D.I.E.T. news-An Update

I've just passed the 35 pound mark! Yeehaw!

I'm still using the prescribed supplements and the special drops, but I've tweaked the eating plan a little. The Weight Watchers way always works for me--so I'm transitioning over to that. I need more variety, bottom-line, (accidental pun, but I'll leave it in), so I'm making the switch by using Lean Cousine and WW's Smart Ones for lunch. In a few weeks, though, I'll have eliminated most of the frozen meals for Real Food. There are about a million good recipes out there, and I miss cooking. (Remember my Julia Child phase? :))

I'm also making computer transitions--from tomorrow on, I'll have one computer that is completely dedicated to writing--it won't even be connected to the net--this one for blogging, email, etc., and an old standby for my art projects. Why I didn't do this years ago is beyond me, but there you go. For a smart woman, I can be a slow study sometimes.

I'll be writing today, of course. This book has been a real challenge, with the broken wrist and all, but I'm nearly finished. I'm excited to plan the second book in this trilogy and start a whole new project.

That's the news from my kitchen table.

My Weekend

Was very quiet. Thank God.

My wrist is still sore, and I tire easily, but I'm happy to say that I'm better every day.

On Saturday, I was zonked. I made a quick dash to the grocery store--what beautiful, colorful, bountiful places supermarkets are!--and wrote for a few hours before giving up and vegging. :) Yesterday, I put in a long stint at the computer.

The weather is overcast today, and that's fine with me. I'm ready for a break from the heat, and so are my horses--not to mention their wrangler, Larry. Tomorrow, we're getting rain--and I'm happy to hear it.

A song has been running through my head for a few days now--Tom T. Hall's "Old Dogs and Children, and Watermelon Wine". I've never had watermelon wine, but I'm super fond of old dogs and children.

And that's the news from my kitchen table.

Alive and Well In Spokane

Mostly well, anyway. I still have some pain in my wrist, and the incisions are driving me crazy, which probably means they're healing, but I can work in short stints, resting in between. I'm so close to finishing my revisions--good Lord willin' and the creek don't rise, I'll be done today.

Things are pretty normal around the old homestead--Bernice, the Yorkie, got a haircut yesterday, courtesy of Mary Ann, the trail boss. There was enough hair in that pile to make a whole separate dog, I swear.

Sadie-beagle has figured out that that hunk of Swiss cheese she's been getting has her pills hidden inside it, and now she's turning up her nose at it. The horses and cats are in good shape, and the Canadian wrangler is back from vacation, so things are running a lot more smoothly out there in the barn and the pasture. :)

That's the news from my kitchen table for this fine, sunny morning.

Keeping it Short

Gotta write! I'm whizzing along on the revisions now, and I don't want to break my momentum, so I'll make this blog entry short.

It's sunny here in Spokane, but cooler.

My wrist is healing nicely, and I can use the keyboard as long as I take about a 15 minute rest after every hour of working.

Mom is making an amazing recovery from her hip replacement. What a spirit she has!

And all the critters are thriving.

So much to be grateful for!

Let's Try This Again

For the past two weeks, I've been overestimating my abilities. :) Here it is again--Monday. A new week, another chance, a fresh start.

My wrist is much better. Not as flexible as I'd like, but there you go.

I have an interview today, which means I have to wear make up and clothes that haven't been splotched with paint or glue. :) And I plan to work.

I rested over the weekend and visited my mom, who is recovering nicely from her recent hip replacement. Again, thanks so much for your prayers and good wishes on both our acccounts.

I'm listening to a book I read years ago--"The Diary of a Young Girl", by Anne Frank. If ever there was a testament to the power of the human spirit, this is it. A long time ago, I visited Amsterdam, and a highlight of the trip was a visit to the annex, where the Franks hid, with others, until they were finally discovered and arrested. I will never forget the movie-star pictures tacked to the wall of the tiny room Anne had to share--with a man in his fifties, no less--and I would like to go back and see the place again.

The tomatoes are a complete loss, but the zukes are still coming. Next year, I will put my tomato plants in the ground by the back fence instead of in containers. I'm not giving up on raising them, though. They are delicious!

The d.i.e.t continues to go well. I'm down 32 pounds.

And that's the news from my upstairs alcove.

Happy Birthday, Angela!

My beautiful niece, Angela, is celebrating her birthday today. I'm so proud of this girl--she's a crackerjack teacher, and as lovely on the inside as she is on the outside, which is saying something! I love you, sweetheart.

It probably won't come as a surprise to anyone but me that getting over this broken wrist of mine is taking longer than I expected. I'm plugging away, but things are going pretty slowly.

My tomatoes are a bust. They've come down with some kind of rot, and the powdered-milk treatment has been a failure, even though it worked last year. Go figure. I'm not giving up, though. I am too fond of homegrown tomatoes to do that. :) The zukes just keep on coming--it's a good thing I love them.

I was afraid my injury would set me back with the d.i.e.t.--that I'd go wild with comfort food or something--but I'm pleased to report that that didn't happen. I had to make a few slight alterations, all temporary, but my weight is still going down.

Well, I'd best get back to work.

YESSSS!!

