I'll Get There One Way or The Other

 

I may not have been perusing a shelf of books looking for something to read....

I may have neglected my friends, not checking their blogs.....

So I apologize...

I am so invested in this novel that I am writing that most of my energy is going into that and lordy, it's a slow go. 

But, I do worry that something will happen that I won't get it finished. WHERE IN THE WORLD DID THAT COME FROM!! but it's true. That's how committed I am to getting this thing done and published. 

At this age, I have about 6 hours a day that I have the energy to be busy then I just totally poop out.

 Yesterday I spent 5 hours working on that manuscript. I did eat... ha ha 

So, hang in there with me. I don't have but about half of it done yet... But, I will get it done. That I promise !

An Author I Shall Be

                      I've been busier than a bubblebee! 

I finally decided that I would finish that sequel to my "Springtime In Magnolia" book that was published in 2014. No one can ever say I am the hare, more like the tortoise! I write when the notion strikes me and let me tell you, writing a book is not a walk in the park! 

You might think it's just writing down words, like you'd do when you write a letter to someone. Far from it. Every little detail has to be checked out, the punctuation has to be perfect, the spelling... you get the picture. Oh, and too while I am thinking about it. Facts... Everyone of them has to be authenticated. What kind of dresses did women wear then, did they have toasters in their kitchen, what kind of school, job, and the list goes on. Being an author is a tiresome job!!

But, I am very hopeful I can get this done and publish it before I get out of the mood again! 

I just read "Life is Short But Wide" by Lorrie Orr, one of our blogging buddies. It was really good, all about

their many years of living in Ecuador as missionaries.

You ought to check it out.  And check out her blog, too

at  Fabricpaperthread.blogspot.com She's a very

interesting lady. 

Well, time to get back to writing..........

Lordy, it never stops. hehe

A Shot in the Arm

 Nothing like a 'shot in the arm' to jerk you up and get you going. 

I started a sequel to my 'Springtime in Magnolia' book ages ago and then I just ignored it. I had 80 pages written but for some reason I stalled and couldn't get 'unstalled'. 

But, the other day I opened that file back up on my computer and decided I'd give it a look-see. I needed some info to move me forward so I asked ChaptGPT for information about an unexperienced young man starting a job at a bank in the late 1940s. I like to be factual and I had no clue about banking then or now. 

Well, as I chatted with GPT I got so fired up and the next morning I spent 4 hours at the computer writing and writing and correcting and editing. I gotta get this novel finished. I mean, folks, I don't have years and years to write. These old hands are already giving me a lot of trouble. Of all things my index finger on my dominant hand locks up (trigger finger, they call it). Some times I can get it unlocked fairly easy and other times it just does not want to turn loose and is so painful when I force it. So,  yes I need to write while I can. 

Or... maybe it can be fixed. Got an appt. with the dr. Monday. We'll see how that goes. 

I published 'Springtime in Magnolia' in the fall of 2013. About time I got that sequel done, don't you think? 

Writing

 This really made me chuckle. 

I have kept a journal (diary) most of my life. There are things in there that might not need to be read by others but mainly it's okay. It's just my life and how I lived it. But, I had wondered whether I should destroy my journals before I die or not. I finally decided to just either cut out or mark out what little bad was written in them and leave the good stuff for my descendants to enjoy.

Then, in this latest issue of the AARP magazine I found this: 

As I said, I really got a good chuckle out of this! 

A Kick In The Butt

 In my last post I was saying that I had been down in the dumps. It appears that all I needed was a 'boost of spirit' and suggestions from my son to turn all that mess around. 

He's a man of few words (except when he is talking about sailing. ha) and what he says has thought behind it, sometimes long, long moments of thought, or days even. But, I can trust him, I depend on him for guidance and support and he never lets me down. 

So, I'm telling him about my dumps and ask if he has any suggestions on how to remedy that. He says, 'pull out that manuscript you stowed away and finish that book!'  Well, that was direct. I know the children want me to finish it so I'll give it another try.

'And' he added, 'you need to study up on perspective. I notice that some of your paintings looks 2 dimensional and your lines are off.'  So, I laughingly asked him when he became an artist critic? He does beautiful pen and ink drawings so he knows what he's talking about.

I think this is the painting that threw him over the edge. Yep, perspective way off there!

Well, my dumps were gone. I have purpose. No more lying around like a slug. 

I watched a video on YouTube about perspective. I need some real practice in that department but I'll improve, I promise.

The manuscript still hasn't been dragged out but it will be. I had some loose ends to tie up for I tackled that.

In the meantime, I started learning sailing jargon so I can better understand my son when he drones on and on about his boat. It will be good to know what he's talking about! He took me for a sail back last year and that was a very special time. 

Sometimes we just need a 'kick in the butt' to jerk us back into focus. 

Good Food, Good Reads

 Every day this week I'd say to myself, 'gotta make a new blog post' and nightime would come and I'd say 

'tomorrow, I'll do it tomorrow'. It took a week but here I am!

I had a great day yesterday, best I've have in a very long time. I was steady, strong, felt fantastic, had energy and I was happy. I just could not have asked for a better day. 

But, the nighttime wasn't so much fun! What the dickens! I just couldn't sleep. Nap coming up this afternoon. I can just feel it coming on.

I've had a problem that I finally found a solution to. I'd order things from the grocery store and then the cans or boxes would sit on the shelf for ages and I wouldn't figure out how to make a meal out of them. So.... drum roll, please.

I made a list of all my canned goods and posted it on the pantry door. Same with my box stuff. I can see at a glance what I have. I sat down with my recipe box and chose recipes to make this next week using up things I already had on the shelf. As I use each item, I mark it off the list. Sort of like taking inventory. When each item is all marked off I know it's time to order more. 

I found a can of tomatoes I had had for awhile. I like tomato pudding but I don't want to eat it very often. And, it had been awhile since I'd had any so I made some. 

Yeah, I know... if you aren't southern you are asking what in the heck is tomato pudding. It sounds gross! 

Back in the early 19th century when women had an abundance of tomatoes they devised a way to put them to use. All it takes is tomatoes (canned ones are used mostly), a little sugar, a tad of butter and you put that over broken pieces of bread and bake. It's sweet, tangy, a little tart and perfect with blackeyed peas, which I also made yesterday. I baked me a russet potato and I had lunch! 

I just finished reading 'Remarkably Bright Creatures' by Van Pelt. Oh my gosh, I loved it! A completely different story line. It was Van Pelt's first novel and I just don't know how in the world she'll ever top that! I thought immediately that it ought to be a movie so I googled it.... there's one already made for Netflix but it hasn't been released yet. I can't wait. Sally Field plays Tova, the lead character. If you get a chance give it a try. I know not everyone has the same reading taste but that's ok. 

I hope you all have a good week. We haven't had a maintence super for a little while and today we have a 'meet and greet' for a new one. His name is Alfonso. They even supplied snacks for the meet and greet. Can't pass that up. 

This is a prayer that I wrote during my cancer treatment back in 2002. 

                    Now I lay me down to sleep                                                                        I pray, dear Lord, My hand to take                                                        And guide me to the break of day                                                           So I can love and live and pray.                                                             And when the sun shall set once more,                                                 the darkness over comes the light,                                                         I pray, dear Lord, you'll take my hand                                                    And guide me with your wonderous  might.

                                        Willie Latane Barton 

Making the Most of Life

 How are you today? I hope everyone is fine and staying out of the heat (if you have heat where you are) and that you are well and happy,

There's nothing more wonderful than being healthy! The older you get, the more your body starts to fall apart. I wish I'd known more about how to take care of mine in years past but the info just wasn't out there. Or maybe I didn't listen. When we are young we think we will live forever!! From this side of the fence, let me tell you... we won't. We are like cars, the older we get the more our parts wear out. And... there's no replacements for most of them. 

Oh, geez, where was I going with all that, anyway? I am so blessed to be as healthy as I am and have the good mind that I do at my age. Every day I thank God above for being able to enjoy life. One of my joys is the friendship I have with my blogger buddies. You guys are just the greatest ever!

I've been trying to get back into the rhythm of writing every day... Working on my second novel and I am so slack about it all. Yet, I can't wait to get it finished. I can't have it both ways. I need to discipline myself... 

The story is about a little girl who lives in a coal mining camp, has little worldly goods but has to go to a town school where the rich kids go. (boy, can I relate to that). I didn't live in a camp but the rest is correct. She gets bullied because she is poor. Then she and her best buddy come upon a hobo who is camping beside a creek. They befriend him and then he ends up murdered. 

