Friday, January 31st, 2025
Friday Five
TGIF!! How did Friday get here so fast? Sheesh! And before we jump into sharing five random things about our week, I just want to say I’m saddened by the crash of the passenger plane and helicopter at Reagan National Airport. My heart goes out to all the victims, their families and friends. It’s all just tragic and there are no words to make it better.
Okay let’s jump into sharing five random things about our week. Here’s mine:
- In the coffee table sage — a new table will arrive on Wednesday. The company has been fine about it. The process is a little slow and cumbersome, but any business that is scaled up has these systems and procedures so I have been patient. We’re all proud of me. I did tell off a door banger, so my temper is in working order
- Maggie wanted me to tell you that, according to my app, she walked over 17 miles last week (it tracks Sunday to Sunday). She has requested additional food and treats and has assured me you all will agree with her on this.
- I made sourdough bread this week. Not sure anyone cares about this, but I now have this down to a pretty easy process. I just need to be home or close to home for a day to feed the starter, wait for it to rise, make the dough then babysit the dough for a few hours. Then I put in the fridge overnight to bulk ferment before I shape it the next day and then bake it. It feels much simpler for me, and the dough is easier to handle.
- It’s quiet lately, and that’s good. I think Wizard and I just tired of running around so much and needed a break. My energy is a little lower than I’d like, but I suspect that’s normal aging, and the fact that I get up early.
- Today I’m meeting Biker Witch for lunch. That’ll be fun. This weekend, we might try to see a grandkid, plus Wizard is going racing and I have a few things to shop for (if I talk myself into doing it!).
That’s my five, not it’s your turn to share yours! I hope everyone has a great weekend.
January 31st, 2025 at 8:43 am · Link
My heart goes out to all those people, too. So sad. =o(
Yay for your new table. You should be proud. It’s not easy keeping your cool with customer service people. LOL about the door banger, though. Good girl, Maggie! Yes, you do deserve extra treats. Sounds like you’ve got the sourdough riddle solved. Yay. Quiet is good and so very necessary. Have fun with Biker Witch and I hope you do get to see a grandkid this weekend. Have fun shopping!
1) I’m a super boring person. Sometimes I feel like everything interesting goes into my writing and all that’s left is boring, ol’ me.
2) I made cinnamon rolls again. Last time, I had too much goo, but it was kinda dry. This time, I made it gooier, but I went too far and it was running out on the counter. I’ll get this down eventually. (They’re still yummy, so not a total loss.)
3) Finn is fully recovered from his bladder infection. Yay.
4) Sawyer has decided that we NEED to be awake at 2am every day, so it’s been a bit of a sleepless week. Hubs got up with them this morning and let me sleep in. Now he’s napping in the living room.
5) February marks 10 years since I published my first book – 2/13/15. It’s hard to believe it’s been that long. What a wild ride.
January 31st, 2025 at 1:39 pm · Link
Door bangers get what they deserve. Yay on the patience for the table. Maggie is totally right! Give her more. *nods* Yay for sourdough and easy processing. Whatever works for you! Quiet is good. Yay for Biker Witch Time™, and maybe grandkid weekend and Wiz racing. My five:
1. I finished the first “draft” of the WIP. Now I’m going back to make sure I incorporated all the extra scenes. I should have deleted them as I used them but I didn’t. 🤦🏼♀️ Still waiting on the cover but hope to have it finished, formatted and up for pre-order with a Valentine’s Day release.
2. I’ve also made some graphics to use on X for various series and books and using QR codes to take intereted parties to the series landing page on Books2Read. We’ll see if I get any sort of boost in sales.
3. We had rain this week. Yay! We needed it! Heck, we always need it. This was a nice gentle rain of about 1/2 inch in a 24-hour period with temps in the 40-50s so chilly but not awful.
4. I went to Wallyworld today. I forgot my list. 🤦🏼♀️ I managed to get home with everything on the list but 1 thing–and LG had picked that item up yesterday when he ran to the store.
5.The other thing this is is that I had the second laser “scrape” of the grunge on my bad eye. It went fine so not truly noteworthy. Besides, Pete is insistent I tell you about his newest “trick.” He has become very needy this week when it comes to pets so he now prowls the very narrow path between my keyboard drawer and my monitor. He “shortcuts” from his cat tree to the end of the desk using this path instead of his previous trail along the back of the death that is completely clear of obstacles. By cutting along the front, he can stop in front of said monitor and demand pets. Which he has and is doing. Frequently.
