It's halfway through the year and I don't have much to show for it. And last week didn't help.
I thought it would be the week when I finally had a fire lit under my ass, but no. I did read a post by another author who's having a tough time of it this year, so yeah, it's a thing, but knowing I'm not alone doesn't help.
The SCIU sale ended with a whimper. No more sales, no residual page reads. So, yeah, 27.11 sales for that sale. I have to get something set up for July, but I have no clue what.
I did read a lot. And some of it was pretty good stuff.
Let's not talk about exercise and weight, eh? I only did 3 out of 7 days. Weight still holding at 179. I know I have to do something different and more of it (or less of it when it comes to eating) if I want to see a change on the scale. I just can't seem to motivate myself to do what needs to be done. On the upside, walking the loop seems to be getting a mite easier, so maybe I'll add some mileage to that this week. You know, something like walk the loop (1.1 miles) and then keep going past the house to start the loop again, then turn around. :shrug: Maybe I'll try starting my dancing thing up again.
Eating my elephants has obviously not been happening lately. I really need to get back in that mindset.
Ugh, the heat has hit SW MO. With popcorn storms. But Hubs did manage to get the yard sprayed for ticks. Yay. I wish the spray did more for flying biting things, but I'm content if it knocks down the ticks. Man, a big flying biting thing slipped into the house on Friday. Looked like a housefly on steroids. Big, loud, fast, ugly motherfucker. You should've seen us chasing this damn thing around the house with fly swatters. Managed to trap it in the office and then managed to get it out into the smoking porch where Hubs dispatched it most heartily. Turns out it was a black horsefly. Eww.
Not a lot of baking last week... cuz, heat... but I did get another batch of oatmeal cookies made. And I made a BBQ pork tenderloin in the crockpot. It turned out excellent. I might make pizza today. Depends on how hot I feel this afternoon.
The baby deer are eating solid food now, and supplementing with milk still. We've determined we have two sets of twins - one by a white-legged doe and one by a brown-legged doe - and two singles. So, right now, we're saying six for sure. Yay!
And I think that's it for me this week. How did things go in your week last week?
Sunday, June 30, 2019
Saturday, June 29, 2019
Saturday Reading Wrap-up - 6/29/19
Good morning! It was a pretty good reading week even if I did have some DNFs.
It was also a good week for picking up some new ebooks. I got five new ones - a historical mystery, a MG fantasy, an UF, a suspense, and a mystery. Add that to the two I still have left (mystery and post-apocalyptic UF) to read from before - so seven.
Books read:
60) The Predator and the Prey by KC Sivils(6/26/19) - SF Suspense*# - 5 stars. New to me and kind of underappreciated. Got this for free off the Book Adrenaline newsletter.
Review: "What an awesome story. Sure, it had some editing and formatting issues, but I wasn't going to let that stop me from an entertaining read. Sullivan kicks ass. The supporting good characters are all interesting, sympathetic people. Of course, the villains are particularly slimy and vile. And of course, it ends well with the central plot wrapped up. There are still threads that need tying up, though. Onward to the sequel!"
59) The Snake by Mickey Spillane (6/23/19) - Hard-boiled Crime - 5 stars. It's Mickey Spillane. Duh. I've had this one for years. No clue what I paid for it.
No Review.
58) Murder in the Forbidden City by Amanda Roberts (6/22/19) - Mystery* - 5 stars. New to me, but not underappreciated. Got this for free off the Book Gorilla newsletter.
Review: "An interesting look into 19th century China and its Imperial Court with what seemed like more updated language for more modern readers. Plus, it had an intriguing mystery with plenty of twists and a whodunnit I didn't see coming. Good stuff. The hint of romance was surprising, but cool. Definitely worth a read. I'm glad I picked this one up. It was a refreshingly different read while still feeding my love of mysteries."
DNF:
6/24/19 - Mystery. Could've used a kind editor to stop them from constantly naming characters "Did you hear what I said, Mary?" "Yes, John." "Well then, Mary, I suggest listen to our friend, Paul." "I agree with John." "Oh, shut up, Paul." I understand that in certain circles, dialogue tags are verboten, but I think they might be preferable to the above. I tried ignoring it because the premise seemed sound, but I ultimately gave up. Free.
