a very musical episode...

Believe it or not we're actually doing a post on schedule!

Lisa is getting over her pneumonia and I'm getting the sinus infection under control, so we're feeling better and making progress.

Lisa has just sent off the first draft of chapter four of her dissertation. So, she is moving forward on getting her dissertation done.

On my side of the house, the release date for Johnson Farm is moving back a week or two but it's still happening. Most of my attention right now is on projects surrounding the release (stay tuned in the next few weeks to find out how you can get a copy and some other premium goodies!).

So, there's lots going on, but it's stuff that can be challenging to understand if you've never been there... so...

Here is my musical attempt at explaining the writing process (thanks to the original creators of the music and videos!!!)

1. First comes the pre-writing research...

This is that first step where you're trying to figure out what to write...
This is where the third Johnson Farm book is right now...

2. Next comes the first draft...
It always takes a little longer than you expected and ends up a little rough,,,

This is where the last chapters of Lisa dissertation are right now...

3. Next comes the initial edit...
This one is always tough to do...
We can truly call it a hard fight...

But it has to happen...
This is where Johnson Farm's second book and Lisa's chapter four are right now...

4. The 'copy' and finish editing....
At this point there is still work to do,
but you feel like you're in pretty good shape...

Definitely at this point you are winning, but you have to go all the way...
Lisa's chapters 1-3 and the first Johnson Farm book are here...

5. This is the step we're looking for...
For Lisa it's the dissertation defense...
For me...?

Um... Publication Party!!!
Note: we would also accept book signing as an answer here...

Aand then we go back to step one and do it all again!

That's my musical interpretation of how the writing process works...

Until next time those of you who are going to the Layne family reunion (you know who you are) do what you've got to do for the reunion;
and...
Be there or be unpopular!

Hopefully Lisa posts next week, and if not I'll see you in two (this time for sure!).

Getting down to buisness

Lots going on at the moment and most of it is good!

This week is the last week Lisa's planning on collecting data for her dissertation. She could really use at least eight more people but she'll go with what she has either way because she really wants to be done and moving on to new things. Hopefully we're seeing a graduation at the end of the semester.

Lisa and her brother Chad are also hard at work figuring out this year's family reunion (On the one hand we will hopefully have a newly minted doctor to deal with... on the other hand umm... good food, fireworks, shiny things... be there or be unpopular!).

I'm sure Lisa has more to say but I'll let her talk about it when she gets the chance.

On the other side of the house Patrick's first novel (first to be released anyway...) is well on it's way to being released at the end of March/beginning of April. I've solicited some help putting together cover art for the book and am finishing content editing and moving into copy editing  (That's the part where you spend hours on end stressing about correct spelling and punctuation (Trust me several hundred gallons of Dr Pepper were harmed in the completion of this part of the project...)).

This brings me to...

Talking about team-ups!
One of the first people to sign on to do cover art is a young woman who was in our ward until they split the ward last year. Sariah is a pretty recent high school graduate who is doing some mental health/support services work and dreaming about making a serious go of it with her art work. I think some of her stuff is good and I really wanted to give her a shot at doing something that will get a little wider attention. Hopefully I can say more on how this is going (and talk a bit about some of the other people I'm working with) in weeks to come.

If things go really well Patrick will be doing book signings about the same time as the family reunion...

With all the work on the dissertation and books and such we've had to depend on our minions to do some of the work around the house including reorganizing the office a bit. And when I say our minions...

I do in fact mean Minions!

And they are helping with the project!

The crane was a Christmas present (as were the Minions). It's four feet high and is actually in the home office (and we really are reorganizing the books and such in between other projects).

There's more going on and I'd like to tell you about it but I'd better get going for this week. (Lisa stop the Minions before they get to the half track!!!)

Hopefully Lisa will post next week, and if not I'll see you in two...

The Rocks Rocked!

As Patrick said last week, I will be jumping back in and doing some of the writing.  I have been doing lots of writing, but that has been more in the vain of homework, dissertation preparation, article summaries, an article for publication (on the first round of edits back from the copy editor!) and a book chapter.  So, now that I feel I can breathe (last coursework concludes on Friday!) you'll get to "hear" from me too.

