Apologies to Anyone Interested in Picking Up Where I Left Off

 Hey, to any followers who might be listening!

I can easily imagine that I'm writing for myself after this long hiatus. Yes, I got my travel trailer all ready and hit the road in January 2015. 

After a short stay with my good friend (adopted Little Brother) Danny Smith and his sweet wife Bev (more later about that lovely visit), I traveled on. 

Then, in Arizona, on a windy day, the trailer and I had a tussle about who was in charge. It won. Or, I should say, it lost the battle and ended up in a huge pile of splinters.

Stuff piled onto the salvage trailer.

Structural wood in a pile!

Not even the worst truck damage.

When all was settled there, I journeyed on to California, spent some time with nephew Paul and his sweet wife Tereza in San Francisco. I bought an old camper to go on my poor old battered Ford pickup there, Paul and Tereza labored mightily to get me on the road again, and I came on to my hometown, Santa Maria, California. I've been ensconced in a small apartment in a senior residential complex for three years now, wondering when I'll get back to writing, to finishing up all the partially-written stories and book just waiting for attention.

I fill my time with odds and ends, try to make myself useful when friends here need a ride or help with some other doable task. There's a small garden area beside the building I live in, and I water and weed a bit while keeping a small plot of alyssum flowers in bloom in Little Mother's honor.

The feral cats on the property need feeding, and that seems to have fallen partly to me and one other woman. 

And, I became the unofficial hall monitor, keeping lobby doors closed or open, as the powers-that-be order--often in opposition to unruly fellow residents who prefer fresh air to orders. (smile) Oh, and I play the piano in the main lobby several times a week, just to keep my hand in. People pass by, sometimes sit for awhile to listen and seem to enjoy the music. So far, I haven't begun the swimming pool exercise program I keep thinking about.

I will try to keep this up, for my own benefit mostly but also for anyone who still has an interest.

Beverly "SilverBee" Scofield

It feels like coming up for air after a long swim underwater. I'm not trying to compare the busyness of my life with yours, for I'm luckier than most in my freedom to choose. It's the plethora of choices that makes it all seem so gaspingly immediate. (smile) What are these absolutely overwhelming choices? Well . . . now that I try to put them into more down-to-earth terms, they seem more exciting than threatening. Okay, I love them. I admit it! Satisfied? LOL 

So, instead, I'll tell you about a book I just ran across. I'm only part way into the first chapter and I'm thinking, "Everyone should read this book!" You know--you've read that kind of book. This one is Original Sinners: A New Interpretation of Genesis by John R. Coats. No, it isn't a book about religion per se, but one about human nature--about me, for one, and I suspect about all us human beans. (smile) Here's what Coats says about his book: 

 "When I began writing Original Sinners, I wanted to create something different, a study of Genesis that would not be doctrinal, that would be light but not lightweight, and relevant to modern life, whether the reader was religious or not. So, rather than following the usual path of focusing on the significance of the stories, I decided to employ the method of scriptural interpretation I learned almost forty years ago when a mentor taught me to focus on the characters in the stories, to look deeper, beneath the overlays of doctrine and history, and find their humanity. What do their stories reveal about motive, strength and weakness of character? What do their lives have in common with my life—with our common life? and, By studying their lives, might we learn about our own? What I found, again, was a humanity all too familiar in its flaws, its tragedy, yet moving, funny, and often outrageous—in other words, a humanity much like my own, and yours."[http://www.johnrcoats.com/about-the-book/]

Just to give you a little taste of his writing (because chances are you'll smile at my enthusiasm and move on to your own latest novel, or textbook, or whatever).

"Imagine yourself as the first human being. You've popped into the world inside the body of a full-grown adult. You've gone from being a nonbeing to being and become fully conscious, although you have no memories, no parents, no siblings, friends or enemies. No clothes and no language, though it seems reasonable that from thy bowels, as our Elizabethan ancestors were wont to say, would arise some expression of, What the' . . . ? as you stood, lay, or sat, blank-brained, absorbing those first burst of fivefold sensory input. This wordless sense of being and identity is just the sort of abstraction that your big Homo sapiens brain is designed to ponder and dissect. Advanced queries such as Who am I? and What am I? will follow, in time." [From the chapter Act One: Adam and Eve, but Mostly Eve: pg. 9, first paragraph.]

