Winter

As a reminder, the subtitle of this blog is Ramblings of an Author in Progress, so ramble I will.


We have had an unseasonably mild winter in the Midwest.  I'm not complaining!  But this morning on the train it was COLD.  You'd think I would move to a warmer car, but I'm a creature of habit, so I didn't. I will admit that I'm generally hot by the time we reach the city, so I was willing to be a little cold on my ride in this morning.  El Nino or La Nina or global warming, whatever it is that's sparing us frigid temps and mountains of snow, I'm not going to complain. My sympathy for our European friends, who are getting what we're missing.

I watched part of the Grammys last night, and I saw the 60 Minutes interview with Adele beforehand.  I do love her voice, and I am a fan.  Wouldn't say devoted fan, but I do like her music.  Along those lines, she did inspire me to move ahead on one of the stories I outlined.

Every story an author writes contains snippets of themselves and the people they know.  I've been holding back on one of my stories, which was inspired by one of those "that doesn't happen in real life" moments when I was watching a movie.  I thought it was time to present a touch of reality and a "different" happily ever after type of ending.  In fairness, I've seen both version of the endings in question, but it was a moment that struck close to home and prompted me to outline my version of the story.  After an appropriate gestation period, I think it's time to begin the writing process. Naturally, I pick this time of the year to start - when my day job is the most hectic and challenging.  Maybe that's why I picked now.  I need the release that comes with writing!

In the meantime, I'm still shopping Living Canvas.  Epitaph is still sitting on the shelf but probably ready to go.  Maybe some tweaking and definitely some serious shopping effort, but it's time to move forward.

And so it goes . . .

Furry Friends

I thought I'd wax poetic on my cat today.  I mean, why not?  I always think about the Star Trek episode, "The Trouble with Tribbles."  Aren't cats tribbles, after all?

This is a picture "under the Christmas tree."  She's gorgeous, isn't she?  Funny thing about Ms. Cat.  She's a younger sibling, and when her big brother crossed the rainbow bridge last year, she went from shy, yet cuddly, to vocal and untouchable. This poor kitty was left for dead in a dumpster when she was six weeks old.  She's going to be 11 this year, and clearly suffers only psychological trauma from that event. When we adopted her, she was very sick. I didn't think she was going to make it, and yet she did.  She's a tough kitty.  I do believe that she continues to suffer chronic respiratory ailments as a result of those formative years, however.  She's a sneezer and a wheezer quite often, although she's been clear for a month now. She's done several regimens of antibiotics, and this last round made me realize just how sick she was prior.  I tend to take for granted that the sneezing and wheezing are chronic and don't always rush to the vet. After this last go round, the difference in before antiobiotics and after was tangible.  She can breathe again, so she's playing again and cuddling again. She doesn't run from The Big Guy as much, and although she continues to be shy, she is more outgoing as she ages - more so now that she's feeling better again. And I'm tripping all over her toys again.

Recently, I received an iPad to play with. While I was learning to use it, a friend suggested I try a game.  A game that requires you to swipe different directions and tilt the tablet to move your "guy."  So I was sitting on the couch, and Ms. Cat, who is still mildly untouchable (you can pet her when SHE says so), walks up to me and starts rubbing her chin on the corner of the iPad.  While I'm tilting it to keep my "guy" from dying.  Crash. Into a wall, or into the lake.  She made my character die!  And of course the minute I reach over to pet her to allay her need for affection, she walks away. "Don't touch me!"  Yeah, only when I'm playing with the iPad and then it's "pet me, play with me, pay attention to me."  Silly cat.  Lots of personality, Ms. Cat has.