Nano Winters Journey 2nd installment

Yuppers, on a bit of a roll though still computer issues, downloading programs and updating this blog. uggg
Nanonano word count as of this post will be 6090 words ! ya. go me!

***
Blizzard on Hwy 402

NOTE: to proofreaders;
Kayla = speaks with an Irish brogue, so I be written the way it sounds, at least at first, so, soooo, her speaking is deliberately spekked and spokked phonetically.
Sudden Winter Storm
Pickup winter story on Highway 402
Dec. 22, 2013 – A steady dose of freezing rain across parts of Eastern Canada turned roads and sidewalks into skating rinks Sunday, cut power to hundreds of ..

The last big storm he remembered that was in 1998 Steve was now 19 yrs old and was heading off to Niagara Falls for a day and evening to watch the winter concert with lights at the falls. The six of them all squished into the car, Steve and his fairly new girlfriend Shannon his best buddy’s(buddies??) Kyle and Mike.
The drive was getting slower and truth be told somewhat scary as well. The large white fluffy flakes had started to fall just after a flash rain with the temperature dropping fast. Those cute and cuddly fluffy flakes had quickly changed to the smaller hard driving and blinding dense snow of a sudden early blizzard. Snow was piling up fast and the cars front bumper was acting more like a mini snowplow than a deflector. Fishtailing and flailing around in the blizzard was more than challenging, it was becoming dangerous and terrifying. Kyle was doing his best though even with the new winter tires it was harrowing, the car was just not built for Canadian winters, despite what all the ads on TV and the dealership said.

‘Pull over, pull over’
thought Steve as he sat in the back seat with both his girlfriend Shannon from Kyle’s school and Peggy Sue sitting to the right by the window. To her credit Kayla who was sitting in the middle front, with Mike riding the shotgun seat was not freaking out too much though her eyes were huge with concern. Steve thought Kyle was going to have some rather painful bruises on his legs though from where she was gripping so hard. This kind of snowfall and storm where new to her as this was her first winter here in Canada. Shannon who was sitting to his right was doing ok as all things go, though she was more of a city and mall kind of gal in all honesty. Although she was from Canada, she was still more or less dressed for going out to the mall than dressing for a winter excursion. Kayla on the other hand had kind of overdressed for the occasion. Her family in Ireland where all into outdoor sports, hiking and adventures so she was dressed more sensibly as well. Peggy Sue, sitting in the back beside Shannon, was more interested in keeping her eyes on Mike, who she had recently started dating.
‘Dating’, Steve thought, ‘not sure how I like the sound of that’, even though Mike was his best friend along with Kyle. Her clothing reflected their family interest in all things outdoor sports, hiking and camping. Peggy Sue did tend to get cold fairly fast so she had brought extra clothing in her knapsack, as a precaution.

As a large 4×4 went zipping by and almost side swiping their car, probably just to prove how good he was in his very large 4×4 versus their smaller two wheeled drive car, Steve met Kyle’s eyes in the mirror. Mike looked back to Steve then over to Kyle who was now white knuckling the steering wheel, in an attempt to keep them on the road and out of the ditch. None of them said a word; a quick glance was all that was needed since they had been fast friends ever since they had met at the shelter during the large power outage during the winter when they were kids. This longtime friendship made communication with each other uncanny during times of stress or activity.

Kayla who had let out a loud gasp and visibly flinched by the large 4×4’s performance of stupidity was starting to come unglued by it all. Both Steve and Peggy Sue started talking to try and calm her down. Steve letting his sister calm the Irish girl down while he, Kyle and Mike softly discussed their options. Mike who had the map book out was using his finger to mark where he thought they were now. Steve loudly whispered to Kyle to keep going thought slowly down the road, as both Mike and he thought that they were in a very long stretch in the middle of farmland with no interchanges or pullovers for another 15 kms or so with the last interchange on Hwy 402 was at least 10 kms behind them as well.

The three boys knew they were in trouble if the car became stuck, already 30 kms out of London they knew this would be big trouble. More and more cars were sliding off the highway as the snow deepened, this freak storm was catching them all by surprise. With a brief break in the blowing snow from a small copse of trees, they glimpsed a couple of police cars stuck or sitting in the middle of the road, stopping all traffic in both directions.
“Right here in the break from the trees is the best bet,” both Mike and Steve loudly whispered at the same time.
“Jinx you owe me a coke,” again at the same time to each other while Kyle growled out, “Quietly please, I need to concentrate here!”
Shannon who had been engrossed in her magazine, People or some such fashion rag piped up, “What why are we stopping here? Here in the middle of nowhere!”

