Reading

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American Mythology by Giano Cromley

Every month at St. Pete’s Tavern in rugged western Montana, a meeting is convened by the Basic Bigfoot Society’s members—both of them. Jute and Vergil are lifelong friends, bound by an affinity for the elusive North American Wood Ape. Jute more so than Vergil, having once had a disturbing encounter as a teenager with his father in the Elkhorn mountain range. But their monthly meeting and annual expeditions are a tradition that keep their friendship alive when so much else about their small town has fallen: all the lucrative mining jobs, Jute’s own father, Vergil’s late wife, as well as his sharp daughter Rye, who’s now a full two hours away at college.

But things are about to get exciting for the Basic Bigfoot Society. The primatologist Dr. Marcus Bernard, once an esteemed scholar and now perhaps the country’s foremost Bigfoot “expert,” introduces himself after the Society’s proceedings with a tantalizing offer to join their next expedition with an ambitious young documentarian, Vicky Xu. Thankfully, Rye is in town, and decides to tag along in order to make sure her dad and Jute aren’t made fools of. Thus begins the quest to find America’s great cryptid.

Their trip is not without its complications. Vergil’s real reason for asking Rye to come home in the first place is so he can tell her in person about his cancer diagnosis. And Dr. Bernard, after all, has his own agenda for initiating this venture, namely to show once and for all that Bigfoot does not exist. But strange things begin to happen that seem to defy rational explanation. Is this a hoax? Or are they on the precipice of the greatest anthropological discovery ever?

A spooky adventure story and a wry and heartwarming tale of friendship, American Mythology is a fabulous debut about the power of belief and our sacred bond to nature.

The book is an interesting combination of the weird and haunting with the lighthearted and amusing. The characters may seem one thing - Jute and Vergil come across as rather, well, odd - only for the reader to be given another look, another side of who they are. Their friendship is the core of this story.

As with all the characters, except perhaps Rye, there is more going on with them than the reader knows. But as the book progresses, we learn what’s driving them, what is it that makes them willing to take a trip into the woods of Montana in order to prove, or disprove, the existence of Bigfoot.

We learn about previous expeditions into the woods in the form of the journal found by one of the expedition’s member. We learn what became of those who dared to disturb the area: the mining camp of 1853, the timber company of 1932, and the group of friends in 1987. Things didn’t go well.

Perhaps this time will be different, because they are not there to take, but to learn. Not to disturb but to revere. Yet there are dangers ahead, much more than they know.

A unique take on the Bigfoot myth that’s well worth reading.

Goodreads 48

Book featuring a Cryptid
1. American Mythology by Giano Cromley

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Wednesday Reading Meme

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

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The Day in Spikedluv (Tuesday, Sept 2)

I did not go downtown today because I wanted to get some chores done before I went out to visit mom. I did two loads of laundry (washed, dried AND folded, as well as finished drying and folding yesterday’s load), hand-washed dishes, did a load in the dishwasher, pulled the crock pot pork for Pip’s supper, stopped by mom’s, and scooped kitty litter.

When I got home I hand-washed more dishes and cut up chicken for the dogs' meals (tomorrow; I like to get ahead of it).

I finished the Duncan Kincaid book and read fanfic.

Temps started out at 48.6(F) and reached 72.3. That was at 7pm when I got home, so I’m sure it was higher during the afternoon.

In stuff not about me or mom, Ian starts welding school today.

Mom Update:

Mom looked much better today. ( more back here )

Current Mood: busy
Current Music: Murder She Wrote

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bingo

Lyrical Bingo

My newest bingo for

lyricaltitles Come join us

Lyric with "remember" or "forget"	Chart-topper	Instrumental song	Song from a soundtrack	90's song
Lyric with "light" or "dark"	War song	Line from the chorus	Lyric with "love" or "hate"	Song with a title six or more words long
Fast song	Song with multiple singers on the track	FREE SPACE	Meme song	Song with a name in the title
Romantic song	Song with a color in the title	Lyric with "red" "green" or "blue"	Last line of a song	Song released in 2025
Pre-1900 song	Lyric with "sleep" or "wake"	Pre-1950's song	00's song	Angry song

Current Mood: drained
Current Music: Murder She Wrote

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Late Writerly Ways

Because no one wants to hear about my boring day of being too tired for laundry and since I missed it on vacation, here's a late writerly ways.

But before that there's a few more days on

fandomgiftbasket and here is mine if you'd like to write me something or do a little art (Prodigal Son, Hazbin Hotel, The Amazing Digital Circus)

Only...I can't remember what I wanted to talk about. I do know that for me, finding stuff in museums is a good source for my stories. That said I am seeing a shift in my writing, more and more things are historical. Okay I've been writing historical for more than a decade but now almost everything I do is historical even if it's only in the 80s and 90s. And I'm not sure why. Is it my age? I don't believe it was better way back when (granted some of the 90s were better than what Trump's done to today). Then again I love history. I minored in it after all. Hmmm

Open Calls

The Black Beacon Book of Horror 2 they do not send rejection letters

Flashpoint Science Fiction Science fiction, fantasy, slipstream, and everything in between

Humans From Earth!! SF/Horror, stories in which humans are a source of genuine horror/terror to extraterrestrials (aliens).

Stone’s Throw Noir stories of haunted characters—either haunted by the remembrance of a lost loved one, or maybe haunted by the things they didn’t do . . . or worse, the things they did do.

