The birds of leaving call to us

So I took a weekend off, and it was good. On Saturday I slept in a bit, went to lunch with the husband, and did some shopping before coming home to laze around and watch TV. Sunday was likewise pleasant, for we got a visit from an old friend of mine here in town - and her little dog Fiona.

Fiona and Greyson hit it off immediately and frolicking did ensue, despite the size difference between them; Greyson's about 85 pounds, Fiona is maybe a third of that. It really was adorable, the way they were instant friends - and after several hours (including a 2-mile walk around the neighborhood), both pups were happily pooped.

And, of course, Fiona's person and I got to catch up - which was half the fun.



* * *

In yard news, I'm still mostly doing cleanup - digging out dead things, pulling weeds, and tidying the old herb garden, or what remains of it. I used to have an herb garden, see. Now I have a truly outstanding dirt hole with a handful of salvageable items miraculously unmolested by a merry dog. I'll save what I can.

Since a couple of people have asked - no, I won't be planting a vegetable garden this year. It was worth trying for a couple of spring/summers, but the undertaking ultimately proved to be a lot of work for not a lot of return (in the grand scheme of things).

Frankly, I just don't have the time or interest for it anymore. Therefore it is with a renewed respect for farmers everywhere that I'm going to put a patio over that bad-boy, just as soon as I get my next paycheck of any substance.

We will get a lot more use out of a patio.
That's the long and short of it.

Besides, we have a concrete landing at the rear of the house that's starting to crack and sink. It was poured in 1930 when the house was extended, so it's had a good run - but it really needs to be repaired/replaced, and the companies I'm investigating should have no trouble taking care of that plus the landscaping tweaks. Might as well do it all in one loud, disruptive go, I say.

* * *

In work news, I spent the day rereading my progress thus far on Chapelwood. On the one hand it felt like a waste of a perfectly good day of productivity; on the other, I hadn't so much as opened the file in a couple of weeks and I'd really lost track of what I was doing.

In my defense, it features half a dozen POV narratives threaded together, one of which was brand new (written separately) and slotted into place without further inspection ... and I'm juggling three major [interlocking] plot lines between the POVs.

I had about 53,000 words to work through, which works out to probably a couple hundred pages of print. And, since I can't read without editing, the reading was slow. But I got myself all caught up, and tomorrow I'm diving back in.

So stay tuned for continued word metrics.
I hope...