In A Bookish, Quilty Mood

I ate lunch in the dining room today, admiring simple chachkas on the plate rail that usually I don't notice. Wow. That's all I can say, in one word. I tested negative Monday afternoon, not expecting it because I had one heck of a sinus headache that morning. Yet I was feeling feisty, sick of isolating, and low and behold, I was negative. OMG, talk about liberty coursing through my veins! I don't mean to make a big deal of this, but I've been positive for SO LONG. I spent the rest of the day doing laundry, lol, and by bedtime I was tuckered out. I slept well, still had a sinus headache this morning, will see my doc tomorrow. My beloved feels much better, but he tested today and is still quite positive, which was a big negative for him. One of these days we'll both be done with covid, and the month of July (and part of early August) will only be a memory. I've been listening to a lot of music lately; yesterday and today have been a Kate Bush bonanza. I first hear...

  I'm still testing positive. Yet that frustration is tempered by what's happening east of us in Butte, Tehema, Shasta, and Plumas counties as the Park Fire rages. Butte County is dear to my heart; it's where I met my husband. That the fire was deliberately set is sickening, about all I can consider on that aspect.  My beloved now has covid too, but he's feeling a little better today having managed some decent sleep. Life here revolves around staying masked, hand washing, and social distancing. Other than mild congestion I feel fine, well, I'm annoyed but compared to the troubles others are facing, it's hard to get overly irritated. I wish Future Me would give any tiny indication of how long I'll be hampered or how much further damage the fire will cause. She won't even glance my way. Past Me is also staying away, but I'm not aggrieved at their absences because sometimes life is a study in being in the moment. And not always are those moments thrilli...

  Sweet Williams that have escaped the deer's appetite. I've gained an appreciation for hanging out, not something I'm very good at, but in still testing positive, there's not much else to do. Most of the congestion is gone, but I'm not a hundred percent, so lying low is my current occupation. I told my husband that if nothing else I'm truly enjoying time in our room. I've never been the type to hang out in a bedroom; either I'm in the office writing or sewing, or in the evenings I'm seated on my living room sofa with hand stitching. I'm grateful for lovely views from our bedroom, as well as pleasant weather that makes for enjoyable afternoons seated in the sunshine. Yet I'm wishing for a return to my usual haunts, also wondering if when I look back on this month, will I remember to appreciate the altered pace. I hope so, better than regretting it. Will I consider this as how I truly embraced getting older? Not that my age has any significant...

  Paxlovid was great in getting me healed. For one day. Now I'm in the throes of covid rebound, heavily congested and feeling like crap. Ah so, as Da Miri would say; live and learn. I'm three quarters of the way into That Which Can Be Remembered. I haven't read it since releasing it and it's been a treat! And a welcome distraction as once again I'm isolating, although the two days of respite saw me all over our house, hugging my beloved, so I'm *hoping* he stays negative. Time will tell, as it does for all things. For now if you need a trilogy steeped in love, intrigue, ranching, and fantasy, I heartily recommend this series , set in a world far away but close to my soul. Stay healthy folks!

Blackberries are thick, just need time to ripen! I'm home and very glad to be here. Three weeks have passed since I left for a sojourn that ended up being longer away than I had planned. Sometimes life works that way. Re-entering my house, I felt to have been gone for ages, not sure if it was lingering effects of covid, my own age, or something less certain, but truly remarkable. Because I'm still feeling...not displaced, yet an intangible sense of alteration remains, like I didn't merely stay away longer than intended or dealt with a malady. It's like I've started a new chapter of my existence, which sounds alarming and more than a little dramatic, but I am a writer, melodrama part of my stock and trade. It's like a fog has cleared, the mist of thinking I'm a lot younger than I actually am, lol. While hanging out with extended family, I gravitated to my sister-in-law, a dozen years my senior. Definitely three generations of us, but no longer am I among thos...

  Now I'm reading Gracious Mysteries, the second novel in my That Which Can Be Remembered series. The page below struck me, in my current predicament, the need for humility in moments of helplessness. How often when I feel helpless do I wish for an immediate end to the situation. Yet what would occur if I embraced the uncertainty, not reveling in it, merely accepting I am NOT in control of everything. Life slows to a near-crawl when illness intrudes, and it doesn't become faster waiting to rejoin typical activities. I have a long list of To Do's, augmented now by all I've been editing, lol. Again I need to remain right in this moment, even acknowledging this post wasn't planned, but I finished The Possibility of What If, and I don't have much else to do but read while waiting. So here's an entry about patience, awareness, and gratitude.

  While in seclusion of sorts, I started reading The Possibility of What If, a novel I published two years ago. It's the first of a series, set in a faraway realm with fantastical elements, spiritual ones too. Definitely written in a post-covid era, I enhanced a love story with a road trip, or vice versa. Reading it now, I'm reminded of how frightening were those initial months of COVID-19, and how far we've come. I'm also pleased with the writing, hehehe. And I'm grateful for something to keep myself occupied as I await returning to my usual realm, which feels similarly distanced as where this novel takes place. It was my first foray in a fantasy genre, yet grounded by viable storylines and plausible characters trying to find their ways in a new land, much as my husband and I were when I wrote it, moving to Humboldt County for retirement. I'll probably finish this book today, thank goodness the second installment, Gracious Mysteries, awaits. The entire series...

Today my daughter tested negative! Her girls, and husband, were thrilled as you might imagine. I'm grateful she's feeling better, and I continue to progress through mild symptoms, thankful for Paxlovid.  Last night a whopper thunderstorm proffered the evening's entertainment; all of us sat on the back deck watching as thunder and lightning heralded the fury. I'd been working on a playlist, finishing it in bed while rain and wind continued to pelt the landscape, the sky flashing from continued bolts. I listened to it as I went to sleep, then again this morning, stirring story ideas for my current series as well as further thoughts on America's political horizon. I don't want to bring current events into this blog, but suffice to say a storm has been swirling in this nation, and I don't know how it will unwind. At least I can control my novels, or attempt to reign in characters trying to stage coups. And actually what I recorded in a Books note was just a litt...

Let me preface this post to note that as far as my husband and I are aware, neither of us had yet suffered through covid. I have now crossed that threshold in quite a dramatic, then mellow manner. Let me explain.... A few days after my eldest daughter's family arrived, that beloved gal tested positive for covid. She began isolating while the rest of us enjoyed plentiful card games and other pastimes. I think my granddaughters are now as hooked on Go Fish as me, lol. Yet on Wednesday evening, walking back from the village ice cream shop, my feet ached more than usual. I chalked it up to two nights of poor sleep, assuming I'd feel better in the morning. My Thursday began with a headache, so I ate a little something, then took ibuprofen. A cup of tea followed, innocent enough, however my stomach wasn't pleased. Within the hour I was perched over the loo, losing my breakfast. A blip, I wondered, but I didn't mind taking the covid test brought to me in between visits back to...

Just a brief post from the Midwest, noting how serene is a large lake and time with a beloved who I have had the privilege of calling my sister for over thirty-five years. Along with her partner, we enjoyed colourful lights along with lake's perimeter, which I managed to snap rather successfully, lol. For three decades I've been blessed to call this section of lakeside another home, and always it garners calm in my heart. Wishing you an equally restful day steeped in joy and the knowledge all is mysteriously or obviously well!