Monday Melt-down

Posted on July 18, 2022 by Silver James

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s still hot. I fear that is a reoccurring theme for this summer. I truly identify with the pup in the pic. And yes, I like to gritch about the weather. Deal with it. 😉

Stuff happened this weekend. And last week.

I have to tell a funny on myself. Well, and LG too. So, the Kids took off a week ago Saturday for a short vacation. LG picked up Only’s Mustang to do some mostly comestic work on it–the interior leather on the doors had pulled out, the center console lid was cracked, the driver’s side mirror needed a replacement part. They got home Wednesday evening. The ‘Stang wasn’t done yet–waiting on a part and the doors (A former client of LG’s who still owed him some fees also restores cars so he fixed the panels in trade). I had it in my head that she had to do a photo shoot at work on Thursday and that Baseball Boy and Stormy had someplace to be so they needed two cars. Long story short, we took Drover up to them. We find out on Thursday afternoon, that she didn’t have work, the photo shoot was Friday afternoon. Ah well. I was being a good mom. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. Anyway, they had a great time, her ‘Stang looks much better, and Drover is now home in the garage where he belongs.

Stormy had a soccer game Saturday. He ended up playing goalie for the other team because they didn’t have enough players and while that meant they forfeited, the coaches decided to scrimmage anyway. He got a medal for good sportsmanship from his coach. He also got a new bed. Well, a used bed, but new to him. I won’t get into all the details but friends bought their son (Stormy’s classmate and friend) a new bed for reasons. It’s a sturdy wooden loft bad with built-in dresser drawers, slide-out desktop, and hidden storage. His then-current bed was a metal frame “bunk” bed with a twin on top and a double on the bottom. It took up half the floorspace in his room. Literally. The new bed gives him plenty of room and the old bed found a new home with a friend of a friend’s co-worker–a grandmother getting custody of two grandkids, with no furniture and little money to spare. Warm fuzzies for paying forward. Anyway, we went to the boonies in LG’s truck to collect the new bed and move it back to the Kid’s house. We did NOT have to help put it together.

Needless to say, Saturday was hot and busy. And no coffee! *muppet flail* I know, right?!?! No, I wasn’t functioning on all cylinders but I also wasn’t having to make pitstops every 30 mintues. Once we finally got home, we flipped on the Cards’ game (they won 11-3), Goldy got his 300th homerun–which I was awake for–but totally napped through all the other runs. Catfish for dinner FTW.

Sunday, I hand-watered the giant phlox in my jungle of a front flowerbed. The grapevine and wisteria vines are particularly agressive this year. The phlox need water and under the restrictions, we can only hand water on days determined by address. In my case, it’s Thursday and Sunday. It sucks. I sometimes “cheat” because the house is on a corner so I could have either an even or an odd address depending on where the builder put the front door. We’re odd, BTW, but you knew that. 😉

I did some work. Not much but some and after my Wallyworld run early-EARLY this morning, I intend to knuckle down. I’ve sooo been draggin’ my feet this summer. It’s the doldrums. Or the Ides of Summer. No, that’s March. When it’s usually cooler. Whatever. Anyway, that’s my world. How’s your world?

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Friday Sinema: Endless Summer

Posted on July 15, 2022 by Silver James

I just caught the 9-day forecast. It’s ugly. Highs from 102 to 105 and until we “see” the actual humidity, no clue on how high the heat indext will go. And we’re only halfway through July. Ugh. There’s a reason we call these the dog days of summer and why if feels like Summer is gonna stick around forever. And yeah, it’s still totally a southern thing. Have a great weekend!

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Thursday Thoughts: Universe Pretending

Posted on July 14, 2022 by Silver James

Who played “pretend” when they were kids? 🙋🏼‍♀️

I could be a cowboy. Or an Indian. I could be a horse. Oh, I was a good horse! A shiny white stallion. For years and years I had a picture post card of him standing guard over his mares in a mountain valley under a full moon. I’ve tried several times to find the picture the post card was based on by my google-fu has failed me. That scene is still vivid in my imagination. Which is what fuels pretending. Pretending is what I do best. Even as a kid. I had more imaginary friends than I did RL ones. I think the Universe is on to me, though…

Silver James! What are you doing back in time and space?

