Ah, it has been a few days since I’ve posted. Primarily, my lack of posting has been due to several projects that needed completion. Plus, I admit, a certain amount of laziness when not working on the projects. Laziness is allowed now and then—it’s good for the soul.

However, my laziness was not totally unproductive. I read several pages of Lift Up Thy Voice by Mark Perry. This is a book about the Grimke family, or at least some of them, who went from Slaveholders in Charleston SC to Civil Rights advocates. (I am reading the book as research for a story I am writing.) Anyone who likes US history, especially leading up to the Civil War, should find this book interesting.

Speaking of writing, November is NaNoWriMo time—aka National Novel Writing Month. For those of you who have ever wanted to write a novel, this is a great way to set about doing it. For further information go to: http://www.nanowrimo.org/ . NaNo is free to join, and for those who need the prompting and companionship of other writers is a great way to meet those writers in your part of the world. They consider 50,000 words a novel. The great thing is, no one cares how well or how badly it’s written. The important thing is to write it! You can go back and clean it up later.

And, yes, I have written two novels this way, and they are both just about ready to try to find a publishing home. Check out their website. It may be just the prod you need. Good writing.

My Gratefuls:

1. Finishing of

projects

2. Digital cameras

3. Electric/timed steamers for food

4. Meeting new friends either literally or electronically (welcome to my Family of Friends, Tom)

5. The annual rain of falling stars

My Wonderment:

I woke entirely too early this morning (3.30), so got up and wandered outside to see if I could see the rain of stars. No, I couldn’t, but I did see the memories of past rains. The sky overhead was quite cloudy, which as you well know makes star gazing just a wee bit difficult; however, there was a giant hole in the clouds just above my house and I could see a great many stars on the black sky. As I moved about my patio, looking for the shooting stars, I saw with my peripheral vision something running toward me. Not wanting to step on it, or be tripped by it, I stopped moving and looked. It was the shadow of my arm. The moon had broken through the clouds, and was literally pouring enough light down I could have sat outside and read a book! Instead, I sat and just watched the stars in their stationary orbit, and the clouds as they moved slowly about then I went back to bed. When I got up this morning there were no holes in the clouds, instead there was a delightful rain of water (not stars) falling all about my home.

One of my finished projects; a table runner called All Around the Country With Friends and Family.

Moonrise over the Horse Heaven Hills; taken up at the wind farm. Title: Lovers Tryst

Moonrise over the Ed Hendler Bridge (between Pasco and Kennewick—and yes, I played around just a smidge with the color) Title: Moon Goddess