Greatwall Studios Graphic Design

I do not know what’s going on there but my view numbers have just shot through the roof due to a visitor explosion out of Germany. All I know is that the “Archives” has something they’ve come out to see. Is it good, is it bad, is it the funeral notices from two years ago? I do not know. What I do know is that it isn’t my book, that has zero downloads today, unless they are reading individual chapters separately (which could very well be true). Any which way you look at it, both my visitor count, and my views have doubled as of today. Cool. Awesome. Thanks. Danke.

It’s very exhilarating to actually sit by and watch the visitor count, and views go up right before my eyes. What a rush. I’ll be saddened once it comes to an end, but boy oh boy it’s nice to ride the wave, even briefly. Ha. I’ll remember this long after the day is done. Making myself eggs Benedict to celebrate! Mm-mm delicious.

Before today, my best viewership day ever was 43. Now it’s up over 1,000. Going to be hard to beat that at any point in the future, believe you me. Wow, what a feeling. Nice.

I’m going to take this personal high for a walk, and move some patio furniture around in the sunshine. Would be great to have some place comfy to sit when enjoying the water. Also to dry out the towels without using the dryer.

Take care out there. Ciao Bella!

Eldest daughter was up & at’em real early this morning to go register for the fishing Derby. Fishing pole, grampa’s boat, and a bucket full of worms, and off she went. Has until twelve noon to catch a fish, and get it weighed by the town’s folk running the Derby. I wish her well.

I didn’t bring my fishing gear, I thought the Derby was in August. But I brought my baseball glove, and we have played catch for thirty minutes a day every day since Wednesday, and a few days prior to that. It’s a lot of fun to do in the shade. Had a few really hot days so we didn’t play catch then. We are still using a soft sponge ball rather than a tennis ball or baseball, but I think we will get there eventually. The sponge ball is very forgiving if you take it off the head or face. No injuries, I like that. Plus it makes it more likely that my youngest will join us too, to work on her eye-hand coordination. Being able to catch, and throw are good life skills to have. Same with swimming, and riding a bike.

Happy Saturday morning to you all.

Woke up this morning to both of my kids crying, and my wife very upset. Seems the dog got under the neighbours deck, and rolled in animal pooh. So I had to carry him bodily (he is a 65 lb German Shephard mix) into the shower stall, climb in behind him, and bathe the wee bastard. I needed a shower anyway, but I don’t typically have an audience. Washed him down real good, and then had to spend an even longer amount of time cleaning the shower/tub combo from all of his hair, and puppy grime. Not the most fun start to a fourth of July ever. But for now both he, and myself are sparkling clean. He could do with a brush though, if I’m being honest.

So it is Friday and I have managed to finish a particularly large report ahead of schedule, and gathered the assets for two more reports, and now I intend to do very little for a good portion of my day. I expect July to be a good month for outgoing invoices. And August to be a good month for getting paid. Very thankful for the work. Gainful employment is key these days.

I had best go out and check on my family now. I hear them shouting the puppy’s name. That’s rarely a good sign. My hair is still damp from the shower. I’ll not go in again willingly, and I’d bet, neither will the dog.

Happy Friday. Happy holiday to the US contingent out there that reads my blog, and reads my books too. Thanks! Take care out there. Ciao Bella!

I think we have hit double digit downloads for both books so far this year, which is awesome. Now, I have no idea if people like them, or hate them, or if they even bother to read them all the way through, but thanks for taking a chance on me, and trying it out anyway. Makes me happy to know these stories didn’t just disappear into the ether. Maybe somebody other than me also enjoyed them. That’s cool to know.

Yeah, so it’s raining real hard right now, which means we are all going to be trapped indoors until it lets up, or stops completely. A bit late for the rain, we could have done with this days ago. Much of it is going to run off the hard baked earth, and not soak in to do any good. The grass around here is pretty cooked all ready. More tinder than grass at this point. We need a long steady, but slow drizzle. Something that can soften up the earth, and then penetrate the hard packed upper most surface. These cloud bursts only work for flash flooding, and over powering drainage ditches, and filling underpasses. Not cool.

