America, family, miscellaneous

Independence Day

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Another holiday, another non-post post. I had great plans to work about an hour in the yard early this morning before the heat of the day came. But I woke up around 6:15 a.m. with leg cramps, probably from dehydration. Got up and sat in my chair for half an hour. At that point I decided to just have a simple holiday. The yardwork can wait a day or two.

I’m about to enter a very busy week and next weekend. Medical appointments, church Centennial duties, Scribblers & Scribes meeting. Preparing for kids and grandkids to come. Much writing work to do. Too hot to walk outside, so I’ll see if I can get some good minutes on the elliptical.

See you all on Friday, with a book review.

goals

June Progress, July Goals

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Ah, July 1st falls on a Friday, my regular blogging day. Time to report progress in June and set some goals for July. First, how I did relative to my June goals:

  • Work on my unfinished Bible study, A Walk Through Holy Week, Part 3. Although I still don’t have feedback on Part 4 (I know, this is another out-of-order situation with my writing), I want to at least finish this part. I should have worked more on this. I think I only spent one, or maybe two, writing sessions on it. Too many other things cropped up that held my interest and took my time.
  • Take a long look at my writing and sales, and decide which of several major projects comes next. I have several directions to go. I don’t anticipate being able to actually start on my next project this month. It would be good, however, to finish the month at least knowing what it is. I did a little of this, but not as much as I planned. But as of now, I don’t know what my next major writing project will be.
  • Finish the Centennial research notes. I pretty much finished this yesterday. All research papers on my desk are now in the three-ring binder and ready to take to the church. I have one document I want to print and add to it, which I hope to do before Sunday.
  • Finish the updates to my website. That will include adding the new book to my list of publications. I finally did this. It only took a half hour, but it sure took me a long time to get to it.
  • Attend two in-person writers groups, or three if you include the letter writers society. I’m not sure when I’ll be getting back to the on-line group. I attended two meetings of the Scribblers & Scribes, as well as one of the Village Writers & Poets. Had to miss the Letter Writers Society due to a medical procedure.
  • Work on Tales Of A Vagabond. I’ll have to devote a post to this. I spent several sessions writing this new project—just enough to share with my critique group. Not sure how much I will add to it going forward. I’m thinking of it for Kindle Vella.

One thing that took up a fair amount of my writing time this month was working with letters. I pulled together, finally, the book of our family letters from our Kuwait years. I decided to pull together a book of the letters exchanged (mostly by e-mail) with a recently deceased friend. I finished the Kuwait book on June 15, and the letters with my friend on June 27. I’m also working on transcribing some letters from over ten years ago. I’ll perhaps have more to say about that in a month or two.

So, some goals for July. I need to scale back a little due to doing the grandparent thing and doing some traveling. Here’s what I think I can accomplish.

  • Get back on the two Bible studies I’ve set aside to complete other things. I’d love to set a goal of finishing them by the end of the month, but I think that’s too ambitious. Let me instead say to work on them in at least 10 writing sessions.
  • Attend three writers meetings, all in-person.
  • Blog twice a week on Monday and Friday. Might be a challenge with the grandkids here.
  • Work on the programming of the next Bible study. I’ll post about it at some point.

I think that’s all I’ll establish for goals. This month and the next just look to be very busy.

expatriate life, family, History, letters

The Kuwait Years In Letters

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Some time ago, in July 2020 to be more precise, I began transcribing the many letters we had written home from Kuwait, which our families had preserved for us. My original intent for doing this was to preserve the information and the letters themselves. The act of transcribing meant gathering, arranging, typing, and storage.

I wrote about this in several blog posts.

The first post, on getting started.

The second post, on the acceleration of the transcription.

The third post, a brief mention on progress.

The fourth post, on how the project came together.

Yesterday, I received a proof copy of the book. I’ve gone through it and found only two typos and one formatting problem. Of course, spelling and grammar in the originals wasn’t always correct.

In that fourth post, I said I hoped to someday add commentary and photographs and make the project into a book for our family. That day finally came. Two years ago, I said I hoped the book would be 300 pages. It is 299 pages. It contains 181 letters and around 30 photographs. I’m not sure how many of the 103,600 words are the letters and how much is my commentary. I also put in the four blog posts mentioned above as an appendix.

The photos turned out better than I expected.  I’m still learning how to manipulate photos. One of them is dark; I’ll need to figure out how to lighten it, preferably using G.I.M.P. rather than PowerPoint, so I can keep it at a good pixel count. The photos include some of the picture postcards we sent from our trips.

Our villa in Kuwait. I need to work on the back cover still.