Planet Scumm. Speculative fiction, ideally science-fiction

Quest Magazine #1 SF/Fantasy: “Thresholds”

Space Stories from the Rock Canadian authors only writing about “space stories”

50 Magazines and Anthologies Publishing Speculative Fiction

From Around the Web

Collecting or Creating?

When to Ignore Your Editor I have a lot to say about this. Maybe THAT could be a topic.

Write Where You Know I always love a strong sense of place

Notes from the Editor’s Desk: August 2025

How to Find Publishers Open to Direct Submissions

From Betty

How to Craft a Tense School Plot That Isn’t Absurd

Seven Rules of Effective Prose

Land Travel Before Engines

Six Problems With Realistic Space Battles

Unlock The Freedom To Cheat Deep POV

How to Craft Accurate Fight Scenes.

Making the Best of Chance Encounters

How to Drill Inside Your Villain’s Head I need to read this better

Writing 101: How to Fix an Infodump

Prime the reader to build anticipation

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The Day in Spikedluv (Monday, Sept 1)

I can’t believe it’s September already! I hit Walmart while I was downtown and got in a walk around the park.

I did a load of laundry (washed and only partially dried), hand-washed dishes, took the dogs for a short walk, cut up chicken for the dogs' meals, paid a bill online, placed a Chewy order, and scooped kitty litter.

I hit Price Chopper after leaving the hospital because I had an idea for tomorrow’s supper; I put pork in the crock pot on warm overnight to make pulled pork. Tonight Pip had leftover ziti.

I started the next Duncan Kincaid book.

Temps started out at 45.8(F) and reached 70.0 before I left the house. I’m sure it got several degrees warmer in the afternoon, but Pip didn’t check.

Mom Update:

Mom felt lousy today, but seemed more alert. ( more back here )

Current Mood: tired
Current Music: Murder She Wrote

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Cemeteries and home

But first, how the hell is it the Ber months already?

Also I got home to the news that Graham Greene had passed away. I'm sad. I really liked him.

So today my blood sugar was even worse (well about 400) Pretty sure the snack I chose to bring was the absolute worst thing. It's so dumb when a cracker is worse than pie and cake combined.

But I cleared out of the hotel and right over to that Macy's which I'm glad I did. They had different things than the one back in PA and the one I'll stop in on in Huntington on Thursday (cancer doc appointment) (though the shirt I was wearing was also hanging on the rack). I had four that would have worked. I bought 3. one was under 10$. The Anne Klein was still pricey but wine and black isn't a color combo I see often, very pretty. Also that blood sugar = me time slipping back to the 80s and I bought something that looked like paint slashes in deep hot pink and white....

Ran over to Michael's, found dark blue duck tape to fix my TARDIS wallet and then found a build your own haunted house kit and my dumb self bought it.

From there I went to Woodland Cemetery . Do check out the link to get an idea as to why I'd go (besides my usual love of graveyard art). this place runs regular tours and I was far from the only person roaming. Sadly the main office was closed but I quickly found QR codes at some graves to listen to the history of that person. But of course my phone doesn't believe in the internet any more so I couldn't download the virtual tour nor use the QR codes. Grrrr

I decide I'll come back another day because it's an easy 2 hour drive and there are other things I want to see (art museum, Huffman fields) so I just ambled like it was any other old cemetery and take pictures of things that interest me. Cemeteries are often put on land unusable for farming, meaning they are often hilly and rocky. I don't mind going up. It's coming DOWN that's hard on my knee.

Why Hill so steep?

As I was ambling (around others walking along with their not-stupid phones listening to spiels) I see a pergola. Wait is that a box of flyers on it? It IS! Huzzah! I have a map...my reading glasses are in the trunk inside my purse. After I get them I set off to find the must-haves for me, The Wrights (of course) Paul Laurence Dunbar, Erma Bombeck and the Deeds (who donated part of Carillon Park from two posts ago).

Deeds has a mausoleum roomier than my apartment. But I can NOT find the Wrights (or Dunbar who is in the same section) Why? I've been around this lake three times now and then I spot it. It's a still day so the flag are hanging straight down and I missed them but as the wind picked up a bit I spotted it. Well that has to be the Wrights right? Yep. Very simple burial, just the two brothers with their sister Katharine between them. Mom and Dad there too (other brothers elsewhere). I left Katharine an acorn.

Dunbar's headstone has a bronze plaque with some of his poetry. And Bombeck is literally like 10 feet inside the gate, a giant rock. I left her a rock at evil little dog's suggestion.

After being there 3 hours, I cruise on out. Time to find that thai place again. I was on Brown street but my GPS takes me off. I think nothing about it because downtown of many cities roads become one way. But I was right back into the same loop as yesterday. I gave up thinking nothing is open down here anyhow other than fast food. Let me try Carillon Brewing again. It's only a mile away. The park is open. The food is not.

Sigh now I really have to pee but decide I can go to any fast food. I get off the highway at the first exit with food and find a sit down Mexican place. Not bad, not great. Go to the Tim Horton's I spotted (should have just had one of their sandwiches....) and can I just say it, if you have food in a mall plaza put your name on the marquee at the main highway. Be like Krpger (also in this mall) I found Chinese and Pizza also open in there but didn't know they were there until after the fact. I'd much rather have had pizza and could have brought it home for tonight as I have no food here and know I'll be too tired to cook. Sigh

Tim Horton's caramel apple cinnamon latte is good btw. I plan for Long John Silver's for dinner since it'll be enough for tomorrow too...only to learn that when I went past it in Jackson last week I wasn't looking at it. Over the summer it closed. NOOOO. Yes I know it's bad but it's the only fried fish I like. And that one did a good business. Wonders if the Chillicothe one is closed too. I know the chain is on the struggle bus. Got KFC instead.

