Letting Go, "Finding Marnie"

My apologies for not posting in a while. It's been a crazy, crazy time for us, and to be honest, the one med I'm now on for various chronic pain conditions is knocking me for a loop.

I am going to be weaning myself off of that medication over time, with my doctor's supervision. I'd rather get the shocks/zaps from the TN over feeling like a bloody zombie. I'm unable to work due to a constant *brain fog*, and my vision is messed up to the point where I am scared to drive - both symptoms are side effects of this medication. I'm not myself, and I HATE it. I want to be able to think without my brain skipping like a broken record. 

This medication has also made the stress of August worse... It magnified everything for me.

The fridge decided to give up the ghost on July 31st. It didn't owe us anything, it was Nanny's old one, and we inherited after she passed away. It was about 20 years old too, and the brand isn't even made nowadays. So we got a new one, although we had to wait a week for it to be delivered.

It's chrome, and I think it's so PRETTY! It seems larger than the old one but I'm not sure why. Probably because there's a lot more room on the door?

The fridge dying we could handle... The next one was pretty awful, mainly for Hubby.

The engine in our dear sweet big car, the 1993 Cadillac Fleetwood, suffered a fatal blow when its cam shaft started going. It was at our mechanic's place (Tim) at the time, so he was able to look things over.

It's not worth getting another engine for her. We may get two more years out of it, five if we don't drive it too much... Since it's Hubby's main vehicle, we decided it was time to let it go and look for a new vehicle.

So far, no luck. Hubby is now using my main car, my itty bitty Focus, as his main vehicle. Yeah. He's being razzed a bit for not driving that 19 footer. LOL

The third and final one was the toughest for all of us......

Last weekend, we noticed something was off with Amber, our kitty. She wasn't eating much, but drinking a lot, and she was unable to control her bum. She was constantly messing on herself and everywhere else.

She deteriorated so fast... One day she was fine, the next, she wasn't. We did our best to help her, but nothing worked. We decided she needed to go to the vet... And I didn't expect her to come home.

Monday, August 20th, 2018... Amber crossed the Rainbow Bridge at 8:55 a.m. in my husband's arms, and he stayed with her for a while afterwards. Our veterinarian thinks she had either liver failure or kidney failure, or a combination of both. (Both will make a cat go downhill in less than a week) He said we did the right thing, any attempts to help her and prolong her life would have made her miserable, and she would have passed away anyway.

Knowing all of this didn't help me at all. For the last 8 years since we adopted her, the last six since Noelle passed away, Amber has been my constant companion... She was always nearby if I needed her - cuddles, a meow, or just seeing her helped me a lot with the anxiety issues and depression. She was *THE* cat that was here the entire time I was writing, editing, getting rejections, and everything else for Stricken. No other cat was here for it. She was my writing supervisor, my beloved writing buddy too.

I started crying over the weekend, spent my birthday on the 19th in tears, and haven't really stopped bawling at all since we realized we may lose Amber. Knowing she's gone and won't be coming home really, really hit me hard. So hard that I said no more cats for a while. (This is really strange for me, because I have *never* been without a cat my entire life)

My poor mom called to wish me a happy birthday and wound up getting a blubbering mess instead of her oldest daughter. I know I worried her, a lot... Mom knows how strongly I bond with my cats, and she knows how much Amber and I loved each other.

We didn't talk about getting a cat much, other than I said I wanted a rescue kitty from the shelter or a foster home (I am a firm believer in saving a life, or more than one), and I wanted all new stuff for the new cat, *IF* we decided to get another one.

Meanwhile, our son was going on about how much he wanted to see Amber... I don't think he fully got that she was gone for good, not until we had to sit him down and explain it to him in detail. This in turn, upset him, because Amber was his buddy too. He'd play on his Wii upstairs and she'd nap on his bed, or sit on his windowsill and watch the birdies and meow at anyone outside. 

He finally started asking, then *nagging* to get another kitty. He missed having one. So did I, but I wanted time to mourn my sweet Amber properly, and to start moving forward.

Friday night was when I realized what was going on with me regarding the medication I'm on for the trigeminal end of things, and I discussed things with Hubby on Saturday morning. 

He told me that I don't seem like myself because I don't have a feline counterpart. Not exactly his words, but that's what it basically comes down to. I need a cat to love, spoil and talk to, and Amber's passing meant I do not have that. He said that we could visit the shelter when I'm ready, and not beforehand.

