Power flickering or kicking out briefly yet the laptops are OK.
One more sign of how times do change.
Back in the day of PCs, that would have created terror.
Tag: Fun
Remembering my barn
A barn is a reminder of work once at hand. Some of it is ongoing, while in other instances it was and then put aside, perhaps for another time. Cows – even imaginary – won’t wait long. Everything needs repair or weeding. Feasting is countered by fasting. Again, the season turns. All together.
The barn was my own. A carriage house, actually – in a small city, the oldest settlement in New Hampshire and seventh-oldest in the nation. How I got there is a long story, told in part here at the blog and in part in the novels.
The barn was a central part of my domestic labors, with dreams of a loft studio, once more pressing house repairs were in place. At least its back half was no longer sinking toward collapse on rotted sills. In our possession, the structure did hold a mother-in-law apartment. The remainder provided storage.
A writer collects many materials – fodder for winter. More important, eighteen years after a divorce, I had remarried, this time with children. Once again, I was with gardens and this time, trails of toys, clothing, and chipped dishes. We did have woodstove heat in the kitchen ell.
Not that anyplace with children is truly idyllic. It was always a near-catastrophe, of the best sort.
The doors on this train are about to close
The clock’s winding down on my offer of a free ride on my novel, Subway Visions. Who knows when, if ever, you’ll have another opportunity on such a deal.
The surrealistic story presents an adventurous ride in its flashes through underground culture. Some of it even erupts into verbal graffiti.
It’s one of five novels I’m making to you for free during Smashword’s annual end-of-the-year sale, which ends just a few hours from now on January First. Remember, the ebook comes in the digital platform of your choice.
Step aboard promptly, then, before the door closes. There are good reasons I see these mass transit rails as an urban amusement park. Check out the ebook and you’ll discover why.
For details, go to the book at Smashwords.com.
Wrapping up
Crew in Mary Day rigging
There’s even a Summer of Love
The places I lived in the settings covered in my novel Pit-a-Pat High Jinks long ago fell to the wrecking ball, yet the memories live on. The fictionalized story covers friends and lovers, along with near-misses and poverty-line entry-level work life in an out-of-the-way town and surrounding countryside while venturing out on one’s own after college. It had its downs and ups, including a Summer of Love that included a remote mountain lake.
Believe me, you can’t make up details like these, though you can amplify or reshape others.
It’s one of five novels I’m making available for FREE during Smashword’s annual end-of-the-year sale, which ends January First. The ebook comes in the digital platform of your choice. Do note that it includes adult content, so you may have to adjust your filters when ordering.
Think of this as part of my after-Christmas sale, except that these items are FREE! Remember, you risk nothing in acting now.
For details, go to the book at Smashwords.com.
And do I have a deal for you!
Today, for many Americans, is defined as After-Christmas Sales rife with “big savings.”
The one I’m opening to you is even free.
Smashword’s annual Year-End ebook bonanza is into its second – and final – week, and I’m offering you five of my novels at no cost. Pick one or all or something in-between. They’re all different.
It’s your chance to pick up these ebooks at no risk. If you like the stories, perhaps you’ll leave a brief review and five stars at the website, just to encourage other readers who come along in the future.
The titles are Daffodil Uprising, when youth across the country went freaky; Pit-a-Pat High Jinks, with lovers and friends setting forth in premature adulthood; Subway Visions, with wild rides through the Underground; What’s Left, as a bereft daughter tries to make sense of her bohemian parents and close-knit Greek family; and Yoga Bootcamp, where Asian spirituality sizzles in a back-to-the-earth funky farm not far from the Big Apple.
It’s still a good time to give yourself a present. This one carries my blessing. For details, go to Smashwords.com.
As we return to port
the fog’s burned off
but still hazy
with another schooner far off to the left of the Angelique
a sailboat comes between us
another windjammer’s way off on the horizon
while we skirted a sandbar
Camden grows as we approach
the Congregational spire for navigation
perhaps there’s a third behind her
entry into crowded harbor even in shoulder season
a bit tricky
especially when a pleasure boat backs into our path
shouts of “get back!” or “keep moving” finally heard
Coast Guard a bit more astute
the transom of one sailboat ASTARA also the name of our messmate
should they get acquainted sometime
haven’t seen a Kroger product for ages till now
the logo popping above someone’s pack
My messenger bag has a conspicuous stain
its first
remaining as a badge of honor
or oarlock grease
as I’m getting off, “This is all you have?” as in surprised
while I’m realizing how much I overpacked
now to send off a deposit for next year
(which I did)
Yes, we had a cannon
you’re out of line
you’re out of rope
rock, paper, scissor
last call
3 loons
heard first
and then seen
3 passengers showing the captain
photos of their parents’ and grandparents’ weddings
vintage dresses they thought she could consider
for her upcoming wedding in January
Captain Becky not yet 30
Becky our captain
is very funny
and so is Dylan, the mate
These were some fun times
Maybe you remember your first year or two after college and trying to get your feet on the ground.
My wild novel Pit-a-Pat High Jinks relates, more or less, how it went for me way back when. It wasn’t always high, either, despite the stereotypes. These days, I see the episodes extending into the forties for many younger adults and their friends. Do check it out and see how it relates to your own experiences.
It’s of five ebooks I’m making available to you for FREE during Smashword’s annual end-of-the-year sale. You can pick yours out in the digital platform of your choice. Do note that it includes adult content, so you may have to adjust your filters when ordering.
Think of this as my Christmas present to you. In the meantime, be cool and stay warm.
For details, go to the book at Smashwords.com.
Jib sails and rigging
clusters of sails
how do you know how to mix
rolling waters as the pulse of the earth
a breathing
we ride
Jnana's Red Barn 