Joplin Journal Volume 12-6, Issue 1

From the Editor's Desk:

Oh dear. It's been almost a month since I sent one of these things out! Maybe I need to starting writing and sending them on a different day of the week since my Saturdays seem to keep filling up. Except that next month my weekdays will be filled. Maybe I should just say that you might get a Joplin Journal some random day in the week but maybe not all the time. Anyway, let's get down to the actual news.

Weather Report:

Today is supposed to be summer. High of 91º with a heat index of 100º. I can't really complain because except for a few days here and there we've been able to have the house open at least half the day if not all day. And the nights have been in the 60ºs. We've continued to have more rain and more sunshine and clouds. There was a little rain last night. Not enough to soak things, but there were raindrops on the cars this morning. But Monday is supposed to be in the 70ºs again. Such crazy weather.

"Genius Burns":

It's not blazing, but I'm getting some writing in. Last month I was able to get 21k words written. Right now I haven't even gotten 3k for the month. I'm hoping the stories will move a little faster. I did start a short story that is now over 8k words. So much for short. Why do my stories do this to me? I really want to finish stories like "Nan's Ice Cream Shop," "Katie Wood," and "Monday's Mystery," but they are all lazing around with seemingly no interest in moving forward. Hmm, I may have to drag some onward and see if that wakes them up.

Project Prognosis:

How am I doing?

• Work on Blog Posts for 2024 – I have posts through half of September done as well as 3 posts in December. It's rather fun having so many blog posts done ahead of time.
• Update Website – Updated for now!
• Tidy – Not much to do here right now

Babysitting:

We've actually had kids over! Last Friday Lucas, Kailyn, Grant, and Kinsley came over and got to spend the night. We built legos and played. The neighbors have 7 corgi puppies and we went over to see them. We got to hold several of them.

Joel and Drew came over Saturday morning. Well, they got dropped off at the park where we were. We had taken the kids on a walk/bike ride. Sarah and I walked and the kids rode bikes. After we got home there was more lego building, book reading, and eating lunch. They all got picked up around 2.

On Tuesday the younger four were over again. They ate breakfast and lunch here and got picked up before supper. We went for an exploration walk/bike ride. We walked in the paved creek, checked out the other creek, went to Papa's storage building, and then crossed the small train bridge over the creek to play at the park. In the afternoon we played games since Lucas had finished building Sherlock Holmes's apartment.

If you want to see the details inside the house, let me know and I'll send you a separate email.

Birthday:

Sarah had her birthday this week. And Mom & Dad had their anniversary. We really didn't do anything special. Dad had gotten an ice cream cake from DQ, so we enjoyed that after supper.

Spring 100:

We did it! I reached 100 miles a couple weeks ago. We wanted to get Sarah to 100 before June and we did. It required walking 10 miles in 4 days, but oh well. Even though we've both reached 100 miles, we are still walking when the mornings are nice. I've also been walking with Angela to get her to 100. She's almost there!

The Music Stand:

The stand is empty for now. Sarah decided not to do bells with the kids this spring. For one, we were so busy that there really wasn't time to practice, and two, no one asked about it.

Visitors:

Yesterday Aunt Marty came down for the day. It was good to see her again. She and Mom went out to lunch together, then Sarah did some alterations for her.

KDWC:

Things are gearing up for another writing camp. I still need to pick the last verse and then write my four devotionals for camp, but otherwise I'm just about ready. I think.

Sewing Room:

Sarah continues to be busy with different orders. She's not swamped like she was, but she still has things to sew. She did manage to sew two new skirts for me from a pattered I really like.

Teacher's Lounge:

I'm teaching again. I only have one student and I drive to her house each week, but it's been fun to get back to it. It certainly is different with just one student, and I've had to adjust a few things that I normally would do.

The Office:

I'm going to be working at the County Clerk's office the four to six weeks before the August election this year. Not sure if I'll start in July or if I'll get called to start in June. I'm trying to get things done like I will start in June. I'll be working full time. Last Presidential Election they hired two of us to come help, but the Primary election wasn't busy enough so we took turns working during the week. This year I think I'm the only one working in the summer. But come the 4-6 weeks before the November election, we'll both be working.

Read Another Page:

Nothing to report here.

On the Road:

There's a new driver on the road these days. Krista just got her driver's license this week. Now James can get busy getting his driving hours in so he can get his license.

Book Nook:

Oh, boy. I've read 24 books since I last sent a Joplin Journal! Hmm, I think I'll put series books together and then just write something about the series instead of something after each book. Maybe that will help. Oh, and in case you are wondering why I'm reading Christmas stories, it's because they are on KU and right now I have 3 free months of Kindle Unlimited, so I'm reading all I can.

Chip Hilton: Pay-Off Pitch, / No-Hitter, / Triple Threat Trouble, / Backcourt Ace (I'm working on reading the rest of this series for a 2nd time.)

Emily Abbott: Red Rover, Red Rover, / Plan to Fail, / Bad Things, Small Packages, / Tutor, Nanny, Spit-up, Spy, / A-Spying We Will Go, / Once Upon a Dime (You've got to read this series! I'm in my 5th time through it.)

Other books: A Fresh Air Girl (short Pansy story), Titus Ray Thriller Recipes with Short Stories (rather fun if you've read any of the Titus Ray books), Through the Darkness (lovely WWII Christmas story in England), Movie-made Romance (not a favorite, but not bad), My True Love Gave to Me (cute, short Christmas story), Clock Tower Bound (lovely bookstore, some problems), Safe With You (danger, humor, and Christian romance), Christmas Carol Society (actually really liked it), Heart of Trust (didn't care for this much), Falling Between the Pages (laughed in this, but would cut out a scene), Meet in the Middle (sweet romance), Memories and Mistletoe (really enjoyed it), Christmas with the Boy Next Door (made me smile), Snowed In for Christmas (not bad). And that's all. I hope it's enough.

Farewell:

Am I forgetting something? Possibly. Am I going to sit around thinking and trying to remember? Nope. I have other things to do. Mom is washing the breakfast dishes, Dad is out running errands, and Sarah is sewing. I have some things to take care of and some finances to record, and books to read, and stories to write. I hope you have a lovely weekend and I'll be back . . . some time. Until then, happy summer!