Back to uneventful...

…later start than usual this morning. Downstairs for coffee at 6:30, then off to the cottage to write at 7:30.

Did some work on the memoir, then on the novel. Made headway with both, but now it’s the memoir that looks a long way from anywhere.

Took the afternoon in stride. Talked to my buddy S for an hour or so, then went off to the gym for a light workout. PT afterward.

The shoulder’s seems to be getting better in terms of mobility, but the pain is still there. Intense pain, sometimes, though intermittent and not a huge bother except when it comes at night while I’m sleeping.

Got a light rain this afternoon. El Nino seems, at last, to be on the way.

One step at a time...

Up early to work on the memoir. Wasn’t expecting to open that can of worms again, but ran out of steam witih the novel, and didn’t want to revisit the new short just yet. Anyway, the writing went well, I think, and I’m happy to have some thing new on the burner. Will probably get back to the novel tomorrow, or put the finishing touches on the new short story, but for now happy just to have something to do to kill the time.

Went to the gym late morning and got in a nice workout. The bad arm’s still sore as hell, but I think I’m making progress. Rehab again tomorrow. We’ll see how that goes.

A surprise rain showed up on our doorstep this afternoon. What a great surprise. It didn’t last long, but at least it happened and, who knows, maybe there’s more in the future. Meanwhile, the temps remain in the 90s.

...waiting for fall.

…Jesus. Another hot one. Temps have run in the mid to upper nineties all month. Maybe longer. Worked on a couple of shorts this morning then went off to the movies. Skirted the worst of the heat in a cool theatre, but there’s more to come for the foreseeable future.

Taking it easy today.

Gonna enjoy a nice Caprese salad and a glass of wine for dinner. After that, who knows?

P.S. Recieved an acceptance slip today for “Cold Reckoning.” Nice to have it back in play.

...all over but the singing

…nice day nearly ruined by hot, smoky, miserable weather. Spent the morning and early afternoon at the zoo with the boys. Had a great time. The work the zoo’s done for the new giraffe exhibit is nothing short of marvelous.

Celebrating Matt’s birthday tonight. Mom and the boys leave tomorrow morning, and the long summer we’ve enjoyed will come to an end. Will be sorry to see them go, but happy to get our lives back to what they were. The kids feel the same way, I’m sure.

Tired of the heat. Tired of the fires. Looking forward to fall and some cool weather. A bit more fly fishing when time allows.

This and more...

Quiet day with the kids in Buena Vista. Wrote a little this morning, took in a move (Toy Story) this afternoon. Spent the rest of the afternoon working up a batch of Vichyssoise. Looking forward to a quiet night. Or what passes for a quiet night anymore. Had a good run in the park this morning. Looking forward to getting our lives back to normal.

...A change of pace...and scenery

Up early, but only for a two-mile walk. Big weariness from yesterday’s fishing expedition. Spent the morning goofing off with the boys and getting in a quick edit on the new short. Kids are off with mommy on a two day side trip to Buena Vista to hike and hot-tub. Those of us looking for a bit of peace are hanging back and picking up the pieces of yesterday’s life (apologies to you, Jimi). Hoping to run the stairs tomorrow morning then get back to work on the novel. We’ll see how that goes. Tonight? Peanut butter sandwiches and wine!

...meanwhile, back at the ranch.

Back from the M Lazy C tonight. Had a nice time up in the mountains. Rode horses and fished between two days of gully-washers. Looking to take the boys up to Elevenmile Canyon for one last day of fly fishing before they leave for the summer. Been a long haul this year. Should make for some splendid memories. Right now, more than running water, I’d like to get back to the keyboard to finish a draft or two. My other great wish would be to see the temps drop with the turning of the trees. Haven’t looked forward to Fall this much in a long, long, long time.

...hot, hot, hot.

Shopped today for tomorrow’s excursion into the mountains. Three days at a dude ranch. Not sure my entourage is as excited as I am, but I guess I’ll find out. Temps ran over 100 day. Too much. Been the hottest, suckiest summer I can ever remember. But hey, fall’s only this far away. Looking forward to getting my life back one of these days. I’ve always been good alone and always will be.

...a day of reflection. And Chores.

Up early to work on the novel. Got pulled away at nine to let the workmen in to install the new washer. After a brief parlay in broken English we learned the old washer couldn’t be taken away because it had residual water in its reservoir. Needless to say, spent the better part of the day taking apart the old washer, buying parts for the new unit, and fielding phone calls from Costco. Did manage to cut the lawn for the first time in weeks, but even after allowing it to grow, untrimmed, the summer heat’s done a number on it. It’s better than previous years—and still the best lawn on the block—but man, two solid weeks in the 90s didn’t do it any favors. Looking forward to spending a few days up in the mountains with my dudes. Monday can’t come soon enough.

A nice july evening...

Up early to run the stairs. Spent the morning working while the boys went off to play canasta with Aunt K. Have a new short in place, save for a few finishing touches, and got a chance to make some revisions to the novel.

Relaxed most of the afternoon.

Not sure what’s in store this evening, but hope it’s reading time and an early turn in. Still lots to do to plan for the dude ranch excursion next Monday.

Rehab tomorrow. Looking forward to it. The shoulder/arm has been talking back most of the week.

...Rain. Yes, rain.

…up a little after five to load the pickup. Rousted the boys for an early morning fishing expedition to Lake Manitou. Spent a couple of luckless hours on the water there, then headed down to Green Mountain Falls where we knocked em dead. I caught and released while the boys harvested four nice rainbow for a supper later this week.

