Sunday Update - Week 2

Good morning!  I hope it's awesome wherever you are.  And if it's not, I hope it will be awesome soon.

The writing isn't going as gangbusters as I would like, but it is going.  I'm over 10K on Cinder Ugly now.  I'm not sure I like where it's at right now, which isn't helping, but I told myself to get over it.  Write through it.  Get to a place where you do like what's going down on the page and you can always fix the crappy parts later.

I contacted my cover artist and she's removing the cat from Ugly and the Beast's cover.  I'll miss it, but it was necessary.   I should have a new cover that's pretty much the same as the old cover, sans cat, in the next couple weeks.  Woohoo.

Yesterday, I set up sales into the first week of March.  Starting Wednesday with a sale on the Dennis Haggarty Mystery novels and running pretty much through 3/7, there should be something on sale or free from my list.  I'll let you know about the sales as they happen.  I haven't set up any advertising yet.  We'll see what the budget looks like farther down the road.

I also finally sat down with the spreadsheet that details income and outgo for this writing business.  I hadn't updated 2019 since last January's numbers, so I did that and then made a sheet for 2020.  I might talk more about that tomorrow.  It's kind of depressing, which is why I hadn't updated it.

In reading news, it was a pretty good week.  Three books read and a couple DNFs.  I'm ahead on my goal, which is always good.

No baking this week.  I should be making granola bars sometime this week, though.

On the activity front, I did something active 5 out of 7 days.  It was all housework of some kind - washing windows, scrubbing the kitchen sink, cleaning the light fixtures, dusting the ceilings, etc.  I've lost a pound since the beginning of the year.  Unfortunately, when I stepped on the scale after the holidays, I had gained some weight, so I'm now at 181.6.

I've been an entire week without ice cream now and I ate the last of the potato chips this past week, so I won't be buying anymore of those.  Instead of ice cream, I'm eating vanilla yogurt with canned fruit.  It's an okay substitute.  I'm also trying to eat smaller portions of everything else.  Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

Today, I'll be making chili, finishing the light fixture cleaning project, and washing the floors in the sun room.   ( I was just out there and it's too cold to wash floors out there today.)

The bucks are losing their antlers.  We now have one we call Half-Rack and one called No-Rack.  It's that time in the cycle.  As always, we hope to find a dropped antler or two somewhere on the property.  Haven't yet, but there's always hope.

Friday a storm blew through and dumped 3 inches of rain on us.  It also dropped a couple tornadoes within like 90 minutes of here.  Then Saturday, we got nano-hail.  Tiny clear balls of ice dropped on us for a while.  They were bouncing everywhere.  Maybe a half inch of accumulation.  What fun.  I stayed inside for all of it.  Actually, I haven't stepped outside since Wednesday, when I went to Wallyworld.  =oO

Okay, I think that's everything.  How did your second week of 2020 go?

Thursday This n That

Not sure how or why, but I slept straight through last night.  I wish I knew how and why so I could repeat that.  

This isn't the reason but...  After seven straight days of doing stuffs, I took yesterday off.  Well, off of everything but writing.  I actually got two pages of new words down on Cinder Ugly.  Yay.  I went with the original version.  The happier version was making me queasy.

I started a book yesterday and it was this close to being a DNF, so much so that I went to Amazon to see what the blurb was because I couldn't figure out why I had even picked it.  After reading the blurb, I decided to give it another try.  And actually, it's pretty good.  A little different, perhaps.  It's a lesson for me to not be so quick to DNF, I guess.  Of course, I could still end up swiping it closed and moving on.  I'll let you know on Saturday.

The bucks are starting to lose their antlers.  One is missing his rack entirely.  Another two only have one antler left.  =o(  On the bright side, in like 5 months the does will all be fat and waiting to drop fawns.

So, part of the 'new year, new resolve' thing is that I'm not buying chips or ice cream anymore.  I ate the last of the chips yesterday.  (Okay, we still have tortilla chips.  I've given myself a pass on those because I don't sit there stuffing them into my face every afternoon.)  We'll see how that resolve goes.  I do love me some chips (potato and corn) and crunchy cheese puffs.  I ran out of ice cream last week.  That one's been hard.  I love ice cream.  But I have managed to not buy it on two Wallyworld trips so far.  Go me.  I'm eating vanilla yogurt over canned fruit instead. 

I did two Wallyworld trips in one week because they're calling for crap weather starting this afternoon and we'd be out of cat food before the weather system moves out late Saturday.  If given the opportunity to avoid driving in crap weather, I'm gonna take it.  And if we don't get the crap weather, it's all good because now the house is stocked up.  Living in the sticks means planning ahead.

Okay, that's it for me this morning.  What's up with you?

Sunday Update - Week 52

That's it.  The last full week of 2019.  We just have to make it through three more days and slide into 2020.  Not that I really think it simply becoming 2020 will make everything magically better.  But it's a good starting point - new year and all that.  It's a place to try.  It's a hope for better things.

Laying in bed last night, I thought of some writerly things, enough so that I had to write the ideas down to get them out of my head.  I have a sort of plan for this week.  Not talking about it until it's set in cement, though.  I think talking about it could be part of what's harshing my groove, man.

I've been doing some online marketing this week.  Dying Embers was free Wed-Sat.  Fertile Ground and Early Grave are 99c still through tomorrow night.  No paid advertising, of course, so the numbers are low, but I did move some copies.

