Phrase Your Response in the form of a Question

I’ll take Hermie and the Hermits for $1600.

     These are the only two things I have energy for at the moment.

What are home improvement and my job?

     Right. Go again.

Matt and I were up at Lowe’s the other night. Again. For what this time, you might ask? Oh, just bits and pieces of intermittent project stuff.

We’re trying to get a slow roll going on the laundry room completion. So far plumbing is done, insulation is done, dryer vent is installed. Drywall behind the appliances should happen Thursday night via Matt. I’ll be spackling Friday morning before our new appliances get here that afternoon.

Over this weekend framing goes up. Next weekend walls and door should be finished.

If we had weeks off to get this thing done, we’d just place the order for everything we need, have it forklifted into the garage and would likely already be halfway done with everything. Including the backyard.

But we both have day jobs so there are still swatches of paint gracing our master bathroom walls, lack of drywall in some places, and twenty some-odd cabinets in my living room still packed in cardboard just waiting to be installed.

Someday.

In good news, the book is really shaping up and I’m pretty excited to get this one into the hands of my beta readers then get her on the market. I have all kinds of new marketing strategies lined up to try after this book gets released and I’m kind of chomping at the bit.

Work is one thing going stellar right now. I feel like a garden hose with the spigot closed. Almost like I know that as soon as Reckless Mind is released there’s going to be a torrent of new work following. Now that I think about it, that is what’s going to happen. I actually have 2 titles in final stages of completion aside from Mind.

The fall is going to be very fun at work.

Thing is, all of this home “improvement” (<-- yes those are air quotes because I feel mixed about how much improvement comes with “improvement” sometimes) is a blessing and a curse.

Once everything is finished this is going to be the most functionally beautiful home either of us have ever lived in. But getting there is a huge challenge for me. Because I work in this chaos too.

Which, admittedly, has made my life a little bit tougher for the past few months. For a while I was still riding on the St. Lucia high of inspiration. I had no trouble writing through and not noticing all this stuff.

But the stuff is starting to overwhelm. Because its everywhere. And I’m stuck inside with every last zip-tie, floating piece of loose cellulose, and pile of stuff-to-yet-be-installed.

We’re heavy into Phoenix summer now, all I want to do is have a pool party and chill out, but there has to be somewhere to put people before we can invite them over.

Two kitchen’s worth of cabinets and temporary storage solutions that belong in the garage take up lots of space.

And that means they’re taking up mental space too. Time to wrap it up!

But then, of course, I come full circle to the day job thing.

We’re weekend warriors. But we’re weekday warriors too. Matt and I are the 100% into our job type of people. Work hard, play never ends up becoming the motto around here. We’re both exhausted.

But the way I see it, we’re on the home stretch.

By the end of August our lives will be a whole lot freer. My book will be out, the laundry room will be complete, and we should be putting finishing touches on our kitchen reno by then, too.

It might be 8/31/2016 but by god it will be August.

I’ve got our project managed in a details, budget, and cost spreadsheet. We know each step and cost before we get there. Hey, all those years working in/with construction and school for interior design are finally getting put to good use! This project is managed to the penny just like the last phase and so far we’re directly on track.

Just wish weekends could be 5 days long.

As for Reckless Mind, she’s almost there. Though it may not seem that way when I go back over the list of what still needs to be done.

Final red pen edits, beta readers, more edits, jacket copy, barcode, ISBN, copyright page, Library of Congress deposit, cover art approval, marketing blurbs, social media/online updates, amazon pre-order set up, final formatting, marketing, advertising, promotion…

So, yeah. The only energy I have left these days is for watching Jeopardy!

But we’re going to have the most kick-ass pool party in September.

• • • • • • • • • • •
In addition to this drivel I also write books, both fiction and non-fiction.
Learn more on my author page.