Song of the day: “The animal song” by Savage Garden. It’s been a while that I had this song in my head. But it’s good.
Well, well, well. I am of course drawing a complete blank right now, being absolutely unable to remember what I’ve been up to for the past couple of days.
Hmmm. I did some serious cleaning…not my cabin naturally, because let’s face it, who’s got time for insignificant stuff like that, right? Nope, instead I spent about an hour scrubbing the 2nd hand stove that I managed to find for the future kitchen. It was a bargain, really, barely cost more than transportation in fact, but boy was it dirty. Now I’m a slob on most parts, but kitchen stuff has to be clean. *sigh*
Next we took apart the loose materials that have to be fixed and painted before we can start using the thing. There’s quite a bit of rust, and it’ll need quite a bit of work, but it should work just fine in the future. Especially the burners, which number four. One really big one, two mid-sizes and one small one. I can’t wait to cook on that puppy.
We finally, finally put in the berry bushes up at the planter grandpa built over by Sally’s cabin. They look awesomely cute, in particular with the tiny strawberry plants underneath. I’ll have to take a picture one of these days.
The weather has been extremely hazy of late. Really strange. Up until around noon, sometimes even later, we don’t even see the sun, let alone the mountains, the city, or the sea. It makes the world rather limited, if you must know. The temps are good, though.
There were the chores of course, I’m sure they were, because that is how every day starts, hah. But I did manage a kick boxing session of about fifteen minutes. Gawd, I needed a good session, and it was awesome. Seriously, my every muscle was screaming afterward.
Tenant is eating and drinking relatively well at the moment, and is even insisting at times to feed herself, but we are faced with a new problem. She has been complaining about her stomach becoming too fat, meaning that now she has got it in her head that she should be eating less! Aaaaargh. Seriously, where does she get these ideas? Her legs are so thin you can wrap your hand around it, her shoulders are sticking out because she let herself starve to death up until last month, or so, and she thinks it’s a good idea to diet. *headdesk*
Sally is still not doing well either. Had to go to the village today to pick her up. She’d had to have her thrombosis checked, which apparently hurt her a lot. She was in a bad state, sitting in this little restaurant, crying her eyes out. The fella working there, didn’t even ask me to pay for her, because he thought it sad. Drove her home, and then had to head back out again. There was a small donation again, and that took some time.
Sally is in fact not doing well now, which I fear has everything to do with the fact that she thought it a smart idea to take 3000 mg against the pain in her belly. At the moment caregiver is phoning an ambulance so they can check things out.
Cooking today involved yesterday’s leftovers. Which is nice. Had pasta primavera, which was part of today’s meal along with white endive prepared by big brother. Went down well, but of course I was starving again after three hours. Been starving a lot lately, while being nauseous, which has to do with the friggin’ antibiotics. Grrr. Stupid stuff. The lump’s getting smaller, though, so the puss is disappearing at last. *sigh*
The edit’s been going steady, if somewhat slow. The news scenes appear to be working, though, so we should be able to work it into something that the publisher will like.
The dogs are, on the overall doing well. Though Empera is still having a hard time of it, there does seem to be some improvement. As for the rest? The main problem right now is the ever increasing amount of ticks. We’re so going to have to put them in an anti tick bath soon.
We’ve been in the yard, harvesting, yanking weeds, and watering those poor darlings that are in need of refreshment in the increasing heat of the days. It looks like we’re not going to have an easy time of adjustment again this year because the heat is there full force the moment the haze clears.
As for anything else that was done…there will be more but I just can’t remember. This will just have to do. *sigh*
Saturday, April 20, 2013
Thursday, April 18, 2013
The review(s)! Yay
Song of te day: “Luka” by Suzanne Vega. So 80s from where I’m standing. Wonderful. There was some seriously good music in those days…and the 90s for that matter. I miss them. *sigh*
Okay, first thing first.
Abna is a no-go. Nope. I didn’t make it to the next round. (Drat) But that’s okay, because I did end up with a rather good review from Publisher’s Weekly, no less.
