We left the orange grove after dinner this evening. We had a very productive few days there and the little house for Ron and Liz has a roof, sides, insulation and even wall covering on almost all walls. The wires are all run for electricity and there is a clear plan in place for the…
Month: September 2017
Up in Ojai
Hi everyone, I am sitting among my family here at the orange grove, typing while they are talking together. Clearly, I am going to make this a short post. I am posting now because I am using Ron’s “Hotspot,” which is an extra treat versus heading off to Starbuck’s and sitting in my car to…
Thoughts on Lack of Excerpts
Dear friends, Let me address why you have not gotten more excerpts from my manuscript so far this week. The truth is I have discovered that I have more rewriting to do before I can again post. My original plan was that I would take each excerpt and rewrite, one per night. But I have…
Camp Fire Bracelet
Have any of my fellow Camp Fire Girls ever seen the bracelet featured below? I have not, but we are selling two of these on eBay and I did research to find out their origin. That’s when I discovered the ad below. This is a sterling silver Fire Makers bracelet with the Camp Fire motto…
Visit from My Sweet Madison
Today I had the pleasure of seeing one of my long-standing students, Madison Stingray. We have known each other since she was in fourth grade and we’ve been friends and fellow writers now for the past twelve years. She is a recent graduate of Georgetown University and is leaving on Friday to start a Master’s…
Moving Ahead with the Ojai Building Project
Here is the progress on Liz and Ron’s little spot up at the orange grove. Another hard day of work, but look what was accomplished! Please forgive the brevity of this post. I am a little tuckered out after starting very early and ending fairly late. I hope to get a good night’s sleep so…
Building Project
We are up at our orange grove with Liz and Ron. We are building a little spot for them, or, more accurately, they are building a spot for themselves under Ray’s guidance. I was the tree-trimmer, tool holder and cook. Here are a few pictures of the progress. A busy but satisfying day.
Up in Ojai
Ray and I are up in Ojai for a few days. I have already lost a whole blog post that I spent at least a half hour writing. Ugh. The Internet services are sketchy up here. I will resume posting on my manuscript as soon as I return to LA early next week. Thank you…
Chapter Two Excerpt
“Mom, Jim’s offered me a job.” I stood with the phone up to my ear as I looked out the beveled glass window of our front door, watching our elderly neighbor as she watered her lawn across the street. Silence. “Mom?” Only in the last few months had I been telling my mother anything that…
Chapter One Excerpt 2
After taking Rachael downstairs to play with her sisters, Ray and I returned to our bedroom to discuss the pros and cons of uprooting our family of five. “I love LA,” I said, “but we can’t do this. You know how high-strung Jim is.” “What?” Ray reached over and poked my ribs. “You’re not making…
20 Minutes a Day 