My blog has been a bit neglected the past few weeks. I’ve been quite busy with other things and haven’t had the time or energy to give this much attention. What have I been up to?

This month I’ve spent a lot of time trying to earn the money required to attend Many Gods West. I’d like to purchase my plane ticket by the end of the month so the rates don’t spike but flying out on Sunday night adds an extra $80+. Staying an extra night with a friend and leaving Monday morning would keep the cost down but that would involve me missing some time at work; I can make that up but it’s just another thing to worry about once I get home.

I’ve also been making several books to fill orders placed for the Loki devotionals and in anticipation of vending at an art/craft fair in the next several weeks. The sales I’ve made have made an enormous difference. Even though the amount of money I’ve earned thus far is not in itself very large, it has helped me get ahead of some of my expenses so I can comfortably set aside a few dollars in anticipation of MGW. If you’re willing to take a moment to share the availability of the Loki devotionals and my other items, this would be a big help. (And really, the support you guys have shown for this little project has been wonderful. I’m very grateful.)

Oh, and if you’re in the mood to help other MGW presenters, take a look at this IndieGoGo campaign. https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/attending-many-gods-west

April has also been a bit of a not-great health month. I had to stop one of my prescriptions quite suddenly because I was experiencing persistent dizzy spells. I fell twice before finally stopping the drug. I have to seek followup care which proved to be much harder than I anticipated. So I’ve been coping with the withdrawal of one drug and the preparation to begin a new one. And of course, I’ve been coping with rising pain levels for the past couple weeks, too. Nothing unmanageable but my activity is seriously arrested.

Oh, and my refrigerator has given out. I’m not entirely sure what’s wrong with it. It took me almost a week to figure out that yes, something was indeed wrong with the big cold box. This was a cause for concern because not only did my groceries go bad (oh, my pomegranate molasses! Oh, my Bragg’s aminos! Oh, my knock-off veganaise!) but I have to keep some of my prescriptions refrigerated. This particular stuff is nearly $500/month at my current dosage. Needless to say I can’t actually afford this medicine but my doctor loaded me up with samples because I guess the industry has now moved on and a new flashier drug is being used instead. Losing $3000 worth of injectable drugs was just – unthinkable. I’ve been without this medicine for several years and I’ve suffered every day because of it.

Anyway, the fridge’s fan motor was replaced yesterday evening and I thought everything would be back to normal by this morning – nope. The cold part is still not cold. It’s a dank, tepid box with some rotting wheat germ. Thankfully my neighbor has been storing my meds and so they should be OK but in the meantime I’m grumpy about the extra cost of food at the end of the month.

Everything will probably work out with the refrigerator sooner or later. The landlord seems to be taking this reasonably seriously (which is good!) but in the meantime I’m still freezing and thawing my meals and eating some cheap takeout.

So that’s what I’ve been occupied with this month. I added another couple hundred words to the New Book; Heartroad 2 hasn’t been touched in quite a while. Other writing projects are also gathering dust. But, um, I’ve been beading! Yeah, beads! So it’s almost like I’ve been productive. Let’s go with that.