Thursday, November 7, 2024

Update #1 - November 2024

 I didn't mind dark days when I lived in Juneau, but now I miss the sunlight when I don't have it. A little of it this afternoon is nice. We've had - 7? 8? 9? - inches of snow over the last couple of days, with more in tomorrow's forecast. Winter has come down on us like a wolf on the fold, after the last 3 or 4 dry months and a mild autumn.

I more or less finally finished chapter 18 Tuesday, although it will need a little tweaking. In the latter part of it, Fraechan tells us a little more of what happened to him during and after his last creation of the Druid Fence. It was worse than what he told Gwernin et al in The Fallen Stones, and he only survived due to King Suibne's folk aiding him and taking him back to their camp, and later to their rath for healing. King Diarmait would have left him to die on the hillside after his magic failed.

I should get more written soon, when I'm not shoveling snow!

Thursday, October 31, 2024

Update #5 - October 2024

 Heavy frost this morning and 25 degrees F. Rather appropriate for the night before Samhain. I was sad to see frozen morning glory blossoms, but they had a good run. 

Very little writing in the last week. I've had some other priorities, including a last minute emissions test and getting license plate tabs for the truck, as this was the end of the grace month. They've changed the system again, sigh, but next year I can do it on line again. Preparation for the Retreat resulted in my being later than usual. I've also spent time preparing for this morning's frost. I should finally get back to serious writing soon.

Friday, October 25, 2024

Update #4 - October 2024

 First frost here this morning. 30 degrees F, light frost on roofs and a little in the middle of the yard, thin ice on the high birdbath, but to my surprise the morning glories are still blooming. They should have a few more days, but that will be it - our usual Halloween snowstorm is due Tuesday or Wednesday. 

I finally got a little writing done yesterday afternoon -  only 175 words, including some editing, but it's a beginning. It will probably take me a while to get going again, since I had about a two months' break due to Oak Leaves and our Rocky Mountain Retreat, including writing a book review and creating a PowerPoint presentation for the Retreat on prehistoric rituals in British and Irish caves and passage tombs. The latter subject is actually quite pertinent for this book <grin>. 

I also have to make sure place descriptions match those in The Fallen Stones, since Gwernin is going back to the North, along the same route but in a clockwise fashion this time. In the process he's meeting people we've seen before, and finding out what has happened with them in the last six years. Fráechán is traveling with the group, and we're hearing more about his experiences, too. And Gwernin's twelve year old son Ianto is developing unexpected talents. All in all, things are getting interesting.

Thursday, October 17, 2024

Update #3 - October 2024

 No writing in the last week either, but our October Rocky Mountain Retreat is this weekend, and after that I can get back to Gwernin and company <grin>. The last month has been busy, busy, busy, but I'll have pretty much free time to write until mid December, and I'm looking forward to it.

Autumn is definitely here, and we are approaching Winter's doorstep. Leaves are turning gold and falling, especially on the ash trees. I may have the first frost tomorrow night, so the geraniums and rosemarys will go back in the garage today. Some of the morning glorys may survive the weekend, but I wouldn't bet on it. Garden cleanup will probably start soon.

Thursday, October 10, 2024

Update #2 - October 2024

 Again, no writing progress, sigh. Some work on my presentation for the October Retreat, and am beginning to panic on that front. When it's over, however, I expect to get back to Gwernin and company. At this rate I might publish the book by Samhain next year...

On the other hand, we're having pleasant autumn weather - mild to warm days, cool to cold nights. No frost yet, and I hope it doesn't arrive over the retreat weekend, as I don't want to bring the geraniums in before I have to - they are happy in the cold frame, and two of them are blooming.


Friday, October 4, 2024

Update #1 - October 2024

 Another week with no writing progress. I might get going again around Samhain, sigh. Finished the winter issue for OL, and started gathering material for the spring issue. Two more issues to go...

The weather has been nice, although last night's low was 39 F. Morning glories are nervous...



Thursday, September 26, 2024

Update #4 - September 2024

 No writing progress this last week. The weekend was busy - Autumn Equinox celebration, last Anglesey Druid class, and of course farmers' markets in the morning. Then the first half of this week I was busy writing a book review on Anthony Murphy's new book Fourknocks: Archaeology, Astronomy and Mythology and tweaking a couple of other things for Oak Leaves. That's almost finished, but now I need to develop a presentation for our October Rocky Mountain Retreat on Sacred Darkness which is coming up in three weeks. After that I can finally get back on track with Gwernin and company... Clearly this book won't be finished this year - maybe by Beltane.

After a couple of cool days and nights, the weather is warming up again as it often does at the end of September here. At least the cool spell wasn't cold enough to produce frost this time as it does some years, although I had a low of 40 F one morning, and the morning glory blossoms were more purple than blue for a couple of days.

Thursday, September 19, 2024

Update #3 - September 2024

 Very little writing in the last week - I've been spending mornings doing yard work and/or more stuff for Oak Leaves. There probably won't be much progress for a while since I need to read and review a book, followed by preparing my presentation for our October Retreat. This coming weekend is already busy - in addition to the farmers' markets, we'll be celebrating Autumn Equinox here Saturday evening, and Sunday afternoon will be the last of the 12 classes I've been taking with the Anglesey Druid Order. Maybe I can sneak in a few words after that - some of it is cut and paste descriptions from The Fallen Stones, plus possibly a little more from
The King's Druid
as Fráechán and Taliesin tell us things Gwernin didn't previously know.

The weather is definitely turning autumnal - 42 F today at sunrise, and more cool weather coming. I actually turned the furnace on briefly this morning to make sure it was working. The time of overnight window fans has come to an end, although I won't put them away yet.

Thursday, September 12, 2024

Update #2 - September 2024

 Not much progress on Well of Wisdom in the last week, as I've been busy with layout for Oak Leaves due to having received the last submissions I was expecting. That is mostly done now, bar the proofreading and the last couple of articles, so maybe I can go back to my writing this week, where Gwernin and his friends have reached King Suibne's home. We'll now see what has developed there in the last 6 years since The Fallen Stones

The weather has settled in as autumn, with a few hot days followed by milder ones and cool nights - my morning outside temperatures have been around 50 F at dawn. Ruay has been enjoying his outside mornings, although of course he gets less time on farmers' markets days. And I have blooming morning glories here, there, and almost everywhere in my back yard - some consolation for no vegetable garden this year!

Thursday, September 5, 2024

Update #1 - September 2024

 A cool, cloudy, damp morning after last night's rain. The seasons are definitely changing - one of the Virginia creeper leaves outside my bedroom window is showing color. Too wet outside for yard work today, so I should get a little more writing done. 1,049 words so far on chapter 18, mostly last Thursday and Friday. 

The weekends start with trips to the farmers' markets, and Sunday afternoon was taken up by the on-line class I've been taking with the Angelsey Druid Order. Monday through Wednesday I did yard work in the mornings, and I also spent a lot of time doing layout for Oak Leaves magazine. That is mostly done until I get the last couple of articles I'm expecting, so I plan to work on my own writing today <grin>. And I also need to work on preparation for my talk at our October retreat, the subject of which this year is Sacred Darkness, and read the new book on Fourknocks that I just got from Anthony Murphy in order to review it... September is always a busy month for me, but more so than usual this year!