Good morning! This post is adapted from my recent author newsletter, so if you’re on my mailing list, it should look pretty familiar. Hope you don’t mind.
I’ve recently started writer meet-ups on Tuesday mornings. I go to Stoked Coffee on Blizzard Drive in south Parkersburg from 9am to Noon with my laptop. The first one, I spent the first half by myself, but was joined by a friend. We chatted a bit and then just sat in companionable silence while we each worked on our own writing projects. If someone else comes to these, I’m glad of that, but whether someone else joins or not, I still get three hours in a neat place to do writer-y stuff. At this last one, I got some good work done on my Sam Stone prequel novella, The Hound of the Island.
The good news on that is that I’m over 20,000 words and I like what I have. The bad news is I’ve changed the who in whodunnit four times. And it’s a novella, so I’m running out of possible culprits! The really good news is I’ve contracted with Kara Starcher of Mountain Creek Books for the cover art and just as soon as it comes in and I’ve put the finishing touches on the story, it will be all yours to read for a cost of no dollars and no cents, but only if you are a member of my mailing list! To join, just go here.
On a much more personal note, Sarah and I recently returned from a trip to Oklahoma. Based on how long we drove, that feels like clear across the country, but the reality is it’s probably not even halfway. We took our daughter Lauren to see her husband Brodie graduate from US Army basic training at Fort Sill. We hadn’t seen him since he left about eleven weeks previous, so it was really fantastic to finally hug him. There was definitely a little less baby fat, a good bit more muscle, and markedly less hair on him than when he left. Lauren was, obviously, the most excited. They were apart for their first anniversary, so they are still strongly in the newlywed phase. I can’t blame them. I still feel like I’m in the newlywed phase with my Sarah. I hope we both always will feel that way.
After all the festivities, we dropped Brodie’s mom at the local airport and then Brodie and Lauren at Will Rogers International in Oklahoma City, and then took some time to mark being empty nesters again after a summer of having the baby home. We stopped in St. Louis for a weekend of just the two of us. We rented an AirBnB in a lovely neighborhood known as The Hill. Our house was tiny but more than sufficient for our needs, especially because it was within walking distance of several award-winning Italian restaurants. Less than a block away, I had the best shrimp scampi I’ve ever had, and there’s no close second. The next day, we did the obligatory trip up in the arch. You really don’t need to worry if you’re afraid of heights. But if you’re afraid of small spaces, you might want to give it a second thought before buying your ticket. The little pod you ride to the top in are quite a tight squeeze. I’m no behemoth, but I felt quite squished as I tried not to exchange too much sweat with the complete stranger to my left the whole trip up. The pods would seat three people in relative comfort, which is too bad, since there were five of us in there. But it was only four minutes up and three minutes down. In between were some pretty spectacular views of St. Louis and the mighty Mississippi, which definitely lived up to its nickname, Big Muddy.
After the arch, we took a leisurely walk through a beautiful park to our next stop, which was the pick-up spot for a trolley tour that was quite fun and informative. The purpose of the tour was to show all the fun things to do in town. And what we learned was there are way too many fun–and free–things to do than we had time for. There are museums, parks, and theater venues all over the city that are available for free. After the tour, we had probably the best barbecue I’ve ever eaten and then took a tour of a remarkable cathedral that was filled with thousands and thousands of square feet of mosaics. Everywhere we looked, from floor to ceiling, there were ornate, highly detailed mosaics. Part of me was moved nearly to tears by the scenes from the Bible, which were a reminder of the love God has for us. Another part of me struggled with the amount of money that was surely spent on these. I’m obviously an advocate for the arts, but I’m also a firm believer in the church using its resources wisely. I guess I could say I came away with strongly mixed feelings.
After a relaxing evening in our rental, we lazed over breakfast before packing up and heading home. Along the way, we stopped in the cool, quirky little town of Casey, Illinois. Casey is home to the world’s largest wind chimes. And the world’s largest rocking chair. And the world’s largest mailbox. And the world’s largest pitchfork. I could go on for a bit. We didn’t see all the world’s largest things, figuring we’d save the rest for another day. But Sarah and I agreed that the best part of the town wasn’t the giant items, but the spectacular flower gardens that surrounded all of them. The colors were simply breathtaking and the gardens were all assiduously maintained, with not a weed in sight.
The one part of the trip I definitely do not recommend are the roads in Indiana. Having lived nearly my whole life in West Virginia, I have developed a strong stomach for rough roads, but nothing could prepare me for the war zone that were the interstates in the Hoosier state, especially between Indianapolis and the Ohio border. So, if you have a fragile disposition–or suspension system in your car–consider a different route.
I’ve included a few pictures. Hope you enjoyed our tour. Be on the lookout for another email from me in the next two or three weeks with a link to your free novella. In the meantime, enjoy the last few weeks of summer!
God bless!
Joe
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