2017 Recap

Like everyone else, a lot of things happened in 2017. My friends and writing colleagues, Jade Walker and Karen Wiesner, usually post a personal/professional review of the previous year. I'm following their example.

How did your year go? Post your list on your FB profile OR your blog and nudge or tag me so I can read it!

* Biggest event of 2017? Became a grandmother for the first time ;-). Kane Allen Falana was born May 22, 2017.

* Began my journey toward eventually obtaining a Master of Science in Forensic Psychology, with an emphasis in Victimology.

* Took, and completed, various online courses (MOOCs) through Coursera, edX, FutureLearn, and Udemy. Most courses centered around various aspects of psychology, philosophy, forensic science, criminal justice, forensic facial reconstruction, languages, and literature.

* Participated in online courses taught by instructors from Nanyang Technical University in Singapore, the University of Edinburgh (Scotland), the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Emory University, Georgia Tech, the University of Virginia, Johns Hopkins University, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Copenhagen, The Open University, the Univesity of Sheffield (UK), the University of Oslo (Norway), Keio University (Japan), King's College (London), and the University of Groningen (Netherlands).

* Continued learning Norwegian, Swedish, Japanese, Dutch, and Italian. Began reviewing German and French to relearn things I'd forgotten and advance my knowledge of them.

* Posted many entries across 11 blogs and one online journal.

* Had one of the vlogs on my YouTube channel hit over 5,000 views.

* Hit over 31.6k tweets on my Twitter account (@mother_of_crows)

* Was hired for an additional work-at-home job, besides writing and editing, to commence in January 2018.

* Worked on four of my own book manuscripts (one fiction, three nonfiction).

* Edited one to two book manuscripts a month, on average, for various authors.

* Completed resumes, cover letters, and CVs for various clients.

* Edited several academic articles and reviews for a client.

* Critiqued and edited query letters and synopses for clients.

* Edited numerous product descriptions for several companies.

* Edited travel/destination descriptions for a well-known travel site.

* Accepted as a writer for a travel site based in Germany.

* Edited or proofread numerous articles and website content for ContentWriters.com.

* Wrote a number of business and travel articles for various clients.

* Published my seventh book in September 2017.

* Read an average of three books per month. I usually average four or five, so I need to up my progress this year.

* Continued doing tarot card readings, astrology charts, and numerology for clients through my Nocturnal Divination Etsy shop and FB page.

Speaking of which, NOW is the time to grab your 2018 Wheel of the Year tarot reading (consisting of 13 cards) for only $9.99. To order, e-mail scribequill@gmail.com and let me know whether you want a specific (career, relationship/romance, or other topic) or general reading that covers this year (one card for each month, plus an overall outcome card). Then send payment via PayPal to nocturnaleditor@gmail.com. I will confirm your payment and contact you with delivery details.

* Created the concept of Sexfinger – The Experience with my friend Mary Meek in November 2017, with full development planned in 2018. Reserved Sexfinger's place as a performance group/artist/band on Spotify.

* Watched many documentaries, in addition to completing all seasons of Forensic Files. Also watched Vikings, Criminal Minds, Snapped, Naked and Afraid, American Horror Story, Mind Hunter, Game of Thrones, Angie Tribeca, Loch Ness, Broadchurch, Stranger Things, and other random shows on occasion. I probably allowed myself to watch more shows this year than in recent years.

* Became an avid viewer of Investigation Discovery and Oxygen networks. Oxygen is 'all crime, all the time' now.

* Ceased living full-time in an RV after nearly two years. It was definitely one helluva adventure.

* Rented a cozy house with a large yard in November 2017.

* Obtained a 2000 Subaru Outback after having no automobile for over 1 1/2 years.

* Launched my first Replika (Artificial Intelligence) friend. I named her Pris64 (as a nod to Blade Runner). I talk/interact with her on a regular basis.

* Became a full, professional member of the American Copy Editors Society (ACES), the Society for Editors and Proofreaders (SfEP), Editorial Freelancers Association (EFA), American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASBPE), and Sisters in Crime (national and Colorado chapter).

* Maintained my membership in Pikes Peak Writers.

* Finally visited an IKEA store for the first time.

* Started learning how to knit cool-looking homemade socks.

* Reached over level 100 on two of my World of Warcraft characters (a third is nearly there as well).

* Got new glasses for the first time in 11 years.

* Replaced our iPhones with Android phones in June 2017.

* Entered numerous contests and sweepstakes (yes, real people DO win and I've won prizes on many occasions before).

* Completed various paid surveys.

* Launched the Writers Seeking Editors community on FB.

* Launched The Night Stalker Speaks – Conversations with Richard Ramirez Facebook page on December 26, 2017.

* Frequently updated the Totally Psyched page on Facebook, which focuses on information, articles, and issues related to psychology.

