Weekend Wrap Up...

I know it's a little earlier in the day than my normal end of weekend post, but hey, whatever! Ha!

I've been by myself for the last few hours. That Man went to help a friend who lost his driveway in the massive rains. Yeah, like it washed away. He does have a creek that runs under it, but still. The kid was off with friends for the weekend. It was just me, and I got a lot done. I finally finished a critique for a friend and I found my story again. I cut about 150 pages, but I am back on track. That feels good (even if I feel sick about the pages cut). More than I can even tell you. 

I also finished the laundry. Whoopie! ha! 

Other than that, I made the stupid decision to clean out our little shed. It's on our back porch and it's supposed to be for the stuff you use frequently, but don't want out. Ha! It's been a catchall for everything for a very long time. In fact, I haven't even opened it for a few years. Yeah. I know. So, anyway. I decided it was far past time. We have probably a million feet of extension cord. And far more screws and bolts than anyone could ever use. Ha! I also found two camp chairs. Nice, except they were in there so long they are dry rotted. 

I stepped on a fishing thing and punctured my foot. I ran my arm along a rusty saw and gashed my arm. (Yes, I will be getting a tetanus shot) The whole process was pretty much a disaster with stuff falling over and falling on me. But it is done now and I am super happy with the results. Now the charcoal, cooler, and porch blower can be stored away again. 

And our nephew came for dinner. That was nice. We rarely get a chance to hang with him.

My foot does hurt though. I'll be soaking it in a bit and keeping an eye on it. The fish thing wasn't rusty though, so there's that. 

And that's all! 

Behave!

Another Mid Week

 It is mid-week again!

Nothing is new here. We've been doing Jeep work, yard work. Blah, blah, blah.

Work is work. The writing is going. 

It's Fall now! Whoot! That's the best thing that's happened this week! Ha!

We went to our great niece's fourth birthday party last weekend. We didn't know anyone besides That Man's family. It was still nice. Our great niece is the cutest thing and so is her newborn baby brother. We had good conversations with the family. Our niece was stressed, but we had a good time with her and our nephew-in-law. We left right after presents were opened. We were like the old people there though, so Ha! Also, a deer tried to kill us after we left. 

That is all I have!

Behave!

Mid-Week Check In

Here we are at Wednesday. Already. 

So far, this week has been crazy! The day job is busy and there's a lot of random, crazy stuff going on there. 

I figured out what I need to do with my story, so that was a HUGE relief. I've been struggling with it for a little while now. I was supposed to brainstorm with K3 the weekend before last, but he had plans he'd forgotten about so it never happened. I have been trying to figure it out on my own, and today, with the help of my writing pals, I got it mapped out. Yay!

The Jeep is done. It did take a few bucks, but it needed to be done. Now all of that bull crap is finished. Except I need new bump stops, which is no big deal except for off roading, so that will need to be taken care of before we start going to Jeep events. Now That Man is working on K4's Jeep. Her heater core went out and he made things work over the summer, but now that heat is going to be needed, well... It's been a huge pain in his butt, but he's almost done. 

In the meantime, I made some spicy ketchup and actually canned it! I am pretty proud of myself for the whole thing. I had never canned before and I kind of winged the whole thing, from the sauce making to the actual canning process. It turned out pretty darned good and my jars actually sealed! 

That's all I have!

Behave!

Feel Good Friday & Weekend Wrap Up

Yeah, it's a two-fer around the old blog today.

Sorry! It's been a busy week!

So here's the list:

1. Getting to see my family last weekend! It was so good to hang out and catch up! We haven't seen them since Easter, which was way too long. We had a great time sitting around the fire!

2. My great niece is the cutest child! My niece (and future nephew-in-law) is/are doing a fantastic job raising her! I'm proud as only an aunt can be! My niece was my mini me for a long time. People used to think she was my child and I loved that. We always went back and forth with the kids being at one house or another and it was awesome. 

3. Having K5 last weekend. She's so funny! We had a blast with her! She got to see my brother and sister-in-law for the first time in a very long time and that was great. Hopefully we can keep that connection going. 