Here it is:
ABNA Publishers Weekly Reviewer
A lean, mean, action-adventure story set in the modern day, this manuscript is a solid blend of spy fiction and psychological thriller that follows a traditional (sometimes too familiar) structure, but hinges on an original twist. Special Agent Rory O’Donnell is sent to New Mexico to rescue Nina Hernandez -- a former U.S. operative who was once a child soldier for a militaristic cult in Latin America -- from a shady psychiatric facility where she has mysteriously surfaced. After a year of abuse and shock therapy at the hands of her captors (whose motives are one of the novel’s central mysteries), Nina has fractured into numerous personalities, each one based on a former cover identity from her spy days. The author handles Nina’s condition respectfully, without melodrama. Although Nina is a victim of immense cruelty, her various identities are so strong, protective, and highly trained that, despite her mental damage, she never comes across as weak or helpless. Thanks to its unique central conceit, excellent characterizations (each woman inside Nina’s mind is recognizable and distinct) and taut action sequences, the novel even manages to draw attention away from its disappointingly cliché elements, such as the unsurprising but uncomfortable romance that forms between O’Donnell and Nina. The cliffhanger ending is also unfortunate, as this would have worked better as a standalone novel than as the start to a series.
---
I mean, seriously. Wow. This reviewer actually got it. I know what you’re thinking, there was some badly disguised criticism in there, but I am unable to see it as such. I love clichés. They’re a cliché for a reason, in particular in romance. And as for the cliffhanger, considering it could also be considered a teaser that stands loose from the story itself. Makes ya wonder if I shouldn’t have put it in there, huh? Ah well, no sense whining about spilled beans. I’m pretty darn pleased with this impartial review of the story, seeing as it makes clear that I’m not completely bonkers for loving this story. Hah.
As for the other reviews. Here are a couple from Amazon’s Expert Reviewers for the Chapters and the query letter, which were pretty awesome too:
ABNA Expert Reviewer
What is the strongest aspect of this excerpt?
It's quite well written and the pacing is just right. There's enough action but this is not at the expense of character development. I thought the author did a credible job of setting up the scene at the beginning of the excerpt and it was vividly described without resorting to over-the-top histrionics. I was attracted to Nina Hernandez as a character. I admit it reminded me a little of characters in popular movies like The Bourne Identity and even La Femme Nikita, but the author presents an interesting spin in creating a woman trained to be an assassin with multiple personalities. This intrigues me and I would like to read further.
What aspect needs the most work?
I spotted several typos and/or errors in construction and expression so I think the work would benefit from some deft editing skills. Other than that, I think I'd like to see more character development. Having only the pitch and the excerpt at hand, it i difficult to comment further but I would love to see how Nina's character is developed as is her savior(?) Rory O'Donnell and how their relationship is explored over the course of the narrative.
What is your overall opinion of this excerpt?
I think this is a fairly well-written excerpt with the potential to develop into a nail-biting action thriller. The central characters are interesting and I'd really like to see how the author explores the multiple personality aspect.
ABNA Expert Reviewer
What is the strongest aspect of this excerpt?
The prolouge is tense and exciting, you are there with Nina suffering the torture, trying to hold onto your memories, until those three terrible words are uttered. Short chapters that give you places to stop but you wat to keep reading because the story is so moving. There is enough background on Rory to make him likable.
This is just my opinion, but one of the strongest is a "single title, multifaceted, romantic psychological thriller". I am tired of trilogies and series, I want to read a book to the finale and not have to wait on the next to see what happens.
What aspect needs the most work?
I saw nothing this was the strongest and best excerpt that I have read and one that I definately want to read.
What is your overall opinion of this excerpt?
Excellent!
---
Yay! Got my hopes up, I admit. *sigh*
And here are my last two boasts of two Amazon customers who went through the hassle of posting a review with their much appreciated opinion:
4.5 stars. Lots of action.
By Kindle-a.
I am an unrepentant action-junkie. I like few things more than a story with characters who can fight there way out of any situation. We only get a small taste of Saving Nina, but I have a feeling the full book would be one action-packed suspenseful ride.
We have the setup: a strong female character going through a torturous procedure that she tries to fight at all costs. An investigator with a dark past who is trying to make wrongs right. Then their paths intersect.
BOOM.
I want to read more.
5 stars
Start of a thriller
By Teresa McCullough
The story starts with Nina being tortured (presumably by electric shocks) to erase her sense of self. We then cut to Rory, who wishes to find her and save her. At the end of this excerpt, he does find her, but it is clear that saving her won't be easy, because she won't be cooperative.
