Interruptions & Peaceful breaks
08/28/2005 01:15 p.m.
Due to computer woes (can't get into my Windows, and am borrowing my daughter's right now) I may be very quiet over the next while, so excuse me if I don't respond to messages or comments. As often as I can, without being a pain to my daughter, (who's very generous with sharing but will soon be busy for university with her office more her sanctuary then than ever,) I'll come onto the site to check.

Meanwhile, I hope to keep getting comments etc. and read, hint hint. I sure hope my problem will be rectified soon. September's a busy month for writers, for everyone, and there are contests, classes, etc. starting up too. Not to even get onto my word processing is a real pain. I have to be two weeks offline anyway in early Sept. around the 11th, but was hoping to get ahead of the game on some of my writing business in the period up til then. Oh well, > at least yesterday I had a lovely afternoon "Under the Butternut Tree" at a meeting in the little town of Carleton Place, in the rural area about an hour out of town, with kado ottawa, the haiku group for Ottawa.

When Terry Ann Carter, our leader, hung up our kado banner (we display for every meeting/function) with its Japanese title, all beautiful hand-done in red print by her, on the Butternut tree branch, in the wind, I couldn't resist as she was describing the importance of the meeting, representing our local group, and said "Ottawa Branch" and everyone laughed and said good one, Maureen. We had lots of laughs, a welcome relaxed diversion for me yesterday. My haiku for this summer went over very well, and I received a suggestion on my canoe one from The Tadpole Contest recently held on here (the haiku is posted in My Latest), plus some discussion of the winning one on that contest. I hope to write the afternoon experience all up in a poem, hope Hardy won't mind, called "Under the Butternut Tree." We even had a darling little lhaso apso, our white mascot, running about the lawn, but quiet and well-behaved as we read our haiku aloud, and the whole time, in fact, one of the member's pets, and a parrot indoors who screeched welcome every time we entered the house.

We covered important business, updates, China trips for teaching, that some had been on, (both our leader and the host actually), Haiku News and Tanka News worldwide and local, or national, and also ate tons, laughed, grieved a bit for the illness of one of our leaders, and sat beneath the low-hanging butternut tree whose branches sometimes interfered with our views of each other and tickled our faces, but the breeze was so lovely in the heat, and the garden and house like a Tuscan setting. Complete with statues, gates of iron, stonework, arbours and trellises, and flowers. Our pot-luck spread was set up with beautiful serviettes, and blue plastic knives and forks and spoons, in the white gazebo on the deck. Gorgeous. Hope my photos worked. Later there was a little wine, which we've never benefited from at a meeting together before, as well as ice tea. Hostess Claudia out-did herself.

I'm really enjoying reading The Smoke Jumper by Nicholas Evans (of The Horse Whisperer fame) and find his writing incredible. Rivers are integral to his stories, (as well as wildlife & landscape & forbidden romances) and many of his lines thread this reader mesmerizingly along their route like the flow of a river. Plus he seems to understand and know the motivations, temptations, diverse angles, of human nature and deal with them flawlessly. He's one author I'd love to hear one day in person, and learn more about. His writing challenges me, with his vocabulary at times, and his wisdom, and I love that. I love Nicholas Sparks' work too, but for different reasons and it offers me a different type of enjoyment. I kid myself that I mustn't make either of my two Nicholases jealous, as if they'd even know or care - when I compare them, as I often do. I discovered both men about the same time, and have never regretted being hooked on either. Evans doesn't seem to come out with his next novel as quickly, which is fine, and well worth the wait, but by the same token, I'm never disappointed with Sparks'. I don't always like everything that happens when the movies make the changes they have to, but have enjoyed them as well for the most part. Especially Message in the Bottle and the Notebook, in Sparks'case. For the Horse Whisperer, I was stunned with the movie's ending, and as long as the showing was, I wa still waiting for the real ending to be given. My girlfriend had to say there isn't going to be anymore, Maureen, it's almost over. I'd recommend the books before the movies, which is usually the case, or maybe even the reverse, as then you won't be disillusioned by changes. It's best to treat each as medium result as different entities, entirely I suspect. Take care all, and thanking my daughter Valerie for this opportuniy, to share. Maureen.

I am currently Bummed