September 2019

 

9/1/2019: After a somewhat restless night up at 6 AM. Prayed the short form, and somehow got showered, dressed, took care of the dogs, and out the door by a little before 7 AM. A golden sunrise, with a few clouds and some wind. Made it to church, prayed rosary. At the end of the service Father Greg was announced as back and he said hello to the congregation. Walking out on my way home I was stopped by a nice lady who said her husband had passed away, leaving some very big shoes she thought would fit me, and offered to bring them over later. Though I pretty much told her where I live, we never established a time when she would be over. I waited on the porch (after attending to the animals again and having the leftover pizza for breakfast) until 11:30 AM, then went in, where I had a little nap on the couch. Up at 12:45 PM, when I caged the Rotts and grassed the Chees; it's now 1:20 PM and I'm making the last ramen for lunch.

About 5:30 PM I let the Rotts out again, grassed the Chees (etc., etc.) and made chili rice (with onions and garlic) using the last of the Hoffman rice (which I think has been around since before the wedding).  A last grassing at 8 PM then shutting up for the night. Watching more episodes of DC:AoR[Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance]. More engaging, but it also tends to confuse plot points with just one damn "exciting" thing after another.

Got about a page written on the start of BB2; my plan to have a grand sit down to write kind of fizzled by the unexpected anticipation of waiting for shoe lady (God bless her) which did nothing for my already mischancy concentration.

 

9/2/2019: Up at about 6 AM and by slow degrees got dressed and straightened up house, helped by listening to the end of a show with David McCullough talking about his new book about pioneers. It's now 7 AM and I've got to see about the animals.

Did that, in about 8 AM, devotions, did a last load of wash, checked that there was no mail delivery today, caged the Rotts up, and made a sign for the pool guy. Listened to GGACP; had 3 boiled eggs for breakfast. Pool Guy here about 12:30 PM, went smoothly. Let the Rotts out at about 3 PM.

A little before 5 PM they all come back from the beach; I step in to say hello and goodbye to K&RT[Kaitlyn and Ryan Tovar]. S&A[Susan and Andy] give me access to leftover pizza, patties, and hot dogs. I had two burgers, two hotdogs, and two slices. Wrote a tiny bit on BB2. It's now just about 6:30 PM and A brought me out a couple of Whataburgers and fries, so now I'm busting!

Went to bed early, and kept waking up to find it wasn't even midnight yet. Had a dream that I was getting married, an arranged marriage settled years ago, that I had forgotten it and it was in 2 days' time. Woke up at 2 AM, realized I hadn't said my rosary, and did so. Back to sleep.

 

9/3/2019: Up at 6 AM. Straightened up house, got dressed, gathered garbage and ran it out, did my devotions and the rosary. Searched the web, wrote notes for Franklinstein [a story about Benjamin Franklin and his human dissection efforts] part of BB2, went on Facebook, joined Twitch for Kenny and Elijah. In at 9 AM, cut up apple for Kam, grassed the dogs, made chicken salad for S&A, ate pizza, talked with Kam quite a bit on his subjects, language and Spongebob. Went back out about 9:45 AM to catch up diary. I've been feeling that I'll have to put a lot of what I've written for BB2 into the active voice, to show not tell. Well, better now than later when there might be so much more of it. Took the recyclables out, got a jug of water and more catfood. At 10:25 AM we set forth. Now 10:42 AM, and the bus has just picked Kameron up a few minutes ago.

It is amazing how a new project stimulates your activities and interests. I will now do any job, watch any show, read any book, rather than work on my own. And by work, I mean actual writing; research is okay.

Out at 1 PM for lunch: leftover pizza and 4 hot dogs. Watched Father Mitch [Pacwa] for the first time in a while. Started an outline for BB2; ended up about 4 pages. At 4 PM went out and grassed Chees and fed cats, then went out to get recycling bin. Met Kam coming back just as I was going to sit on porch. As the Shanafelts had not gone shopping, I did not have to cook supper. At 6 PM got some more pizza, e-mailed John, then being sleepy laid down. Up again at 9:30 PM from a dream about a man killing people to collect their ghosts (which hovered unseen about him, but he could see and gloat) and the collection being dissipated by a chance man saying God bless you, heard from John, caught up diary, and ready for bed again. Legs hurting from poor circulation, I guess.

