The Association is out to beta readers and planned for a Halloween release! (That is, provided Amazon works with me. Sometimes books get stuck in approval and come out late if they’re not set up for preorder which mine won’t be, but we’ll see!) Since Halloween is otherwise going to be a bit weird this year, I figured I may as well do something nice for myself on my favorite holiday, and washing my hands of a story is pretty nice.
It was weird shutting down Scrivener last night knowing that I wouldn’t open The Association in it today. Of course, it’s still got some heavy-ish editing coming up based on beta feedback and my own proofing/last-minute changes, but for the next week or two I’m not pulling up the files. Those words are off limits! And after such an intense couple months of editing (on and off due to non-writing life things), it feels friggin strange. What about Ivy, I ask myself, and then remember her story is pretty much sorted.
I’ve got some blogs planned re: the move we just made, but since some of the issues we experienced are still on-going, and since my brain is a little fried today, I decided to put them off until they’re resolved or at least until I’m in the kind of headspace where I can laugh about them instead of cry. (Actually I didn’t really cry about any of these problems, but I did get hella Italian mad which is equally not good for anybody in this house’s mental health). So instead, this:
I got a new mug! I’m a sucker for a good mug, and this is a legit good mug.
Primarily my mugs are Halloween themed, and every year I add one or maybe two to the collection. They bring me a lot of easy, low-cost joy. Mari Kondo would encourage me to keep every single one. No matter which one I pull out of the cupboard, I’m legit stoked to make my iced cold brew or hot chai. I’ve got one that’s covered in cow spots and has little udder legs and another that’s shaped like a cat with ears and everything and another with my awesome friend’s artwork on it, and each gives me such a whoosh of endorphins.
And it’s got to be the little things nowadays because the big things are sort of gone or just a downer. Husband and I were on the verge of taking our first big vacation this year after a decade of life together, like on a plane and everything, just the two of us, maybe even to another country, or at least another part of the US. Clearly that didn’t happen, and I know it’s fine, and I’m lucky to have even been able to consider it, and people are dying, Ashley, so fucking buck up, but I’m just saying I need to find little pockets of joy and hold onto them to improve my outlook.
So, in today’s pocket: new mug, turning leaves, the ability to start decorating my office (pictures of that coming soon too!).
Husband and I also found a place to go walking near where we live. We used to have a neighborhood for that, but our current situation doesn’t lend itself to a leisurely stroll. There’s a “linear park” that we found nearby, though, and it’s pretty amazing, better than the neighborhood, honestly. This is a pretty big pocket of joy, considering, but there were a few moments where we considered not returning because there are a lot of people there. They keep their distance, and you can walk along and not see anybody else for quite a while, but our chances of catching and spreading the big bad are upped. We’ve decided to keep going, but not as often as we’d like, and to be very cautious when we do go, but the whole thing just sucks: it sucks we have to think about it at all, and it sucks that it feels like we’re the only ones even still thinking about it. Pandemics, like any other atrocities, don’t end because you’re bored of them.
And they also don’t end just because the calendar year is coming to a close. Time keeping is a made-up, human concept that viruses give exactly as many shits about as I do when it comes to every misogynistic opinion I’ve had to contend with during this move which is a big, fat zero.
Sigh.
I also got a new water bottle that’s green into purple ombré and has little tick marks for how much water you should drink per hour, and I love it because it’s keeping me hydrated and it gives me something to challenge and beat every damn day. The competitor in me is stoked, but my bladder isn’t. So I’ll stick that in my pocket too and shut up for now.
A.K. Caggiano 