Friday, July 31, 2009

Last day of July 09

Since I can't get Pat's patter to give me a NEW POST bar, I'll have to go with this new one, pittypatter. Still at blogspot. For those who read the latest Pat's Patter, with the list of surnames? Here is a portion of a novel chapter using as many of those names as possible. The words used are in caps in this venue. Just an example of how I use the newspaper in writing.

"While he was gone, I looked in his wagon. There were several bottles of salve made of BUFFALO BUSH BERRies for BURNS, KEY rings with little HORNS blown by clowns with JOLLY on their shirts, a WOLF pelt, a MAY issue of Saturday Evening Post, a STERN-faced doll with a GRAY and WHITE outfit that reminded me of a fierce nun."

Places in central AR have had 10 inches of rain during this month, but it is sunny today. Wettest July since the late 1890s, I read this morning. Of course all the rain means the grass grows faster, so my acre is ready to mow. Here I go. Later, pl

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

The ether must have eaten my other blog, so here's a similarly-named one

I could get to my latest post (July 11) but could not find a way to compose a NEW POST. Have a note in to Pappy and Dot to advise me on how to continue with pat's patter. In the meantime, since I have activated a year-old g-mail account, I have better access in some ways. It took not even a password to begin this one.

Finally sent off four entries to WCCW's fall contest, two prose pieces and two poems. AND $14! Which is the highest contest fee around these central AR parts. The Poets' Roundtable of AR only charges $10 for 30 or so contests. This is for members; it is a little higher for non-members (See www. Poets'Roundtableof AR for the website).

Now that my entire life isn't consumed by those two new writings --one 2200 words, the other 1,000 words--I seem to be "unemployed." Of course, I could work on my forever-in-progress novel. Or I could clean off the shed porch for a family get-together this Saturday when my Florida son, who just turned 48, comes over with his dad and local siblings/ niece and nephew.

I could weedeat around the red-mud/ white rocks slash at the north edge of the property where ATT dug a trench for fiber optic lines, covered it over, but left it piled up with a large flex pipe exposed. They have several similar places in this neighborhood and along Salt Creek Road, I noticed.

There are several other cleaning-related jobs I could do, but somehow, I'm not in the mood. Or the deadline isn't here yet. So I'll update my blog, Dear John an e-mail correspondent, begin next week's (Amity) STANDARD column, or just sit on the porch and read.

Hmm, that last option sounds like the best. Later, pl