It was a tough decision... I kept thinking of Amber, and the more I thought of her, the more I cried. 

At the same time, I knew in my heart that's the place we'd find a kitty for us. I wasn't sure when we'd find them yet... Or if I was ready.

Saturday, August 25, 2018: We arrive at S.H.A.I.D. Tree Animal Shelter to visit their cats, unsure if we're going to adopt one or not. I wanted a cat about six months to two years old... Old enough to be big enough so we wouldn't have to kitten proof the house, but young enough to be silly and playful.

Unfortunately the two I had been looking at on their website had already been adopted to loving homes. All of the other cats were either really small kittens, feral, or at least 8 to 10 years old...

Except for one particular fluffball. She is a four year old black and white cat, with an unusual coat. Plus she started meowing the instant she saw us, rubbing her face along the bars of the cage and demanding attention. I put my hand down to her, and she smooched it. Several times. The lady who was helping us, Vicki, said the kitty was brought in by a loving owner who could no longer keep her due to lifestyle changes, and it was done reluctantly. (I don't know the circumstances, I didn't ask) 

This big ball of fur kept talking to us and demanding attention while we were being greeted by the friendlier kittens. One had the runs, and although she was friendly and loved attention, she wasn't ready to be adopted out yet. She wasn't even six weeks old yet. The shelter doesn't like adopting out babies younger than 8 weeks, unless the person adopting will foster them first, and if they're not well, they stay in the shelter until deemed healthy. 

I went into the other room, and met a few other cats, while this particular black and white fluffball kept talking her head off.

Hubby reached down to her, and she started kissing his fingers, and licking them... Which reminded us of our old sweetheart, Birdie. She was a big licker. LOL

We finally asked if I could hold the talking kitty, whose name turned out to be MARNIE. Vicki placed her in my arms, and Marnie instantly settled down, started purring and snuggled in as if to say "MINE!". 

She also gave my son a lot of kisses. 

That sealed it. Within twenty minutes, I was signing the adoption papers, and Marnie was in the carrier, ready to go to her new home. 

Discovering one of the "Kitty TV Portals".

The instant we let her out of the carrier, she did a little exploring, but went upstairs, into my son's bedroom, and pretty much stayed there the entire afternoon. Wherever he went, Marnie followed. She really, really bonded with him first, although she is loving up to Hubby and myself.  I don't think she's stopped purring since we let her out of the carrier. She's unsure of things, but happy to be out of that cage and with people who are spoiling her to bits.

She knows where her food and water are, and the litter box, but so far has either hung out upstairs with our son, or as you see in the photo, on Amber's old perch in front of the kitchen window, by my office. Each time I look over there, I see a really, REALLY fluffy tail.

It looks odd right now, considering Amber was a short hair, and had a skinny tail. Marnie's is ultra fluffy, and almost looks like a skunk's. One of my old school chums, who is a veterinarian out west, told me he thinks she's either part or full Maine Coon Cat. No problems on my end, I love Maine Coons, although I'd be happy if she was just a regular domestic longhair. Seriously, her tail fur is at least 3 to four inches long, so is the fur on her body... It's really soft and silky too. Noelle had soft fur, but had nothing on Marnie. 

I will always love and miss Amber to bits... It's been eight years since Birdie passed, and I still cry over her... BUT it's time to let go and move on. Amber would understand I cannot live without a kitty to love and spoil, and knows how hard life is on a cat without a home. She was a homeless kitten when Nanny brought her home in 2005... She turned out to be a sweetheart, the most laid back cat I've ever met. She will always be my baby, my writing buddy and monitor kitty, but since she's no longer here, we need someone else to fill in the hole she left behind when she passed away. I am still crying over Amber, and I probably will for a while... Grief has no boundaries and no time limit. 

Marnie seems to know we needed her, like she needed someone to love and spoil her. She is always talking to us, always smooching, and never afraid to ask for some love... Which we are happy to give. I needed a cat to love. She needed a home. 

I'll keep everyone posted on how things are going with Marnie. I'm not expecting her to be a writing supervisor or Monitor Kitty - that was Amber. I am expecting a lot of zaniness, and lots of silly revenge for things like leaving her alone all day, Marnie style. 

Life just got really, really interesting. Let's see where we go this time. 

