I'm Going to Write, Goddamnit.

So, there I was, trying to sleep and failing like I always do, when a story idea popped into my head like a buccaneer leaping onto the deck of a Spanish galleon - sword drawn and ready to do battle.  I dragged my sorry ass out of bed, staggered into the office, and wrote the idea down.  That's usually enough to make my brain stop fixating on it, so I can attempt sleep again.  But no.  This idea wasn't going away.  

I have a title.  I have a general premise.  I have several scenes ready to unfold.  And yes, I still remember them this morning.  

I have no clue if this is an idea that's been done before (or done to death), but it seems fresh to me.  Then again, I haven't really been reading a lot lately.  A hundred similar books could be out there and I wouldn't know it.  Still, I'm going to give it a whirl - if only to make the story stop pestering me like a cat who's meal time is approaching.

The story?  I'm calling it OLD MAGIC.  It's about a gal of witch ancestry who doesn't come into her magic until menopause hits her.  And things happen.  There's a curse, of course, and a line of young deaths in the family, so her granddaughter is at risk.  (Stakes, people, we've got to have stakes.  It also explains how she didn't know she was a witch or anything about how magic works.)  Sure, it's a trope that's been done before.  I think that's why they call them tropes.

Anyway, the plan is to get started today - as soon as I can manage it.  Right now, I'm doing marketing for AD.  In a little while, I've got my daily call to Mom.  After that, I might be able to get a good hour in - if the cats cooperate.  Then while Hubs is out spraying the lawn, I have cleaning to do.  After that, I could probably sneak in another hour.  We'll see.  I don't care.  I'm going to write, goddamnit, and that's all that matters.

Shroudlands #2 is paused.  I'll get back to it eventually.  This - whatever it is and whatever it will become - can't wait.  Strike while the iron's hot and all that, doncha know.

The point is, I'm pretty excited about this, so don't harsh my buzz, eh?  If you already know about a hundred books along these lines, keep it to yourself.  It's my book.  It'll be new and fresh, so there.  =op

Marketing Monday - Accidental Death

Well, I guess I'm back at it again with regard to marketing.  I wish I was as back at it with regard to writing.  Anyway, this week's offering is Accidental Death.  It does have a second book, but this one stands alone.  (So does the next one, but you get more out of it if you read them in order.  If you like this one, read the next one.  If I ever get back to writing like I ought to, there could be more, but I'm not promising anything.)

Now, unfortunately, the title alone may get me shadow banned or actually banned or bitch-slapped by the big FB.  We'll see what happens.  Feel free to share it around.

Starting today, ACCIDENTAL DEATH is free.  (Always free with Kindle Unlimited.)  Pick up this hard-boiled mystery now!  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00XM6VJ9U

Sunday Update - 2026 Week 27

First off, Happy Independence Day!  A day late, I know, but it's still a valid sentiment.

The past week was one of my toady weeks.  I didn't write.  I didn't market.  I didn't read.  

I baked.  Earlier in the week, I made banana muffins.  Yesterday afternoon, I made a batch of Outrageous Chocolate Chip Cookies.  Yeah, it was 90 degrees out, but Hubs wanted cookies... frankly, so did I... so I made cookies.  They were yummy.  And I have AC so what's the problem?  I also did a batch of BBQ pulled pork yesterday.  Also yummy.  

It was an active week, despite my toadiness.  I did yardwork.  I watered everything in the greenhouse a couple times.  We moved furniture in preparation for window installation, and then moved it back.  We tag-team mowed the yard.  Busy busy.  Not weight loss, however, which is kind of a bummer.  I'm blaming the heat and calling it water-weight gain.  So there.  Weight: 180.6

The windows were installed.  They did the big picture window in the front on Tuesday afternoon.  It was a bitch to get out, due to an abundance of silicon caulk.  (The previous owner/builder was big on silicon caulk.  He slapped that shit everywhere.)  Thus, by the time they got around to the broken window in the sunroom, it was already 5.  They took the storm window with them to fix at the office and off they went with promises to return the next day.  I took them at their word, and sure enough, they were there bright and semi-early on Wednesday.  While they were installing the window, I made muffins so I could give them some when they left.  They were very happy.  And I'm very happy because we now have no broken windows... well, except for that one in our bedroom, which I totally forgot about until after they were gone.  Oh well.  Next time.

The yard work was more of me de-weeding the front path.  It's about 75% done now, but now, it's too damn hot to want to finish it.  It'll get done.  Eventually.