A-ha! I see. Pretending.

Is it true that the illusions are soooooo captivating, the coffee soooooo rich, and the chocolate soooooo creamy, it’s easy to forget you’re just making it all up? And that if you don’t like what you’re experiencing you choose new thoughts, words, and baby steps to transform it?

Yeah, I already know…

More maple syrup?
The Universe
©www.tut.com

Pretending, Silver… it’s what you do in time and space.

And that’s why I’m a writer. I’d rather live in my head with made-up people. I do hope I make the characters and the stories real enough that it all seems real to y’all. Did you have an imaginary friend? What was its name? Mine was a Fae named Loyal (pronounced Loy-al, rather than low-e-ahl. Anyway…) And yes, Ariel in the Penumbra Papers is based on my memory of him.

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Wednesday Words: Direct Message

Posted on July 13, 2022 by Silver James

[EDIT] Uhm…yeah. I really need to double-check post times when I set up the blog in advance. I had PM instead of AM clicked. Ah, well. Better late than never, right?

So, Wednesday once again. We’re almost half-way through July and I feel like I haven’t accomplished much of anything. I am, however, determined to at least get some new words using the #1LineWed and #ThursdayThreads prompts. That said, due to circumstance and on account of because, I only had the #1LineWed prompt this week. I still managed almost 600 words based on **MESSAGE**. As a set-up, this scene happens towards the beginning of CROSSFIRE, not long after the Hard Target team arrives to rescue Meg and discovers the orphans. Half the team and the older kids are walking back toward Moldavia for safety for…reasons. Ahoy, plot bunnies. So here we go…
****
The frigid rain pounded them and ran in rivulets down the trail, turning into a slick miasma.

“We need to find shelter.” The men exchanged looks and Meg correctly read the implied d’uh in their expressions. “Fine,” she snapped. “It’s obvious. But while you macho men are all for soldiering on, the kids are flagging.”

“I’m aware of that, Ms. Muir.”

She bristled at the condescending tone in the big soldier’s voice. And using such a formal address was his way of putting it in her place. Whatever. She understood the reason for this trek. Watching the helicopter fly away with the smallest and sickest of the children had been hard. Worse, when word arrived that the chopper was grounded due to weather and Russian jets, the decision had been made to keep moving on foot. Then the weather turned even worse. Streams became raging rivers and their course had changed numerous times due to unexpected terrain.

In the distance, a dog howled. She blinked. No. That was not a dog. Wolf. She’d worked with them long enough to tell the difference. Besides, the K9 was right there next to his handler. This was mostly wild country so she doubted any shepherds or farms would be nearby.
“That was—”

“A wolf.” The tall, dark soldier with the Scottish accent finished for her. “Not to worry, lass.”

“Humphf,” she grumbled.

Surprisingly, the guy in charge—and she really needed to concentrate so she could remember their names since they’d come to rescue her and all—headed in the direction of the howl. She herded the older kids ahead of her, having learned that the men would look after the smaller ones. In fact, the one with the goofy grin and teasing eyes—Dalton? Something like that. Anyway, he had a little girl perched on his shoulders, wearing a rain poncho. He also carried two packs, one on his back and one on his chest.

A low rumble reverberated above them. A gush of mud flowed down the hillside, followed by a tumble of rocks and debris. Meg turned around, her breath catching in her throat. “Watch—”

The little girl flew through the air and the soldier who’d come up behind Meg snatched her out of the air, swung around and deposited the surprised child on the trail behind him. Maxim was there, grabbing her hand and leading her away. Petrov, the soldier she secretly called Ta-dah, for the initials Tall, Dark, and Handsome or TDAH—hey she wash her father’s daughter and the military had a love affair with anacronyms—had the rest of the kids in hand. The soldier who’d been directly behind her was nowhere to be seen. She glanced down and saw him clinging to a tree further down the hill.

In a matter of minutes, Dalton was back on the trail, though scraped, bruised, and covered in mud. The pack that had been strapped to his chest looked crushed. While Tank and Kin worked to clean him up, Duke and Uri studied the radio Dalton had been carrying.