I fully intended to rant on about all the choices of tasks I found overwhelming each morning--the things that prevented me from writing a post in my blog. Instead, I've reviewed a wonderful book. A better choice, don't you think? (smile)

Bye for now. Enjoy life. 

WELL, HERE'S A DRAFT I STARTED SOME TIME AGO. NOW IT APPEARS THE ADMIN HAS SOLVED ALL MY HACKER PROBLEMS. THANKS!


I'm making progress. For every step backward, I'm taking one and a half forward. (smile) At the end of October, I picked up the travel trailer and towed it to the place near home where a good neighbor is allowing me to park it. That was the forward movement. Then, the backward step came when one of the tires blew itself to smithereens coming back from a trip to Camping World to get a few things up and running.

During all these steps forward and backward, I've had Nina with me sometimes or Douglas at other times. Don't know what I'd have done without them. They've given freely of their time, and I'll be eternally grateful. Douglas took all the tires home with him and, two days later brought the new ones, already installed on the wheels. He put the tires on and accompanied me back to the meadow. He has researched all kinds of information and is mentoring me in all the things I need to know and remember about caring for and traveling with my trailer.

One thing I've discovered is that those years traveling with Tony, pulling our 40' fifth-wheel, didn't make me all that knowledgeable about this trailer. Tony did most of the work that would have meant a lot to my new situation. I knew about many tasks, but I didn't assimilate the experience by doing things myself. So, I'm in learning mode.

As more progress comes to pass, I'll be back to update. Also, I guess I have to come every day to delete the hacker's posts.

Hey, it looks as though my blog has been cleaned of all the hacked entries! Hooray.

Got a good response about the eliminations of those unpleasant posts that appeared to come from me. Maybe all is well now.

I think I've regained a bit of control over my blog. The unwanted posts have been trashed, and I think I've set some instructions that ought to prevent further incursions. However, it may also prevent others from commenting. We'll see how it goes.

It's hard to believe it has been four months since I peeked in here, much less posted something. So, here it is in a nutshell.

I've taken a job as a cashier and all-around gofer at Ingles Supermarket. I hoped for an office position but, alas, I took this as a trade off for the gas I'll save. The store is just a half mile from my place of residence. I am enjoying meeting the people, and I'm told my "personality" is a plus. Or  maybe that's a way of remarking about how much I like to talk.The pay isn't overwhelming, but I enjoy seeing those weekly amounts slip into my checking account.

I'm approaching the time I'll be able to finish repairs on the Ford pickup, though I can't quite see over the "hill" between me and purchase of the travel trailer.

Sam Alexander finished the illustrations to be included in the re-publication of The Girl Who Dreamed of Ships. The Writer's Digest Self-Published Book Competition judge suggested I re-publish with a few additions to the story and a new, more colorful cover. Sam's drawings will add interest, too.

 

Old "dreary" cover (according to WD judge)

 
 Never a Drop of Seawater has hit a snag. My source for advice and encouragement about the island of Tristan da Cunha has not been exactly promising. Since my fictional tale is so closely woven into the actual events on the island, I'm finding it difficult to find my way through the tangle. It will come.

 

Tristan da Cunha Island

My cockatiels are doing well, though they are getting more and more demanding. They want out and I do like giving them a few minutes of flight time. The problem is:  A few minutes is not enough!

 

My Beautiful Turtle

(So what if she looked like a turtle when she hatched!)

Walter Pigeon-Toe/Miss Punkin' Pie/Sweet Beau Peep/Honey Penny/Turtle

 

 
Enough for tonight. Except to say, I have reserved the name SilverBee Publications LLC with the State of Tennessee and will complete the incorporation before April. 

 
Goodnight, ya'll!

PS The logo was designed by Donalie Beltran, author of prize-winning true-life tale, Murder is a Family Affair. Check it out!

PPS Looking for a good Indie author and books, check out www.bookco-op.com.