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Rustic Coastal Pier

What's on Deck

June oh June the month of doom. Ha ha ha...Just see June to find out that line.

Welcome back to July where the fireworks are set in the sky.

July has many plans the biggest is recovery of self and sometimes that means a change.

Stacked Beach Stones

Sometimes, we must remember not all stones need used on the beach to make a thing of beauty.

50 stones falling out of a stone stack_edited.jpg

Because if we attempted it,
eventually the entire stack would topple.

That's Why This Month's Priority: .... Drum Roll

Find a new job to keep the lights on :D

And Fox Angel is now waiting for its call to the deck again...

Because we released

Something Else...

Fox Angel The Forest of Turns Cover_edited_edited.jpg
Green Boots Splashing

And it's also making a splash... 2 books in a row ... top 1% with multiple ones under .3%

I think we will do that instead of the mass cycle of ships in April. We will select a book a month and devote time to it even while we gaher the dust.

We seek traditional publishing, keep the kids stuff chucking out here on the sight, and not sweat it.

On a private note, we had a job interview today, so hopefully that turns up trumps. It starts sadly in late August, but we will see what happens. But more importantly, it's my anniversary. 

A set of rolling hills lifting and falling together with a mountain in between the two hil

25 Years and Counting...
What is the secret to that achievement?


We faced many hills together and even when we fought we came back to a strong basis.

Being the best of friends who understand each other in ways other don't makes a connection as strong as the mountains.

Even if we are vastly different like trees and sand, but we find our way back to meet in the middle. But for sure, at times, it's a bumpy ride and we almost didn't make it.

But we keep on working at it....

And that is what marriage and maintaining love is... it's work.

Stuck Indoors

The wildfire smoke from Canada has displaced families, harmed communities, and left many of us struggling in different ways. I’m allergic to smoke myself, and even days later I’m still fighting to breathe — but I know others are facing far worse.
My thoughts are with everyone affected.
 
For those who find strength in prayer, I hope your communities bring you comfort.
 
For those who don’t practice religion, I hope you find support in the people and spaces that matter to you.
No matter our beliefs, we all deserve safety, care, and clean air.
nesting dolls that are opening up and gifts found inside of gifts.jpg

But Hey, when working on narrative works ... Sometimes I find Gifts inside of Gifts and A bigger nesting doll waiting to grow as a result of editing ... 

And I just found a full new book for the second time in a row. Fox Angel Started off with The League of Assassins and then I found in it The Forest of Turns last month...

This time I found a book insde the life of Peter. Developing the game rules for Football for Heroes, Demigods, and Gods/Goddesses ... I found another book and that is how I work.

I work in layers but instead of the large doll being the shell its the baby doll that gives the bigger layer. I'm busy on top with Claude and Copilot to make a really awesome rulebook guide for it to help with understanding the CIRCULAR FOOTBALL game and a human take on it. Hope to have it done soon but we are at are 70th version of changes and fine tuning.

WAIT A MINUTE!!!

70!!!! Versions of a rulebook for a fantasy game Aria.... that seems like so much work for something that is .... that is .... I don't know but a lot of work for a detail
Ancient Egyptian Relief

It is the small details that bring on the layers. Lots of layers for looking at the small things... 

And when I give life to the small details, the lives of those that are in the background make added sense.

All lives matter, what they care about matters, and with understanding the small bits the world becomes richer.

Camel With Pyramids

Time for a little FMR... Research....
Aria FMR?

Football Teams Lined
Stone Pathway Outdoors

Yes FMR - Football Madness Research

When I say football madness research, I don’t just mean researching technology — I mean diving into the culture surrounding football.

I genuinely enjoy watching sports in a crowd, but I wouldn’t call myself a fan of any particular team. My husband is, and that’s beautiful. It’s what he loves. I just don’t always understand it the way he does.

But I’m writing a book where Football is a huge deal, so it’s time for me to get out there and look deeper at the culture behind all of it.

I’ve already built quite the rulebook for my fantasy football game in another universe — the football game of gods, demigods, and heroes at their various stages of development.