As we thought about the family reunion, we wanted to share our love of rocks with the nieces and nephews.  If you have been reading, you have seen snapshots of our preparation and some of the cool rocks that were included in the activity.  I know that at least one niece has created something amazing with her rocks.

I did not always like rocks.  Didn't really think much about them.  My dad has a box of rocks in the garage.  I mostly remember the lava rocks with the holes and that they were really light. (And that my brothers hammered some nails into them - as kids that was pretty cool - hammering nails into a rock!) Turns out my great-grandfather had a full lapidary shop and one of the grandmothers on the other side of some of the nieces and nephews is also a rockhound.  I'm not sure if there is a genetic connection, but it does make you wonder.

So, why do I like rocks, now?  I will get some pictures of some of my favorite rocks to better illustrate this in the future (camera took a dive, so no new pictures for a bit).  For now, it will just be words.  As you look at all the different kinds of rocks - agate, amethyst, geode, bloodstone, moss agate, aventurine, jasper, etc. - you get to see all the creative wonders of our world.  Some of my favorite rocks remind me of the pictures of stars and galaxies with all their layers of color.  There are lots of various factors that are required to create some of these amazing beauties and some we still are sure exactly how the water got into the rock to create the beautiful layers.  Petrified wood is also one of my favorites.  My dad is a general contractor so I have grown up around wood, and I love seeing the textures of wood in beautiful agate colors and clear quartz and eval opalized!

I loved watching everyone go through their rocks.  And I think we even surprised some of the adults, as we brought bags for them too!  Rockhounding is definitely a family affair!  There are no age limits, and often the smaller fingers and short statures are better at finding the good stuff!

Sometime in the afternoon, someone asked my dad if he still had that box rocks.  He does.  Perhaps the fact that my mom searched through two bags, indicates that she will maybe let that "old" box of rocks come out of the dark and dusty garage to be shared again.

Here are some pictures we took throughout the day!

Last Week

Ok, first off I would like to answer a question I was asked recently,  "why don't you join a gym?" Well lets compare to what I'm doing now that I have the shop going and doing the cooking/baking thing...

Benefit of the gym: you can do an upper body workout.
Benefit of the kitchen I can do an upper body work out (come on gym heads try kneading some bread some time!) I can also practice hand eye coordination (read: knife skills!) and as a side benefit if I "eat it", it probably tastes better than anything in the gym!

Benefit of the gym: do cardio on the stair stepper or the treadmill, you can even run with wrist weights to improve your work out.
Benefits of the shop: do cardio on real stairs, by walk/jog/running out to the back workshop, or repeated strikes with a hammer weighing between 1/2 and 8 pounds. I can improve my workout by hauling five gallon buckets with up to 50 pounds of rocks in them, large pieces of steel, bronze or pewter ingots, 20 lb propane tanks, cinder blocks and/or 2x4s, 4x4s, and sheets of plywood! Side benefit: all the stuff I'm carrying is usually mine to keep, give away or sell as I see fit, and the gym charges a membership fee to borrow stuff; the 'membership fee' for my shop is my mortgage which I'm paying anyway.

Benefit of the gym: getting to hang out with a bunch of people who... HEY WAIT!!! WHO SAID I WAS A PEOPLE PERSON!!!

Anyway on to the main topic of the day...

We got home from the Layne family family reunion today. I think over all a good time was had my most (If I say all someone will complain just to complain, so I'll stick with most). There were no fatalities reported (except for a couple fish) but first aid skills were practiced by a number of parental units (and I'd have some pictures up but the camera needs some first aid of it's own...)

In addition to the traditional games, lots and lots of talking and going down to the lake adventures; we did a rock activity, which I have to say went fairly well. There were sorties to get raspberry shakes (OK are raspberries really native to the area, or is this some weird northern Utah marketing thing????) and several projects of one sort or another including knitting and at least two chain mail projects of mine (and Patrick descends into about 45 minutes of "chain of command" jokes that I will spare you...)

Thanks to Lisa, her parents and all the family that came out it was fun.

Am I going to have less to talk about now that the rock activity is done?

 

Less to talk about? Not flamin' likely!
Also Lisa is talking about writing more in this blog, and I have my other blog going too...

Until next week, happy Fourth of July. Have a blast (but be safe doing it!).