Rocket is happy to see me. No one cleaned my place when I was gone. Where's a brownie or house else if you need one.

My razor had slipped out of the case and I found that out when I slice my right ring finger unpacking. It's a 4 bladed razor. Who needs the tip of their finger anyhow?

Pictures to come another day.

lyricaltitles is running their new challenge. It's a bingo which is less daunting than whole albums. I know a few a you were interested in it.

Speaking of music it's music Monday. Feel free to share with us. We're doing the alphabet and we're up to XYZ, lumping them together since they're hard. I'm only sharing the last 5 years but you can share whatever XYZ songs you'd like.

( But it's all just Y in different songs being with You )

Current Mood: hopeful

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mission 116 update

Mission 116 Update for August 2025 (Month 16)

Good grief, 16 months in on this project already and two-thirds of 2025 already gone. 2025 has been a crazy and stressful year for me, but I am happy to remind myself that we are on the downside now. My word of the year for 2025 was Momentum and I think that was the perfect word for what I needed to do this year. I made the decision at the end of 2024 that I would be moving in 2025 instead of 2027 as originally planned. And so far, I am on track to be moved by the end of the year. I underestimated just how much needed to be done, not just to the house to prep it to sell, but in other ways as well. Yes, moving is right up there with stressful, disruptive activities like getting a divorce.

OK, onward with the month’s accomplishments.

25. Do an elimination diet for 60 to 90 days
Effective today, September 1, I am starting an elimination diet in the hopes of identifying any foods that may be affecting me negatively. The diet will be very restrictive for the first 30 days and then I will slowly begin adding other foods back in, one at a time.

28. Weight monitoring
A slight increase in weight in August, I am hoping to see weight loss in September with the strict elimination diet.

29. BMI monitoring
Weight goes up, BMI goes up. Nothing surprising there.

45. Repair the front porch
This one is being deleted, because it has been determined that it is not reparable. Instead I will focus on getting quotes to replace the porch so that I will have a basis for figuring out a concession for porch replacement to potential buyers.

46. Pave driveway
It will be far too expensive to actually pave the driveway before moving so I am altering the goal to ‘repairing’ the driveway and turnaround area with new gravel and replacing the rotted railroad ties lining the driveway.

Annoyingly enough, the Habitat for Humanity fellow did come out last week and said that I do qualify for both the HVAC replacement and fixing the driveway. BUT it would be paid out of a grant they do not yet have, which would mean it would be at least next spring before they could do the work. And since my goal is to move this year, they aren’t going to be able to help me at all. Phooey. Would’ve been nice but I wasn’t counting on it anyway.

53. Fix exterior spotlights
Still working on this one. I have a lead on a couple of reasonably priced electricians.

91. Curate CD collection
Completed!. I went through my CDs twice and ended up donating 98 to my local library. Still have a decent sized collection of CDs and they are all ones I listen to on a rotating basis. I am a big believer in having physical media to enjoy at a moment’s notice.

96. Create a list and schedule of essential tasks for selling house and moving
The list is getting whittled down quite a bit by now, with mostly only small tasks left, some easily accomplished, some dependent on others’ assistance.

97. Gather all home improvement receipts
Been working on this a bit at a time, but now that my desktop computer and scanner are back up and running, I hope to make a lot more progress on this in September. This will be my evening task on a regular basis instead of watching TV. Will probably also involve doing research during the day to contact places to get receipts.

98. Make decisions on things to keep, things to get rid of
This has been an ongoing process over the past six months, but I have continued to whittle the list down a lot as the move nears.

99. Dispose of unwanted items
I am getting rid of things on a weekly basis – some for donation, some to trash. It is usually quite small things at this point – drawer contents, etc. but there will be a few larger items going in September for sure. It’s a fine line on the decision process because I do not want to have to buy things after moving if I can help it (because those evil tariffs make everything far more expensive), but I don’t want to have to move a lot of excess things either.

100. Pack up smaller items in boxes/totes
This is currently stalled but should ramp up soon. My problem is that I don’t want a ton of packed boxes/totes sitting around the house while it is for sale. It’s just not a good look, y’know?

101. Settle on date to get house listed for sale
I have tentatively given myself a goal of October 1 to list the house. That will depend, of course, on how much progress I make on the other tasks needed in order to do so. But that is the date I am aiming for. And then hopefully being able to move before Thanksgiving.

All of my travel goals have been shelved for the foreseeable future. Moving across country kind of pushed everything else to the side. I truly did not realize just how much prep work goes into preparing for such a major life change, especially at my age! Silly me.

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The Day in Spikedluv (Sunday, Aug 31)

I did two loads of laundry (both washed, dried AND folded!), hand-washed dishes, ran a load in the dishwasher and emptied it, went for several short walks, baked chicken for the dogs’ meals and cut up said chicken for said meals, changed kitty litter, and showered.

