Miscellania

Just finished a first read-through of my second manuscript.

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Still working on the author website. The hosting company I was planning on going with I’ve decided last minute to nix. Something between a hunch and cold feet. There’s another one I checked out back in October I may take a second look at.

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Continuing to apply for 9-5 jobs. Sent out resumes, cover letters, and letters of recommendation to 91 companies this past month. Applied to a bunch of positions online. Had two interviews right before Thanksgiving; hoping for a couple more before the end of the year.

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My wife’s family joined us for a claustrophobic tree viewing at Rockefeller Center this past Saturday. Had early dinner together across from Carnegie Hall. Actor Michael Chiklis was eating at the table next to us. We all said hello as he left and he was very gracious.

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I see on the news as I’m writing this that Pete Rose was denied yet again entry into the Baseball Hall of Fame. I say after what MLB is doing with DraftKings and FanDuel, let him in. He’s been punished for something like 30 years. That should be enough.

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Best way to combat depression (for a man) = weight lifting. I lift hard and heavy for an outta shape man my age, and my spirits lift immediately. Going on five days in a row now. Hope to get back on track like I was May-June-July. Worked out something like 75 times those three months, felt great (though tired), and not a hint of the blues.

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As a bonding exercise, I did a 500-piece “jigasaw” puzzle with Patch. Only took us eight days. She had a field trip today where she sat in a room where George Washington slept and touched a post where our first President hitched his horse, Nelson, for the stay. This was very exciting to her. Oh to be young again.

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Decided that I’m going to delve (back) into World War II history at the start of the new year. I have a couple of hefty unread tomes: Antony Beevor’s excellent one-volume history; The Guns at Last Light, the final volume of Rick Atkinson’s WW2 trilogy; Ike’s Crusade in Europe; the sixth volume of Churchill’s history of the war. Clocking in at about 2,500 pages, the reading should take me to Easter or so. Why am I doing this? Fuel for a Writing idea …

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After a long drought of bad movies, I’m looking forward to seeing Daddy’s Home, The Revenant, The Forest possibly (review-dependent) with my buddy in the theaters. We’re both middle-aged dads with wives and children, so the m.o. between the two families is, to save on babysitting money, the wives see a movie, then we do, then they do, etc. I haven’t gone out to see a movie with my wife since Skyfall in 2012. Before that, I don’t remember.

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As far as the new Star Wars movie goes … as a Child of the 70s I was at the epicenter of the original phenomena. With the prequels George Lucas squandered all and more of that good will with me, as well as many from my generation. Have to wait for reviews before making a decision one way or the other, but I won’t be seeing it opening day. Or opening month.

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So done with Spendmas. It ain’t no fun, especially when you’re out of work. As the man sang, “It’s the most … stressful tiiiiiiiiiiiime … OF THE YEAR!”

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Go Giants!