Enough

 I finally have gotten to a place in the rewrite of the rewrite of DANGER LOOMS where it is just fixing  things up a little, rather than having to redo big hunks of copy.

I needed a day to clear my head and went to Disneyland yesterday with my son and Jakey.  I am way past caring about the rides  and its all about getting exercise and racking up steps.  There's people watching too and I check out graphic T-shirts for messages from the universe.  There were a few about being relaxed, but most had something to do with something Disney.  

 I like to think something I wear might offer a message from the universe to whoever notices.  It could be a laugh as in the shirt with The Scream featuring Charley Brown or something reassuring like the shirt I got recently that says You are  Enough on the front.   

 I imagine someone having a bad day and feeling less than who sees that shirt and it gives them a lift.   

 The Trader Joe's cashiers almost always ask how my day is going and it's not just idle chit chat.  I have heard stories that when someone admits to having a bad day or is even in tears, the cashiers present them with flowers to cheer them up.   

It's such a nice thought that we can make someone's day brighter.  Though I have to admit it doesn't always work.  There is a surly clerk at Costco and I have always tried to be extra friendly when I go through his line, but he never loses the chip on his shoulder attitude.  What's even more ridiculous is that they often put him in the self checkout area where his whole job is helping people get to an available spot and then helping  them if they have trouble.  In other words, customer service.  He definitely doesn't do it with a smile.

Despite my failure with him,  I still will keep trying to cheer someone up who appears down. It seems like the least we can do for each other.

I'm Back!

           Sorry I haven’t posted for a while. One of the reasons was that last week I was in Cancun with family having a fun time—but not having easy access to my computer. And yes, I did miss my pups while we were gone, but we have a good sitter who takes great care of them. Plus, we don’t get to see our grandsons as often as we’d like since they live in a different city—but we were with them, our son, and d-i-l in Mexico—wonderful fun!

            But I’m back home now and, yes, I’m on my computer a lot once more. I’m still working on the major edits to my current manuscript, as well as plotting some additional ideas I’ve been thinking about—although they don’t take place in Cancun.

            Hopefully, you’ll see posts from me regularly again!

Think Pink

 Still going through DANGER LOOMS.  I thought it was going to be mostly proof reading, but I seem to be redoing instead of fixing typos or adding missing words.  The characters loosened up and had more to say.

The weather keeps changing and it is confusing what season it is.  After days of sun and warmth, the sky was a bluish gray and the air felt humid. Somehow when the weather is like that, it feels nice. I noticed an extra lot of people out walking, so I guess other's feel the same. We're supposed to get rain and thunderstorms over the weekend.  The good news is not having to use the sprinklers.

The bad news is that we were planning to go to Ojai as it's Pixie time. It reminds me of MURDER BY THE HOOK which came out a year ago and has lots about pixies in it.  

 I like to believe there are messages from the universe and I'm always on the lookout for them.  Yesterday, it was a license plate that read Pl Relax.  It made me smile and I did feel my shoulders unhunch.

My neighbors have a lighted peace sign hanging on their garage with the words Everything is going to be okay.  I always feel better when I see that.

Yesterday, a yarn company had an ad saying it was pink day and they featured a whole selection of pink yarn.  And then last night at IKEA, there seemed to be pink everything.  Pink towels, pink lights and pink sheets on sale. Then there were pink primroses blooming in my yard today. All that pink seems as if the universe is reminding me of Molly and maybe it's her nudging me to think about her next adventure.   

I need more hours in the day. 

 

Back at Work

 The time has gone to daylight savings and my strawberry plants have hints of fruit.  We had some surprise rain the other day and everything seems to be green and blossoming.  

    The blooms on my indoor azalea plant looked a little wilted after a few days of neglect, but some spritzes of water brought them back to life. I had to put the umbrella up outside the kitchen window to keep out the direct sun.  

But instead of being outside enjoying the spring, I am hovered over my computer.  This is the last go around of DANGER LOOMS.  Its when I make sure someone's name just change in the middle and the characters start out with a hint of how they're going to end up.  It is when I am most grateful to able to move around the manuscript with ease to check things out.

It's intense work and I have to fight the urge to put working off while  got to Costco for blueberries. But eventually, I settle in and get lost in the story and forget about time (and blueberries).  

It used to be easier to do that when I was home alone, but now that there is always someone here who seems to need something, it's harder to get in the flow mood.

It's exciting to see what I have and often times distressing when I see what's missing.  And in the end, I hope I manage to keep the characters true to themselves.

But there will still be the copy edit.