On To February

I'll be happy to see February, not because I like February, but because it gets me closer to spring. I'm seeing more light later in the afternoon. 

Some snow remains from from the 20th because it's stayed cold for the most part. We have clear areas, snow patches, and piles of plowed snow. At least we're one third through winter. Actually, a little more than a third now. Yay.

Why isn't Groundhog Day on my calendar? It's not a real holiday but deserves a spot. I've already heard a news story that Staten Island Phil aka Charles J. Hogg  is the most accurate groundhog. I wonder if he has a PR person.

I've had a good January. I've been to the gym 13 times (I think--too lazy to check.) I've exercised at least a half hour when I didn't go to the gym. Of course, I'm also walking with Jace. Our walks have been less frequent and shorter

I've written every day since the second. I often get distracted from the actual writing by checking facts or going off on what may be tangents. One day it was how to learn the Morse code; another day it was women's fashions of the 1840s. I've enjoyed following where the story took me. Even if I don't end up using those pieces.

Valentine's Day is in two weeks. A local distillery is offering a welcome cocktail, whiskey tasting, and chocolates for $44 per person. Just out of curiosity, I checked out Valentine's Day menus of a few restaurants: $150 per person. That's just crazy. 

We haven't made our plans. Sometimes I cook, sometimes we get takeout. Time enough to decide. 

What We're Watching

Jeff and I record The Daily Show, Jeopardy, and The Simpsons. I guess we're recording The Simpsons more out of habit, but it's still worth a laugh or two. As I mentioned recently, we've been watching Dark Shadows to the end. So, we were ready to move on to new shows. 

The Bear. A fine-dining chef returns home to take over his brother's sandwich shop after his brother commits suicide. The characters are complicated, and the actors are excellent. We just started the third season with the opening of the renovated restaurant.

Watson: Sherlock Holmes partner, Dr. Watson is back practicing medicine after Holmes's death. There was a surprise appearance by Professor Moriarty--who was also supposed to be dead--at the end of the pilot episode. We've only seen the pilot, but it looks like the focus will be on medical mysteries. I'm not sure I want to watch that. But I do like Morris Chestnut as Watson.

We also watched two movies over the weekend.

Star Trek: Section 31:I'm a big Star Trek fan, but this was just okay. Michelle Yeoh was terrific as Philipa Georgiou, the emperor of the Terran Empire in the Mirror Universe who has traveled to the Prime Universe. My biggest problem is that the beginning of the movie considers Georgiou the evilist evil that ever eviled. By the end, she's just another one of the team. Yes, she helps destroy the Godsend weapon, but it just seems too pat. 

Gladiator II: Another okay film. Hanno is a prisoner who trains as a gladiator, but is actually Lucius from the original movie. Even though one of the last lines in Gladiator is "Lucius is safe," his mother sends him away from Rome to save him from assassins. It's also revealed that Lucius is the son of Maximus. I didn't like either change mainly because they arbitrarily change the original film. I've written before about how I dislike the secret  son tropes. Here it's a secret parent, but it's the same idea to increase the stakes for the hero--a cheap trick. Overall, meh. 

This is why I keep watching classic films.

Writing Update

I've been writing every day since January 2nd, working on my Merwin novel. I have not been writing 500 words in a half hour, but I've been writing. When I get up in  the morning, Jace gets up too, so I can give him breakfast. I wash up or shower, dress, and take him for a walk. When we return, I make a cup of coffee and sit down to write. At least, that's how it's supposed to work. I usually do sit down, but I don't always get around to writing. Sometimes I have morning appointments and didn't get up early enough. I easily get distracted. Sometimes I get hung up on a detail--did they drink coffee in Connecticut in the mid 19th century? Other times, the distractions are external. 

I've been able to write at night on the days when I didn't write or didn't write enough in the mornings. It's harder for me to write at night with even more distractions. 

Last night was the worst. I decided to return to a piece about Helen Merwin. I decided I didn't like the tone--it was too historical. I made the tone more personal and deleted several sentences. I only wrote 149 words last night--my weakest showing. I was really disappointed in myself. 

