Wet weekend

Rainy days today and upcoming.  It’s cool, but somewhat humid and rain off and on throughout the day.  Jerry was glued to me all night last night and during the day today… The few minutes that he wasn’t on me, he was on Don.  He seems to think that something is happening that doesn’t involve him, and is guarding us both vigorously.  Don was happy watching sports again — mostly baseball, as the Canadian football games are mainly on weekends and his NFL teams don’t seem to be active just yet.  It’ll get more intense in a couple of weeks, as the CFL gets ready for the Grey Cup and the NFL ramps up and the NHL starts the pre-game season.  Just too many games for my interest, so I’ll be working on other hobbies while he’s glued to various games.

I went to bed last night before 9pm, fell asleep before 10, woke up at 2, and was in that half-awake doze until nearly 5, and finally slept until 8.  I tried to stay in bed a little longer in hopes of regaining some energy, but Jerry would have none of it.  He spent a lot of the night lying on my chest, tummy or legs, burrowing under my pillows and throwing them aside so he could lie on me.  I don’t understand… the broken night, though, meant that I wasn’t exactly hungry this morning.  I did set my timer and ate a bit.  Someone recommended a new meal service that I went to check out; they seem to specialize in family size meals, which means 4 - 6 servings per plate.  Some of the meals look very delicious, and I may give them a try when I’m back in Ottawa later in September.

I’ve finished my nephew’s pullover, but I’m really worried that it’s too small for him.  I’ve promised that if it is, I’ll make him a bigger one for Christmas and this can go to a teddy bear or something.  I’ll see how it goes.  Heck, it might get turned into a sweater for Jerry (who won’t wear it, but that’s a different story.)

I’m considering branching into writing some short fiction; it’s an idea that’s been bouncing around my head for a while, but I haven’t pinned down a topic yet.  My initial thought is to write some fanfic for a couple of books that I enjoy but with which I have some disagreements with the author.  It’s not a unique concept, there are several websites dedicated to fan-written fiction, and I could post on one and see what feedback I get.  Among the challenges of writing fanfics is that the characters are already “set” and known, so I can’t diverge too far from them, although I can do things like age them up, marry / divorce / widow them; and so on, all within the universe created by the author.  Changes that affect ‘canon’ need to be carefully handled, as you’ll need to ensure that you don’t resurrect a character you’ve killed off, or turn someone into a bigamist at the very least. I’ve seen some where fan authors do crossovers with other characters, and I admit that I find most of those to be weak at best, and utter garbage at worst.  If I do write any, I’ll share with you guys for your honest feedback.  

Finally, my elder niece got her exam results yesterday, and she very proudly sent them to her many aunts and uncles who are all very gratified with the results.  The marks have cemented her acceptance into the university — not that I had any concerns in that regard — and she’s busily selecting her electives.  So far she’s shared that she’ll be taking Mandarin as one of them, so it seems that Auntie will also be learning Mandarin in support.  (Auntie is a little bit of a pushover and spoils the kids.)  A few years ago, I mentioned to my goddaughter that some of my then coworkers thought that I was intimidating, stern and hard to get along with.  She laughed for about an hour and asked if they’d actually ever met me, because I’m a “squishy soft cuddly teddy bear who couldn’t scare anything.”  It seems that I have two different personalities, one for the kids and the other for work!

OK, it’s dinner time and then I’ve got to make space on my lap for a small dog.  I’m off for now.  Good night!