Out in the greenhouse, things are going okay.  Despite the heat, the beefsteak is flowering.  Fingers crossed.  The other plants seem to be doing well.  The buckthorn is getting TALL.  I had to move it to the floor so it isn't hampered by the enclosure.  One of the peppers is also getting tall and was moved to the floor.  Fingers crossed I see some produce down the road.

I think that's about it.  It's hot.  I'm a toad.  Nothing new there.  Have a great day and an awesome week.  Peace out.

Thursday This n That

 I've been kinda absent this week.  My brain has been elsewhere, I guess.  Not surprising really.

I have new windows!  Funny story, though... When the gal called to tell me the installers were headed our way, I thought she was from the other company I'd called and was trying to set up an appointment to quote me new windows again.  So, I told her we already had made other arrangements.  Poor gal sounded totally confused.  As soon as I hung up the phone, a blinding flash of sanity told me what I had just done.  I called her back immediately, apologized profusely, and we laughed and laughed.  Hubs was staring at me like I'd slipped a gear, and I don't blame him.  He's really very patient with me and my crumpled brain.  Dude deserves an award.  Anyway, two guys came out and installed out new picture window.  Then they started on the broken window in the back (which was broken when we moved here), but by then it was 5 o'clock AND that window was going to be a PITA, so they said they'd come back the next day.  They came back the following morning - yesterday morning - and installed the new glass and the new storm window.  Awesome guys.  Awesome office gal.  Totally would recommend.  (Wouldn't recommend breaking windows... that's expensive shit there.)

While the guys were working on the back window, I made banana muffins.  They were ready by the time the guys left, so I sent them on their way with a half-dozen piping hot muffins.  They earned them.  Did I mention the windows were a PITA?  Yeah.

On a side note, I realized that I would rather spend a day with hard-working dudes like those two than a room full of intellectuals and academics.  Sure, I probably wouldn't discuss philosophy or metaphysics with the former, but if I want those kinds of conversations, I'll talk to Hubs.  And who knows? Maybe those guys were deeper than I assume.  You never know.  I would venture that people looking at me might think I'm pretty low on the intellectual scale.  (Actually, I'm just low on the 'give a damn' scale.)

I just saw someone posted pictures of quokkas.  Have you ever seen a quokka?  Too damn cute.  But I have heard that they throw their young at predators in order to escape themselves.  (Okay, I just read that they don't 'throw' their babies.  The moms relax their pouch muscle so the baby falls out on the ground, where it flails and cries until the predator eats it, thus allowing mom to escape.)  Cute, but not the best parents.

Speaking of animal parents, the deer are starting to bring their babies together in our yard.  Yesterday, we had four fawns hanging out and playing together.  Awesome.  Deer are not quokka.  They will stand and fight your ass if you so much as think about attacking their babies.  Those hooves are sharp.

And on that note, I'll let you get back to your regularly scheduled lives.  Have a great day, wherever you are.  Find something to laugh about today.  Every day should come with a little laughter.  Peace out.

Sunday Update - 2026 Week 26

 Halfway through the year.  Woot.  It's been a better year so far than a lot of years, even with the Iran thing, so I'm calling it a win.

Writing last week wasn't great, but it was better than the week before, so yay.  I ended up adding 2218 words to Shroudlands #2 (Song of Dream and Dragon?  Dream of Demon and Shroud?  Song of Mage and Shroud? Meh.), putting it at 40970 words total.  I'll try to do better this week.  I really need to stop overthinking it and just get the damn dirty draft done.

Marketing was lame.  FB started the week by being turdy.  And it didn't help that this week sucked for sleeping, which meant I woke up last every damn day, which makes getting those important first-thing-in-the-morning posts impossible.  Anyway, I moved 19 copies of Thicker Than Water.  :sad trombone:  I don't think I'll do any marketing this week.  

Don't ask me about reading.  

In baking news, I made a batch of Outrageous Chocolate Chip Cookies on Sunday.  We tore through those by Friday.  Yesterday, I tried a different recipe for cookies.  I tried halving the recipe, fucked it up, and ended up with what I'm referring to as Retard Cookies.  They're tasty and we'll eat them, but they're kinda like a cross between a regular cookie and a florentine.  I also made a pizza yesterday and the crust was not right. Not as far off as those cookies, but still.  It must've been brainfart baking day.

On the activity front, I did active things on 4 days - yardwork, cleaning, gardening, groceries.  (And making pizza counts as exercise, so there.)  Weight: 178.4 - yep, lost a pound last week.  Imagine if I could lose a pound a week.  I'd be at my target weight by the end of the year.  Heh, like that'll happen.