“Shush now please while we figure out what we need to do and Kyle gets us safely to the side, ok,” whispered Steve to her.
Peggy Sue patted Shannon’s thigh in a bid to get her to talk with her and Kayla both quietly.
‘She is my sister, but she is ok,” thought Steve with a smile. However, his smile died down a bit as he noticed Mike beaming back at Peggy Sue. Kyle just grimaced as he brought the car to a halt on the side of the road. Putting his four way flashers on as he did so, the vehicle that had been keeping a reasonable distance away, also put their flashers on, pulling up about 5 meters behind them also off to the side. Other vehicles were struggling to get to the side with their flashes on as well, most understanding that keeping the left hand lane, the lane beside large natural median in the highway was important to them all. Everyone except another large 4×4, though that driver either was not paying enough attention to his front or he just could not slow down in time? The OPP officer jumped to his side closer to his cruiser as the four by, slid, slipped, then accelerated to the medium side, then quickly disappeared down into the deep snow there. To that drivers credit, they almost made it back up onto the road, but hit a deeper spot which caused them to come to a very quick halt.

Kyle, Mike and Steve all looked back down the roadway they had just travelled on to the other side, then in front of them. All traffic it seemed had come to a stop, with most vehicles pulled over to their prospective right hand lanes or a bit closer to the side of the highway. Every now and then, they would see another set of lights plow off the highway to the right or left, all either deep into the ditch or just hanging downwards on the slope. In front of them and off to the side, the OPP officers were letting the larger four wheel drive vehicles go by them if they were moving along at a slow and safe pace. Within another half an hour, even those were all stopped on the side of the road due to the accumulation of snow. This sudden winter storm, which had caught them up in this freak event, was putting an inordinate amount of snow down in a very short period of time all over the area. Southern Ontario was now snowed in all along the 402 and other highways from Toronto all the way past Niagara Falls, which had been their destination.

Sitting in their running vehicle with the four way flashers going both Kayla and Shannon, asked in almost unison “Should we walk down the highway?”
All the boys and Peggy Sue answered at the same time. “No, we are staying here”.
Again, like clockwork Kayla and Shannon, both a bit exasperated stated, “Why not!”
“Cause we will all die!” Exclaimed the boys and Peggy Sue, again at the same time.

This caused them all to start laughing as they all realized they were all saying the same words at the same time, together! This laughing actually helped to ease the tension away, making normal communication and thoughts much easier, so it was appreciated by all of them. As the chuckling was dying down, out from the front seat, “Jinx, you all owe me a Coke!” Was heard from a very smiley Kayla in her best and most proud Irish baroque! Well, that was the icing on the cake as they all lost it again, laughing, slapping each other on the backs, thighs, all high-fiving each other with big bright smiles.

Everybody was so caught up in the bouncing and giggle fest that they were all surprised at the quite and polite knock on the drivers’ window.
“Who is that?” Mike wondered aloud as he leaned over the dash to get a better look at who was knocking on the drivers’ window.
“Looks like the fellow from the vehicle behind us.” Stated both Steve and Kyle! This only caused bigger smiles as Kyle rolled down the window.
“Hey there, is everything good? Saw you guys bouncing around and wanted to make sure you were all OK!” he stated, looking concerned though with a small smile on his face to make them comfortable with his being there!

“Jinx, you both owe me another Coke, that is twwo frm ya knaaw.” Exclaimed Kayla in excitement, with an even stronger baroque this time! Smiling and chuckling, Steve answered for everyone.
“Ya, it’s all good. We were just talking, then laughing then we really started laughing there for a bit.” Chuckling, Steve stated with an even bigger smile.
“Yes, I can see that now.” Max hunkered down a bit, so he could address everyone in the car at the same time through the open windows. “Names Max. Since I know a bit of survival in and out of the bush including road travel, I was just making sure you were not gassing yourselves and had the windows down a bit, even in this mini blizzard!” As he spoke loud enough for everyone to hear in the car.

Kyle who had been content to listen so far asked, “What do you mean by gassing ourselves?”
Max pointed to the back of the vehicle, to the ever deepening snow and all around them while explaining.
“With the amount of snow coming down, the exhaust pipes will plug up or become covered in this all this white stuff. Then the exhaust has nowhere to go but up underneath the car, inside where you all are! That is one of the biggest hazards to your health. The build up of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide inside the closed vehicle due to everybody exhaling along with the vehicle exhaust. My suggestion is to make sure you have a couple windows down a touch on side away from the wind. The side that the trees are on and you keep making an opening occasionally for the exhaust pipe. It is a pain, though it will keep you safer in the short and long term. Good habits keep you alive.” he chuckled out softly while shaking some of the snow off his ball cap. Even in the short time he was out there talking with them, the snow had piled up on top of his head.