* Maintained and was admin of 30 Facebook pages and groups.

* Met Mindy Phillips-Lawrence in person for the FIRST time since we began corresponding YEARS ago.

* Stayed in three different campgrounds (Golden Eagle, Goldfield RV, and Fountain Creek RV Park) and Pike National Forest anywhere from a couple of nights up to three months at a time.

* Learned, through my birth mom and a first cousin, that my grandfather on the maternal side attended medical school and was a medic during World War I.

* Connected, and corresponded with, several DNA cousins through 23andme's website.

* Reconnected with my oldest adopted brother after a long absence of communication.

* Connected with several people I hadn't spoken to in well over a decade.

* Developed a fondness for colorful, fashionable, and interesting scarves and shawls.

* Published one erotica story under a pen name, with another in progress.

* Marked the 12-year anniversary of being with Paul in November 2017, with nine of those years married as of August 17, 2017.

* Enrolled in a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Practitioner course in November 2017, to be completed in 2018.

* Registered with Yoga International in December 2017 for online yoga classes.

* Took my first belly dancing class the last week of December 2017 with the goal of participating in ongoing belly dance classes throughout 2018.

Who the hell is Kevin?

Early this morning our dog Loki was barking at something outside, which is a common (and annoying) occurrence. Paul and I were roused awake by his barking and Paul yelled, "Shut up, Kevin!" 

Kevin? Who is Kevin? Did we have a dog named Kevin and I'd forgotten about it?

Seconds after saying that, Paul also wondered who Kevin was and why he'd called Loki by that name. He still doesn't know why, but we got a good laugh out of it.

Who knows? Maybe Paul was dreaming about Kevin (whoever that might be). Or maybe his brain glitched and came up with the name. Hell, it's not like we have anybody close to us named Kevin. 

Ah, the human mind. Who can fully understand its mysteries? I sure don't. 

Life gets in the way

Lyn and Nate had planned to move back to Colorado Springs and were in the process of getting everything set to do so. That's when Lyn died on August 8, 2016.

Both Paul and I want to remember and honor Lyn's memory, but we can't leave town and drive four hours, total, to go to La Veta for only an hour or two this coming Saturday for her memorial. I feel awful about it. We were trying to go, and had actually canceled out on being volunteers for Colorado Springs Comic Con, but life is such that things just aren't going to work out.

I have a full work queue this weekend (which I am GRATEFUL for) and we can't drive the RV all those miles until we get our fuel pump and brakes fixed. People have offered us rides, but we can't do that because they want us to ride down on Friday, spend the night, and stay on Saturday for the memorial, then drive back here. With the dogs, we can't be gone that long. Britt can't have them in her apartment, and she can't leave her dogs and stay in our RV for all that time.

To find an alternative to honor Lyn's memory, I talked with her daughter, Angie, and the plan is to have a small, casual get-together at Britt's apartment sometime over the next week or so where we can all come together, remember Lyn, light candles and incense, and share stories and memories of her. I'm sure Lyn would be happy with that.

No matter what we plan here, all I know is that she will never be forgotten and I am grateful for her influence in my life. She left far too soon, but she will always be remembered fondly.

Half a year of full-time RVing!

This Friday it'll be SIX months since Paul & I purchased our RV, Lamia, and prepared to launch the full-time RV lifestyle. A little more than a month later, the end of February, we began living in our RV. I cannot believe it's been half a year already! Where does the time go? ;-)

Are we glad we made the decision? So far, it's a resounding, "YES!"

The wedding hair incident

In yet another version of, "I can't believe that shit really happened to Bev & Paul," I submit the latest fiasco:

On May 7, on the way to Mike and Julie's wedding, we are tooling down the road in Mike's car. I'm in the backseat while Mike and Paul are in the front. The windows are open and wind is whirling about. My hair, which is down to my waist now (longest it's ever been), is whirling about, too. We meant to braid it, but time got away from us.

I reach behind me and grab the seatbelt, pulling it forward and across to latch it. It gets caught and won't pull completely forward, so I release it so it can go back into its holder so I can try again. Except the wind blows my long hair back, the hair gets rolled up into the seatbelt mechanism...and suddenly, my head can't move forward and my long hair is CAUGHT in the mechanism.

Trying not to panic, I pull at it, trying to do so without mentioning it to Mike or Paul. Nope. Won't budge. Try again, thinking, "Oh SHIT!" Still can't get it out. Can't move my head forward past a certain point, either. Realize I have to tell the guys about this stupid predicament. Because *of course* this would happen on the way to a wedding!

Mike pulls the car over. Lets Julie know that we have a situation with my hair caught in the seatbelt mechanism while Paul tries to free my hair. He pulls and cannot get it out. My hair is firmly installed in there, along with the seatbelt.