I think it’s Thursday today, if I’m not mistaken. Tomorrow is the fourth of July. For some today is the last day they will wake up with all of their fingers. Fire work mishaps happen every single year. Lost digits, busted hands, fires etc… it’s a real problem. Sounds like an out of control party to me. No thanks.

I have some work to attend to after I eat breakfast, so I’ll keep this short. Have a good day. To the US citizens reading this, have a good long weekend full of cheer! May you keep all of your digits, and express yourselves as you see fit. Ciao Bella!

Butter Scotch was laid to rest along the same tree line as Rocky, Alfie, and several other farm pets. It was a brief affair during the heat of the day, followed by a smattering of rain. The entire extended family came, children and all to pay our respects to the what I know know, was a three year old bunny. Born just a week after my nephew Zack. Butter Scotch was a grey Rex rabbit with extremely soft fur, much like that of a chinchilla. She was grunt, thump the floor, jump about all nimbly-bimbly and spent more than a few minutes licking my ankles, and my wrists. Besides the scars she gave me that first day or two, she was usually fairly pleasant — to me. My kids liked her a great deal. She did eat a rather large hole out of the back of the inlaws leather couch, ruin the living room trim, and destroy more cushions than I can recall. Indoor, outdoor, couch, decorative, you name it, she munched on them all. Dangling cords got got as well. By all measure she was a menace. A fluffy, soft, grey, cuddle puddle menace.

It’s rather sad to walk through the house and see her litter box, carrier, and hutch empty. Bags of bunny treats left unopened. Her Christmas chews still in their cardboard packaging. The smell of the rabbit is starting to recede as well. Soon the floors, towels, trays, and cages will get a last wash for storage and all her summer time shed fur will get vacuumed up, leaving only the physical damage she caused behind in her wake. She was a bright light, burned hard & fast. Rest easy little bunny.

I used to call her Scutter Botch. She was a three year old Rex rabbit. She died after a brief battle with an abscess, and the after affects of the anesthesia used to calm her for its removal. Did not suffer long. Made it through surgery, and the travel home, and quickly succumbed in her own home peacefully.  May 3rd, 2022 – July 1st, 2025.

Day one of having the new rabbit and she put two very deep, very parallel gouges in my wrist of my right arm. They are still both very visible to the naked eye. The rabbit however is now destined to be six feet under.bshe developed an abscess, then an infection, and then passed while under the effects of a heavy pain killer. She was a well pampered rabbit. Much loved by those in the extended family, and both of my children in particular. I’m sure my BIL is not feeling so hot today since Butter Scotch was his darling girl. I do hate it when pets pass. Both the big & the small. It still hurts no matter their size. I want to say she had four years with us, but that may be overstated. I’m not certain.

I gave some serious thought to getting up at six to start my day today, but my wrists can only do so much in a day, so I thought it best to start at 8:30 am instead. With frequent breaks I hope to get through my first draft in the next 3 full days. I got nearly 25% of it started on Sunday, which is nice. A good buffer. Only now I wish I had done more. Oh well. Time for breakfast, and then back at it after some wrist exercises! Gotta stay healthy. Ciao Bella.

And they are currently in the hospital waiting to see if the removal surgery can be booked for three months from now, or if it has to go right this minute! Not a good time for us to be harbouring a sick child with a fever of 103°F, and occasional vomiting. So I’m struck off the list as far as visitors. I can’t go into a hospital as a potential carrier of my youngest child’s illness. I’ll have to wish my friend the best via text, and telephone. Maybe I’ll try a FaceTime/Facebook Messenger video chat? I’ll give it a go. Nobody’s answering the call, so I’ve left yet another message.

Finally got around to cutting the grass. What little of it that is growing anyway. Mainly the crab grasses, and various types of weeds at this point. It has been terribly dry as of late, so that means I no longer have to cut twice a week like in May. The taps are off, and the trees are definitely suffering. I’m seeing curled leaves, and dropped leaves too. Not a good sign when we still have 11 or so weeks of actual summer left to go. Might be a real dry one this season.

The grapes are looking strong though, I see the early start to a good deal of bunches on the vine. Perhaps the dog chewing through one whole section early on has diverted much needed resources to the rest of the vine, and potential fruiting elements. Nice. The Cherry tree was heavily decked out in fruit this year, and even the apple trees look to be doing gang busters this year too. No strawberries because the dog rolled on the beds and killed them all, well more likely he stressed them and now they’ve missed the fruit generation part of their cycle. Last to go will be the raspberries. Dog chewed them up real good too, so we will have to see how they do later on this summer.

