Big Heat - Big Storm - New Book Serials
Some hot (95+ degree) days. Surprising wind dropped a couple of trees. Meanwhile - I've got two serials being published via Substack...
Hi,
Again ICYMI: I changed my newsletter title. More logical and descriptive of what I do. Really hot this week - for us, anyway (I don’t live in Texas or Deep South.) How I have to treat cattle these days is the topic du jour.
Farming News - Still thirteen calves now. #10 is featured. Heat, hot, balmy, humid - that’s hitting me and my herd all day long now.
Writing News - Publishing both a fiction and non-fiction serial now.
Expectancy - You have to learn to let go to move ahead.
Farming News
Here’s Calf Number 10! Another new bull calf.
More cute patterns… His momma’s name is Shorty. She’s a Dexter, which is a smallish breed. That’s one of our nurse-maids, since she’s been known to supply three calves at once (hers, plus two more). Dexters are triple-purpose - meat, milk, and draft. (While we’ve never had draft animals on this farm.)
Certainly won’t have problems identifying him when he’s larger and can’t hide in the tall grass anymore.
Send me your ideas for a name - comment on Substack or reply to this email.
We’re up to 13 calves now! Still expecting a total of 17 this spring. Only 4 to go - now we are getting late. Now I have memorized the few cows I need to watch daily - like a mental checklist. Expect/hope we may have had a calf during last night’s storm.
It shouldn’t have been a surprise after two steamy days of 95+ degree days. All that energy in the atmosphere. So it boiled over for a few minutes, local to this area, and when the rain started, those angry clouds condensed into a solid gray overcast - and the winds became more uniform and lesser.
We had a great gusting wind late afternoon, and a dead tree next to the main house lost it’s top - to fall exactly between two buildings. Only took out a couple of hummingbird feeders and a rain gauge. I happend to be there and watch it happen.
When I went out to the farm to check cows this morning, I found a contented herd enjoying a light rain:
But 180-degrees opposite:
That tree used to be standing in the fence row, but now was laying about 10 feet or so away from that fence.
This photo from the other side. You can see the herd in the distance here. That tree was maybe two feet across at the base, but split and shattered with the wind stress being just so.
I won’t be doing much with this tree until this fall, when it’s cured enough for firewood. Meanwhile, the cows will graze all the green leaves they want from it. (And yes, it means I should check my other perimeter fences soonish. So I can plan ahead to get them fixed before I need to get cows grazing there.)
Tiny Home News
Oddly, inside that tiny home, the windows shut against the wind-driven rain, it was quiet and didn’t move with the wind. We could hear the rain against the roof, and turned on the A/C to pull the humidity down, but it wasn’t particularly hot in there. The temperature outside dropped some 10 degrees in a handful of minutes, so it was just clammy and stuffy. We turned on fans to move the air around, but the A/C wasn’t working hard. Having that cottage set up tight against tall apple and walnut trees on the other side protected both, as the wind had to go up and over.
Yesterday, I got a second report that there weren’t any blackberries out there. But I’d just rearranged the polywire fence a couple of days prior - to give the bulls some new grass - and saw them personally. Yes, they could have dried up in the heat. And yes, they could have dropped off or gotten eaten by birds. But - I had to see for myself (I’m “from Missouri” after all) and so my wife and I went out to see what we could. (And took a pan with - just in case.)
Here’s the results we got:
About a quart or so. My Mom made them up into blackberry jam this afternoon. We should get 2 or 3 more pickings, since many are still green or red, and we have yet to get into the very condensed (ie. crowded and prickly) sections of the canes.
Writing News
I posted the Introduction on last Monday’s Writerpreneur post. I’ll be posting the rest of this non-fiction detective-mystery over the following 8 weeks.
And if you can’t wait to see how the story turns out, I’ve posted it as a beta-reader download below.
It’s all basically wrapped up for now, and over to proofing.
It’s due to become part of my first Kickstarter that should fire up in late July. (Still more work to do on that. But I’ll keep you posted.)
The other serial (this one is fiction) that I have going is The Saga of Eroktika Jones, which is coming out every Saturday. Yes, that book is available in both ebook and paperback…
Another Poll:
Once we settled on a new cover, I thought some codish background would fit better - but the overall series will have that writer-lady sitting there. Maybe.
Kickstarter Research
Still finding time to get more research done on Kickstarter. Found several authors who are making a good income from releasing this way. Oh - if you when you get the beta-version of this short work above, it will have more of an explanation of the whole Kickstarter Release First idea.
I’m setting up the offer with levels of bonuses just now. Plus stretch goals and whatnot. And I’m still reviewing other’s successful campaigns to see how they ran them.
This Kickstarter scene makes it possible for me to offer other areas of expertise I’ve accumulated than just writing and cattle-grazing. Yes, of course the fiction. And self-improvement. And some others…
A New Special Offer:
For a short time, the beta-readers version of Cracking the Cashflow Code is now available. It will be available at this link until I start the Kickstarter release, you can download the new and improved edition (especially if you already have it from earlier.)
That link is also Pay What You Want - a nice way to donate.
Here’s the link: https://livingsensical.gumroad.com/l/CashflowCode
AN ASK: if you’ve downloaded it, please give some feedback. Leave it in the comments, send me an email. Something, anything. Like it, could be better.
NOTE: This will be a bonus for the Kickstarter. Publishing decisions will be in the next few weeks.
Expectancy
You’ve got to keep your basics in for this to work for you. Sleep, Food, Hydrated. Because it’s too easy to get sidetracked with our frenetically anxious society these days.
Hint: News and Politics are always keeping you alarmed. Take with a grain of salt, in moderation, etc.
Once you’ve mastered having great parking places show up routinely for you, then anything else is just a logical extension. Like the ancient Polynesians used to say,
“The world is what you think it is.
“There are no limits.
“Energy flows where attention goes.”
Thanks for being there, opening this.
Sharing is caring. You’re who I do this all for. I value your input.
Leave a comment if something strikes your fancy.
I hope your life is not too interesting to be overwhelming, but sufficiently engaging to keep you amused. (Like some of us here...)
Robert
PS. Again, you can always email me about anything.
PPS. Again, do upgrade to the paid newsletter version. That helps me keep the lights on - so I can keep all this coming to you. As much or little as you want…
PPPS. I’m considering putting my entire library up (digital versions) for the Patron (Founding Member) level. I’ve done that before in parts, as many of you know. Do let me know what you think about that idea. Reply to this email, or leave a comment on my Substack page for this.
(Meanwhile, I’ve put my archived newsletters and articles all available as free on Substack, instead of behind a paywall.)
AND you can always buy me a coffee…
Here’s that new beta-reader advanced copy: