We get to start choir late this morning because there's a festival downtown that will make it harder to drive and park, so the idea is that you leave home at the same time and you might make it to choir at the right time. But I walk, so it will take me the same amount of time to get there.

The town where the potato chip factory I visited a couple of weeks ago is had a "Tater Fest" today, inspired by the potato chip factory. They are really good potato chips. I didn't go to the festival. I didn't know about it until I saw it on the news. And it was raining.

Based on the very distinct sound of the whistle, I now know exactly when to get to the rail crossing down the road next weekend in order to see the steam engine on the excursion train go by. They brought out a historic train for the fall runs.

I decided to buy this house when I got a vivid mental image of sitting on the sofa in the room I figured I'd use as a den, drinking tea and watching it rain in the back yard. That's my day today. Tea, book, music, candle, rain, blanket.

One of these would fit in perfectly in my back yard. Maybe I should start a crowdfunding campaign.

There was a cat missing in my neighborhood, an indoor cat who bolted through an open door (found safe after a few weeks) and their lost cat posters were genius, old-timey "Wanted" posters about a "dangerous fugitive" on the lam. They're still on posts around the neighborhood.

I learned that the new owner of the house across the street and one door down is another single woman. Nearly half the houses on this street are occupied by single women, so we seem to be on the way toward forming some sort of beguine community here.

Wow, it's been a busy day. Meeting this morning with the local creative group, lots of shopping, then I walked down to the community garden market, and when I got home my neighbors invited me over for drinks on their porch, so I chatted with them and their guests.

I have bought yarn for my first knitting project in years. It's cheap craft store yarn, but I figure I need to get back in the swing of things before I indulge in the good stuff. Plus, it's meant for a throw to put on the back of the sofa, where I lean my head, so I want it to be washable.

Proofing is done! Now to rest a bit before choir rehearsal. I have a meeting and errands tomorrow morning, then will relax most of the weekend. October will be light duty for writing. It's thinking time, though I have some business and promo things I need to work on.

Two more chapters to proof, and they're short chapters. I may survive this. More tea first, though.

Per the weather forecast, we may be having at least a partially rainy Saturday. A Saturday when I will have completely finished this book. A Saturday when I have nothing scheduled because I got my calendar days mixed up and thought I had something that turned out to be on Sunday. Reading and tea!

I'm doing my least favorite part of the writing process, and a part I could never outsource: the final proof of the book, when I read the whole thing out loud, reading as much as possible each day to get through the book at about the pace a reader would. It's so tedious, so necessary.

It's #BookQW and our word this week is "last." What happened the last time Emily found herself in the fairy Realm? That's one of the mysteries of A Fairly Tale. shannaswendson.com/writing/a-fa...

The complications for me getting this weekend's Saturday and Sunday mixed up continue to pile up. I'd said Sunday afternoon was one of my available times for a meeting, and that ended up being when the meeting was set, so I may have to miss that thing I wanted to do, after all. Argh.

My new electric toothbrush, like so many things today, has a charger with a USB plug. My 80-year-old house doesn't have USB outlets, but my desk does, so I currently have a toothbrush on my desk as it charges, which is an odd office item.

The book festival at a nearby library is taking author applications, and I'm trying to decide if it would be worth it. The event I've been to at that library had fewer than a dozen people show up. I'd love to speak, but they also want you to sell your books at the event.

I was just thinking that since my brain is incapable of more work right now and there's still time before dinner, I should go work in the yard, and then it started raining. There goes that idea. Maybe I'll let myself read for a little while. Thanks, Mother Nature. I'd rather read than pull weeds.

The leaves in my back yard are starting to turn gold. It's a good thing I'm wrapping up a book this week so I can spend the next month sitting on the deck and watching the trees (while doing pen and paper work, research, reading, etc.).

I have a new semi-favorite (I can't truly pick one favorite) pasta shape: orzo. It cooks almost as quickly as angel hair and can cook in the sauce for a one-pan meal. I tried a new recipe tonight, and it was so good, quick, and easy.

One thing that struck me about the animated film of The Hobbit was the hands. Some of the animation is pretty rough, but all the hands are very detailed and realistic. It's like the artist(s) said, "Ha! I mastered hands, which are really hard, and by golly I'm going to show that off."

I've spent the afternoon so far dealing with mailing list issues, since my list service changed and I had to deal with upgrading my plan. Then while I was at it I figured I ought to get into compliance with regulations and get a PO-type box so there will be an address w/o my home address.

That post office informed delivery feature that sends you an e-mail in the morning with images of the mail coming to you that day is handy but can be anxiety-inducing when there's something you don't expect and you fear the worst, so you spend the day waiting for the mail, wondering what it is.

There's an event I've had in my calendar and that I've been planning around. I even turned down other things because of it. And I just realized I put it on the wrong date. Now I'm having to go back to people and say, "Um, do you still need me?"

Last night I finished reading a book that sounded like it would be fun, but I don't feel like I got the book that the description and endorsement blurbs promised. Now comes the phase when my brain tries to figure out how to write the book I wanted without any obvious ties to this book.

Apparently, one of the trees at the back of my yard, or perhaps at the back of the neighbor's yard to the rear, has some sort of nuts or acorns because they're dropping with a hard thud on the roof of the shed. I have not explored my shed. I'm a little afraid of it.

