Writing My First Ebook, A Work In Progress

WORLD HEADQUARTERS OF ‘CONSTERNATION,’ THE BLOGGING, WRITING, AND EBOOK PUBLISHING CONGLOMERATE. Note the unfinished manuscript and miscellaneous research piled on the desk at the bottom left; various diabetes testing stuff on the top shelf, with the dictionary; a bunch of unpaid bills in envelopes on the shelf at top center; a few reference books and family photos on the same shelf to the right; and last but not least, my trusty but obsolete Apple laptop, sitting on a pile of phone books.

Hello again, patient readers. Yes, I’m guilty of neglecting this poor blog. My other blog is a virtual orphan.

My excuse: I started writing an Ebook around the first of November, and the project is about to consume me. Progress has been slower than my unrealistic expectations. I’ve been working almost constantly, sometimes forgetting to eat. Living and working in the same one-room apartment is not the ideal situation. It’s easy to lose perspective and hard to self-regulate. On the other hand, it helps me keep focused on the book.

To answer the obvious question: It’s a work of fiction, approaching novel length. It doesn’t fall into any particular genre. I’m hoping it will be a fast-moving, suspenseful story of political and economic crisis. That’s all I’m going to say about that for now.

Writing a book is more daunting than I thought.

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The Ultimate RV Downsize

The concept of living in a very small house fascinates at least some readers of my blog. Here is an extremely thoughtful post about homelessness, and some options for moveable shelter. These ideas probably beat sleeping in your car.

barbara's avatarThe RVing Lifestyle

Talk about innovative, this shopping cart pop-up would have to take the prize.  Shelter comes in many shapes and sizes as you can see but I totally get it. If our economy continues to decline we will see more of the camper kart pop-ups.

State of Homelessness in America 2011

Since the release of Homelessness Counts: Changes in Homelessness from 2005 to 2007, the Alliance has chronicled changes in the levels of homelessness in the nation and in individual states and communities to chart the progress toward the goal of ending homelessness. This comprehensive examination not only reveals national and state level homeless counts, but also delves into economic indicators and demographic drivers – taking an in-depth look at risk factors for homelessness. Built upon the most recent nationally available data from the federal Departments of Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Justice, and other…

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our family workspace

As someone who’s writing a book in the same (one) room that I live in, I’m always impressed by people who know how to organize. Here’s a blogger who knows how to organize a workspace with flair!

The photographer/mom even tells you how to create a homemade chalkboard using paint (see the photos of the teal green tabletop).

AMERICAN VALUES — “That Used To Be Us”

From That Used To Be Us, by Thomas Friedman and Michael Mandelbaum; Chapter 13, “Devaluation:”

THOMAS FRIEDMAN, Wikimedia Commons

“. . . something else that happened with the end of the Cold War and the passing of the baton from the Greatest Generation to the baby boom generation: an erosion of important, traditional American values that long underpinned our public and commercial life. . . .

“A well-functioning political system must be rooted in something deeper than itself:   Continue reading

The Art of Growing Food: Interview with an Organic Farmer