I did not visit mom today as my three siblings had plans to go out, but I did check her mail and had a brief telephone conversation with her. I also hit Stewart’s on the way home from mom’s. We had the ziti I put together yesterday for supper tonight.

I finished Amelia Peabody and read some fanfic, watched an HGTV program, and got in nearly a mile and a half in walks! I haven’t gotten that much in a long time.

Temps started out at 46.8(F) and reached 76.5. It was sunny with a slight breeze.

I forgot to include this pic in yesterday’s post, but this was the sight at the bird feeder last night (Saturday). Not only the buck and two does, but a fawn!! First time I’ve seen one closer than the pumpkin patch, lol! (Yes, the mother and fawn have visited the pumpkin patch on more than one occasion; I’ve seen them from the house and Pip has passed them with the dogs on a walk.)

Mom Update:

Mom sounded good on the phone when I talked to her. (And by ‘good’, I mean she didn’t sound as exhausted as she has been; the kind where it’s hard to make yourself form words.) ( more back here )

Current Mood: good
Current Music: The Avengers

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Nothing but museums

Wasn't sure I was going to have a good day out. Woke up to a blood sugar of 400. Sigh. Took my insulin. Had breakfast with my soccer team, the New Boys veterans (which I was only half right. they are mostly from Jamaica but are US veterans, this team is out of MN)

I first went to the The Wright-Dunbar Interpretive Center and plaza area It is in a neat old section of the city. It's oddly enough run by the National Park Service (and is free) and I got there just in time to join the ranger on the tour of the next door building which is the last remaining Wright Brothers' cycle shop. (Henry Ford took most of their stuff to his museum in MI) There was only one bike of theirs in there.

The whole downstairs of the center was their story from being printers/would be newspaper men (they gave out a freebie paper duplicated from theirs. I have yet to really look at it) talked about their bishop father and their sister Katharine (who now has a historical mystery series based on her which wasn't half bad)

Turns out Orville was friends with Paul Laurence Dunbar, a poet laureate who is first generation post enslavement (both parents were slaves). He helped Paul set up a paper for the Black community (which failed) and to get his book of poems printed. Paul sold them from the elevator car he was the operator for (which I'm surprised that they allowed him to). He became insanely popular, You might know a few lines of his if you don't think you know him.

I know why the caged bird sings, ah me,
When his wing is bruised and his bosom sore,—

There is also a parachute museum in here too. I did not know that people (including some early daring women) parachuted out of hot air balloons.

Froom there I tried to go to lunch. Two roads were closed, my GPS knew one was but not the other and kept circling me back so I gave up and thought 'i'll get something on my way to the air force museum.' Turns out that was closer than I thought with zero fast food (or any food) in between. Guess I'll be over paying for museum food (10$ hot dog/bottle of water)

So it's been forever since I've been to Wright Patterson: the national museum of the air force . I was meant to go two years ago to the steampunk ball...only I ended up in the hospital with cancer. Sigh.

Let me say this up front: if you're in Dayton, see this (unless you hate planes). It's free. It's enormous. And right now the AF is giving Trump the biggest middle finger. They are not following the party line to remove women from military records (ditto people of color). Hell they're doubling down on it. I have never seen this much women's history in a general museum before.

If I lived closer I'd come more often. There is too much to see. WAY too much. I would love to read all the placards etc (Yes I wanted to be Edalyn Clawthorne, I'm Lilith. Sigh) If I was closer I'd come and see just one section until I saw it all and then move on.

You begin in the beginning with Orville and Wilbur again and some of the European balloonists and gliders. What struck me as unmeasurably sad was in less than a decade we went from taking our first flights to dog fighting over Europe (and their big WWI display)

This gives way to WWII which is a huge, incredibly packed area. Again they have not hidden the Tuskeegee airmen (and there was an all Black all female group as well but my brain has lost their names) they did big write ups on flight nurses (who also flew supplies which is also what the all black team was doing) but since they flew supplies they couldn't use the Red Cross symbol meaning anyone could/would shoot at them.

Now my sugar is dropping so I go for that bad food.

From there it's Korea then Viet Nam. I'm now on a mission. I must find the SR-71 Blackbird. I know she's in here. (I found her). I went to their small space collection and stared at rockets. I've been here for hours now. My feet are mad. My knee is suing for divorce.

And then it hits me. I did NOT see a P-51 Mustang in the WWII section. That is my favorite plane (yes I have a favorite). WHERE? WHY? I found docents. They told me the where. The why was it's so big in the WWII area that I just plain missed my baby.

I also love nose art (even if a lot of it is rather sexist) and bomber jacket art. They had plenty. I had fun.

And I was reminded of how Arakawa named most of the main characters after WWII planes

I now have all the books for the holidays for dad, though there is no repeats for the most part (a few exceptions) between all these museums. I should have bought the one about Charlie Taylor, the first airplane mechanic (dad was one in the air force, sort of, doing electronics) There was the books by the former high ranking AF guy who is on all the alien shows (and they were signed!) I got myself fly girls about those early pilots, one on the waves and codebreaking, Katharine Wright's bio and one on all the body snatching that went on in OH in the 1700 and 1800s.