Today I went back to the same piece and reworked it again and added information about the telegraph and the Morse Code. Researching the Morse Code was my distraction today. I worked for about an hour including the distraction and wrote 203 new words. 

I need to get into bed earlier and get up earlier to write. Then I need to take time later in the day to research, re-read my notes, etc. I'd also like to make a list of characters. I need to continue to write daily and improve my practice. I'm on a roll. I've written over 11,000 words this January. 

The End of Dark Shadows

Last night, Jeff and I finished watching Dark Shadows:1245 episodes and 20 storylines (according to the Dark Shadows wiki.) We didn't watch every episode--I skipped around in the early storylines, and Jeff watched fewer episodes than I did. But we did watch all episodes of the last several storylines. 

The last storyline was Parallel Time 1841.The start of this storyline is kind of jarring: a wounded Lamar Trask stumbles into the mysterious room that is a portal to Parallel Time, is trapped there, and apparently dies. In all the other time travel storylines on Dark Shadows, one of the original time line characters make the trip with us.

This time, we are suddenly following new characters in a new timeline including Bramwell Collins, played by Jonathan Frid, the portrayer of Barnabas Collins. The backstory is that Frid was sick of playing a vampire and wanted to play multiple characters as the other actors did. 

Parallel Time 1841 concentrated on a family curse and a lottery where a member of the family had to spend a night in a terrifying room. A subplot was a Wuthering Heights-type romance. 

The last scene of the storyline was discovering that Melanie Collins had been bitten by a vampire. It felt like a return to the basics. But no. The show ended with a voiceover from Thayer David that it wasn't a vampire bite after all. Everyone lived happily ever after and there were no more dark shadows. A disappointing end in a whimper.

Time Affluence and Time Makeovers

I've been reading about time management for years: tips and techniques for getting things done. I had never heard the term "time affluence" until yesterday. I read it in The New York Times article I mentioned in yesterday's post.

Today, the concept of time affluence re-appeared in a Huffington Post article. A majority of Americans feel time poor. Feeling time affluent can make you feel happier and help you connect with and become kinder to others.

The author listed four techniques to increase your sense of time affluence. I especially liked "Make A Time Confetti Checklist." Basically, you should take advantage of those little pieces of time between tasks or waiting for a doctor's appointment. 

***

These articles are part of the whole make your life over literature that crops up every January. I'm especially receptive to these types of articles this year because I've been making some changes myself. 

Helpful Hints

I enjoyed this article from The New York Times. It's entitled health tips Some are clearly health tips (e.g. minimize your intake of highly processed foods.) Other tips are more like life tips to me. 

One tip came from someone's second grade teacher. If something feels too hard to do, it just means that the first step isn't small enough. This is very good advice for someone writing (or attempting to write) a novel.

Another involves using "soft fascination"--doing simple activities such as washing the dishes or folding laundry--that require little mental effort giving the mind freedom to wander, make connections, and find solutions. Another appropriate tip for a writer.

A third tip involves giving yourself breaks--two to five minutes between tasks--because it gives you the sense of having free time.

I can use all of these tips and will. 

Off to a Good Start

It was a good feeling to walk with Jace today around 4:30 and realize it was nice out. It was 40 degrees which we hadn't seen in a while. More importantly, there was no wind. 

It sets the tone for this positive post. I'm happy with how 2025 has started.

Beginning January 2, I've been writing every day (from 223 to 587 words) for about a half hour to an hour-of-a-half. 

I've exercised every day beginning on the 2nd and gone to the gym six times. 

I've written eight blogposts. 

I've been changing up some routines and habits. The most important thing is writing in the morning. I've also changed Jace's walking schedule around. I'm switching up my gym workouts. I'm not spending as much time in the early morning on The New York Times games. That has been the most difficult routine for me to change. 

I haven't done much thinking about goalsetting. Instead, I'm actually doing things that will help me get to my goals.