6/23/19 - Fantasy. Meh. The beginning seemed interesting, if too much like a few other fantasies I've read, but then the MC meets a dude on the road who seems to want to give the entire backstory of the world in one sitting. I got bored and wandered off. Free.
Currently reading...a courtroom thriller I've had since the 20th. I haven't read one of these in a while and while this is good, it's not so much thrilling as suspenseful so far. We'll see if it gets thrilling later.
And that's all for me this week. How was your reading week?
It was also a good week for picking up some new ebooks. I got five new ones - a historical mystery, a MG fantasy, an UF, a suspense, and a mystery. Add that to the two I still have left (mystery and post-apocalyptic UF) to read from before - so seven.
Books read:
60) The Predator and the Prey by KC Sivils(6/26/19) - SF Suspense*# - 5 stars. New to me and kind of underappreciated. Got this for free off the Book Adrenaline newsletter.
Review: "What an awesome story. Sure, it had some editing and formatting issues, but I wasn't going to let that stop me from an entertaining read. Sullivan kicks ass. The supporting good characters are all interesting, sympathetic people. Of course, the villains are particularly slimy and vile. And of course, it ends well with the central plot wrapped up. There are still threads that need tying up, though. Onward to the sequel!"
59) The Snake by Mickey Spillane (6/23/19) - Hard-boiled Crime - 5 stars. It's Mickey Spillane. Duh. I've had this one for years. No clue what I paid for it.
No Review.
58) Murder in the Forbidden City by Amanda Roberts (6/22/19) - Mystery* - 5 stars. New to me, but not underappreciated. Got this for free off the Book Gorilla newsletter.
Review: "An interesting look into 19th century China and its Imperial Court with what seemed like more updated language for more modern readers. Plus, it had an intriguing mystery with plenty of twists and a whodunnit I didn't see coming. Good stuff. The hint of romance was surprising, but cool. Definitely worth a read. I'm glad I picked this one up. It was a refreshingly different read while still feeding my love of mysteries."
DNF:
6/24/19 - Mystery. Could've used a kind editor to stop them from constantly naming characters "Did you hear what I said, Mary?" "Yes, John." "Well then, Mary, I suggest listen to our friend, Paul." "I agree with John." "Oh, shut up, Paul." I understand that in certain circles, dialogue tags are verboten, but I think they might be preferable to the above. I tried ignoring it because the premise seemed sound, but I ultimately gave up. Free.
6/23/19 - Fantasy. Meh. The beginning seemed interesting, if too much like a few other fantasies I've read, but then the MC meets a dude on the road who seems to want to give the entire backstory of the world in one sitting. I got bored and wandered off. Free.
Currently reading...a courtroom thriller I've had since the 20th. I haven't read one of these in a while and while this is good, it's not so much thrilling as suspenseful so far. We'll see if it gets thrilling later.
And that's all for me this week. How was your reading week?
Thursday, June 27, 2019
Thursday This n That
This weekend is the weekend before Independence Day. I expect the fireworks to start tonight and continue every night through like the 8th. Lucky for me I figured out the key to sleeping through fireworks - reminding myself that they are no worse than thunder and I sleep through thunder all the time. A plus this year - it's been super wet so no worries about some numbnuts starting the neighborhood on fire.
Speaking of wet, yesterday a storm stalled just north and a little west of here. I'm hearing it dumped like 6 inches of rain in a short period of time. This explains why my favorite animal shelter was showing pictures this morning of their flooded property. (The animals are all safe and fine.)
I got a little rant-tastic Tuesday evening (posted to OTB yesterday). It was actually quite cathartic. And I'm back to mellow me again.
Tonight is the big park meeting wherein the parks people will be looking for input on whether to keep the park open and continue to maintain it, or shut it down entirely and let it fall to ruin like a couple other parks in the area. We're still on the fence about whether to go. On the one hand, we'd like it maintained because people are pigs and without someone monitoring the park, people will trash it and it'll stay trashed. On the other hand, we're hermits and would rather not mingle with a few dozen of the locals - especially if nothing we say will make any difference. I'm just hoping that if they close it, they don't lock the gates. It's a great place to fish and it's the only one around here with a bathroom. If we go, I'll say something about it during Sunday's update post.