I leave you with one of my new favorites... Thank you Lorrie for introducing me to GODSMACK.... "Under Your Scars".

Crazy Summer

This summer has been interesting so far...

My mom was visiting my aunt and uncle the first week of July, so of course, we went to see her a few times.

My aunt has a pool, and one of my mom's favorite activities is to go swimming. I finally have swimwear that fits me right - well the top does, the bottoms need to be brought in a lot, more on that later! - so we went into the pool with her.

The one evening wasn't so bad, except the mosquitoes were out something fierce. We were in for about half an hour or so before we decided it was enough.

That Saturday afternoon, though............

Stupid me forgot to put on waterproof sunblock or wear a t-shirt like I normally do. It was cloudy, and in my haste to get there on time, I forgot to pack something.

I wound up regretting it later that evening. We had spent an entire hour in the pool and of course, me without protection from the sun meant fried skin. I had a horrible sunburn that went from the top part of my back, around to cover both shoulders, the nape of my neck and the top of my boobs.

I was so sore I was in tears. But, that was my own stupidity.

Thank heavens for a certain kind of skin cream and aloe vera gel. Between that and putting cold compresses on the burned areas, it took away most of the pain and I was able to move without wanting to cry.

It took an entire week to heal enough to start peeling, after it blistered. Yeah, it was a really bad one. The worst one I've had since my early 20s. Normally I'm so darn careful because sunburns hurt like merry old hell, and I don't tan, I fry. Think redder than a cooked lobster after 20 minutes or less in the sun. Thank you Scandinavian genes....

In other news, I've been trying to get some work done on "Dream On" and other manuscripts I have saved on the portable hard drive. I wouldn't mind getting at least another standalone story published somehow sometime soon, and since none of the finished drafts are up to publishing standards period, I have a lot of work ahead of me.

Things would be a lot smoother if I was using my desktop system though...

A couple of weeks ago, I noticed things were slow, and the computer wasn't working right at all. I thought it was a virus, so I set it aside while Son and I went to see my mom.

Let's just say I had a hell of a time getting it shut down once we got home again.

When I went to turn it back on to do some diagnostics, Windows wouldn't load, and it would not let me into the Boot Menu.

This led me to wondering if it was a fault in the hard drive's software itself, not a virus. Like a few files got corrupted somehow somewhere along the way and it messed up the entire hard drive.

It finally tried a repair diagnostic, and I let it go.

Six hours later, I wound up pulling the plug.

Diagnosis: Full system failure, due to a faulty hard drive.

In other words, the hardware itself is no good. Whatever was on that drive is now gone for good, what wasn't saved that is, and that wasn't much... Just a few things I was messing around with on GIMP and a few downloaded photos for various things (desktops) that I got back.

I've been using an Acer laptop a friend of mine gave me a couple of years ago... It was originally set up for VISTA, but now has Windows 7 on it. It's a gorgeous computer. My main problems with it is that it has only 1 GB of RAM and Office 7 on it... I'm used to 8 GB of RAM and Office 2013... And a regular keyboard, not the flat keys on a laptop keyboard.

So...... What's going on with the desktop?

Nothing much right now. I do have a hard drive that works - it's from my old Acer computer, the one that decided it was going to keep frying video cards after the one on the motherboard got cooked during a power outage. That one was retired in 2013, and I purchased the Windows 8.1 computer then. It's only a 160 GB drive - compared to the 1 TB drive that was originally in the current desktop system - but it will do for now... I can easily run things from the portable hard drive if needed.

The drive has VISTA on it - that's what I was using the last year or so I was using the Acer system - so it needs to be rebuilt from the OS up, with  Windows 8.1.

I have a copy of that on disk, BUT there's a problem...

It has a different file system formatted on it. Windows 8.1 needs a GPT file system, while VISTA has a completely different one. Now this drive IS compatible with Windows 8.1, so I'm fine there. I just need to talk to a tech about how to format it... Which I'll be doing early next week. Or I hope to do it at least. Things have been so crazy the last while with everything else going on, I'm lucky to remember to get dressed every morning.

So until things are straightened out with the desktop system, I'll be broadcasting to all of you via the laptop, or if you follow my Facebook Fan Page (link to the left of the blog entries!) via my smartphone as well.

It's times like this that I'm grateful I'm so damn meticulous - (anal?) - about backing up my manuscripts and pretty much everything else on my computer... One never knows when something is going to die on them.

