“Do you miss working?”

It’s been four months since I sold my last business. During that time, my blood pressure has dropped from an average of 130/85 to 110/65. My weight has also dropped fifteen pounds -- with little change in eating or exercise. I have hope that I’ll soon fit into the dresses in storage bins marked an accusatory “too small.” As if it was somehow their fault that my waist had disappeared over the years, causing them to become too tight.

“The reciprocity principle is one of the basic laws of social psychology: It says that in many social situations we pay back what we received from others. In other words, if John does you a favor, you're likely to return it to him.”

I have noticed over the three decades I’ve been posting stories that a large share of those who leave comments on my stories are authors.

Perhaps they leave comments because I leave comments on their stories.

As would be expected, my phone is blowing up with all sorts of Democrats asking for donations. Between the 1/6 hearings and the SCOTUS decisions the Dems are sensing a campaign contribution bonanza.

What wasn’t expected was the letter I received yesterday from "President Donald J. Trump."

The letter contained two pieces of paper: a letter from Trump asking me for $2,900 and a 2022 Critical Issues Survey from the Rep Nat’l Comm.

When I look at In Memoriam I see a list of many people I interacted with. . .some extensively.

I’m struck by the knowledge that many of these people died quite suddenly. Most had very little warning.

I’m 74. According to the insurance tables, I have about twelve years to go. But. . ..

My eyes then glance to other parts of the front page. Money issues are a constant for Big Closet.

When Amelia and I originally wrote “Peaches” -- we were relieved when Y2K turned out to be a yawn brought on by adequate preparation. That particular hysteria cost my business about $1million when I lost a major supplier for what turned out to be no valid reason. They wrote me a check for $40k to soothe my pain. . .didn’t.

"Don't join the book burners... Don't be afraid to go in your library and read every book." - Dwight D. Eisenhower

“If all printers were determined not to print anything till they were sure it would offend nobody, there would be very little printed." - Benjamin Franklin

“Information is the currency of democracy.” –Thomas Jefferson

Doppler has just published an revised version of Peaches.

This was one of my earlier novels. It is the only one I co-wrote with anyone.

It was quite a learning experience to see how much my writing style has changed in two decades. My thanks to Gaby for her help with editing.

In this world of algorithms and jackasses, certain things do and do not count.

Bezo is a jackass.

BC needs revenue to stay viable.

BC generates a considerable amount of revenue through the sale of my books. The more positive review for my books, the more books Amazon will sell. I don't take anything from this revenue flow.

Therefore, please read the book, and then review the book. The cash coming into BC counts.

Bezo's jackassery doesn't count.

According to one article the most popular New Year's Resolutions are:

1. Exercise more
2. Lose weight
3. Get organized
4. Learn a new skill or hobby
5. Live life to the fullest

That same article states that people making resolutions are successful 46% percent of the time.

My success ratio for the hundreds of resolutions I've made is zero.

However, I'm curious if any of you have made a resolution regarding your writing or reading practices on BC.

Spent the last hour and a half shoveling fourteen inches of snow. Thankfully it was light and fluffy, in mild temperature with no wind.

Rethinking the wisdom of buying a house with a double lot.

Gave away my two snowblowers when I moved to the city from the burbs. Had a big one for the driveway and a small one for the sidewalk and to blow the blow from my deck down into my pool.

Now all I have are four shovels, a spouse, and a springer spaniel (with dubious snow moving skills).

Jill

If Roe v. Wade can be rolled back, what's next?

If you're feeling at all comfortable about your trans-rights, should you be?

Jill

A few days ago, Doppler Press published How You Play the Game. It is the twenty-first book I’ve written that has been sold on Amazon.

I donate 100% of the proceeds to BC to support this site. Erin has said it has been quite a bit of money.

Last week, Erin messaged me about three of my books: Miss Recudes, Leight Wilde, and The Ninth Fold.

She asked if I had published them through someone else.

We often have blogs about depression or suicidal thoughts.

