Update!

Brave New Words was a success, and a lot of other water has passed under the bridge.

My beloved, Jody, is still working, and house sitting as well. Seems like maybe this winter she won't get laid off, which is ironic because currently I am. Maybe more on that later. She's also house sitting. She'll come back from one job, and a week later head off for a two month stint up by Freeland, which is a paying job though. And she heads to New York to help finalize her late mom's belongings, then I will be in the house, taking care of the cats and dogs, with no TV or computer. Man, can you say devoted practice time? No, not my drums, my meditation practice. It's about a lot more than just being quiet.

Jode is still on the grief cycle. One of her friends recently had a son pass on, and there are plenty in Jody's family, the aunts and uncles, that are seeming to get ill and pass on almost en mass. But I've watched this woman over the years, and she isn't taking it sitting down. She processes things like nobody I know, and what with losing her mom and sister and other family members before Vasu passed on, it's just been her life for the last two years. She still gardens, visits with friends, laughs, and basically lives life, just with grief as a companion for now.

Taylor is working as close to full time doing dishes and food prep at Prima as he can get, and otherwise gardening. He just landed a job today, prepping a house for the winter. So he's going to use the winter work to prepare for the next summer's solo flight, as his co-worker has moved away. I've seen his handiwork, having done the gardens for a former client of my boss, and I've see him work. He has quite the ethic. He's teamed up with Jody and really done a number on the gardens here. It's been a joy to watch.

Miles is going to London tomorrow! He's going to visit an old friend, and when he returns, he assumes the position of sous chef at the Prima, a local restaurant. He will also likely be moving out soon thereafter, so Taylor will get his own room and Miles will get his own place. Being the sous, he's quite busy. It's a great opportunity though, because the Prima has great owners, good staff, and a good sense of what it means to serve a quality dining experience. A chance to prove himself is what awaits him.

As for me, well, just the usual insanity. Still doing the firefighter/emt thing. I took the test for officer last year, and unless the district floats the test again, the results will void out in two months, three tops and then it's a do over. Might not go down that path again. I like the activity, but as a career, I'm not so certain I'd head that way. Why, well, I'm experiencing a change in values I think. I'm more into plugging in locally, which is why I applied to the library board vacancy. I was approved, but it's somewhat of a better expression of a growing vision within me to see the community I live in grow towards the future. Maybe a city council seat sometime down the road. For now though, the library board suits me, and getting more involved with members of the city council because of that work. I'm also still organizing poetry readings, and currently I'm engaged in the play, Wind In The Willows, which is being produced by Whidbey Children's Theater. It's been a while since I did theater, and I remember why I stopped! However, I love the cast I am working with. I also started drum lessons, just before I got laid off. Levi Beurkle is my teacher, and I have plenty of time to learn the first set of rhythms he gave me. Add some fills, and set a pattern for three bars, add the fill, and come out into a different pattern for three bars, well, you get the idea. For all the playing I've done, it's proved to be difficult for me. Which is why I'm doing it. I knew I needed some better skills. Particularly if I want to make this a paying vocation. A local gig would be nice, and session work.

Being laid off is giving me time to re-examine what I want to do with my life from an occupation point of view. I heard recently that the level of income a person makes is a direct reflection of how many people consider them an expert. And relative to that is rethinking my own writing, and just what the possibilities are for marketing it successfully. So I am in the process of creating a business plan. It's time to quit counting on any one other than myself for my livelihood. And it seems like I could garner that from several sources!

I was talking with Robert Gilman the other day, and he used the analogy of being a midwife for change. It's going to happen whether we like it or not. How it happens depends on the skills of the midwife. I like that. As much as it's been easy to polarize politically, it isn't the most productive. Is it not better to help the change occur positively rather than harshly? So it was a challenge to me. Every being is trying to be happy, and not suffer. It is my calling to help facilitate that.