Wed. July 5, 2023: Lots of Words, Both Spoken and Typed
image courtesy of Jill Wellington via pixabay.comWednesday, July 5, 2023
Waning Moon
Pluto, Saturn, Neptune Retrograde
Foggy, humid, hot
We’re supposed to have a humid heat wave the rest of this week. Ick.
Ready for a long catch-up? Curl up with a favorite beverage and we’ll get to it.
Yesterday’s serial episode was from Legerdemain:
Episode 99: Why He Followed Her
Shelley doesn’t believe Vidor turned up because he wants a date.
Today’s serial episode is from Angel Hunt:
Episode 47: Lianna Needs Training
Lianna realizes how much she doesn’t know, and determines to change it.
There’s also a new post over on The Process Muse about First Draft Frenzy (goes live at 8 AM, I will put in the link then).
Okay, time to reach waaaay back into last week (which happens to also be last month) to start our catch-up with Friday.
I was out the door by 7 AM although the fucking heavy machinery beeping was in full force as of 6:28. That contractor is just hateful.
The fog was dense, all the way to Dalton. I missed the turn to the Stationery Factory the first time, but turned around and found it coming from the other direction. What a great space! It’s now primarily a music venue. In addition to a plethora of Victorian sofas dotting the space, they repurposed old road boxes for music equipment into seating, and it was really great.
There were 34 vendors. A few more banks than made sense, but hey. There were a lot of resources. And I got to thank some organizations, such as the North Adams Chamber, who had a table, and MassHire, who also had a table. I got to talk to all kinds of people.
I met a graphic designer, and we’re going to have coffee in the next couple of weeks, because when I’m hired to do work for a company, they often want graphics and words. While I can get away with simple graphics, it makes more sense, in many cases to bring on a graphics designer. And she said when she’s hired for graphics, they often want copy, and while she can get away with it, she’d rather bring on a writer. So we’ll figure it out.
One of the women on one of the panels is a social media consultant, but she’s writing her first novel, so we’re going to get together to chat about that. I met a man who’d traveled all the way from Eastham, over on Cape Cod, because he wonders if there are more opportunities for his small business on this side of the state (yes, there are). I filled out a survey about internet equity, and was invited to join a focus group for better (and better-priced) internet access so we’re not stuck with Spectrum. I met a woman from NYC who’s now in the Berkshires who has a book on dealing with annoying people (and had people pull tarot cards around their business needs for the day). Mine was The Sun, which made sense. Another woman at the table pulled the 4 of Wands – which makes sense because she just got engaged. I talked to the representative from the local community college about getting hired there to teach some of my workshops (or develop new ones). I’m going to send him an email tomorrow with thumbnails of workshops already developed and see if any of them fit what they need, or what they would like a proposal built around, and then do that.
The BERKSHIRE EAGLE had a table full of all kinds of merchandise. There was so much swag everywhere. One of BE’s best swag was a waterproof cell phone case (and she laughed, because she had to show me how to use it). I also talked to someone about getting certified as a woman-owned business so I can bid for state contracts (they have all kinds of needs, but they need writers). It’s very interesting, I would have to line up a few ducks differently before applying for certification. One of their things is a site visit – I wouldn’t change my home office, that’s for sure, and it’s eclectic enough to be a conversation starter. But I almost said, “what are you, an animal rescue agency?” But I didn’t. I also have to consider whether or not I am in a place where I can make the type of commitment they need. Contracts generally run 3-5 years, with the option to renew. Many of the contracts run for 9 years or so. At this stage of my life, that’s a huge commitment.
I stopped at every table and talked to all the vendors. I talked to other attendees in and around the workshops. For an introvert, I did a lot of talking (and listening). Unlike the networking events in my previous location, where there was always an undercurrent of disdain for many attendees, there was a sense of purpose, joy, and optimism.
I ran into the woman who’s expanding her tea business, that I met at Tuesday’s event – and she won the big raffle prize! We ran into another woman who is also starting a tea business. We ended up having lunch together, and someone came up to interview us because we were obviously having so much fun. The interviewer said our table “sparkled.”
