Stouffville, Ontario Canada (647) 962-1997 gwstudios@rogers.com M-F 8:30am - 2:30pm & 8:00pm - 11:00pm

Month: May 2022

When you come for the Devil, you’d better not miss…

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Or aim for his back so he can’t see what you’re up to if you flub the attempt.

The mornings are warm and sunny, and I’m taking my beverage in the partial shade of our back deck. The kids are fawning over their pea pod plants, anxiously watching them sprout and grow over the last few days. It is slow going, and full of childlike anguish. Pleads for the plants to grow faster, and the whole process to speed up abound. Soon they will tire of the hardening and will begin to squabble loud enough to disturb the neighbours and I’ll have to send them inside. Hidden amongst the chatter of our children playing is the insistent hammering of a giant wood pecker somewhere further down the street behind us. The murmur of passing cars drifts softly through the trees as we are set back a fair ways from the road. A warm and richly scented breeze rustles the leaves of our Lilac bushes, bringing the smell of freshly brewed coffee to my nose. It is a Saturday in May. Things, such as they are, are good.

I forgot to mention (not really) that today is Day 150!

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Which I think is a pretty decent milestone to reach for having written something here on my blog every single day. Weekends, illness, good times and bad. I’m pretty happy with that. Not only that, but the discipline to keep writing has helped me develope a commitment to lifting weights and exercising again. Which my heart will thank me for in the long run. If I can psyche myself up to run or bike that would potentially go a long way to help reduce my waist line. It has made it easier to pick up something new and do a little of it more often than not. I switched to home reno projects, and away from my children’s book last week, and this one. But I did manage to get an awful lot of it onto paper, and I’m in a great spot when I go back to it. I’m reading proper books again, not just twitter and the news, which is great. I miss reading when all I do is scroll twitter and read about politics 280 characters at a time. I’m currently painting my screen door frame, waiting on primer to dry actually, if you must know. Then I need to cut down Cedar strips and keep this bad boy rolling. I want to have it hung up before June 1st, which is attainable, if I don’t all of a sudden become paralyzed by fear of fucking something up. I’ve even made plans on an interior window project next. So I need this one to go fairly smoothly, now that I am committed to finishing. The trim will have to be cut twice, into 8ft long strips from a 6x1x8, and then taken to a .75 down from an inch in width. My door, after sanding, planing and lots more sanding, is no longer two inches thick where the mesh screens will be inset. So slight tweak there, but nothing too awful. Maybe i don’t have to take it to .75, i could potentially go thicker. I need to double then triple check my measurements before I cut it down too far.

So Day 150 huh. Seems like a lot. But isn’t really all that much. Not even a full half a year yet. My “streak” began about two weeks prior to Christmas when I was panicking about how little I had written last year vs. The year before. Far more traffic with short/micro stories than my regular blog jabber. No surprise there. I’m not an interesting person, nor am I famous or grotesquely handsome. Just run of the mill me. Running my mouth and thinking thoughts like a person.

“He’s strange, eccentric and terrifying.”

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He talks in a sing song but staccato manner, with emphasis wherever he pleases. He dances with grace and the fluidity of an otter. His pale visage, and croaked rasp will send you running for the hills. A more vile and vulgar an individual you will never see. Wrapped up in himself with a blood soaked cloak of spies and slaughter.

You don’t get to become supreme leader without having killed entire opposing bloodlines and all of their heirs. It’s thirsty work, and the Blood Gods will not be sated.

Take heed young noble men and women. When you look the emperor in the eye, know that he has both a blade at your back, and arms aimed at your families across the imperium. No one is safe, until everyone is safe. And no one is safe from the wrath of a god king whose sworn an oath to the Blood Gods.

Our life’s milk shall be drank by the altars of blood this day, and every other! Rest not until you have carved rib bone with your saber. Rattle them not. But plunge them deep and swift into the heart of madness at the center of struggle. Go forth, and die with honour! If not for your sake, do it for me! May the gods have mercy on your souls.

It’s the never ending story!

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Cook, clean, work then sort yourself out, on repeat forever until you die. Interrupted by precious moments you’ll cherish, followed by the usual slog. Don’t mind me, just sorting out and putting away winter gear, in preparation for our three weeks of mild sunny spring before we collapse over into the searing heat of summer. This is the goldilocks zone for southern Ontario weather. Warm but not sweltering, not yet in a drought, and plant life is growing. Wonderful time of year, if you don’t suffer from seasonal allergies.

I am once again cleaning up the living room after the kids have played in it. Then I have to sort out my hair. Buzz cut, anyone? Anyone? Right to the scalp if I can bear it.

I had a few cracks to fill on my door, so I’ll be sanding that today. Then cleaning my shop, so that I can paint without excess dust settling on everything I’ve spent days sanding to a soft delicate finish. Then back to sawing up Cedar strips and moving along with the build. If all goes well I’m going to turn to a window screen for the kitchen. If I have enough material left that is. I may not.

Is it Thursday all ready!?! It has been at once a very long week, and a very fast one, full of completed tasks on my to-do list. I have two birthday parties in June to plan and execute. One for my wife, and the other for my youngest. Why do people take forever to RSVP to stuff? I have to order food, drinks, snacks, dip and a cake to suit how many guests, so if you wait until the last minute I’ll just have to exclude you. Now I’m the bad guy. Or order expecting you to show up, get ghosted, and have a telling reminder that a bunch of folks were no shows to our event(s). Bah. This is why I don’t like people very much.

Come on and Slam! It’s Hump Day.