I will be upgrading a few things once this stupid computer is rebuilt... Office 2016, anyone? Drool!!!

Quick note about my wellness journey:

I am up to walking a full MILE each time I hit the track! (6 1/3 laps, or 1.6 km) I feel great! It takes me about 20 minutes to do the entire thing, and that's not too darn shabby. I always carry my phone with me, to listen to music while I'm zipping around, and to keep track of my time each lap on the clock app. It keeps me motivated to keep going!

And...

I was weighed about 2 weeks ago...

I'm DOWN ANOTHER THREE POUNDS! *happy dance*

I can tell I am still shrinking, because my jeans are getting looser, and my capris almost fell down the other day when I reached up to get something from a shelf in the bathroom.

I am feeling soooooo much better than I did even two months ago. I feel like myself again.

I am feeling so much like myself that I even went bowling with the guys AFTER I did my laps at the track! I only played 2 strings compared to their 3 but it was still bowling, and tons of fun.

It wore me out but it was worth it.

I hope all of you are having an amazing summer.... And if you are an author like I am, you do not have the hardware problems I've been having. It stinks!

And please, don't be stupid like I was and get a sunburn folks. It wasn't fun!

I leave you with some photos of Crescent Beach.... Have a great weekend everyone!

Moonlight hitting the water.

Seagull!

High tide... It's so high that you can't take your car on the beach at all without it getting soaked by salt water!

Wild pink rose - my favorite flower!

Information about the birds of Crescent Beach.

A prop job plane flying low over the beach and the LaHave Islands.

The government wharf on Bush Island.

One of the many jellyfish we see washed up on shore on the beach, this happens often.

This greeted me when I came downstairs this morning... Hello MONITOR KITTEH!

Sesquicentennial

HAPPY 150th BIRTHDAY, CANADA!

(Bonne Fete, Canada!)

Sesquicentennial means 150th anniversary. Since my beloved nation is 150 years young today, I thought it would work as a blog title.

Things have been hectic with the end of the school year and just life in general. 

Son's last day of school was yesterday, and I didn't know that they had an awards ceremony for students in grades 5 through 8 who excelled in academics and sports during the closing. 

I only found out when Son's grade six teacher called me and invited me to attend.

You see, my son got an award yesterday, Greatest Improvement Overall for his class. He, along with a few of his pals from grades six, seven and eight, got the awards because they went from struggling to doing an amazing job in their studies. 

When Son's name was called, he didn't walk to the stage like every other student - he RAN! He was so excited that he was jumping up and down and hugging a lot of his fellow winners. 

He won a medal with the school emblem on it. It is gorgeous, and it'll be hanging in his room over his bed when we get around to putting it there. 

I'm really proud of him. His grade six teacher said he's a brilliant kid, he just needs a little guidance and a reminder now and then... He was also a joy to teach and have in her classroom this year. 

I've learned that exams are only given to Grades 8s, 10s, and 12s... So he's safe for another year! (THANK HEAVENS!)

He's now home for the summer, and we're making plans to do a few things. He wants to go swimming at the lifestyle centre, play video games at home, as well as go bowling in town, and take the occasional day trip.

I am still going to the track, but not as frequently as I would like. Son doesn't like the walking bit of it, so it's best I go without him. I am getting faster at doing a km, and I've even upped the laps to five (1250 m) a few times. I'm slowly getting more and more used to it. 

I'm not as heavy as I thought... I was weighed during an appointment with the centre that helps people who have that lifelong condition and I'm about 30 pounds less than expected. I still have a long way to go, but the amount I want to lose seems reasonable right now... It's a lot but it IS possible!

As for the writing, I'm not going to write at all this summer. I've decided that I have to clean up Dream On before I go near Fourteen and its rounds of cleaning, then start writing it again. I'm thinking a full rewrite may be needed. 

I don't know, I'll just have to see how I feel in September, or when Dream On is finally in the hands of my beta team. 

I may not post a lot over the next few weeks - real life and summertime fun with my family will probably dominate July anyway, if not August.

I wish all of you an amazing summer... Don't forget to wear sunblock if you're going outside a lot!

In the spirit of the day, I leave you with a song by one of my favorite Canadian bands, RUSH.... CLOSER TO THE HEART.

The Final Countdown...

It's the final countdown...