4. That Man's car passing inspection even though it cost us a pretty penny.

5. The camper passing inspection. No where near as much cash outlay, but since we had it in for a fuel line problem last week, it was still more. Fingers crossed that the Jeep passes with no issues. I hate that we have three vehicles all due at the same time! 

6. The body work getting done on the Jeep. That Man hates it, but he does a fantastic job. I, personally, despise the smell of body filler. It makes me sick, but the job needs done. He's almost finished. As we speak, he's out there sanding. It won't pass inspection unless it's done. So...

7. Not cooking dinner tonight. We haven't eaten yet, but the subs are in the fridge. 

8. Work people who are awesome and make me laugh. Also, writing people who are awesome. 

9.  The cooler temperatures. I am in heaven to be able to wear my sweatshirt all day. We had to drop off a sweatshirt for K4 since she drove her Jeep with the top down today and was freezing. But that's the way it goes sometimes. Ha!

10. Weekend plans. They weren't what I thought they'd be, but they are good. We haven't been home the past few weekends and even though I need to wash sheets and vacuum this house within an inch of its life, I'm looking forward to the relaxation of being home!

That's all I have! 

Hopefully it won't be another week until I get back here, but you never know!

Behave!

Adventures!

I know it's been over a week! I'm sorry! 

Last week was a blur of overtime, car stuff, and random stuff. 

But we went on an adventure over the weekend! We had so much fun and can't wait to do it again. 

On Friday we left to meet up with a friend who has a boat. We got up super early Saturday morning and headed out 80 miles into the ocean. We caught fish, saw dolphin, whale spouts, and just chilled on the boat. I took a sweet nap and we had a great lunch. We were out for like thirteen hours with only a tiny bit of sunburn that didn't last. 

Got back to their house, cleaned the fishing rods, the fish, made dinner, showered, and hung out. 

It was a blast! We'll definitely be doing that again! Left early Sunday because we had houseguests. Our nephew was driving through from his previous assignment to his next assignment and needed a place to stay. Well, no one was home here, so K4 left him a key and they had the run of the house until K4 got home Sunday morning. We pulled in early afternoon, unloaded, and began making a feast for dinner since That Man's family was coming. 

It was fun, but we were so exhausted and sore from our Saturday adventure. I didn't really get to sit down until everyone left, which was close to ten pm. 

So yeah, we're still exhausted. And, of course, today was a super busy day at the day job. 

That's all I have!

Behave!

Week End Wrap Up...

So today's book signing was a bummer. Yeah, it was good for a lot of reasons, but the store was dead and the only books I sold were to my friends who were signing with me. Which was awesome, but...

I had our granddaughter with me, who was a riot and a blast. We had a good time looking for books and talking about stuff. She had fun meeting my writing friends and talking with them. She tried to help me use my store credit, but both of us fell short and I ended up with as much as I started with. (We get new store credit with every signing) Ha! She is so funny though. She tried to convince this older gentleman who said he doesn't read into buying a book anyway. He didn't, but she tried. Ha!

The Friday birthday gig was a lot of fun. The birthday girl didn't know I was coming and was surprised and happy to see me. We had a blast! The winery is super cool and they took awesome care of our rowdy group. 

Currently, I am still in the lead on the words written tracking spreadsheet, which is surprising. But we've all been super busy this weekend. So... 

Yesterday was a super good day. I got all of my house stuff done, wrote, dealt with an awesome natural gas guy who had to come and inspect our stuff. (He was funny and we laughed a lot) That Man got his car ready for inspection and we took care of a bunch of other house stuff. We picked up the kid, made dinner, and introduced her to Back to the Future, which she loved. 

It's been raining all day, which is good. And I am wearing a sweatshirt, which is also good.  

That's all I have!

Behave!

Lots of Stuff...

So this Sunday I have a book signing at my favorite independent book store! I'm really looking forward to it. It's been a year since my last signing! This is a big event around here. There are different authors all weekend, and even a slumber party Saturday night. I can't stay for that this year. I was there for a while last year, but didn't stay over. It was fun and I heard a good time was had by all. 