It's now 4 pm and I want to hit the mall. I now remember why I don't go to Ross any more. their plus size collection was like 6 shirts. They did have a Halloween thing I wanted not at a price I wanted to pay. Went to Macy's, took 3 steps in the room spun and I started sweating and shaking. Well fuck. My sugar is cratering. I had to go to the hotel (which luckily is directly across from Macy's)

After I stablized and had some tea I picked dinner. That Blue Juicy Crab place had bad reviews but there is Hook and Reels on the opposite side of the mall doing the exact same thing and now I want seafood. I got and get Joe's Crab Shack vibes. Anyone remember that chain? I think it's gone entirely. I got the crab/shrimp boil which was good but also reminded me why I don't go for this much. It's messy, the shellfish gets cold by the time you crack your way through it and it's overpriced (this was cheaper than Red Lobster's offerings though)

But a half pound of shrimp and half pound of crab really equals about 8 little shrimp and a meatball sized bit of crab. I was hungry when I left so I said let's go get some DQ. There with DQ is Skyline Chili (I don't get them in east OH just near Cinci) I'm like okay lets get another chili dog while I'm here getting my pumpkin pie blizzard. Good call because with my sugar fucking about I'm feeling hungry again as I type this. I'd be looking for late n ight taco bell otherwise.

So sugar aside, another good day

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Pimp: Fandom Gift Basket 2025

For anyone interested, my basket is HERE. (I asked for fic/art in several fandoms: 9-1-1, Hudson & Rex, MCU, Murder She Wrote, and Terminator (Genisys/Dark Fate)).

Sign-ups are open through Sept 5, so if you want to sign-up there is still time! Go HERE.

Dates and links are in the Sticky Post.

I plan on going through the baskets, but if you'd like to link to yours here, please do so!

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books,
reading

What I have been reading, July/August edition

Books I read late July and August.

New books

At School With The Stanhopes by Gwendoline Courtney. If you follow my journal, you will sooner or later hear me talk about Stepmother by the same author. It’s one of my constant comfort reads, and has been since I was 10. But not until I was an adult did I realize that Courtney wrote a number of books in the 1940s and 50s, all geared towards teenage girls. Most of them have been out of print for decades, and being in Sweden has made it a bit of a hassle to buy them used. But now girls Gone by seems to republishing them, and I read II earlier this year. At School With The Stanhopes is about 16 year old Rosalind, whose guardian dies, forcing her to move in with her much older brother, whom she hardly knows. Neither of them are pleased with it, but I lifes becomes much less gloomy when her favorite teacher opens a school just down the lane. Especially as Miss Stanhope has a bevy of friendly younger sisters. It’s mostly a school story, but also about Rosalind and her brother building a relationship, and I enjoyed it enormously. I do wish I had been able to read this book in my early teens, though, because I can tell I would have loved it even more had I read it back then.

Furstinnan (The Princess) by Eva Mattson. A biography of the 16th century Swedish queen Catherine Jagiellon. Sweden is pretty bad at noting women in history, and this is the first biography of a very interesting woman. Katarina Jagellonica, to use her Swedish name, was a Polish princess who rather surprisingly married Johan Vasa, the younger brother of the Swedish king at a time when the Vasa dynasty was seen as an upstart royal family. She was highly educated and educated, and it’s clear after reading this book that she had a lasting impact in how late 16th century Sweden was shaped.

The Art of French Pastry by Jacqut Pfeiffer. I read a lot of cookbooks, but mostly just bits here and there, so never mention them in these posts. But this book was really interesting as it isn’t just recipes, but a thorough explanation of why a recipe looks the way it does, and also how it’s supposed to behave throughout.

The Adventure of the Demonic Ox by Lois McMaster Bujold. The latest installment in the Penric and Desdemona series. It’s a series of fantasy novellas about a young man who accidently gets infested by a demon, something which makes him a sorcerer. As he doesn’t know how one is supposed to behave during those circumstances, he names the demon Desdemona, and they embark on a much more equal relationship. Bujold is one of my favourite authors, and the Penric and Desdemona novellas are bite-sized pieces of delight that together form a bigger whole. With that said this was probably one of the more lightweight installments in the series.

Re-reads

Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe and The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop by Fannie Flagg. The first book has been a comfort read of mine since the early 90s, and I like the movie too. A couple of years ago it got a sequel. If Fried Green Tomatoes paints the past in very nostalgic shades, The Wonder Boy feels like a fanfic, if one can say that an author can write that to their own work. Everyone is happy at the end of it, and if the bad guy in the first novel was a genuinely awful person, the villains in the latter are reduced to a man with murderous intent towards a cat, and an awful mother-in-law. But sometimes one is in the mood for a book where everything will be just fine. And then some.

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I have always thought of this as a gothic novel for children. I mean, an orphaned heroine moving into an isolated mansion where she hears strange cries in the night, and there is a garden no one has been in for 10 years, and no one knows how to get into. I still remember how thrilled I was when I first read it as a kid. And I still love the description of the secret garden.

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The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Three women in three different eras encounter danger and witchcraft in this eerie multigenerational horror saga from the New York Times bestselling author of Mexican Gothic.

“Back then, when I was a young woman, there were still witches”: That was how Nana Alba always began the stories she told her great-granddaughter Minerva—stories that have stayed with Minerva all her life. Perhaps that’s why Minerva has become a graduate student focused on the history of horror literature and is researching the life of Beatrice Tremblay, an obscure author of macabre tales.

In the course of assembling her thesis, Minerva uncovers information that reveals that Tremblay’s most famous novel, The Vanishing, was inspired by a true story: Decades earlier, during the Great Depression, Tremblay attended the same university where Minerva is now studying and became obsessed with her beautiful and otherworldly roommate, who then disappeared under mysterious circumstances.