I have a friend/therapist/assistance who asked me the other day if I had ever taken classes in writing. and if I followed the writing rules, like plotting out the book before starting etc. I just laughed and said 'NO'. I often write a chapter in my head while I lie awake at night. There's no planned out plot. There's not a ton of notes on how it will turn out. It just happens. I guess that makes me an unconventional author! haha. 

So, maybe I need to put this post to rest and open up my book file and write some in it. Do my daily writing task. 

Will they find out who killed the hobo? Will Ruthie be a hero or be ridiculed more? Who knows? Maybe tonight when I can't sleep I'll find the answer to one or more of those questions. 

                        QUOTE FOR THE DAY

'Writers don't wait for their ship to come in; they write their way out to it'.         Sam Horn 

It Feels Like Spring!

 It's gorgeous weather! Oh my, how I wish it would last but unfortunately some cold fronts are moving in and we will lose this beautiful, warm sunshine! I am so ready for Spring. Years ago I wrote a poem about The wind and spring and such.... 

I sat out on my balcony... no sweater... and it's February, folks. I saw something I don't believe I had ever seen before... and y'all, these are so out of focus but the branches got in the way... but it was two hawks sitting on a limb together. I am used to just seeing one at a time. And, I am quite the hawk finder. I am first to spot them in trees, on electric lines or whatever when we are traveling. 

Shirley came to get me this morning. It's Thursday so, do you know what is served at Cracker Barrel on Thursdays?  Yep, turkey and dressing. I just need a shot of that ever so often to soothe my southern soul! As good as that dressing is, it still does not measure up to my Mama's. Now, my Mama could make some wonderful cornbread dressing! I never developed the knack, sorry to say. 

Hope you all are having a bit of this 'spring like' weather. If not, I hope it comes to you soon. Hugs to each of you! 

Bits and Pieces

 I've been piddling with writing since I was in high school. I knew it was there, deep inside me, and I think it is still there but sometimes it forgets it way. The reason I think that... 

I started writing a book about a girl named Ruthie who lives in a mining camp. I have several chapters written, nearly 200 pages but then there was a brick wall between me and that book. I am not sure why. Do any of you  write? Do you ever have 'writer's block?' If so, how the heck did you get out of it. Maybe I need to check with ChatGPT to see what they suggest! I know how the book goes, just can't make my fingers hit the keyboard!!

The snow is gone! Mostly.... There is one strip of pine trees between the pond and the main road and that strip is still covered in snow. 

I got out Sunday. Knew that car needed cranking up so I drove it up the highway a ways, turned around and came back. Of course, on the way there happened to be a Bojangles and it just happened to be lunch  time!! haha. 

I noticed a bruise on my arm the other day. No recollection of how it got there. My skin is getting/has gotten so thin that any little bump can leave a mark. So, I am checking my arms for other bruises. There's a bunch of brown spots but those are old age spots. 

That was the only bruise I had. 

I just finished reading 'The Year of Magical Thinking'.

Written about Didion's attempt to sort out the meaning of her daughter's illness which was following by her husband's sudden death. I could relate to so much of that book, having lost my husband and also living through the death of a baby son and years later, an accident my daugher had that changed our lives. I recommend it if you have lost someone you love or if you haven't. It's about life as we live it. 

I'm always reading books that explain life, the complexities of living, how we all fit into that scheme of things and how I can learn and become a better person for having read those. 

Right how I am meeting with a life coach once a month. (I don't aim to go out of this life with regrets of not living it to the fullest). My 'homework' is to write a list of all my accomplishments and also write a list of gratitudes?

Do any of you keep a gratitude journal? I think it's a good thing. 

Well, I've rambled on and on... today the temps are going up into the 60s so I need to get out and enjoy. I hope you enjoy your day, as well. 

A Feel Good Time

 I try to be a positive person but I often fall short. 

This world seems to be gurgling down a big black hole in the way of morals, ethics, just being good. 

It takes it's toll!

But, I discovered something that gives me a 'feel good time' every single morning. 

Yep, It's Sean of the South. That boy has a way with telling stories that just make you feel good. You might laugh, you might get out a kleenex or two but there's always a subtle message and you just walk away with a spring in your step. 

This Sean of the South can be found at seandietrich.com.  I signed up to receive his stories via email. So, every morning, I sit down at my computer, sign in to my email and read his latest. It just makes me start  the day off right. 

Wondering?

I ran across this piece written by Ralph Fletcher

Can't remember where!

I used it to make a scrapbook page

Do you ever wonder about these things?

or

Other unanswered things? 

What do you wonder about? 