So...come and see me if you're so inclined!

My next singing is next year in New Jersey at a winery. That's all that is currently scheduled. At least for now. We'll see how the schedule stacks up and what happens. 

Other than that... it's Thursday. I completely lost track of what day it is thanks to our Hello Fresh box being late. Plus, we were supposed to pick up the camper last night, but changed our minds due to the weather. That would have sucked bringing it home in that mess. It was a simple fix, but they didn't have time to do the inspection, so we'll have to go back. Which is fine since it's not out until next month anyway. 

Anyway. Tomorrow is Friday. I have a surprise birthday gig to show up at. A former coworker. (No, she doesn't read this) It'll be good to see everyone. It's been since the beginning of summer. It's nice that we're all still friends. I think it has to do with the absolute hell we went through together for six years though. We kept each other sane and laughing and that counts for everything. 

The words are flowing again, which is very good. I went from being the lowest numbers on our tracking spreadsheet, to leading the way. Of course, I'll get knocked off probably tonight, but it's still a good feeling. 

That is all! 

Behave!

Tuesday!

You know I used to do Tall Tale Tuesday. That stopped being a thing because, I think, my whole life turned into a Tall Tale. lol

Anyway. 

Here we are at Tuesday. 

I have written more words this week (in just two days) than I have in a few weeks! That's awesome. I also finished a crit of an amazing scifi book for a friend. And my laundry is caught up. 

I also discovered that The Shadow Guide is available in paperback now! I wish I had known that when I ordered my books for the signing this weekend, but I might have a few copies available if you show up!

I'm looking forward to the signing. Chances are my granddaughter will be hanging with me. When she came camping with us, we were talking about it and she was super excited to be at a bookstore, with cats, and books. So far, it looks like it's a go, so that's a good thing. 

So... you should stop by. This coming Sunday from 11-1! 

Other than that. This week is super slow and super busy. If that makes sense. 

Behave! 

Weekend Wrap Up

Well, it's late Sunday night and work is tomorrow. Boo! 

It was a good, but busy, weekend.

K4 got her soft top put on the Jeep. It looks cool and she's happy with it. It needs a little more time in the sun to make it fit right, but it looks great!

We dropped the camper off for inspection. A little early, but there's a raw gas smell that needs addressed. (The lightbulbs are good) We couldn't find the cause, so hopefully our mechanic can. We have a trip coming up that we think we're going to take the camper to, so we need to make sure it's good. After that, That Man's car needs to go in, and then my Jeep. Holy expensive month, Batman. 

I will be at my favorite local bookstore next Sunday for a book signing. It's going to be awesome. My time frame for signing includes two of my besties, and my granddaughter is going to be there. I will have limited print copies of Prelude of Lies, and a sneak peak copy of The Shadow Guide (which is not for sale), but I'll let you look at it. Ha! 

Other than that... We did all of the things this weekend. The house got cleaned, the laundry is done, the grass is mowed, the gardens are weeded. I took a nap today, which was awesome. And I slept in both days. I also wrote and critiqued, which is also awesome. 

That is all for now! 

Behave! 

Feel Good Friday

We made it to Friday! Yay! It was a long week and it was even a short week for me! 

I'm going to put this up here and not on the list because I realized I never posted about it. Last week our kitty girl went to kitty heaven. She was around 20, maybe older, maybe a bit younger. We got her when she was nine or ten. Her previous owners weren't sure how old she was. She came to us a few months after we lost our kitty boy and our dog. It was a debate on whether or not we were ready for another pet, but we finally agreed. She came to us on a cold day in December and hid under our bed for most of the day. By evening, she was laying on top of the bed and allowed us to pet her. Her decline happened quickly and by last Tuesday, we knew it was time. She'd taken up residence on the couch and didn't move, not even when we ran the vacuum. When we came home Tuesday night, we knew it was time. She was a great kitty and we loved her very much. Despite the fact that we still have three cats, her presence is definitely missed. I look for her all of the time and I miss her little "murf" noise. She never meowed, just murfed. 