Otherwise, there’s not much more to do with this. Make the few corrections, including one to the back cover, publish it, and order three copies: one for us, one for our son, and one for our daughter. Then I will un-publish it so that someone browsing my list of books won’t order one out of curiosity. The grandkids, if they want one of their own…well, that is unlikely to happen until they are older. I’ll worry about it then.

Once this project is over (and it’s really, really close), what next in terms of letters? Maybe transcribe the Saudi years letters? Or start with our juvenalia and go forward from there? We’ll see.

letters, miscellaneous, self-publishing, Writing

Unfinished Projects

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Dateline: Thursday, 23 June 2022

At the moment, I feel like I’m running between different projects. Projects started but not finished. Projects wanting to get started. Projects developing in my mind. Rather than list all of them, I’ll just mention what today’s work on projects is shaping up to be.

First thing this morning, I sent in the order for a proof copy of a new paperback book. I won’t say what it is right now. It’s not a book for sale, but rather one for private purposes. The proof will arrive June 29; I’ll show it to one intended recipient on July 8; and I’ll make a presentation about it to a club I’m a member of on August 13.

Next, I transcribed two letters from 2008. That was after going through a notebook of letters from that year and culling all those already in electronic format. This is part of a decluttering project. It’s totally unnecessary to spend time on this at this stage of my writing career, but it’s something I feel I must do if we are ever going to downsize.

Now, I will work on the memoir I started earlier this month. I want to present a few pages of it to my critique group, the Scribblers & Scribes, tonight. It’s now 15 typed pages long. I don’t know that I’ll actually write a full memoir at this time. It’s a fill-in project of sorts, to be able to have something to share with the group, as I don’t figure they’ll want to see my Bible studies. That’s not really the type of stuff critique groups were made for. Concerning the memoir, I don’t have a lot to do to be ready for this evening.

The amount I plan to do on these projects today won’t take much time, so I will likely shift to another project. This is another letters collection. Letters between me and a friend who died a couple of years ago. I have pulled them into a book and done the majority of the formatting. All that remains is to insert some photos, figure out the book size, and go through the publishing process. This is another unnecessary project; it’s something I want to do, something I can give to his wife and daughter that they might want to read.

Also today, I hope to find 30 minutes to an hour to make those last changes to my website. It would be nice to check that one thing off the list.

Oh yes, one last small project was to write this blog post and schedule it for posting tomorrow. That one is done!

So, that’s the life of a distracted, unfocused writer—at least this one. I’m anxious to get these loose ends finished so I can get on with my next book.

miscellaneous, Writing

New Holiday, No Post Today

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Folks, sorry to say but I will not have a real post today. While it’s a new holiday and I should have time, we have company here. As the chief cook and bottle washer, I’ve been busy with that. Plus, I have three—no four—writing projects in progress that I need to work on, at least two of them today.

So see you Friday with a real post. As I right now, I’m not sure what it will be.

book reviews

Book Review: Dear Bertrand Russell

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This isn’t the volume I have. Mine has a much plainer cover than this.

People have different things they buy on impulse.  For me it’s books. I’m better than I used to be. Nowadays, the book has to be something special at a good price. So when we were in Meade Kansas in late April-early May for the Centennial of Lynda’s home church, it was the same weekend as a city-wide “Trash & Treasures”, where people put stuff out at the curb for anyone to come by and pick up. The public library decided it was a good weekend for a used book sale. We just had to go to it.

One of the books I bought (of only two) was Dear Bertrand Russell: A Selection of His Correspondence with the General Public, edited by Barry Feinberg and Ronald Kasrils. For 50¢ I had to buy it. The name was familiar to me, but all I could remember about him, as I bought the book, was that he lived a long life and was some kind of scientist. I’ve since tried to learn a little more about him, and find him to have a unique life that covers many fields of interest.

Once home, I decided to read the book right away rather than add it to the bottom of the reading pile. The premise is: a short excerpt of a letter written to Russell by someone in the general public is given, followed by Russell’s reply, in whole or in part, to the original letter writer. The letters are arranged topically rather than chronologically. The chapters are: Facsimile Letters; Religion; Peace and Politics; Youth and Old Age; Philosophy; and Anekdota. Each chapter includes an introduction, and the book includes a nice, concise listing of Russell’s works and a timeline of his life. The book has a total of 162 pages.

This was a very easy read. I did five to ten pages a day and knocked it out quickly. I mentioned this book and one of Russell’s answers in a previous post. Since he’s an atheist, I obviously don’t agree with his religious views. I’m not sure I understand his pacifist views. He was a pacifist, yet he wanted to use force—even nuclear force—to make the USSR join a one-world government he proposed. Strange man.

