Misc, On Writing, Writing

Still chugging along

When I started this novel, I felt really good about the story I had in mind. I was excited about it. Though I wasn’t hitting high marks, I got in something every day for the first few days. And then I got distracted and didn’t work on it for about a week.

Right now my biggest distraction is the process of buying my house. It’s a little frustrating and a little scary. I’m constantly worried that something will go wrong and we won’t be able to close the deal. I just want to get it over with so I can relax. We’re expecting to close some time in December.

Anyway, after a week of not getting any work into the new novel, I got back to it yesterday, and I got in some more today. But now I can barely remember where I was going with the story. It’s like I lost the story. I feel like I’m just pushing it along because I want to finish what I started.

The moral here is, when you start a novel, work on it every day, even if you’re just getting in a little bit. That way you’re less likely to lose the story you set out to write.

Books, Reviews

Confessions of a Female Safety Engineer, by Wendy S. Delmater

I never doubted that construction sites are dangerous, but I don’t think I put much thought into how dangerous they are or what the dangers are. Wendy S. Delmater goes into all that in Confessions of a Female Safety Engineer.

Wendy was a safety manager who did much of her work in New York City. It was her job to make sure construction sites were run safely. She made sure that crews working on skyscrapers had fall protection, that gases, chemicals and oxygen were stored properly, she took steps to make sure crews did not have to work in areas with lead. What I just listed there is only a small percentage of what Wendy had to deal with on the job.

She was a couple blocks down the street, standing on the sidewalk when the Twin Towers collapsed on 9/11. Although that’s not really what the book is about, Wendy’s account of what happened on that day really drives home how terrible it was. It was bad enough for those who saw it on TV. Imagine if you were on the sidewalk, not far from the Towers.

I feel like I learned a lot from Confessions of a Female Safety Engineer. It’s a very interesting read and it gave me a better idea of what it’s like working construction in a big city like New York City.

A hard book to put down.

Misc

Happy Halloween

I’ve never gotten Trick or Treaters, probably because I’m not even home until 7:30 or 8. It’s deer season. But I always get candy just in case, and I try hard not to eat it all before Halloween Night. Well, it’s 9:30 now, and I think Trick or Treating hours are over. So, now I’m eating one after another.

Misc

House

I just found out that my house was built around 1929. My landlord said he doesn’t think there’s an accurate record that states exactly when the house was built, but that the township has the year as 1929. I didn’t think it was anywhere near that old. I thought it was maybe built in the 60’s or 70’s. Now I’m very interested in the history of this place, though I doubt there’s any records to be found.

I signed the purchase agreement Monday and we’re moving forward, but some work will be done on the house before we close. Most notably, all the siding will be replaced, though I requested that the new siding be the same color as the old siding. The new siding will be vinyl, the old siding is wood. Also, the tree in the front yard will be cut down and the awing over the front door will be removed.

The back patio will be torn up and replaced with a new patio, and a small patio will be put in around the side door. I’m also getting a new refrigerator, stove and microwave. One window will be replaced, an outside light will be replaced and screens will be put on the attic windows.

Consider these to be the Before pictures. I’ll take After pictures when the work is done. When the work is done, then we’ll close on the house.

Updated 12/28/2018 to insert pictures of the old stove, microwave and fridge.

Football, Misc, NFL, Sports

Of all the crap on my coffee table, why is there a squirt gun and binoculars?

I actually bought a package of cheap squirt guns years ago, to keep my pets off my couch. It worked, with Buddy. Luci was always good about getting off the couch when I told her to. But Buddy. tell him to get off the couch, or try to push him off, and he just rolls over. Buddy is a large cat, probably weighs around thirty pounds, and pushing him off the couch is not easy.

But I found that one shot with a squirt gun is all that’s needed to get Buddy off the couch. I should’ve stuck with that, but I didn’t. So, I’d get dog and cat hair on my couches and then, eventually, Buddy would pee on them. I now think Buddy peed on the couches because of stray cats coming near the house. The couches were always near windows. He never peed on my armchairs, which were never near windows. So, I think it was stray cats.

Anyway, after getting this couch and chair from my mom and dad, even though I have waterproof covers on them, I decided I’m going to try keeping my pets off them. Luci hasn’t even gotten onto them yet, but she might the first time I leave the house.

Buddy had gotten onto the couch and chair a few times. When it was too difficult to push him off, I remembered the squirt guns. I loaded one and shot him once, and off he goes. I think he’s getting the message. He’s now lying in the pet bed next to my desk.

And the binoculars. I bought the binoculars a few weeks ago. Although I can see the game just fine from across the room, my eyesight is such that I have difficulties seeing the scores and the clock, or whatever, from across the room. I always had to get up and move closer to the TV to read that information and I was tired of it.

So, I came up with a solution. I bought these binoculars for seven bucks. Now when I want to see the score or the clock, or the inning or how many outs, or any of the information,  I don’t have to get up. I just lift the binoculars to my eyes and look.

The Lions beat the Dolphins, 32-21.