I didn't bother watching 'Dem Debate Day 1' last night. From what I'm seeing online, it was pretty much what I figured it was going to be - bashing Trump and competing to see who can offer the most free stuff to voters. I mean, that's pretty much their whole platform - 'Trump Bad. Get Free Stuff Here.' Personally, I can't afford these people giving any more free stuff away on my dime. And if you don't understand that the government has no money of its own, that all their 'free' money is money they took from you, then I can't help you.
Heh, mellow me.
The baby deers are so damn cute. (Yes, I said 'baby deers' because while fawns are cute, baby deers are cuter.)
Okay, I'm done here. What's the this n that for you today?
Speaking of wet, yesterday a storm stalled just north and a little west of here. I'm hearing it dumped like 6 inches of rain in a short period of time. This explains why my favorite animal shelter was showing pictures this morning of their flooded property. (The animals are all safe and fine.)
I got a little rant-tastic Tuesday evening (posted to OTB yesterday). It was actually quite cathartic. And I'm back to mellow me again.
Tonight is the big park meeting wherein the parks people will be looking for input on whether to keep the park open and continue to maintain it, or shut it down entirely and let it fall to ruin like a couple other parks in the area. We're still on the fence about whether to go. On the one hand, we'd like it maintained because people are pigs and without someone monitoring the park, people will trash it and it'll stay trashed. On the other hand, we're hermits and would rather not mingle with a few dozen of the locals - especially if nothing we say will make any difference. I'm just hoping that if they close it, they don't lock the gates. It's a great place to fish and it's the only one around here with a bathroom. If we go, I'll say something about it during Sunday's update post.
I didn't bother watching 'Dem Debate Day 1' last night. From what I'm seeing online, it was pretty much what I figured it was going to be - bashing Trump and competing to see who can offer the most free stuff to voters. I mean, that's pretty much their whole platform - 'Trump Bad. Get Free Stuff Here.' Personally, I can't afford these people giving any more free stuff away on my dime. And if you don't understand that the government has no money of its own, that all their 'free' money is money they took from you, then I can't help you.
Heh, mellow me.
The baby deers are so damn cute. (Yes, I said 'baby deers' because while fawns are cute, baby deers are cuter.)
Okay, I'm done here. What's the this n that for you today?
Tuesday, June 25, 2019
It's Tuesday
I know, duh, right?
Sorry I'm late today. I was doing stuffs this morning - spreadsheet stuff and marketing posts mainly - and posting slipped my mind last night. But I'm here now and that's the important thing. Even if 'here now' means a post full of randomosity.
The finale for Best Baker in America was last night. I won't ruin it for those who haven't watched it yet, but I'll just say I'm satisfied with the winner. Although, I didn't think any of the finalists captured the essence of 'A Birthday Cake for America', the winner did the best of the three.
I'm not sure what's up with the macha powder trend. It's supposed to be green tea powder. I tried green tea once and thought it was gross. Why anyone would want that flavor in a dessert escapes me.
We're seeing fawns. It's a few weeks earlier than we usually see fawns, so they're all so tiny. So cute! I want to snuggle them all up. This morning the twins and one of the singles was here. The single was the smallest one. Weird, because twins typically come out smaller than a single birth. :shrug: Cuteness overload, though.
Well, that was quick, but I have five minutes before I have to call the office and the cat is begging for her fish oil. Thanks for stopping by and I'll try to have something more interesting to talk about tomorrow on Outside the Box (although what that'll be is beyond me right now.)
Sorry I'm late today. I was doing stuffs this morning - spreadsheet stuff and marketing posts mainly - and posting slipped my mind last night. But I'm here now and that's the important thing. Even if 'here now' means a post full of randomosity.
