Update #5 - May 2026

 Again, only a little progress on chapter 5. I need to concentrate on writing more. I've collected most of the pieces for this chapter, just need to keep putting them together.

Gardening has been more successful than writing this last week; mowed the back yard and planted one more tomato, also marigolds. We had a good thunderstorm a couple of nights ago with almost an inch of rain, which was good. I'll need to mow the front yard again sometime next week. Most of the tomato plants are blooming. Highs in the 70s and 80s; definitely summer now.

Update #4 - May 2026

 Again, only a little writing, but a few hundred words for the start of chapter 5, and I know more or less where it's going - Ynys Mon, and the dark path (though not for Gwion yet). 

Planted tomatoes this morning now that I think we're through with frost. Eight plants I bought at the farmers' market over the last couple of weeks - 3 Romas, 2 sweet 100s, a Brandywine, a cherry type, and a Cherokee purple. I might get one more of some kind Sunday as I have one more available pot. I still need to plant the marigolds I bought, and perhaps get some basil. Next week I'll mow the back yard, and start the geranium migration into the now-empty cold frame. 

Update #3 - May 2026

 Not much progress on chapter 5 in the last week, although I am continuing to read the Storyteller books and extract pertinent episodes. I have had too many other balls in the air, which sometimes results in making no progress on any of them.

An interesting wildlife occurrence this morning - I had just gone out to water some plants when I heard a squealing noise and looked around to see Ruay coming back from the front yard with something in his mouth. I told him to drop it, and when he eventually did, it turned out to be a small rabbit about the size of my fist. The bunny immediately tried to escape, and Ruay and I pursued it until I caught it. It didn't seem to be hurt, but my problem then was where to put it that Ruay wouldn't find it again. I went up and down the alley, and was finally looking at a nice green fenced yard at a suitable distance from my house when the householder came out to put some trash out. She said they often had rabbits in their yard, so I put it in there and it hopped away. Hopefully it will find some rabbit friends there.

In gardening news, I bought 6 tomato plants at last Sunday's farmers' market, but haven't planted them yet, partly because it's been pretty warm this week (80s) and partly because we have some colder, wetter weather coming soon, with a currently forecast low Monday night in the 30s. Tomatoes are sitting in my old cold frame acclimating and look happy.

Update #2 - May 2026

 I finished chapter 4 ("Arthur's Crown"), which didn't take too much work because most of it was a story lifted from Storyteller. I'm working on chapter 5 now ("The Druids' Island") which takes Gwion et al to Ynys Mon with a young bard who wants to walk the Dark Path. Taliesin told Gwernin that story briefly in The Well of Wisdom, but I'll be adding a lot of background material. Gwion is twelve at this point, so I'll have to allow for changes between this story and Gwernin's first visit to Ynys Mon almost thirty years later
in Storyteller.

The weather has been wild the last week. After a mild sunny weekend, we got rain and four or five inches of snow on Tuesday and Wednesday with a light frost Wednesday night. Yesterday we had a high in the upper 60s, and the next ten days are forecast to have highs in the 70s and 80s. Spring in Colorado. I'll be buying tomato plants this weekend.

Update #1 - May 2026

 Well, I finally finished tinkering with Chapter 3. Now I need to work on Chapter 4. Most of it will be Talhaearn's story about the search for gold for Arthur's crown, but I need to write a lead up to that story, followed by the actual crowning, which will be different from the version in Storyteller. I might get this put together in the next week.

The frost-damaged trees are trying to bud out again, but some of them will have to put in a lot of effort. We finally got some rain this week, which should help, and also means I need to mow parts of the yards real soon. One of our farmers' markets starts Sunday, and I'll be buying tomato plants soon, also preparing to plant beans. And the Swanson's hawks which nest in the big spruce next door are back - a couple of days ago when I was doing my early circuit of the back yard, I heard bird noises and looked up to see a blue jay chasing a much bigger hawk, which took refuge on the spruce. Summer may yet arrive.

Happy Beltane!