Devon Ellington's Blog, page 13

Wed. April 23, 2025: Another Quietly Productive Day

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Wednesday, April 23, 2025

Waning Moon

Partly sunny and cool

The middle of the week! The weeks fly past.

I decided to sit down and get as much work done early as possible while waiting for the painters to show up.

I finessed the resource document I promised to the cohort, and sent it off for approval. I got an email from Dramatists Guild – there was a lot of unhappiness about no End of Play program this year, so they are trying to put something together for later in the year.

I turned around 5 small coverages. One of the larger coverages – the one that paid best – was removed from my queue, so I don’t know what that was all about. It was probably mis-entered for something and removed. That’s how it usually works.

Did another revision pass on the ghostwriting project, and got that done. It was warm and pleasant enough so I could work out on the front porch. Since the painters never showed up, I could! Very grateful to have an extra day of quiet to get this project done. I will give it a final proof this morning and get it out the door. Hopefully, they’ll approve it, and I can invoice/get paid soon.

The artistic director colleague I pitched earlier in the week picked two plays she wants to read. I did a quick read to make sure I was sending the correct drafts, and out the door they went. I also submitted a one-act for a festival at the end of the summer.

And that was my day.

I read for pleasure in the evening, and decided that I’m done with a particular series I’ve been reading. One out of 9 books has been good, and the first book was kind of fun, but the other 7 I did not like. I don’t need to go any further. I’ve given it enough chances.

On today’s agenda: get as much done as possible early, in case the painters show up. Do a final proof on the ghostwriting and get it out the door. Turn around a medium-sized coverage. Work on contest entries and on the scripts for next week’s meeting. Put in an emergency legislative request on an issue with my state senator and representative. I’d like to get work done on the radio play and on VICIOUS CRITIC (which has been in limbo for too long), but I need to clear all these scripts and contest entries out first.

Have a good one!

Tues. April 22, 2025: Unexpected Quiet Equalled Productivity

image courtesy of Oleg Mityukhin via pixabay.com

Tuesday, April 22, 2025

Waning Moon

Misty and raw

The Community Tarot Reading for the Week is up on the Cerridwen’s Cottage site.

It is shaping up to be a busy week. And very chaotic.

Friday, I got a bunch of admin work done. I packed up books and did a drop off/pick up at the library. I did a light grocery shop. I finished reading a local author’s book, which was fun. I did some percolating on the ghostwriting revisions.

The landlord stopped by in the afternoon. The outside of the building is finally getting painted! They were set to start yesterday, and it’s expected to take six weeks, which means they won’t be finished until the first week of June. I mean, I’m hoping they are done by Memorial Day Weekend, but you know how those go. Sections of the building will be wrapped and inaccessible at times, and the crew is trained in dealing with lead paint, if they find any.

I’m delighted that the building is getting painted – it needs it. But these six weeks are already stressful for me, and the repetitive machine noise of scraping the paint down means I have to decamp on weekdays to work elsewhere. When I have the ghostwriting deadline looming and am waiting for the audio book gig to start, plus writing the radio play and the shows going into readings. AND the last two weeks of the library cohort. So that will be an adventure. And we have to keep our windows closed during the day, which is not something one wants to do as the weather changes into spring, after being cooped up all winter. It also means I can’t set up the back balcony until they are done. And we have to bring in the large bench outside and have it stashed somewhere inside for the duration. I also have to bring in the bagua mirrors I have out front and back. They aren’t supposed to be used inside a building, but I’m going to wrap them up in cloth and tell them to rest. After all, they sit in stores and warehouses until they’re purchased and put into use.

It also means I had to postpone the gathering for the artist cohort, which was set for the 26th – this coming Saturday. It doesn’t make sense to bring people into the chaos, especially if there is lead paint being dealt with. I consulted with the people who run the cohort, and we agreed to postpone it until everything is lovely and shiny, and then I’ll invite both this cohort and the cohort of which I was a part in June, maybe around Solstice. I sent out an email to let everyone know.

So we will see how that all shakes out.

It will be stressful, but the result will be worth it. Let’s hope it’s not a step to put the houses the landlord owns on this street onto the market.

One step, one day at a time.