“Can we get a message out?” Duke looked resigned.

Uri stared at the mess of electronics in his hands. “Not with this.”

Scrubbing at his face, Duke made a decision. “Then we’ll just keep walking. We’ll eventually find a phone or another radio.” He glanced at the falcon huddling wet and miserable on Uri’s shoulder. “Any chance Golda—”

Uri shook his head. “No. She would be far for me to control.”

“Well…hell.”
****
Yeah, talk about a clean-up on Aisle 9… Hey, there has to be reasons why they didn’t stay at the deserted farmhouse and why the “Air Force” wing of the team didn’t return ASAP to pick up the rest of them. For those bunnies, you’ll have to read the book. You know, once I get off my arse and get it written, edited, formatted, and uploaded. I’ll get right on that. No. Really. Writers, any messages you want to share? Readers, have you ever found a message in a bottle?

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Tuesday Treats & Titles: What’s in a Name?

Posted on July 12, 2022 by Silver James

I’m not sure how coherent this will be because Boone has been doing his weird wanderings and both LG and I are still walking the edge of sleep deprivation. I’d just dropped off to sleep yesterday afternoon for a nap when the dang dog decided to dig his way to Narnia in the wall behind the headboard–which is a space even little Loki has trouble squeezing into and we all know cats are liquid. Big dogs? Not so much. The ol’ brain ain’t firin’ on all cylinders and I’m a bit grumpy as I’m typing this. 😠

Anyway, names. As a writer, I collect names and I have this really big deal about names matching characters–not just their personalities but their backgrounds and ethnic heritage. I went round and round with a beginning writer because she was using classical Greek names for her Celtic immortals. Why? Because she liked those names. I asked her why she didn’t make them Greek in origin and she replied that the whole premise was based on Celtic legend. Yeah…well…

What triggered this whole train of thought? This goes back to my first published series, Faerie Reign. The hero in the second book is named Duncan Ross. He’s Scottish. And yes, originally, the story was based on “The Highlander” series (I’m not embarrassed to say that it started life as a bit of fan fiction) and the character was immortal. For the Faerie books, Duncan McLeod became Duncan Ross and he was reincarnated. Welpers, I came across a book over the weekend wheren the hero’s name was Duncan Ross. It made me stop and go…wait, what?!?!

Am I upset? Not really but sort of. At the time, I’d done a lot of research on the name “Duncan Ross” to make sure I wasn’t using a real persons name–or at least a notable real person. My point is, I spend a lot of time working on names. I want them to fit the character. I want them to sound cool. I want first and last names to sound like…well, like they go together and that “person” has had that name all their life. Yes, I do have more than one name-the-baby book on my desk. And yes, I probably spend way too much time scouring them to find the combination that just sounds right.

But, but… Yes, I see a couple of hands going up wanting to ask about some of the names in The Penumbra Papers. Yes, the FBI director’s name is George Bailey. Yes, his assistant’s name is Alice Cooper. Those books have a different tone, often have “Easter eggs” in them, and the characters are secondary. It’s a way to add a little tongue-in-cheek fun to the books. And if you really look at those characters, their names fit the characters, or the characters fit the names. Take your pick. 😉

So, no hard and fast rules, just my preferences, and yes, when I’m reading other’s books, I do roll my eyes over some of the name choices. I’m curious about how readers feel. Are names important to you? Do you have some favorite characters with cool names? Do you sometimes wonder what the author was thinkin’ (or smokin’/drinkin’) when they name a character? And most important, do any of my characters have names you hate? Inquiring minds want to know!

