Happy Laundry Day…

It’s International Women’s Day. It’s also Kenneth Grahame’s (The Wind in the Willows) birthday.

Quick Updates…

I’m quiet at the moment because I’m finally at the mouth of the tunnel of the long and disruptive computer/Internet transition that started in January when my new Dell desktop was delivered. Since I was already backlogged from the holidays, I now have my nose to the grindstone, shoulder to the wheel, fill in the all-work-all-the-time cliché of your choice, in a big way for the foreseeable future.

But I’m getting serious stuff accomplished. Right now I’m finishing up the first round edits of the next book scheduled to go out in galleys, and I’ll be buckling down to cover design work as soon as those have been sent off to the author. First round edits take me several days of non-stop focus. I do a main pass and then I do a second pass in which I read the entire book aloud as I go. Amazing what pops out with that technique! It might not work for everyone, but as an actor and aural learner, it’s a stage that I, personally, can’t skip. I didn’t do it for Mortal Touch and I hugely regret that now. (It burns more calories, too! 😀 )

Account Cancelation Saga: As far as I know (I haven’t checked my post box since last Friday), I’m set for final cancelation as of March 17. I asked for written confirmation to be mailed to me but I don’t know if that will happen. At this point, I’m sure that Ms. Billing Department, at least, will be very glad to see me go. *wry look* I shipped the modem and associated widgets last Wednesday, UPS, and according to the tracking number, they were delivered and signed for on Friday morning. I also mailed a second follow-up letter by ordinary First Class mail. The delivery-confirmation postcard for the effing Priority Mail letter that took seven days to be delivered showed up in my post box, signed. Between that and the UPS Ground shipping fee it has, so far, cost me $21 plus the $58.95 for a full month of service I have not been using, to cancel my account with NET1plus. Fooey.

The modem line has been disconnected, and I only have to pay Verizon up to the day that was done, not a penny more. My new DSL service is working great. I haven’t lost my connection a single time, whereas that was a regular occurrence with NET1plus’ DSL.

I’m settling into my new sleep routine, although I’m still staying up too late! This morning it was close to full light outside before I finally went to bed. I’m actually looking forward to Daylight Savings next weekend: I’ll have another hour of daylight for (hopefully) yard work later this month, and I can get to bed before sunrise! But I’m now getting up at the same time every day without an alarm clock. The cats are still all confused, though.

I’m still struggling with my dietary regimen but I seem to be getting that back under control. My meal routines have all been shifted around, as well, and whenever I significantly increase my workout intensity, I always gain weight the first couple of weeks, as my body fights to maintain the status quo. That seems to be turning around now. I hate to admit it, but I’ve been having trouble eating too much before bedtime. I’ve started brushing my teeth early, which effectively stops that. I won’t eat after I brush my teeth and I can’t stand to brush my teeth again. Silly, eh? But pitting irrational compulsions against each other can be fruitful. 🙂

I finished doing the styles for BLU Media Blog, and then I coded my own “widget” from scratch so the most recent blog entry titles are displayed in the sidebar of the main website’s index page. Now I need to get a blogging routine established. Rewriting the Rules blog auto-posts to my Amazon Author Central blog and that means all my Amazon buyers get a notice that the blog has been updated. I hope that includes Kindle buyers, because Kindle sales of Mortal Touch continue to be strong as March progresses.

I better get back to making myself hoarse! 🙂