Hi folks, I hope you're having a Happy Friday. My day is pretty typical. Things finally seem to be in order and that's a huge relief. I've finished the major fall housecleaning. I don't know how I managed to pull that off in a week. We must have kept the house in pretty good order (and didn't hang on to clutter) this past year. Anyway, it's all clean and organized. I even gave away some clothes to Goodwill and shredded some old files. Not bad for a weeks worth of work. Plus, this means I'll just need to keep up with chores and errands over the next couple of weeks. That will be good. I need to get back on the treadmill, and I want to finish reading "The Other Bible" as soon as I can. As I said yesterday, I'm ready to read some good old mysteries again, and I have a couple on my shelf that are calling. I've had one on my shelf since last spring that I didn't get around to reading before starting the "Left Behind" series and I picked up another P.D. James book while Rick and I were at the mall last weekend.

Rick is still sick. He felt better yesterday but woke up this morning feeling bad again. That happens with sinus infections. He found out he still has some comp time left over from last spring when he worked all of that overtime, so he's using some of it today and gettting off early. I tried to talk him into taking the whole day off, but he said he had too much to do. At least he's willing to take a few hours off. Anything's better than nothing, I suppose.

My own work is going well. I have a pretty good grip on things right now and it's all moving along. I'm waiting on a couple of things to come in so I can move on them, but otherwise things are in good order. Right now, the name of the game is taking care of stuff as it comes in. Deadlines have been met so things should be easier in November. That is, if bringing all these new agencies on the new accounting system doesn't cause chaos next week. I'm glad we did that last year and it's over. I don't envy those people - and yes, my brother is working for one of the agencies going on next week. Well, I warned him. It's funny - yesterday we were talking about how nervous and chaotic things were a year ago, and how we're glad we made it through that (or rather, that we aren't facing it now). I feel for those people but at the same time, I'm glad that journey is behind us. They're putting our human resource functions on it in December/January, but since we know the system and it affects another area then it won't be nearly as much chaos and madness as the crossover was last year. We hope.

Happy Halloween everybody! I know it's not until tomorrow, but since the in-laws are visiting I doubt I'll be able to blog tomorrow. I hope you all have a fun day. We don't do much for Halloween anymore, especially since we moved to the woods. We don't get trick or treaters, so it's usually a quiet night. That was really wierd the first year we were in the house, but we got used to it quickly. But for those of you that do celebrate, I hope you have a fun and safe day!

Daylights Saving Time ends Sunday. I have mixed feelings about that. I hate these shorter days, and I know they're only going to get shorter until Christmas. Oh well, I'll live. The thing is, the sun isn't up until almost 8AM as it is. That's wierd. It's hard to get up and going when the sun doesn't start to come up until you're halfway to work. But when we "fall back" we'll have light in the mornings, but it will be dark at 6PM. Ouch. So go to work in the dark or come home when it's getting dark. Not good choices. At least this adjustment is less painful than losing an hour. We'll feel like we have more time in the evenings until we make the adjustment.

I can't believe November 1 is Sunday, but it is - and that means the beginning of NaNo. I wish all of you participating the best of luck. My life is too crazy busy for me to participate in NaNo, so I'll be cheering you all on and looking for motivation to push me toward writing my own manuscript in 2010. Plus, I don't think I could pound out 50,000 words in 30 days. I've published a book and written a couple of manuscripts and in every case it took me at least 2 months to finish the rough draft. Still, it's an intriguing challenge. I've just got so much going on in my life at this point that I don't think I could handle the stress of trying to write a book on such a tight deadline. Maybe someday when I'm free of a full time job I'll be able to do it but for now, this is my life. Oh well. Good luck to all of you partipating and I wish you inspiration as you begin that journey on Sunday.

Well, that's all for now. Have a Happy Friday and a wonderful weekend.

Bye!
 

Hi folks, I hope you're having a good day. It looks like fall has finally arrived in my corner of the world. I think that once the current warm spell passes this weekend, the heat will be coming back on for the season.