Also, here’s my tip for a treat. True story. I had a big ol’ cup of coffee prepped and ready–hot, creamy, sweet, and full of caffeine goodness. And then life happened. I had to walk away from it. For some totally bizarre reason, I stuck the travel cup in the freezer. Sleep deprived brain, remember? And that was only my second cup so I was also cafeine deprived. I went off to deal with life and splurged on a Starbucks Frappucino on the way home. Later, I was looking for my coffee cup. And finally found it when I was pulling something else out of the freezer. Because the cup was thermal, it hadn’t frozen solid so it came out kind of like a frappucino. And I thought to myself, “Self, we should make coffee pops! Mix up the milk, coffee, sugar, and any flavorings–like vanilla, cinnamon, mocha, whatever–pour into small paper cups, freeze until you can stick popsicle sticks into them and they stay upright, then freeze solid. Have I done this? Nope, but if this hit keeps on, I’ll be tempted. In fact, I might just add cups and sticks to my grocery list. What do y’all think? Worth a try?

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Dog Day Monday

Posted on July 11, 2022 by Silver James

Who knows why these are called the dog days of summer? 🙋🏼‍♀️ if you don’t know, or are curious, here’s a quick recap–and no, it has nothing to do with hot days and dogs melting into the puddles all lazy and stuff due to the heat. Between July 3 and August 11 (the “official” dog days of summer), the Sun occupies the same space as Sirius, which is the brightest star in the sky and rises and sets with the sun. Y’all might recognize that Sirius is called the Dog Star because it’s part of the Canis Major,, the Greater Dog. The Romans believed that the heat Sirius gives off adds to that of the sun when they are in close proximity. FYI, on July 23, the Sun and Sirius are in conjunction. And that, boys and girls, is our astronomy lesson for the day.

It’s hot. It’s sooo hot I don’t want to do a darn thing. Luckily, the temps cooled slighily on Saturday–at least during the morning–so we headed up north to watch Stormy play soccer. ALL the kids (and quite a few parents) were dragging because of the humidity. Stormy made a goal and then blocked a few when he played goalie. They have a good coach and this league is very positive and takes lots of water breaks. I’m not sure who won, but since they are second graders and none of them will be recruited for World Cup soccer, not sure it really maters. The Kids left shortly after for a quick vacation to St. Louis. They have tickets to the Cardinals. I’m a little jealous, but it’s still hot, and  yes, I might melt if I have to sit out in the sun. The good thing (of them, anyway) about Baseball Boy being a high school teacher is they always have babysitters and house/dog sitters. Two sisterxz are staying at their house to take care of Dozer the Belgian Malinois.

Have I mentioned I love fried cat fish? I do, Harold. I really, really do. (Don’t ask. That’s a phrasae that goes back to my college days and you would have had to have been there to understand what it means and why it makes me laugh.)

Our Ring doorbell app sends out weird alerts sometimes. I get a “There’s a PERSON at your front door” when someone walks down the street, 40 feet away. It ignores the cauldron of cats, the stray Papillion, the possum, and the raccoons. When the skunk shows up? “There’s a PERSON at your front door.” 🙄 So far, I’ve picked up no serious paranormal activity but I keep hoping.

I gave blood yesterday. I try to give every 8-12 weeks. Jake went with me again. New supervisory guy was there today and he wanted a pic of Jake. It’s amazing how often people want to see him. You can check out the Stuff and Nonsesne tab up there at the top to see pics of the critters. Excpet for Pete. I haven’t added Pistol Pete the Garage Cat yet. I only have a couple of pics and they’re nothing to write home about.

Why yes, I am refusing to discuss writing. Whay to you ask?

Moving on. Today is WallyWorld day for groceries unless I have another bad night. Boone was in his “Looking for the Wardrobe to Narnia” search mode last night. He kept LG and I both up. In. Out. Trying to get there from the shower, the closet, behind the bed, all four corners in the family room… Poor old dude. Anyway, if I’m dragging and it’s hot early, I’ll probably proscrastinate. I’m also going to fight against the lethargy of these blased dog days and you know…work for my living. Dang book ain’t gonna revise itself. On that note, time to decide if I’m going to have to people today. What about y’all? Do you have to people today? And how was your weekend?

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Friday Sinema: Summer Driving

Posted on July 8, 2022 by Silver James

This is so true, y’all, and why I always hit Wallyworld before 9 a.m. Stay in. Stay cool. And watch those hot cars! Also, I know y’all are smart enough to not leave pets or people in a car in the summer, even with the windows cracked. Just don’t do it unless you want to bury somebody special. Also, call 911 if you see a child or critter suffering. That’s my very serious PSA to go along with the grins and giggles on this Friday, when our heat index is predicted at 105.

