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My Obsessions

Before I retired I had visions of myself sitting at my desk writing the next great novel.  I do a lot of sitting at my desk but mostly researching things other than writing.  Okay, I do some of that, too.  Last Spring my obsession was Barn Quilts.  In case you don’t know what that is and to save you from Googling it: A barn quilt is a large, hand painted wooden block displayed on the side of a barn; the painting usually depicts a quilt pattern.  Standard size is 8 x 8 but mine are 1 x 1 so they can be displayed on a wooden fence, shed or indoors. 

First I wanted to know how people came up with the patterns; I studied that.  Then I created my own pattern.  The process was fun and engaged my long, lost math skills.  Since I loved it so much I decided that I should buy small cans of outdoor paint in the primary colors – red, blue, yellow, white and black.  That cost a pretty penny but I could mix my own shades.  And mixing colors is fun!

My First Barn Quilt

Painting them was the easiest part but time consuming because first the block needed 3 coats of white primer.  Then the colors needed at least 3 coats as well.  So, generally, while waiting for colors to dry I was prepping the next one with primer and drawing the pattern.  This kept me very busy until travel season came.  I put it away. 

While visiting family and friends in California my second obsession was seeded into my brain but I had to wait until I got home.  Sourdough Bread!  Oh, how I fretted over that starter.  As soon as I created it the weather changed from hot to very cold.  One week passed then two.  On the third week after daily feedings and tons of research my starter responded.  Now it is a rock star, reacting to feedings within an hour or two.  My third loaf was pretty good and we brought it over to some friends for a dinner they were preparing.  It was a hit.

Sourdough Starter

My sixth loaf is the best, to date.  I’m still tweaking the crust; I want it to be a little softer.  All my sourdough bread research boiled down to one thing – pay attention to the texture and pliability of the dough.  I also needed to watch it while it cooks to get the right crust.  I made some delicious pull-apart buns for Thanksgiving using my sourdough starter instead of yeast.  Last night we had sourdough pizza that was very good.  No more buying Publix pizza dough or their sourdough loaves; I’ve got that covered. 

My Best Loaf

I need to get back to writing; I have several unfinished short stories.  But first I think I’ll research homemade Calzone!

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The Things You Find in Rockpools by Gregg Dunnett

My Review

Billy is an 11-year-old whiz kid, who doesn’t have much time for other people.  He lives alone with his Dad who is an avid surfer and also the caretaker of vacation cottages on Lornea.  Lornea is an island off the coast of Massachusetts.  Billy plans to become an oceanographer and is already working on a project regarding the fiddler crabs in the rockpools near his home.  The island is all abuzz regarding the 16-year-old daughter of a vacationing family who disappeared during the summer.  Winter is approaching and there have been no clues or leads.

Emily, the local café waitress suggests that Billy could do a better job of finding out what happened to the girl than the local police.  That was all Billy needed to inspire him and to turn his and his Dad’s life upside down.

This novel was offered as an Amazon Kindle deal and the synopsis interested me so I took a chance.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.  The story starts out with a good grab for the reader then it calms a little for a short time.  Gradually the suspense grows until it is difficult to put down. 

Kudos to Gregg Dunnett, an independent author. 

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The Dog Stars by Peter Heller

My Review

Hig is a pilot who lives in a small Colorado airport hanger.  He has a dog, Jasper, and a neighbor, Bangley.  Jasper is old and Bangley is a heavily armed cynic.  The three are the only living beings in a radius of about 10 miles.  This is due to a flu epidemic followed by a blood disease.  The few people that do approach the well-guarded hanger are shot to be safe because most of the humans that Hig and Bangley have encountered were not very nice.  The two men depend on each other for survival even though they have very different world views.  The world is changed, though, now that most people are dead. 

Hig is the narrator of the story and he spends much of his time talking about the past.  He is lonely and doesn’t really know how to feel about Bangley, who has saved his life many times.  There is a compound of Mennonites who suffer from the blood disease about 10 miles from the hanger.  Hig flies patrols to watch for any trouble over a 30 mile radius.  It is on these runs that he occasionally visits the compound to bring supplies.  Bangley doesn’t trust the Mennonites. 

On one of Higs’ runs he received a radio transmission that inspired hope.  Three years later he is motivated to investigate even if it means he won’t make it back to the hanger.

One of the things that I like about this book is that the writing is concise; there are no wasted words.  That makes it move quickly.  I also enjoy the viewpoint of Hig; he is more of a soft touch than Bangley. 

