Thoughts from the studio and beyond...

We’re Back

Dave — Sat, 12 May 2012 14:21:11 +0000

A short trip to the Milwaukee area rewarded us with a granddaughter’s smile and fellowship with the Bubb family. We had a great time but needed to return home so the trip was brief. News on the writer front: I have written another episodic piece of flash fiction. It has lived through the second rewrite and proudly weighs in at just under 750 words. There are nine episodes and, to answer your question, “No, it is NOT a continuation of the other series.” Completely new concept, setting, and characters. It is in workshop at the moment. After that I will do a final rewrite and then decide whether it goes off to the publisher or up on the blog. Sorry to be such a tease. It must be the zero hours of accumulated sleep from last night. :0

Of Courage and Chickens

Dave — Sat, 05 May 2012 17:01:36 +0000

This morning I got my courage up and went through the poems that have been sitting in folders for two months and more. Many I tossed as unusable ideas. Some I rewrote and reshelved in a new folder. There were some, however, that I still felt good about even after the two month period of rest I use to clear myself of new-poem bias. Off to Duotrope for me and several hours later I had a handful of publications that I felt were a good fit for the material. I followed the necessary guidelines and whisked them off into the netherworld of slushpiles. There! That done, I can now get back to writing and participating in the creative side of the game.

This afternoon I am building a portable chicken coop. After long, hard consideration we have decided not to grow a giant vegetable garden this year. Instead, we are planting a few dozen tomato plants and turning chickens loose to graze on the remainder. By the time they are done scratching, eating bugs, and fertilizing the winter snow will cover it all up. It should be perfect for planting in the spring of 2013. The chickens will be rewarded by gracing our soup kitchen with their presence in the fall. Note to vegans:Please hold your broccoli weapons at bay. This is what we do here in the country where food is actually grown.

Ala-mande Write

Dave — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 18:26:45 +0000

Today was spent writing and fiddling. In short, I blew the day off and got nothing done. I DID write the first and second drafts of a new fictional piece. And I DID get a couple hours of practice in on the violin which is something I rarely do anymore. By some measures (No pun!) that would be a full day of work. Tonight I will be watching the Tigers blow another ball game and then there is a bit of work that needs attention down in the studio. My right ear is finally back to normal so I’m able to start catching up on some things for the Country Classics Band that have been laying on my desk awaiting my attention to detail. BTW- The Country Classics Band plays the Hulbert/Newberry/Sault area in the summer and fall. Winters they book in central Florida. I mastered a CD for them last January and am doing another in May.