The North Bay Stand Down in Dixon, CA

Yes, Stand Down started today and I'm not there. I have moved to Oregon to begin my "retired" life.

LOL! Retired? Yeah, right. Now I'm self-employed so you know I'm busting behind, writing online content, researching new revenue streams AND still trying to get organized.

I'm only retired from Gov't work. My real work continues...

In the meantime, it's not too late to head over to Dixon to volunteer at the Stand Down. They still need YOU to help tomorrow and on Thursday and Friday with closing down and the massive clean-up job. We always need more volunteers to clean the grounds, take out the trash, mop the floors and do a complete scrub-down in the kitchen.

I Have Been Neglecting My Blogging

Well, I have been kinda busy.

I started writing articles for www.eHow.com and I've been having a LOT of fun with it.

Ever since my job eliminated one of my newsletters, it's just really been an exercise in creative frustration. That was the one that I got to really cut loose and tell people how to run their lives.

Sigh, yes, more budget cut stuff.

So what have I been doing?

Let's see. What have me and mine been doing?

• Went to Oregon
• Went to Pasadena for American Idol
• Teaching a teen to drive
• "Sacramento Has Talent" competition (Tommy T's on Tuesday nights!)
• State Fair talent show auditions
• Working on my shed project again
• Still selling stuff on www.craigslist.org
• Tried to get my bookshelves in the living room organized
• Growing tomatoes and pumpkins mostly -- LOL, they're ALL volunteers, I didn't plant them, they just came up from last year's dropped fruits and the Halloween pumpkins
• Working on the upcoming Stand Down
• Just working and working

I'll try to do better on my blogging...

I've Been So Busy

Oh my goodness, I have been so darn busy!

Let's see, five months of planning a special event for work was completed mid-May. It was a huge success and I think I'm starting to recover from it! It was a huge, complex event, but my team got it done and I think everyone is happy. I know the big bosses are!

Planning for the North Bay Stand Down continues. We're also working on a cookbook as a fundraiser. Fortunately someone else is gathering the recipes, I'll "just" design the book.

If you want to know how to help homeless and at-risk Veterans, check out the website at www.nbstanddown.org.

I'm about 2/3 the way through a little book I'm writing. I'm thinking of self publishing it. I've found that I can purchase a block of ISBNs, 10, for about $350 or so. That's only $35 per ISBN.

Oh, you probably don't know why I need ISBNs. Those are the identifying numbers that are attached to your book(s). If you have an ISBN, books can be sold through Amazon and other book sellers.

I'm also alternating working on two fiction novels.

One is a near future Apocalypse. No, no, not 2012, that is so overdone! Besides, if I was going to write a 2012 disaster novel, I should've written it 20 years ago!

The other is more a alternate reality sci-fi/fantasy. I'll only give one hint, the hero is a mixed race woman -- Cherokee, Black, Irish and Welsh. I've already written the draft of the ending and the opening chapters, so now it's a matter of filling in the middle.

Then rewrite, rewrite, edit and rewrite. Yes, once I've written it, I'll send it to my sister, the middle school teacher for review.

AND

What else have I been doing?

I told you, I've been so busy!


Anyway, I have to run, I have other blogs to update, rant a little about the idiots in the media and politics who are twisting the words of an old speech, post another scam warning, and talk about the Lord.

I may not get it all done by 9:30am today...