The tree above I took myself when I went to Universal Studios
I wish you a merry Christmas
I wish you a merry Christmas
I wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year
Good tidings I bring to you and your kin
I wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year’
See you back here for a flash on December 26th
I’m back home (got back this evening)
As promised here are some pictures
First ones are from the Safari Park
Sand Cat
A scarecrow
You can sorta see the lion
Starting our tram ride into the wilds of Africa (LOL)
A Rhino
Beautiful Park Scenery
An antelope
A camel peeking out at us
Pumpkin Season!
More Antelopes
Well hello there
View from our restaurant “The Watering Hole”
Our fancy Pumpkin Cheesecake
And at this hotel and casino, they have skipped right over the rest of fall and Thanksgiving to go straight to Christmas!
Thank you so much for checking out my pictures!
For anyone wondering I seem to be on the mend
I stayed out of work today too but plan to return tomorrow, Wednesday
My nose skin is dried out and cracked but not as stuffed so that’s a win. I have no real appetited (I can taste and smell fine) so I’ve lost a few pounds, My throat is still sore. But for the most part I am definitely improved.
Something Stupid is finished, hooray! I literally had to force myself to write the last chapter yesterday as I definitely wanted to procrastinate.
Normally if I was following my own spreadsheet I would be working on the next chapter of Our So Called Life. But since I am getting super close to being finished with The Ghost and Mr. Spock I have decided to skip the update on OSCL for now so I can have another story completed. When we last checked in with The Ghost and Mr. Spock, a magical Christine broke Jim’s curse and he was alive again. Should be an exciting update.
I’ll be getting ready to post the first chapter of cheating Jim after that.
In many parts of the US right now (and Europe too I believe) it’s boiling hot. So far where I live we have been quite lucky to have a regular, normal summer. Which for us in July is mid-to high 80s most days. It cools off into the 60s at night. August and September are usually our beastly months so I anticipate 90s and above for both of those months (we often go that high in October as well).
I’m gone again for a few days this week. Friday the 29th would have been Ma’s 96th birthday had she lived. We’re off to do one of her favorite things back when she was able, which is to go to a casino! HA. I’ll be masked up the whole time as I swear I am literally the last one who hasn’t gotten Covid around me. Should be fun. Fear not the last two Christmas in July stories are already written and ready to go live on their days.
As is the first three flashes for August. I think I have two of those left to go as they will appear each Monday.
This is a good thing as I have a bunch of stuff already planned for August too. Family barbecue August 6 (nieces, nephew, their families). Going overnight up the coast August 13th to one of our favorite restaurants that we haven’t been to in a million years called, Jocko’s in Nipomo, CA (a tiny little town in Santa Barbara County). They serve big thick steaks (this should clue you in that I am not a vegetarian ha). Then I will be gone a whole week to Vegas for the Star Trek Convention. BUSY BUSY August.
The overtime is coming to a close I think. I may have a few hours left of it but I think the worst of it is over. The extra money was nice and I will miss the money but not working all the extra time.
You didn’t get a lot of extra Christmas in July stories and I do apologize for that. But I do hope you liked the ones you did get. Those that follow this blog get exclusive access to those flashes as I won’t be posting them to AO3.
Back from my trip and here are some pictures for your enjoyment. Tonight it’s off to the cousin’s house
I am working diligently (or attempting to) on the final chapter of my 5 Things story. It’s about half done and I’m working on the sexy times part or about to, anyway. That will be my next update before the next chapter of The Mysterious One.
In other news I am rewriting the first two chapters of the Jim cheats on Spock story, Not too Few Regrets. I started it as first person but decided to go back to third and I intend to change the title. It’s going to be angsty obviously when i start posting it again but I want to get a bit done before that happens.
Still have a few Christmas in July’s to write but I am in pretty good shape there.
Sister just feels like she has a cold though still testing positive. Next week we go to Morro Bay for a couple of days June 30-July02. She thinks she will be good to go so the three of us are planning on it. Me, M, and Sister.
Over time continues. I did get an extra $200 last paycheck and an extra $400 this latest one so there is that. Given the prices of everything and my upcoming trip to Vegas at the end of August I’ll need it.
Last night we actually got a touch of rain and it’s 90ish today. Many parts of the country have it worse weather wise than us so I am not complaining! Yet.
If you are looking for something to read of mine, I will suggest Potions. I can’t link to it at the moment but if you find my “Stand Alone Series” it’s number 21.
I leave you with a picture of M’s world famous red, white and blue margaritas, this was from Memorial Day this year.
It’s been a while so I thought I’d get some pictures up of May here in So Cal. How long will this last considering we are on mega water restrictions? Who knows.
In other news, I am going to be working a lot of Over Time at work on a project for a few months so that’s going to cut even more into my writing. Sorry to say.
Someone commented recently about me working on Spirk fic on AO3 for pretty much a decade, which is close to true (9 years in August) and though they were complimentary it also got me thinking. How long is too long? I don’t know.
A year ago, Mom died.
On May 16th last year, we had to move her from the bed she’d slept in for over 25 years to a hospital bed in her room because we were unable to get her in and out of her real bed anymore. She was too weak. Up to that point for weeks, we had bathed her, cleaned her, dressed her and put her to bed. Cancer is a bitch, as I am sure most of you unfortunately know.
Still the 16th was a shocking day, though we knew it was coming. She no longer would eat and barely would take a few sips of water. The hospice people started giving her morphine that day and she never really came out of it to full consciousness after that. She was on oxygen. Each day I would go over to my sister’s to see her and I hope she knew I was there.
On May 20th, the nurses told my sister I should probably come. So I did. She didn’t pass that night, but we spent time with her. She never liked to be touched or hugged or comforted that way. She was raised in a rather cold Irish Catholic family and that’s just the way they all were. But she let us that last night. We stroked her hand and told her we loved her.
I went home that night when the night nurse came. I returned the next morning, May 21st. We kept the oxygen on then only so the priest could come for last rites (they call it the anointing of the sick now). When he finally arrived, we went through it with him.
After his departure, they turned off her oxygen, and it really was very quick after that. Not even an hour. I was in the room next to her when she passed. It was both easier than I thought it would be and torture at the same time.
It’s hard to believe we’ve already had a year pass. Today we are bring flowers to where her ashes are buried and then spending the rest of the day celebrating her long life as she made it very close to 95 years.
Anyway, thank you for listening.
Spirk (with a small dose of Pinto) 