“Should we go and help out the OPP officer and the 4×4 pickup who went off the highway?” Asked Mike who had been quiet up to then.
Max, looking towards the stopped line of vehicles with the cop cars flashing red and white lights, then behind them, paused to contemplate his answer before giving his thoughts.
“No, not really. It is a bit of a walk, even from here and there are a few people already helping and the cop does not look impressed at all”. Pausing in thought, he then added; “honestly, when I lived in the mountains in B.C. near Whistler we saw this all the time. Every snowstorm, the yahoos in the Four By’s would zip on buy us with an attitude, then the first stop or turn they would be off into the bulrushes, demanding people help them!”
Another brief pause, then with a huff of breath. “Nope, let the wingnuts help themselves, or the cop will just tell him to wait and let the tow truck pull him out, plus give him a mighty big fine I think.
“Laughing now, Max looked them all in the eye. “Now, I just help polite people who drive properly without attitudes, only them!” Shaking more snow off with a combination of twisting and turning, Max looked them all over quickly, thoughts running through his head. Coming to a decision he offered, “I have spare blankets, food and water for you guys if you need. I think we will be here for a while now. This early storm caught everybody flat footed and if the snowplows even make it out of the yards by sundown it will be surprising.”

“What?” Exclaimed both Kayla and Shannon at the same time, Kayla with her distinctive voice and Shannon’s higher peeked as well!
The boys along with Peggy Sue, shared long looks with each other, which Max picked up on right away. He had noted the way they were all dressed in at a quick glance when he had first crouched down. Nodding to himself as he again assessed the situation along with how they were dressed, he smiled slightly thinking that these kids would be mostly fine. Sensible, polite and intelligent all, so he had more worries about the few other cars around them than these kids safety. Peggy Sue decided to speak up so the other girls would be more than likely to be calm after listening to her another female versus a male spoke up.
“We have some blankets in the trunk, along with some water and food as well. Maybe not enough for more than a day, though there are power bars, granola, fruit etc.. as we brought a picnic lunch with us as well as the standard emergency food for a group of four for two days. With there being six of us today, plus the picnic basket we should be fine.” She finished off with a big smile, so the girls would see her confidence and perhaps relax. “Also, the blankets and flashlights that the governments winter travel guide informed us to have that we got in the mail last year.”
Kyle, looking up and down the road decided to turn off his four way flashers as they were not needed, as there were no vehicles moving on the highway anymore added. “That winter safety guide is also in the trunk by the way. I think if I remember as well, it said to only run the car enough to keep it warmish inside, to turn it off after about ten minutes every half hour or on the hour depending on the conditions and temperatures outside.”

“You guys got it! Excellent.” Max nodded with a small grin. “If’n you need anything, pop on back to my vehicle do not be afraid of my big old Cane Coors dog, Zeldy, she is just a big softy.”
With that, he put his fingers to the brim of his hat with a showy Boy Scout salute then made his way back to his vehicle. They all turned and watch him walk back to his van. Soon they watched him let out his large brindle coloured dog and start clowning around with each other playing snowball fight with the dog as she ran around barking and carousing in the snow with obvious delight.

Steve and Kyle rolled up their windows, while Peggy Sue and Mike rolled theirs down a bit for the air circulation. Finally, Kayla asked, “is that normal, people coming up to check on you and offer help, in Canada?”
She mussed out loud while they watched people trying to dig their cars out or start walking over to the police officers. “Also, isn’t he bloody cold out there in this bleeding blizzard?” She suddenly blurted out while watching the dog run up and down the slope of the highway towards the trees, chasing a stick of all things, in a blizzard! Looking thoughtful including Shannon, they all nodded their heads yes, while they too watched the older fellow play with his dog on the side of the highway, in a blizzard, both seemed happy without a care in the world.
“Again, why the bloody hell isn’t he cold, look at them, standing out there playing in this, this howling wind and snow?” She questioned them, looking each of them in their eyes.

Shrugging, Peggy Sue replied, “You get used to the cold weather once you are out in it enough and accept it.”
Pausing, she added in, “When you accept that it is just cold out and forget about it, you will enjoy yourself much more during the winter here!”
Shannon and Kayla looked to each other skeptically at that statement, and then they turned to look out the windows again, both thinking about what they had seen and heard. A contemplative quite took over everybody as they looked out the windows, all lost in thought at that moment while watching others on the highway. Some were inside with their vehicles running, others were seen outside of their vehicles, some standing around looking lost, others were trying to dig their vehicles out though for what reason right now was curious. The crowd around the OPP Officers was growing with not a lot of folks looking happy or shaking their heads as the officers on both sides of the highway pointed around them while trying to make the others listen and understand. Only a few vehicles had been switched off, most of the others were kept running in an attempt to stay warm in the blizzard. The few who had managed to stop near the trees were soon clearly the few who turned off the engines to save fuel.

