Been A While

It's been a while since I posted here. Well, a real post. There's been a lot going on: the release of Blackbirds First Flight, the publicity, the huge book signing, more publicity, medical problems (eye infection that required lancing -- ouch! -- and two rounds of nasty antibiotics that have made my stomach into a battleground), bills, and generally life. And yesterday we learned that my roommate's father is fading fast after a long fight with respiratory illness. It's a sad time, this slow letting go, this uncertainty about the future. It weighs on my roommate, and I grieve for him and his mother.

So ... that's all to say I've been busy and mostly not inclined to share. That's what I do: withdraw from the world. Try to cut the input back down to a level I can handle. Too many events and my processor gets clogged. Eventually I can't function beyond the basics. This has always annoyed me. It's unplanned events, of course. I can handle plans, juggle my schedule for events, and generally multitask with the best of them, but when events range into the unexpected and worse are hurting people I care about ... It's hard to handle. I think most people are that way. Best laid plans and all that.

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Well, I started this yesterday, but got sidetracked with one thing or another. Will finish it now.

I've been slowly decorating my house for Christmas. My tree is up, my Christmas village is mostly in place, and the Christmas train is set up and running even as I type this. It's been too cold to put up anything outside. Depends on the weather if anything does get put up. Having to do things as my energy level permits. Man, I miss the pick-me-up of caffeine. Stupid blood pressure. Stupid heart. Oh well. What doesn't get done probably didn't need to get done. It's not like I have a bunch of visitors. I put them up for mostly me.

I've been working on my family newsletter. Got October sent out. Here's what else I'm doing or plan to do.
- Finish and mail November newsletter this week. Then I will do the extra-large December issue.
- Start the Christmas marketing on Tales from Bethlehem and Blackbirds First Flight.
- Work on the poems and design for Undying: Poems of Myth & Monsters.
- Work on Creations 2015 for my local writing group.
- I also like to investigate the platforms for self-publishing magazines.
- Work on a cover for Blackbirds Second Flight.
- Continue cleaning and de-cluttering my house.
- Christmas shopping!

And with that list, I need to get off here and go to work. Have a great week!