Hubs just came in from feeding the deer and informed me that we have 4 fawns down by the pans.  Yay.  I love fawn times.  

Gardening... I harvested Pedro this week.  He produced 6 small potatoes.  (We ate them, sliced thin and sautéed with chicken and mushrooms. Yum.)  I checked the other potato plants and no more potatoes.  Several of those plants got pushed back into the ground in hopes they'll continue to grow.  Fingers crossed.  Nothing else is ready to harvest.  Nothing is blooming at the moment.  I think I need to re-dirt the tomatoes or refeed them.  The peppers and the carrots are doing good, so yay.

My path project is coming along.  I'm about halfway through weeding the front rock path than runs along the flower bed.  Meanwhile, Hubs has been weeding the whole driveway and he's almost done.  He works harder than I do, but then again, he's a dude.  He said he'd finish my project when he gets done with the driveway.  ENABLER!  Anyway, that usually gives me the kick in the ass I need to get 'er done, so expect to see that in my update next week.  

And speaking of that, the day's not getting any cooler.  Time to get dressed, get covered in bug spray, and get digging.  Have a great day and an awesome week.  See y'all soon.  Peace out.

Saturday Snaps

 I totally forgot to put the Trail Cam out this week.  And apparently, I forgot to blog this week, too, so I didn't want to leave this to another day.  Here are some snaps I've taken over the years from various locations.

I call this one 'We Three Squirrels' (taken 1/1/12 in Colorado):

Here's an interesting shot (Colorado 2/19/13) of a hawk and its prey, except the silly, and perhaps young, hawk doesn't notice the prey sitting right behind it:

This is from 2013, too, and it's a shot here if Scarlet and her baby Sammy:

Flash forward to 2018 - the year I hung oranges for the orioles, and wasn't disappointed:

(Every other year I've hung oranges, I didn't get any orioles.  Bummer.)

And with that, I'll let you go.  Here's hoping I get the damn trail camera up this week so you can see new pics.  I hope you still enjoyed the old pics.  Have a great, day.

Oak Mite Bites

 I worked on the rock path next to the front bed yesterday.  I was out there for about an hour.  Right after I came inside, I hopped in the shower and scrubbed.  This morning, I have no less than 8 new oak mite bites.  

Now, if you're not familiar with oak mites, they're not visible to the human eye, so you can't even pay them back for biting you.  Also, they don't so much bite as burrow.  Gross, I know.  Their bites are, perhaps, the itchy bites I've ever had.  Not sure how they compare to poison ivy, since I'm immune to that shit, but from the way Hubs reacts to his bites, they're pretty much on par.  

Unfortunately, our house is not only surrounded by oaky woods, we have a huge, old, white oak that overhangs most of the front yard.  And, you guessed it, oak mites hang out in oak trees - unless it's windy when they blow out or dry when they drop out on their own.  It's hard to go outside without being exposed to oak mites.

What does one do about the bites?  Well, pretty much every anti-itch thing on the market doesn't cut it.  (I've tried just about all of them over the years.)  In fact, Benadryl gel just makes the itch worse.  The only thing I've found to get rid of the itch is to take a fingernail, dig it into the center of the bite - which sometimes has a little blister in it - and dig it out.  Hurts like a bitch.  Then take a cotton ball soaked in rubbing alcohol - the strongest you can find - and scrub the bite with it.  Stings like a bitch.  THEN take merthiolate and dab some of that on.  Burns like a bitch.  It's pretty much all bitchy, but it's better than the constant, overwhelming itch.  

You may have to repeat the process.  I guess that's probably because the first round didn't actually get the mite out of your skin / kill the mite in your skin.  

Sometimes, I have to wait until the bite is at its itchiest before I do the above or I really will have to repeat the process.  It all depends on how much itch or pain I can stand at any given moment.

Sure, the easiest way to handle an oak mite bite is to stay inside.  I've heard bug spray works, too, but I hate the thought of having to spray myself down every instant I stepped out of the house.  If you can't do those things, you can try my method.  Unfortunately, your mileage may vary, so I make no guarantees.  It's just something you can try to ameliorate the itch.  

Please note that merthiolate quite often leaves a mark, so accept that you might have a scar thing in place of an itch thing.  I have made my peace with that.  

Please also note that oak mite bites seem to be more susceptible to infection.  Pay attention to those things even if you don't use my method.  A simple scratched bite can turn into something nasty in a hurry.  Rubbing alcohol is your friend.  

Now, if you'll pardon me, I've only treated about half the bites I had last night - the ones that wouldn't let me sleep - so I have to go gouge, sting, and burn myself.