The write-up of the story gives more information than this, but it would be better just to read the excerpt. It is well-written with occasional humor and two interesting main characters. It is hard to tell from a brief portion of a story the quality of the novel, but what we see suggests it will be riveting.
Saving Nina won't be easy or safe, but it will be interesting and suspenseful.
---
How’s that, eh? I just had to boast a bit before the newness of it wears off, and I go back to my usual somewhat tedious posts. Hah.
I just want to take this opportunity to thank everyone (Abna reviewers and Amazon customers alike) for putting in the effort. And, since I’m flapping my proverbial mouth already, I might as well thank my Amazon and blog friends for rooting for me. It is appreciated.
Okay, enough about that. Let’s get down to business as usual.
The past two days. What’s been happening.
Well, there was Spanish today. Yep. Wednesday, just like the last four times. Didn’t go bad. Most of it is now done in Spanish, so I would have to say that it appears to be working. There were maybe three or four sentences that she did in English throughout our two hours of lessons.
Had my doctor’s appointment, of course. The doc isn’t happy with the fact that the spot is still pussing, so now I’m going to have to put on a cream twice a day, in order to help the healing along a little.
Got lost on Wikipedia again. Not smart when I’m supposed to be working on the computer, but I saw a fragment of a documentary at tenant’s place this morning about the Jonestown mass suicide. Yikes! Talk about freaky. What is it with cults and socialism? *shivers*
Went into the yard, of course. There were plants to check, water to give and stuff to harvest. Nice as usual. The weather today was somewhat freaky. There was a thick haze during the course of the morning, and later when we were in town, there was this massive wall of clouds stretching from east to west in a straight line. Very impressive.
Editing-wise we’ve been shlogging on…yet not today, because what with the competition being over and done with, we’re preparing Saving Nina to send out to publishing houses again. Got the letter done, and the first one will be going tonight, if all goes as planned.
Cooking had to be done, of course. Had a rather nice batch of broccoli with cauliflower and potatoes yesterday, and used the potato leftovers today with beets. Worked well, I’ll admit…not to mention that it was nice and fast.
A touch of bad news is that we had to have Nanook, our second to last husky put down yesterday. Age had caught up with her, and cancer was making her life more than a little miserable. It all just started to hurt too much for her.
Empera is still the same. Her immobility is grating on her nerves but her movements appear to be going a little easier.
Tenant is going steady. Not worse, at least, and maybe even a little bit better. Sally on the other hand is not doing well at all. She’s constantly dizzy, and even went as far as going to the hospital ER just to be sure that it was nothing serious. Blood pressure was fine, and all the other tests worked out well too, so we’re just going to have to presume that it is just part of her treatments.
Well, I’m drawing blanks, so I’m just going to leave it at this. The rest will undoubtedly just be normal chores, so consider yourself spared. Hah
Okay, first thing first.
Abna is a no-go. Nope. I didn’t make it to the next round. (Drat) But that’s okay, because I did end up with a rather good review from Publisher’s Weekly, no less.
Here it is:
ABNA Publishers Weekly Reviewer
A lean, mean, action-adventure story set in the modern day, this manuscript is a solid blend of spy fiction and psychological thriller that follows a traditional (sometimes too familiar) structure, but hinges on an original twist. Special Agent Rory O’Donnell is sent to New Mexico to rescue Nina Hernandez -- a former U.S. operative who was once a child soldier for a militaristic cult in Latin America -- from a shady psychiatric facility where she has mysteriously surfaced. After a year of abuse and shock therapy at the hands of her captors (whose motives are one of the novel’s central mysteries), Nina has fractured into numerous personalities, each one based on a former cover identity from her spy days. The author handles Nina’s condition respectfully, without melodrama. Although Nina is a victim of immense cruelty, her various identities are so strong, protective, and highly trained that, despite her mental damage, she never comes across as weak or helpless. Thanks to its unique central conceit, excellent characterizations (each woman inside Nina’s mind is recognizable and distinct) and taut action sequences, the novel even manages to draw attention away from its disappointingly cliché elements, such as the unsurprising but uncomfortable romance that forms between O’Donnell and Nina. The cliffhanger ending is also unfortunate, as this would have worked better as a standalone novel than as the start to a series.
