A June Update

Hello, Fire Enthusiasts. Jimmy, here... Jimmy!! You remember. My name is plastered all over this site… Oh, Good Lord! No wonder you don't remember... *clears spider webs, squashes three as countless more scurry, accidentally kicks over one dead rat* Sigh!

So I was going to title this post: Jimmy's Last Will and Testament, but I was sure the only one who would find it amusing was me. I was equally assured that I would offend some, and I don’t want to do that. There’s nothing wrong with me, and many others out there in the world do have health issues that I do not want to belittle.

The heart of the matter is that the day job has taken over my life and doing its level best to kill me slowly. Many of you have not heard anything out of me in many weeks. That is why. I am penning this post from work on a Saturday morning coffee break where I have a fairly large crew working on a “hot” project. I will finish the week at about 58 hours which isn’t much until you recall that the week began Tuesday. I did get most of Memorial Weekend off, but did have to come in for a few hours last Saturday, too. Nearly all of May has been 11 to 13 hour days.

I did have a good turn-out for The Swedish Festival last month where I sold many copies of my books. My first book is actually set in my town and takes place just before the festival. I enjoyed sharing that with people who stopped at my table. Their eyes got big with surprise, and many bought a book because of it. Here's a few photos. That's my pal Lisa. These events also provide opportunities for internet friends to "meet" which is what we did.

Other than that, however, there hasn’t been much to share. No treadmill. No writing. No laptop. I promised I wouldn’t spent time ranting about my day job here this year, but since it’s actually gotten worse rather than better, I figured I’d better let you know I’m okay – just swamped.

Earlier this month I did have an opportunity to meet a frequent visitor to this site over the years, the multi-talented author and dear friend Diana Murdock. I was thrilled that my wife and I were able to find time on a trip we were on to stop and spend it with her. We exchanged autographed copies of our books which was awesome. I read her novel Again a few years ago and loved it. I hope it won’t be the last time we meet. Next time Vegas, right Diana? Anyone else want to join us? You think I’m kidding… ;)

So, what am I going to do this summer? Well, I hope things will calm down at work. I was all set to dust off the manuscript for my fourth novel today, but here I sit. In any event, I need to begin that second draft immediately. It is book three in my vampire series and I am introducing a new character who I’m naming after my 90+ year old grandmother. She lives in town and is doing great. She has been one of my biggest supporters and a real inspiration for us all - believe me. She lives alone, but can still take care of herself. My mother checks up on her daily and drives her to wherever she needs to go, but other than that she’s very much self-sufficient. I call her and stop by periodically for coffee every few weekends or so as I can. I am dedicating this book to her as well, so as you might well guess, I don’t want to take too long getting it into her hands.

So, if you still do not hear from me, that’s where I’ll be.

I hope all of you are finding time to do what you want to do. I wish you a great summer, and every success with everything you do. If nothing else, I’ll check in again in July.

I’d better get back to work. As I said it's a "hot" project…

We’ll talk soon.