Starbuck’s. Doesn’t sound like much, but in times of Covid it’s a glorious day.

Pizza tonight. Maybe a bottle of wine.

Will worry about tomorrow when tomorrow comes.

Quiet day.

Yeah. Still here.

Put in a good early morning at the keyboard, then went off to the gym.

Came home and it was back to work.

Snow melted between the early and the late, but the cool temps stuck around. Weather people say things will stay in or around the forties for the next few days.

Nice talk with my sis, Moya, this afternoon.

Some correspondence to catch up with, a story or two to read, and other things. Can’t believe the days have been slipping by so fast.

Vet says Kit has hypothyroid issues, but is good otherwise. Like the rest of us, he’ll be on an exciting new regimen of pills.

Taking it easy tonight. Wonder if there’ll be any decent movies this weekend.

Well, it's Thursday, and that's good...

Restless night’s sleep, and an early rise. Hit the keyboard hard with revisions to the novel. The words are lining up in the right direction, but it’s slow going.

Matty called to FaceTime around 8:30, so i got a chance to catch up with him while his brother was off at school. Had a nice visit.

Brought Mr. Kit into the vet for his annual wellness check. He’ll be sixteen in a couple of weeks, and I wanted to make sure I had all of his charts up to date. Overall, he scored pretty well. The vet discovered a heart murmur, so they drew blood, but she didn’t seem overly concerned. Hope to get the results sometime tomorrow.

Couldn’t get my focus back after the veterinary stuff, so went to the gym to get in a workout. Came home afterward and cooked up a batch of beef stew for dinner.

Cloudy, overcast day. The weather folks predicted and early rain, but the precipitation didn’t come until much later, and in the form of tiny round snowballs.

Looking forward to a quiet night.

I'm tired, and other observations...

Maybe it’s my imagination. Or maybe my circadian clock is off. Or maybe I’m just getting old and lazy, but this whole week’s been an exercise in near futility—I think.

That said, was up early at the keyboard working on the novel again, reimagining the diction in the sub-plot, hoping I can make it mirror the rest of the story a little more closely.

Worked hard till noon, then took a break and went to the gym. Much sloth there as well. Did a good half hour on the bike, but have been cautious about the weights until the arm feels better. Don’t think I did anything to compromise it, but after surgery, you can’t get that particular unpleasantness out of your head.

Quiet day otherwise.

Weather was cool, which kept the neighborhood kids inside, but the heavy equipment was still beep, beep, beeping away.

All over the place...

Hmmm. Up at five, then six.

Down to the cottage to work. Thought I had the novel mystery figured, but of course doubt always creeps in and you don’t know until long after it does you any good.

Long and short of it, wrote as long as I could then went to the gym to push things in a different direction.

Never did get where I’d hoped.

Need to get organized and start over again tomorrow.

Strange day...

Not sure why, but this one turned into a clunker.

Put in some okay time at the keyboard, but never quite managed to get where I hoped to be. Maybe tomorrow, right?

Anyway, got some writing time and that’s what counts.

Made a late afternoon run to Costco, and Starbucks, and that was pretty much it. No yard work, no gym. No anything.

Gonna hit the rack early tonight and see if i can’t make a more competitive run at tomorrow.

Taking it as it comes...

Must’ve been the trip up to Denver yesterday, but my ass was dragging all day today, and I didn’t have much excuse for it.

Up early, nonetheless.

Hit the keyboard around 6:30, and kept punching until S. came and fetched me for coffee.

Worked on the newest of the new stories and didn’t quit till I found the end. Put it aside and went to work on yard clean up, giving back to some of my more boisterous with a non-stop two-hour symphony of leaf-blower music.

Hit the gym after we put away the rakes and trash bags, but didn’t have a whole lot of energy left. Rode the stationary bike a while, lifted a couple of weights, then came home and call it quits.

Looking ahead to a quiet night. An early rise, and a new look at the novel.