We got little box lunches of burritos and chips and a giant cookie. Very delicious. I have to email over to 1Berkshire tomorrow and ask them who provided it. I did not pay attention, but I want to thank them for it, and also know who they are, so I can be a customer!
During all of this, I was trying to coordinate the plumbing issue here at the house.
The event ended after lunch. The vendors and attendees collectively agreed that walking out of the building meant the start of the holiday weekend, Monday was part of the holiday weekend, and none of us were going to worry about following up with any of the rest of us until at least Thursday of this week.
I have a giant stack of business cards and a lot of follow-up to do tomorrow. But it will be fun, and I’m looking forward to it. I actually had a really good time, which I usually don’t, at these events.
The car was super hot when I got back into it, so I rolled down the windows and turned up the radio, and I’m singing at the top of my lungs until I started coughing. I figured I hadn’t gotten virused THAT fast. Then, I look up at the sky and the haze from the Canadian wildfires. So I rolled up the windows, and I’d been driving long enough for the AC to blow cold, rather than hot.
Ooops.
On the way home, I stopped at a store in Pittsfield to pick up a few things, and then at Adams Fresh Market, to get some groceries. I was home reasonably early. The fucking beeping heavy machinery was gone. May they never darken our asphalt again.
I got into a conversation with my across-the-street neighbor (the one who thinks I should date a blacksmith). He’s talking about wanting to open a small business. I was all like, “guess where I just came from?” I promised to put together a list of resources for him. He was laid off during the pandemic when the machine shop in which he worked was sold, then closed, and he’s been freelancing repairs even since, but he wants to start his own small shop.
The Chewy order showed up during all this, so I’m trying to wrestle with groceries and swag bags and cat litter when the maintenance guy showed up to fix the sink. It was a simple fix – the U-bend pipe had been put in backwards, and he was surprised that it just started leaking. It’s all fixed, and we have a working sink. While he was here, he checked the fire extinguisher and all four fire alarms. Everyone’s having trouble with the fire alarms going off, because of the wildfire haze.
By that time, I was wiped out. I took a nap on the couch. I rarely nap during the day.
I woke up to the ping of a delivery – THE CITY OF DREAMS Oracle arrived. It’s by the same woman who created THE MIDNIGHT CITY TAROT. It is so beautiful! I’m so excited about it, and can’t wait to start using it.
Tilapia with sweet Thai chili sauce, tiny red potatoes with butter, and creamed spinach for dinner. Sorted through all the stuff I brought back from the event. Every table had tote bags – I could have brought home 34 tote bags, but I only brought home 2.
I was invited by Word X Word to create a poem about book banning and gun violence. I replied that yes, I want to be a part of that event. I’m noodling with ideas, and as soon as I get confirmation I’m on the roster, I will work on the poem.
Came home to another email about yet another delay in distributing grant money and more of their whining. They shouldn’t be whining: we’re the ones paying the price. They should be SOLVING THE PROBLEM.
And I’m going to say this: Fuck this version of the Supreme Court and their decisions based not on law or justice, but on who is lining their pockets.
Went to bed early. Worn out, but in a good way. Had terrible dreams, connected to the move.
Could not face hauling the towels to the laundromat on Saturday morning.
We were out of the house into the heat and haze fairly early. We drove down to some stores we wanted to visit in Lee, buying lots of chocolate, and then I went on a bra bender. Don’t ask, it’s TMI, but there are polka dots involved, and they are adorable.
Managed to take the longest possible way to Great Barrington (but it was pretty). The Vietnamese restaurant I hoped to visit wasn’t yet open, and the Asian market was across 4 lanes of traffic, so that didn’t happen.
But at a thrift store, I found a lovely, silver-plated gravy boat on a stand. It lifts off to pour, and there’s room for a candle warmer. It was so unique I had to get it. Plus, it was less than $5.
Got giant chocolate milkshakes from the Craft Food Barn on the way home. The wildfire haze was so dense that we needed to use our headlights. Home, air purifier on, got stuff unpacked. Since I rarely do anything with cow’s milk anymore, there was a price to pay, but I sure enjoyed the milkshake while I drank it.
