A Pre-New Year Update

Wow, I hadn't realized it had been almost a month since I posted anything. That's because there hasn't been anything in the mundane life to really post about. Had a wonderful thanksgiving with the family. It was pretty standard. In other mundane news - the car finally got 3000 miles on it and went in for it's first oil change. Haha!

Not much else is going on. It's that time of year where I get busy with family and holiday stuff and most of the really interesting stuff falls to the wayside.

I didn't finish Nano on account of DGDM, which I'm proud to say is finally finished. It was worth not finishing Nano for. It was a year in the making and I don't know that I want to work with that many writers at once ever again. LOL! Just kidding. It's just not easy keeping so many people on page with the big collaborative projects like that one was. We did manage to pull it all together though -so no complaints here. :)

That's about it from this side of the Abyss. Don't be surprised if you don't hear from me until after the new year or just before.

Another Excellent Weekend

This past weekend was M's annual DoD party. She had it a bit late, but that was due to everyone's busy schedule for Halloween weekend and all the events the weekend before (Witches Ball etc...). I was exhausted. It was fun but by 9pm, I was wilting. See, earlier that day DH and I had done our fall cleanup in the front yard. This year we waited until all the leaves fell off the tree, so there were tons of them. Crazy weather here like usual. A few weeks back we were shoveling snow. Over the weekend it was in the 70's and dry as a bone. Yesterday worked on The Guide. I really am almost done.

Busy weekends...

Seems I've been completely busy the past two weekends. I hosted a RoM viewing Sunday afternoon with numerous pagan friends along with OFS pals. Our Eury Rites Saturday night went over well and all who attended were quite pleased. This coming weekend is the belated yearly ritual - M's DoD party. Looking forward to it.

On that note, DH and I saw Paranormal Activity. Not worth it. As DH said, rent Poltergeist instead. It's scarier. With Paranormal Activity you're waiting for something to happen that never does. No climax, and no reasonable resolution. Sure, it had a few edge of your seat moments, but it just wasn't scary enough and it really relies on a Judeo Christian worldview to be as scary as it could be. Just my opinion though.

Goals

I've found that I tend to keep my life on track better and am able to do better if I keep concise goal lists. One of my goals is to get in shape and develop lifestyle habits that help me stay in good shape. It gets annoying getting winded carry a laundry basket up a flight of stairs. So I've developed a plan and am working toward keeping at it and making a permenant lifestyle change. It used to be I was constantly on the go. I walked a great deal and practiced Kendo and fencing. That kept me in shape and on the go. Then I got married and got a bit lazier. My exercise is sporadic. Before this month I workout about once a week if I felt like it. This month I've been trying to get in 2 exercise sessions a week.

Exercise Goals:
October - 2 X a week (1 cardio - 1 strength training)
November - 3 X a week (2 cardio - 1 strength training)
December - 4 X a week (2 cardio - 2 strength training)
January - 5 X a week (3 cardio - 2 strength training)
February - 6 X a week (3 cardio - 3 strength training)
March - 6 X a week (cardio + strength daily)
April - 6 X a week (cardio + strength daily) + intensity
May - 6 X a week (cardio + strength daily) + intensity
June- 6 X a week (cardio + strength daily) + intensity
July - 6 X a week (cardio + strength daily) + intensity
August - 6 X a week (cardio + strength daily) + intensity

We'll see if I can keep this up.

Great Visit

Just finished having my SiL and her husband out for a visit. We had an good time despite the weather misbehaving. At least they made it over the mountain before the snow hits this weekend. So E helped M brew some beer and L brought me the entire Charlaine Harris Sookie Stackhouse series! Woot! I'm already on book three! I needed some excellent brain candy. Can't write when I'm reading more cerebral novels. So the Harris novels were a welcome surprise. Next month is Nanowrimo. I'm going to use it to finish ETG and that entire series once and for all.

Good Week So Far!

As my pals know - got a new publishing contract and something awesome is coming down the pike. But I don't want to talk about it openly yet because it's not definite at this time. Don't want to jinx it or get my friends all excited only to have me take it all back if it doesn't come through.

The deck project is at the railing. For those who keep asking me why it's taking so long -- don't forget that this deck is really more of a veranda. It covers half the back of the house and comes out at least 12 feet! It's really looking beautiful! So the railing and the stairs are all that's left (and some trim close to the house). For a do-it-yourself project -- DH did an awesome job (with help with the foundation from my BiL).

DH is considering some custom masonry work in the backyard to create not only a nice sitting patio in the middle of the yard, but a lovely outdoor ritual environment including an area for an outdoor fireplace as well as quarter markers that double as incense burners. It's going to look incredible when we're done with it. However - I won't lie. It is going to be a huge undertaking and it could take a few more years to completely finish all the projects we want to do back there. We'll likely be taking out the back garden, too, and moving the beds into raised plots.

Got a ton of herbs to harvest for tinctures and oleums. Time to pull out the thread and drying racks. I'm almost wondering if I can use the greenhouse for double duty. Growing in the spring and drying in the fall. Hmmm. I think I need to do more zuke bread, too. And I should process the tomatoes some night this week so they don't go to waste.

A Lazy Saturday

For Yule 2007 I received an Aerogarden from my husband. It's been one of the best gifts I've gotten. Today I did my quarterly maintenance on the garden and replanted it. This is the first time I've had to replace the bulbs. I replaced the filter and I keep an extra pump just in case (had to replace it once in the first year. I've grown herbs, tomatos, and lettuce in the thing like clockwork. We use what we grow, too. There's something satisfying growing some of your own food. Not just in a tiny garden like the Aerogarden, but this year I had a great deal of zucchini and tomatos from the outdoor garden. Only a few small pumpkins, but considering how lazy a gardner I can be -- that's not shabby. Besides - dh and I only need a few pumpkins, not 50. I also grew peppers and beets quite successfully. So my produce bill over the summer amounts to fresh onions, garlic, and broccoli. This year I didn't do green beans like I normally do. I think I'll do them next year for sure.

Next month I have to get the greenhouse cleaned out. I might do it today or tomorrow.