Back to Writing

Writing - It seems like I should be writing more, not less, now with so much time at home. But that does not seem to be the case. Not sure why - worrying too much about the state of our country and the world might be the problem.

The good news -  is the past week, I have started turning it around and getting some work done.

What else have I been doing? Cleaning up the yard and garden and attempting to make some organizational sense our of our garage. Oh - I have got quite a lot more reading done. I usually read about a book every 10 days, now I am reading about twice that amount. 

Staying in Shape - We have also been actively walking/hiking. We live in a sparsely populated area of the least populated state in the United States, makes it easy to get away. On our hikes and outings, we have encountered zero people, and only saw a handful of vehicles. 

Our little town on the North Platte River

Stay Safe - Please stay safe and distance yourself from others. Find new hobbies, read a few new books, enjoy every day.

The CCC Museum at Guernsey State Park

Writing Update and Fort Laramie

Another month has come and gone, and we have reached May 2018. I remember May 1, May-Day as a big deal when I was a kid. We would do something called a May Pole at school, and after school deliveries of May-Baskets full of candy to our friends and sweethearts – not sure any of that goes on in today’s world. But, the 1950’s in the middle of America were much different than today.

Selling Books – April never seems to be a great month for selling books – speaking of my books only. I was down a bit in pages read, eBook and regular book sales. Still, I am happy to be able to pick up enough each month to pay a bill or two.

Works in Progress – As I was with my last post I am spending most of my writing time working on a nonfiction work on Fort Laramie, and my third Marshal Blade Holmes western mystery. I am also spending time watching my grandson at baseball practices and reminiscing about my days as a kid.

What am I Reading? – The Hair of Harold Roux: A Novel, by Thomas Williams and still reading, A Guide to Photographing Rocky Mountain Wildlife, by Weldon Lee.

Life in General – My wife and I enjoyed spending time at Fort Laramie this weekend in the celebration of the 150 year anniversary of the Treaty of 1868. The crowds were big, and the weather was nice - a wonderful event. I am also spending time tending my growing flats of, tomatoes, onions, and flowers, three more weeks, and in the gardens, they go. Still spending some time, out in the wilds, with my cameras, and doing our walking.

Today’s Photos – From the four-day celebration at Fort Laramie.

Keep on reading, keep on writing, and enjoy the renewing season – Spring

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From our backyard

The Old West and Root Beer too

Just for Fun – Spring is Here

The tall stranger bellied up to the counter and watched as the patrons lowered their heads and shuffled away. A wry smile turned the corners of his mouth into his drooping mustache. He dug in his pocket and pulled out a weathered dollar bill, unfolded it and placed it on the counter. He didn’t have to say a word—they all knew and they all watched.

The bar-keep reached slowly, after first making eye contact he couldn’t hold, under the counter and pulled out a clean mug, filled it, and carefully sat the still foaming mug in front of the tall stranger with the big thirst. Then he turned again reaching low, a glint of metal showed in his right hand. His hand came up quickly, but not too fast and placed a large scoop of vanilla ice cream into the glass.

The stranger nodded, pulled the paper end from his straw and shot the barkeep with the paper in the center of his chest. The patrons fell silent and moved farther from the action as the tall stranger took a long cool drink. Man-oh-man how the stranger loved the first Monday of spring—Root Beer floats, only a buck every Monday until June 1st.

Five minutes later it was all over, as fast as it had started. The glass was empty, the stranger smiled and wiped the dripping root beer flavored ice cream from his mustache with the back of his straw paper shooting hand. He stepped back as the other patrons held their breath—what would happen next.

He turned walked three steps, pushed open the glass door and walked once again into the stifling mid-day heat. Inside the patrons let out a collective sigh and ordered floats all around.