‘Wonder what they have to say about the weather,’ wondered Steve.
“Kyle, can you run the car for about 10-15 minutes and put on the radio so we can hear the news, please and thanks buddy.”
…‘Dec 22, 2013 CBC Ontario- A steady dose of freezing rain across parts of Eastern and South Central Ontario Canada turned roads and sidewalks into skating rinks this Sunday, with cut power to hundreds of .. h_mes…’… Fiddling with the dial, Kyle had just missed the radio station, or it had cut out, either way, the only thing coming out of the car radio speakers now, just sounded like snow. More snow, inside on the radio and outside all around their vehicles. With the vehicle running, Kyle played with the dial, snowy reception with some odd low words coming through every once in a while, emphasized the situation they were in right now.
“Eww, even my cell phone has no reception!” Hissed out Shannon with irritation. Giving up on her cell phone she happened to glance in the mirror. “Hey. What is that guy behind us doing now? Does he ever go into his vehicle or what?”

Everybody turned in their seats to witness the older fellow from the van behind them, now walking up and down the bank to the trees and back. First front of the van down the snow, then back up the bank to the back of his van. Each trip he went a little farther into the woods making a small circle inside the trees, then back to either the front or back of his van on his snowshoes. His dog, now wearing a red pack, which stood out remarkably in the white snow, was also making the short trip back and forth with him. Stopping, he opened the front passenger door, removed a small pack and a small plastic shovel, and then he headed back down to the trees. They watched him with some curiosity as he pulled out some small blue tarps and yellow rope. First, he put a blue tarp up on a smaller tree, securing it top, bottom then in the middle areas. Next he pulled the yellow rope tightly across and around some trees then secured it to another medium sized tree. Repeating this process again along about knee height, with the yellow rope. Walking back to tarp, he stretched it out quickly; tying off the far end to another medium sized tree, then went back attaching some smaller pieces of rope to the grommets. This made a blue windbreak inside the trees.

Next, they watched him enter a small area in front of the blue windbreak, tamp down the snow in and around some trees. He quickly set up an odd shaped little small room. Steve’s group of friends all watched in puzzlement trying to figure out just what he was doing. When he was done, he repeated the procedure about 3 metres away. This little windbreak or small room was a bit different as there was a small tree that fallen over which he encased in this little tarp room. Coming back out, they watched him look over what he had done, made some minor adjustments and tightening to his handiwork. In complete bafflement, everyone in the car watched him look back and forth at the two smaller rooms; then, he walked over and wrote something at the entrance to each of them with what looked like a magic marker.

Picking up the small plastic shovel, he then walked behind each of these <areas/shelters .. figure out which is better later> in his snowshoes, using the shovel to pile snow up around the base of them. This seemed to make them stop whipping in the wind more with each shovel of snow, becoming sturdy and stable.

***

 

 

MY National Novel Writing Month is here! NaNoNaNo for short

Nanonano … remember from my last post. Well this will be the last post before the changes. Just in case there are issues for a few days so here it goes. RUFF !!!
Editorial help is welcomed. Anything short of rude and boorish behaviour will be considered. (See, writing does help with the minds word selection)
RUFF !!! ruff edited, ruff writing, first draft really.

Copyright © 2018 by E. Turner All rights reserved.

All rights reserved. This eBook is licensed for the personal enjoyment of the original purchaser only. This eBook may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you are reading this eBook and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Amazon.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to locales, events, business establishments, or actual persons- living or dead- is entirely coincidental.

Turner, E.M.
Winters Journey Book Zero
(Winters Journey set in Ontario Canada Post-Apocalyptic Prep Story)

Winters Journey in Ontario
On January 4, 1998 –
North American Ice Storm of 1998 – Wikipedia, the free …
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_Ice_Storm_of_1998
Prologue

Steve’s family were cold all of them were so cold. Steve’s parents had decided they could not stay in the house any longer. The Great Ice Storm of the Century is what they were calling it on the radio. The house had been freezing now for 4 days the first two or three nights had not been that bad, as the house had kept up its thermal mass. The fourth day had warmed up a bit and they thought it was over, and then the rain had started again. This dropped the temperature down to just above freezing but only by one or two degrees, that night had been still more freezing rain. Steve, his father and mother had been busy trying to put old blankets in the windows and doors to stop the cold from rushing in. With this new freezing rain, the power had gone out for good.