I read Jack Viertel’s book on the structure of musicals, which was very interesting. It also gave me an idea for THE WOMEN ON THE BRIDGE, so I took another look at that script. The draft I have works better than I remembered, although I still think the ending needs some work. I’m not sure how to fix it; I suspect I need to hear it read. But at least I have some ideas percolating.

Saturday was supposed to be sunny and gorgeous, but started chilly and grey.

I’d gotten an email from the LAVA Center about the June show, so I answered that. I meant to schedule it to send today, so that it doesn’t interrupt anyone’s long holiday weekend, but it sent over the weekend anyway.

Here in MA, Patriots Day hit on the 19th. Concord is basically shut down for the week because of the 250 Year celebrations. I wonder how contemporary issues are flavoring that. Because I’m part of the meditation group through the Concord Library, I’m on the mailing list. They told people to keep their library books an extra week and not try to get to the library. At least one of the branches is closed all week.

Because Patriots Day itself fell on a Saturday this year, most places took Monday as a holiday, so it’s a combination Easter/Patriots Day 4-day weekend for most. Many places (including the library) closed early on Friday, if they were open at all.

The main focus on Saturday was cleaning and rearranging my bedroom. There were other things going on that day, too, which you know if you’ve been watching news, so it was a juggling act. And I worked on contest entries. But I spent a good portion of the day cleaning, putting away winter clothes, setting up spring clothes so I could get at them, cleaning out things I don’t need to have in that room anymore and so on and so forth. I’m so happy with it. It makes a big difference. I had to laugh when I realized I was doing it as we entered Taurus season – which is about comfort, hearth, and home.

I can’t believe how delighted I am with the space now. It’s a sanctuary again. I still want to do some more decorative things within the room itself, but now the space is ready for it. It makes a big difference.

Slept well (of course I did). Sunday started rainy, but became mild and sunny. Tessa was thrilled to be out on the porch. I got some planting done, which I will detail in Thursday’s Gratitude and Growth post. Finished the next book for review, did some reading for pleasure. Took photos of the outside of the house, so I can do “before” and “after” comparisons when the paint job is done.

Did some work on the ghostwriting project, because I wanted to get a little ahead of the chaos. I want to make sure I have it in good shape and turn it in on time on Wednesday. 20K of revisions is a lot to turn around in a couple of days.

Read some more work by Elizabeth George. She killed off a character I disliked in the series, and I still felt bad for those who cared about the character, which shows the power of her writing.

Spent some time reading out on the porch. Tessa spent most of the day out there. We won’t be able to use it when they are working on the front of the house. I hope they’re working in sections, and it’s not scrape the whole building, prime the whole building, paint the whole building. I’m hoping they’ll do everything one side at a time.

The painters didn’t actually show up on Monday. They took the holiday. Which gave me a day of reasonable quiet to get some work done. I wrote a review, turned it in, and got my next assignment. I poured 16 pounds of cat kibble into various glass jars which keeps it fresher than leaving it in the bag.

I was sad to hear about the death of Pope Francis. I am not Catholic, nor am I a fan of the way religion is weaponized to control populations, but I liked and respected him, and I know that those within that faith hurt right now, so I wish them ease.

At the same time, the fact that Sidekick Cracker met with the man who died the next day – yeah. So many things to say about that, and none of them complimentary. Definitely enjoying the satirical memes going around.

I worked on the ghostwriting project. I took a break for the library cohort. I can’t believe next week is our last week. Twelve weeks went fast. I learned a lot, and feel there’s still so much to learn. Made lunch, did some more work on the ghostwriting project, then had another webinar on advocacy for archivists. Unfortunately, it was for people who’d never dipped a toe into these waters, and not the information I need right now, in addition to being far too complacent for what we are currently facing. I ducked out about twenty minutes early.

I went back to the ghostwriting project and finished the first revision pass of the 20K piece. I have two small sections to rework today, along with some layering, and then I have to do a pass for consistency on some cuts I made, and then a final pass tomorrow morning before I turn it in.

It was far more progress than I expected to make, and it felt good to get the bulk of the work done on it while it was still quiet around here. I am deeply grateful that I had the day in which to work. It was a wonderful gift.

Cooked dinner, read a bit in the evening. It was a book by an author whose work I’ve read a good deal of over the years, but this book didn’t hold me. A friend told me that an actress from one of my readings last year will read one of my friend’s poems at an event this weekend. That’s wonderful! It’s a lovely pairing of a talented, warm actress with a talented, warm poet!