Found out that the Muskrat is limiting how many tweets one can read per day. For a site that claims to want to put ads in front of people, that’s a hella dumbass move, but not surprising. Locked my account again. I will post for a few more weeks for the serials through the launch of DEADLY DRAMATICS, and then we’ll see.
Things are picking up on Spoutible and Mastodon, and slowing down on CounterSocial, so who knows what’s been going on?
An Instagram pal sent me an invite to Bluesky, so I wandered over and set up my profile and the first few skeets (every site has their own terminology, and it’s exhausting). It was running badly, due to an influx of new users, and I couldn’t post photos yet, but I set up the profile, some intro posts, and followed a bunch of people. I made it on one hour before they shut down new signups to fix problems. There are a few red flags, including self-styled judges encouraging bullying of those they don’t like. Starving assholes from the attention they seek is one thing, or not allowing them an account in the first place is another. But encouraging bullying? Nope. There’s a lot of gleeful cruelty on that site that I don’t like. However, Neil Gaiman is doing a lot of community building over there, especially with the WGA strike, and that’s always good to see. Finding and interacting is easy; in a couple of hours, I had more mutual follows (both old and new) than I’ve built in months on some of the other platforms. So, we’ll see. Whatever my opinion of the platform is, if that’s where my audience has migrated, that’s where I need to be.
Bad dreams again Saturday into Sunday.
But I hauled my ass out of bed decently early on Sunday. Went to Big Y to do a small shop (mostly so I could get cash back). Brought things home and then hauled the towels and other laundry over to the laundromat. Used two machines.
Edited 20 episodes of DEADLY DRAMATICS. I realized that one of the pivotal moments happens off the page, and THAT has to be fixed.
Hauled everything home, and the skies opened and it poured rain almost as soon as I was in the door. My timing worked!
Read the newest book from a series I’ve adored since book one. I howled with laughter through most of it – until “witch” was used as a slur against another woman. Very disappointing. Kensington is really pushing this usage now, in its hard turn right for cozies, but I wish the authors would actually fight back. I’ve already stopped reading over a dozen authors because of this. I don’t want to stop reading this series; I love it. But this is a concern, and if it continues, I might have to stop. Why pay to read something that makes me feel bad?
Managed to get my act together and make it to the open studios at Walkaway House. I met Carolyn Clayton, who owns/runs the place with her partner Ben, at last Tuesday’s 1Berkshire event, and she’d invited me. What a great space! They’ve done a wonderful job with it. She creates art from found objects and her studio space is fascinating. I met their three current artists, each doing wildly different projects, all wonderful. Sam Dienst who works in tapestry and loom, is working with felt/paint/sewing/soft sculpture/detail work and it’s wonderful, as well as making a found objects sculpture. Fiona Crangle, a Canadian artist, is working on gesture and grief and erasure. Her work is so moving and powerful, and we had a wonderful conversation about grief. I also met Anna Cowley Ford, who is the Center of Gravity artist in their Eagle Street space. Her work explores “manifesting the nonvisible sensations associated with health conditions.” (That made me think of you, Melissa A). She had one of her textile pieces, an enormous silken sheer figure, hanging in the hallway. We had a good conversation about fabric, and I’m going to see more of her work when I visit the gallery on First Friday in a few days. So that was all fascinating.
And, of course, I met in passing, some of the artists I’ve seen all week at other events!
Came home, again, just before it started bucketing down again, and made pizza.
Slept well, surprisingly, later than usual into Monday, with positive dreams of an old friend.
I have a full roster of client projects in my inbox for the week: one Monday, 2 Wednesday, 2 Thursday, 1 Friday.
Sent the follow-up emails on Monday to the artists I met on Sunday. Followed them on Instagram; signed up for mailing lists where appropriate. Drafted a couple of Process Muse posts; got them polished, uploaded, and scheduled. Typed up the resource list for my neighbor and ran it over to him. Did the episode graphics for this week’s Legerdemain episodes, then did the videos for this week’s Legerdemain episodes and this week’ Angel Hunt episodes, and uploaded and scheduled them on TikTok.