No power, no heating in the house since they had only the old electric furnace and the small fireplace in the basement family room. Steve’s dad Ken had told his mom Peggy and him that they only had four little store bought fireplace logs left. They could only use one at night during the coldest of the night to keep the place even a bit warm.
(Expand)

Two nights had passed then the weirdest sounds from outside had brought them to the windows to see what was going on. It was colder now, 10-15 Celsius below 0 and getting colder and now the water on the branches and in the wood was turning to very hard ice and expanding. The trees were breaking and shattering all around them. In the small creek behind them, the sound of trees shattering and falling down the banks was quite frightening to all, even little Peggy Sue who had stayed inside by the fireplace. At 4 yrs old, she was quite the gymnast though very thin and prone to the effects of the cold. The fiery explosion of one of the hydro transformers just down from their house had them all jumping and the girls giving off little shrieks of terror with some loud gasps from the guys as well. Back inside Steve’s dad had commanded and they all moved very quickly back through the door, replacing the blanket hanging over the door.

Steve had heard it first on the small transistor radio in the rec room beside the ineficient fireplace which was more decorative than functional. They were all in the re-croom now for warmth. There was a warming centre at his elementary school set up for the area. Even with the doors, windows and the rec-room blocked off with the last of the spare comforters hanging in the hallway to stop the cold from seeping in from upstairs, they were all nearly frozen now. Steve watched his slender little sister who was such a marvellous gymnast shiver under the piles of blankets so bad it looked like she was bouncing up and down on the trampoline, she was so cold. Taking a blanket off of himself, he draped it over her while she slept. Steve loved the Little Runt as he called her, though now at 4 years old she was not close to his height, she was a pest, a girl and his sister and he loved her but would never admit it to anyone. He was a boy after all and a 5 year old boy at that!

“Daddy, dad you awake,” asked Steve, trying to sound more grown up, “Dad?”
Ken blinked his eyes open and tried to focus on his son.
“Ya, give me a sec as I was only slumbering, too cold to sleep well anyways.” His dad Ken replied. Stretching his arms out of the covers, they fell and revealed his mother who had snuggled completely under for warmth.
“Hey” she mumbled, what gives its cold out there?”

“Look at Peggy Sue she is so cold that she is bouncing up and down shivering,” Steve exclaimed and pointed at the same time to his sister. “I just heard on the radio that the high school which is just past my school is a warming centre, we should go there, all of us I am worried about her.”
Both Steve’s mom and dad sat up now worried expressions on their faces, as they looked at each other. Steve saw them study each other’s faces and eyes for a few moments, give a quick little nod of the head then turn to look at Steve again. “You sure about that son?” asked his mother Peggy, as she moved over to snuggle up with her youngest, sharing her body warm with her.
“Yes positive, they are repeating the message every 15 minutes on the local radio station.” Stated Steve in his best grown up manner. Now all of them watched his little sister bounce and shiver with the cold, under the blankets.

After locking the door behind them, they started towards the warming centre that was at the high school just past Steve and Peggy Sue’s elementary school. The car looked like a giant ice sculpture and would take a day to even get it to be ready to move with all of them chipping away at it. They stood there looking at the car and the street that was covered with ice and ice-encrusted branches and fallen trees on the road, sidewalks and properties around them. There was no way other than to walk over anyways. Normally this would have been about a 20 min walk; today it would see them arrive about 2 hrs later instead of the normal leisurely 20-minute stroll. The ice was so thick and slick they could barely walk at all. Slipping, sliding and falling had them all but crawl the entire distance even their warmest winter boots were too slippery Their clothing although designed for cold weather for urban people was not up to this task, they were all freezing, wet and exhausted by the time they got to the warming centre. This was not a short easy walk it was a dangerous winter’s journey.

(Elaborate at shelter, but keep brief as short narrative)

“Look, there seems to be a group of kids over there. Why don’t you take your sister Steve and go make some friends while we check in and figure out all the grown up stuff. Stay there or come and tell us where you will be before you go anywhere else except the bathroom.” Their parents mumbled to them, mostly distracted by all the people talking and signs all over with infomation for them to read.

“Hi guys my name is Steve and this is my little sister PeggySue.” “Hey, I am Kyle and this is Mike.”

***

** Note: updated with a bit of added words as well as a bit of editing and proofing for the dialogue. Though, I am not even trying to keep the original formatting when I paste here. Sorry, too much work with little to no returns.

Last Blog Post

Last blog post, is true.

Now this will not be the last ever, just a bit of warning. So Last before……. 

The last blog post that I did post stated that I would be modifying, revamping and posting more. That is and was all true. Right after that post, on my new windows 10 Acer laptop, decided on it’s own to go ahead and download 3.5 gigs of ms update and spyware crap! All this while I updated 3 pages in this blog and changed the title to wild_E (a nickname given, not taken).