And that's all I have to say about that...

So let's get to the list...

1. Cursed Fate came out (again). I know I posted about it a while ago, but I completely boned on release day. I managed other social media, but not here. It was a crazy day/week around here and I was running around like a lunatic. But Wooo! Print copies will be available in six months, so that's cool. 

2. Fresh tomatoes from our garden on BLT's for dinner. So good. We've had exactly six tomatoes so far, but there are tons of green ones on. I'm excited. We also have hot peppers and banana peppers coming in. And basil, oregano, and rosemary. Looks like there's some spaghetti sauce making in my future. 

3. The heat wave being over! My gosh it was hot! I ran outside at work and burned my hand on the mechanism to open the front door. We drove home through some crazy storms, but it was worth it for the temperature to drop twenty degrees. 

4. The possibility of our nephew coming to hang out for a few days. He'll be between orders for the military and heading from south to north for his next gig. We haven't seen him in person since he was like eleven. He's a smart kid and fun to talk to. It'll be fun to have him and his girlfriend in house for a little while.

5. This weekend without a lot of plans. I mean, we do have plans, but they are more the clean the house, work on the camper for inspection (change light bulbs), weed whack, write, and do the grocery shopping. Easy plans, though the cleaning the house part sucks. I do hope to sleep in a little, too. 

6. Speaking of writing. I'm managing. It's slow and some nights its a struggle, but I'm in a challenge with my writing pals, and I have to keep adding numbers. The story is going well though, which is something. 

That's all I have for now.

Behave!

Eight Days...

And it's been a crazy eight days! 

This past weekend was the grands camping weekend. Things were snafu'ed and didn't quite work out like we'd planned, but in the end it worked out okay? 

The aunt and uncle arrived this weekend. Their trip took them way longer than they thought it would. I was texting to request updates and it would take at least a day to get an unsatisfactory response (meaning, it told me nothing about their eta or plans). They didn't arrive until days after they said they would. Despite knowing they march to their own drum and do what they want, it was frustrating. 

We were supposed to have a family thing up at camp but that fell through. The Uncle was supposed to update folks and he didn't. I was supposed to update and I tried, but that didn't work either thanks to my stupid phone and attempts that fell through. Nothing went the way it was supposed to. But the people who said they'd be there didn't check in either, so there's that. I can't run the world... I have enough on my plate and ultimately, I am not and cannot be in charge of everything. I'm not sure, but I may have been blamed for not updating, which my uncle said was bullsh*t because it was his job at that point. I still feel bad though. I did try. 

I mean, our uncle is seventy-seven. Our mom wasn't quite seventy-five when she died. He's our only close living relative on our mom's side. (He's mom's younger brother). He's an amazing guy with a lot of awesomely cool stories to tell. He just can't get up and go like he used to. He cracks us up and teaches us things. I cannot imagine not having him in my life. I will always go out of my way to see him and make sure he's okay. 

We got exactly one grandkid this weekend and she didn't get there until Sunday. We thought we would get her Saturday despite originally making plans to get her Friday. We waited all day Saturday for the word and it never came. Until very early Sunday morning. It was beyond anyone's control and that's okay. 

We moved schedules to keep her overnight Sunday, which meant I took off work today and That Man went in for a half day and then came back to help me break camp. K5's weekend was super rough until she got to us, so our goal was to spoil her as much as we could and give her mom a break. I think at least that part of the weekend worked.

There were bee stings. That Man, S, and both dogs got stung by a nest of ground bees. That Man got stung six times, S got three, and our dog got one (right under her tail near her sensitive spot), my sisters dog got way more than anyone else (uncountable since he's the one who found the nest) and that poor baby was a freaking mess. He had to have Benadryl and lots of love. So far, everyone is okey dokey. S had some residual effects, but I think she's okay now. 

It was a good weekend, for the most part, but I am freaking exhausted. Mentally and physically. So much both. 