Several years ago, I was having suicidal thoughts. I’m a person who believes everyone is responsible for their attitudes. I couldn’t believe I was actually giving suicide consideration.

I’ve been through some very bleak days in my life. Yet – suicide hadn’t entered into my thoughts as a way to fix my situations. It didn’t seem right that I was suddenly going there.

Last Sunday, 60 Minutes had a segment about trans.

https://www.cbs.com/shows/60_minutes/video/Q3tmFP_EoyZrqeaAD...

It started out as a discussion of anti-trans laws and quickly took a sharp turn into the ease of convincing doctors to start hormone therapy and actual SRS.

Scientists have suggested that herd immunity might not be a feasible goal for the United States. They state the main factor stopping herd immunity is vaccine reluctance.

I have "death reluctance."

What doesn't the government hold a $100,000,000 lottery for all those who have been fully vaccinated as of July 1?

Given a shot at $100M might prompt the damn fools to roll up their sleeves.

Why should those of us who have done the right thing suffer under the distinct peril of this virus mutating, when we have the chance to eradicate it.

Jill

“There ain't no sin and there ain't no virtue. There's just stuff people do.”
― John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath

I live in the Twin Cities. My attention to the George Floyd trial might exceed that of the average BC visitor. My anger at what occurred has gone up with each new bit of prosecutorial evidence.

It seems George Floyd died because the police officer who killed him had marginalized him.

There’s been a lot of discussion in a different thread about the decision to pull several Dr. Seuss books from publication.

Much of the chatter seems to regard a book as “art” or “history of a certain time.”

I certainly agree. Books like “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” and “Huck Finn” are examples of books that are offensive by today’s standards -- that should never be lost to readers.

What that other discussion seemingly misses – and a point that should never be missed on this site – is that books are chattel.

A few years ago, I asked Erin if she would be interested in publishing Peaches through Doppler Press. I agreed to donate all proceeds to the maintenance of BC.

I wasn’t sure what to think and frankly sort of washed my hands of it and didn't think much about how many books were being sold. Last summer, Erin told me about the amount of money the sales of my books have generated. I was amazed and gratified.

My anxiety started at about 10:00 last night.

My thirty-year-old baby, the daughter who came to us later than most and after three boys -- called us complaining of intense pain.

She didn't want to go to the hospital until, and if, it was absolutely necessary due to covid worries. Yet - the pains seemed to be intensifying.

We were over two hundred miles away and could only give suggestions and sympathy.

At 4:30 we received a FaceTime call. The image of my wonderful daughter and her new son caused my heart to swell.

I finally went to sleep.

Troubles by the score.

Why do I have such a fixation on the Kudos and Total Views numbers?

That is a very good question when you consider that I’ve been saying for eons that there is absolutely no correlation between the quality of writing and these two numbers, for any given story.

The over-riding answer is this – I’ve seen too many new or impressionable writers turned off when their stories don’t receive high scores.

In a few days I will post the final chapter for my mini-serial "The Womb of the Unknown Cheerleader."

A few days after that, I will unpublish the story. It is scheduled to form part of a Doppler Press book called "How You Play the Game." Rasufelle is putting the finishing touches on another enticing cover.

It will join over a dozen other books I've donated to BC. I take no part of the revenues generated.

My total word count posted on BC has just gone over one million.

I suppose that was almost inevitable given my immediate infatuation with a word processor three decades ago.

Thank you Erin for giving me a place to publicly display my stories.

As a dear friend of mine, Percy Ross, said many times, "Thanks a million!"

Jill

An unwritten contract does exist between the reader and the author.

A comment yesterday on one of my stories brought this home to me one more time.

A few years ago, I tried to write a story that would create a pile of revenue for Erin through Doppler Press. That effort failed. I have no interest in reading age regression/baby stories and shouldn’t have tried to write one. I donate my books to Erin and she receives 100% of the revenue. Unlike the other twelve of my books published by Doppler -- this one doesn’t sell much and received poor reviews.