Best part of the day, though, was this evening when the monsoons finally blew in. Got a good rain that promises to keep on until morning. Lots of flooding in other places, in part because of the burn scars, but we’ll take whatever we can get. Especially if it keeps other fires from starting. Kind of a sad summer all around, across the country, but maybe not unexpected. We’re just too cavalier sometimes with what we have, and too lazy or benighted at other times to protect it.

...waiting for a break in the weather.

…Ninety-somethning today. Again. Kept inside most of the day to keep from having heat stroke, though I did get up at five this morning and run the stairs in the park.

Gotta say, patience is running thin pretty much everywhere, and the heat doesn’t help.

Gonna take the boys over to the pool in Monument Valley Park tomorrow to get away from the weather. They’ve never been there before, and I think they’ll enjoy it. Fresh air, big shade trees, playgound equipment—the whole nine yards.

Saw the Christopher Nolan Odyssey this afternoon. Meh. Visuals were okay, and he did a better job with some of the creatures/scenes than any I’ve seen before, but it’s always been a better read than a movie. Especially when the film-maker feels the need to moralize for a modern audience.

...Spelunking

Slow hot day. Temps again reading north of ninety. Took the boys to the Cave of the Winds for a break to enjoy a bit of cool subterranean weather. What started out as a reluctant escape from the house turned into the hit of the afternoon.

Trying something new to salvage the lawn before it burns out entirely. Skirted water restrictions by buying some bags of ice at 7-11 and dumping them on the hotspots. We’ll see how it works. Weather people are predicting more brutal heat until late next week. Meanwhile the fires across the state keep burning.

...Blue skies, high clouds, killer temps.

Back from a nice fishing holiday with Matt. (Jack elected to hang back with the women-folk.) Pitched a tent up on the east side of Elevenmile Canyon and camped up there for the night. Made a late camp, and had a slow afternoon chasing the trout, but after dinner went out again and had some good luck on our spinning gear. Cool evening when we got back to camp. Stayed up to look at the stars, then hit the sack and got an early start the next morning. Should have had breakfast, but Matt wanted to be out on the water , so we forewent the eggs and sausages and had a cup of cocoa and coffee, respectively. The kid hasn’t had much experience with a fly rod on a bigger stream, so I started him with spin tackle to build some confidence. He killed it, and by the time an hour and a half had passed we were back at camp dressing our flyrods. Spent the rest of the day, taking some nice fish (brown and rainbow both) on hoppers.

Rehabbed with Brian this morning. A tough session. The shoulder must have gone through too much while we were out in the wild. Took it easy today. Wrote a little on the new story. Kath coming over tonioght for trout almondine. Thinking of taking the boys to the movies tomorrow so we can all sit out the ninety degree weather.

July 12, 6:18 pm.

Spent the early part of the day in the park, dressed as Roman soldiers wielding pikes and arrows and swords. No one died, and a splendid time was had by all. Looking to get all of our camping gear in order tomorrow in anticipation of the overnight in Elevenmile Canyon. Have a new tent to try out, and a new cot. Looking forward to spending a night under the stars, getting up early and catching some fish.

Had a little break this afternoon when the boys went to Aunt K’s for an afternoon tea. Worked on a new short I hope to have ready before long.

Been watching some Marx Brothers movies with Jack. I thought I was the only one left on the planet who liked the Marx Brothers, but the kid is a true afficionado.

Pizza tonight!

...Grandsons, Day 5

All good. Fished the Tarryall yesterday, caught a nice brown, stayed out of the smoke and had a grand time. Today, fished Green Mountain Falls. Got a late start owing to, well, sloth mostly, and was skunked as a result. Even so, a lovely day in the mountains. Got the boys new gear on the way home, upgrading their spinning tackle. Tomorrow, high temps and, if there’s a god in heaven, a nice cool movie theatre to wile away the afternoon.

...Big Day Tomorrow.

…good day, today. Productive. Boys arrive tomorrow, stay for five weeks. Never completely ready for the company, but it always works out.

Up early to mow the lawn, police the back patio, etc. Finished he housekeeping too. Then went back to work on the leather armor we’ve been makeing for the boys “Roman” war games.

Quiet night last night. Only a few fireworks diehards. Happy that, given all the fires. Read this afternoon the Aspen Acres fire has been sixteen percent contained. Good to hear since it’s already burned 89,000 acres.

Skies are hazy, but that’s the summer we’ve been dealt and nothing’s gonna change it. Gotta take what we have and make the most of it.

Working on the novel again. Made some decent headway, I think, between chores. Hoping to make an end of it before the new year.

...coming around to what's next.

…more nice news. My story “Long Player” went live yesterday on the Ginosko Literary Journal website. Unofficially, I believe “LP” to be my 100th published story. Officially, it may be my 101st. I’m not sure. Either way, yay me for surviving this long. I hope to live long enough to publish at least another 50, though that may be a dream too far.

Worked on the boy’s leather breastplates today, staining them a lovely dark brown. The armaments are now in good order, ready for the first battle in the park.

We’re still a long way from where we want to be with the chores, but with the kids flying in on Monday evening we’ll have to take our victories where we can get them.

The forest fires are bad. The Aspen Acres fire down in Pueblo is the worst. The governor has declared it a disaster. 50,000 acres so far. News reports say it won’t come under control for months. Not sure how it will shape the visit with the boys. Skies haven’t looked this bad since the Waldo Canyon fire.

...At a loss for words.

Quiet day. Wrote, ran the stair in Monument Valley Park, and met with my buddy, Solomon for coffee later in the afternoon. Also got a congratulatory email from my grandson, Jack, for the short story collection. Wow. Does it get any better?