Countdown to summer - two days away - countdown to Father's Day - Tomorrow, and lastly, the countdown to Son's last day in Grade Five....

Which also means his last day in Elementary school.

Thursday. Thursday, June 23rd is the last day Son will be an elementary school student, he will be graduating from the little school into Junior High and the "Big School" on June 29th. 

The countdown to saying goodbye to his elementary school autism team has begun too.

Some members like Cathy from the Autism Centre will be traveling with us to the next level, so will Barb from Assistive Technology, but we will leave his current Resource Teacher, the Vice Principal, and lastly his Teacher's Aide behind as he takes a giant leap from one level to the next. 

I had my first Transition Meeting with the Grade Six team on June 7th... They all seem like great people and some of them can not wait to get Son in their class! The Junior High Resource Teacher is very excited to be teaching Son this coming fall, and can't wait for summer to get over. She's already making plans for his time with her, and even has ideas on ways to help him if he's in the middle of a "stuck" episode (where he can't move on to the next activity), and get him even more interested in scholar pursuits. She's high energy, which is what Son needs. 

I hadn't met the Grade Six teachers yet but I like them. One even asked me if we can get some instrumental heavy metal songs for his reading time, because she puts "yoga music" to help the kids concentrate on their reading... Which would set Son off. He HATES anything other than heavy metal and rock - yes, that is MY influence, OOPS! (NOT!) -  so we're now looking at instrumental pieces by Disturbed and other bands he likes so he can listen to it on his school tablet with the ear phones and not have to worry about him taking a meltdown.

What really made me happy was meeting one of the TA's for Grade Six. She's a former school mate of mine! She was a year ahead of me in school, but her brother and I were in the same grade from Primary upwards... And BOTH of her parents taught me. Her mom was my grade 4 teacher, and her dad was my grade 5 teacher. I loved both of them, and they are two of my favorite all time teachers to this day. I wish either or both of them were still teaching now, so there was a chance Son would be lucky enough to be in one of their classes........... It was a relief knowing I already know one of the TAs somewhat (it's been years since I saw her, but we did recognize each other!).... That reassures me Son is in AWESOME hands, even though Mrs. T won't be with him next year - she helps out with Elementary students only (poo! :( )... However, he's allowed visiting her once in a while at the Little School, same goes for all of his old teachers over there. 

Orientation night for ALL parents and students entering the junior high - grade six for our school, grade 7 for the other feeder schools - was on June 13th. We didn't go on the tour because Son already knows where most things are over at the big school - he takes Music, sometimes Gym class, and eats lunch in the Cafeteria there - and we will be getting a personalized tour the day before school opens in September. It was the Resource Teacher's idea, and I'm glad she asked about it, because if she hadn't, I was going to. LOL 

As for Son, he's pretty excited about moving forward... Although I don't think it's really sunk in to his brain what's really going on this coming fall just yet. I don't think it will until he's actually *there* in the classroom on the first day of school, in a new building with new teachers, a new TA, and new faces from the Grade 7 wing staring back at him. I think it'll sink in then and we'll have a few really rough spots.

I hope not. I want him to enjoy his school years. I hated mine, because I was the fat girl and bullied from Primary to my graduating year.

I'm just grateful he's only moving from one building to another on the same campus. When I started junior high - ironically at the same school complex, but another building, the current building was built in 1997, I graduated into high school in the late 80s - I had been at one of the feeder schools, and my class was only 30 students, compared to the 50 plus that had come from the elementary end of the complex. 

He already knows the majority of students that will be in Junior High this coming fall, thank heavens.... Our neighbor's daughter will be there, she's in Grade 8 this coming year, she and her friends were always good with Son, probably because they knew he needed help with some things, and they are great kids. I thank my lucky star that she's still there, and will be for Son's first two years of Junior high.

Yeah, busy times. I hope things go smoothly. Wish us luck! :) 

So........ I've been doing more work on an older manuscript that was started a couple of years ago, but never finished. "Away to Me" kind of took over the brain halfway through writing this one manuscript, so it was set aside. 

Although it's been on my mind a LOT, I really didn't think I'd ever finish it. Well, I've looked at it, did a lot of revisions, and I'm considering MORE once school starts up again in the fall. I may rewrite it - or the premise of it at least - or I may leave it as is but just edit and do a LOT of revisions and polishing to get it "just right". 