Behave! 

First of August...

Cursed Fate releases on Wednesday! If you're fast enough you can get Into the Fire free again at some point this week. I don't know exactly what the date is. There was a screw up with the schedule. 

Well, here we are... Beginning of August. 

This summer has gone by really fast. Or is that just me? 

I am looking forward to fall coming though! I'm tired of the heat and ready for sweatshirt weather. I'll miss my flip flops, but I'll wear them until my feet get too cold. 

Our weekend consisted of getting the kid's vehicle ready for inspection. Again. The framework has been done and That Man and K4 worked on the other stuff all weekend. We dropped it off this morning, so now it's finger crossing time. She's ready to have her vehicle back and we're ready to have ours back. 

We have some fun stuff coming up. Looking forward to those things. I have a lot of lists though.

That's all I have.

Behave! 

Almost the End of July...

How crazy is that? End of July!

So the book I featured on the blog over the weekend is celebrating its release day today. Check it out if you're so inclined. It's a great book, especially if you like cozy mystery. 

What's been up around here? 

Not much. Not really. 

Yard work. I got poison sumac from weed whacking. We're going on two weeks now and it's still super itchy. I typically don't get poison ivy, but sumac and oak, yeah, I get that. I have a big spot on my leg and some smaller spots on my forearm. It itches like crazy and I hate it. 

We have plans to take the oldest grands camping soon. Looking forward to that. We've been talking about it for ages. The grands are super stoked and excited. We will have waffles and camp donuts. 

A friend of That Man's from high school stopped by tonight. He's one of those guys that it doesn't matter how long it's been since you've seen him, everything is all good. Our oldest two grew up with his kids. We did scouts together and many school dances and functions. It was good to see him and we laughed our butts off even though he still refuses to sell us his old station wagon. Ha!

I'm getting my butt back to writing again. It's been way, way too long. I'm happy with my progress so far this week. 

And that is all! 

Behave! 

Guest Blogger - Gabby Allen - Much Ado About Nauticaling

I am please to have Gabby Allen on the blog today!

Hello Victoria Smith Blog readers! So excited to be here with you today!

I’m Gabby Allan and Victoria has been nice enough to let me hang with you for just a little while. I’m super excited to introduce my new series to you! It’s a rom Cozy—rom com and cozy mystery snuggled up on a beach drinking a Mai Tai! If you’re into that kind of thing, I think you’ll love this book and my characters Whitney Dagner and her cat Whiskers!

Thanks for giving me a look and have a great day!

Whitney Dagner is your tour guide to a Pacific paradise that’s to die for—only to find it’s a place people are also willing to kill for—in Gabby Allan’s Much Ado About Nauticaling, first in the Whit and Whiskers Mystery series. 
After far too many years in the Los Angeles corporate world, Whitney Dagner has come home to Santa Catalina Island off the California coast to help her brother Nick run Nautically Yours, the family tourism business. Between gift shop shifts selling all manner of T-shirts and tchotchkes and keeping her feline Whiskers in fine fettle, she pilots the Sea Bounder, a glass bottom boat showing tourists the underwater sights of aquatic plants, marine life—and a murder victim? 
The self-proclaimed “Master of the Island,” Jules Tisdale was a wealthy man with business interests throughout Catalina who was about to be honored as Person of the Year before someone strangled him with his own tie and tossed his body into the water. That someone appears to be Nick, who had a raw deal from Jules and no alibi the night of his murder. To clear her brother’s name, Whit will have to investigate Jules’ shady associates and not exactly grief-stricken family members—with the unwelcome help of Felix Ramirez, police diver and Whit’s ex-boyfriend who’s looking to rekindle their relationship.

https://www.kensingtonbooks.com/9781496731067/much-ado-about-nauticaling/

If you’d like a door hanger and/or a signed book plate for your book, drop me a line at gabbyallanwrites@gmail.com

You can find me lots of places but here are a few to start!

