Down time

It's been a pretty quiet weekend around the homestead.

Good Stuff:
- I got to spend a few hours with my bard, talking History, current events, future Games (he's the MO commissioner for Clan Campbell, and Eric is the IL commissioner so we reciprocate) and favorite books.
- We've had an author approach another Games board member about doing a book signing at the Games. He's written an Arthurian trilogy, and the first book is out. He also wants to do some speaking, which falls under my jurisdiction. The bottom line is the History tent will be a lot busier this year.
- I went through my wardrobe and pulled out three trash bags of clothes. I also went through cookbooks and most of them are going.
- Vicky came by yesterday to collect the cookbooks she wanted and saw my bags of clothes on the landing, so she went through those, too, and took a good half of what I was getting rid of. She texted today and said everything she's tried on so far fits, which puzzles me because she's tiny. Now granted, some of what she took I haven't been able to get over my hips for a while, but it makes me wonder if I held onto them longer than I should have or if I gained the weight faster than I realized. In any case, I've added to her wardrobe, and she needed clothes, so it's all good.
- I cut my fabric stash down to two tubs and a small drawer. Part of it will go to a client of my chiropractor, and I'm mailing some to a friend who does sewing for SCA people.
- We had a little rain yesterday and today. It's been really hot the last two weeks, but at least my tomatoes are happier. It should be cooler for the next few days.

- Writing was good last week. Not as good as the week before, but still a whole lot better than it's been this year. I can still make my word count goal (150,000 words for the year) if I stay focused. The thing is, I need another 84,000 words to make my goal, and my current project will need, oh, I dunno, maybe 30k. I'm thinking of retrofitting something I worked on several years ago and making it historical, probably close to the current time frame.
- I signed up for yet another workshop. This one's in Minneapolis in October and will cover story basics and plotting. I hope it will have the pieces of the puzzle I'm missing. In a perfect world, everything will snap into place and I'll become a writing machine! Too bad the world's not perfect, eh?
- Uncle Carl is finally home from the hospital for a while. He'll have to go back for future treatments, but I'm not sure when that will be. He was in the best part of three weeks this last time. They had a hard time getting him stabilized.

Not So Good Stuff:
- Still nothing significant from Chicago. The head hunter says Eric is at the top of the short list, but she's not sure if it's part of their strategy to go slow and only hire those who hang in there with the process, or if it's the first time they're hiring and are unsure of what they're doing. I'm rather getting used to living in limbo again, and while the prospect is no less daunting, I'm doing a lot better about keeping it quiet. You guys know, and the Boys, our kids and a couple of Eric's coworkers. We haven't told our parents yet, and we won't until we know something for sure.
- I've been running three days a week, walking at least five days, and logging all my food. I've had calorie deficits almost every day, but my weight isn't budging. I've been frustrated the last several days. Interestingly, it's been during the heat when I can't wear my jeans. I have shorts that are more or less the right size, but they're not as comfortable. Maybe the cooler weather will motivate me again, but right now I'm about ready to ditch what's left of my wardrobe and start over. The only thing stopping me, apart from the cost, is it's not going to fix anything. Either I'll bust my tail and stay where I am, or I'll get lazy and go up again. I'm reading Chris Powell's new book, but if his techniques don't work, I don't know what I'll do next. Gain weight, I guess.

This Week:
- We'll be in Buffalo, MO for their Celtic Festival next weekend. The great part is I only have to pack clothes and a cooler. Jeff will have everything else because that's his territory. :-)
- Write.
- Press on with the exercise and eating right, even though, well, you guys know.
- Finish at least one of the three books I'm currently reading.
- Usual household stuff.
- Finish last minute STL Games scheduling and get it to the right people for the program.