Dan Antion

Two Down One to Go – SoCS

Contrails and clouds
Modelo draft

It’s Saturday, and it has been 92°f (33°c) for the past two days. David and I are definitely in the mood for a cold adult beverage. We’re going to sit inside where Cheryl is tending bar (and where it’s air conditioned). I’ll see what we can do about working in Linda G. Hill’s Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt while here:

“Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is ‘starts with mono.’ Find a word that starts with ‘mono’ and use it in your post. Enjoy!”

If we were having a beer, you’d be having a beer.

“Cheryl, it’s good to see you again. Please bring Dan and me one of those draft beers he likes.”

“Modelo?”

“Yes.”

“David. Joining me in a beer, instead of bourbon. Have you been out in the heat?”

“I have, Dan and I think a nice cold beer will rectify the effect of that situation. I’ll move on to bourbon later.”

“Here you go, boys. Two ice-cold Modelo Especials”

“I have to admit, Dan. This is a nice beer.”

“I’m glad you like it David. Were you working outside today?”

“No, I had to park down the street and walk up here. Some little white car took the last spot in the lower lot. The upper lot is full. Where did you park.”

“I, um…”

“Just for the record, he drives a little white car, David.”

“Cheryl!”

“Sorry, Dan. I know you don’t want to lie to him. I thought I’d make it easier.”

“Thanks, Cheryl. I’m sure.”

“I have a couple items to take up with you, Dan.”

“Such as?”

“Let’s start with your next book. You gave us an important clue on Wednesday.”

“I did?”

“Yes. Your little grammar rant revealed that Zach and Abbie are in the next book. Another adventure in dreamland?”

“Not so much. They’re in the book, but they don’t hold a monopoly on the plot or the action.”

“Reduced to background characters?”

“I wouldn’t go that far. It’s just that other characters are involved, including several new faces in the crowd.”

“Is the action still taking place in Pittsburgh?”

“Yes.”

“OK, topic number two. How is that writing challenge of yours coming?”

“It’s coming along nicely. We have about sixteen doors, and several people are committed to writing or at least interested,”

“What about you?”

“I’ll toss in a few doors.”

“Are you going to write something?”

“Probably. I’ve seen some interesting doors and I need a break from editing this book.”

“David, are you ready for a break from that beer?”

“I do think I’ll switch to some John Howell’s Bourbon, Cheryl, but put another beer for Dan on my tab.”

“Thanks. Are you done with your list?”

“Yeah. Anything new with you?”

“Yes. We’re going to have a special guest next week.”

“Really, Who?”

“Willow Willers.”

“Willow? That’s great. I remember when she was here before. That was fun.”

“She’s going to tell us about a new poetry anthology. She has several poems in it.”

“That’s cool who else is in it. More people than I can list today, but I’ll send you a link where you can pre-order Poetry Treasures 3: Passions. The poets have been guests of Roberta Eaton Cheadle’s ‘Treasuring Poetry’ blog series.”

“I’ve read Robbie’s blog. Those are good people.”

“They are. We’ll hear more about this from Willow next week.”

“That sounds good, Dan. I’ll see you next week.”

Snoopy is back home
My welcoming committee when I returned from my walk
Contrails and clouds
The apple tree might have some blossoms this year. Last year, a hard frost hit them
Hi Mr. Robin
The bunnies haven’t gotten to this one–yet
Another sign of spring. I tossed this back onto the field
Slow Joe Crow
My favorite sign of spring. The bunnies love these
On its way to 92°f (33°c)
Ground cover
Lilies of the Valley
Forsythia
Of course I gave her a peanut
Apple tree in the park
Stiff breeze – No problem


If you like magical realism with suspense, action and a bit of family sarcasm, you will enjoy these books:

Knuckleheads
The Evil You Choose
When Evil Chooses You

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All available on Kindle Unlimited!