Peapod and I have been discussing things in regard to it, and although I'm not "overcome" by this one again, just looking at it is good enough for me. It goes to show I'm not dead in the water with the writing, and it shows that maybe "Away to Me" and "Hearts Remembering" will not be the only stories I write. I hope I can write again anyway..... If not, I may wind up shooting someone..... 

It's also countdown to "TWO YEARS SMOKE FREE"... Today marks ONE YEAR, ELEVEN MONTHS SMOKE FREE! :) My reward is going to see LIVE MUSIC thanks to Troubled Waters, they are holding an event in town again on the 24th. It's a release party for Flesh Cauldron's album "Lightening Leather", and it features them, WHOM GODS DESTROY and other local metal bands. 

Come on, y'all KNOW I can't resist live metal music, especially if Whom Gods Destroy is playing! LOL 

Can't wait!

Have a great weekend everyone! I leave you with photos of Amber, lazying in the sunlight on top of my monitor. 

*waves* 

Summer 2015, Round One...

First of all, Congrats to the Chicago Blackhawks on winning the Stanley Cup again this year!

And before anyone asks, no, I'd rather NOT talk about my Leafs. Ugh. (Can I shoot their former GM now or later??? GAH!!)

Secondly, summer vacation is HERE and Son will be going into Grade 5 with flying colors. Again, his report card was all As and Bs... minus a C in French. He despises speaking or hearing any language other than our mother tongue of English.

I've been learning a few Mi'kMaq words and throwing them at him sometimes, just for something to do. I get screamed at and a huge "I SPEAK ENGLISH!" screamed in my ear.

The ringing it causes is worth it though, just to get Son going... *looks innocent*

Well, this summer, it's official: I have no stories in progress so I'm not going batty for that reason. "Hearts Remembering" is in stasis again, after a few runs through, and my (now smaller) beta team will be getting it sometime soon, preferably before August 1 if I can do it. I just haven't been up to working the last while, that's why....

I owe all of my followers, family, friends and fans a huge apology for not posting any entries for the last three months.

You see, I've been very ill the last while.

So ill that one of the trips to a specialist saw me in bed, flat on my back and in full body agony for two days.

I've been foggy, feeling nauseated, weak, and a whole lot of other things I won't mention publicly since April, and it's only starting to improve now. I'm still not there by a long shot but I will be, sometime before the end of the year, or so I'm hoping!

It started out with a bad round of anemia - which I'm happy to say is gone! - and led into me finding out I had turned a huge corner and now have a lifelong condition that needs constant monitoring. It's not anything like cancer or something that serious, it's a condition that I had a 50-50 chance of getting thanks to a parent having it, and I was the unlucky one out of the three to have it. It's not a really big deal, once I get things under control. Unlike my parent, mine was diagnosed within six months of it starting, so with a lot of work, I should have a good long life after my diagnosis. It's just a matter of time, getting things balanced just so, and keeping it that way.

So far, so good, although the balance hasn't been reached yet. I'm getting there though! One day at a time. I've lost 15 pounds already - maybe more, I will know for sure at my next visit with our family doctor (I love her!) - and I've noticed my jeans are really starting to hang on me. My feet are not as swollen as they were before my diagnosis, I'm not retaining a lot of water because I've cut out a lot of salt in my diet, both via cutting out processed foods as well as adding a lot of salt to my homemade stuff, and I'm feeling a little more brighter and not as likely to shoot someone.

I do have STRICT orders to cut anything that stresses me out of my life - temporary or permanently - because a lot of stress will aggravate my condition. Some stress is expected but in some cases, it's perfectly avoidable, especially when one is surrounded by narcissistic, stupid and sneaky jerks.

Let's just say if I don't have you blocked in FB or other spots, I still care and there's a chance I will talk to you again in time.

That said, if I have you blocked anywhere, I'm indifferent and done with you permanently... So please, get over yourself, stop pretending I'm "lurking, watching and reading" everything you do, and face the fact I'm DONE and couldn't care less what you're doing or if you've found something new to play the victim about.

Oh, wait, that's right, people I've blocked can't face the truth.

Their fragile little egos would have a breakdown if they saw it.

*tsk* My bad.

I'm now wondering what the reactions would have been if I still hung out in certain spots.