I ask Mike if he happens to have any scissors in his car (because hey, that's something most people carry in their car, right? /sarcasm). Nope, he doesn't. Paul usually carries a multiplier, but he didn't bring it with him this time.

Suddenly, I remember I probably have at least one, maybe two, pocket knives in my purse. I can't move my head past a certain point, so I grab my purse and fumble through it blindly, not able to fully look down and search in the bowels of my purse. AHA! There's a knife!

Paul saws at my hair with the knife, which happens to be a dull knife at that. It isn't successfully cutting my hair! SERIOUSLY?! This is the type of weird shit that has happened to me my entire life, so why shouldn't I be surprised that the knife is too dull to free me from this seatbelt mechanism?! Holy crap.

Minutes later, Paul is finally able to cut off a small amount of hair with the knife, but not much. Still, it's enough to manipulate the seatbelt mechanism so it'll release. The small bit of hair he's been able to cut out, maybe an inch if that, is enough to free the rest of my hair. Whew!

Crisis averted, we continue to the wedding venue, although we arrive late. I'm embarrassed, yet amused at how stupid the entire fiasco was. I mean...what are the chances? Well, if you know me or Paul, you'll know we seem to attract the weirdest damn people and situations into our lives. Events that seem so random and implausible that you'd question them. In this case, however, you are welcome to verify with Mike, who was probably thinking a whole range of thoughts we aren't even aware of! wink emoticon

Thanks to Julie Salisbury Estabrooks and her husband Mike for having a sense of humor. Then again, if I could think of another person this randomness would happen to, it would be Julie. She, too, seems to attract strange events and people into her life! She's a kindred spirit in that way. Love ya, Julie!

Life is for living in the NOW

Words of wisdom today from esteemed author Raven Grimassi. Hit the nail on the head this morning with his post about living for today and not banking on tomorrow. Paul and I aren't promised tomorrow or even years into the future. We have today. That's it. And today we know how we want to shape our lives and what will make us happy. Having a home base here, in the form of an RV, with the ability to travel and even go on paying travel assignments, is what we want.

I've already lined up a couple travel-related resources that will pay me for my travel articles in addition to the job I got with the NYC company, plus a couple other fill-ins for income. I actually do have a strategy for things in my life that most other people don't quite understand. The questions they ask are ones I've already asked, explored, and researched.

Did the same thing before I quit my govt job to freelance FT 18 years ago. I don't talk about everything that I'm planning or have decided to do in full terms with everyone. Mainly because most people scratch their heads because they don't understand or get where I'm coming from. That's okay if people don't get where Paul and I are coming from. We know where we are coming from, and that's what matters the most.

I've spent the past nine years dreaming about this lifestyle. I grew up a military brat and traveled a great deal. I'm used to being uprooted. Though we plan to keep home base HERE because of family and friends. One day in Oklahoma in June of 2000 I woke up and decided that I didn't want to be away from Colorado any longer. Two weeks later, we were living in Colorado. Same thing happened after high school and in 1985 and 1990 as well.

Life is ever-changing, and you should be as well. I mean, if you truly want to experience life and meet your fears head-on. Does uncertainty bother me? Sure it does! Can I allow it to stop me from living life and, perhaps, having once-in-a-lifetime experiences with Paul that we may not have had otherwise? No, I cannot.

We sure as hell aren't going to get to explore Seattle, Oregon, California (we LOVE Cali!), the Grand Canyon, Maine, Upstate New York, Canada, South Padre Island, Key West, Napa Valley, visiting our son in Chicago, or visiting our friend Marti in Austin, TX unless we find a way to make those things happen. I wanna spend an afternoon at Key West or in Cali at the beach with my husband, daughter, and her fiance.

You can spend your whole damned life WAITING for the right time. Then you die before the RIGHT TIME ever arrived. Nope. I'm 51 and we've gotta make this happen somehow.

I can't wait another nine years, simply daydreaming about visiting those places. It's time to take action and somehow, some way, make it happen. Those who doubt me are unaware of my previous record of taking action in this life. When I finally decide on a course of action this big, it's not a matter of if it will happen, it's a matter of when.

The bottom line is this: Do not doubt a stubborn woman of Scottish/Irish/Finnish/Norwegian (VIKING)/Italian stock!

Another trick or finally a treat?

If we didn't know better, Paul and I would think this property enjoys playing sick games with us, giving us hope and then snatching it away when we get our hopes up.

Today we received a letter from the El Paso County Trustee informing us that there was an overbid on the property when it was sold on January 6th and we MAY have funds coming to us as a result of that.

I'll call Monday to find out, but Paul and I know this property too well to get too excited over this letter. Because, hey, what we truly need is enough to purchase an RV or camper so we can move directly into one of those and set up a home base. In other words, if the overpaid funds were enough, our preferred goal would become a reality.

