In Dreams

 

You know that crud that's going around and making everyone so sick?

 Yes. That crud.

I have it.

It's been a bit frustrating. Being sick always is. Of course, there's no "convenient" moment to be ill, but this case of the gallopin' gleep has really disrupted some robust momentum for me. 

I went to my doctor's office yesterday hoping for a walk-in visit, but it was early in the morning and they were already full for the day, including walk-ins. They suggested I go to another affiliated clinic in town. Turned out, the local ISD closed for the day because so many locals are sick. To my relief, though, the second place accommodated me. I tested negative for covid and the current strains of floo for which they are testing, so that is something of a relief, I suppose. Hopefully I'm mostly over it. I'm taking antibiotics, happily.

This is my first absence from the job I started in March, but they have been most gracious about it. I sit near a young person with a major health issue, and another young lady at work is pregnant, and I'd be devastated if I infected them. I don't feel 100% now, but I'm much better. I'm not at work because I have a productive cough and I'm hoping that will largely clear out by my return to work on Friday (which is my Monday). 

I've been doing more creative writing, and my editorial duties at RacPress have stepped up considerably in recent times. This is all good, but it means that my dance card stays full and I don't have a lot of flex in my schedule for five unproductive days, especially since my new job, while the best ever, does not have pay for sick leave. But, of course, healing is the priority. I expect this is the last you'll hear from me on this current bout of the tizzik. Fingers firmly crossed.

***

I used to enjoy watching awards shows. I was a fan of enough movies and music that I actually cared that some of them won an award, but it's been many years since I couldn muster the crap to give over what anyone in Hollywood thought and decided to reward. The bad behavior and gleeful devilry on the red carpet and stage have made such shows unwatchable, in my view, and it seems every one is a new low-bar opportunity to make the new show the most low-class spectacle imaginable, a feat they best again and again. I will not dignify the vile stand-outs from recent Sunday's Grammy Awards by a direct mention, but I want to mention a couple good things. One performer was rocking a custom colorway pair of boots from John Fluevog that were absolutely gorgeous. I was happy to see that. 

The other happy surprise is that one of my favorite performers of the last decade, Sierra Ferrell, actually won four of the coveted awards for her old school Country/Folk music. She's absolutely superb. She's a fantastic guitarist, and has written a robust majority of my favorite new music I've heard in the past five years. It's thrilling to see her gain genuine recognition. The icing on the cake was her delightful original ensemble that made her look like an Appalachian fairy come to life on stage. She's an marvelous spark.

What makes this all the sweeter is the fact that one week ago today, I bought a couple tickets to see her in early May in a city a handful of hours away. Jonna will go to that show with me, so watch this space for news on the madcap getup I mean to make for myself before then. It should be a good time for us to kick up our heels and enjoy hearing some fantastic live music before she is playing arena size gigs. I can't wait!

Hope you're hanging in there, and getting through whatever is challenging you at the moment. Stay warm, make sure the varmints have unfrozen water bowls, and take good care of yourself. :)

Everything is changing.

 Yes, this will be two posts in one day, and you're probably wondering what happened to bring about this rarity. Actually, I aspire to knock the cobwebs off this blog a little more often in the coming times. To that end, if for no other purpose than my own sense of my timeline, I'm going to do a brief recap on the previous couple years, and also note the direction my little wagon appears to be heading. 

After I graduated with my Masters in 2022, I accepted a job teaching literature and research writing at the same university. I loved being there (OBVIOUSLY), and I adored the faculty and staff. To be offered a job there was so beyond what I had dared to hope for, and I'm thrilled for that incredible opportunity. I accepted a position as lecturer, the bottom-tier workhorse level of the department. I am thankful to have experienced teaching at that level, and I hope that I was a help and encouragement to my students. However, the terms of remuneration were insufficient to facilitate what I need to achieve financially for the remainder of my working years. 

After my first full year of teaching, I returned in Fall 2023 to the unhappy news that the Uni was in a financial crisis, extreme measures were being undertaken, and it was uncertain whether I'd have a job in Fall 2024 with the uni, even at my low pay. Add to that stress the difficulty that I'd been diagnosed with cancer in Summer 2023 and was undergoing radiation for some months into the Fall semester. To say this was a troubling and stressful time is to understate, but I also had faith and the loving support of friends and family who sustained me at that trying time. 

Life is uncertain even under the best circumstance, but the hem-hawing at the university over whether my job was secure was a bridge too far. When a friend mentioned an employment opportunity at her work in what is an education-peripheral field, I leapt at the opportunity. To my profound relief, they offered me the job, and it was a tremendous blessing. I'm incredibly happy to be there. I worked both jobs my final two months at the uni, though the new job generously allowed me to ramp up gradually part time while I was still teaching. 

This is the best job I've ever had. It's funny to think how low-key my friend was at selling the job: it's wildly beyond my expectations. The perks are the best, and I work with the most delightful bunch of people. I enjoy what I'm doing and I love being there with my coworkers. My friend undersold the job, because it just gets better and better. 

While I will continue with the full time job for the foreseeable future, I'm stepping up my own creative writing, so I'll be posting here more often. I'll also set up an author substack in the future, so I'll link that here, too. With Raconteur Press I'm performing various editing tasks, and that is a pleasurable way to also be at the cutting edge with exciting authors--some of them first-timers--who send their wonderful stories to us. 

I had another cancer scare in December. I already had a fire lit, but I received the all-clear on the recent shot across the bow, and I'm feeling super-motivated to Do All The Things. I have come to recognize that I need to work like I think my time is short, even though I hope it is not. I've been the butterfly that flits from flower to flower, always on a lazy summer day. It's time to stop lollygagging. It's time to stop being the butterfly, do my late blooming, and transform into the battle-ready armored dragonfly I know I can be, so watch this space. *pew!* *pew!*

Everything is changing. This should be interesting. 

Raconteur Press did it again: "From the Brim to the Dregs"

 While I've been so absentee on the blog for some time, I've been busy with Raconteur Press, where we've been publishing anthologies that hearken to the early tradition of pulp fiction, particularly of the sci-fi fantasy variety. Holy cow, we've published quite a few, including Space Cowboys, Space Marines, Moggies in Space, and many fun variations on sundry themes.  I'll post updates here to keep you up to speed on what we're up to. 

Our latest volume, From the Brim to the Dregs is sizzling hot over at Amazon. From the post over at the Rac Press substack, I purloined this wonderful description: 

Drinks! Since humanity first began, we have been experimenting with beverages beyond simple water. Fermenting fruit, milk from various mammals, mashing berries...and later experimenting with getting desired effects by mixing together in different ways; potions concocted to evoke certain feelings, heal an ailment, erase memories, or inspire strong emotions. Across many cultures & oceans we find different myths of fountains of youth, elixirs of life, amrita, blessed mead, holy ale, love potions, sanctified wines, & potent poisons. 

Come! Drink from a cup of stories varied! Dare to follow these epic quests, potions with unintended consequences, ales holy, wine deadly, and toast...to adventure!

Tell me, friend, will you drink?

Good stuff! Let me know what you think!