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Upgrade

Posted on July 7, 2022 by Silver James

Hot town, summer in the city. Baby, it’s hot outside. Sumertime, and the livin’s supposed to be easy… Okay, I’m being silly and showing my age. Can you name those tunes? And who remembers that show? 🙋🏼‍♀️ Anyway, it’s Thursday. And I’m still fighting the urge to just ignore the revisions. Which is stupid. All these books are better than I remember. And even better now with new words and my characters as secondary, with references to things in my books. Part of me wants to blame it on the summer doldrums. It gets blazing hot, the cost of electricity quadruples during peak hours. I’m serious. It’s normally 7 cents a KWH. During peak heat emergencies, it surges up to 43 cetns a KWH. Which is…six times higher. Math is not my strong suit. Anyway, I just want to strip down to the bare necessities and go lay down under the fan and nap. But…

I write books for living. It’s not a huge living but it does help pay bills, or did until inflation and the recession, but that a different rant. Today is about making choices. I have to make the choice to work. No one can make it for me. Oh, I can feel guilty when a reader asks about the next book. And I can promise myself every day that I’m going to finish that last part (at this point about half of the last book) and then get them all shiny-bright and pretty and uploaded and then move on to the projects on the back burner but…

But it’s too hot to cook. That’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it. But…
But then the Universe rears up and drops this into my inbox. Grrr.
****

We always have a choice. Nothing is carved in stone. Well, not everything is. Just as soon as I start making statements of absolute, someone will remind me that this or that is the exception to the rule.

You can always change how you feel, Silver, and you can always feel whatever you like.

Don’t you remember? You bought the upgraded “Superior-Deluxe, Double-Plus-Good Time-Space Package,” with a side order of “mousse,” if I recall.

Smooth,
The Universe
©www.tut.com

You can always change how you feel, Silver, and you can always feel whatever you like.

****
Yes, I am singing and humming Morris Albert’s “Feelings.” Why do you ask? All ear worms and joking aside, there’s something to this. I’m “allowed” to feel whatever. But…

But, when push comes to shove, I can also change what I feel, how I feel it, and what I do about it. Guess what. Writers are their biggest WIPs*. I need to be a harsh a taskmaster with myself as I am with my characters and plots and settings. Because, dammit, I AM a writer and I need to do my frickin’ job. So Imma gonna get right on that. Right after I have that mousse. Or some ice cream…

*Works In Progress

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Wednesday Words: Was it a Mistake?

Posted on July 6, 2022 by Silver James

Once again, it’s Wednesday and that means new words. #1lineWed **WAS** far too easy. Writers, run a word search an see how many times WAS appears. The prompt for #ThirsdayThreads was far more interesting: “It’s a mistake many beginners often make.” This snippet will appear fairly early on in the book but beyond that, it’s also pretty self-explanatory.
****
Meg was not a stranger to firearms, not with a soldier father. He’d taken her hunting every school break and vacation she spent with him. She hadn’t fired one in ages though. While she’d never admit it aloud, she was a bit hesitant about firing one now. Still, she and Petrov were the only adults and with the war going the way it was, she needed to be able to protect the children. And herself.

Petrov showed her how to load the rifle while Maxim set up a target. Going to her belly, legs spread, elbows planted in a proper prone firing stand, she fitted the weapon to her shoulder, laid her cheek along the stock, and closed one eye peering through the scope. The target—a shirt pulled over a bush—appeared in the scope’s crosshairs. She inhaled, held her breath, exhaled, pulled the trigger.

Nothing happened. Well, snickers broke out from the males standing behind her, but the rifle didn’t do a bloody thing. It was loaded. She’d checked.

“It’s a mistake many beginners often make.” Petrov sounded smug.

Meg turned her head. Eyes narrowed, she glowered at the older man and the teen standing next to him. Maxim had the sense to take a backwards step to put further distance between them.

“I’m not a beginner.” She bit off each word.

