R.M. Ridley's Blog, page 35

A Few Words About Words

And those words are that I wrote some words.

With all the stress over the water issue, I haven’t had the mental state to even relax into my own writing. A cycle in itself, as it is writing that helps me stay sane and grounded and thus when I was stressed and needing to write… well anyways, after five days I finally wrote again yesterday.

I also managed to do some writing today, around other projects like getting wood for the furnace (and that wasn’t fun).

But I have done 3,500 words in the last two days on the fourth Jonathan Alvey novel, ‘Corrupted Souls’ and it feels good.

I’m at 60,000 words total right now. I have a few scenes I know I need to happen and then I think it will just be sewing together any scenes that where written out of chronological order, something which happened in astounding frequency with this book- and still is.

I’m jumping from beginning, to end, to middle, and all over, writing the scenes my Muse gives me with no concern how it will all connect up- because it always does.

But 60,000 tells me I’m getting close to done – another 30,000 is probably all this novel has left in it maybe 40,000.

It will feel great to get this one finished. It flew out of my mind onto the screen and I think a lot of that was the knowledge that the first novel, ‘Tomorrow Wendell will be in print this summer.

Filed under: MIscellaneous, Writing Tagged: Corrupted Souls, current work in progress, cycle, heat, Jonathan Alvey, muse, novel, paranormal private investigator, plot, plumbing, publish, scene, Tomorrow Wendell, Urban Fantasy, wood, world building, writing, Xchyler Publishing

Glimmer of Hope?

There is a chance that a simple solution to one of my water pump issues has been discovered.

It is possible that the water spewing everywhere is from worn out top leathers. If they are worn, then they won’t make the correct seal and the water escapes around them. It is about an hour of hard work to replace them, but if it works, then it is an hour worth doing.

I still believe my reservoir is dead. I thought about replacing it a year ago and I simply should have. If I get a new pump system I am getting a new reservoir anyway so I’m going to assume, whether the leathers work or not that I am also replacing the reservoir. This may solve problem two.

This will be more difficult then replacing the leathers. The pipes will be completely seized, and the one leading out to the house is extremely difficult to get to. Also, I will flood the pump house doing this. Carting the damn thing out of the tiny space and over the snow drift surrounding the pump house will also be something of a challenge.

I expect it will take at least one full day to deal with the reservoir, perhaps two when I include installing the new one.

I can do little until the stores open again on Tuesday.

Today I have little choice but to head out and get the fire wood we will need soon. It is supposed to get colder as the day progresses but I hope I can collect at least enough to get us through the days it will take to get the pump operational (assuming the leathers work, which I really don’t know if they will)

Still, doing this is the easier option right now than any other. My body hurts still but hopefully I can bully through and get wood, and then, if the gods be merciful, water

Filed under: Homesteading Tagged: frustration, heat, plumbing, water, water pump, winter, wood

So What Now?

In case you have missed it – I’ve been having water issues. These came to a conclusion a couple days ago. The conclusion being the pump and system are FUBARed as stated here.

Since then my wife has been nagging me. The questions and comments boil down to – What now?

I can’t blame her, well… anyway, we have had no water for far too long. I am the first to acknowledge that fact. We can’t clean; clothes, dishes, house, ourselves. We can’t live without water – not like this, not for much longer. (screw that, we passed the ‘for much longer’ mark days ago).

I’d just like to insert here that I will have to go out on Monday or Tuesday to cut and haul wood for furnace and that I am on strong over the counter pain meds to ignore the worst of my pain from all that I have done in the past several days. I almost never take pain medication.

And back to the post…

So what is next?

First, take the pump apart and toss it out the little, low roofed pump house. Then take off the pipes I added, setting them aside in case I can reuse some of them. Somehow take the pipes off the old reservoir and somehow wrangle the monstrosity of metal outside.