My right hand is back in action! The wrap is off and I'm healing nicely--have to be careful not to over do, but that isn't a problem--that's what pain is for. :)

I'll be revising today, and probably for the rest of the week. THEN I will start a new novel, #2 in the Creed series. Always fun to start a new book, but a little scary, too.

For a long time, when asked how many books I've published, I've replied, "Oh, somewhere over eighty. I've stopped counting."

Well, maybe I had stopped counting, but apparently RWA (Romance Writers of America) was keeping track. On Saturday, I received a lovely plaque and congratulations on the publication of my 100th book! What a neat surprise--I didn't attend the conference this year, and I had no idea I'd won an award. It certainly brightened a rather achy weekend morning. :) Thanks, RWA!

More tomorrow.

recovering

I get the wrap off my wrist tomorrow. I can't wait!

Will blog again on Monday, at the latest.

Thanks for being so patient.

hanging in there

i get this wrap off on friday, and i'll be good to go.

feeling a little woozy so i,ll make it short

monday's wrist report

I'm really in fairly good shape, except for this bulky wrap running from my knuckles almost to my elbow. once I have it removed, i'm told, i'll be able to function normally. (THAT will be a first.)

I'm pretty sure my martial arts career is over, for instance. Professional volleyball is no longer an option, either :)

Mom is home from rehab, looked after by her dear friend, Carol.

the weather is gorgeous. I managed to water the plants on my deck, but one tomato plant seems to have a problem--tomatoes with black bottoms--treating them with dried milk crystals, which worked for the canadian wrangler last year.

I will spare you more of my ee cummings style. I can feel your love and your prayers. thank you.

why e.e. cummings?

because my typing is severely limited by the temporary wrapping on my right wrist.

I broke the wrist in a fall on tuesday and had outpatient surgery on thursday. by thursday night I was in the ER with some kind of reaction to the anesthetic and the most horrific pain in my knees. still unexplained, the knee pain I mean. I spent a night and a day in Sacred Heart hospital, where I was well cared for. God save us all from ER however. that took FOREVER.

I will have this wrapping off in about a week and a half, and then I should be able to type normally. In the meantime, I'm doing the best I can.

child proof caps on my meds are proving adult proof as well.

that's the news.

channelling ee cummings

I broke my right wrist yesterday. Will blog again when able.

Miscellaneous Ramblings

:) This morning's weather is, once again, stunningly beautiful. When I finish here, I'll be doing some watering in the container garden--strawberries are finally coming on, and there are lots of green tomatoes. Now for some red ones. :) The zuchini just keeps on arriving, of course, and that's fine with me. I love the stuff.

After watering, journaling. (You'd think I'd get enough of writing with my books, wouldn't you? But I THRIVE on journaling. ) I do morning pages, ala Julia Cameron, meaning three pages of handwritten, stream of consciousness stuff, but lately my pages have turned into written prayers. This nurtures something deep in my soul--hard to explain, but there it is.

Last night I watched a great new DVD--twice! It's called "Textures for Collage: Build 'Em Up", hosted by Sue Pelletier. FABULOUS. Check it out at: www/clothpaperscissorsworkshop.com

I've also discovered a new artist, whose stuff I truly love. Her name is Andrea Seiler--www.andreatdesigns.ETSY.com. Her style is fantastic.

And then there's Tascha, who sells prints on Etsy and originals on eBay. I'm bidding on one of her pieces right now. :) (Maybe I shouldn't have told you that. Now, I might have more competition.)

My first trade, as a co-ordinator, just ended on Art42. I forgot one tiny detail--to join the trade myself. :) I'm keeping a log book of my various ATC trades now, so I won't lose track and goof up somewhere. I'm in a new kind of swap, too--Jointed Paper Dolls. I'm getting adventurous, it seems, because I've never made an art doll before. I find the concept pretty interesting, though.

I guess I've yammered on enough for today.

That's the news.



I'm not sure why my computer isn't making actual links the way it usually does.

Home on the Range

That's where I've been all weekend, except for a brief run to the grocery store on Saturday, and you sure won't hear this ole cowgirl complaining. As the little girl from Kansas, the one in the sparkly red shoes, once said, "There's no place like home."

What did I do with all this lovely at-home time? I worked on my manuscript. I did some artist trading cards (ATCs) and watched some bad TV. Don't know about you, but I'm pretty tired of "reality" TV--although I do enjoy "The Fabulous Beekman Boys" and "The Next Great Artist". (Except for the episode on shocking art. It shocked me, all right. YUCK.)

Banjo man, my gelding, arrived home on Thursday, after more than a week in the veterinary hospital. He's on the mend, after cutting the flesh above his eye on a broken feeder (we think), and I'm super grateful. For a while there, we weren't sure he'd be able to blink again, which might have resulted in the loss of his eye. He's running around the pasture with the rest of the herd these days, as mischievous as ever. Banjo secretly believes he's Seabiscuit, reincarnated.

Podcast to recommend: Journaling for Life, by Kay Adams. Run a search on iTunes. Excellent interviews and insights into the process--I am, as many of you know, a great believer in journaling. It really helps me to get things into perspective or, as I often say, out of my head and onto the paper, where I can see the patterns.

And that's the news from my kitchen table, which is, for once, clear of art supplies.

:)