“Safety.”

Puzzled, her expression morphed from anger to confusion. “I was being safe.”

“No. The safety. You left it on.”

Okay, maybe her noob status was showing a little now. She had no idea a hunting rifle had a safety, which was, in itself, a d’uh moment. She found the small mechanism, clicked it off, and resumed her firing position. Following the same procedure, when she pulled the trigger this time, all sorts of things happened. The rifle bucked. There was a deafening crack. The shirt flapped. And her right cheek and eye hurt like she’d just been kicked by an elephant.

Maxim said something in Ukrainian she couldn’t translate. Petrov answered in English. “Yes, she will need ice for the eye. Good shot, though.” The older man flashed her a sardonic grin. “You killed my shirt.”
****
Yeah, that’s gonna leave a bruise. LOL Writers, feel free to share now or just take the prompts and run with them in your own work. Readers, ever fired a rifle?

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Tuesday Treats & Titles: Organized…NOT!

Posted on July 5, 2022 by Silver James

I have to tell a funny on myself. I sat down yesterday and rather than diving into revisions, which I did later, I decided to get today’s blog set up. Because…you know…I forget sometimes what day it is. 🙄 So I open WordPress editor, and I set up the blog, cutting and pasting from the WIP the snippet I wrote last week for a flash fiction challenge and to be used as a post this week. I titled it. I set up the coding. I got ready to save it/schedule it… And realized that yesterday was MONDAY. And I’d just done the post for Wednesday. 🤦🏼‍♀️ Sadly, this is becoming my go-to emoticon.

However, my “senior moment” has given me a topic for today. I’ve prepared a fresh cup of coffee and I have my cinnamon biscuit to munch on. I’ve mentioned how much I love the Pillsbury frozen buttermilk biscuits, right? They take about 20-25 minutes, look and taste like homemade (way more than the canned variety) and if any are left over, I save them to cut in half to add butter, sugar, and cinnamon before sticking them under the broiler to toast up. Yummers! I do the same with yeast rolls, FYI. Anyway, I have that beside me with my coffee, so that’s the treat section of today’s post. Now for the titles part.

UNDER THE ASSASSIN’S MOON. I don’t know why I have such a mental block about getting this sucker updated. I am, though. I mean, I’ll fold laundry and clean bathrooms rather than work on it. Crazy, right?!?! Part of it is continuity. It’s sort of tied in with ASSASSIN’S MOON. The folks from ASSASSIN’S MOON appear in both, but the romantic leads are different. So is the plot. In the originals, the Delta Force team also appeared. Should be easy enough to switch to my Hard Target team, right? You’d think! However… Originally, those books were written about a year apart. I wasn’t confused. Now, I revised AM and immediately started on UTAM. And screwed up the continuity in the relationship between Duke (Hard Target, who was a SEAL) and Brody, who was Delta, confusing him with Griff (AM–Delta Force sniper who trained with Duke. I think. 🙄 ) You see my problem? Continuity! And a Swiss cheese brain that conveniently forgets facts.

Which brings me to sort of today’s topic–orginazation. Fiction authors totally need a series bible. I am sooo not the organized type. I mean, that should be obvious by the way I actually write a book–in bits and pieces that finally all fit in the same puzzle. Scrivener helps, and I do try to keep current notes as I write but way too often, I get lost in the story and I just toddle along merrily slapping down words to form scenes and then I’ll wake up–not quite screaming but almost! LOL–in the middle of the night and think, “Oh $h!+. I think I f*cked that up today.” Which leads to tossing and turning, blearly eyes and lots of coffee as I madly scramble through previous books/scenes/chapters to see how royally I screwed things. Word of advice: Don’t be me!

Anyway, I’m going to forge ahead with UTAM but before I finalize it, I will go back and read AM just to make sure I haven’t “crossed the streams.” BTW, that Direct TV commercial that combines baseball with Ghostbusters? I crack up every time. Needless to say, it’s not always bad if you cross streams, but be sure the result works rather than repeats or throws the rest of the plot off kilter. Questions? Besides the obvious: Who needs more coffee? 🙋🏼‍♀️

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