I finished polishing the book and now it's off for feedback, so today is mostly a catch-up day, dealing with all the admin, some housework, probably some work in the yard if it doesn't rain. At the moment, it's mostly just sitting on the deck with tea, watching leaves fall and butterflies flitting.

Okay, the animated version of The Hobbit wasn't bad. It skipped over a lot and had weird pacing, being quite leisurely at the beginning, then getting to the end and hurrying to wrap things up. But I think it was closer to capturing the spirit of the book than the bloated live-action version was.

Since it's the anniversary of the original publication of The Hobbit, I think I may watch the animated movie tonight. I haven't seen it since it originally aired on TV when I was a kid. There was some kind of curriculum tie-in at school, so I very seriously told my parents it was my homework.

What's your favorite book? (whether it's mine or one I've read). Favorite depends on the moment and the mood. That question is guaranteed a long, blank stare as a response as my brain completely shuts down.

I've reached the point in editing a book where ideas for other projects start popping up. There was a book I wrote about 6 years ago that I just couldn't make work. I think the concept was clever but I couldn't find the right story. It was supposed to be YA, but I just realized it's better as adult.

I moved on to S2 of Picard, and it's not what I was wanting based on the end of S1. I was hoping for the scrappy ship crewed by holograms and misfits having space adventures doing missions Starfleet wouldn't touch. Alas, no. Looks like it ditches most of the things I liked about the series.

I realized yesterday after I got home from the grocery store that while I'd bought lettuce, I didn't have any tomatoes and I wouldn't be able to hit the farmer's market until Saturday. But then someone in choir brought a bowl of tomatoes from her garden to hand out, so I have tomatoes.

There was someone standing outside the grocery store with a cute little dog on a leash (I think waiting for someone shopping), and the dog came up to me and I got to pet it, so it's a good day. (I would be a terrible pet owner, but I never pass up an opportunity to pet someone else's dog or cat.)

One downside to the leather desk chair is that on chilly mornings it takes some time to warm up. I need to remember to turn on the electric throw and put it on the chair to warm it up. Though the jolt of sitting in the cold chair does wake me up.

Today on the blog: A more complete rundown of my weekend adventures. shannaswendson.com/weekend-retr...

I think the element of Picard I'm enjoying most (aside from nostalgia) is the loner introvert who crews his ship with holographic versions of himself, all with their own personalities. That would make a fun basis for a series, with him gradually building a real crew.

I have this weird urge to write a classic-style rom-com, like a 90s-style romantic comedy film in book form. But could you put something like that in a fantasy setting? Even the most cozy of the cozy fantasies generally have some kind of external plot, but could you do just the rom-com?

It's #BookQW and our word is "idea." That's something Elwyn doesn't have in this bit from my cozy fantasy, Tea and Empathy. shannaswendson.com/writing/tea-...

In a case of life imitating art, the book I'm editing has a scene in which the healer character tends a character who has a rash on her arm after getting into something in the woods. I currently have a nasty rash on my arm after getting into something in the woods. I could use that magical salve.

I thought of something I need to remember to do tomorrow, and between the time I thought of it and the time I picked up my planner and opened it so I could write it down, I totally forgot what it was. I hope it wasn't too important.

In the Picard episode that involved the TNG reunion, I was reminded of how one of the things I liked about TNG was the sense that the cast really loved each other and how that came through in the show. That still seems to be the case. You get good found family when the actors are also bonded.

I was so good today. I got even more work today done than I'd planned for. I took a walk. I did yoga. And I did everything else on my to-do list. Plus, I've already loaded the dishwasher after dinner. That means a sticker in my planner and I can relax and have fun this evening.

I took a walk before lunch and found that there's a great view of my house from the hill across the way. I noticed that my house is basically the house little kids draw when they draw a house, with the pointy roof, four windows in front (2 upstairs, 2 down) and a chimney in the middle of the roof.

I tried putting that dress I turned out to be wearing backwards on with the tag in the back, and now I'm pretty sure I'm not wearing it backwards. It's more likely that it was on clearance because the tag placement was an oops. The shoulder seams are in the wrong place worn with the tag in back.

One of the things I did on my trip to the retreat center was stop at a small potato chip factory that's apparently a big local thing. I wasn't there in time to see them actually making the chips, but they gave me a basket of single-serving packets of all their flavors to try. I then bought some.

I like wearing knit dresses around the house/for working at home because they're super-comfortable. I have a lot of short-sleeve and sleeveless ones but want some long-sleeved ones. Last week I found a cute one on the clearance rack at Old Navy, flared skirt, scoop neck.

Trying to decide now whether to go grocery shopping today. On the one hand, I wouldn't be taking time away from work since I'm not trying to work today. On the other hand, I don't really need anything today and I don't want to leave the house.

I'm trying to decide how much I want to make myself accomplish today. I'm so tired, a little achy, and I have an ugly rash on my arm (must have brushed against something while walking in the woods). But there's so much to do. This may be a thinking day.

The place where we had this retreat served enormous "comfort food" meals, so I guess I'll be eating light this week to recover from all the mashed potatoes, fried chicken, meatloaf, etc. But tonight I think it's a cereal and blueberries night, and this time I have cereal in the house.