Since it leans on American football, I want to research modern football obsession: what drives players and fans, why certain rules spark endless debate, and how technology shapes the sport.

 

One should write what one knows — and for a dream writer, that means studying beyond what I saw in the dream and my personal experience at times. Studying matters.

 

Yes, it is a fantasy world with fantasy rules but when I lean on real things, I learn everything I can about those real things so I am writing not just the dream, but what I know. I see the scenes in my head but do any of the moves got terms already for them that are near or are something specific. Taking the dream, applying the real, and discovering what was fantasy and what was reality.

I may spend several months researching, and I fully plan to write the football scenes with Lord Sinjin looking over my shoulder. He’s a great lover of sports, and I enjoy having him there giving me pointers while I send his mind into a tailspin and make him want to play my version…

A circular field. No out‑of‑bounds. Magical zones. God fouls — violations of a deity’s domain through your personal philosophy. Plays that decide the fate of the world.

 

A fullback sprinting across the central town in the circular field to reach a different quadrant — familiar enough to feel like football, but different enough to be fun. And sometimes the gods create terrain that suits them. 

Goddess of Nature: DON’T DAMAGE THE PLANT LIFE. Stay on the stone pathways. Imagine running down the field, dodging left, clipping a bush — FOUL! You damaged my petunias.  Foul ... most foul.

God of Marriage... your ... single and your how old..... foul... foul so foul....

 

God of Solitude you ... are married.... foul foul so attrociously foul why would you be here. Wait you sent in how many to my fortress of solitude. Now that is even more foul. How can you stand there when you know I want to be alone..

Ha ha ha appeasing the gods...you can appease some of them some of the time but for sure not all of them all the time. Which is wny there is ... a special zone to work penance from the most neutral goddess who says lets just play some football without demanding anyone be what we think they should be..

Dental Surgery Ouch

The thing about making too much and not enough means dental work is one of those things that are like a dream. But what did I do this final week of July when I have medicaid I aggressively had the dentist pull 6 teeth that needed it in ONE WEEK. And I am in a world of pain but it finishes up the month.

My husband's dad told us that he is mailing out to us some of his inheritance early as he just cashed a long-term CD and means to give it early.

 

This needs to be reported to Medicaid on reciept. And that does mean we will be ineligible in August for a month. But I only needed Medicaid and food stamps for this between time of being out of work as I really couldn't manage everything on his Social Security as I more or less blew my savings 2 months ago due to car trouble.

 

Yep, yep we have all been there..

In August, I won't need the food stamps with the check and I thank him for the gift. The funds come at a good time not that we asked him for it. He told us before I even lost my job that he had decided to send it.

 

Its not like a massive amount, but it is enough to take care of what we need it and more besides.

 

That is great so after I inform medicaid as I get it. Those funds will be saved for the next person who needs it. 

It does mean I will have an awkward insurance month as I will need the termination letter from medicaid to get marketplace coverage as that is a qualifying life event.

 

With a cancer patient and this accident prone lady, we don't want to run around without insurance. Ugh I had other appointments in August to attend but they can be rescheduled.

I will not worry on it but address the matter as soon as possible, but I won't worry.

 

Instead I will go a visiting folks because one small thing about working on callcenters is NO TIME OFF beyond your standard days off. So without 10 appointments in the way that frees up my time to visit genuinely visit folks. 

The What's on Deck, writing, and the rest will be on pause that means mostly and so we will devote time to kid book production. Exciting times for that it means.  And the deck for sure isn't empty.

Aria now how are you rolling with all these hills and dells with stride?

I just deal with what it is. I figure out worst case and best case scenarios and flow with the
tide and wind.

If you don't bend, you will break. But if you do flow with both, you might wind up someplace extraordinary.

But I am at a certain age when a lady gets a little eratic and thus sometimes...

even though I try to keep a check on it,
I get a little snippy
when someone hits that nerve that always bugged me before.

HA HA HA ... 

I am human and I sometimes have to apologize for the crazy moments.

Artist Working in Atelier

I am not perfect

But I am working at it

Hope You All Had A Good July 2026

See you next month.

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