 

9/4/2019: Woke up about 5:30 AM, checked e-mail, then wrote down dream. Checked dreams from last year and found this for Sept.19: "When I got [home], I found out one of my books had gone through, and I was an author! Everyone else was in the writing game was in it to make money, but my humble achievement was enough. I held it up and shouted "At last! My legacy!" Then when I looked closer at it, I saw they had adapted it so it looked more like one of those bright cheap toddler books; and if you opened it, it came with a dollar-store packet of cheap toys. "Well, it's still something," I grumbled." Which is pretty close to the experience. Ready to take a shower.

Showered, dressed, devotions, other stuff, then fell asleep again. When I woke up again (9:25 AM) was not feeling well at all, but dragged myself in. Peeled Kameron an apple, ate the last leftover pizza [no wonder I felt poorly], and at the usual time we headed out for the bus. Pretty much on time again. Dragged myself back to the house, reading Daniel Cohen's Ghost book (looking for inspiration, but it only filled me with foreboding) and then plopped off to sleep after I ate lunch (ramen). Woke up at 2 PM. Spent a while working on BB2 outline (up to Chapter 4) and watching Youtube (BBC comedies). Went in at 4 PM to start supper (made sausages, cabbage and taters, cucumber salad) and grass dogs, still felt bad. Done cooking a little after 5 PM but didn't feel like eating just yet. Said Rosary and slumped around. Went in at 8 PM and no-one had eaten; I grabbed a bowl of cabbage and a sausage in a bun. Andy came in, showed me a picture of a truck that had burned totally to the ground that he had had to tow. Came back in a little after 9 PM and cleaned up. Back in by 9:30 PM. By 10 PM back to sleep and still feeling trodden on; fall 'allergies'? Are my ominous feelings about the coincidental '9:11's' I always see on the clocks a sign? Finished 'Ghosts', parsed through 'Monsters' and am now looking through John Keel's "The Complete Guide to Mysterious Beings” for inspiration.

 

9/5/2019: Woke up at 4:40 AM, and while lying in bed had thoughts about filling out the outline of BB2. In fact, I set out the basic plan for Chapter 5-11. Caught up diary. Devotions. Went in at 9 AM, got turkey and feta sausage in last hot dog bun for breakfast, Kam still asleep. Watched the last episode of DC:AoR. Came back at 10 AM and Kam was just getting up. Plenty of time for him to get ready and he was picked up almost right on time. Listened to YouTube and fell asleep. Got up at 2 PM from dream of being inside a videogame; Mike was with me. I knew we were in a game, but he seemed confused; when we got up to a tree he was surprised by that sort of inside-out view you get past the programmed skin, like a chickenwire frame. We were travelling between islands in a shallow sea leading into a cave, with gators and prehistoric fish. Ate lunch about 3 PM.

A little before 4 PM went in, grassed dogs and started supper. Turky chili, corkscrew noodles, and corn on the cob. Discovered the joys of chopping corn with a cleaver rather than using a blunt old butcher knife. Kam got home about 4:15 PM. Finished cooking at 5 PM and took my supper in. Got online and watched Elijah play a while. Without knowing me he said in effect that me and Kenny would like each other. Got off about 7 PM. It was a shooter game; I would like watching a fantasy game better, I think.

I had asked John about getting $3 for the outline, to tide me over the weekend. He emailed me back later after I had gone to bed, suggesting I meet him after work on the front porch, as he and Amy were going to see Mark Knopfler tomorrow (which he has off). I woke at 12:20 AM, after, I was sure, ‘twas too late, but he had slipped the dollars under the angel on the birdbath.

 Notes

A story combining Benjamin Franklin and Frankenstein seemed like a natural, what with his experiments with electricity and the discovery of human remains (the obvious subject of anatomy research) at one of his old adresses in England. Good for my time period, too. The first place I ever saw the concept was in an old Gahan Wilson cartoon. Of course I went on to discover that other writers had already made the connection. That didn't exactly phase me: it's what you do with the idea that counts.