It's ok. Actually, I like fall. While I was running my errands yesterday, I was looking at the clear blue sky and the colorful trees thinking about how beautiful this time of year is. I'd really like to enjoy the fall. I didn't get to enjoy the summer because I was either sick or injured practically the whole time. But the transition seasons are so nice. I think the earth is at it's most beautiful in the spring and fall. Yes, I should definitely enjoy this season.

Rick's miserable with this infection. I asked him last night if he wanted to call his parents and ask them to postpone their visit. He said he hated to do that. Rescheduling is always such a pain. I agree, but I'm also concerned about his health. Well, if he feels he can make it through the weekend with houseguests we will proceed. I just wonder how much we'll be able to do with them if he doesn't improve very drastically it the next 24 hours.

It's my own parents I envy this weekend. Dad has a conference at the beach, so he and Mom are going there tomorrow. Then Mom's cousins have invited them up to their daughters house in the mountains Saturday and Sunday. A beautiful fall weekend at the beach and the mountains! It's a lot of time on the road, but they'll enjoy it. Both places are beautiful this time of year - and the areas they're going too aren't very crowded. Oh well. Maybe someday when life isn't so busy with jobs and such ...

The fall housecleaning is almost done. I just have to sweep and mop the floors and get those darn files organized. I thought I'd be able to do it last night, but cleaning the windows took a lot longer than I expected. Well, I'll finish it up tonight. Then after his parents visit, all I'll have to do is clean the guest bathroom and wash the sheets and towels they use and the house will be all set. That will be good. I'd really like to get back on the treadmill next week, and to dig into reading "The Other Bible." I'd love to finish it soon. I feel it's time for me to move on to other things with my reading, but I don't want to quit with this reading project. I'm pretty close to finishing - less than 200 pages as of last night.

Yes, it's time to get settled back into a routine. Hopefully, some of the things that have popped up over the past couple of weeks are settled now. The paperwork is done and organized. My notary commission is renewed, and all of our prescriptions have been refilled. My fall projects are done and I think Rick is ready to wind down on his own fall projects soon. We've been running a lot lately, but we have our schedules set and hopefully things will fall into place.

That's all for today. I hope you have a good Thursday. I'll see you later.

Bye!
 

Hi folks, I hope you're having a good day. My day is busy, busy, busy - but going better as far as the stress is concerned. My notary stuff came back from the Secretary of State's office. Once that arrives, you're required to register with your home county within 15 days. I decided to take a few hours off this morning to do that. I'm glad I did. They moved the office, but the new address wasn't listed in the guide I downloaded, so I wound out going to three different buildings before I found the Clerk of Court. Then it took a bit longer to register because they've added things to it since I did this 10 years ago. But at any rate, it's done. I managed to get a few other things done with my time as well. I got some clothes together and gave them to Goodwill, cleaned Zack's cage, and tidied up a few things around the house. That will at least make tonight go better.

Rick FINALLY went to the doctor this morning. He had a rough night - that usually does the trick. It turns out that he has a sinus infection. They gave him a steriod shot and put him on an antibiotic. Funny thing is, they didn't give him any time off work. My doctor took me out of work for three days, but his sent him back to work right after the appointment. I know he really wants to feel better for his parents to come this weekend. The good news is that he isn't contageous. Now it's just a matter of the medicine working and getting him better.

It turns out that more is done with the major fall housecleaning than I realized. All I need to do is clean the windows and the floors. I'll do the windows tonight and the floors tomorrow. Those floors are impossible. I'll mop them and the next day they're dirty again. Oh well. I'll do the best I can and his parents will deal with it being what it is while they're here.