78 comments

  1. Hi Dan it certainly is hot over there , its still wet and cold here. I shall pack some summer close for my visit next week which I am looking forward to.
    The photos are very inspiring this week . Please say hi to all at the bar 💜💜💜💜💜💜

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  2. Hi Dan – it is not that warm here yet!! But Spring is allowing nature to come back to life … the wind blew me over this week – thankfully onto grass! Cheers Hilary

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      • Thanks Dan – body down, might even have been lifted briefly, onto grass – then my hood was caught and down went the head … thankfully on grass, not tarmac and not against a tree trunk … I wasn’t even shocked … just irritated – and frustrated as I had to gather up papers I needed for the dinner I organise and was going to – not sure if one or two didn’t disappear off towards Siberia. But all well and no damage done – not even to my pride! So – all ok thank you … I’m amazed at your weather – 3 temp ranges in three days … mind you ours rises a little next week – I hope! Cheers Hilary

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  4. 92??!! That’s amazing. Weird too. We aren’t quite that warm here but certainly the heat has been suddenly and dramatically cranked up, and the trees and flowers are popping. So beautiful! I wish the rabbits here were like your rabbits. I have a fine crop of dandelions but the rabbits much prefer the things in my garden that I actually paid money for. That’s a great close-up of the blue ground cover — it looks iced! I’m looking forward to the poet at the bar!

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    • Our bunnies will eat from the garden, or the salad bar as they think of it, and they are selectively munching our spring flowers. I’m hoping the dandelions will draw their attention. The flowering ground cover is a favorite of the bees. In the spring, we let all that stuff grow for them to feast on. Having Willow visit will be fun,

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  7. Same weather here! Plants in my garden are suddenly shooting up. Love it!

    Love the photo of the contrails and clouds. Mr. Robin and Snoopy are looking quite fit. Nothing will keep Lily of the Valley down! Hooray for the apple tree !

    Nice shot of old Glory. Always a welcome sight.

    Enjoy your weekend Dan.
    Ginger

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    • I like you comment about the Lily of the Valley, Ginger. It’s actually spreading into the cracks in the driveway. We buy stuff that won’t grow in the perfect mixture of topsoil and fertilizer and this stuff grows in between two slabs of asphalt.

      All the critters came out to be fed, and since it’s been so dry, I’ve been filling the birdbath bowls a couple times a day.

      It’s always good to see Snoopy return. She was canvassing the yard, taking note of the changes and getting ready for spring cleaning on her house.

      I hope you have a great weekend.

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  10. 92°f – I had to read that at least twice! (Climate change?) We have barely gotten into the 80s here on the Carolina Coast. But I did see a mosquito yesterday. I don’t miss the 90s at all. Your bunny loving dandelions made me smile. :)

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  11. Our weather is all over the place down here. It was nice yesterday after the rainstorm the night before and all of the sudden I could hear our A/C cutting on. I should just send our electric company a blank check and say, “Here. Fill in any amount you want.”
    Are you using a different camera? The photos are really nice, but have a very pretty soft look to them. Nothing against your other photos!!!! These just look a bit different, but in a good way. I’m painting myself into a corner here, aren’t I? 😆🤐 Have a great weekend, Dan.

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    • I have the same camera, but a lot of these are from my phone. We’ve started using our A/C, so I know how you feel about the electric company. They actually doubled their rates in January. They say their costs went up, but they aren’t going to let that stand in the way of their record year-over-year profits.

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      • There was much contention here of our new electric conglomerate saying they had to raise the rates to shore up some crazy electrical talk to be prepared for hurricanes. Well, hell’s bells! We have hurricanes every year! After much litigation we received the news: “Effective May, we are lowering your rates!” Thank goodness we have gas hot water. If we were total electric I’d have pitched a tent by now.

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  12. Happy Saturday Dan. And happy bi-polar/schizophrenic global warming weather. The warm phases make the beer taste colder. So much so I am getting ready to put the cider back in the fridge again.

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    • I feels good to give a nod to the poets, Teagan. I thought about trying to have them all here, but that would be impossible to manage. Our temps are heading back down in the 50-60-70 range next week, and we might get some rain. We’ve been under a fire danger as well.