Does not sound like much to people who connect via a normal house internet service. I still get Koodos phone internet service with I share with my laptop. ONLY 7 gigs total for the month. Then the next time I connected was to download an app, Google Keep to this new laptop. ANOTHER gig, in background Microsoft bullshit!

These weinerheaded Microsoft arrogant designers deemed, YOU will have almost NO control over Windows past 7, so 10 is even more clunky, wasteful, can’t be even remotely modified from it’s yuppy, guppy software engineering bullshyte wishes. Well wishes can be kisses and come kiss my a$$. What garbage! Even the MS Office I bought wants to download another 3-5 gigs of garbage before I can even fully load it.

WOW… underwhelming customer experience!!!
Microsoft under delivery and overpricing everything since they created themselves !!!!!!

All Ok, whew got that over with. So on with the show!

This blog on WordPress needs updating and layout changes. WordPress does not support this particular theme so for some days trying to figure it out. Remember I used to teach people how to use this, so, I am woefully behind in this new learning curve as well now. Looks as if WordPress has been sold off and is now a more pay per use site. If I want to have a nice looking, workable theme layout (the looks and layout along with modifying ability) I need to pay $5 a month. Can’t and Won’t do that, so today I will try to find the best of the worst free options, download it. Not sure if everything will still be available, to both you or me. I also can’t download and update the site anymore as that is a pay $$$ per use or gone with the retired theme? Not sure, so here is the plan.

1. Update WordPress theme after this blog post.

2. Sort out the garbage and revamp what I am able too! Hopefully make the navigation better as well. Looks clunky to me even on the laptop and unusable mostly on the phone. Huge differences as well.

3. Update on a more regular schedule now that I am out of Hotmail jail.

4. NaNoNaNo updates regularly. Entered again this year and despite all the computer issues in the last few days, well I am up to about 7.5 k words written. Wooo Me !

5. Post the work written the next day or so. RUFF IT WILL BE RUFF !!! basic editing, basic spell check, not printed out and worked properly, RUFF work.

6. NaNo feedback welcomed, Canadian and British spelling, trying to keep to Canadian grammar rules, RUFF, so any help out will be WELCOMED with open arms and most gracious thanks in return, in advance even! Thank you for your future help.

Thanks and stay tuned.
Note: might need to create another blog, so well, here goes.

writing and meds

writing and meds do not go along together 😦

No I am not doing illicit drugs, just meds to help my health and pain levels.
Do they work, yes.
Do they leave you with hardly any emotion and creativity, yes, in my case they do.

So for all the few of you who follow and believe in me, I apologise !! Some days there is so little creativity that I look at my dog in wonder that she plays with her imaginary friends and foes.

Now if any of you have any ideas besides, stopping them for a few days so I have some creativity, please let me know.

Cheers for now wild_E

Editor Finally!

Finally someone said they would edit my stories and actually followed through!!!

Watch for the Divergent Journal series to be reposted with the editing done. A great example would be ‘The Van’ to the van… sorry LL…. 😉

For the next few days though I am still moving and selling off my business equipment, so forgive the wait time.

ps.. the last free form poem~writing, sparked a lot of private email, be brave and leave you message on the page!

For the meantime watch my latest video in the Disasters of Prep Cooking Series.. well not a series, but since I go from memory instead of directions for food cooking… well !!

Existence into Nothings

Existence into Nothings

(I wrote this a while ago, hope you enjoy this writing freeform)

Today I saw my possible future, the future that is not far off now. An existence that is so close and so dark that I fear being sucked into this void like a giant black hole reaching for me to draw me in, devour me.

While I was helping someone today, they needed a vehicle and a driver why else would I be with someone, they need something. There was a tall thin man, hunched over, ambling slowly along the little strip malls store fronts. Hunched over, walking in pain, I sensed him before seeing him, sensed a void close to me. Looking around, my mind first, then eyes sought out the source of this rift close to me, close in many many ways.

This tall man, head hunched downwards from shoulders that were hunched over, showing signs of that bending disease, showing pain with every step, pain with every breath he took. This man so obviously in pain, raised his face up from his forward path, his eyes normally only watching just in front of his shoes as he walked, these sad and vacant eyes quickly found mine. There was no searching around, no hesitant looks, no questing about with his gaze, eyes straight to mine.

Eyes are the reflection of the soul and heart, reflection of the mind within, eyes that speak volumes eyes that reflect the world around them. His eyes, had pain, and nothing else. There was no emotion, no joy, no sadness, no happiness, no anger, his eyes reflected his world, there was nothing. A void, darkness a place of nothings, nothing lives there anymore, no hope, no future, no peace. Nothings and nothing else is like it, no danger, no badness the heart and soul have ceased to live, only the body keeps moving, keeps breathing, keeps living long after life is over.