---
I mean, seriously. Wow. This reviewer actually got it. I know what you’re thinking, there was some badly disguised criticism in there, but I am unable to see it as such. I love clichés. They’re a cliché for a reason, in particular in romance. And as for the cliffhanger, considering it could also be considered a teaser that stands loose from the story itself. Makes ya wonder if I shouldn’t have put it in there, huh? Ah well, no sense whining about spilled beans. I’m pretty darn pleased with this impartial review of the story, seeing as it makes clear that I’m not completely bonkers for loving this story. Hah.
As for the other reviews. Here are a couple from Amazon’s Expert Reviewers for the Chapters and the query letter, which were pretty awesome too:
ABNA Expert Reviewer
What is the strongest aspect of this excerpt?
It's quite well written and the pacing is just right. There's enough action but this is not at the expense of character development. I thought the author did a credible job of setting up the scene at the beginning of the excerpt and it was vividly described without resorting to over-the-top histrionics. I was attracted to Nina Hernandez as a character. I admit it reminded me a little of characters in popular movies like The Bourne Identity and even La Femme Nikita, but the author presents an interesting spin in creating a woman trained to be an assassin with multiple personalities. This intrigues me and I would like to read further.
What aspect needs the most work?
I spotted several typos and/or errors in construction and expression so I think the work would benefit from some deft editing skills. Other than that, I think I'd like to see more character development. Having only the pitch and the excerpt at hand, it i difficult to comment further but I would love to see how Nina's character is developed as is her savior(?) Rory O'Donnell and how their relationship is explored over the course of the narrative.
What is your overall opinion of this excerpt?
I think this is a fairly well-written excerpt with the potential to develop into a nail-biting action thriller. The central characters are interesting and I'd really like to see how the author explores the multiple personality aspect.
ABNA Expert Reviewer
What is the strongest aspect of this excerpt?
The prolouge is tense and exciting, you are there with Nina suffering the torture, trying to hold onto your memories, until those three terrible words are uttered. Short chapters that give you places to stop but you wat to keep reading because the story is so moving. There is enough background on Rory to make him likable.
This is just my opinion, but one of the strongest is a "single title, multifaceted, romantic psychological thriller". I am tired of trilogies and series, I want to read a book to the finale and not have to wait on the next to see what happens.
What aspect needs the most work?
I saw nothing this was the strongest and best excerpt that I have read and one that I definately want to read.
What is your overall opinion of this excerpt?
Excellent!
---
Yay! Got my hopes up, I admit. *sigh*
And here are my last two boasts of two Amazon customers who went through the hassle of posting a review with their much appreciated opinion:
4.5 stars. Lots of action.
By Kindle-a.
I am an unrepentant action-junkie. I like few things more than a story with characters who can fight there way out of any situation. We only get a small taste of Saving Nina, but I have a feeling the full book would be one action-packed suspenseful ride.
We have the setup: a strong female character going through a torturous procedure that she tries to fight at all costs. An investigator with a dark past who is trying to make wrongs right. Then their paths intersect.
BOOM.
I want to read more.
5 stars
Start of a thriller
By Teresa McCullough
The story starts with Nina being tortured (presumably by electric shocks) to erase her sense of self. We then cut to Rory, who wishes to find her and save her. At the end of this excerpt, he does find her, but it is clear that saving her won't be easy, because she won't be cooperative.
The write-up of the story gives more information than this, but it would be better just to read the excerpt. It is well-written with occasional humor and two interesting main characters. It is hard to tell from a brief portion of a story the quality of the novel, but what we see suggests it will be riveting.
Saving Nina won't be easy or safe, but it will be interesting and suspenseful.
---
How’s that, eh? I just had to boast a bit before the newness of it wears off, and I go back to my usual somewhat tedious posts. Hah.
I just want to take this opportunity to thank everyone (Abna reviewers and Amazon customers alike) for putting in the effort. And, since I’m flapping my proverbial mouth already, I might as well thank my Amazon and blog friends for rooting for me. It is appreciated.
Okay, enough about that. Let’s get down to business as usual.
The past two days. What’s been happening.
Well, there was Spanish today. Yep. Wednesday, just like the last four times. Didn’t go bad. Most of it is now done in Spanish, so I would have to say that it appears to be working. There were maybe three or four sentences that she did in English throughout our two hours of lessons.
