Rainy Hump Day

[lydamorehouse]

Yesterday, despite NOT being Mason's favorite parent, he and I went to the park. In the way of my little nerd, we brought along books to read. (New LEGOs catalogue arrived!!!) We started at Mirriam Park, but quickly discovered that it was empty and very cold. So, after a quick stop back home for sweaters and such we headed for the River Road (Saint Paul side.) By chance we ended up reading on a park bench right next to the Desnoyer Park extension (a little paved path that disappeared into the woods towards the Mississippi River.) After hanging out on the park bench just reading for a half hour or so, Mason decided he was up for a little adventure. So we checked out the extension path. It took us down to the river's edge where Mason spend several hours just finding large rocks to toss into the river. We watched some people on the opposite shore play with their dogs on a wide sandy beach, and then we followed the trail awhile until Mason found some easily climbed sandstone cliffs and including one weird little crevass that in a horror film would have housed some giant trapdoor spider, but as it was, was a great place to slip and climb in the white sand.

Mason soon declared this was "the best day ever." So, while I might not be the parent du jour, I get to share the very best days with him. I decided that was a pretty good deal after all. :-)

He's aggitating to go back to the River Road today, and we may do that, although we have a new LEGO Star Wars game at home to figure out. Mason joined Half Price Books' Summer Reading Program, wherein if you read at least 15 minutes a day for seven days a week you get a $3.00 coupon to use at the store. Mason exchanged three weeks worth of reading yesterday and bought the game, a sticker book, a Marvel All Ages "Fantastic Four" graphic novel, and, of course, Mommie and I bought a ton of stuff (although Mama sighed and said that nothing compares to Uncles and we'll just have to make time to get over there before her next business trip to Seattle in the next week.)

Anyway, we're hanging out at the coffee shop right now and I think Mason is at the end of his patience for sittin' and reading, so I may have to keep things short.

Here's my CONvergence schedule:

Friday July 3


7:00 PM: Tricks of the Trade: How to Publish and Not Perish


Saturday July 4


11:00 AM: Lyda Morehouse Signing

12:30 PM: Meet the Wyrdsmiths

2:00 PM: Writers Groups: The Secret to Success in Fiction?

3:30 PM: Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading


Oh, and hey, we have a Senator. Whoot!

Comments

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

I don't think I'll be at Convergence (too damn broke), but Fiona will be. Look for her helping to man the Dreamhaven booth. She's working at Dreamhaven books now. DREAM job for her. I hope you have a great time at the con.

Hello and hooray right back!

[markiv1111.livejournal.com]

Things have been fine, by and large, although it would be nice to have a few more musical gigs. Louie and I have now been at this house for six years and a few months, and it is pretty much working out all right, with some "better than hoped" things (like a couple of our s-f fan musician friends living within a mile and a half). Day jobs continue okay. I was on Lupron to shrink my prostate for eventual treatment of my prostate cancer (finally treated with radioactive seeds) and Lupron makes people stupid, so I lost two day jobs over just a couple of months, but the newest one (and I am being a medical transcriptionist again) is working just fine. Sales of my two CDs have dried up completely, and Louie and I want to do a whole album of me just playing Windham Hill style acoustic guitar, but our regular studio engineer stopped returning our phone calls, and I am not super excited about doing this in any event. Louie's son, who lives with a roommate in the other half of our duplex, remains hard-core unemployed and this is a very bad time to break into the job market, but we are getting by anyway.

I could ask you a whole lot of "how are things?" questions, too, but I have your LJ to read. So it is good to hear from you, and I believe this constitutes "staying in touch."

Nate