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The blessing and a curse that is Wednesday. Far enough along that the weekend seems close, but so far to go if you aren’t on top of your work load. As far as I am concerned I am back to getting things done around the house now that we have consistent weather, and Spring finally feels like it has settled in. So I’m out doors during my slow period getting chores out of the way.

We are back to a holding pattern in regards to the gazebo. I want to put it up, and now my wife would like to see it go north to the cottage for shade on the water front. As long as it gets out of the shed this year, I don’t much care where it goes, as long as I don’t have to spend yet another year with it hogging space in the shed.

I need to clear a down spout around the back of the house, but I’m not too keen to get back up on the rough again this week. Taking down the lights went smoothly, and I don’t want to push it so that I have an accident, here by myself. Needs to get done though. That one spout has two many bends in it, and it’s clogged like a MF.

Still sanding and filling holes on the door frame. I’ll finish that sooner or later. I just know it! I took a few days off from illustrating my book, as I had things to do around the house, and hitting my hand with a hammer put a damper on drawing anything while I rest it and the painful lump goes away.

I’m on Fire!

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Getting so much done around the house these last few days. Making good headway on the Ash screen door build, from scratch no less. I didn’t grow the trees but I started from rough sawn barn dried boards and have fashioned it into a solid wood door. Just sanding it now. 60 / 80 / 100 / 120 / 150 grits. Then I will paint it white. Next steps are to cut down some Cedar strips, affix one side of them, cut out my mesh screens, staple those in, then add the second layer of Cedar trim. Cut out hinge slots, and screw on the push plate, handle and latch. Then hang it, and all any needed trim in the frame. Totes done with it by June. HA!

I am a man on a mission. Cleaning, cooking, laundry, pruning Raspberries, Roses, Lilacs, taking down exterior lights, uncovering the AC unit, hanging tree swings, planting flowers, and chopping up brush. Staying busy during my slow period. Waiting on invoices to trickle in.

This weather is something else, just lovely. Had a seat on the new swing enjoying the breeze, the shade and all of the bird song. You know they be fuckin’. “Come and get it!” They sing out loudly all day long. Glorious.

After the door, I’ll build an interior window screen for the kitchen. All those years ago when the windows were delivered they missed one screen, so we can’t have it open due to bugs and bees. So I’ll remedy that this year. Helps when I try bacon! An extra window to open to let the smoke out!

And that, ladies and gents, brings us back to Monday.

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And what a busy one we’ll be having today. Laundry, picking up Rx, planting eleven Dahlias, fetching gas, tuning up the lawn mower, oil change, spring replacement and filter wash. Cut the lawn and try to get another round of sanding in for the screen door. She’s chock a block today my good friends. Best get at it, times a wasting. Best pee first though!

Happy Mother’s Day to all who celebrate.

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It just so happens to be a lovely sunny say here as well, so that’s great. About to take the kids out for breakfast and a drive to an activity of some sort. Wanted to reintegrate them into society by walking around a mall but everything around here opens on of after 11:00am, which is too late in the day to keep these two savages occupied before even starting a walking tour of a mall of any size. I’m not feeling an hour plus drive one way to go to Square One, nor Vaughan Mills. I was thinking of either Pickering or New Market. But I haven’t decided. We’ll have to see how they handle breakfast first before I commit to hanging out with them for several more hours. Perhaps just a quick wander around a Chapters Indigo would work just as well? Who even knows at this point. Once they get going acting up, you’d wanna toss them into the sun. But we will keep them, feet firmly planted on the Earth.

You know what I miss?

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Playing catch with my brother in the street. Long bombs, pop ups, grounders we threw them all, on purpose and by accident. For hours, up and down the street, on the school fields and peoples houses. It was tiring and fun, and I miss that. Now don’t get me wrong, I have no desire to play baseball or softball, 3 pitch, slow pitch, or T-ball. I just liked to throw and catch a ball. Cracking jokes, pretending to rob someone of their grand slam, world series winning homerun. I’m currently in the process of teaching my kids how to throw properly, and catch using a Mitt. The oldest is about 3-4 yrs in, and has gotten very consistent with catching, but the throws tend to go wild every so often. Lots going on around us, so can’t blame them for losing focus. The youngest started last year but fades quickly in the sun & heat. Hoping for a few top up lessons this year, and then get some real work done next summer. Every kid should learn to throw, catch, hit, run, swim and ride a bike. Just so they have options to move through as they get older and play with other kids more.

I do need to figure out a better way to work in new gloves, as mine is still stiff, and both of the kids gloves are less than ideal if you actually want to close your hand around a ball or manipulate the Mitt in any way shape or form.

We also practise with kicking and passing a soccer ball around. That’s a great lower cost sport in this neck of the woods. Fun to do on a beach, at home, or shallow water. Same with a frisbee.

My exercising is still moving along, but now I kind of want to move into weight loss too. Not so much I’d give up pizza and the occasional soda, but eh. Small active steps, and a new beneficial behavior take time to cultivate. I’m getting very close to 150 days of writing, so that’s pretty cool. That’ll be some time this coming week.

Took the kids out for mini putt today, my wife came too, which was really nice. Good weather, unruly kids and fun had by all involved. A great Saturday morning.

Pro tip: Don’t hit yourself on the wrist with a mallet.

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It doesn’t feel very good, and the effects last for several days. Zero stars, do not reccomend. Also, hold whatever your hammering a few inches lower than where you plan to strike, and most of all, I can’t stress this part enough, pay attention when you commit to a hearty swing. So lessons hard fought and won in situ. If you wanna get frisky ping yourself with a cast iron frying pan. At least then you can tell your friends you are a mage. I cast iron!