Mom said we ought to go to that auction next door Saturday. My great uncle and great aunt built that house in the 1950's, so this might be the only chance we have to go in while it's open for the world to see. I hate to just go in and snoop around, but I am curious to see it. I've never been in there. My great uncle died when Mom was little and my great aunt went blind and had to move in an assisted care facility when I was young (she died shortly after Rick and I got married). My mother-in-law seems interested in seeing what they're auctioning off. My curiosity might get the best of me, and if enough people show up then I might be able to blend in. Rick wants more marble tables and wants to see if they have any. What we'd do with more of them, I do not know. Where we'd put them, I do not know. What he's thinking, I do not know. I don't know much. All I can say at this point is that we'll see. I'm kind of drifting through life these days. I figure it's the best thing to do.

As for my cough, it's not as bad as it was yesterday but I still have it. The chiropractor adjusted my back and ribs. That wasn't pleasant, but the cough isn't as bad today so maybe it did some good.

And on the simplicity of childhood: You know, I noticed how beautiful this time of year is while driving to the court this morning. Yes, it's busy. I don't know why wrapping up the year takes so much doing, but it does. At any rate, I should probably stop whining about being down on my luck with some things these days and learn to enjoy the simple joys of every day. Maybe that's the whole point.

Ok, that's it for today. I hope you have a wonderful Wednesday.

Bye!
 

I have reason to believe Rick might have the flu. He was dragging around last night and all he would say is "I don't feel good." That's it - wouldn't tell me any symptoms he has or anything. Just that he didn't feel good. And his sprained wrist hurts like hell.

I don't know what to do. He won't go to the doctor, and I can't force him. All I can do is hope he has the sense to go if he gets bad enough. I guess it has me concerned with this H1N1 virus going around. My sister in law has been struggling to get over that (or rather, the bronchitis it went into) for a month. Since he works in the schools, it could be anything.

I've had my regular flu shot, but he hasn't. The H1N1 vaccine isn't available around here, of course. Unless he goes to the doctor and gets tested for it, we'll have no way of knowing if it's a cold, infection, flu or what.

Add to that the fact that:

1. We're scrambling at work because this new accounting system is supposed to go live to a bunch of more agencies, so many things are going to be different when we come in Monday morning. So far things are pretty good because it's the end of the month so we're fairly caught up, but we're pushing everything we can out of here as quickly as possible because we know that come November 2nd, it's anybody's guess what will happen with this system.

2. I'm trying to get the fall cleaning done on our house because it's time for it and reason #3

3. His parents are coming into town for a visit this weekend and

4. My parents are going out of town to the mountains with Mom's cousins this weekend

5. The house next door is going up for auction Saturday, meaning all kinds of people are going to be creeping around our parts - while his parents are here (nice)

And you have a nice, stress stew that I just don't need. Oh by the way, Misty and her kittens are gone. I haven't seen any of them since Thursday and the cat food hasn't been touched in 5 days. I have no idea where they are or if they're coming back. I did, however, make sure the lock on Zack's cage was nice and tight. I asked him if he knew what happened to them and he cackled. He's not talking ...

*Sigh* November already looks busy as well. Rick's been nominated for church council and the vote is November 8. We also have a wedding, Dad's birthday, the craft show, Thanksgiving, then off to the races for Christmas 2009. I'm tired just thinking about it. But at least you see why I'm trying to get this big fall cleaning done. I waited until right before Thanksgiving to do it last year, and that was a nightmare. I don't know if I'll get it all done by this weekend, but I can at least get the cleaning portions done this week and work on deeper organizational issues after the in-law visit. It's usually a 2 week endeavor, although I'm finding it doesn't take so long since we moved in this house. We dumped a lot of stuff when we moved and it looks like we've done a good job of keeping it in order so far.

I'm still coughing from this postnasal drainage too. In fact, it's gotten worse. Nothing helps, and now people are starting to say things about it. It must be nice to not have chronic sinus problems. On the plus side, mine are wide open and draining. And yes, I know this cough is annoying. I live with it all the time, so if they're frustrated hearing it them imagine my frustration at not being able to find relief. I have a chiropractor appointment this afternoon and might ask him to adjust my ribs. That seemed to help after my bronchitis last winter. It wasn't pleasant, but it worked.

