Snow storm and yet still here...writing away!

Two weeks ago, the whole mid-west and the eastern coast line were alerted for days - about the snow storm of the century - even scaring people, closing business', schools, and even restaurants in advance!  And yet, I wake up to less snow than then with only a couple of weather alerts, and no major scare tactics - what's up with that?  There doesn't seem to be any reason for that, I also seem to think that the news was probably up for some award or maybe it was ratings week - two weeks ago, not now.

Getting up with my favorite puppies, I realized that I would have to go out in this horrible snow storm, to help clear the driveway, and I really don't want to.  I would rather have the snow stay pristine - and why bother until the second wave in today's snow comes - they say around 4pm, but you never can tell with those guys.  After all they rely on that ground hog to tell them when spring comes...

If it wasn't President's Day, my husband, my friend, my soul mate would be at work, and I could be having a PJ day - like my famous sister in law Holly is doing.  But, my husband does not understand PJ days.  He has this thing about getting dressed by 8am, starting the day, having a plan.  I plan to do laundry and that's the day that I don't get dressed.  It's like a law but he thinks it makes no sense... The puppies like it, because if I don't put on shoes or boots, I am going no where.  They get it.

D M Wiseman,  who is writing, doing laundry, and maybe getting dressed - author...

Another snow storm cometh, and I got home just in time...

I was almost home from my girls over night with my two sisters, Pat and Barb, along with our niece Cherie, when the new storm of the century began.  It was a definite blizzard, white out conditions - you know the regular snow storms that we get here in Michigan that the weather men make out to be the END of DAYS.  I got home, welcomed the dogs - who acted like I had been gone twenty years, and then made my self a cup of tea.

It is wonderful, being with my dogs, having tea, watching TV, typing away.  I also saw that I received another email from my on line only publishing company http://www.smashwords.com/ that I sold another book!! Yeah, that means I am flying now - two in two days!  I love it, I'd love it more, if I sold more, but one at a time is just fine...

So, on the way home, in between seeing idiots on the road - a guy in a convertible WITH the top DOWN (no lie, its 20 degrees and snowing...) just driving around.  I was next to him for about 4 miles, and he just kept driving - with the top down.  I wanted to take a picture to put on one of those emails you get that have captions about idiots doing dumb things, but I needed to drive in the Snow Storm, Blizzard, with the white out conditions.  He was not worth getting into an accident for... But I digress... In between seeing idiots, I came up with the next part of the plot for my novel that I am currently working on. 

And now, making dinner with my husband, my friend, and soul mate who just walked in from a fire, and who was hungry, I told him of the weekend.  We are having a salad from our favorite Italian place "Sila's" in Berkley, with B B Q'd pork chops.  What could be better on the last Sunday in the world - since the End of Days is here again, I mean the snow storm of course.  Ha.  And cursing my son St and K who we dropped off at Metro this am so they could fly to Orlando to visit Mickey and Harry P on their spring break - where it is 76 degrees... yeah.  But spending time with my man, and the dogs - not bad.  It would be better if we were on a cruise, or in the Bahamas, or even some where warm, but I'll take what I can get...

Having the furnace on, the snow flying, and the dogs doing their after dinner play time, the "Muppet Treasure Island" movie on the HUB channel, I feel blessed.  I love spending time doing just this - being lazy and yet, getting some much needed writing done.  I was watching "Lemony Snickets" but the Muppet's are just as good, when you're snuggling on the couch.

D M Wiseman,   snowed in, and not caring, one more book sold, author...

Saturdays are for the girls and the cats...

I am now going to my sister Pat's house to spend the balance of the weekend with Pat, my other sister Barb, and our collective niece Cherie.  We plan to shop, eat out, eat in, go to a movie, and watch movie's back at the Westland Compound that is brother in law less (he's off to visit the little grandson named Cash so we can have the girl thing at their house) while we eat again.  And maybe even have an adult beverage or two.

My husband, my friend, my soul mate will be holding down our fort - and playing with my two monster dogs, while I play with Pat's two cats...don't get me wrong, I love my dogs.  But I love cats, and would love one at my house, but when S lived at home we couldn't - allergies.  And now, the affore mentioned monsters would eat a cat.  Really, not meanly - just because the noises they make and their sizes - are just like the toys that Gracie destroys and Boomer guts.  So unless I want PITA on my back, I will get my cat fix at Pat's.  Like tonight.

I will write my stories tomorrow, and will try to get caught up on my own imposed writing deadline.  I tell myself I have to write this many words per day - kind of like the contest I wrote the first book that I got published - the www.NaNoWriMo.com write a book in a month - every November.  This deadline is that I have to get this new book done by April, because the new contest is to write a screen play in one month.  I've never written one before, and do not know if I can.  Do I make one of my books into the screen play or do I write a new one?  I have to decide that as well...