Had my doctor’s appointment, of course. The doc isn’t happy with the fact that the spot is still pussing, so now I’m going to have to put on a cream twice a day, in order to help the healing along a little.
Got lost on Wikipedia again. Not smart when I’m supposed to be working on the computer, but I saw a fragment of a documentary at tenant’s place this morning about the Jonestown mass suicide. Yikes! Talk about freaky. What is it with cults and socialism? *shivers*
Went into the yard, of course. There were plants to check, water to give and stuff to harvest. Nice as usual. The weather today was somewhat freaky. There was a thick haze during the course of the morning, and later when we were in town, there was this massive wall of clouds stretching from east to west in a straight line. Very impressive.
Editing-wise we’ve been shlogging on…yet not today, because what with the competition being over and done with, we’re preparing Saving Nina to send out to publishing houses again. Got the letter done, and the first one will be going tonight, if all goes as planned.
Cooking had to be done, of course. Had a rather nice batch of broccoli with cauliflower and potatoes yesterday, and used the potato leftovers today with beets. Worked well, I’ll admit…not to mention that it was nice and fast.
A touch of bad news is that we had to have Nanook, our second to last husky put down yesterday. Age had caught up with her, and cancer was making her life more than a little miserable. It all just started to hurt too much for her.
Empera is still the same. Her immobility is grating on her nerves but her movements appear to be going a little easier.
Tenant is going steady. Not worse, at least, and maybe even a little bit better. Sally on the other hand is not doing well at all. She’s constantly dizzy, and even went as far as going to the hospital ER just to be sure that it was nothing serious. Blood pressure was fine, and all the other tests worked out well too, so we’re just going to have to presume that it is just part of her treatments.
Well, I’m drawing blanks, so I’m just going to leave it at this. The rest will undoubtedly just be normal chores, so consider yourself spared. Hah
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Too few hours
Song of the day: “Some nights” by Fun. Good song. Impressive, strong, and well…fun.
First of, a bit of good news. I got my Publisher’s Weekly review, which I will post tomorrow, or the day after, because I haven’t completely figured out when I’m allowed to. I could probably post it today, but since I’m not sure, I’ll wait a bit. I gotta say: He/she liked it! At least that is what I got reading the review. It was clear that the reviewer really read through it, hit all the highlights, and seemed to appreciate them. There were a few points that he/she criticized but for most any criticism he/she then added a redeeming quality that negated said criticism. So I was reading it and went “criticism, this and that, followed by that and more” getting depressed, only to pep up from some rather wonderful compliments. And that went up and down, time and again. I was not good company during that reading session, then did a weird sigh kinda thing, hopped up and paced around like an idiot for a bit, and then spent the remainder of the afternoon talking about it. Hah. I’ll stop talking about it now, because you’re going to read it yourself soon enough.
I do know that I can totally use this review in future query letters to publishers, and agents. Gotta love something good that you can put in those letters. It’s gotta mean something, that’s a fact. Gawd, I wish I could post it today, just to show off, you know…ah well. Next time.
What happened otherwise. Well, this morning I had a rather wonderful kick boxing session of a solid fifteen minutes. Yeah, I know, who’s got time for a workout, but I just had to. I really really needed to blow of some steam, kick some butt and…well, just get my blood pumping a little. Went through the whole session at top speed, so that worked really well.
There was a session in the yard, of course. Gathered about four pounds of broccoli, which I’m really going to have to prepare for supper one of these days…soon anyway.
Also sawed down a tree, which had to be processed. Didn’t completely get to finish that, but it’s out of the way at least.
Tenant is being a tad difficult again, making a racket about drinking, (as usual) but the nurse who comes by every two days or so, said she was doing a little (very little) better, so maybe she’s sneaking in an extra bit here and there without us noticing. She does seem a little clearer, and she did enjoy the pies I made, so at least she enjoyed that part of her birthday.
Did some good editing, considering the writing has been over and done with since Saturday. Yep. Everything that had to be added to Chicago Hope is there, and now all we need is to edit it…three or four times!
Sally is not doing well. We’re looking to have her check out by a doctor, rather than take her to hospital. At the moment she is signed in at some sort of charity organization which had promised to come by to check out how she was doing, but since she’s been waiting for more than three weeks now, we’re looking into different options. At the moment she is constantly dizzy and can function really badly.