As Minerva descends ever deeper into Tremblay’s manuscript, she begins to sense that the malign force that stalked Tremblay and the missing girl might still walk the halls of the campus. These disturbing events also echo the stories Nana Alba told about her girlhood in 1900s Mexico, where she had a terrifying encounter with a witch.

Minerva suspects that the same shadow that darkened the lives of her great-grandmother and Beatrice Tremblay is now threatening her own in 1990s Massachusetts. An academic career can be a punishing pursuit, but it might turn outright deadly when witchcraft is involved.

This isn’t the first of Moreno-Garcia’s stories that move around in time, the characters joined together by often horrifying events. And though it tends to slow the start of the book down in order to allow the reader to get to know all the characters, it still works well.

Minerva’s and Alba’s arcs are told from their perspectives, the granddaughter being directed by her memory of tales told to her by her great-grandmother. Beatrice’s, on the other hand, is the reading of her manuscript by Minerva. That, unfortunately, made it harder to know her the way I did Minerva and Alba.

What makes the book intriguing is that you don’t know (well, I didn’t,) who the witches are. They hide behind a mask of normalcy. There are no black hats, brooms, or cats (well, there is, but it’s Minerva’s,) to give any hints. So, though not totally surprised at the reveals, there was still a bit of mystery to it all.

I’m slowly making my way through all of Moreno-Garcia’s books; this one is a fine example of her intriguing stories.

Goodreads 47

Witches
The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

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The Day in Spikedluv (Saturday, Aug 30)

I hit Price Chopper and the Bakery while I was downtown and got in a walk around the park.

I did two loads of laundry (washed, dried AND folded!), hand-washed dishes, emptied the dishwasher, took the dogs for a short walk, browned ground beef and boiled pasta to stir up a ziti, cut up chicken for the dogs' meals, and scooped kitty litter.

I visited mom, read more in Amelia Peabody, and watched an HGTV program.

Temps started out at 49.1(F) and reached 66.6. That I saw before I left home; it might have gotten a few degrees warmer. It was sunny with a breeze, which was lovely, but there was a definite chill in the air.

Mom Update:

Mom’s day was okay, which is about all she can expect these days. ( more back here )

Current Mood: good
Current Music: Star Trek OS

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Museums and Cemeteries

It was an amusing start to the day. Well...didn't start amusing. I was woken up early than I wanted by noise. When I got to the Hamptons' comp breakfast I see that the room is filled. I sit down with my fresh made sweet potato waffle (with hot apple topping) with what has to be a pro/semi pro soccer team from Jamaica (since they all seemed to be later 20s early 30s, definitely NOT college aged) and they're watching soccer as they eat and shouting at the screen and each other like we're in a sports bar. Also I was the only one not on the team sitting there

I could not have asked for a better day. So cool and with a nice light breeze as I headed to Carillon Historical Park It's 65 acres of recreated (for the most part) village where all the buildings are little museums. The big welcome building had a stein collection of over 400 steins, history on several major innovators in Dayton including the Wright Brothers (naturally), Patterson (who did national cash registers) and Deeds (who was the one to donate the 57 bell carillon tower) There was bits about the brother's inventions (also there were animatronic 'innovators' telling their stories (those uncanny valley things freak me out).

There was 90 of those gorgeous antique cash registers, things of beauty as well as function (I rather miss that in the modern age). there were some old cars in there too and the world's most confusion carousel with just bizarre shit (though in a later picture of Wilbur I know understand the St Bernard style dog one), there was a cash register (had I gotten on I would have ridden that, it's the non moving bench one for grandma) cans of pop, chip bags, various animals.

From there I bought the 5 dollar train ride just to a) sit and enjoy the cool weather b) see the park and that was fun. From there I started investigating the offerings including (but not limited to) an antique fire truck car show (including two belgians and their fire carriage), Newcome tavern from 1796, a one room school house from the 1800s, the last surviving remnant of the Watervliet Shaker village, a horse barn (no horses), the hetzel summer kitchen and the really interesting stuff was:

Sugar Camp Waves cabin. I had no idea there were WAVES doing code breaking in Dayton in WWII
Gem City Letter press - which is an operational print shop (you can get a printed souvenier (I didn't))

The great 1913 flood exhibit. I had no idea Dayton was flooded up to 20 feet and horses were on the roofs because they swam there (more than a thousand drowned, poor things)

Dayton Cyclery that had some cool old bikes

The transportation center with some really cool old train cars and trolleys

The Wright Brothers national museum which included their No. 5 flyer which Orville felt was their best one. It was bigger than I imagined. Also I had no idea that Wilbur died so young (45 of typhoid fever)

The history on the hill interpretive center talking about the Hopewell people and the fact that this hill had been a small pox quarantine hospital (and after that for prostitutes with STDS)

I wish I remembered that Carillon Brewing had food and I'd have skipped the overpriced, underwhelming food trucks (I was still a little hungry and got a giant pretzel, nibbling on those leftovers now). They brew historical recipes and the one I got, coriander ale, was one of them, low abv, nice pale ale (not my usual choice) brewed with peppers and you could feel that.