So, I need some help.  I could make Bryn's Family Plan into a movie, it would be on Lifetime or the Hallmark channel - it's kind of girlie.  Brie's Business Plan too.  Merry's Plan, the newest one that is done, is more shoot-em up, but still not mainstream.  The one I'm writing now, it could be on the Sci Fi channel - one of those 'B' movies my sons complain about...The Usual Reasons is a better novel...oh, well.  I have some time to decide...after I decide how to take the heroine in The New Eden to next.  Do I have her do the shoot out, and get shot?  I'll think about it on the nearly two hour drive to Pat's this morning,...

D M Wiseman, sister and by the way I sold another book this morning.... Published Author!!!

Thawing out on a Friday and two funerals...

It's a wet Friday - everything is thawing, all of a sudden it seems.  The snow is almost gone on our property, which means since the ground is still frozen, the water is just sitting everywhere.  Our pond is overflowing, and water is rushing down the hill from the ugly house up on their hill (they have 40 acres, built twenty feet from the DIRT road, and it is ugly, really.  It's ugly!) and is flooding our area.  Our house is higher up on our hill, so no worries about flooding us out, just our little bit of land is drowning ...

A couple of years ago, the weir (a little dam) up on the ugly house's hill (that they mistakenly put boards in to keep the water up on their property to have their own pond) broke.  It freaked out both Lady Bug (Mastiff) as well as Max (Bull Mastiff) and they barked as they went absolutely crazy.  It sounded like a train was coming!  The water was coming down the hill in a six foot across rush of water.  Normally it trickles constantly in about a 4 inch little river, and our pond free flows in about a 4 inch river to the pond to the house behind us.  Their pond flows out to a larger creek behind the next house.  This water way has a fresh water spring, and our pond even has fish!  But, when the weir broke, the water amount was scary. 

Today though, the water was coming from everywhere but the weir.  It's the snow that's melting and causing the water everywhere.  I am a bit worried about the pool, it is now getting filled with the water thawing, and Gracie had never seen the pool not frozen.  I am worried about the drowning thing... I already had that scare once with Boomer, when he was just a baby - around this same time, actually March 4th...I remember it well.  Boom almost died, was a near drowning victim, and ended up with aspiration pneumonia.  I could hold him in my arms, he was so little...but Gracie is full grown and I can't lift her out of the water...  It gives me the chills.  Ok, I guess I will be actually playing the In and Out game for my self today...until she stays off the pool...

This morning, my husband, my friend, my soul mate and I will be at his friend's memorial service, and then after the luncheon, we will be going to a different funeral for our other friend's showing.  It is a sad day for us, and for the families.  He is having a stressful day and I hope to help him through it as best I can.  Nothing puts your life into a perspective, like a funeral.  Or two in one day...

I am taking this early time to write a bit, to get my thoughts down on paper.  I'm not sure that I will be getting any writing done today or even tomorrow.  I will be at my sister Pat's house with our sister Barb, and our wonderful niece Cherie.  We are having a girl type weekend, before the daily U of M visits begin.  I take my sister Barb for her treatments and daily radiation.  Cancer sucks.  It actually says that on the wall of the radiation department - outside in the parking lot.  That says it all, by the way.  Cancer does suck, there is no other way to say it without swearing and going straight to hell - which by the way the treatment takes you, while it's killing the cancer.  Can't say it any plainer that that.

My thoughts on the new novel which is a "End of the World, Woman in Charge, Guns, Dreams and a new family way of life..." kind of book - that I have been thinking about and playing with on long drives, and told my son S - who thinks I should write, and so I think I will.  I started putting my thoughts down about it and yet I need to add some more of the guns, shooting, and maybe a good amount of intrigue as well as a few good aimed shots...

D M Wiseman,   wet from the thaw, and sad from our loss, author

Blogging very late on a Thursday, but better late than never...

I had a busy day today, and was not home due an appointment early in the morning, then the inevitable grocery shopping to pick up a few things.  I went to a new shopping mall with the normal big multipurpose shopping store that I like to go to get the really good deals - and as I went in to begin my shopping, by taking my soda cans back - I was told by the greeter to go back outside - I can't bring the cans in the store.  The can and bottle return was in an outside door, and was not accessible from the inside.  How odd...

Then, I couldn't find things.  As in I couldn't find my tea bags that I normally buy from this very store, I couldn't find the milk, sour cream, eggs, and by the time I was done with my shopping, I had to ask a total of seven employees where things were...This was a new store location for me, so maybe that's why I couldn't find things, but seriously, why is the sour cream by the muffins?  Why is the milk in the middle of the store, and why isn't tea bags by the coffee?  Serious questions, but it will not matter - I don't plan on frequenting that particular location, so it will not be an issue for me...but it brings up the question of why is the milk in the middle of the store?  And, they better not change the layout of my normal store...