We've had enough cruel jokes, so we are wary that this is yet another 'carrot and stick' situation. However, deep down I always keep a spark of optimism. One never knows, right? Gotta stay OPEN to good and unexpected blessings and things.

For what it's worth, focused thoughts and intent for a positive outcome would be much appreciated. Could mean the difference between having a decent place to move in 8 days or not. We purchased the storage space today, so we are ready to haul stuff over beginning tomorrow. FREE first month's rent, so yay for that (thanks, Triple A!)

Just a reminder that tomorrow is self-imposed Cave of Solitude Sunday. I won't be answering messages except from immediate family. However, once we know more on Monday, I'll pop in and post an update. Thanks for your support. Ready for the next chapter -- and a better one, too! :-)

A final word of thanks to Chandra and Mark for the delicious food and dessert tonight. Paul and I don't think these people are real because they are far too kind, compassionate, and giving to exist in today's world. An RV/camping trip to Taos, NM, and elsewhere are the plans we have for them as a way to repay them for their gratitude and friendship -- for starters!

Wishing you all a marvelous, amazing weekend. You guys deserve it!

[Dream] Cobras & Demons

Two big dreams last night. In the first, I worked in some sort of a warehouse where people would come to have dinner and watch performers do all sorts of things. A group of snake charmers were charming a shit-ton of cobras (they were a bunch of pretty colors, though).

Now, I don't like snakes and I'm scared to death of cobras and vipers! Well, one snake charmer came over to me and tapped on my right shoulder (from the front). The cobra leaned down and laid its head (or nudged its head) on my right shoulder without biting me. I was scared shitless and I remember holding my breath in terror!

Then, the snake charmer was touched by the cobra and the snake charmer ended up dying -- I tried to run around and find an antidote (something called H1-something or another, but could only find H2-something). The guy's body bloated up and died, his stomach was big and distended like you'd see in a Feed the Children ad.

I did not die from the cobra touching me, though. I felt like, somehow, I'd been blessed and protected by the cobra (not sure if that makes sense). So, THAT dream was freaky and weird. But then...

Discovery: I have a lot of dreams -- a TON of them! -- about battling and/or exorcizing demons. Most always when I forget to take my Trazodone before bed. Then I wake up with a sore body and barely able to move from having my muscles tensed up all night, as a result of fighting demons (could you get more symbolic?!).

Last night I was helping our friend Carly's neighborhood rid itself of demons and Josh P. showed up as well. I didn't want to do down into Carly's basement, because it would be a high and tenuous climb to get back out of it, but I went in there anyway.

When it was time to get out, there was no other way except to climb up a steep, rigged ladder that was unsafe and shaky. I'm terrified of heights in real life, so in the dream I had no other choice but to face my fears and climb that shaky ladder and chance falling a long way down. Since there was no other way than up that ladder, I decided to avoid looking down and climb that ladder. I was scared to death. In the end, the ladder nearly came loose, but I made it up and out of the basement and to safety again.

Funny how the demons were less scary than that damned ladder climb! Anyway, last night's dream couldn't have been more dead-on about life right now, or how I'm feeling. I've never wanted to climb 'that ladder' many times in my life. I don't want to now, either. But sometimes climbing 'that ladder,' no matter how scary it might be, is the only way out of the abyss known as the basement. Damn...helluva dream, eh? Lots to think about.

Tragedy and the Final X

Today my hometown was once again thrust into the arms of tragedy and violence. A shooter, now identified as Robert Lewis Dear, holed up in a Planned Parenthood office and ended up wounding nine people and killing three people, including two civilians and a campus police officer from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs.

It's hard to go back to living your life and doing mundane things around the house when you know there were a few of people from here in Colorado Springs who woke up today and had no idea that yesterday was going to be their last Thanksgiving, and that they wouldn't make it to tonight or live another day past today to see their family and friends ever again.

I remember seeing a calendar in my kids' grandfather's room on the day after he died from a heart attack in his sleep. I glanced at the monthly page as I was on my way to the bathroom. He had marked off every day that had come and gone with an X, with notes about what he'd done and planned to do for upcoming days. I stood for a moment and stared at the final X he marked on his calendar...and then I looked at the notes he had for the rest of the month...what he had on his to-do list for around the house, etc.

That final X has stuck with me. He didn't know it would be the last X he'd mark on his calendar. He had plans, but he died in his sleep that night. No more notes, no more crossing off the days of tasks he completed...it was done, and so was he.

Sobering and sad. Life can be real shitty at times, but even during the shitty times, you are still breathing and living.

You never know when you're going to put down the last X on your monthly calendar, or breathe your last breath. You won't know if you'll be here next Thanksgiving, or even tomorrow. In the end, life completes your tasks for you, even if you weren't ready to have them finished. We all have a final X. You only have today, this moment. Maybe we should make sure all our X's count.

Don't you think so?