Was at the pharmacy the other day, and finally caved and got myself a couple of heels especially designed for people with Plantars Faciitis. Have been wearing them for two days now, and I gotta say that it doesn’t feel bad. Even yesterday. I wasn’t even ready to chop the darn thing off at the end of it.
In case you’re wondering, yesterday was market day, of course. Despite the fact that we decided to cover all our bases by loading part of the load into the trailer, we had the spot t the beginning of the plot, meaning that we could basically unload and set up at the same spot, instead of spending more than two hours unloading, and two and a half hours loading. Much better, in particular since we have way to much stuff to be hauling it all back and forth. *sigh*
As usual, during market day, I spent two to three hours in the restaurant (apparently the table I occupy is already being called my table, hah) working on reading through the new material and adding a page to another manuscript when I couldn’t find any holes in Chicago Hope that needed to be filled. Sure, the edit is going to take at least another month, if not more, but at least this part is done. Yay.
But anyway, market-wise it didn’t go all that bad. We sold more than expenses, at least, and there appeared to be an increase in folks coming out there.
Had a rather wonderful chat with three people from Scotland. They thought it incredibly warm, while I was standing there feeling the chill. *sigh* Turns out that at the moment they’re lucky with forty degrees in the North of Scotland, never mind eighties. In the summer their top temps are 60s for crying out loud. But anyway, we talked a nice long time. They thought I was from the UK, which is a nice compliment, all things considered. They even bought a doll, because she collected them, and spent he free time sewing clothes and making hair for the old dolls they try to buy at all markets. They were very friendly, which is always great. I gotta say that I like that part about market days. You get to meet the most varied type of people.
Once we got home, the car had to be unloaded, of course, and then it was time to eat (though as usual I wasn’t really hungry. Never am after a day like that. The hunger sets in later) which was good, because big brother had made white endive with rice on the side.
The dogs were nicely bonkers, too, seeing as we were gone so long. But then, I spent the majority of the evening taking off ticks (seriously, an anti-tick bath. Soon!) which they absolutely love. Some of them will actually come sit beside me to have me take the darn parasites off.
Empera is showing some improvement. Not much, mind you, but at least enough for us to have to keep her locked up or else she might damage herself by walking around to wildly. Silly dog is flopping all over the place.
I had planned on eating meat today, but I just didn’t manage to make time. After we came from the yard, the time had gotten away from us, forcing me to rush through a shower (I was sweaty as heck) stuff my face with an apple pancake that grandpa made for me, and then had to go to the doctor’s to have my head checked. Still puss stuff coming out, so he’s caved and is putting me on antibiotics, darn it. I’m giving it five days. If it hasn’t stopped pussing by then, this old carcass better start doing it solo, because that’ll be all she wrote for my cooperation. Grrr.
Did friggin’ hurt again. The doc really puts strength into squeezing the skin out, damn. Nothing as bad as that first time, however, thankfully.
Did some Spanish, which isn’t enough yet by far, considering I haven’t even done half my homework yet. Where are the friggin’ hours going, darn it?
What else? I don’t have a clue. Considering it is already past one in the morning, I really have to get to bed. It’s been a long friggin’ day.
First of, a bit of good news. I got my Publisher’s Weekly review, which I will post tomorrow, or the day after, because I haven’t completely figured out when I’m allowed to. I could probably post it today, but since I’m not sure, I’ll wait a bit. I gotta say: He/she liked it! At least that is what I got reading the review. It was clear that the reviewer really read through it, hit all the highlights, and seemed to appreciate them. There were a few points that he/she criticized but for most any criticism he/she then added a redeeming quality that negated said criticism. So I was reading it and went “criticism, this and that, followed by that and more” getting depressed, only to pep up from some rather wonderful compliments. And that went up and down, time and again. I was not good company during that reading session, then did a weird sigh kinda thing, hopped up and paced around like an idiot for a bit, and then spent the remainder of the afternoon talking about it. Hah. I’ll stop talking about it now, because you’re going to read it yourself soon enough.
I do know that I can totally use this review in future query letters to publishers, and agents. Gotta love something good that you can put in those letters. It’s gotta mean something, that’s a fact. Gawd, I wish I could post it today, just to show off, you know…ah well. Next time.
What happened otherwise. Well, this morning I had a rather wonderful kick boxing session of a solid fifteen minutes. Yeah, I know, who’s got time for a workout, but I just had to. I really really needed to blow of some steam, kick some butt and…well, just get my blood pumping a little. Went through the whole session at top speed, so that worked really well.