 

Newsletter sign up  http://eepurl.com/bjDYYX

Website www.gabbyallan.com

Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/GabbyAllanAuthor

Facebook Group Merry Sleuths https://bit.ly/2UWZida

Amazon Author Page https://amzn.to/3inb08R

Instagram @gabbyallanspeaks

Goodreads https://bit.ly/3ioqHg3

Bookbub https://www.bookbub.com/authors/gabby-allan

Thanks for having me!

(From Victoria - I have read this book and it's a blast! I highly recommend it!)

Behave!

  

It's Been A While...

It's been almost 3 weeks since I posted! Sorry about that! 

We went from That Man being away on his fishing trip to loading up the car and taking a half cross country trek. Many hours driving through horrible rain and butthead drivers to see my aunt and uncle. We hadn't seen them for over two years so when the timing came up, we went for it. 

We had a blast hanging out with them. Basically, we just visited and laughed. My aunt has been taking care of my uncle post surgery - it was last year, but he's still recovering and adjusting medications - so we pampered her a little and took care of some house stuff she hasn't had a chance to get to, made dinner and lunch, and took care of the dogs. Killed some poisonous spiders, and fought ticks. The uncle is looking good though. Still a little wobbly at times, but his mind is sharp again, and he looks well. All good stuff. 

Down the street from their house is a little market - you can get ice, beer, booze, smokes, and a wide range of probably expired food stuffs. Ha! Inside that building is a bar/restaurant. I've been to their house three or four times now and never knew that! We went there to listen to a blue grass band one night and had a blast. There weren't very many people, but the band, the appetizers, and the small crowd were awesome. The guy bought an old Victorian house and incorporated it into the space. The second floor is a bedroom, bathroom, and sitting room and they are all period appropriate. It was cool, but you can't get closer than looking at it from the first floor. We essentially listened to the band from the back porch of the house. That was a highlight for sure. 

Got to see a cousin I haven't seen in forever. We had that awkward silence at first - you know the one where you're not sure you have anything in common even though you're related and you remember hanging out as kids. And then you realize you all fell from the same tree. It was fun and we talked for a long time. It was good. 

We braved more rain on the way home. Coming home is definitely harder than going out. We're still recovering. I think we're just getting too old to stay up that long and sleep in the car. Ha!

Back to work on Monday. Exhausted and trying to get into our new routine. This is the first we've both been in the office all week since I went back. We've had to alter our Hello Fresh deliveries and our old routine. But we'll figure it out. K4 has a different schedule now, too, so that adds an additional adjustment. We'll get there. 

I haven't written much lately, but that will come back, too. I have a lot of research and ideas to put into the book, which is a good thing. Being where we were gave me a lot of terrain and locations to add, so that is also very good. 

Now we're scheduled for home things for the next few weeks. Weeds need pulled. Sheds need cleaned out. Cars need prepped for inspection. Blah. Blah. Blah. It is what it is. 

That is all! 

Behave! 

Feel Good Friday on Saturday!

It was a very long week!

The good things:

1. Signing my contract and the amazing and wonderful things my editor says about my work!

2. Cursed Fate being up for presale! Official release date is August 4th!

3. That Man getting some much needed away time on his annual fishing trip with the guys. They go to one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen and have a blast. He'll be home later. I have missed him a lot.

4. Getting Jeep "ducked". Basically a rubber duckie given by another Jeep owner. It's fun. K4 and I had gone to the garage to pick up her Jeep and we were in tandem on the way home. A red Jeep was in front of us. When we got to the light, there was much hooting and hollering as the ladies in the red Jeep got out and ducked both K4 and me. It was fun. (K4 got ducked earlier this week, too, with a giant stuffed yellow duck) 

5. As much as I'd rather be working from home, being back in the office has been fine. It's nice to see coworkers and be able to talk to them instead of waiting on an email or a call back. 

6. Sleeping in this morning. Very nice and much needed. 

7. Writing time this morning!

8. The quiet of my house currently. The cats are watching the water dish. I don't know why. I just cleaned and filled it, but I guess they think it's going to do something? The dog is chewing on her star treat toy on the couch. It's nice.