 

Friday Day Log

 I have seen some blogs who do a 'day log' ? totally the wrong name but I can't think of it right now. Anyway, I liked the idea so I tweeked it a bit and decided that each Friday would be my 'day log' day. 

Looking Out My Window....  I see a large pot of mini sunflowers that I can't seem to keep watered enough. They are wilted again this early in the morning! 

I Am Thinking About.... how I am slowly getting back to my normal schedule after a month of busy, busy, busy!

I Am Grateful.... that my visiting children got back home safely after a 'visit to Mama's'.

I Am Writing... need to get back to that novel I am working on. A month-long hiatus! It's a book #2 of the Springtime series.

How I'm Feeling.... more rested, raring to go this morning. Wonder how long that feeling will last?😁

What I'm Reading... I'm 2/3 of the way through The Venice Sketchbook. It's a delightful book and I am enjoying it. 

What I'm Watching.... Jeopardy. Have for years, love it when I know the answer. And, hey, it's helping keep this old mind of mine sharper. Not too sure who I like as host.... just saying.... Alex can't be replaced. 

That's it for this morning..... tootle-doo!

A Date Is A Date!!

Things happen when you finally decide to clean out a drawer (or a closet or behind the couch). 

There in the middle of a bunch of nothing important was this little red book. I'd totally forgotten all about it but sometime after I turned 80, I had ordered it from Amazon.

                                                I thought the name so befitting!   

I want to share one of Judith's poems with all of you.

---------------------------------------------

Fifty Years Later

Each morning we brush side by side in our double-sink bathroom,

And, share Metamucil along with our Multi-grain toast.

We search yet again through the house for our disappeared glasses

So we can read all the bad news in the Times and the Post.

He's 9:45 and I'm 10 at the dermatologist,

Which we'll follow by grocery shopping at Trader Joe's.

Tomorrow we'll sign up for classes in senior Pilates,

Then it's off to Assisted Living to see Cousin Rose.

Together we meet with our broker to get reassurance

That we'll die before there's no money to cover our bills.

Then we meet with our tax accountant to check on our broker.

Then we meet with our lawyer to write a few codicils.

He knows when he goes for his CAT scan that I'll gladly take him.

I know when I go for some blood work he'll come and he'll wait.

These are not like those torrid times on that beach in New Jersey,

But a date IS a date.

Judith Viorst

Announcement - Sequel to "Springtime In Magnolia"

 

I have an announcement to make. 

I once wrote a novel, "Springtime In Magnolia"

Publication date for that novel was 2014.

People who had read my novel started asking me when the sequel was coming out.

                               Writing a book is no easy task. Publishing takes time and effort. 

 

Marketing it yourself is a nightmare. 

I had several chapters already written but I didn't want to go through all that bother to get it ready for sale.

And, then I came up with a plan.

Beginning Sunday May 23rd the sequel will be posted (for free) on blogspot.com

Each Sunday a new chapter will be posted HERE

So, if you have read "Springtime In Magnolia" and enjoyed it

The next book "Summertime in Magnolia" will be available to begin reading Sunday! Hope you enjoy it. 

If you would like to read the first novel it is available on Amazon. 

Hotter Than A Tater!

My Word! 

It's hot... Thank God for air-conditioning. Even at 8 last night, it was too muggy and unpleasant that I could not stay on the balcony more than five minutes. Or maybe I am just spoiled!!

I've been spending a lot of hours every day, as I have for the past 4 months, trying to rework that book I published back in '91 and to add new pictures and stories into the new one. I am shocked that my hands aren't hurting more than they are! Wow! 

I am getting so tickled at Shirley. We've never had a lot of interest alike, like reading, writing, etc. until lately. She has jumped into this project like her pants are on fire! 

She's been editing pictures from long ago, some nearly a century old. All beat up, faded, cracked. And, she's having a blast cleaning them up for the book. She's been researching places in that community, too. What has happened to my daughter!!!

I got the first 24 pages publisher-ready this morning. Oh, so far to go... but, I'll get there. 

On to other things.

I am so tired of there being absolutely nothing to watch on tv.

I even resorted to DVRing an antimated movie and watched it a couple nights ago. 

It was 'Peter Rabbit' and guess what. I really enjoyed it.

You know what they say about when you get old you get your second childhood! hehe.

I'm A Busy Gal

Once upon a time, back in the dark ages... like 1991... I had a book published. It was about the history of the community of Boldo that my husband grew up in. It was well received and I sold a bunch of books. And, then life happened. 