The finale for Best Baker in America was last night. I won't ruin it for those who haven't watched it yet, but I'll just say I'm satisfied with the winner. Although, I didn't think any of the finalists captured the essence of 'A Birthday Cake for America', the winner did the best of the three.
I'm not sure what's up with the macha powder trend. It's supposed to be green tea powder. I tried green tea once and thought it was gross. Why anyone would want that flavor in a dessert escapes me.
We're seeing fawns. It's a few weeks earlier than we usually see fawns, so they're all so tiny. So cute! I want to snuggle them all up. This morning the twins and one of the singles was here. The single was the smallest one. Weird, because twins typically come out smaller than a single birth. :shrug: Cuteness overload, though.
Well, that was quick, but I have five minutes before I have to call the office and the cat is begging for her fish oil. Thanks for stopping by and I'll try to have something more interesting to talk about tomorrow on Outside the Box (although what that'll be is beyond me right now.)
Sunday, June 23, 2019
Sunday Update - Week 25
Well, that week flew by. Whoosh.
I did manage to finally get my ass in gear and get some editing done. Not a huge amount, but you don't eat the elephant all at once, you know. I have three pages worth of edit notes left to go and then I have to go back and fix the big things. I'd hope to be getting into that by Monday, but things happen and life has other plans sometimes. Bleh.
I've been working on marketing again, since the SCIU books are all on sale. The ad did me some good and paid for itself. Then crickets. But I still have 3 days left and I'm not giving up without a fight.
I did get a good amount of reading done. And I finished the book in the 'currently reading' section yesterday afternoon. Then I started on a Mickey Spillane.
Only four active days out of seven, but I'm okay with that. The stamina is improving all the time and that's really the big thing. If I can walk the loop (a mile worth of hills and curves) and then come home and spray the driveway for weeds and not be toast, life is good. Okay, so I was a wee bit toasty the next day, but not toast the same day. ;o)
We have now seen four individual fawns. Two singles (one definitely larger than the other) and a set of twins.
My hollyhocks are blooming. The white ones anyway. Something munched off the buds on the red one that was close to blooming. :shrug:
No baking this week. The temps are climbing into the summer range, which makes me not want to turn on the oven.
The spiders are back and making webs all over the yard again. Yesterday, I went all yard ninja on their asses - took a broom and went through the whole yard, knocking down webs - so Hubs could mow without getting a web to the face.
Well, that seems like everything. If I forgot anything, it probably wasn't that important anyway. What was up in your week?
I did manage to finally get my ass in gear and get some editing done. Not a huge amount, but you don't eat the elephant all at once, you know. I have three pages worth of edit notes left to go and then I have to go back and fix the big things. I'd hope to be getting into that by Monday, but things happen and life has other plans sometimes. Bleh.
I've been working on marketing again, since the SCIU books are all on sale. The ad did me some good and paid for itself. Then crickets. But I still have 3 days left and I'm not giving up without a fight.
I did get a good amount of reading done. And I finished the book in the 'currently reading' section yesterday afternoon. Then I started on a Mickey Spillane.
Only four active days out of seven, but I'm okay with that. The stamina is improving all the time and that's really the big thing. If I can walk the loop (a mile worth of hills and curves) and then come home and spray the driveway for weeds and not be toast, life is good. Okay, so I was a wee bit toasty the next day, but not toast the same day. ;o)
We have now seen four individual fawns. Two singles (one definitely larger than the other) and a set of twins.
My hollyhocks are blooming. The white ones anyway. Something munched off the buds on the red one that was close to blooming. :shrug:
No baking this week. The temps are climbing into the summer range, which makes me not want to turn on the oven.
The spiders are back and making webs all over the yard again. Yesterday, I went all yard ninja on their asses - took a broom and went through the whole yard, knocking down webs - so Hubs could mow without getting a web to the face.
Well, that seems like everything. If I forgot anything, it probably wasn't that important anyway. What was up in your week?
Saturday, June 22, 2019
Saturday Reading Wrap-up - 6/22/19
Hello again, my friends. Here we are again at the end of another reading week.