When I got home, after I let the dogs out, put the groceries away, I wanted a good hot cup of tea, and a few cookies.  I went upstairs to get the cordless phone, and when I came down - my cookies were not there - they had disappeared into thin air - actually into Gracie's tummy.  My fault entirely, as I know she is a food thief, but I wasn't happy.  Those were my cookies!  I got more out, and gave her the evil eye.  She wagged her tail in response - the monster.

So, settling down to drink my tea, eat my now safe cookies, I went through my emails and generally got down to the business of writing.  Since then, I've been watching Boomer and Gracie playing with each other.  No naps for those two, and alas, Boomer's puppy (his pacifier toy) nearly got his head ripped off, and some guts came out.  Now puppy is missing an arm, a leg, and both ears.  He's looking kind of sad, really.  So I fixed puppy, and as dinner is done, Boomer is happily sucking on his puppy (he only does this after dinner - another oddity), and Gracie is chewing her bone.  All is well at my house in the rural area of Michigan...

D. M. Wiseman, relaxing as I write the new novel of the century, published author...

It's a 'I think I'll get dressed early and write all day' kind of Wednesday ...

Writing today with Boomer on my lap seems harder than normal, not sure why but he's lying on my mouse, putting his paw up on the keyboard - which makes all kinds of weird symbols and an occasional word.  He's very intelligent.  There doesn't seem to be a reason for him to be more of a lap dog than normal.  But, gotta love his warm little body...well great big body. 

We are watching the reruns of the 135th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show - we already know the winner - not who I would have picked, but a nice dog.  My pick for a dog never wins.  I would really like to see a Mastiff or a Bull Dog, Bull Mastiff or that gorgeous Neapolitan Mastiff  win.  The Neo was wonderful and if you watched closely, all my pick of dogs - when they were doing the long walk - shook their heads and drool flew all around.  It was great.  And the Bull Mastiff had shoe strings going the whole way.  I loved it, which made me know the reason they don't win.  They drool.  It's a definite issue.  If you don't believe me, ask anyone whose been in my house in the past 11 years - drool, slobber, whatever you call it.  Gotta love it, if you own my kind of dogs...

So, writing with my babies, watching the rerun of the Dog Show, wondering how mine would do in the ring - and I know although I love mine, they would never do very well.  They are family dogs, not show dogs.  Boomer listens to me, sometimes.  Gracie listens to us, occasionally, and the others I've owned, maybe Max would have been the best - if he felt like it.  And usually, he didn't much care to do the 'show' things.  He was a good dog, and could do all the show bits, but when he felt like it. 

I should write my story of our lives with dogs - it would not be like that one they made into a movie, it would not be like Lassie either.  So, not sure what I could write - how they ate a wall, the door jam, frozen chicken, a turkey leg?  how they fell into the swimming pool and got pneumonia?  how they knocked me down and injured my hip which led me to write a novel that was published, and now I'm an author?  Oh!  Maybe that one... At least do a blog on them, which this seems to be turning into.. but hey.  It's my life, my dogs, my kids, and my husband, my friend, my soul mate - wow, my life in twenty words or less...

D M Wiseman, insightful and reflective, published author

Another chilly and windy Tuesday morning and my 5th book is done...

I was up late again last night, and found that I was done.  Merry's Plan is done!  My fifth book is completed and I am so excited.  And this morning I found an email from my artist that does my cover art and she gave me another perfect cover!  This day is going so well, I think I will go buy a lottery ticket!  Even that would just be icing on the cake of my life today...

Boomer is snoring and for once, not in my lap - he is laying on a bean bag chair all snuggled in, and Gracie is upstairs sleeping on her fainting couch - an antique fainting couch that we have had for about eleven years.  It must be something about that couch because our Bull Mastiff used to sleep on it as well!  As for me, well I am in my normal spot, and I am about a third of the way editing the book already. Product morning so far!

So, I will be editing for the rest of this Tuesday, until I can't see anymore.  I will try and get this one done faster than the last, and get it up on www.smashwords.com for all to read.  So far my other books have sold a few copies, not as many as I had thought, but I am a published author, after all - the number doesn't matter, just that I am.  Dr. Seuss once said "Don't cry because it's over - Smile because it happened."  How nice to read this today.  I like to equate my life with sayings, sometimes.  And sometimes I like to make up my own. 

Today though, I will finish editing, and then start on the next novel that could be the greatest ever written in this lifetime!  Or just by me.  Whatever, I will publish it, and be happy.  And so, maybe I will have to change my title of my blog, to already published author and writing 5th, 6th, 7th ... novels.  Ha!

D. M Wiseman, author of my fifth novel, the third and final chapter (maybe) in the Pretty Marsh Trilogy...