Nine scripts showed up in my queue. 5 of them are small (and pay a pittance), and I should be able to turn around fairly quickly. 4 of them are medium-sized (and pay better), but I should be able to get them done by their deadlines at the end of the week. I have to finish the scripts for the literary meeting next week, and do more contest entries as well. It’s a busy week, but the good kind of busy.

Waiting for the painters to show up and get started, so that I will know if I need to decamp this morning, or if I’m okay to work another day. I can’t plan my day until I know what they are up to, and what part of the building they are working on. I hope, when it’s on the other side of the building, I don’t have to leave, but I won’t know until they’re actually working.

Have a good one!

Monday, April 21, 2025: Intent for the Week — Stay Calm and Focused

image courtesy of  Daniel Nebreda via pixabay.com

Monday, April 21, 2025

Waning Moon

Partly sunny and cool

The painters are supposed to start today on the exterior of the house, for the next six weeks. I’m hoping, since they haven’t shown up yet and it’s a holiday in the state, that they don’t come in until tomorrow and I can get ahead on some work. I will spend the next six weeks decamping during the workday to various locations, because the noise will make it impossible for me to work in my home office. More on that tomorrow.

And I have a 20K revision on the ghostwritng project due on Wednesday.

I will take advantage of the quiet today as long as possible.

I am excited that the exterior will be freshened up and pretty, although I’m not looking forward to the day-to-day process!

The Community Tarot Reading for the week is up on the Cerridwen’s Cottage site here. I’m using the Mystic Mondays deck by Grace Duong.

We’ll catch up tomorrow. Have a good one!

Fri. April 18, 2025: A Hint of Spring, Perhaps?

image courtesy of Lex Ger via pixabay.com

Friday, April 18, 2025

Waning Moon

Sunny and pleasant

It’s supposed to get all the way up to 77 this weekend. Maybe I can set up the back balcony.

Yesterday was kind of a fractured, all over the day. I was irked by a few things, on both city and state levels (among more personal annoyances against actual individuals), and angry at unnecessary compliances instead of pushbacks.

I got some work done on the ghostwriting project, although I won’t really be able to dig into it until Monday. I got my questions answered, which will help a lot.

I turned around a couple of coverages. I did some work on some LOIs that I want to go out, and dismissed some other companies because the ratio of what they want for what they’re paying is ridiculous. Annoyed that I had to find out about changes at one client’s company through a trade article, instead of them talking to me directly. But I’ve done so much less work for them over the last few months that it doesn’t really matter. It does, however, clear the way for me to pitch within the same field. I just have to decide whether or not I WANT to.

Got some reading done in the afternoon, and we had an early dinner. I virtually attended an event adjacent to the library cohort work, with many of the same people, which was  invigorating, especially considering how blue I felt about everything earlier in the day.

Slept reasonably well. Up and out the door a little after six to the laundromat. Two huge loads of laundry, and now the dryers don’t let you set the full dry time – you have to re-up every 8 minutes, which is annoying.

I’m about to log off and start folding. There’s a lot of folding and putting away. And ironing. A good deal of ironing in my immediate future. Which is fine. I find ironing soothing.

I have errands to run this morning (library, grocery store, etc.) and then housework for most of the weekend. Since I have to turn around a 20K edit by Wednesday for the ghostwriting client, I want to get as much done for my cohort hosting as possible this weekend. It’s not going to be a big group, but I want the place to be welcoming and comfortable.

I also want to get as much done on the last contest group as possible, and finish a book for review, so that can go out the door first thing Monday. And work on the radio play.

Next week is a lot of head down working. The following week is going to be very busy, getting out of April and into May.  I’ll have to finish reading the scripts for the literary committee.

I got my homework in on time (even early) for the library cohort this week, so I feel like I’ve caught up there. A lot of the reading materials are things I’d like to go back and re-read more slowly, and absorb better over the next few months.

Have a great weekend, and we’ll catch up next week!

Thurs. April 17, 2025: Being Around Inspirational People is a Plus

image courtesy of Thomas G. via pixabay.com

Thursday, April 17, 2025

Waning Moon

Sunny and a little milder

You can read about the latest on the garden over on Gratitude and Growth.

Turned around the edits on the anthology story first thing. Reworked a couple of things per request. Asked to keep a couple of things. We’ll see where it goes from here. It felt good to dig into the work and to get it finished and out the door.

