It snowed yesterday in Oklahoma. Only the second one of the season. We might have gotten an inch if you stretched it some, and it was bitterly cold. In years gone by, I would have put on my Yaktrax and gone to work, my lunch packed, in dress pants and a heavy coat, prepared to come out and clear a windshield when the day was done. Then I would drive the treacherous roads back home to a warm house. At least I hoped it was warm.
But I’m retired now and falling on the ice—let’s just say I don’t bounce like I used to. So, I stayed in. All. Day. Long.
I had plenty to do. I wrote for hours, took a nap, talked on the phone, baked a peach crisp, cooked supper, and watched a movie before bed where I read some before going to sleep. I know how to party on a snow day!
I’ve been reading a Mary Higgins Clark novel. She knew how to set a mood. You knew from page one something was wrong with that house! Get out! But it is good to read the masters and learn from them. She was a very successful author of 51 bestselling books, and she knew how to spin a tale.
I awoke this morning to fog coming off the snow. It is supposed to warm up and the small amount of moisture we received from the snow will hopefully melt into our thirsty soil. Oklahoma is in a drought.
I plan to get out and enjoy the sun. I am not sure what I’ll do today, but there is always something that needs my attention. I spent an afternoon this week in the shower on my hands and knees with a scrub brush. I think I need to shop for a sponge mop with a scrubber on it. Do they still make those? I’m too old to crawl around scrubbing nooks and crannies in a shower.
And then there is always the Mary Higgins Clark novel awaiting me.
What are you reading this week?
In 2020 I published my first children’s book, Ian’s Magic. It released in the middle of the pandemic (yes, the same one we’re still dealing with). But I was unable to have a book signing or release party. It was a soft opening. But the little book has done well. I promoted it through social media and today I am still working on getting it into schools, libraries, etc.
Like most of the world who celebrates Christmas I was busy the last few weeks. We had Christmas dinner at my son’s. My son-in-law’s mother had a heart attack and went into a nursing home. My sister had a heart attack and left her with blood clots in her lungs and legs. My granddaughter lives in Boulder where the wildfires hit, but she expects her apartment to be there when she is allowed to go back. New Years left us with below normal temperatures and snow. But it’s winter so what do you expect.
Merry Christmas! I hope yours was great—mine was. It was smaller than usual, but the food and company were wonderful. 
Last week we discussed the book and craft expo at the Enid Public Library. I saw lots of old friends and talked to the public who attended. But the best part of the book signing was the little book that was gifted to me. 
The Public Library of Enid and Garfield County hosted a Friends of the Library Book, Bake, & Craft Expo yesterday. There were 20 authors, a baker and some crafts made from books. Lovely! I attended and met up with some old friends. 
Some seemed surprised when they just walked in the door to return a book and found the entire downstairs filled with books for sale. 
(Did I fall asleep talking to Sheldon Russell?) With the pandemic, there have been fewer get togethers than the past. I hope we can continue to do such things. I sold some books and bought some books (I always do) and talked literature with like minds. I’d love to do it again soon.
It’s Christmas and what better time to give the gift of books. If you have a child on your Christmas list, give them the gift of living a life outside themselves. Books can transport you to places you might never go.
This week we transitioned from Thanksgiving to Christmas. We have less than a month to decorate, eat to excess, and buy all those gifts for under the tree. 
It’s Thanksgiving this week, a time to think of family.
I’ve published one comic book, Stone of Thor, for Okie Comics 
You can get a copy there is you’re interested. I wrote it based on my two books, Glome’s Valley 
and Return to Glome’s Valley 
Peggy Chambers "Views from the Hammock" site 