From there I went to America’s Packard Museum I think the 20s-early 40s Packards were sexy cars. They were luxury, easily 3-5 times the price of an average car. The post WWII cars are less great (not a fan of the carribbean) they have one from the Godfather. They have one from a woman who wanted it kept for her when she returned from beyond the grave (the family kept it until 2015 when it came to the museum). The museum itself is from 1917 and was a Packard dealership.

I wanted to go next to Calvary Cemetery which I saw references to at the historical park. (this is not the cemetery I planned to go to) I put it in my new GPS (I can't use my phone. It's decided it doesn't know what the internet is) and it wants me to go to KY (that is not close). What I didn't know was that the Calvary in Moraine OH WAS the right one (that's a neighborhood, or sucked up suburb)

So I came home to the hotel for tea and relaxing and looking up the damn address. Here's the kick in the head. When I came out of the historical park I turned left on Patterson. If I had LOOKED right I would have seen the damn thing. It's right behind the park. Head desk (it's only like 7 miles so it's not a big deal). This is a CATHOLIC in all caps cemetery. Okay yes I've seen ones with more crucifixes but this had some truly interesting stuff.

What sucked it was the cloudless sky. SO many pictures are probably sun glared to death (I don't know. I haven't looked yet, you'll get pics another day). There were a few things I've rarely seen (btw do watch the video at the above link to know why I wanted to see it) lots of Mary statues by herself (one with cherubs at her feet which is unusual and another with her standing on the world crushing the serpent, much more familiar, how many times did I have to kiss that statue?) one family had stylized rosaries on their head stones. Some had historical markers (which was cool),found a whole mess of Nun graves, an entire section of baby graves (will use that picture the next time I bitch about Trump and RFK). There was even a brand new mausoleum. I swear to god I didn't know people were still making them!! (built about 20 years ago. They're still awaiting the fourth member or she choose to go elsewhere. She's my parents age so she could still be out there)

I went to dinner at Jimmie's Ladder 11 a bar/restaurant in an 1800s firehouse. It was good. I had their namesake sandwich (basically a reuben and a rachel in one sandwich) which was good. I wasn't going to drink but I decided I wanted the Grandma's Puddin' cocktail. Probably should have went with no drink. Don't get me wrong. It was tasty but a little small for the price. Putting it here for my own reference Giffard Banane du Brésil Liqueur, Five Farms Irish Cream, Oyo Honey Vanilla Bean Vodka, Cream

Now I'm in for the night (too tired to swim), off to the airforce stuff tomorrow.

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The Day in Spikedluv (Friday, Aug 29)

I had a doctor appointment this morning. A ‘3-month’ (in quotes because it’s nearly impossible to actually schedule these 3-month follow-ups at the 3-month mark) check-up on my A1C numbers, among other things. ( mostly good news ) I got in a walk around the park while I was downtown.

You already know that I like schedules, so, because I knew I would be busy today between my appointment and visiting mom, I had to schedule When Things Got Done so I didn’t miss anything. Before I left the house in the morning I hand-washed dishes, washed a load of laundry, and heated up a ham steak and some peas for Pip’s supper, so he in turn just needs to heat them up like he’d do with leftovers . (I got the thick-thick ham steak this time and have already chunked up half of it and put it in the freezer for escalloped potatoes on another day.)

What I did not schedule into my morning was Grant getting skunked first thing. What a rancid smell. The house and my car smell, and I’m sure I have some residual stink. We gave him a skunk bath at the garage (because there’s light, as well as a drain and a hose, and there’s help, lol). (I use a mixture of peroxide, Dawn, and baking soda.)

I had a little bit of time after my doctor appointment and before I left to visit mom, so I: checked mom’s mail, put the load of laundry in the dryer, hard-boiled eggs, and scooped kitty litter.

The fun continued after I got home from the hospital: I folded laundry and hand-washed more dishes!! *g*

I read more in Amelia Peabody.

Temps started out at 57.2(F) and reached 64.4 (that I saw at noon). It was raining when I got up; it was supposed to rain most of the night. It stopped around 7am as forecasted, though the clouds remained, but then we got a short but mighty downpour at a little after 11am. The sun did eventually come out, so I’m sure the temps went up a little bit, but not much, I don’t think.

Mom Update:

Mom was exhausted today. ( more back here )

Current Mood: exhausted
Current Music: Diners Drive Ins and Dives

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Made it to Dayton

It's been a loooong day of multiple lab sections and then driving 2 hours. It's a very easy drive, literally three turns and two of them are in Dayton. This hotel is in a huge mall that sprawls for about four lights and on both sides of the road but it means I have plenty of food around me. I opted for the Rusty Bucket which sees to be a chain in SW Ohio (I've been to the one in Cincinnati) their cold brew martini was amazing, best part of the meal.

I almost went to the Blue Crab Juicy seafood bar but I wasn't sure about it (and it's right next door to Lust, the strip club which is probably directly behind this hotel. Oh geeze. Well it's not like I didn't live behind one for years) I looked it up. Maybe tomorrow...

This room is weird. Maybe wheelchair accessible? Doesn't say it (but at least it's on the ground floor) the bed is orientated not to the tv but to the window with your head to the door. I thought maybe it would be hard to get a wheelchair around the room if it was the normal way. Nice room though with a shower no tub. I appreciate that.

Wrote a story (NSFW)

Title: Brothers, Troublemakers and Apologies

Fandom: Hazbin Hotel

Summary: After a sweet morning of trying out new sex games, Angel has high hopes for the rest of the day with Husk. All that ends when retribution comes for him. He really shouldn’t have stolen Arackniss’ car.