I was taking care of my Mom (10 years of that) then it was followed by Elbert's Alzheimer's (11 years), his cancer, my cancer etc, etc, etc. I said I'd never do another printing of that book. 

And, then, along comes this 'brilliant' idea of mine. I have all this info on that community and when I am gone, if you didn't get one of my books, it will be gone. So, I decided to do a closed group on facebook just for those interested in the history of Boldo. 

And, lordy mercy, help me. It took off like  wildfire. People were asking where they could get a copy of my book and I'd tell them. 'It's out of print'.  

Well, that daughter of mine! She got to poking around, found my old publisher and put in a call to them. They remembered me and she and Mrs. Gregath had a great conversation. 

The bottom line is.....

I am busy retyping the manuscript and revising the book so that it can go to print by the Fall. Like I said, Lordy Mercy, Help me. 

So, if I float off the blogging charts here and there, just know that I am one very busy gal. Hope to check in with you from time to time, though. Don't forget me! 

Soaring through the Air!

Saturday was extra nice. It was the first day in over 2 weeks that I had not had a severe sinus headache. Finally got me some antibiotics!! It's strange going to the dr. over the phone now, just like the 'house calls' of long ago. My dr. was well aware of my springtime infected sinuses so was happy to prescribe some meds for me.

With feeling better I got busy on my computer. There's something about me that makes me get more excited, alert, energized if I have a new project going. After awhile I do tire of most of them but there's just something about starting a new project.

Yesterday I set up a private/closed group on Face Book for people from the community that Elbert and I lived in for 30 years. In 1991 I had a beautiful, hard-bound book published that I had written on the history of that community. It was where my husband and his family grew up. The book is no longer in print and I do still get requests for it. So, I decided I'd share my knowledge of the history of Boldo with those that had like interest. So, that's my new project.

Mid-afternoon I was tired so I plopped down in my recliner and turned on the tv. Oh my gosh, I had forgotten the space launch... and it was just 8 minutes to lift-off, so I enjoyed that.

I remember so well sitting on my sofa in Norfolk, Va. watching the moon shot and landing. In a way it seems like yesterday. But, just look at the progress we have made since those first grainy pictures came through over the tv screen! 

BTW, I am glad we are not paying Russia money now to take our guys up to the space-station. That's plum tacky. 

Because of a big box of James Patterson books being given to Shirley, I have started reading him. I know, I'm slow! Just never had read anything of his. 

The first book 'Now You See Her' I loved and could not put down.

Read 'Target' but wasn't too impressed

And, last night I finished 'Sail', another page-turner. 

I've finally figured out why a book is a page-turner. 

At the end of a lot of chapters in the book, you have to leave the reader with a huge puzzle. What's happening next?

So, you turn the page and read the next chapter.

Maybe I need to incorporate that into the books I write!!

I did a new post on "Our Life on Midway Island" blog.

The LINK is here.

Book or Blog? That is the Question!

I couldn't go to sleep last night!

I was just dozing off when this idea hit my brain and I was done for.

I'd posted a couple weeks ago, on facebook, a post about our living on Midway Island and it caught people's attention. There's not a heck of a whole lot of people who can say they have ever been to Midway, much less lived there.

Living there for 18 months certainly was an opportunity of a lifetime. I just wish I had realized it at the time. But, I was young, busy taking care of three youngsters and to me that island was just sand and birds. Most of my photographs are of the children! Grandmother back home in Alabama was missing her little babies. So, I sent pictures. It never occurred to me that some day I'd wish I'd taken a whole lot more and of other things.

But, there were reasons I didn't. First of all, film cost money and we didn't have much to spare. And, colored film had to be for special occassions.

And, then there was the developing. More money. And, if you made a boo-boo taking a picture. Too bad. It still cost you an arm and a leg. When a roll of film was finished I'd take it down to the exchange and they'd send it to Honolulu for processing. When the prints were done, they would lie there until a plane was headed back toward Midway. It was such a trial.

I heard that one of the wives had set up a dark room in their apartment. So, she developed a lot of my pictures.

But, I've gotten off the path here

.

I thought I ought to write about our life on Midway. Not just little short facebook posts but a whole blog, maybe. Or .... even better.... a book.

Of course, I couldn't go to sleep. What to do? What to do? Not like I don't have a kazillion other projects I need to finish. Oh well. I'll figure it all out.