I'm betting I'd be treated like I was still perfectly healthy, despite all of the evidence proving otherwise... And I would have been expected to do things ALONE again like I was expected for three days last summer this time... except I'm thinking this time around, it would have been a much, MUCH longer duration, out of spite... All because I WAS SICK and the others couldn't handle it, just like they couldn't last year when things were screwy after that hurricane hit us last year... Not that I fell for it. They can deny it all they want but the timing was just too "conveeeeeenient" for it to be as they claimed it was.

I wish people would stop thinking I'm stupid or naive, cause I'm really not.

You can't fool someone who has already been fooled like that before, because they can smell it a thousand miles away.

Anyway................ Have a wonderful week everyone! I'll update when things start picking up here again, possibly halfway through summer vacation.

Only 8 1/2 weeks to go until school starts in my district. Son can't wait.

Me, I'm fine having him home! :)

Closing in on Summer Writing Time...

Progress in Ten is starting to pick up speed a little, even with idiots abound in certain spots that allow trolls and jerks to flourish. (NOT saying where though, just glad it's not any forums I frequent!)

This week had two writing days... Wednesday and of course, today. I didn't set a goal for the entire week, I wound up setting a goal of 1500 for each day, just to change things up a bit. I'm still not fully absorbed by this story yet, so I'm playing it safe and keeping the daily/weekly goals sort of minimized for now.

Wednesday was over 2200 words, and I was happy to get it. I was running into more speed bumps with some of it than I can count, but determinedly pushed myself over each of them and kept going.

Today's word count was slightly higher, at 2445 words, which isn't bad considering it's Friday the 13th combined with a full moon, and Mercury Retrograde on top of it. Idiots galore is an understatement! (GEEZ!)

So if anyone was hoping to deliberately throw me off the writing curve, or hoping to see me not write for some stupid and nasty reason, they're going to be sorely disappointed. *SMUG GRIN*

I'm now partway into Chapter 5, and getting into stuff that's making me think it's probably time to put password protection onto the file - Son knows how to use the computer, probably better than I do, and I'm the family's computer tech! *THUD!*

For the record, the main characters haven't gotten to "that" point yet, but this story seems to be flowing more toward the "adult" stuff being in it from the very start, unlike my other manuscripts. What it is and other things are "top secret" until this one's published. *NYAH*

Oh well, gotta change it up to keep my writing fresh and exciting, right? *WINK!*

And in other news, I found out when schools start in my district this coming fall. It's September 4th, so it looks like "Away to Me" will be coming out of stasis on that day - unless I'm so deep into Ten that I don't want to set it aside for a day or so.

We'll just have to see how it goes, I guess. I will have a month to get it ready for the Alpha and Betas when it comes out of stasis, so I'll have plenty of time to get moving on that round of edits.

Speaking of summer........

Yesterday, Hubby and I took a drive along the shore, to one of our favorite spots.

It's a 1.7 km (one mile) long beach named Crescent Beach. I am not sure, but I think it was named after its shape. It's like a half moon, or crescent, and loops northward from west to southward on the eastern end, poking out into the Atlantic, and the road between it and the salt water marsh to the north is used to connect the LaHave Islands to the mainland.

It's one of my old childhood haunts. My family and I were at that beach a lot when I was a child, and I still love it down there to this day.

Hubby and I parked in one of the spots for that purpose on the back side of the dunes, climbed over a lot of boulders, and hit the beach. I took over 200 photos, a few videos and wound up uploading almost 150 of them to Facebook, along with five of the videos.

Here's a sample of some of the photos:

Facing eastward, toward the LaHave Islands.

Facing west, toward Petite Riviere and West Dublin.

Periwinkles on rocks at the east end of the beach.

At the east end of the beach, facing the open ocean.

East end of Crescent Beach.

Here's a video from down there, just waves hitting the shore. So peaceful!

And another one, while facing the LaHave Islands, eastward.

And look, there's a beach bum!

((Yes, this is really me!))

I hope you enjoyed the photos and videos of one of my favorite spots in the world.

Have a fantastic weekend, everyone!

A Look Ahead to Summer 2014...

Even though it doesn't feel like it in my area, summer vacation will soon be upon us, and that means the writing will be put on the back burner until school starts again in September.

For the first time in two years, since 2011, I will not have a manuscript waiting to be finished over summer vacation.

It's official: Eleven's first draft will be done before June 20, just as I had hoped.