9. Fun stuff coming up! 

That's all I have! 

Behave!

Back Home & Father's Day

I got home around 11-ish. Didn't get much writing done this morning, but that's typical for me on the last day of retreat. 

After unloading, I hit the grocery store. That Man wanted fried chicken for dinner. I went to the store and grabbed some of theirs, which is really good. Stuck it in the fridge until time for dinner. (Put it in the oven. Made mashed potatoes, gravy, and cole slaw) Did laundry. K3 and A came over for a while and we had a good time talking and hanging out with them. 

That Man talked to K5. She was on her way home from Harry Potter World and filled him in on all of her adventures, including holding a crocodile and riding in a pontoon boat. She's a hoot! 

My huge surprise when I got home was a contract for the book I sent Friday night. Awesome! I love this book so much and I'm so happy my editor was happy to receive it. I also got my galleys for Cursed Fate! Coming Soon! Yay! 

So it is Father's Day. I appreciate my husband so much. He's an awesome father even though our kids are grown. His interactions with our spawn always make me laugh. And they call him for advice and stuff all of the time. I love that. 

I also appreciate all of the dads in my life - my brother, brother's-in-laws, uncles, friends, nephews, nephews-in-laws. 

I miss my dad. It's been six Father's Day since he was here. Almost seven years since he's been gone. I miss him. A lot. He would get a kick out of his great grandkids and what his grandkids are up to these days. He was always so proud of them. That Man's dad has been gone around ten years? And he would also have loved to see what his grandkid and great grandkids are up to. 

This week is crazy! Next week is too! 

Behave!

Retreat! Winding Down!

 There are mere hours left! 

I haven't gotten anything done this morning yet. I was awakened by the smell of burning toast a few hours before I'd planned to get up. Ha! I stayed in bed a little while longer, but gave up and made my way to the common area. 

From there, I have proceeded to goof off. Though I did strip my bed, made sure my towels were where they are supposed to be, packed some stuff, ate a bagel, drank some coffee, blah blah blah.

Now I'm finally sitting down to get some work done before I head for home. It's been a super productive time for all of us. And nice to get to hang and talk. 

I am looking forward to getting home though. Considering we weren't home last weekend, I'm looking forward to just sitting on my porch. 

And that is all...

Behave!

Retreat! Last Night!

It's the last night of retreat! 

It's been an amazing time! It's been too long since I've been with these creative brains and awesome people. We have laughed, talked, brainstormed, argued a little (about dumb stuff), and supported each other. 

I made a pretty damned good dinner. Chicken stir fry with egg rolls. Of course, I made enough to feed all of us despite the fact that I was the only one eating it. Yes, I offered it around, but it appears I'm the only one with my tastes. Ha! I will take it home as leftovers for lunch this week. That's what we do here though. We all take care of our own meals. If you want to cook, you cook. If you want to make a frozen dinner, then do it. If you just want to snack, then go for it. The only meal we do together is the first night and that's nachos. We all bring an ingredient, but we all make our own. It works. 

There was napping today, which was beautiful. And rain. Also beautiful as we sat at the table on the porch listening to it. It's very quiet here. There was also brainstorming and a major good start on my new story. I'll get back to it in a few. 

Tomorrow is Father's Day. That Man is currently enjoying being home all by himself, which is something that rarely happens for him. I'll head home mid-morning and then will take care of dinner. 

I don't think I'll get to do another retreat until after the first of the year, but we'll see. There's a lot going on the rest of the year and a lot of expenses, so I won't know until we get closer. 

That is all. 

Behave! 

Retreat! Saturday!

It's the last full day of retreat!

This has been a pretty productive time. I finished my edits and sent them off. I figured out what I am doing with the next story and will start writing that in a few. 

Sleep has been good. The shower is decent. The weather has been good. Currently it's threatening rain, but that's okay. We've got an awesome screened in porch to sit on. Though it's supposed to get hot today. We'll see. I do predict a nap in my future. 

That's all I have for now...

Behave!