All that comes from a couple of short bios I read. I’m predisposed to dislike Russell because he was British nobility: the 3rd Earl Russell. I get irked at British nobility thinking they can tell all the world what to do. But that’s an ad hominem argument and I should get over that. I have much more studying to do to understand Russell better. I doubt, however, that I’ll do much of that. I have too many other areas of study/work taking up my time.

This was a good book. The letters selected mostly come from the last 10 to 15 years of Russell’s life. A greater time-period variety would have been nice. But really, that’s a minor point.

I would urge anyone interested in letters who can find this to read it. I give it 5-stars. But it is not a keeper. Too many books to keep. I’m slowly going to break up my collection of books of letters, and this is the third to go.

Health, reading, Writing

Dog Watching, Heart Rehab, & Other Things

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It’s now 7:13 a.m. on Monday, my posting day, and I’m just getting to this post. I had intended on doing a book review, but the time has gotten away from me. So, instead, you’ll have to settle for a mish-mash, oh I’m-so-busy post.

Since last Monday, we have been watching a friend’s dog, Rocky. He’s a good dog. Small, white, curly fur. Not terribly demanding. But oh how he interrupts life’s normal rhythms. When I get up in the morning, after weighing, checking my blood sugar, dressing, and taking my pills, instead of going to The Dungeon and having devotions and begin my work day, I walk Rocky. Just up to the stop sign and back, about .34 miles. Then there’s a walk at 9-ish, then noon, then 5, then 7, then 10 at night just before bed. Some of those walks are shorter. One, at 7 or 8 p.m., is about a mile or a little longer. I’m getting my steps in and losing a little weight.

Rocky goes home tomorrow. We will miss him, but it will be good to resume normal daily rhythms.

Which, unfortunately, are being interrupted by my heart rehab program. Based on the heart cath in April, which showed one artery 50% blocked and a tear in one artery, my cardiologist wants me to undergo heart rehab. I did the work-up last Tuesday, and I start today. One hour, three times a week, 20 miles away. Exercise and education to start, and I take it just exercise by the end. 36 sessions, though they say some people “graduate” out after about 12.

I won’t lie: I’m already resenting the time and gas money I’m going to have to spend on this. I know it’s for my good. But the angina has essentially gone away. All these walks with the dog and I don’t think I’ve experienced any angina. I’m wondering if that tear in my artery has already healed itself (as they say it does in 75 to 95% of the cases). I doubt that artery has opened up in such a short time, but who knows?

As to the other things, I have writing, stock trading (looks like a bad day today), household chores, outside work, and trying to keep up a good reading schedule. All in a day of retirement.

 

The Forest Throne

There’s No Such Thing As Time Travel

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I have great hopes that this will be one of my better sellers. Two of my grandchildren, Ezra and Elise, think it will be a best seller. We’ll see.

My latest book is now available on Amazon. There’s No Such Thing As Time Travel is book 1 in what I hope will become a four or five book series titled The Forest Throne.  It is the story of 12-year-old Ethan Wagner, who finds a strange rock formation in the hollow behind his grandparents’ home in the Ozarks. He is sure it is manmade and is a time portal. His grandfather disagrees, though a hold drilled in the “arm” of the throne is certainly manmade. When they find, in another place in the woods, a peg that will exactly fit into the drilled hole, Ethan knows he must try out the throne.

I uploaded the book on Saturday. The e-book went live that day, and the print book was available on Sunday. I haven’t yet bought copies for distribution and local sales, but will do so after the proof copy arrives tomorrow.

Here’s the long description.

Ethan Wagner doesn’t mean to cause trouble.

But his imagination and desire for fun and adventure sometimes overwhelm him. When he found the strange rock formation down in the holler behind his grandparents’ Ozarks home, he was sure it was manmade. He called it “The Forest Throne”. When his sister found a peg that fit perfectly in a hole in the throne, he just knew it was a time portal that would take him to the future.

Grandpa said he’d better not mess with the throne. But, of course, Ethan can’t resist. He goes down into the woods when he’s told not to, sits in the throne, uses the peg to activate it and…nothing happens. At first. He doesn’t get transported to the future. But, when he steps out of the throne and removes the peg, the real adventures start.

Ethan’s disobedience results in the time portal being activated—not once but twice. No one seems to have a way to put things back the way they were. Ethan knows it’s up to him to right the wrong he’s done.

There’s No Such Thing As Time Travel tells the story of one boy’s encounter with the past—and the future—and how going between them may not quite be the adventure people think it will be.

You can find it here at Amazon. And here’s the whole cover, back on the left, front on the right.

The front and back cover wrap.
book reviews, C.S. Lewis

Book Review: The Fellowship – The Literary Lives of the Inklings

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This book, which I read as an e-book on my phone, is excellent. It’s a keeper, and I’m sure, God willing, I’ll read it again some time.