So yes, I'm a little stressed these days. I know it's all stuff I really shouldn't fret over, but it seems things are stacking against us now. I'm most concerned about Rick's health. He doesn't seem to be taking this seriously and I just don't know how that's going to affect everything else that's supposed to be happening in the coming days.

I guess we'll see. What can you do? If life is determined to spin completely out of control, I can't stop it. All I can do is go along for the ride. I might as well dump it all in a caulderon, stir it up, spill it on the ground, and see where it all runs. That might be a great idea.

And I'll say this one more time: I sure miss the simplicity of childhood. Once upon a time, fall was when life got exciting. Now everybody is stressed out, burned out, and getting sick. Sometimes growing up sucks. Then again, homework was no fun and I haven't been missing that so this is an arguement that probably can't be won.

Anyway, I do have two good things to report. I did revisions on "Invalid Item"  and I picked up my dragon and wizard cross stitch during my lunch break yesterday. It's back home, hanging over the mantle where it belongs.

Here's hoping you have a good day. See you later.

Bye!
 

Hi folks, I hope you're having a good day. I don't know if it's just me or the time of year, but it seems that I really have to wind myself up to get out of bed in the mornings. I just don't want to get up. It's cold and dark, and I want to stay in bed until the sun comes up. But alas, that is only an option on Saturdays (well, it's usually up on Sundays when I get up for church, so that doesn't sting so badly) so I must gird myself up every other day and force myself to rise and fight the good fight.

Rick thinks I'm depressed. I think I'm burned out. It was a long, busy summer and the fall is shaping up to be busy as well. We just realized that this past weekend might be one of the few slow weekends we have for a while. His parents are coming for a visit Saturday and Sunday, and we have a wedding in a couple of weeks. Then it's Dad's birthday, Thanksgiving, and off to the races for the 2009 holiday season. Good grief, it is already that time again? Halloween is Saturday (the in-laws are coming to visit because they live in a neighborhood and don't want to hand out candy this year - we're in the woods so hence, no visitors). Then it's November! And what am I going to get Dad for his birthday? I tell you, my brain might explode.

Perhaps not. I think that if things are about to get more active then now is the time to get a grip. I'm going to do my big fall housecleaning this week. I decided that spreading it out over a week (instead of crowding it into a weekend) would be less stressful. We keep the house in pretty good order, so I don't think this will be a massive effort. The big thing I really need to do aside from cleaning is to go through the closets and bag up the clothes and shoes I don't wear any more to give to charity. That doesn't necessarily HAVE to happen before the in-law visit - I can do it next week if I need to. But it needs to be done before we start buying Christmas gifts and looking for places to store them until the tree goes up after Thanksgiving. Whew, I still can't believe that's around the corner. Ok, deep breaths ...

I'm calm now. So cleaning the house is the thing for this week. I need to winterize my roses soon as well. I noticed two things over the weekend: The leaves are starting to turn, and the grass is turning brown. Yes, it seems fall has arrived.

I did something interesting. I looked back at some blog entries at my fall resolutions to see how well I've done on them. So far, so good it seems - which is impressive since I pretty much forgot about all of that in the chaos of the past few months. Here's my progress so far:

1. Treadmill - not good. The sinus infection took me back out. I'll try again after this week's housecleaning effort.

2. Writing - overall I think I've done well. I wrapped everything up and sent out a round of submissions. All of my short stories were flat out rejected pretty quickly, but the queries for the longer works are still pending. On those, I generally prefer to not query when we get near the holiday season. Once October is over, I usually hold off on querying until January just because I know how busy everybody is this time of year.

However, there has been progress despite the slew of rejections. I posted "Blurry" and "Quarantine" at Authonomy and I'm climbing the ranks there (albeit slowly, but I figured that would be the case). So far, I'm getting pretty good reviews. I set up a new website, and I've already started work on another novel that I plan to write in 2010 with "Invalid Item" . I've done some research and I'm excited about this project.