I got the edits for the ghostwriting client. They seem to make sense. I have some technical questions that I need to go over with them tomorrow. But I think I can turn them around pretty quickly, by early next week.

I rewrote BEHIND THE MAN, which can now be played without intermission. A colleague is now an artistic director for a theatre about an hour away, and said she’d love to read something of mine. I sent her information/loglines on a couple of projects so she could choose if anything struck her fancy.

If not, I have another play ready for submission anyway, that’s a comic noir farce.

Headed out for tarot. It was good to see everyone. We had a smaller, livelier group, and it was easier to have layered conversations.

It was snowing when I left tarot. I stopped at a favorite bookshop, had a good chat with someone I know there, and followed up this morning with promised information. I also bought two books, because you can’t be in an independent bookshop and not support! It was in my current budget, so it’s not like I did anything wild.

I headed over to Mosaic Gallery, where two colleagues hosted a workshop for A4A. A couple of current cohort members were there, and a friend I met through one of the local artist meetups. The workshop was terrific, and our little table of 4 had great conversations and brainstorming in the breakout sessions. People were unsure about the process for working with a public art commission, so I’ve put together a document that I will have someone at A4A look over and then, once anything I’ve missed is added in, they can have links to applications and organizations and research resources.

Slept well. Up this morning, putting together the document and doing follow-up from last night. Online meditation group was good. Everything is taking longer than  predicted.

I have to put together my questions for the ghostwriting client, maybe hop onto the Freelance chat on Bluesky, and dig into the ghostwriting revisions. Tonight I have an online launch party for a new resource from the library cohort.

I better get moving! It’s nearly noon!

Wed. April 16, 2025: A Good Night’s Sleep Helps A Lot

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Wednesday, April 16, 2025

Waning Moon

Rainy/snowy and cold

I hadn’t realized that Princeton stepped up even before Harvard did, and challenged other universities to do the same. Cornell is stepping up, too. Because, you know, the newspapers that used to cover this now fawn and pander. Instead, one of those “newspaper” owners sends his fiancée and her friends on a girls’ trip into space for 11 minutes, while trained women astronauts and scientists are erased from NASA.

And then, of course, the attack on Governor Shapiro in PA, in his home. Which echoes the attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband back in 2022 with the hammer comment.

I forgot to mention yesterday, that I got a really fun gift from the Sierra Club – a small survival kit. Coolest thing ever – a multi-tool, a compass, a wire saw, a fire starter, a multi-blade, and something that now escapes memory. All in a tiny little box. I think it’s to keep in the car, but I’ll probably have it in a bag with me when I travel.  When I travel, I already have a small first aid kit from them that I toss into my bag. Very useful.

This is very interesting, the virtual Silk Road Museum. Absolutely fascinating. Leiden University in the Netherlands, with whom I took a virtual course about the ICC, sent me the information.

Got out some LOIs. Got out a couple of script submissions. Looked at another call, but basically they want people to write for them for free, without paying a commission fee, yet completely within their characters/parameters. No, thank you. That’s not fun. It’s exploitation.

Cuomo’s mayoral run in NYC, going full right, is beyond disturbing. His daily briefs that were strongly anti-That Thing during the pandemic gave a lot of people hope in a dark time (including my family). And yet, he’s gone in this direction. Or maybe he’s showing what he always was, because he feels he will get more this way. Very disturbing.

Wrote and sent off a book review. Did some research for the next section of the radio play. Turned around a small coverage. Three more small coverages came in after 5, but I turned them around anyway, wanting to get them in before the pay period closed. This job used to pay all the bills; now it barely pays one. Someone toxic is trying to re-enter my life, and that’s not happening. Which means I’m in for some unpleasantness, but that’s the way it goes.

Finished reading a book by an author whose work I’ve read and often loved for years. This was cute, but much slighter than much of her other work. It was fine, I enjoyed it, it just didn’t reach me on multiple levels the way much of her work has in the past. Finally got to read a book by an author whose work I first heard in a reading, which is fun.

