Back east there is snow and ice. We have wind. It is scary watching the tall trees in the yard bending and blowing. We have a tree trimmer scheduled, but he was booked until later in January.
DEATH AMONG THE STITCHES is out in the world and the manuscript for MURDER BY THE HOOK is with my editor. He said I wouldn't get it back for a couple of weeks. So, I thought I would take a break from writing.
I didn't take any pages to work on when we went to Disneyland to see the last of the holiday decorations. I have to say seeing Santa in the Christmas parade seemed kind of off. I thought it would have been better to have a big sign on his seat and say something like Gone Back to the North Pole.
When I came home to a backed up kitchen sink and my husband having dropped a chopstick down his bathroom sink when he tried to fish out a top of something he had dropped in the drain, it was okay to dedicate the next day to dealing with the plumber and taking care of Jakey who had an extra day off from school before the end of his holiday break.
And then the plumbing stuff was taken care of and Jakey went back to school and I had some time to drink my morning coffee without feeling like I had to rush and do anything. I started thinking about the next Yarn Retreat book. Why not toss around some ideas. And then they began to tumble out and I scribbled down notes. I didn't want to really start on the book until I am done with MURDER BY THE HOOK and it is ready for publication, but it seemed okay to work on a synopsis of the next Yarn Retreat book.
Then I realized that as much as I think I want to take a break from writing, I really don't.
I wrote the above early, but the world has turned since then. At least in the Los Angeles area. The wind got worse and started wildfires. There was one and then there were four. It was worrisome enough that we had stuff packed up by the door in case we had to leave suddenly.
8 comments:
Good morning -- Hope all is well with you -- the fires are so catastrophic. Good idea to be prepared to leave if you have to. My son has several friends who were evacuated and they have lost everything -- hard to imagine what that must be like.
Is there a tentative publication date for Murder by the Hook? I've shared Death Among the Stitches with a neighbor and she is enjoying it.
Are you enjoying making the granny rectangle? I started one in pink and black -- a color combination I really like -- but the pink I have is too pale to look good so I raveled out the bit I'd done. Right now I'm doing one in the blue speckle yarn with stripes of solid colors that match the speckles of color.
I hope you continue to be out of the burn area -- stay safe.
First of all, congratulations on another great read. Death Among the Stitches is wonderful and I truly enjoyed every word. I am also so honored to be mentioned as one of your cheerleaders in the Acknowledgment section. I will always cheer you on.
I hope that your home will be safe from the fires. The devastation is overwhelming. I cannot imagine how people will recover yet I know people are resilient and will somehow carry on. Keeping you all in my prayers.
Patty, I am so sorry about your son's friends. I know people say it's just stuff, but your home is more than that and to lose it is devastating.
I will have a better idea about when MURDER BY THE HOOK comes out in a couple of weeks, but my editor said April or March.
I was too tense from all that was going on to work on crocheting the little cat. I took some varigated yarn and started on a rectangular granny square blanket since is was a stress reliever. No worries about changing colors or ends to weave in. I could feel my shoulders untense.
We had a jarring moment yesterday. A new fire had started not that far from us and we got alerts on our phones with an evacuation warning. It turned out to be an error. They really got on the closer fire and got it somewhat contained and it is burning away from us.
The wind is supposed to die down and more help has come. Firefighters came from other places. Once the wind went down somewhat the helicopters and planes could do water drops along with fire retardant.
Sally, I'm glad you enjoyed the book and I love to be able to give my cheerleaders a mention.
As I said in the previous comment, we are safe for now. The Palisades fire is right behind us, but with mountains in between. We could see smoke and the glow of the fire.
The amount of homes burned is devastating. Even if people are resilient, it has to be horrible right now.
Sounds as if you had some enjoyment before the fires, Betty. Hope you stay safe! And have fun planning your next stories.
Linda O. Johnston, I hope you stay safe, too.
My copy of Death Among The Stitches arrived and I will be reading it soon. The fires are so scary. I live near where the sunset fire was and I am fortunate that is was contained before I had to evacuate. Stay safe everyone.
Miriam, I'm glad you are safe. It must have been scary when the sunset fire started.
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