3:31 a.m.

Yes I am tired.  Yes I am sleepy.  Yes I need to be up at 6:30 a.m. to get a start on a very full day.  So why am I sitting here typing away?  Sometimes I think the stress of the week just piles up until I hit a breaking point, and I haven’t reached it quite yet.  So, I will proceed to fill you all in on what’s been happening since my last post.

 

The juicing is still ongoing, though I am limiting it to three containers a day sandwiched between a decent breakfast and a light dinner.  My weight remains the same, but my inch loss is just over 30 inches.  I admit, I feel better when I drink all that concentrated nutrition.  I miss it if I run out juice before the end of the week.

Marketing efforts for “A Mystery in theMailbox” are ongoing.  I am scheduled to do a 3-4 minute spot on Channel 5 with Leon Bibb the first week in July.  Hopefully the interview will cause a spike in Amazon and Kindle sales.  Several people who have purchased the book and taken on the project or a slight variation of the project have reported great success for their recipients!

 

In one case, a teacher got her students involved in doing the project for a classmate who is ill.  She said the change in the ill student has been nothing short of miraculous.  The interesting thing, at least from my perspective, is that not only is the ill student being helped by the effort, but the entire class is learning how to deal positively with something normally sad and depressing, and they are practicing empathy.  Considering the nastiness and cruelty of many 15 year olds, how much better of a life lesson could this be?  And they will carry the experience with them into the future, and possibly repeat it for another person in need of such help.

My May trip to Middle Bass Island for SteveFitzgerald’s weekend writers retreat was yet another success.  Of course is was cold and raining from Friday arrival through Saturday night, but Sunday brought sun and relative warmth.  I met a great group of fellow writers, and the dynamic was very good.  There was quite a bit of sharing of information and experiences, and I even managed to get a couple thousand words put down before the ferry left for the mainland Sunday evening.

One of the bits of information I picked up was a suggestion to do a week-long individual retreat at one of several facilities in Ohio or PA.  It seems the cost is low, and everyone leaves you to your work, so you can really get a lot of writing accomplished.  When I told Jim I might be going to a monastery for a week, I got the “you’ve got to be kidding me” look.  I’m still checking into several places and comparing costs.  One thing is for certain.  If I do this in August, I have to find a place with either air conditioning or powerful fans.  I’ll get nothing written if I’m dripping with sweat!

I’ll also be doing a writing weekend in July with my friend and fellow author Liz Petry.  We are each hopping into our cars and driving from our respective homes (me in Ohio, she in Connecticut) and meeting about half way between the two in Pennsylvania.  There will be much laughter and much writing, garnished with a little food and wine.  I hope we can make it an annual event.

4:06 a.m. Time to head back to bed and try for some ZZZZs.