I picked up three new ebooks this week - a mystery, a courtroom thriller, and a post-apocalyptic UF. Still have three ebooks left from before (fantasy, mystery, and SF suspense), so that makes 6. I looked for more, but nothing else was blowing my skirt up this week.
Books read:
57) Forceful Intent (Porter #1) by RA McGee (6/21/19) - Suspense*. New to me but not exactly in the parameters I set for 'underappreciated'. Still, this book should be more appreciated than it is. Jus' sayin'. Picked this one up for free off the ENT newsletter.
Review: "Dang, that was good! I'd give it more stars if that were possible. Holy crap. Porter totally kicks butt and gets the job done. If this is indicative of the rest of the series, I'm in for a major treat. Woohoo!"
56) The Big Four by Agatha Christie (6/14/19) - Mystery - 5 stars. Neither new to me nor underappreciated. Got this at St. Vinny's for 50c.
No Review. I mean, when a book's got tens of thousands of ratings and over a thousand reviews, what does it need my review for? :shrug:
55) Birthright (Cog Chronicles #1) by PM Cole (6/16/19) - Steampunk Paranormal*# - 5 stars. New to me and underappreciated. Got this for free after seeing an ad in ENT.
Review: "What a fun story! Like steampunk mixed with paranormal and a twist of mythical. So cool! I really enjoyed this. Looking forward to reading the next."
DNFs:
6/18/19 - Humor. Got this one on a whim for free off Book Gorilla. Made it about 30% of the way in. Kept waiting for some kind of plot to kick in. And then it started head-hopping, which I was okay with until it hopped into the head of a character they hadn't even introduced yet. I mean, it was quirky and I like quirky. But I also kinda like knowing where a book might be headed and with whom.
6/16/19 - Cozy Mystery. I picked this one up on a whim from the thrift store. It was one of my 6/$1 finds. Anyway, I tried it. Quickly discovered that I hate bullet-point lists in novels unless they are directly related to the story, and two in the first few pages are like reading someone else's grocery lists. Yeah, I've heard some people say that they love their favorite authors so much they'd read their grocery lists, but this was a new-to-me author. And we never really mean we'd read their grocery lists anyway. PS. I also hate when it feels like the author is trying to show me how hipster they are.
Currently reading... A historical mystery set in China. I've always enjoyed Pearl Buck and I'm fond of Amy Tan's work, so this seemed like a good fit and something different to read. So far, so good.
What things did you read this week? Anything good?
I picked up three new ebooks this week - a mystery, a courtroom thriller, and a post-apocalyptic UF. Still have three ebooks left from before (fantasy, mystery, and SF suspense), so that makes 6. I looked for more, but nothing else was blowing my skirt up this week.
Books read:
57) Forceful Intent (Porter #1) by RA McGee (6/21/19) - Suspense*. New to me but not exactly in the parameters I set for 'underappreciated'. Still, this book should be more appreciated than it is. Jus' sayin'. Picked this one up for free off the ENT newsletter.
Review: "Dang, that was good! I'd give it more stars if that were possible. Holy crap. Porter totally kicks butt and gets the job done. If this is indicative of the rest of the series, I'm in for a major treat. Woohoo!"
56) The Big Four by Agatha Christie (6/14/19) - Mystery - 5 stars. Neither new to me nor underappreciated. Got this at St. Vinny's for 50c.
No Review. I mean, when a book's got tens of thousands of ratings and over a thousand reviews, what does it need my review for? :shrug:
55) Birthright (Cog Chronicles #1) by PM Cole (6/16/19) - Steampunk Paranormal*# - 5 stars. New to me and underappreciated. Got this for free after seeing an ad in ENT.
Review: "What a fun story! Like steampunk mixed with paranormal and a twist of mythical. So cool! I really enjoyed this. Looking forward to reading the next."
DNFs:
6/18/19 - Humor. Got this one on a whim for free off Book Gorilla. Made it about 30% of the way in. Kept waiting for some kind of plot to kick in. And then it started head-hopping, which I was okay with until it hopped into the head of a character they hadn't even introduced yet. I mean, it was quirky and I like quirky. But I also kinda like knowing where a book might be headed and with whom.