I'm adding this following because I thought it was funny. It's a paraphrase from a collection of tweets--probably from the Huffington Post. 

                    I don't want a new year. I would prefer a gently used year. 

Time to Say Goodbye

 A week and a half into 2025, and things have settled in a more-or-less normal pattern. I realize that I haven't written a post about 2024 goals, highlights, etc. 

Spoiler alert: it's because 2024 was pretty much a total failure. 

Here goes: 

Dryuary Plus

Achieved.

Go to the gym 150 times. 

With 78 visits, I barely made it halfway to this goal. I was doing well with double-digit visits through March. I hit a funk in April, hurt my hand in May, had to deal with colitis (and am still navigating it to this day.) I was also away for a week in June and one in September. That doesn't fully explain my lack of visits from April through September.

Read 40 books.

I only read 27 books last year. The biggest reading month was June with six books. I wish I had at least read 30. I re-read four Preston and Child books as I waited for Angel of Vengeance (book 17.)

Write 150 to 200 blogposts.

I wrote 132 posts. I wish I had written more. On the other hand, I don't need to write more drivel.

Other writing/artistic work.

I didn't make any specific writing goals, and I barely wrote. The same with artistic work.

What We're Watching

Will all the TV shows, mini-series, and movies available, we are watching Dark Shadows. It's funny to admit that. I started a Dark Shadows rewatch about two-and-a-half years ago, watching in spurts. When we got to the Leviathan storyline, Jeff started to watch every episode with me. 

We didn't particularly like the Leviathan story, but were determined to get through it because the Parallel Time storyline was coming up. Years ago, Jeff and I watched a few episodes of Parallel Time, but the show suddenly stopped. Apparently, the provider didn't have rights to the following seasons. 

Recently, we've watched Parallel Time 1970 and The Destruction of Collinwood 1995. We're almost through 1840. After this, there's only one more storyline: Parallel Time 1841.

At this point, I guess we're just want to finish the series. I've been watching along with this website.by Danny Horn. Danny does a commentary on each episode beginning with Episode 210, when Barnabas Collins first appears. He lists the blunders of each episode, facts about the actors, and inspirations behind the storylines. Occasionally, he'll discuss other pop culture topics such as Dark Shadows films and comic books, Dr. Who, and comic books. 

Sundry Sunday Thoughts

I'm glad it's Sunday. More specifically, I'm glad tomorrow's Monday. I figure I won't have to remind myself what day it is several times a day. It's only been a week-and-a-half since Christmas; it feels like a month. New Year's Day feels like weeks ago.

We removed Jace's cone on New Year's Day. The vet's instructions gave a range of 10 to 14 days for him to wear it. New Year's Day was the tenth. Another reason to celebrate. He's recovering well.

I took down the Christmas tree and finished packing up the decorations. I decided that was enough for today. Plus I made waffles earlier. I got Jeff a mini-waffle maker as an impulse gift. I used a Bisquick mix, and they were pretty good, if a bit of a pain to make.

I've been wanting to take Jace to Cove Island or Sherwood Island, but that hasn't worked out so well. We haven't had good weather since the day of our NRVT walk. Of course, there were those ten days in the cone.

Now, we're in a cold spell. It's not worth driving to Stamford or Westport when I'll only be able to stand the cold for about 20 minutes. Oh well, it won't be cold forever.

It will just seem that way.

More About 2024 Books

I was dozing off as I finished my list last night, so I just posted it without comment.

I read 27 books in 2024. For the second consecutive year, I read fewer books than I had the previous year. I didn't reach my goal, but I'm not concerned about that. 

I was surprised that I only read three histories and two historical fiction, much less than earlier years. I read nine fiction, five mystery/suspense, four memoir, two pop culture, two short story collections.

My favorites of the year are The Blind Assassin and Angel of Vengeance. Education and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn were also good.