Rating: explicit

Author Note - written for spikesgirl58’s six word challenge and the six words were Kindly, Breed, Mother, Complete, Milky, & Tremble, for allbingo’s prompt of family matters and for summer of the 69. While this is part of the Power Play series, it is a stand alone. You don't need to read the others (but please do if you're so moved) All you need to know is the Vees have been disposed of and Angel stole Arackniss' car last story.

( story under here or at the above link )

And here are the friday fannish 50 fan recs

A Little More Time Torchwood

Holding On To Hope FAKE

Pumpkin Carving Buffy the Vampire Slayer

A Song of the Grand Banks Captains Courageous - Rudyard Kipling

Still This Good Hazbin Hotel

Electric Blue Hazbin Hotel

Valid The Owl House

Hazbin Academy Hazbin Hotel

The Truth Behind The Lies Torchwood

Unwise Behaviour Stargate SG-1

Beware of the Thin Man The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

Petrified The Owl House

from the middle, this time with a plan
陈情令 | The Untamed (TV)魔道祖师 - 墨香铜臭 | Módào Zǔshī - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù

Lustful Brewing Hazbin Hotel

Deck the Halls Sapphire & Steel

Fucking Tease Hazbin Hotel

Mifepristone With a Side of Gummi Bears
Doctor Odyssey

Valentino Is Scared Of The Supernatural Hazbin Hotel

Skeletons in the Closet The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

Too Early to be Morning but Here We Are
Columbo

Chilled to the Bone Hazbin Hotel

No Thyme At All Torchwood

A Black Cat in a Dark Room Doctor Who

Under the Heat of a Rising Sun Hazbin Hotel

An Order of Magnitude Stargate Atlantis/Stargate SG-1/Real Genius

Camelot's Resident Sorcerer... Arthur Pendragon? Merlin

The Candy Buying Affair The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

What the Future Holds 911

Trick or Treating Despicable Me

Mission: Retrieve Coulson Redux Murder She Wrote/The Avengers

untitled Hazbin Hotel

Moving into the Hale Ranch Teen Wolf

Learning the Lay of the Land Teen Wolf

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Photos: Pumpkins, Flowers & More! (8/19 – 8/28)

More Pumpkins!! (Photos taken 8/19 (first two behind the cut) & 8/28 (rest of them))

Oops! The deer looked at the cage and laughed. o_O

( 19 more back here )

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The Day in Spikedluv (Thursday, Aug 28)

I did not go downtown today. In addition to doing things online, I accomplished some things around the house before I went out to visit mom: hand-washed dishes, swept/mopped the kitchen, and scooped kitty litter. I also did some stuff for mom: checked her mail, paid bills and put them in the mailbox, and did some banking.

I got home early because my brother came out to the hospital, so I got to do some things in the afternoon/evening: cleared a pile of mail/magazines/newspapers of the counter, hand-washed more dishes, cut up chicken for the dogs' meals, went on several walks, and showered.

I read more in Amelia Peabody and watched an HGTV program.

Temps started out at 51.8(F) and reached 77.5. It really was a beautiful day.

Mom Update:

Mom was doing okay. Kind of her new normal. ( more back here )

Current Mood: blah
Current Music: Guy's Grocery Games

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I'm a tad worried

All this week the pressure of whatever's in my neck against my windpipe has kept me from sleeping well especially if I accidentally roll onto my right side. Now after the ultrasound and them pressing on it, even sitting up I can feel that pressure. I didn't want to have surgery in October but at this point if it has to be it has to be. I think this might be getting worse.

Also saw the neurologist who looked at my MRI, my back and my leg. Yes I have issues with so many nerves. Did the gabapentin help with the trigeminal neuralgia? Yes. So why aren't you taking it for the other nerve pain. Sigh, yes, point taken (but it has to be low dose because the upper doses make me too out of it)

There has always been a divide between fan artists and fan writers as long as I've been going to cons in the 80s and when I moved online it was worse. It's not a BAD thing. It makes sense (though I was always annoyed that fan artists could sell their transformative works but authors couldn't) Art can be easily digested. Stories require work to consume. But I'm still shaking my head and laughing because I posted this picture of my ship

and based off Husk's expression as he looks up at Angel I called him the Smitten Kitten.

I have gotten dozens of likes and comments off the same hashtags I always use for my own stories which gets 4 likes if I'm lucky Even funnier are the people commenting talking about how people (other shippers natch) saying they're just friends. Yeah we all look at our friends with THAT expression (right before we ask to be friends with benefits

I'm mostly ready for tomorrow, work then drive 2 hours to dayton (easy drive, literally 2 turns in over 100 miles). I'm anxious about it because NOTHING is working right online and I feel pressured. It'll be fine. It'll work out. Dayton has no ghost tours that come up online. Wow. I know I have selected a bunch of stuff I'll be interested in. Nothing but museums and cemeteries for three days.

Community recs

fandomgiftbasket come join us, get some fannish stuff, make some fannish stuff.

spring_renewal A Spring Prompt Fest (okay we're totally going into the wrong season but I'll lose this before spring rolls back around)

no_true_pair loosely, a mad-libs-style challenge. You make a list of characters, a set of prompts is posted that uses all the characters in different combinations, and you create works using those characters. Okay that sounds challenging