Oh – did I mention the entire pump house is surrounded by thick heavy drifts of snow right to the door…yeah, I’ve been sliding in and out f a narrow space…great for the back.

Then take the old pump casing out of the well itself- for which I need my father-in-laws (unheated not always best running) backhoe to pull it up section by section. Each section is then, hopefully braced in the pump house without crushing my fingers (caught them last time we did this and nearly broke my hand).

Once all that is done (probably close to three days) then we can insert the new system down the well – which I assume will be much the opposite of taking it out – then put a new pump (totally different system I don’t understand) on. Put in a new reservoir and connect the whole thing together successfully and pray to the gods (who clearly hate me) that it actually works.

My back as started hurting more just from writing this.

So even if we got started right away, and nothing went wrong (HA!), and there were no issues (like snowed in pump houses and ice on the pump house roof -which I recall needing someone on top of to help guide the whole pulling the pump last time which was warm weather) there is no way it would take less than 5 days. Far more likely it would be 7 to 10 and that’s not being pessimistic, just honest.

So what’s next?

Fuck it – shoot me.

Filed under: Homesteading Tagged: ache, back hoe, bad back, heat, just want a bath, pain, pain medication, plumbing, pump house, snowdrifts, water, water pump, wife, wood

And For the Win – a KO by…

Water.

For days beyond end I have battled with this problem. I fix one thing, and thing two happens. I fix thing two, and thing one happens -on ‘good’ days they both happen. I have re-done the system taken it apart and rebuilt it as much as is possible.

I believe my reservoir is screwed which may be thing three or part of thing one — or two.

Frankly, I don’t care.

I want to spend not one further second on it. I refuse to give up my time physically so that I become more and more sore and unable to move. I refuse to give up my time mentally as I have thought of nothing else for hundreds of hours straight.

I have not written in nearly four days.

I no longer wish to have any dealings with it period. Nay, I WILL not have any dealings with it period.

This is done. I lost. Nothing more shall be said about it.

Filed under: Homesteading

FYI

Yesterday – while working out what to do next in regards to my water issues – I decided to add a G+ account to my social networking.

I had one once when it first started up, under a different account, but let it slide. These days, I try to stay more on top of all my social networking, so I figured if I give up another five to ten minutes of me day for G+ it might be worth it.

Because I make no pretense about this – accept for this blog – I do all this social networking in the hopes that it will help generate some small increase in the number of my followers, fans, and most importantly – readers.

I’m a writer with a small press publisher – word of mouth is my most important tool.  In this day and age, social media sites are word of mouth gold mines and sink holes at the same time. But I do what I can.

To this end with the addition of the G+ site I thought it might be good to list all my public sites. Feel free to follow me at any, all, or none of them. Don’t be shy if you visit, drop me a line and let me know you followed me from here to where ever.

Website

Aboutme

Facebook Page

Facebook

Twitter

G+

Well, that’s today’s post. Now I have to go and update all those links above– maybe I’ll see you there.

Filed under: MIscellaneous Tagged: Aboutme, Facebook, G+, readers, Socail media, social networking, twitter, Web site, writing

Guess What I’m Posting About…

I would really like to have something to post about that wasn’t complaining about my lack of success in getting water flowing to the house but … as you might understand … there is little else on my mind.

I spent seven hours solid working on it yesterday. I completely re-plumped the line out from the pump, put in a new back-flow vale, new pressure sensor, spend hours crouched, undoing pipes and assembling new ones, and rewiring the system.

The result?

No change.

Today I get to start right at the beginning of the line again. Once more, I will disassemble the pumping unit itself -as much as it can be- and inspect it for any possible cause for the reason the water isn’t flowing right.

Had a moment late last night where I realized I had connected up the pressure switch wrong. Went out with one last dying ember of hope– it got extinguished by all the water spurting everywhere. Not the issue. Clearly would have been if the water was working right but as it is not – didn’t change a thing.

I ACHE from my feet to the base of my skull. My mind is hurting from going over this system and all possible reasons over and over and over again.

