T.R. Neff's Blog, page 2

Still in the Heat of the Night and the Day, and the Afternoon…

I didn’t think that, two weeks later, I’d still be dealing with the crushing heat, but here we are. It rained once, I think, but that’s about as good as a forgotten memory. Between the burdens of keeping chickens alive and healthy, there’s not been a lot of time for actual revision of Umbra (too […]

Heat Waves – Motivation Killer? Maybe Not

For the last month plus, I’ve been going through some things I need to find another home for. We had a nasty heat wave going there for a little while, too. The problem is I am working in a place without air conditioning or even a good airflow when I open the windows. Spending more […]

It Just Occurred to Me…

That there was something else I was supposed to be doing today. Ah, that’s right: post a blog. I’m sure I’m not the only one who has gotten so wrapped up in other things that when that little, literal alert goes off and I blithely tap it, thinking I’ve snoozed it because I’m “in the […]

It would be illegal…

…for any boss to ask you to work as hard and as many hours do when you’re your own boss. Holidays for me aren’t “days off”–they’re extra work hours. I’ve recently taken on another set of responsibilities to do spring cleaning and find new homes for my books*. There will be games and toys next. […]

Spring Cleaning

Not quite the library I envisioned, but I’ll take it. I’m not sure if I mentioned it before, but I’ve been trying to get some things cleaned up and moved out. Not just a Spring cleaning, but a life cleaning. It’s not quite on the “Konmari” level, but I needed to make some space and […]

Ahh… AI

I’ve been cogitating (now there’s a word for you) on this AI thing for quite a while, and I’m still not quite sure what to say on it, but I have to bring up the proverbial elephant in the room. It deserves whole books, if I’m being honest. I choose to use it for my […]

SNAKEMOUTH

Putrefaction permeated the air long before we reached the shoreline. Desiccated on the surface, this portion of the sea lay rigid. Its inner mass seeped through cracks in its skin, moldering beneath the purple rays of the sun. I slid from my ashloper’s back to kneel by the edge of the sea. At the barest […]

TIMELESS

Mrs. Malbon jabbed an arthritic finger into her appointment book. “Come back next Thursday. No… wait….” She slipped her reading glasses onto her nose. “That’s no good either. I can’t possibly go with you now. Why don’t you just stop by again, Monday next, to see if there’s an opening. And you know, your look… […]

Strange Weather

I debated whether to write about the recent eclipse crossing North America*, figuring everyone’s jumping on that bandwagon. I will say that what I predicted would happen didn’t, much to my pleasant surprise. “Prediction?” you ask. Yes, I predicted our chickie girls would be triggered by the dusky sky and retreat to their coop for […]

Rain, Rain on the (Wasted) Plain

So what is there to do? Well, for one, write! I’m knee-deep in the revision for Umbra’s sequel* with plans to get it out sometime this year. I’ve also revisited playing Wasteland 2, just to “stay in the groove” of the post-apocalyptic genre. It’s… okay. I got very excited when it came out, especially because […]