It should be no secret to readers of this blog that I’m a fan of C.S. Lewis. I have a fairly good collection of his works as well as books about him. I always have one of those books on my current reading list, and almost every day read at least a few pages in it.

Part of that fascination includes the Inklings, the writers’ group that Lewis formed with Tolkien and others, of which he was probably the key member. Lewis and Tolkien got together to share their works as early as 1932, and slowly others joined them. The years of World War 2 was their heyday. They kind of disbanded around 1947 and became a semi-regular fellowship group for the next ten or so year. I reviewed a book about them, The Oxford Inklings by Colin Duriez. I’ve read that book twice, and am sure I will again.

Another book about the Inklings published the same year, 2015, was The Fellowship: The Literary Lives of the Inklings: J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Owen Barfield, Charles Williams. Written by Philip and Carol Zaleski, I came across this book while searching for something else. I thought the e-book was a little over-priced, but decided to get it anyway, using gift card money for the purchase.

I have to say this book didn’t disappoint in any way. While all the Inklings are mentioned, it covered the four main members listed in the title. They are the four who achieved literary distinction. The others were not all authors; some were merely friends of Lewis or one of the others. I think the weighting of each of these four in the book was about equal. Certainly Lewis and Tolkien achieved greater and longer-lasting distinction, but Williams and Barfield were no slouchers in the literary world.

I knew much less about Williams and Barfield going into this book, really not a lot more than that they were Inklings and friends of Lewis and did some writing.  I leave the book with greater appreciation of their life’s works and of their influence on fellow Inklings.

The Zeleskis delve into the private and professional lives of these four: their marriages, their children, their academic standing. Williams and Barfield had less than ideal marriages. One might say dealing with that was unnecessary in a book such as this, but I feel it helped me to understand them. Perhaps a full biography would give a more even-handed approach to those personal items, but what I read was useful.

I give this book 5-stars, and will take the time to cross-post this on Amazon.  I hope to read it again sometime. I have one other Inklings book I want to get and read, then will, someday, read all my Inklings books back-to-back. What a fun month that will be.

Bible study, goals, The Forest Throne

May Progress, June Goals

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It’s time for progress and new goals. I’ll say right off that I didn’t make as much progress last month as I’d hoped. I got things done, but not all on my list. The busyness may be easing a little, and perhaps June will be more productive.

  • Finish preparing for my presentation to the NW Arkansas Letter Writers Society at the May 10 meeting. I finished the preparation in good time and made the presentation. Alas, only two people showed up: our leader, and one a friend of mine from church who came to hear me. Possibly I’ll give this presentation again someday.
  • Complete all tasks and publish There’s No Such Thing As Time Travel. Very do-able, I think. We are so close on this. I began writing this post and this item long before the day of posting. Possibly I’ll be able to edit this, before the post goes live, and say “Done!”
  • Attend writers meetings. There will be 5 or 6 this month, two in person and three or four on-line. I attended the two in-person meetings, and they were good. I decided to back off a little and am taking a break from the on-line group for a while. I attended the first two and left off the last two.
  • Make good progress on the second Bible study while I wait to hear from my beta reader on the first. No, I didn’t get a lot done on this. The unexpected Centennial work, combined with things I had to do around the house, kept me from concentrating enough to complete these. Also, a glitch of some kind meant my beta reader never received the document to review. That’s been corrected now and I’m awaiting that review.
  • Finish those website updates. I think I have less than 30 minutes of work on this. Not done. Such a small item. Will go on the list for June.
  • Complete work on the Centennial research notes. I think this will be another 2 or possibly 3 hours of work. I was not able to find the little bit of time needed to do this. Partly that was due to the Committee asking me to help with a new task, which took a lot more than the couple of hours I wanted to devote to the research notes. Put it on next month’s to-do list.
  • As always, blog twice a week, on Monday and Friday. Yes, got this done. In something of a rhythm now.

So much for what I accomplished in May. What’s planned—or hoped for—in June? Some of it will sound much like May’s list.

  • Work on my unfinished Bible study, A Walk Through Holy Week, Part 3. Although I still don’t have feedback on Part 4 (I know, this is another out-of-order situation with my writing), I want to at least finish this part.
  • Take a long look at my writing and sales, and decide which of several major projects comes next. I have several directions to go. I don’t anticipate being able to actually start on my next project this month. It would be good, however, to finish the month at least knowing what it is.
  • Finish the Centennial research notes.
  • Finish the updates to my website. That will include adding the new book to my list of publications.
  • Attend two in-person writers groups, or three if you include the letter writers society. I’m not sure when I’ll be getting back to the on-line group.
  • Work on Tales Of A Vagabond. I’ll have to devote a post to this.

Author | Engineer