I apologize for the lack of blogging lately. I’ve had a wee bit of time off work again and have had time to relax, write, think, and, of course watch and read various stories. Another bullet list of things:
- As my close friends know, I’m a nerd, so enjoy the occasional video game. Nearly 15 years ago I started playing World of Warcraft with my husband and some friends, and by far the most enjoyable times were those early years–the first game (which is now called “Classic” or “Vanilla”) and the first expansion, “The Burning Crusade”. I haven’t been been subscribed much since 2008 or so. But somehow I was fortunate to get into the beta of the redo of Classic, so have been trying it out and have been having a really good time. My preferred class is the druid, and it’s no surprise, as it’s kind of the nature-lore-based class. I have luckily made friends with people I hope to be able to play with when the game comes out.
- We made an attempt at Golden Ears Provincial Park on our 13th anniversary, but both of us had the worst colds imaginable and so couldn’t stay past one evening (the fire smoke really bothered me especially); still, I got to spend about four hours in a nice chat with my husband, around a fire. It’s really been a great time since we met over 15 years ago. And on the way there, we found a great deli in Maple Ridge. The good news is our electrical car made there and back. The bad news is that I give up on provincial park camping, really. As much as I love the hikes and the tent-camping, every single park we’ve been to is not really a get-away as it is a place for people to hook up generators so they can party late and blend margaritas and play music loudly. No thanks. Might as well pitch a tent in our back yard. It’s quieter and more peaceful and probably has more wildlife. We are headed to Salt Spring Island in August, for another tent-camp, this time with a couple friends, my mother-in-law, and a couple of her friends. But it’s not a provincial park–just a privately owned area. I’m really looking forward to that.
- I’ve been working on a new interview for my world eco-fiction series at Dragonfly. It will go up next week; this one involved getting a translator to help with some of the answers, so thanks to my coworker Mavis for helping with that!
- On the reading front, I pre-ordered Rory Powers’ Wilder Girls, which comes out in July. I am prepared to have my mind blown. On the watching front, it seems my new gamer friends are also Game of Thrones fanatics, so it has been fun having these conversations–one in particular about Jenny of Oldstones, some lore that didn’t make it much into the television series; though the song sung by Podrick Payne in Season 8, Episode 2 (a great scene) was beautiful. I’m still reeling from that show and want to reread the books again, but my reading list is so full at the moment. I haven’t found anything else to watch and may just give the screen a break. I do hope to see the Elton John movie this weekend.
- That’s about it, for now. Bulleted lists make it easy to blog sometimes, but it’s just laziness as well. I am kind of overwhelmed with other things lately, not to mention trying to finish my next novel by next year and keep up with the regular work I am committed to!
The featured image is of the last time I was in Tennessee when my Aunt Helen was alive. I have lately been missing the south again. I guess a trip is due sometime in the future. I’ve been wanting to go visit Mom and my siblings and then go down to the Appalachian area to see my cousins again too.