I got my edits back on another anthology story. I’m expected to do the edits, but there’s still no commitment to an acceptance? Don’t like that business plan. I took a quick look at the edits. Some I agree with, some I do not. So I will work on it (it’s a short story, not that big a deal), turn them back in, and see. If it’s then rejected, I have other markets to which I can point it. Some of the edits change the voice and the meaning too far out of what makes the piece work, in my opinion. And some catches this editor made are excellent ones, and I cringe that I didn’t catch them myself. But that’s what editing is about.

I usually don’t work with editors who have such vastly different styles so close together, so it’s an interesting lesson to me on editing styles.

Went to bed early because I’m exhausted (the world burning down will do that to ya), and slept well, for once.

I realized I dropped the ball on saying which poems start my day. Still doing it, every morning, but haven’t posted about it. Hopefully, I will start again tomorrow.

It’s supposed to dance between rain and snow this morning. I have some unpleasant admin to deal with, work on the radio play, work on the edits, contest entries. This afternoon, I need to get to tarot (someone’s returning materials I lent last summer), and then I have an A4A in-person workshop at a local gallery. We’ll eat our big meal in the afternoon, and I’ll just have a snack when I get back.

Have a good one!

April 15, 2025: Time Running Out

image courtesy of Security via pixabay.com

Tuesday, April 15, 2025

Waning Moon

No retrogrades

Cloudy and cold

Tax deadline in the US. When we supposedly pay to make everyone’s lives better, but currently are getting looted and trafficking humans to death camps.

We have the only 4 weeks this year that are retrograde free. Time to get a lot done, and remember we don’t have to get everything done for the year in these 4 weeks.

Friday seems like a long time ago.

I tossed a resume to a job that would be fun and challenging, but I’m sure they’ll go with someone younger. Which is fine. If I didn’t at least toss my resume in their direction, I’d always wonder.

Headed to the library to drop off and pick up books. Headed to the pharmacy to pick up my mom’s prescription. Did the week’s grocery shopping at Big Y.  It was seriously snowing by the time I came out of the store, but had eased off by the time I got home.

Hauled everything up the stairs, unpacked, dealt with admin, turned around a small script coverage.

With the administration cutting IMLS funding, it means access to both Commonwealth Catalogue and statewide databases are only guaranteed until June 30. So I better get my research done. And pressure legislators to fix this. I use Commonwealth Catalogue A LOT.  I use databases A LOT. It will also probably cut my ability to access digital records through my Boston Public Library e-card.

As an author, it will hit my sales, because it’s affecting Hoopla and Libby. Hoopla is one of my biggest royalty sources.

Which is, of course, one of the intents. Destroy artists and make people even more stupid than most of them already are.

Did some reading for pleasure in the evening. Woke up to snow on Saturday morning. Alternated between reading and doing a deep clean on Tessa’s room: wiping down the moldings up near the ceiling, cleaning the glass door to the front porch, tidying things up, dusting, polishing the wooden furniture. I still have to take the rugs out for a good shake and do the floors.

The Chewy order arrived, which means, for a brief shining moment, we are fully stocked on wet food, dry food, treats, and litter.

Saturday night, the edits for the anthology story arrived. I took a quick look at them on Sunday. They’re very minor, mostly with house style/formatting. If this was a novel, I’d discuss in detail some of the changes that alter a character’s cadence, but for a short story, it’s not a big deal.

I meant to get a lot done on Sunday, but it was cold and gray. I baked biscuits for breakfast, because my mom likes them. I meant to dip into Alice Walker’s published journals just for a few minutes. Before I knew it, it was time to cook dinner. The journals are fascinating. They show the real tension dynamic between the need to sit down and do the work and the demands of participating in the world.

It was nice to see the sun out on Monday morning, as we launched into the week. I slogged through some email, and turned around the edits for the anthology story. I mean, that was really easy. I re-read them again, to make sure it was nothing major, and hit “accept all” in the Track Changes panel. Not a lot of stress. The editor had requested them returned by 3/21, but I received them on 4/12, and since I can’t turn back time, I got them out on the 4/14. I’m assuming she meant 4/21 and not 3/21, so I’m within the window.

Got an annoying email from someone who does not respect boundaries, so dealt with that. I thought this person understood ties were cut well over a year ago.

Got our taxes signed and copied and out to the post office (which I resent, given all that’s going on), along with some bills. Did a library drop off/pick up. Made it back home in time for my library cohort meeting, which was great. Sent out the invitation for the cohort gathering.

Did some reading in the afternoon, and also turned around two small script coverages.