I’d like to throw up my hands and say ‘Enough’ but that just isn’t an option. So instead I say ‘Again’.

Filed under: Homesteading Tagged: frustration, plumbing, water, water pump

Really – I just want to shave…

And the water issues continue…

today I bought a new in-line back-flow valve with the intend of disabling the one built onto the pump and using it instead.

Also, I will move the pressure sensor from the built-in place on the pump, to a new place at a T-joint and it can read the pressure straight off the line.

This will require replacing most of the piping that is to accommodate these new peices, but I hope I cna actually make it less convuluted than it is – hope, unlike my water, springs eternal.

This is also going to require new wiring, but I bought a junction box, and already have the wiring, so that shouldn’t be too bad (he said ducking).

Anywhere I place the sensor now will be a bit in the way, so it is a matter off finding the least awkward placement possible.

So, once more a day of work ahead of me with no guarantee of success.

Success is spelled B-A-T-H …. it’s that our just accept this new beard I’m getting.

Filed under: Homesteading Tagged: bath, beard, plumbing, rewiring, shave, water

About ‘Vaping’

Filed under: Vaping

Hopes of Spring

I seem to be coming out the other side of my cycle. This would be good news on may levels. The most ‘down to earth’ one being that I could go and use a chainsaw with only the standard level of fear using one creates. I have purchased wood for the last few weeks and although it is nice to just have good hard wood at hand without time or effort it is expensive.

Coming out of the cycle also means that I can apply a more concerted effort in trying to repair whatever it is that still causes my water to not be getting to the house. I will be tackling that again today  – and hope that I can at least finally determine the real issue. I know what I’d like to do, but until I’m certain how the one unexamined piece works, I can’t move forwards with my plan.

Having a working brain, or at least as good as mine ever gets, will also help allow me to write more. I am surprisingly far on the new novel, ‘Corrupted Souls’ and would love to get it wrapped up soon. And I know that before long I am going to be sunk up to my neck in edits – having a clear mind will be immensely useful during this trying time.

So here’s hoping for the coming of spring, in both my mind and – by the love of the gods please!- in the weather too.

Filed under: Homesteading, Mental Health, MIscellaneous, Writing Tagged: awarness, Bi-polar, Brain, crazy, current work in progress, cycle, edits, heat, Jonathan Alvey, novel, paranormal, publish, running water, spring, Tomorrow Wendell, water, wierd thoughts, winter, writing

Retreat – Position Overrun!

The last 72 hours have been bad.

They would, I’m quite certain, be better if I didn’t have the water issue hanging over my head but I don’t think that is all.

I’m in a hard cycle. It is about the right time for it and generally I’m not complaining. I’ve had worse.

I still trust myself enough to dive which is something.

But I have a very narrow window of function. I am waking and finding it difficult to adjust. This morning I ‘remembered’ that I had to go to the feed store to get layer pellets and cracked corn.

I wasn’t going to get out of bed but remembering the need, I spoke these thoughts out loud and thrust myself into a sitting position. My wife then told me I already had – that I had done that yesterday. I could dredge up the memory. I could place any images from my minds eye to match her statement.

I seem to have four hours. Four hours from that first sip of coffee until my ability to really do anything is gone.

I can force myself -some- but that really only leads to backlash later. Thinking hurts. Quieting the noise of my head, is a concerted effort. Distraction is needed to not simply claw at my own scull and tear the offending organ inside out.

Yesterday I was able to get more work done by playing music- loud. Today it seems to be bothering me. Tomorrow?

I need the weather to turn nice again to get out and work on the pump. As it is windy and snowing today, I’ll take the excuse and hope that by not pushing things I’ll come out the other side of this soon.

Filed under: Mental Health Tagged: antisocial, Bi-polar, Brain, crazy, cycle, memory, Mental Health, noise, weather, wierd thoughts, wife