The only setback is that I don't know what to do about my short stories. I'm not having much luck there. I really like the longer works much better and want to focus more on that in 2010 - getting the new novel written and strengthening what I've already written. I think I need to spend some time/effort on strengthening my query letters as well. I'm not going to quit on the short stories, but I do want to shift my focus to where my interest lie, and that's with novels. So I've made some progress and decisions on this front, and I feel good about them.

3. Reading "The Other Bible" - good progress. I haven't done it as quickly as I hoped, as it's slower reading than I anticipated. I hoped to finish it by Halloween, but I see that's not going to happen. It's ok. I have about 200 pages left, so my revised plan is to finish it over the next 2 weeks. I haven't had much time to read lately, but I figure that if I commit to read at least a little every day, I can do it.

I want to finish this sooner rather than later for 2 reasons. First, I have 2 mystery novels that I really want to read. Second, I plan to read The Bible again next year. Once I finish this and my 2 novels, I'm planning to take a reading break through the end of the year. Well, at least from published books. I'll still rate and review here and read at Authonomy, of course!

4. Cross stitching - nothing. I've completely dropped this, and I'm not at all surprised that I did. I've done nothing on the Jesus cross stitch since Labor Day. Frankly, I think that I needed a break after the massive effort I've made since November of last year to get the dragon done. I hope to get back to that once I put my off-line reading on break in November. I do want to finish Jesus, and I have an embellished cross stitch of a Thomas Kinkade painting I'd like to do (I've never done an embellished cross stitch, so I have no idea how that will go or how long it will take). Then I'd like to work on some gifts for family members.

5. As a bonus, I did get Granddaddy's table sanded and restained. It's finished and back in the house now. It looks better. I didn't do a bang up job, but it's done and I'm happy.

And in other news, the fair is closed and I can pick up my dragon today. I'm going to take my lunch break early and pick it up. Hooray! I'll be so happy to get that back over my mantle!

So that's all for now. I hope you have a good Monday. See you later.

Bye!
 

Hi folks, I hope you're having a Happy Friday. Frankly, I wish I had the day off. I don't know why, but I didn't want to get up and come in to work this morning. There's nothing wrong and things have actually gone well this morning. I just don't wanna work.

I'm getting plain lazy these days! Much like my end of the year case of writer's block, this also is not unusual for this time of year. I think I have a case of burnout. It's been a long time since that vacation in May, and my time off for Thanksgiving and Christmas is still a ways off. Oh well; I'll make it. We all will.

Speaking of which, is it me or are the stores decorating for the holidays earlier and earlier? I remember that Christmas wasn't even mentioned until after Thanksgiving when I was a kid, but I'm already seeing trailers for Christmas movies. I can understand the hobby shops touting the holidays early, because you do need more time to prepare those homemade gifts - but do they really need to be selling Santa's already? I think not. Now don't get me wrong. I enjoy the holiday season. It just seems a bit early to gear up for it. I know, I posted "Invalid Item"  in my port in late August, but that's because I was asked to contribute to a cookbook that is planned for next month (and I had everything together then). Which reminds me, I probably need to go back and review that piece in the coming weeks. But not yet. It's still too early.

I think it's time for me to get back into reading. I haven't done much reading lately and if I want to write a novel next year then I think it's important that I get back into that. Maybe I can squeeze in a trip to that secondhand bookstore I like so much this weekend. Can you believe I STILL haven't made it over there? Soon definitely, though.

Ok, that's all for today. I better get back to work. I hope you have a Happy Friday and a wonderful weekend.

Bye!

 

Hi folks, I hope you're having a great day. Hey, do you want to see another cross stitch I did? Here's a project I did in 2005 - it's hanging over my recliner now:



I never even considered entering this in the fair because it's a pretty early piece (I started stitching in 2004). But I'm rather fond of this piece and thought I'd share it with you.

