About Writing #2

After I bombed outta college, I wrote nothing except the blathering the USN made me write. Evaluations of men and equipment. Equipment evals were easy. They either worked as advertised or not. Most of those writing were ugly negative.

The evals for my troops were a totally different thing. One mistake and a man’s career was ruined. I learned that in a very personal way.

I had 11 years in and found out I made Chief. A big jump in the Navy. A friend made First class at the same time. I called the wife and told her I’d be a bit late. She knew that meant I was on the town. The second place we stopped one of the bouncers didn’t like submarine sailors. He was an Airedale moonlighting.

On the second draft beer, he bumped me and spilled my beer. He said a few derogatory words that used to be un printable. We walked out after I said a few words he had never heard before. He screemed and knocked over the remains of my beer, what was left after I returned the beer using aerodynamics. In other words I tossed it in his face.

We went across the street to a place I really liked, where I shared the good news with the owner, Paul. I realized I was a bit handicapped and called my bride of a year to come join us for dinner at Paul’s or just pick us up.

She got there just in time to see me shoved into a Shore Patrol buggy. Long story shortend, come eval time my Boss marked me down two ticks in military behavior. Can you imagine that?

A eval period is half a year, 180 days. I asked him why the down tick. He referred me to the night I was encamped in the brig for being unkind to the bouncer.

I just naturally pointed out that one nights mistake was only 1 outta 180 for the eval period and asked if he really wanted to slap me so hard. He in turn marked it up a tick from the 2 down making me only say thank you.

The next day I found out that two ticks would have killed my chances for any further advancement in the Navy. I kissed the lieutenant and accepted the friendly slap back. I only kissed him on the cheek like a Frenchman would have done.

Be careful with your words. It might be fiction, but if you use my name I’m coming after you, next.

WRITE

WS

On Writing #1

Sit down in a chair in front of a pad of paper or a word processor. Don’t worry about the quality of the chair or pad of paper. The word processor is another story.

My first word processor was a portable typewriter I was given by my parents in my junior year in high school. It was a Remington. It was fantastic. Red and black ribbon. Paper up to 12″ wide. I wrote the tripe my teachers had to have on it. My teachers didn’t encourage my writing at all. It wasn’t until college at 24 freshman English that I got some encouragement. A- on all my papers except the first one. My prof, who was younger than I, really took me under her wing and showed me how to organize and transition. Those writings were done on the old portable.

From there it was all technical writing of various procedures and/or failures. Only when I was writing annual evaluations on the men in my gang for the Navy, did I get much into creative writing. Some of those were cold fiction.

More next time.

Write

WS

More And More

More and more theories, explanations, and just plain erroneous information rolling around these days. Sick friends and panic don’t make for a fun time. The worst part is all the worst in people coming out. The best part is the best of people coming out.

A couple in their 90’s. He gets to feeling a bit off. Goes to ER. Triage gives him a quick fix, does the covid 19 test, and sends him home. Final instructions were they would call with the results. A week later he is sicker. Off to ER where the triage doc wants him tested again. Friend tells doc he had one a week before. Doc checks. Positive results completed 6 days ago. He has the bug and so does his wife. They are both in the hospital in separate rooms.

Another friend goes in for a migraine. Attack the migrain, knock it down, test, and send home. 4 days later she calls for the results. Positive. She asks why she wasn’t called. Got the answer. We were busy.

A friend and his wife, who is on O2, had been helping the old couple get their daily chores done. They are at home behind closed doors awaiting the results of tests done when the old folks were admitted. No call yet 4 days.

If you have felt the need to be tested, don’t wait for the call. Bug them.

50000 words into my book and go back to add some clue and find i have created cloning. Two people are in two places a hundred miles apart at the same time. One of the places is pivotal for the story and the other is a serious clue. 4 days of reading, writing, and struggle followed. Found that I had done it twice. Turned one simple mistake into a destroyed story. Rewrite took four days and added a character and 4000 words.

Sometimes the simplest mistakes can bring great results, sometimes not so much.

Are you using the pandemic as a part of your story? Tell me about it.

WRITE!

WS

Water

Water is necessary.

This blog is not.

But I have fun presenting whatever tickles my fancy. My fancy isn’t necessarily either.

Today I wrote 7 pages for my latest STATE OF book. I live in the state of Arizona just south of the covid19 explosion on the Navajo res and just west of the Zuni res explosion.  And just north of the Apache rez explosion.  There are a bazillion reasons for these explosions. The best one is “I don’t know.”

The people in these three tribes struggle against the same things everybody else does. Right now it’s convincing their people to protect themselves.

Us of no tribe are praying for them. Many are our friends.

WRITE whats on your mind.

WS

The Buttocks

Not a pleasant topic even though most folks have them. You’d think that with all that padding one could sit on them in a well padded chair without discomfort.

I cannot.

1100 miles in 2 days did the number on my posterior by compacting all my flesh in that area into a very thin system on top of the stiffer padding in a pickup truck.

I am too old for these trips.

I think i shall write instead of travel.

But, WAIT. I have to sit to write. It puts pressure on my brain to stimulate the process. Three books in progress should keep me from feeling a thing. The smoke from the overload might be somewhat bothersome, though.

WRITE

WS