Turned around a medium-sized client project.
Finished this round of revisions on DEADLY DRAMATICS.
The Goddess Provisions box arrived, and it’s lovely. Great stuff in there.
The Muskrat is now going to charge to use Tweetdeck. Which is what I use to upload/schedule the posts that I can no longer link from WordPress, and to upload/schedule posts about the serials and other work. Supposedly, it’s a 30-day window, so maybe, MAYBE I can in the launch of DEADLY DRAMATICS, but then I’m outta there.
His intentional, gleeful destruction of a platform that was so important to so many on professional and personal levels disgusts me. May he reap what he’s sown.
Up early on Tuesday. I don’t feel like the country has a whole lot to celebrate right now, so I was lowkey.
But I hit the page.
I drafted two new episodes of Legerdemain, which were really fun: a rooftop chase at a storage unit facility; an almost getaway in a dirigible. Because if I’m writing a fantasy, there are going to be dirigibles.
Then, it was time to polish the story details for DEADLY DRAMATICS and upload/schedule the first four episodes. The first two episodes will drop on launch day, July 26; the second two on the second day of the week’s episodes, July 29. The first three episodes are free. From that first week, the episodes will go live Wednesdays and Saturdays.
I was surprised how much additional editing I did on those episodes. Plus, it took time to set up the Episode Tracking Sheets, the Series Bible, and the Style Sheet. But the first four episodes are uploaded and scheduled; should they be approved, I’ll upload/schedule as many episodes per day as I can until they are all uploaded and scheduled, somewhere between 2-4 per day.
I updated both the Devon Ellington Work Serials page and this blog’s Serials page with the new information. Over the weekend, I will start putting together the introductory video, and then the template for the episode videos. (Hey, in this pay period just past, I made more money from the serials than from client work).
Did the social media rounds for Legerdemain. Tweetdeck has already become a nightmare. I have a feeling I won’t get to do any of the launch stuff for DEADLY DRAMATICS on it, although I tried to schedule a few posts. And even if I do, will any of my audience still be there?
The fireworks display last night at the end of the street was organized, not too loud, and, from what I hear, beautiful. The neighbors were out in the street to watch. I was on the floor of my office with Tessa, who was terrified. It wasn’t as bad as it was on Cape, where it was like being in a war zone all day, I had to spray the roof down with the hose every few hours, gather burning debris, and sit with Tessa in a closet in the Cape years. But it was still enough to frighten Tessa.
It didn’t bother Willa much, although she came to check on us. Charlotte watched the fireworks from the living room. She thought they were in her honor, much the way she believes that when parts of the Fall Foliage parade come by us on the street, it’s all about her. Because she is a princess.
Once the fireworks were done, and we went to bed – the dumbasses with illegal fireworks began. Again, nowhere near as bad as on Cape. But Tessa cowered in the hallway, and I grabbed a pillow and lay on the floor with her. I must have dozed off, because she and Willa woke me a couple of hours later; they wanted to roll potatoes down the stairs, and I was in the way.
I went to bed; the fireworks started again. I managed to coax Tessa into my room. We all finally fell asleep.
I was having flashbacks to the final night in the Cape house, when it was empty, and I was lying on the floor amidst the barrage of illegal fireworks, hoping the roof wouldn’t catch fire, because I’d given away all the hoses.
Woke up this morning feeling awful, echoing what I felt on that final day at the Cape house, with the last few storage runs, the cleaning, and then making it as far as Sturbridge and my beloved Publick House. So, today might be a rough day to navigate emotionally, but I’ll get there.
I have pages to write, episodes to upload, errands to run. I have two client projects to turn around today. Bills need to be paid. I need to noodle on a couple of other upcoming projects.
The first four DEADLY DRAMATICS episodes were approved, so this is really happening. We’re launching this one on July 26, and it will run for 125 episodes.
Time to hit the page (and hope it doesn’t hit back). My keyboard is being cranky, which is not fun. Hope you had a great long weekend, and have a great start to the week.
We’re at the at-least-two-showers-a-day-to-hose-down part of the summer.
Peace, my friends.
