True Blood

name of TV series based on books

Taking that Breath

~ Natsgirl ~ Leave a comment

Morning and so nice to be back.

That fork in the road has been disruptive, as most forks are. Saying goodbye to things that have outlived their time is not easy. Change never is. As I have made another step toward that person I will become I’ve found some friendships have proven themselves. They have grown with me, willing to bend as I am, myself, bending.

Others have not.

It has been a year of travel and discovery. I am hiking in company, as well as alone. I am seeing beautiful places and finding that this part of my life is another beginning.

One thing I have missed is writing. It is that quiet place where I can allow my feelings to surface in ways it’s not polite to do in company. My characters speak for me, and reflect those I see around me. I don’t have to give them my ‘polite’ face. They can scheme, love, rant ad play to their hearts’ content. And, so they do.

My apologies for wandering so long. I can’t promise I’ll be totally back on schedule, but I am writing. Thank you for your understanding.

Chapter 45 – Goblin’s Dance

Flower Time!

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I hope you have a wonderful time, regardless of the holiday you celebrate. For me, it’s the coming of the leaves that puts a spring in my step. Rains fall. Flowers bloom and all the earth reminds us that in the big flick of things, there is always a new beginning.

My best to you, and special thanks to Ms Buffy. May your cheeks be sore from smiling and your arms ache from returning the many hugs you receive.

Chapter 43 – Stranger Things

Travel.. travel…

~ Natsgirl ~ 4 Comments

The deer are migrating past my door, seeking the greener grass of the open fields to the south. They pick their way along the ridge, making their way down the steep embankment to drink from the rill that runs with Spring rain. It is the time of great awakening and movement, and it has my feet itching to find the road again.

Already the year has taken on a feel of travel. Monadnock, Yosemite, Cuyoga, Freeport, Inverness. Each place a stamp in the passport that will be my life. Each adventure carries with it some special meaning: reuniting with friends, seeing family, making new friends in new places. Each adventure another reason to rejoice in this great gift that is this life.

I wish all of you the same joy I feel, and hope you also find sweet adventure in each moment of your lives.

Thank you, Ms Buffy, for forgiving my tardiness in sending you my writing. I’ve become distracted by deer and daffodils. I will make an effort to be less last minute, dear friend!

Chapter 41 – Breadcrumbs

Monday night?

~ Natsgirl ~ 3 Comments

Yes, the chapter is late, and it’s coming out on a Monday.

First, I was late in writing, and my dear editor, Ms Buffy, has had a bit of a health issue. Nothing life-threatening, but enough that in spite of her cheery, unfailingly humorous way of telling it, I worry for her.

So, you are getting a chapter that has not had the benefit of her editing, and it’s the worse for it.

There is a danger in growing old. I speak, of course, for myself. I find that my patience for some things has improved, but my patience with myself has not. Forgive me for my tardiness and I hope it’s worth the wait.

Chapter 29 – Forward Past

Spring Forward…

~ Natsgirl ~ 2 Comments

Is there anything sillier than Daylight Savings Time? Why do we persist?

I’ll be struggling for the whole next week, pushing and prodding my sorry self to adjust to ‘losing’ an hour in my sleep cycle. There was a time it wasn’t so difficult for me, but in the last five years, anything that throws my circadian rhythms out of alignment creates problems.  Am I bitching? Yes… a bit… maybe more than a bit.

Thank you, Ms Buffy for editing this week’s chapter. I know how hard this weather is on you, and I wish you were having an easier time. My thoughts are with you, and all my best wishes for a kinder, gentler Spring.

And thank you, readers, for coming along with me on this journey.

 Chapter 38 – A Body in Motion

Welcome from the Woods

~ Natsgirl ~ 3 Comments

Chapter 37 is now available. I apologize for the delay.

I spent the weekend camping with my new girls’ troop. There remains some confusion here in the U.S. about girls joining Boy Scouts. Some think the troops are integrated: girls and boys camping and meeting together.

Not the case. There are girls’ troops. There are boys’ troops. They may compete against each other at events, but they aren’t in the same units. What allowing girls into the program did provide young women was equal access to the Boy Scout camps, resources and ranks.

Why is this different than Girl Scouts? Because it is. Girl Scouts does not have the heavy reliance on outdoor experiences that Boy Scouting does. Doesn’t make it ‘wrong’, just makes it different. There are girls who’d prefer to be camping in tents, rock climbing, kayaking and hiking in the wild. I was one of those girls, and for those wild spirits like me, there’s now a program that can nourish that part of them.

So, without further delay…

Thanks, Ms Buffy for lending your talent. Stay safe in the snow.

Chapter 37 – Walking on Glass