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      • I was going to say that the “cool snap” we’re having right now might make its way across to you. There’s been rain in splotches all over the map of this state, although I haven’t gotten any. A lot of it is the kind that evaporates before getting near the ground though. Meanwhile in the north of the state there was some bad flooding.

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  16. Way behind on my blog reading and I’ll be more behind before this is over. Not doing Story a Day May this year and probably not the door Story challenge. Might do it in July..? Hard to type with stylus on phone. I miss everybody! 🙂

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  18. Wow those are summer temperatures already!! It hit 60 here so far and maybe hit as high as 63 today. Still chilly.

    The critters are so cute, and Spring looks so pretty there with your flowers in bloom.

    I’m looking forward to next week’s guest. Have a great week-end!

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    • Yeah, it should be in the 60s here, and I think it will be again next week. We are all ready for spring. I like those bare trees, but this is so nice. I hope you have a great weekend, too.

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  19. Our weather has been almost as warm as yours but next week they’re calling for it to drop by almost 20°! Spring: Mother Nature’s Bipolar Moments. I’m looking forward to next week!

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  20. Wow, it’s hotter there than it is here, although we had a few days recently where the top temperature drifted up to and over 100. Too early for that sort of thing!! Today I liked the photo of the ground cover especially and it certainly sounded like a great day for a cold beer. I met friends at a new brewery yesterday (although we’d had some of their beer before.) My husband unfortunately had to work but it was lots of fun and as they don’t serve food, we can bring our own, which was great. You and I could both enjoy it as they have lighter beers and darker ones, too. Take a look: https://lochielbrewing.com/.

    janet

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  21. September release? Congratulations, Dan … can’t wait! BTW, while your temps soar, we’re in the 60s. Once the temps level out, I’ll be planting our vegetable garden. 🌞

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    • Thanks Gwen. We’ll be back in the 60s and 70s this week. Hopefully we don’t see 90 again until July. We normally hold off until the end of May for our garden because it still gets cold at night and the ground is cold. Who knows now.

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  22. David drinking a Modelo? Wow. Yes, it was broiling hot here, too. Love the photo gallery, our forsythia hasn’t come up yet. Looking forward to Willow next week!

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  25. I feel like when you’ve been away for a while and you come back to a regular social thing and don’t recognise half the faces. 😜 Good to see you keeping on, Dan. Definitely beer needed on a 33° day (thanks for the Celsius conversion). Stay cool.

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  26. Cheers to chilled beers on a hot day like you were having. I’d gladly send you some of our blizzard conditions if you’re interested. But, then, all the signs of spring you shared wouldn’t be excited to see the snow and blowing wind. Yay for Willow’s visit next week. It’s fun to read a glimpse to your next book…!

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  27. Hi Dan, its lovely to hear you planning your fourth book. I can’t even read as fast as you are writing. I am looking forward to reading Willow’s interview this coming Saturday. I am delighted to have her onboard with the poetry anthology this year.

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    • Thanks Robbie. It took me almost three years to write the first three, I just pushed them out quickly. This one will have taken about 9 months. I have more ideas, but nothing has begun beyond notes and an outline. I have time to write, and I enjoy writing. I am enjoying the anthology very much. I’m familiar with many of the poets, and I’m meeting a few new ones. It’s really well done. I plan to feature it on my Two Review Tuesday post next week.

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      • Hi Dan, writing is a great past time. More so if it isn’t stressful trying to fit it in with other things. I’ve set my novel aside for the time being as I am just to busy to focus on it. I am delighted I could introduce you to new poets and share more work by poets you already know. That is the intention behind the Treasuring Poetry series and the related annual anthologies.

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        • I was unable to write much while still working, Robbie. I could manage my blog, and a technical blog before that, but not a story with a plot and characters. I have read the other anthologies, and as many of your posts as I can. The previous books introduced me to several poets who are now among my favorites (although that’s a big list).

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