Played with some ideas for a couple of things, did some research for the radio play, tried to smooth out my schedule a bit.

Was increasingly disgusted by what’s going on at national and international levels, and the lack of political and judicial will to stop it. There is ALWAYS something that can be done. We live in a society (and I use that term loosely) where apathetic cowards expect others to do the work and take the risk, but then reap the benefits.

Did the rounds of my elected officials. I mean, I do every day, and it continues to be important. I’m tired of people making excuses to justify doing nothing. Do SOMETHING. Anything and everything makes a difference. There is no “it doesn’t matter.” What’s happening is “I can’t be bothered” and that is unacceptable. That is a large part of why we are here.

Kudos to Harvard and MIT for not capitulating. And it’s rare I have anything good to say about Harvard!

Made turkey meatloaf and mashed potatoes for dinner, per my mother’s request. Started reading EVERY TOM, DICK AND HARRY by Elinor Lipman, which is a welcome respite to everything going on.

Did not sleep well. Have to figure out a few things. But I will. It was supposed to rain hard all morning, but there was a long enough break I could have gotten everything done at the laundromat, had I not planned my day by the weather app. Oh, well. We’re supposed to get more snow tonight. Every few minutes, the sun peeks out, and then it clouds over again, so who knows what’s going on?

On today’s agenda: work on the radio play, make the rounds of elected officials, write a book review, work on contest entries, maybe get some other writing done, send out a few LOIs.

Have a good one!

Mon. April 14, 2025: Intent for the Week — Rev Those Engines

image courtesy of mibro via pixabay.com

Monday, April 14, 2025

Waning Moon

No Retrogrades

Sunny and mild

We had snow Saturday and expect more snow tomorrow night.

The Community Tarot Reading for the week is up on the Cerridwen’s Cottage site. Four wand cards, one sword card.

We have nearly four weeks that are retrograde-free. They are the ONLY retrograde-free weeks we have in the rest of the year. Time to rev up our personal engines and get things done. Set down track you can follow during the foggier times.

What’s your intent for the week?

Fri. April 11, 2025: Plenty of Pondering

image courtesy of  Christian via pixabay.com

Friday, April 11, 2025

Day Before Full Moon

Venus Retrograde

Rainy/snowy cold

Yesterday was all over the place!

Meditation group was terrific. We had a good time. The synchronicity was great – the discussion around our meditation was “Living Ethically During Challenges” and I dissolved into giggles, because that’s exactly when a friend and I have been discussing the past few days, and what I discussed with a colleague the previous night.

After a late breakfast, I put on Real People Clothes and headed to the hair salon. The stylist took her time and made art out of my hair. A drastically different look than I’ve ever had. It’s a short, messy bob but my hair is now really wavy. Tons of fun. It feels really good. It’s been over a year since I had my hair cut and nearly 2 years since I had an appointment with her. She’s worth it. She’s also a glass artist when she’s not a hair artist. I had considered dying it full silver once it was cut, but it’s pretty much gray/silver at this length.

Came back and was wiped out. Got my information to the Athena Project’s marketing team. Checked in with a friend whose cat is having major surgery today, and has another cat that isn’t feeling well, too. Put in another Chewy order for dry food and cat treats (there will be riots if we run out of bedtime snacks).

Pat, Bea knocked something over and tried to look all innocent and down from the perch at Charlotte, who was sitting next to the knocked over item. Only Charlotte had been next to me on the bed when we heard the crash and went out to investigate. Iris and Violet used to leave Elsa holding the bag all the time when they were mischievous, but they were more subtle about it!

Was angry that both the horrid budget and the SAVE act passed in the House. Not surprised, but angry, and angry that four so-called Democrats voted for SAVE. Bet you dollars to doughnuts Schumer doesn’t do what’s needed to block it in the Senate. He must go.

I’m not going to comment on the roller coaster in the stock market. There are qualified economists who can do it. I do, however, smell market manipulation and corruption.

I’ve had some lively discussions with a friend about a couple of situations that concern me, and it’s helped clarify a few things for me, and hopefully make more measured choices moving forward.

Library trustees meeting in the evening, which was very good.

My friend’s cat came through surgery well and everyone at the vet hospital is madly in love with him. He’s that kind of cat. Hopefully, he can come home today.