There was a session in the yard, of course. Gathered about four pounds of broccoli, which I’m really going to have to prepare for supper one of these days…soon anyway.
Also sawed down a tree, which had to be processed. Didn’t completely get to finish that, but it’s out of the way at least.
Tenant is being a tad difficult again, making a racket about drinking, (as usual) but the nurse who comes by every two days or so, said she was doing a little (very little) better, so maybe she’s sneaking in an extra bit here and there without us noticing. She does seem a little clearer, and she did enjoy the pies I made, so at least she enjoyed that part of her birthday.
Did some good editing, considering the writing has been over and done with since Saturday. Yep. Everything that had to be added to Chicago Hope is there, and now all we need is to edit it…three or four times!
Sally is not doing well. We’re looking to have her check out by a doctor, rather than take her to hospital. At the moment she is signed in at some sort of charity organization which had promised to come by to check out how she was doing, but since she’s been waiting for more than three weeks now, we’re looking into different options. At the moment she is constantly dizzy and can function really badly.
Was at the pharmacy the other day, and finally caved and got myself a couple of heels especially designed for people with Plantars Faciitis. Have been wearing them for two days now, and I gotta say that it doesn’t feel bad. Even yesterday. I wasn’t even ready to chop the darn thing off at the end of it.
In case you’re wondering, yesterday was market day, of course. Despite the fact that we decided to cover all our bases by loading part of the load into the trailer, we had the spot t the beginning of the plot, meaning that we could basically unload and set up at the same spot, instead of spending more than two hours unloading, and two and a half hours loading. Much better, in particular since we have way to much stuff to be hauling it all back and forth. *sigh*
As usual, during market day, I spent two to three hours in the restaurant (apparently the table I occupy is already being called my table, hah) working on reading through the new material and adding a page to another manuscript when I couldn’t find any holes in Chicago Hope that needed to be filled. Sure, the edit is going to take at least another month, if not more, but at least this part is done. Yay.
But anyway, market-wise it didn’t go all that bad. We sold more than expenses, at least, and there appeared to be an increase in folks coming out there.
Had a rather wonderful chat with three people from Scotland. They thought it incredibly warm, while I was standing there feeling the chill. *sigh* Turns out that at the moment they’re lucky with forty degrees in the North of Scotland, never mind eighties. In the summer their top temps are 60s for crying out loud. But anyway, we talked a nice long time. They thought I was from the UK, which is a nice compliment, all things considered. They even bought a doll, because she collected them, and spent he free time sewing clothes and making hair for the old dolls they try to buy at all markets. They were very friendly, which is always great. I gotta say that I like that part about market days. You get to meet the most varied type of people.
Once we got home, the car had to be unloaded, of course, and then it was time to eat (though as usual I wasn’t really hungry. Never am after a day like that. The hunger sets in later) which was good, because big brother had made white endive with rice on the side.
The dogs were nicely bonkers, too, seeing as we were gone so long. But then, I spent the majority of the evening taking off ticks (seriously, an anti-tick bath. Soon!) which they absolutely love. Some of them will actually come sit beside me to have me take the darn parasites off.
Empera is showing some improvement. Not much, mind you, but at least enough for us to have to keep her locked up or else she might damage herself by walking around to wildly. Silly dog is flopping all over the place.
I had planned on eating meat today, but I just didn’t manage to make time. After we came from the yard, the time had gotten away from us, forcing me to rush through a shower (I was sweaty as heck) stuff my face with an apple pancake that grandpa made for me, and then had to go to the doctor’s to have my head checked. Still puss stuff coming out, so he’s caved and is putting me on antibiotics, darn it. I’m giving it five days. If it hasn’t stopped pussing by then, this old carcass better start doing it solo, because that’ll be all she wrote for my cooperation. Grrr.
Did friggin’ hurt again. The doc really puts strength into squeezing the skin out, damn. Nothing as bad as that first time, however, thankfully.
Did some Spanish, which isn’t enough yet by far, considering I haven’t even done half my homework yet. Where are the friggin’ hours going, darn it?
What else? I don’t have a clue. Considering it is already past one in the morning, I really have to get to bed. It’s been a long friggin’ day.
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