An excerpt:

“Bangley a long time ago gave me a bulletproof, one of the vests in his arsenal.  He has all kinds of shit.  He said it’ll stop any handgun, an arrow, but with a rifle it depends, I better be lucky.  I thought about that .  We’re supposed to be the only two living souls but the families in at least hundreds of square miles, the only survivors, I better be lucky.”

But the pair are good for each other’s survival.  And Hig, later, learns the value of their friendship. 

The author, Peter Heller, has a long resume of adventure travel stories and contributions to Outdoor Magazine.  He has written a handful of books.  Constantin Films (of Resident Evil fame) has acquired the film rights.  You can find a YouTube trailer here. Don’t get too excited about the all-star cast; it was using film clips from several other movies. So far, there is no info yet regarding the movie. 

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Michigan’s Mackinac Island

To begin with, it’s pronounced “Mackinaw” for a reason that even the locals didn’t seem to know. It is just across Lake Huron from Mackinaw City (yes, same pronunciation; different spelling).

There are several restaurants and ice cream parlors. It was a great way to spend the day with some friends from our old Florida neighborhood.

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YouTube Learning

Just discovered Diane Callahan’s series of fiction writing videos. Just watched the “How to Write a Good First Line”.  I found it inspiring and went on to watch “All About Writing in First Person”.  Another good one for me since my novel is written in first person and it’s a bit tricky.  

I plan to watch all of her videos and highly recommend them to my writer friends.

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On the Road with Marty and Charlie

We left Tallahassee on a Sunday after much packing and planning. We both probably packed too much yet I am still missing “things”. How is it that we can live with so much and with so little and not really notice the difference. Pondering.

We have worked our way up to Michigan, stopping for a night in Acworth, GA. We use an app called AllStays, which helps us locate campgrounds. Our preference are the Army Corps of Engineer campgrounds because they are generally on the water and we get 50% off with our Senior Pass.   Unfortunately, those campgrounds are generally around dams and not all states have those.

Our second stop was just north of Mammoth Cave in Kentucky; another ACE campground called Dog Creek.  It was a nice spot but there was no connectivity.  We kept ourselves busy visiting Mammoth Cave.

Our third stop as we make our way up to Michigan was Pokagon State Park in Indiana.  Did a little bit of hiking and spent one night.  Now we are in Higgins Lake State Park.  We had to change sites once since weekends are busy and our first site had been reserved.  Another reservation had been cancelled and we got that one.  More on why WE don’t reserve sites ahead of time in a later blog.

This campground is located on the grounds where a huge CCC (Civilian Conservation Corp) project had been in the early 1900s.  Now there is a Museum and Nursery that memorialize the project. The point was to reforest Michigan, who had overcut their, over logged and burned their forests leaving the land barren.  Now the land is beautiful and there are many old growth trees.  We took a hike through one such forest.

Charlie, the cat, has become a big flirt ever since we invited a couple of neighbors over to pet him. Now he can’t seem to get enough stranger affection.

For the coming week we plan to meet some Florida friends for a day or so and then head up to the UP (Upper Peninsula) for several days.

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Shimmy, Shimmy Cocoa Puffs

Published in the Charlotte Sun Herald – April 28, 1995

I never wanted any rabbits.  I made that clear.  It was the old man that got them.  He saw the boy’s face light up at the fair, trying to win one – spent nearly ten dollars.

I never wanted any rabbits.  If it had been up to me, I would have told the boy to earn some money mowing lawns or maybe washing cars.  He could have built the cage first and gone out and bought himself a rabbit.  The way I figured it, he would have lost interest after washing two or three cars.  Then we wouldn’t have any rabbits. 

I never wanted any rabbits.  The old man did.  He probably always wanted rabbits but was deprived as a child.  The old man’s daddy never took him to the fair, much less bought him rabbits. One thing his daddy did do was to take him hunting and he taught him how to skin whatever he shot. 

I never wanted any rabbits.  Two days before Easter, he brought them home, three pedigrees.  The plan was the boy would pick one to be his and the old man would take care of the other two.  That’s when the girl decided she wanted one.

I never wanted any rabbits.  The new plan was that they would work on the cage on the weekends when the old man was home.  For now they were fine on the patio chasing each other and procreating.  The old man hadn’t asked about the genders of the new family members.

Now we’ve got rabbits – lots of rabbits.  I look out over my patio watching the sun rise with all its glory and splendor.  Then I see them, little brown pellets covering the stone decking.  

And I think to myself…Cacciatore!

 © Karen J Adams August 8, 2019

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