Eyes, these eyes beyond sadness and joy found mine, recognition of another one so similar, eyes meeting eyes a quick nod of the head, then back down to the path the body wants to go. His aura, gone there was a nothingness around him so much loneliness or just plain darkness that this void pulsated within and without.

Crossing the roadway, careful steps, steps watched out for hazards, picking and choosing the next step for surely he could not see more than a few feet in front of him, so hunched over were his shoulders. Shoulders bearing the weight of nothingness shoulders bearing the weight of the void, a walking black hole of despair to one whom is beyond despair. The weight of his world, his past, his present all weighing down on his sadly hunched shoulders, a walking void.

Returning to my task at hand I was soon busy again helping this person who would not ever call me unless they needed something. Someone that you know, someone so lonely that they will drive people around doing groceries and shopping, just to have company. Nothingness.

I am ON, always ON, trained to be ON and aware of everything around me, never taught or trained how to turn off though. Knowing his path and his journey across the roadway and parking lot, knowing his position outside of a closed store. Knowing. Without consciously following his movements, just aware an awareness of my surroundings.

With my tasks at hand, watching my footing, moving a basket I felt the void, the blackness once again settle on me, not searching me out, just knowing where I was. Glancing across the street, looking directly into his eyes, eyes beyond pain and despair, eyes that reflect the void and blackness where there once dwelled a heart and soul. My existence, my being looked directly into his eyes and darkness, again he nodded a slight nod, this time I knew he had sensed me, or remembered me the one so familiar he had passed on his trek just so recently.

Nodding back knowing my existence so close to his, a darkness seeking a darkness. Nodded and continued on with my task, he continued his existence, standing there across the street, watching life, watching others, noting life around him but always on the outside looking in, on the outsider looking across. An invisible.

Standing outside later now, watching my dog play with her stick in the snow, knowing she was having fun, I stood watching. Standing in the dark of the night reflected in the darkness of my soul, reflected in the darkness of my emotions, reflected in the darkness of my heart. Not a darkness of evil just a darkness of despair, beyond sadness the darkness of being broken, not cold, just there an existence.

Turning, eyes watching others drive by, eyes watching others go about their lives in their houses, in the building where I exist. Existence is not living, existence is a form of the void, a form of nothing, watching others live their lives and dreams. A heart not cold to emotion or joy, a heart that is broken, a soul that is broken, nothing more and nothing less just existence.

My existence, watching, observing on the outside looking in, on the outside of living, forever.

In this, in this man there is my future, a nothingness a void. My existence into nothingness….
.
.
.
Nothings, Nothingness unless I am very careful, very lucky where there is no luck. Only the void, the blackness seeking me out constantly close by, I feel it’s pull like a black hole seeking to draw me closer, draw me into its cold lonely embrace.

My existence, watching, observing on the outside looking in, on the outside of living.

In this, in this man there is my future, a nothingness a void. My existence into nothingness….

Into Nothings

 

What’s up?

So, some might be wondering what is up with this guy. Well, writing and doing some videos is what’s up !

Finally, finally got someone who actually does what they say they will do, and she edited some writing for me. This is the 4th person who said they would do editing and so far the only person who actually did any for me at all!

at all…

So watch for revisions to come your way on some things that were published already and maybe some editing before you see it.

Videos, youtubing again! I had mentioned it before so here is the link for the Youtube Channel. Please take the time to go and watch some of them, leave a comment and maybe even like some 😉

Cheers for now

~wild_E

 

 

Writing

Well I have written up a storm since Friday night. Working on the WDJ Novella, Waking Divergent Journals, so far concentrating on writing only and no editing at all except for major spelling errors that sometimes make even me go.. huuhhh what was that word supposed to be in actuality and not this mess of hodge podge letters?

The amounts to approximately 8-10 chapters so far, started Book 2 of the Journals. I posted this as I am sure you’re all waiting with bated breath, LOL..

Cheers to you one and all.

p.s. made up 3 penny stoves today with 2 small wind deflectors, modified one of my oil lamps, re-wicked two other oil lamps with larger natural fibre jute string and of course played with the dog quickly in the rain.

Editing

Editing

Editing

 

Editing, but the editing software would not like what I just wrote as it is repetitive!
Also working on learning a program that helps you create books and novels. Complex and simple at the same time is Ywriter and here is to hoping it will help with the finish of this online Journal as well as with my other projects.

Rejoice for I may have found an Editor finally! Finding an editor is like finding someone to publish and print out your work!
There are a lot of steps involved and a lot of work involved, plus O look shiny ! my OCD kicks in and bam.. what was I saying, what was I writing,,, O yah.. Hey Zelda!

http://www.spacejock.com/

Ywriter software

 

Ch 14 Apes & Dogs

Sitting here now, listening to the soft pitter patter of the rain on the canopy roof, sipping the coconut water, watching the primates interact, I smile, my heart is heavy but I watch the little Gorilla and Orangutang, watch them teeter towards one of their relatives close to each other and I know, this is the right thing to do!