I do really need to buy a step ladder to be able to harvest the higher branches on my cherry trees. I focus so much on the bottom because I cut the grass underneath them that I don’t look at just how tall & wide it has gotten. The big cherry is made up of five different types grafted onto one trunk, but the newest tree is a single type grown from a digested, and passed single seed. The new single type tree is very tall, and also really narrow. Has been growing fairly well these last few years. The raccoons took out a bunch of smaller low lying branches by climbing on it while it was really young. I do see bare spot on the trunk from where that happened.

No matter. I shall see about scheduling a meet up with my friend once he’s out, and prior to his big surgery. Have a good catch up over a cold beverage, or a hot meal someplace with clean cutlery, and matching dishes. But I digress.

A hot outdoor event with friends followed closely by a sick child with a fever, and vomiting. So that’s our Summer Break 2025 off to a wild start! Boom, we are in the thick of it, believe you me. Official day count of how far we got into Summer Break 2025 without incident — 2. We were on a heater, a full on streak! Ha.

I’m about to get busy with work just as the kids have gotten off school, and my wife is mostly done with work for the next eight or so weeks. Should make for a good couple of months together.

Today we have the last Taekwondo Belt test & promotion ceremony of the school term. I look forward to seeing my eldest move up to a red striped blue belt before we break for summer. Unfortunately many of her friends stay in all summer long and move up ahead of her. But I don’t think she wants to give up cottage time for the sake of two more months of training per year. Now we switch to swimming lessons to expand their activity roster for the year.

I need to go get some updates running on the kids devices, so I best be off about my business. Ciao Bella!

First off, no parking in front of the driveway, for your safety and mine park in the driveway or along the curb side. Don’t make me get your vehicle towed away at your expense. Two, be in bed by 9:00 pm at the latest, except on special occasions where an extension is warranted. Three, fetch your own drinks, and snacks. Your legs are not broken. You know what you like to eat. All items of that sort are kept lower in the pantry. Do it for your damn self – please, and thank you. Four, all old school work has been sorted for artwork, special tests or worth while marks, and a smattering of hand writing specimens. All other items are in the recycling. If you have never gone back to look at anything from the last seven years, then most likely some of that will have gone out to the curb too. Keep only the best, and most choice cuts! Space is limited. Five, don’t get out of bed until 8:00 am, unless you have an appointment, or are being called to the farm to work before the sun becomes too hot. Otherwise, stay the fuck in bed, or be asleep. Too damn hot, and too damn early for a chorus of “I’m bored”. I will send you to camp if I have too. Don’t make me banish you from the house for portions of the summer break. Six, read a god damned book every once in a while. Seven, charge your own damn tablets, and tech in general. If you don’t know where you’ve put it, neither do I. Eight, if you are tired then go rest, do not start a fight because you’re out of sorts (that goes for everybody). Nine, we eat at regular intervals, every single day, choose your snack time with care, and consideration. Ten, pick up your trash, you dirty, dirty beasts. Or you may find those wrappers in your bed at night because I’m sick to death of picking litter up off the floor, couch, hall, bathroom counter, kitchen sink, and bedroom floors. Trash in the trash bins. Please.

Otherwise, welcome to Summer Break 2025! Glad to be here with you, happy & healthy. Let’s treat one another with respect, like human beings, and aim to have some fun. Learn a little. Get some exercise. Eat like a healthy human, and not like a vending machine full of crap. Make some effort to include the dog in your walks, games, or outdoor explorations. Ride those bikes. Break in those ball gloves. I can keep the driveway clear if you want to play ball hockey. Also, remember to dry out your bathing suits when we swim, nobody likes a damp, mouldy, smelly suit to swim in, or be near. Likewise, hang up your wet life jackets after water sports outings at the lake.

But most of all, please be safe, use some caution & common sense. Let us all return to school in September  in one piece, and as healthy as we are able to be. We’ve experienced a summer tragedy with friends, and nobody wants a repeat. Take care out there!

Let the games begin. Ciao Bella!