I've found that trying to write between thanksgiving and new years is an exercise in futility. I'm afraid there are just too many things to get done. That's not to say it's a bad thing, I'll be the first to admit I love the family gathering, and all the work that Irma and I have to put in to get things ready are worth it. So, Imperfect Hope has taken a back burner, writing wise. I have, on the other hand, been mulling over some ideas that seem to have promise. For example, Remy's tale (he's Cerryn's younger brother, who'll play a more important role in part two) will likely include quite a bit a action at sea as I parallel his, Cerryn's, and Randir's lives while their paths converge. He's going to have an interesting life at sea while his big sister becomes a questor...
Randir's tale has taken on some added complexity in my notes, I've cemented some thoughts on how I'm going to foreshadow his relational challenges with Cerryn later on in the tale, by the time he meets her, his fears (shared by most kel warriors of the k'tath) of Il'cha bond pairs ("soul-mates") and the tragedy that almost always dominates their lives make him a reluctant companion. Cerryn's own experiences will drive her away from him for entirely different reasons based on her own misinterpretation of the life of a questor. This despite the need for them to essentially create a synergistic team, something that the Valnar (guardian demi-gods) are trying to create by bringing them together in the first place. Sounds like a soap opera? Hopefully I'll find a not so blunt hammer to drive this storyline forward when I get to it in the writing stages.
Anyway, all these thoughts have been bouncing around in my skull while hanging on a ladder 22 feet up in the air clipping christmas lights on the gutter. In previous years, we've had a routine for setting up our lights, but this year we decided to begin phasing out the old incandescent bulbs and replace most of the outdoor lights with LED-style. However, I realized early on that I'd have to change the pattern of string alignment, since the bulbs are closer together, strings shorter, etc. On the other hand I can link more of them together without overloading a circuit. With the old strings, I'd marked places on the cord where particular strings stretched across the peaks of our roof, so I could clamber across the roof with all the lights, stretch the lines out, and put them up in a short afternoon. With the new strings, Not so easy...
FIrst of all, I had to get new gutter clips for the different style bulbs. Then, because I was linking the strings together differently, I had to experiment with different arrangements until I found an efficient one. New wall clips were needed, and all this had to work with the older bulbs I was keeping (the christmas train on the side fence, draped lights along the limestone wall, and lighted wreathes beside the living room picture window). Oh, and the sidewalk lights and crystal angels...(It sounds like a lot more than it is) TO make a long story shorter, It took three days (2 half days after work, and one full saturday) to get to a working arrangement. Next year it'll go more quickly. I hope... At least my balance is still fairly good. If not the stamina from climbing up and down the ladder...
It was worth it. Our four year old grandson, Adan James practically glowed as brightly as the crystal angels when he saw it lit up last week for the first time. Ditto his eight year old brother, Jose Antonio, and our granddaughter (also 4) Tatiana (when she saw it a couple of days later). Oh, and Irma and I are happy with it as well (albeit with a few modifications next year to clean up the window treatments.
Anyway, we're down to planning christmas eve dinner. Irma will be doing the Enchilada's, Tamales, and such (the request from half of the "kids"), I'm dry aging the 8-rib rib roast (the request from the other half) even as we speak, and will hit it with the spice rub it wednesday night. She'll put it in the oven thursday afternoon before I get home, then I'll finish with the gravy and the bearnaise sauce, roast potatoes and yorkshire pudding. Christmas eve we'll have all of the kids and spouses, grandkids, some inlaws, and even our grand-puppy... At last count, there'll be 22 of us for dinner.
After dinner, Irma and I will sit back and let the whole thing settle. I'd have a scotch, but I have to be at work at 600 am christmas day, so I'll save that for the weekend...
Anyway, If I don't write before then, Merry Christmas to all of you...
Clear skies...
Jim
Randir's tale has taken on some added complexity in my notes, I've cemented some thoughts on how I'm going to foreshadow his relational challenges with Cerryn later on in the tale, by the time he meets her, his fears (shared by most kel warriors of the k'tath) of Il'cha bond pairs ("soul-mates") and the tragedy that almost always dominates their lives make him a reluctant companion. Cerryn's own experiences will drive her away from him for entirely different reasons based on her own misinterpretation of the life of a questor. This despite the need for them to essentially create a synergistic team, something that the Valnar (guardian demi-gods) are trying to create by bringing them together in the first place. Sounds like a soap opera? Hopefully I'll find a not so blunt hammer to drive this storyline forward when I get to it in the writing stages.
Anyway, all these thoughts have been bouncing around in my skull while hanging on a ladder 22 feet up in the air clipping christmas lights on the gutter. In previous years, we've had a routine for setting up our lights, but this year we decided to begin phasing out the old incandescent bulbs and replace most of the outdoor lights with LED-style. However, I realized early on that I'd have to change the pattern of string alignment, since the bulbs are closer together, strings shorter, etc. On the other hand I can link more of them together without overloading a circuit. With the old strings, I'd marked places on the cord where particular strings stretched across the peaks of our roof, so I could clamber across the roof with all the lights, stretch the lines out, and put them up in a short afternoon. With the new strings, Not so easy...
FIrst of all, I had to get new gutter clips for the different style bulbs. Then, because I was linking the strings together differently, I had to experiment with different arrangements until I found an efficient one. New wall clips were needed, and all this had to work with the older bulbs I was keeping (the christmas train on the side fence, draped lights along the limestone wall, and lighted wreathes beside the living room picture window). Oh, and the sidewalk lights and crystal angels...(It sounds like a lot more than it is) TO make a long story shorter, It took three days (2 half days after work, and one full saturday) to get to a working arrangement. Next year it'll go more quickly. I hope... At least my balance is still fairly good. If not the stamina from climbing up and down the ladder...
It was worth it. Our four year old grandson, Adan James practically glowed as brightly as the crystal angels when he saw it lit up last week for the first time. Ditto his eight year old brother, Jose Antonio, and our granddaughter (also 4) Tatiana (when she saw it a couple of days later). Oh, and Irma and I are happy with it as well (albeit with a few modifications next year to clean up the window treatments.
Anyway, we're down to planning christmas eve dinner. Irma will be doing the Enchilada's, Tamales, and such (the request from half of the "kids"), I'm dry aging the 8-rib rib roast (the request from the other half) even as we speak, and will hit it with the spice rub it wednesday night. She'll put it in the oven thursday afternoon before I get home, then I'll finish with the gravy and the bearnaise sauce, roast potatoes and yorkshire pudding. Christmas eve we'll have all of the kids and spouses, grandkids, some inlaws, and even our grand-puppy... At last count, there'll be 22 of us for dinner.
After dinner, Irma and I will sit back and let the whole thing settle. I'd have a scotch, but I have to be at work at 600 am christmas day, so I'll save that for the weekend...
Anyway, If I don't write before then, Merry Christmas to all of you...
Clear skies...
Jim
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