Soccer Saturday night. I will be embarking on “Operation Formatting” the rest of the weekend. Have a great one, all!
January 31st, 2025 at 3:19 pm · Link
I think we are all sick about the crash. All those children. I’m heartbroken.
1. I’m glad they are replacing your table.
2. Maggie is correct. You two did an awesome number of miles and she should get extra treats. You need to treat yourself too – a new book?
3. I’m going to share your technique with C. She’s been bummed by her bread lately.
4. Taking it slow is often a good thing and we usually do it not knowing how much we NEED it.
5. Have a great time with Biker Witch! Time with the grandchildren will be great. What are you baking?
1a. I got the car washed the other day and it was so nice to see the paint. Today it it has been raining so there will now be dots on the car but hopefully no salt streaks.
2a. Got my hair done today. It’s been 6 weeks and it really needed it.
3a. The rain is melting most of the snow but the driveway is still a sheet of ice. Our drive is 187 feet long. Getting the mail is a danger sport 😂.
4a. I’m thinking of baking a chocolate cake tomorrow. If I do, I’ll cut it 4 and freeze three sections. Do you have a great method of wrapping the cake for freezing?
5a. Cassie sent a thing for another school fund raiser. This one is for gym equipment. I was going to blow it off until I read that the gym teacher has been certifying these 1st graders in hand CPR and stroke identification. Harrison has both badges. Yes, grandma looked and made sure she gave the most money of his 5 donors ☺️☺️.
Have a great weekend and tons of fun with the kids.
January 31st, 2025 at 6:08 pm · Link
B.E., thanks, but I really try when I know people are doing their job — the systems they have to follow are not their doing. The door bangers I do not have to tolerate when they refuse to accept, “No, thank you.” And if they dare to come to my door and demand personal information then all I can say is, “They started it.”
1) Boy can I relate to that feeling! And now I don’t even have writing as an excuse for being boring.
2) If they are good tasting, that’s always a win! But I can imagine your frustration — plus weather and humidity affect baking outcomes too. And I’ve never made cinnamon rolls from scratch so you’re better than me at it!
3) Good boy, Finn, for getting rid of that bladder infection. Those are no fun, and they can suddenly make us really sick (both cats and humans!).
4) Naughty Sawyer! Maggie when through something like that, so I really sympathize. If Sawyer keeps it up, can you check with the vet? Maggie’s vet helped us figure it out and it worked. Hope you and hubs get a full night of sleep soon!
5) Congrats on 10 years of being published!!! That’s a milestone!
Hope you have a good weekend, with no more interrupted sleep!
January 31st, 2025 at 6:22 pm · Link
Silver, Maggie is quite pleased that you all agree with her! She’s getting lots of treats! And I agree with you on door bangers. I strive for politeness in public but not when someone interrupts me at home.
1) Congrats on the first draft!! It’s the hardest for sure! Question: Do you put the scenes in the place in the draft where you want them, then go back and work them in? I’m trying to visualized how you did it. I’ve embedded notes in capitals, but not full written scenes. everyone has such a different process! But I do think we both track our timelines with notes at the beginning of scenes that we remove in the edited drafts.
2) Sounds like you’re getting more familiar with X and how to use it!
3) Rain is a good thing.
4) I’m impressed that you remembered all but one thing on your list!! That’s a win!
5) It amazes me how Pete went from a somewhat feral cat to a house kitty demanded love and attention. He’s just blossomed and loving life there! Maggie and I call that the “Pet Tax” which means I must stop and pet her whenever I walk by her, or she will laser me with her puppy eyes. Not sure when Maggie became the tax collector, but sounds like you have a similar thing there with Pete
I’m glad you have both eyes done and hope the procedures improve your vision. Enjoy the soccer game and hope formatting is straight forward with not glitches. Have a great weekend!
January 31st, 2025 at 6:58 pm · Link
Viki, I had a great time with Biker Witch, thanks! I’m not planning to bake this weekend, but I’m thinking about what kind of cookies to bake for an adult birthday party the following weekend
1) Of course it rains after you had the car washed! Hopefully it’ll look good afterward.
2) That’s always a good feeling!
3) Wowzer that does sound dangerous!! More so than snow. Please be careful!!!
4) I usually double wrap mine for the freezer. It’s a pain if you have frosting on it — then I put it in a box, then wrap the box (I use small cupcake boxes) to seal it. But it usually defrosts well and tastes good. the cake sounds good!
5) You’re a very good grandma!!! That was awesome of you to do, and goes to a worthy cause!
Hope you have a great weekend!