We had a dump of rain and the water dug a furrow down our driveway. We’ll have to repair it soon before it grows bigger, as these things tend to do. The pop up stream grew as well, here it was a few days ago.
This is what it looks like now
My cold is finally giving up, and I will soon emerge in good shape. Can’t wait. We head over to Vancouver this week for some meetings and to get together with long-time friends. I’m looking forward to it. Hope you are well too, and doing fine.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!
I have a recommendation for you this year— Do What Matters in 2020
Here is some information on how to wind up the old year and welcome the new—with gusto!
Well? What do you think? Will this process work? This is the first time I’ve tried it so I’ll let you know how it goes. Have you done this before? Let’s compare results. Leave a comment or send me an email at sylviegraysonauthor@gmail.com
3 Things Making Me Happy This Christmas
The season’s giveaway contest – Moon Shine
Some secrets are too dangerous to keep
After losing her husband to a deadly illness, Julia Butler is determined to look after her family, but this is the 1930’s and times are tough for everyone. As the endless string of jobless men trudges past her farm, she does her best to hang on. Then two strangers suddenly appear at her home. They are hiding something that places her family in immediate danger.
Dr. Will Stofford has become disillusioned with women. In an effort to heal his broken heart, he leaves his brothers behind and sets up his medical practice in the Kootenays where no one knows him.
Meeting Julia throws his plans into chaos. Will can’t turn his back on a challenge and he won’t rest until he solves this puzzle and puts things right.
In the 1930’s, can a country doctor and a determined widow save the lives of these abandoned strangers?
The story takes place in rural Canada during 1930’s. Times are tough especially for a widow living on a farmstead on the outskirts of town with two young children to bring up. This is a well written story, characters have depth, the writing flows and the reader feels as though they know everybody involved. It covers the poverty and hardships families suffer from the depression, social prejudice and illegal activities.
This is just the sort of story I enjoy – ordinary people who struggle through the depression and hardships weathering the ups and downs that life throws at them, contending with small town living where everyone knows everybody’s business. A thoroughly enjoyable read. Amazon reviewer
Buy link – – http://amzn.to/2hSOeZZ
To enter the contest—send me an email at sylviegraysonauthor@gmail.com with the subject Moon Shine, and tell me what you are happy about this season. All emails must be by December 30. I will choose the 5 winners on Jan 2. ?
HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO YOU
Do you ever come across a word that you’ve never heard before? One that sounds imppressive but you aren’t sure of the meaning? Here’s one — ultracrepidarianism. I heard it used on a Ted Talk and just had to look it up. It means ‘the habit of giving advice outside of one’s knowledge or competence.’ Great word, eh? (that ‘eh’ tells you I’m Canadian)
The challenge would be- how to use it? Can you imagine a situation where you might slip it into a casual conversation? For one thing, just pronouncing it means it won’t slip in anywhere. However, my challenge this week is to use it without stumbling over my tongue. 
This is one thing about writing that I always expound on (but not ad nauseum, of course). Write what you know. That’s my rule and I think a good one. I have a background in business, law, hard work. When I read a book about business and find something silly in it, it means I have to stop reading and put the book down . Don’t speculate about what it might be like to be a business owner, a physician, a cop, a worker in a laundromat. Find out, check your facts, ask someone with knowledge to help you out. That way you can form your story with confidence. Happy reading!
I’ve finished putting my garden to bed. It involved digging out all the tomato plants, the cucumbers and squash plants and throwing them in the compost bin. Next was the pruning, all the shrubs and bushes, the pear tree which refuses to give us any fruit.
Then we started to dig–the Dahlias will rot in our soil if I don’t dig them out.
I dig them up, use the hose to wash the dirt off, and stack them on the patio out of the rain to dry before packing them into tote boxes covered in shredded newspaper. This picture shows about 75 clumps of bulbs. They certainly expand in numbers and I usually cut the bigger bunches into pieces when replanting in the spring. I’m no expert. I know many people take them all apart, pick the best bulbs and dump the rest, but this works for me.
When I first planted dahlias, it was because roses don’t survive here. I refused to dig the dahlias up, way too much work. But as the crop failed due to rot through the winter, I decided it was worthwhile. The dahlias bloom from July to October, certainly worth my while to plan each year. 🙂
What do you do with your garden in the fall?
The Last War series is still on sale, Book One and Two at 99 cents each,
GET IT NOW!: Amazon US | Amazon CA | Amazon UK | Amazon AU | Amazon IN | BN | Apple | Kobo
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