Friday, March 24, 2017

Flashback Friday: Officially Online!

March 2007:
Remember back in Aug 2006, when I'd worked up the nerve to join the local writer's group, met TD, but two months later had to move?  In late Feb/early March, after things settled down, we had DSL internet installed.  It was wonderful!  After only knowing dial-up, and AOL being my homepage, it was interesting to get used to Yahoo and Google.  One slight hitch:  When my older son set up the email, he put it in 'my' name, but because his dad's name was on the account, I was suddenly getting emails in D's name....unless people already knew it was me!

I still kept my AOL mail, and one day an email from TD popped up, inviting me to join the Indiana Writer's Connection, a chat loop.  I admit, I was leery at first, since I'd seen my 1st chat loop back in 1993, and wondered how people could keep up with the conversation!  But I agreed to give it a try....and suddenly I discovered a whole new world out there.....a world where writers could connect with one another and share information, commiserate, or simply be supportive.  

One of the most valuable pieces of information was how to make a website.  We'd just gotten our tax money, so on the advice of none other than Ms Kelly Kirch, I paid for an entire year's subscription for mollydaniels.citymax.com, and started building my website.

I chatted with published authors, writers who were trying to be published, and writers who simply liked to write, but had no desire to publish.  Once in a while we'd have 'word wars', where we'd all write for an hour, then report back on our progress.

I was in heaven, since no one around here at the time cared about my desire to put words on a page.  I was also thrilled that the pace was slower than what I'd seen in 1993!  Being so small in numbers, you could chat at your own pace.

Next Month:  WriteStuffWrite Conference and Reconnecting!

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Present Day:
Update on NCAA 2017:
The 1st and 2nd rounds were kind to me!
Round 1:  Called 13/16 and 15/16
Round 2:  Called 5/8 and 6/8.
Purdue and Butler both advanced, but Villanova (defending champs) were knocked off.  There's still hope for Gonzaga:)

I finally finished the new short story for 'Family Secrets'!  I added another 1400 words and successfully wrapped it up in a believable manner, and everyone who's read it has FINALLY been satisfied.  One of my beta readers is still not happy with certain details left out, but she's over-ruled by two others and myself, who believe it's unnecessary, since those characters are not the focus of the story.  I got it written twelve hours under deadline, and I was so thrilled, I took off Wednesday to simply relax and READ!

Ant Invasion:
We've been invaded by a small army of unwelcome guests.  At first, it was simply a stray ant here or there, when someone would spill Kool Aid or sugar.  But now they're running all over the counter top more frequently, and I'm finding them on the table, in the dogs' food bowls, and yesterday I had 3 floating in my coffee cup (eeeuuuuu!).  Time to get rid of them and mix up a little something to take back to their queen, so they will permanently leave us alone.  *rubs hands in glee*

Spring Break:
My youngest has had a relaxing Break, sleeping in until 10am and playing video games with his cousins.  He's also spent time at the Pet Port, and wants to start walking dogs or playing with the cats.  The only problem is, since he's only 13, a parent has to accompany him.  I was too busy working on Secrets, and his dad didn't feel well, so he's been a little frustrated the past few days.

A and J are here for the next week also; they had 2 weeks off for Break.  A spends most of her time on the phone, and J has been playing video games with W.  It's been pretty peaceful:)

The spouse's 63rd birthday was Monday, and the older kids bought him a new gas grill.  We grilled pork chops and enjoyed the warmer weather.  On Tuesday, we spent the afternoon working on the front yard, and raking up leaves and pine needles.  I went into 'destruct-mode' and tore off most of the vines on the brown house's porch.  It was cold on Wednesday, but finished up yesterday.

Have a wonderful weekend!

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