Happy New Year, everyone!

The year has ticked forward, and like all of them, it had uppy ups and downy downs.  I regrettably already lost a friend who'd been in hospice for about a year.

Her name is Lisa Kovanda, and she was a writer friend of mine, and former president of the Nebraska Writers Guild.  She was a class act and I'll dearly miss her.

Facing mortality for loved ones and friends is not an easy thing.  Among the many conflicting feelings and thoughts, there also lies introspection for oneself, and the life you've led thus far, and the life you will lead. 

An opportunity to consider the upcoming year.  Not necessarily with a resolution with a specific goal of doing X things by Y date, but instead as a season with a theme of something you wish to do either more or less in the coming season, maybe a few months, maybe the whole year. 

And so, to again take inspiration from the Cortex podcast, I'm choosing a theme for the season, however long that may be.

Mindful consumption.

Definitely not the nineteenth century synonym for tuberculous.  No, this pertains to being more aware of the things I put into my body and into my mind. 

This not only applies to coming back to reality after a holiday season of eating delicious, but not-so-healthy food, but also media I consume.  I waste a good deal of time with very passive media, often educational Youtube videos, which are arguably not as bad as other time sinks, but I'd like to be more active in the media I consume, rather than passively watching.

Admittedly, this is variation on a prior theme from a few years ago that I deemed "a season of better inputs", but it's something I wish to attempt to revisit improving in myself.

And that's what I'll aim to do this season.

Een is a Chan'la, the all-female warrior sect renowned for their fighting prowess and their ability to bend space.

Like the Long Lived Grells, she has walked the world for millennia.  She also serves as the field commander for the younger members of the Forever Guard, including the Burnhelt brothers, Fernallus, and her daughter, Tamona.

She strives to head off her daughter's insightful but recckless impulses with varying degrees of success.

She and Vick Burnhelt had a brief affair following the death of his wife.  They ceased pursuing the relationship due to Vick's linger survivor's guilt.

And then there's Corsis's vendetta.

The Master of the Game would target her as he targets all women connected to the Burnhelt family if the relationship became known.

That doesn't dissuade Een.  She's a woman who knows what she wants. 

And she'll wait as long as it takes to get it.

I was able to get a bit more writing in over the holidays during my week off, so I reached page 565 with 159,900 words.  Last month's stats came in at page 520 with about 146,800 words. 

I'm happy with that output. 

As with all things worth doing, showing up and doing the work is the biggest hurdle to surpass.  I started 2022 on page 6 of this novel, so that's basically 559 pages for this year.

That's not nothing by any stretch.

I'm getting closer to the end of the book, but there's still a ways to go. 

And go I shall.

Work in Progress Out of Context Quote of the Month:

Tamona: I’m going to stab Balpors in the testicles.  And blow a kiss at him when I do it.

Guardians of the Galaxy Christmas Special on Disney+

A night before watching this fantastic, goofy special, my wife and I made the mistake of watching the Star Wars Holiday Special on Youtube.  Ugh.  Ten minutes of Wookie grunts without subtitles before anyone starts talking. A VR soft-core 1-900 number with Grandpa Wookie watching Diahann Carroll.  5 minutes with an unfunny 4-armed Julia Childs parody.  And Bea Arthur singing.  For reasons.

Like I said.  Mistakes were made.

Anyway, the Guardians Special had a very low bar to pass after that.  It started with the Old 97's playing a Christmas rock song in Knowhere based on aliens' perceptions of the strange human winter solstice traditions.

Much of it focuses on Mantis and Drax as they attempt to cheer up Peter Quill.  They venture to earth to get him the thing they think will help get him out of his funk.  I won't spoil what that is, save to say it was very well done and hilarious.

Hijinks ensue from there.  And it actually has a heartwarming ending too.

Give it a watch.

The Fabelmans

This is a bit more niche, but I really liked it.  Steven Spielberg created a mostly autobiographical movie about his childhood and what drove him to become a director.

Making movies kind of sneaked up on his stand-in character, Sammy Fabelman, when he saw a train crash in a movie with his parents, and he wanted to recreate it.

The movie then details Sammy's interactions with his parents as he makes war movies with his friends, uncovers truths hidden in plain sight, and then his struggles with making art, especially as it collides with his life at home and at school.

Judd Hirsch and David Lynch both have limited but very funny supporting roles as well.

If watching a movie about how someone falls into making movies is up your alley, give this one a try.

That's all for this time.

Stay smart.  Stay safe.

Jim