The Year of the Rat...

Well, well, here we are again...I'm not one for blogging too terribly much as you've noticed, because I honestly don't have a lot of time to work on these things. But there is much to discuss, talk about, and as ever we must look forward, always forward.

Mary Engelbreit made this piece; I saw it this morning, and it's what I try to do. Look forward. I have to briefly look back, and I'm afraid what I may say could be construed in the wrong way. I am sorry in advance.

The radio business is something that I've gone on about, and I can't go much further. Suffice to say, I'm approaching 36 years in the business, more than I deserve, but I also refuse to give up. The Radio PA Network has kept me on, and busy. Our boss has been enterprising, and has reminded us to think outside the box, by getting old affiliates back and gaining new ones.

I relaunched Radio PA Roundtable, a weekly update show, and restarted Outdoors PA, a daily feature that is a lot of work, but the rethinking of it has made for a positive response. All good.

I'm waiting to see how changes at another pair of stations come out. I've been through it, and I'm perfectly happy to do what I do over there. I have no interest in going full time; it's just not a needful thing right now.

There's a lot of looking back, reminiscing, and recollections. Pennsylvania for some reason does a lot of that; living in the past is not a good thing, folks. As I once wrote, it's okay to look back, just don't live there.

I stepped back into my past recently, when a form of the Dharma Fools returned to the stage for the first time in years. Our friend and sit-in performer, Mari passed away suddenly in November, far too young to go. One of her friends, and ours asked if we'd come together to play for her, and so we did.

Fuckin' hippies...haha!

Well, actually we hit the Waterway in York last Sunday, and everything turned out pretty nicely. A lot of old friends, family and others gave Mari a nice sendoff. I'm sure she had a lot to say about it, wherever she is!

I have a lot to do this year...the writing update is thus: I have the sequel to "Searching for Roy Buchanan" ready to go...

(INSERT OBLIGATORY BOOK COVER SHOT HERE)

Heh. So yes, the next one, "Call it Love" is ready for the editor. I have a new one at Brown Posey Press, and I'll be meeting with Jen Cappello very soon to see how we go from here.

Also had a meeting with the publisher. Lawrence Knorr is very supportive of the direction Aki and the gang are headed. There will be a third in the Sweet Dreams Series, then I call timeout to let everyone grow up, and to let my writing catch up to what we're going to do!

I have several other works nearing completion. Mr. Knorr believes we can now increase the releases; instead of one a year, maybe 1-1/2 to 2, or six to nine months.

I am working to figure out the sequence. So much to do there.

Then, we have appearances! The tour! I call it touring, because I do travel for a lot of these things, and there will be more events I hope to add to the schedule.

I have one February 13th in York, at the Parliament, an arts organization, where I'll read in the Open Mic series. Always fun. I'm headed back to Ohio for Cleveland Concoction 7 in March, Sci-Fi Valley Con 9 in Altoona, PA in June, and I'll be off to New England later this year as well.

Need to find more places. Need to hit the road more. I have a story idea that involves road travel, so I'm pulling what I can from my recent drive-about stuff that will add to the story.

It's all about moving forward. I don't have time for the past much...our society's need for recrimination, and a wish to live in an age that never existed (and they didn't live in) must be wiped away, and we have to turn into the wind, and the future. That's what I'm doing.

Right now, I'm babysitting a PITT basketball game (radio is glamorous shit, innit?) as I write this. I find myself updating the website, getting travel plans ready, fixing all the things, and doing the mundane shit that others hire people to do.

You wear a lot of hats, and I have to take on a lot more...we'll see how it goes.

2020 isn't so bad, folks, but the question is, do we change, do we progress, do we do better? Don't wait for something or someone to do it...WE have to do it.

Time to do. Peace, Out.