Not a whole lot to speak of today. It's been busy, busy, busy. I got through my meeting and getting my cavities filled unscathed, but my gum is still sore where the dentist gave me the shot for the novicane. I thought he was never going to take that darn needle out. I couldn't feel my nose for 2 hours yesterday, and those teeth are still a bit sensitive today. Well, I'm glad it's done anyway.

I seem to be developing an addition to iTunes. I swung by Walmart yesterday and bought another gift card so I could download more songs. It's great to be able to get exactly what you want! I don't know why I didn't get into this sooner.

Rick sprained his wrist installing a deadbolt on the door between the garage and the house. The builder refused to install one because they claimed there's no direct access between that door and the outside unless we open the garage door. Unfortunately, we can't afford a storage shed so the lawn and garden stuff is in the garage - meaning we're in and out of there when we do yard work a lot. Rick decided to take matters in his own hands and install the lock himself. Well, the drill slipped while he was doing it and twisted his wrist. He finished the job, but he's paying for it. Ouch. I'd be in big trouble if that happened to me. When I sprained my ankle, my consolation was "at least it's not my hand, arm, or wrist because I type all the time with work, writing, and my other hobbies." Poor Rick. The good thing is that he usually heals fast (much faster than I do!), so I hope this won't have him down for long. Still, I know that hurts and I feel bad for him. I'm trying to help him out, but he's so determined to do things on his own that he won't always ask for help when he should. I'm the same way so I understand.

So between his sprained wrist and my aching gums and teeth, we wre a sad sight last night. Pretty pathetic. Zack was the only peppy one amongst us. He's doing well, by the way. I think Misty's kittens amuse him. They've turned Rick's trailer into a jungle gym, and there was some drama close to suppertime when another cat came around and Misty had to make her territory in the back yard known. Zack was watching them intently. I said "this amuses you, doesn't it" to which he cackled!

Anyway, I forgot my watch yesterday. Of all days, that was the one day this week whem timing was important and I forgot it. Incredibly, I did pretty well. I got out of my meeting and finished lunch with a few minutes to spare, so I decided to go by Walmart to spend the last of my gift card. I got a case for my external hard drive (and the iTunes card), and decided to browse throught the toys. I don't know why I did. Barbie is still around. You know, she didn't prepare me for adulthood well at all. Where is "chaotic job" Barbie? Or "my house is a mess" Barbie? Or "sick" Barbie? Or "I'm all stressed out with too much to do" Barbie? Yea, she's bald because she pulled all of her hair out. I saw a "summer fun" Barbie that had a bird you could attach to her arm, or to a fake tree. Nice, but she doesn't have to feed it, or clean a cage - or those accidental poop spots on the carpet, does she? I'd like to see her tromping through PetSmart with a 12 pound bag of bird pellets, a huge bag of treats, and a wooden chew toy that doesn't have a chance past the first five minutes in her cute swimsuit and perfect hair. Her clothes are even perfect. No spilled coffee (from "I need caffine to wake up and be out the door by 7:30" Barbie), Xerox toner (from "I've been wrestling with the copier again" Barbie), or random food stains (from "I'm a klutz with PMS" Barbie) on those perfect gowns. But seriously, Barbie still paints life as one fun adventure after another. That hasn't happened! Reality is more like a mixture of Star Wars, Transformers, and G.I. Joe. Things morph into crazy stuff and wreck havoc all over the place. But that's just a random observation. Life is funny, isn't it? I bet a doctoral student doing a psychology thesis could have a hayday with that last paragraph! And in that vein, perhaps I should stick with the electronics section from now on ...

Ok, I'm off. That's your blog entry for today. Much like my brain, it's random and all over the place.

I hope you have a good Thursday and I'll see you again tomorrow for another episode of "the insane musings of Sherri the Writer (on hiatus, but not really or fully).

Bye!
 

Or so the new Alice in Chains song goes, and I feel it today. It seems like everything is such a whirlwind. When did all these little things pile up on me? I feel like I'm in a frenzy to keep it together.

