Well howdy!

I’m sorry I haven’t been around much lately. I meant to give you an update sooner than this.

2020 has been crap, as you well know. Mostly, it felt like slow torture. Some stuff happened— good, bad, and a mix of both.

Good

– I published Tunerville even though it got lost in the shuffle of COVID and endless garbage from the dumpster fire in DC.

– I met some very cool people online: lots of lovely resisters, performers, and artists.

– I got a free CompTIA Project+ class to help me get a job.

– I watched a lot of good TV, like Superstore (NBC/Hulu; I didn’t think I’d like this one, but I loved it), The Witcher (Netflix), and The Mandalorian (Disney+). I actually subscribed to Disney+ for the upcoming Marvel series blitz, but Din Djarin and his baby son Grogu kept me going all through this hell year.

Image: Disney+

Don’t sue me, Disney; I’m giving you free publicity for The Mandalorian. Who could resist that face? Anyway, I love macarons, and I will attempt to make the space ones as soon as I have a kitchen again.

Bad

– I learned that I’m pretty good in an emergency (ugh).

My mother had a stroke the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. She got to the hospital well within the three-hour window to receive tPA therapy. They also corrected an underlying condition that caused it in the first place. As a result of the swift treatment, the doctors said she should regain full function.

Before you ask, she’s doing very well and is now home after two weeks of inpatient rehab, continuing with home care OT and PT. Her right side was affected; she can talk and think and walk, but her hand isn’t working very well and she needs a walker for balance. Plus it takes her time to get words out—she said they’re in her head but she can’t always get them out of her mouth.

Thank the gods I was here and understood what was happening. So having no job was providential.

Photo by Olivier Collet on Unsplash

Everyone should know the signs of a stroke, and if you think something is wrong, PLEASE call for help. Better safe than sorry. First responders would probably be the first to tell you that nobody ever died of embarrassment. Their job is to help you, not to judge you. They’ll do that later after they get you out of the tree.

Mix

– I have so far managed to steer clear of COVID-19. But our third wave is going strong. So wear your mask, stay home as much as possible, and keep your hands clean and off your face!

And of course,

WE FIRED TRUMP

Whether the slow-moving attempts at a coup (and yes, it is a coup), aided by seditious members of the Greedy Oligarch Pervert party, manage to take hold remains to be seen. I can’t relax until Biden is actually in the White House, and even then, I’ll be holding his and his AG’s feet to the fire until every last one of them pays for what they’ve done.

In other news, Confluence is back from the editor. I had to deal with Mom stuff, plus I’m still trying to study for the certification test, so I just now started reading it again. When I start editing something, it feels like chipping away at the outside wall of an edifice, that I constructed, and I’m not sure how to get in and clean up my first and second draft mess. But I’ve started to feel the building blocks shift. That’s exciting.

Photo by Adam Bichler on Unsplash

I’ve made a kick-ass cover (!!!) and you’ll see it a bit later since I’ll probably do a pre-order blitz for the e-book. I hope to have it out in late spring or early summer depending on how things go on the job front. I usually tweet before I post here, so follow me at @DameWritesalot and @BoomkaartBooks for updates.

Stay warm and I’ll see you in a bit!