6/16/19 - Cozy Mystery. I picked this one up on a whim from the thrift store. It was one of my 6/$1 finds. Anyway, I tried it. Quickly discovered that I hate bullet-point lists in novels unless they are directly related to the story, and two in the first few pages are like reading someone else's grocery lists. Yeah, I've heard some people say that they love their favorite authors so much they'd read their grocery lists, but this was a new-to-me author. And we never really mean we'd read their grocery lists anyway. PS. I also hate when it feels like the author is trying to show me how hipster they are.
Currently reading... A historical mystery set in China. I've always enjoyed Pearl Buck and I'm fond of Amy Tan's work, so this seemed like a good fit and something different to read. So far, so good.
What things did you read this week? Anything good?
Thursday, June 20, 2019
Thursday This n That
Sitting here, smoking a cigarette and drinking my coffee, wondering why I'm not seeing the usual Wednesday posts at the top of my blogroll when a thought suddenly occurs to me... Oh! It's Thursday. Well, crap. And this was after I knew it was Thursday enough to send my timesheet in to the office. Derp.
The little gray cells they are wonderful things. And also sometimes a little stupid. (Yes, I have been reading Hercule Poirot.)
Yesterday, I was out and about. While I was at the feed store, I used the last check in my checkbook, so I did what I always do - I scribbled a circle on my left hand to remind me to put new checks in the checkbook when I get home. My friend who works there gave me a look - cuz like scribbling on one's hand is a bit nuts - so I explained what I was doing. She thought that was a pretty good idea and I told her it was one of the little tricks I use because I'm brain damaged. She laughed, because it is a pretty good joke, but then I told her the truth of it. I don't know why I still feel the need to do that. 25 years is a long time and I should probably let that shit go.
It worked, btw. I have new checks in my checkbook now.
The SCIU sale is underway. My ad should be out sometime this morning. :fingers crossed:
I know we saw our first fawn on the 10th, but a couple days ago, another fawn came scampering into the yard. (It's mom was already here.) So tiny. So cute. Still, didn't get a pic. I didn't even think to grab the camera. Then it and mom were gone. We were pretty excited.
I never realized how much these blue candles smell like fabric softener sheets until this morning when I couldn't figure out why I was smelling dryer sheets when Hubs wasn't doing laundry and neither of us were wearing fresh out of the drawer clothes. Derp. At least it's nice to know the candles are working.
My eat an elephant thing seems to be working. Or it was until yesterday when instead of eating any of either elephant, I did grocery shopping and marketing, then I read and watched Live PD. Oh, well, today is another day.
How are the this n thats in your world?
The little gray cells they are wonderful things. And also sometimes a little stupid. (Yes, I have been reading Hercule Poirot.)
Yesterday, I was out and about. While I was at the feed store, I used the last check in my checkbook, so I did what I always do - I scribbled a circle on my left hand to remind me to put new checks in the checkbook when I get home. My friend who works there gave me a look - cuz like scribbling on one's hand is a bit nuts - so I explained what I was doing. She thought that was a pretty good idea and I told her it was one of the little tricks I use because I'm brain damaged. She laughed, because it is a pretty good joke, but then I told her the truth of it. I don't know why I still feel the need to do that. 25 years is a long time and I should probably let that shit go.
It worked, btw. I have new checks in my checkbook now.
The SCIU sale is underway. My ad should be out sometime this morning. :fingers crossed:
I know we saw our first fawn on the 10th, but a couple days ago, another fawn came scampering into the yard. (It's mom was already here.) So tiny. So cute. Still, didn't get a pic. I didn't even think to grab the camera. Then it and mom were gone. We were pretty excited.
I never realized how much these blue candles smell like fabric softener sheets until this morning when I couldn't figure out why I was smelling dryer sheets when Hubs wasn't doing laundry and neither of us were wearing fresh out of the drawer clothes. Derp. At least it's nice to know the candles are working.
My eat an elephant thing seems to be working. Or it was until yesterday when instead of eating any of either elephant, I did grocery shopping and marketing, then I read and watched Live PD. Oh, well, today is another day.
How are the this n thats in your world?
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