Last night I made sure all of my writing files are up to date with all of my recent writing activity. I think I'm going to have to go back on my writing hiatus, as least in some form, because my calendar is filling up. For example, tomorrow I have a big meeting in the morning, then I have to get 2 cavities filled in the afternoon (by the way, they're serious about flossing every day, in case you didn't know). It's definitely going to be a full speed ahead day - hit the ground running and don't stop until you come skidding into the finish line. Then again, I don't want to be too quick to say I'm on hiatus, in case I find another writing prompt or contest that strikes my fancy.

Rick and I need to get a wedding gift for one of his co-workers that's getting married in November. My in-laws are coming for a visit in a couple of weeks. I need to clean the house, but I'd rather wait until closer to their visit to do that. Then there's the little odds and ends of the regular chores and errands that need doing: Cleaning Zack's cage, cooking meals, laundry, dishes, watering plants, feeding the outside cats, putting gas in the car, etc. Soon it's going to be time to winterize the roses. It got so cool over the weekend that I thought about doing this weekend, but it looks like it's supposed to warm up later in the week. I'll have to keep an eye on the forecast. If it's not done by Veteran's Day then that's when it will happen no matter how warm or cool it is.

I realized yesterday that my notary commission expires in a month. They don't mail renewal notices, so I had to find the website to download the form. Just my luck, it has to be notarized and since you can't notarize your own signature I had to find somebody around here to do it. I thought about not renewing it for a while but decided what the heck? I already have the seal, right? You have to mail the stuff to the county a month before you're due to renew and I'm really pushing it now. That's really not like me to push deadlines like that.

I also went by Walmart to get a few things for the house. I know, that's not a place I usually hang out, but I had a gift card from my birthday and finally decided on how to use it. It's funny, my birthday was almost 2 months ago but my brain was so locked up at the time that I couldn't think of anything to get. The past couple of days it just opened up and I realized all this stuff I want/need: New towel and napkin holders for the kitchen, a lock for my laptop case (I don't usually lock it, but every now and then we take it on a trip or I use it for work, and the lock I had broke), trouser socks for work, and a candy bar. Ok, I needed the candy bar like a hole in my head but I got it anyway.

Rick modified his fall project list over the weekend to more realistically reflect what he can accomplish before the weather turns too cold to work outside comfortably. He wanted to build a pumphouse around our well, but it doesn't look like we have the time or money to take that on now, so it's been deferred to the spring. There are still some things he can do, so he went by Lowes to get what he needs to get those tasks done.

I feel like my brain is so scattered these days, and I'm not sure why. Yes I have a lot to do, but I'm organized. Heck, I already have my 2010 planning calendar set up! I don't know. Every year this time is like this. I remember how it was when I was a kid. This time of year was so exciting. You had the fair, then Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Now it's just so busy. Ah, the simplicity of childhood! Is it me, or does it seem that the older you get, the more complicated life gets? Rick and I were talking about that last week. We were musing that life seemed a lot simpler 10 years ago that it is now. Jobs get harder, responsibilities pile up, and you take on more. I guess that's the way it is. But it must boomerang around sometime, because I know retired people who's lives seem simple compared to ours. A busy day for them would be a "you got out of bed just for that?" day for us. But I don't know. The equation probably isn't as simple as that. More likely, you trade one kind of complexity for another. Or maybe those people I know just have a very slow, easy lifestyle compared to the norm. There's no telling.

I do feel bad because I haven't cross stitched any Christmas presents for the second year in a row. When I started stitching I would do little things for the family - cards or ornaments, for example. I didn't do it last year, and it's too late to start on anything this year. I've spent all of my stitching time the past couple of years working on that dragon. *Sigh* At least it's done and they'll see it if/when they come by for the holidays, but I really do want to get back into that next year.

Ok, that's all for today. I hope you have a good one. I don't know if I'll get by tomorrow since it looks like organized insanity, but I'll check in again later in the week.