I'm not sure if it will be finished this week or next week though. It all depends on various factors - like if I can get my brain to concentrate on just writing instead of editing while writing, and real life stuff - and if I can get Chapters 16 and 17 to go the way I want them to. I'm at the most intense part of the story at the moment and sometimes those take me a little longer to write and get up to par for a rough draft or first draft.

When Eleven's first draft is finished, I will be taking at least one or two days that would have been "writing days" to go over it with a fine toothed comb, to check for errors, compress a few things and to add in anything I may have missed.

After that's done, it will go into the first round of stasis, and will stay there all summer. I will reopen it on my first "writing day" after school starts in September and do another round of edits before it goes into stasis, round two. When round two is over, Sandra and my betas get their paws on it.

So, I need a few projects to keep me busy over the summer, once Eleven is in stasis and the full blown "I have finished my latest manuscript and have nothing to work on/write! squirrel on speed mode" settles in.

One project that's been driving me nuts is Ten. It was started before I even had Eleven's idea, and I would like to try to finish it. I'm probably going to go over all of its parts, try to see what's wrong with it and correct it, if I have to because I can't get back into it. I wasn't really "in" to that story anyway, so that could be why Eleven happened to take over once I got its initial idea. If I have to, I will do a complete revamp on how the two mains meet and get to know each other. It's something I'd rather not do, but it could be necessary for me to finish its first draft. Not sure if this one will be published sometime even if it is finished, but we'll see.

Another thing I'm planning on doing is more photography. I suck at it, but practice makes better, right? I want some new, original photographs for my sites, and for a friend of mine, if she wants me to do some more for her.

I've also been thinking about looking through my "dead manuscripts" and seeing if any of them may be salvageable. If they're not at this time (that can change as I hone the writing skills), I may "steal" ideas from their ideas files for another project, like Ten for example. I've already stolen one from one in that folder for Eleven, and it works pretty darn good in that manuscript. I was going to use the idea for Ten, but went in another direction instead with those characters and their personalities. This idea fits Eleven a lot better.

I have an idea for a new story waiting in the wings... It's one I thought of two weeks ago, and although I haven't done anything other than jot down the initial idea for it, I may start mapping it out over the summer... Searching for character names, figuring out their ages, their personalities, where the bulk of the story is going to take place, and all of the "fun stuff" one has to do in order to prepare to write a story. I can do that easily with both guys home. All I have to do is plug in the earbuds and crank up the music, and I will be set. It's not like actual writing so it doesn't need my full concentration or complete silence, thank the stars!

The question is, will I get into that one or not? I honestly don't know. I never know if a story is going to consume my mind like "No Regrets", "Family Portraits" and Eleven had when I was writing them. It's hit or miss with me, and I guess I just got lucky with those three particular manuscripts. What story I'll finish next is anyone's guess, and it could be another year or more before I find the right one, or the right one finds me. I hope I have at least one more in me, because I want to continue writing, even if I never get published.

And if any of those projects do not keep me busy, there's always going over "No Regrets" and getting that story's revamp going full tilt. That is going to take me a long time to do, because I will be working on it only until I get into a new story, whenever that will be, and when Eleven isn't in stasis or being looked at by the betas.

I also have to consult with my best friend on that one about certain things, and hopefully we'll be able to start talking about it sometime this coming fall or winter. She knows my style, knows what I want to keep in that manuscript, and is one heck of a tough taskmaster when it comes to getting everything perfect. She and I will probably clean up Eleven first so that's ready for publishers' eyes (read: to reject!) sometime early next year, then get cracking on "No Regrets" and eventually, "Family Portraits" in between me writing other stories and the pair of us along with the rest of my betas cleaning up anything else I write.

It looks like I'll have plenty to keep me busy and AWAY from Eleven's file this summer once it goes into stasis for the first time. I just hope that when this story's first draft is finished and finally put away for those two months, that I don't completely lose it like I did when No Regrets was in its first stasis cycle. Oh, I was sooooooooooooooo bad............ Maybe the fact that Eleven took only a few months between its conception date and putting "THE END" into its first draft file will help. I had the characters from No Regrets living in my brain for over 2 years after its idea came to me, and for another full year after that, while I was writing its sequel (Family Portraits)... That could be a factor to why I went so loopy-doopy after the duology was finished, after all.

I just hope I don't chomp on the monitor TOO much this summer... Of course, not having a manuscript waiting to be finished may turn out to be a good thing in that respect!

Have a great week everyone!