There was Christmas, of course.  It ended up being pretty much like any other day except for the turkey.  Copious amounts of turkey.  I made baked turkey subs last night.  So good.

Except for the subs, no baking.  I have to make granola bars today, though, because Hubs is out.

The day after Christmas, I drove up north to get license plates for the Jeep.  I'm not a fan of driving north.  It's all hills and curves going that way.  Anyway, before I hit the DMV, I had to hit the assessor's office because you can't get plates until the personal property taxes are paid on the vehicle you wish to have plates for.  Just as well.  They're due by the end of the year anyway.  Unfortunately, a lot of people were there paying their property taxes, so I got to stand in line.  Paid them, then stood in a shorter line at the DMV.  Luckily, they're in the same building.  Just a walk across the hall and then down a hall.  So, that's done for another two years.  Yay.

While I was up north, I stopped at McDonalds.  Not an odd thing in most people's lives, but I haven't been to a McDonalds in years, and I haven't been inside one in easily a decade.  And of course, their coffee was gross.   So I spent Friday recovering from that.  Got a lot of reading done.

Speaking of reading, I did a lot of it last week.  And as of last night, I am this close to meeting my reading goal.  One book to go and I'm 60% through that.  And it's a really good one.  Yay for finishing the year on a good book!

Spent some time working on spreadsheets for the new year.  Everything should be in place so that when I need them after Wednesday, they'll be ready.  With a few minor adjustments, of course.  Always there are adjustments.

Let's not talk about exercise and weight, eh?  We'll hit that again in the new year. 

I also spent time last week working on a wrap-up post for my reading in 2019.  You'll see that on Thursday instead of my usual this n that.  I need to work on some other wrap-up things.  Put 2019 to bed and all that.

Okay, that's it for my Week 52.  How were things for you last week?

Sunday Update - Week 51

It's almost over.  One more week of 2019 left.  Whew.

Once again, there's no writing to report.  And no marketing.  I did set up a sale for the SCIU books starting Tuesday, so look for more about that then.  Mostly, I've been working on getting spreadsheets ready for use when 1/1/20 comes around.

I read some stuff.  More DNFs than finished books, but hey, I finished a couple books.  And I read #114 yesterday, so I have 6 books left to finish before the end of the year if I want to reach my goal.  Whether that'll happen is anyone's guess.  I'm okay with it either way.

I did go fishing one day last week.  Didn't catch anything but I found a new bobber with a couple sinkers and a fake worm/hook rig.  Gotta take your successes where you can.  But by the time I quit drowning worms, man, was I ever cold.  Winter fishing ain't for the faint of heart.

In baking news, I made a couple loaves of pumpkin pie bread.  I was going to make apple cranberry bread, but my wrists were killing me and that stuff is hard to stir.

The reason I had ouchie wrists was an overabundance of trail raking in the woods on Friday.  Yep, overdid it.  Ouchie wrists go along well with the ouchie thigh I got from falling in the woods earlier in the week.  Just call me Gracie.

At least I'm being active.  I had like 4 days in the woods last week.  But let's not talk about the scale.  I've been eating a lot lately and not light stuff.  Christmas... ya gotta have chocolates. Right?  Right?

Yesterday, it was nice enough to go for a walk with Hubs.  And we both needed a day off from the woods.  Sometimes it's just nice to stroll with the one you love.

In other news... Not sure there is any other news, so I'll let you get back to your life. 

So, what is going on in your life these days?  Ready for Christmas?  Ready for the end of the year?  Ready to kick the dust of 2019 off your boots? 

Sunday Update - Week 26

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?

Thursday This n That

The rain here is really dragging me down.  Bleh.

The more times I watch Jurassic Park, the more inconsistencies I notice.  Like when the jeeps are stopped outside the T-Rex enclosure and the cables start snapping, the two guys look out their car windows and see the cable being dragged out of sight to the right.  The next thing the T-Rex is going through the middle of snapped cables - both sides in full view - between the two jeeps.  Yeah, I can suspend my disbelief about dinosaurs being created in a lab using DNA sucked out of a mosquito trapped in amber, but stuff like that cable thing messes me up.

BTW, the book is so much better.  So's the 2nd book.  (There were no subsequent books, not that I know of.)  May Dr. Crichton rest in peace and not have his spirit troubled too much by the travesty that was Jurassic World.  Don't get me started on that one.

Speaking of Crichton, he took so much shit for State of Fear, but I really enjoyed the book.  Well, I enjoyed the book once I ignored the numerous citations and stuck to the story.  (Hate citations.)

Well, enough about that.  Being stuck in the house because of the rain, and not being motivated to work on books or read books or market books, I've kinda been hungry.  Like all the time hungry.  This is not boding well for any decrease in the number on the scale. 

I have been exercising regularly.  That should retard the advancement of my ever-widening ass.  I'm up to about twenty minutes four or five times a week on the dance/exercise thing, and then I'm doing other active stuff, too.  Or I was until the rain hit.  Bleh.

Fish for dinner last night.  Ocean Perch.  Meh.  I got three lousy fillets for like $6 and they weren't anything to sing the praises of.  Last night was the last of that bag.  I mean, it's not horrible, but I won't be buying it again. I'll stick with salmon and tilapia if I can't catch my own.

Okay, that is probably quite enough out of me.  What've you got for me today?