Bye!
 

Thanks to system crashes, the morning was slow and I was able to get my entry for the "Endings First" contest written. I think this will be much more powerful when combined with the full manuscript, but this is the only part I'm sure of now. If you want to check out the end of my upcoming novel, swing by "Invalid Item" . And yes, Zack does have a guest appearance in this. I couldn't resist putting my little buddy in there as a a glowing beacon of hope! Basically, it's about the ugly demon of depression and how it traps people.

I did a lot of planning in my mind for this over the weekend, so it really didn't take me long to type it up. Ditto with the website: I gave it a good deal of thought beforehand, so I was pretty sure of how I wanted to do it. It's pretty simplistic for now, but I do plan to go in there and spruce it up as inspiration hits. Check it out at http://www.sherrithewriter.weebly.com if you have a chance. I'm so glad they have those drag and drop features now to do the design. I'm definitely not a graphic artist, and the little bit of HTML code Rick dipped my toes in made my brain sizzle!

Also, I deleted "Into the Pit." That wasn't working out the way I hoped, so I let it go. I have it saved on my hard drive and back up drives, so I can always retrieve it if I want to give it another shot later. But for now, it just isn't what I thought and I don't see a point in continuing with a writing project that has no clear goal or objective. I want to free myself up to work on "Anywhere But Here." I am doing some research and considering how to approach this plot. I want it to be dark - not outward horror, but something that really gets in you and makes you think. Not an easy task, but one I look forward to taking on in the coming months.

Rick and I did go to the fair Saturday afternoon to see my cross stitch entry. At least it's displayed decently, which is good. I think Rick was disgusted that I didn't get a ribbon. I know my friend was. She was happy to win a ribbon, but she was shocked to see several with ribbons that weren't framed well. I know what she was talking about - that's part of what made Rick so mad. Some pieces that won prizes were wrinkled, and one wasn't even stretched out and lined up correctly. It was crooked and looked like it was about to fall out of the frame, and it got a second prize ribbon! All I can say is that no, I don't understand but at least I have my best work on display. What's done is done. It's time to move on and I have been moving forward with my writing these past few days.

At least something good came out of all this mess. It got me motivated and working on my writing again. I should have done this website a year ago, but better late than never. And now I've started on "Invalid Item"  and the ball is rolling on it. It might not seem like big stuff, but I'm happy. I'm still not sure where to go with the short stories, but no worries. I have good plans and I know that will come together when the time is right.

Ok all, I'm your NaNo cheerleader. My schedule is always way too busy to commit to participating in NaNo, but I'm here to observe the excitement. I'll be around offering encouragement and general cheerleading services. If you mention NaNo in your blog, I'm going to crash it. So you are forewarned ...

And finally in news that makes you go what?????????? Rick has been nominated for church council. Wow, who'd a thunk it. I don't know if he'll get elected but once you're name's been thrown in the ring, then it usually stays in their minds and you wind out being elected sooner or later. I'm just glad the folks there think I married a winner! Maybe he can eventually get in there and (*ahem*) get some things settled, eh? Ah, I grew up in that church and they know me too well. They remember me when I was sucking my thumb in the sanctuary, so that does not harken to a good, professional image - even 30 years later.

Here's hoping you have a good Monday. As good as Mondays get anyway, right?

Bye!
 

Hi all, I hope you've had a great weekend. I wanted to drop in and let you know that I got a basic website up. Check out the new Battleground Earth website at http://www.sherrithewriter.weebly.com . It's pretty basic, but it's a place to pull all of my writing together.

I feel like I'm finally taking some steps in the right direction. I should have done this a year ago when the AOL Hometown site went down, but better late than never, I suppose. I hope to start writing my chapter for the Endings First contest soon. It's not due until January 1, but I want to get it polished and as good as it can be, so I need to start on it soon.

Enjoy what's left of your weekend and I hope your week starts out well.

Bye!