Yeah, it’s New Year’s Eve here still, but it’s time for an update, I think. Please excuse my tone; I’m feeling really down at the moment. 2024 was painful, in more ways than one. I had surgery in March to remove all the reproductive plumbing (growing fibroids had filled the unused spaces and were clinging on the outside.) Then I loom knitted two really nice afghans within four months. One was a commission from my mother-in-law and the other was…
In about twelve hours it will be official: Hubby and I will be well on our way to becoming empty-nesters. The Girl and Son #2 have been occupying the other two bedrooms since our move here in 2000. (Son #1 moved out for university and never looked back. He now returns for short visits.) They are both adults, well past the age that Hubby and I were when we married. A few months ago, the Girl rescued a mama cat…
It’s autumn, my favorite time of year. The temperatures are cooler; the trees are slowly changing color. Today, my husband and youngest son are taking the air conditioners out of the windows. I’ve brought in my long pants. I’ve lost more weight since last fall and some of my jeans are going to Goodwill soon. NaNoWriMo is next month and I’m one of three Municipal Liaisons for our region. For once, I have a basic plan for my writing. Right…
…or at least editing. Son #2 has finally achieved another level of adulthood: a driver’s license and a car of his own. This means the Girl doesn’t have to take him to work for 4 a.m. and I don’t have to pick him up in the early afternoon. It also means the Hubby can take our car more often instead of waiting for the bus. With COVID-19 still rampaging through the country and not being eligible for a vaccine (yet),…
Just found out today that An Archive of Our Own (or AO3 for short) has won a Hugo Award for “Best Related Work”. Yes, the entire site won! And since I post there, I share in the award! I would love a little lapel pin reproduction of the Hugo Award rocket to commemorate the win. In other news, writing has been slow to non-existent lately. I’m not sure why; I’m still getting ideas but I’m having trouble putting my butt…
Uh … yeah. I’ve done some more fiddling with the plot, removing the entire inn sequence—though the inn itself may return in a later chapter. Some of the characters have had their functions and family relationships reworked and I’ve rewritten what is sort of a prologue, even though I understand that many agents don’t like prologues at all. I just feel it’s really important to the plot for this information to come out at the beginning, especially as it’s so…
Part of last night’s conversation was in response to Boy #2’s suggestion that we watch The Scarlet Pimpernel (Anthony Andrews, Jane Seymour, and Ian McKellan, 1982). We finally bought a DVD version of this because our taped-from-my-parents’-TV VHS copy died. Hubby led off the discussion on “fictional gentlemen adventurers with secret identities”, with an eye to finding out if there was one older than Sir Percy Blakeney. I mean, the Baroness D’Orczy wrote The Scarlet Pimpernel back in 1903. There…
Within just a day, I’ve had the pleasure of hauling out my Thunderbirds knowledge (with all the attendant books and other paraphernalia) to help a couple of fellow fanfic writers and personal friends. It was certainly fun, especially all the stuff about Alan Tracy’s educational background. Add to this my posting the first chapter of one of my short stories (Burning Muses) at AO3 and uploading a new post to my RP, and I’m full of Thunderbirds at the moment….
Well, the Hubby is getting better, if you don’t count his cold. Two of the cats, Tika and Cotton, have been to see the vet (finally!) and now have been dewormed and given shots for their itchy skin (and flea treatment, as well). Boy #2 has been busy. He won his second basketball game 16-10 and was very happy. He also got a special t-shirt for scoring Advanced on the state achievement test last spring (one of five in his school to…
We’ve hardly had any trick or treaters come to our door tonight and we bought lots and lots of candy to give out. I’m afraid that the kids will be taking chocolate in their lunches for the next two weeks! For the first time, we let the boys go out trick or treating. Boy #1 went out dressed like a mailman (surprise, surprise!) and Boy #2 went as a cowboy, wearing the hat and guns he got in New Mexico. …