Books Read in 2024

1. American Brutus John Wilkes Booth and the Lincoln Conspiracies by Michael W. Kaufman

2. The Second Chance Shop & Other Stories by Bette Bono

3. The Woman Who Ran for President The Many Lives of Victoria Woodhill by Lois Beachy Underhill

4. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

5. Harvest Home by Thomas Tryon

6. The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood

7. Voyager by Diana Gabaldon

8. A Light in the Storm The Civil War Diary of Amelia Martin by Karen Hess

9. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass

10. Lakota Woman by Mary Crow Dog with Richard Erdoes

11. The Shipping News by E. Annie Proulx

12. The Plot Against America by Philip Roth

13. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

14. Reel Art Great Posters from the Golden Age of the Silver Screen by Stephen Rebello and Richard Allen

15. Overboard by Sara Paretsky

16. Pay Dirt by Sara Paretsky

17. Angel of Vengeance by Preston & Child

18. Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah

19. The Alienist by Caleb Carr

20. Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery

21. Eleanor of Aquitaine by Alison Weir

22. The Entertainment Weekly Seinfield Companion Atomic Wedges to Zipper Jobs: An Unofficial Guide to TV's Funniest Show by Bruce Fretts 

23. Love and Other Crimes by Sara Paretsky

24. The White Princess by Philippa Gregory

25. The Red Queen by Philippa Gregory

26. Educated by Tara Westover

27. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

You Have to Start Somewhere

I'm bummed about many aspects of my 2024. My biggest issue/concern/failure is my lack of writing. I have written here and in journals about this before. It's not an issue of having enough time. It's an issue of setting priorities.

Recently I read about an author who trained herself to write 500 words in a half hour each day and then stop. Why couldn't I do that?

Today I woke up around 6:30. Jace got up with me so I could get him breakfast. After I fed him, I made a cup of coffee and sat down before the computer. 

I wrote for a half hour: 423 words. Not a bad start. 

2025 is Here

I wasn't happy with my 2024. It will be hard to come up with 10 positive things about the year. (Off the top of my head--I've got three.)

These are possible images of my year 

running in a hamster wheel

running on a treadmill

treading water.

I went through the motions, but made no forward progression.

How do I change that?

Seriously?

The End of the Road for Vanderpump Rules 1.0

I read about the end of Vanderpump Rules and discuss its reboot here, 

It's time for a retrospective. 

A big reason for the show's initial success is that five of the original six cast members were already friends and co-workers (Stassi, Jax, Kristen, Tom Sandoval, and Katie.) The new girl Scheana was the exception

Cast members were (relatively) real--they weren't trying to put on airs and pretend to be more than they were. They were waitstaff and bartenders with dreams of acting, music, and writing. Main storylines focused of three best friends (Stassi, Katie, and Kristen) dating three best friends.(Jax, Tom Schwartz, and Tom Sandoval.)

Their fights were ridiculously, stupidly funny. 

Kristen getting mad at Tom because she ran into someone (on a modeling job) that Tom slept with before they met. 

Jax and Stassi's breakups and their rebound flings with other SURvers Laura Leigh and Frank. 

Jax crashing Stassi's Las Vegas birthday party where a chunky sweater was torn off before a fight and a beer was poured on someone's head. Abandoned by her best friends, Stassi hosted a brunch of her second tier friends the next day.

They were messy and ridiculous and genuinely funny.

Over eleven seasons friendships shifted, and romances heated up and burned out. Cast members were spending less and less time at SUR and with Lisa Vanderpump; they making money elsewhere. Some cast members quit or are fired. Some new cast members came aboard.

Onto Season 10 and Scandoval. The scandal broke just as the season started airing. Fans could watch the affair unfold on the air, looking for clues.

I suddenly became interested in social media posts and stories about the VPR cast. When production was rushed for Season 11, I learned more about the show from these stories than from the episodes themselves. That upended the normal viewing process and made it less enjoyable, though I still kept watching.

Over the last few weeks, I've been rewatching the early episodes--the first season and a few episodes of the second. The show is still messy fun, but I am beginning to see patterns in relationships that will manifest themselves over the next several seasons. I'll keep up my re-watch. 

As for VPR 2.0? I'll definitely give it a try.