On today’s agenda: library, grocery store, pharmacy. Get out the cohort invitations. Work on CORNWALL CHICANERY. Work on contest entries. Turn around a small coverage. The Chewy order is supposed to arrive today. For a brief shining moment, we have plenty of dry food, wet food, litter, and treats.

We were supposed to get 3 inches of snow this morning, but it looks like mostly rain/freezing rain. Ick going out in this, but whatever.

Not sure what the plans for the weekend are yet. A lot of housework, I suspect!

Have a good one!

Thurs. April 10, 2025: Living the Theatre Life

image courtesy of TravelCoffeeBook via pixabay.com

Thursday, April 10, 2025

Waxing Moon

Venus Retrograde

Partly Cloudy and cold

Hello! You can read the latest on the garden over at Gratitude and Growth.

From the middle of May to the end of June, I will have readings of 3 different plays across 3 different states within 6 weeks. Two of them happen within a week of each other. Yes! That’s the way I like it.

The update seems to be okay, at least so far. Fingers crossed.

I did about 2 pages on CORNWALL CHICANERY. I realized I’d made a formatting error, so I had to go back and fix every line from the beginning. Then I moved forward and realized I needed to do some research. Of course, I HAVE the books I need –but they’re in the storage unit on Cape Cod. Urgh. I need to get all that stuff up here.

I looked through play submission calls. I was frustrated because one had the submitter go through all the hoops, and then asked questions inappropriate to a writer for a submission. I mean, wildly, offensively inappropriate, although with everything going on (waves hand) I shouldn’t be surprised, especially considering where this company is based. So I spent 45 minutes on a submission that I then deleted, because the questions were so inappropriate, and all that information should have been in the guidelines, not at the end of a five-page form. Oh, and by the way? A play submission doesn’t need a five-page form.

Sent my acceptance to the LAVA Center for the June reading. They are delighted I’m joining them for the festival.

Finished the scoring sheets and winning reviews for 2 out of 3 categories I’m judging in the contest, and sent those off. I have one more category to finish by the end of the month, and I’m in decent shape to do that. There’s a lot of good work being done outside of traditional publishing, and I’m glad I can support it through my work in this contest.

More good news! The Athena Project will feature my play JUST A DROP about Giulia Tofana, the poisoner and herbalist in 16th century Rome, in their May Read ‘n Rant series. I am one of two plays that will be discussed that evening. I’m thrilled, because it is a challenging play stylistically, almost operatic at times, and I’ve been looking for a place where I can get feedback on it. That happens on May 19 in Colorado, only 5 days after the reading of “A Rare Medium” in Ohio. I have to fill out the information for their marketing team today, and the dramaturg and I are making plans for a meeting between now and then.

Yup. 3 different plays in 6 weeks across 3 states. Love it.

An appointment slot with my trusted hair person opened for this morning – so I grabbed it. Yes, it’s a risk to do this with Venus Retrograde. But I trust her, and it’s not like she’ll let me leave the chair until we get it right. I’m practically down to pandemic hair again.

Put on Real People Clothes and got my butt out the door to go to tarot. Did an errand on my way there. Bought some candles when I got to the store, since a friend needs me to do some distance healing today, and I was low on that color candle.

Glad I went to tarot, but my life is going to make it necessary for me to be more of someone floating in and out than a regular over the next few months.

Flew out of there like a bat out of hell to head over to Bright Ideas for the cohort meeting. Driving, I had a conversation in my head with a friend and colleague – who pulled up in the parking spot next to me just as I parked! Too funny.

Great talk with everyone there about projects, about last Saturday, about resources, about actions. I have to get out my invite today for the cohort thing I’m hosting at my place at the end of the month.

Home, dinner, relaxed, went to bed fairly early.

Up early when Bea knocked something over and then tried to blame Charlotte. Too funny.

I like the 30-minute morning meditation I’m now doing first thing in the morning. I have the ZOOM meditation in a little bit with the Concord Library. Then I will eat and throw on some Real People clothes and head out to get my hair cut.

This morning’s poem was “The Oak Tree at the Entrance to Blackwater Pond” by Mary Oliver. Nice way to start the day in between meditation sessions.

This evening, I have a library trustees meeting.

In between, I will work on CORNWALL CHICANERY and hopefully write a review for another client. And see what else I can get done, including making the rounds of my elected officials.