Well maybe I am just a little insane now, who knows but my idea sounds nuts even to me now! Teach the Apes how to forage in the surrounding orchards and grocery stores. Build up a bio mass for heating through the winter so they do not freeze to death, and well hope everything works out and do this in the next 12-14 days then move up north before the fall sets in there. Well here goes nothing, I suppose!

We have all been keeping an eye on each other, the Orangutangs watch the Gorillas, and I watch them, and they watch me and each other, kinda like keystone cops. Since letting all the apes, elephants and everyone else that was left, we have all been sitting around outside watching each other and getting to know the new outside places for ourselves.

It was sink or swim time, if we are going to get along, if they will let me show them were the food is, if they let me work on the enclosures to make them winterized, we all just have to take some time to sit and get used to each other. Luckily they seem used to humans, they must have seen dogs as they just watch the dogs play by themselves or watch the dogs as they watch them. Funny lots of watching going on, as well as foraging.

Since I am sitting here with the laptop working on the journal and looking up the info that is needed for the Jean Pain Method of Bio Heating, the primates seem interested in the sound of the keyboard as I work on the journal entry. Two of the littlest ones keep coming closer to peek at what I am doing, while the mothers keep shifting themselves over to be closer to the little ones and watch me at the same time.

I told the dogs to lay-down and be good, just watch and listen, well Zeldy is the one having the hardest time. She is the youngest of all of them and had a bad time until I got her from the rescue place. She is trying her damnedest, but she just wants to play and romp around. The little apes are moving closer to her now, she is watching them with the same zeal that she would a human baby/kid.. lets go and play already she is squirming and thinking out loud, I swear!

Well she could not hold herself any longer, got up quickly and licked the little apes on the faces and did the lets play dance. They seemed pleased, but the troop is now acting sort of alarmed, just what I was afraid of to be honest. Well Midnight bounded up to Zeldy, licked her face and did a little play thing, and now they are off, running in circles, chasing each others tails and generally looking foolish. The little apes are squealing in delight,and the troop is settling down now, hopefully.

Well here comes the baby Orangutang long arms waving in the air, big smile as the other apes wave their arms at the dogs and him as well. Even the huge Silverback Gorilla is settling down now, and the largest of the Male Orangutangs is sitting still watching everything, pie face turned towards me and the little kids playing.

Rolling some tennis balls towards the ape kids, some get snatched up by Zeldy and the chase is on by Midnight, closely followed by the apes, the dogs are whining and growling in play the ape kids are making weird noses and squealing in delight. Perhaps it was the little Orangutang with the huge eyes who put it all together first and threw the ball at the dogs, who snatched it up and ran back to him, so he figured out what to do first. Then the chase was on everyone running and jumping on four legs and feet, balls flying, barking and squeals all so much fun for the fur people.

Perhaps that was the moment that the two troops and my little band all relaxed together for the first time. It will take time, but it will work I thought. Looking over farther away, I spotted the baby elephant watching with those big ears twitching quickly, trunk up scenting the wind, but with big Momma in the way, protecting and blocking at the same time. Maybe next time we would have that little fellah in here too?

Today is a rest day, a play day a get to know the neighbours day tomorrow back to work, we all need the rest today though. Time to find some sticks and move off a bit to play fetch the stick for a bit, so the doggy pack knows they are loved too!

Zeldy, Calm, Calm I say quietly yet loudly at the same time. On one side of her is the baby orangutan and on the other is one of the baby Gorillas. The are both sort of petting her and holding onto her fur at the same time. Zeldy is very still, she is so good with little kids once she is settled down and calmer. Both the little apes are kinda jabbering away to her and to each other at the same time, it is priceless to watch, and I WOULD love to have a camera right now but I Dare not move in the slightest.

The troops look poised and ready for battle with each other and us if things go badly here. Zeldy licks both of the little apes hands and faces and that sends them lurching away, laughing with arms in the air waving too and fro in their short legged way of walking.

Phew.. I let my breath out even though I was not aware of having kept it in! Everyone is settling down now and going back to foraging again. Damn that was close and glad it is over peacefully now.

Dogs, lets get something to eat now OK! Well Zeldy likes to play but loves to eat, so she comes bounding past Midnight who just can’t resist a little nip at Zeldy, as she flys by. There is no contest Zeldy is the fastest here and makes it back in time to get two treats while Midnight only gets one, for now that is. She deserves another treat as well and will get one as soon as we are back at the Toy Hauler, which is parked about 20 feet away.