Fri. Nov. 1, 2024: Of (Metaphorical) Tracks and Trains
image courtesy of Thomas via Pixabay.comFriday, November 1, 2024
New Moon
Saturn, Neptune, Chiron, Uranus, Jupiter Retrograde
Rainy and warm
Another week gone, and we are hurtling to the end of the calendar year, while starting a new spiritual year (for some of us).
I forgot to mention that The Yuletide Tarot arrived on the 30th. It was recommended to me by my friend, writer Jamieson Wolf (who has even more tarot decks than I do). I’ve wanted it since last winter, but waited until this season to get it. It is gorgeous. Very different take on some of the cards, and some interesting spreads. I look forward to working with it.
Had to put together a bio for my producer. I teach how to have multiple length bios ready to go: 50, 100, 250 words. Of course, this one needed to be 80!
I got the book review written and submitted. I mailed a bunch of thank you cards my mom wrote for her birthday gifts. We were out of coffee and eggs, so that was a quick trip to the store. I’d seen some cute Winter Holiday cards at a local store last week at a good price, so I wanted to go back and see if they were still there. They were, I bought them, and we are set for cards. Which we have to start writing soon, at least as far as overseas go. We don’t have that many overseas cards, so we might just sit and write everything before Thanksgiving, and then mail them when we need to.
I turned around my small coverage.
I decided to do the big, two-deck tarot reading for the coming year in the afternoon, rather than at night as part of the bigger ritual. I wanted to make sure I could really spend time with the cards. I’m using the Norse deck as the action and the Celtic deck at the energy. I’ve had both decks since the mid-1990’s, and hadn’t used them in a long time, so it’s nice to get reacquainted. Tessa was there to help, because she always is, and Bea was curious, although she didn’t get too close.
I got some good information. It looks like there’s a tendency toward a conflict/disruption that begins in May and carries through August. My hope is that if I stay alert and aware, maybe I can diffuse some of that and make smarter choices, now that I have the information. September looks to be extremely busy, but a good busy, although it’s also winding up some of the aftereffects from those previous months. No idea what the details of all of this are yet, but at least I can pay closer attention. There’s ebb and flow in most of the other months, but it’s in alignment with some of the pots I have simmering, so as long as I stay organized and aware. It’s about paying attention and doing the work.
Which is along the lines of the conversations I had with Laura and Daniel during my Capacity Building Program – for the next year and change, I have to add more to the bundle of sticks I’m carrying in order to be in a position to have the choices I want a couple of years down the road, and put some of those sticks down then.
There will still be unexpected obstacles and changes and opportunities (because that is how life works), but at least there’s a clear path that’s in alignment with the track I’ve been setting down this year. Track is there; time to fire up the engine and get into motion. 2023 was about finding support and taking chances within my new location. It was a good year, in many ways, and I was scared to let go of it. 2024 was about seizing opportunities and making the most of them, learning, transforming, and laying track. Now we build the locomotive and start chugging along.
Of course, every decision one makes from the moment of the reading can set off a domino effect for change. None of this is written in stone. This is all about possibilities; not definites. There’s room for growth and change from the moment of the reading on, which is kind of wonderful.
If you’re curious about the spread, there’s a post on the Cerridwen Iris Shea site that talks about how to set it up for yourself (I did not post my actual spread, as I had done an example spread for the post with those same two decks, not my personal spread).
I read and enjoyed myself and played with the cats in the afternoon. Charlotte is thrilled that I put the fleece blankets up on the chairs. It was a little warm for that – it got up to 75 degrees! Bea now alternates between various spots on the kitty condo and the rocking chair.
I’m re-reading Rosemary Edghill’s Bast mysteries, which ran parallel to a lot of what my life was like in NYC in the mid-90’s. Without the dead bodies, at least in my life.
I set up the altar for the ancestors with photos of family and friends. I remembered to turn on the little bat lights on our little Halloween tree. I lit the candles.
Bea was fascinated. Willa and Charlotte don’t really understand ritual and sleep through most of it. Tessa’s always enjoyed participating, and she’s training Bea. Bea is cautious, but she trusts Tessa. We’re all careful about keeping flames contained and safe, so no whiskers or tails are set alight. Bea is naturally cautious anyway. Although she has been taking princess lessons from Charlotte in her spare time.
The decorations and small tree are also good, gentle practice for the big tree we’ll put up for the winter holidays. As it is, early next week, I’m going to open the door from the sewing room into the hallway, meaning both doors will be open. It’s necessary to get used to that again. Since the big tree is in the doorway between the sewing room and the living room (and will be tied off even more than it usually is), having access through that other door is vital. I want Bea to have a few weeks to get used to it before we put up the tree.
Slept pretty well, although I had a weird dream. The alarm shocked me out of it (even though it’s a fairly gentle alarm). Got the cats fed and hauled laundry to the laundromat. It’s been a few weeks, and I wanted to get it done before the time change, because next week, they won’t have sorted out the door locks yet.
I rarely go to the laundromat on Fridays; there was a courtly older gentleman there at the same time, so we did our laundry in quiet companionship. Got everything done and was home just after 7 AM to start the day. It was raining when I left, but not when I returned, which is a good thing. Otherwise, the money for the dryer would have been wasted.
Let’s look at October numbers, shall we?
New material: 47,261
Editing/Revisions: 63,775
Client work: 20,768
Marketing: 8 hours
Misc.: 20 hours
What do they mean?
The new material number is pretty good, even though it’s a little on the low side, especially since I was residency for a week. However, a lot of the work there was on the script for I WILL BE DIFFERENT and on poems. Those word counts are shorter, even though it often takes as much or more work as short stories or novels.
The editing/revisions number was where it should be, considering what actual writing was done this month and last month.
Client work was on the low side, but then, I only had 3 weeks of client work because I was in the residency for a week.
Marketing was the bare minimum. I need to do more, especially this month with TAPESTRY and STRANGERS IN THE SNOW set to release this month, and MURDER BELLS set to release next month.
The “Misc.” had to do with rehearsals and production meetings and client meetings. 20 hours is decent for all of that, especially since it was packed into 3 weeks, not four.
Even with (because of?) the residency, the month feels more on track than the last few. I’m in the process of upping the client work over the next few months, and then replacing one client who has become lower paying and inconsistent with higher-paid work from steadier clients. That will take some finagling, but I hope to get there in the next few months.
I’m going to take it easy today. I have some show stuff to deal with, writing to get done. I hope some scripts will come through. There were three major deadlines yesterday. I hope it doesn’t all pile on for the weekend, more than I could possibly take on. I’d like to spread it out over the next two weeks, so I can make a reasonable amount of money taking on a sane amount of work. I have to pick up some things at the grocery store and do a big library run. And mail the rent.
Tomorrow, I’m attending a workshop taught by a friend. She wanted me to come out tonight, too, but I can’t do both, so I’ll just do tomorrow afternoon. I hope I won’t have to do any coverage work, although I probably will at least on Sunday. The Chewy order arrives tomorrow, and I need to get down to Target to take a look at something in person. I just don’t feel like it today, although it makes more sense to go today.
It’s supposed to hit 70 today, then be in the 50’s for the weekend, then in the high 60’s early next week.
Worried about the election. It will change our lives. I just hope it’s for the better.
Have a good weekend!
