The Watson Place, Part One

Now that I've finished my draft of Hammered and I'm waiting for my agent to give it a read, I'm free for a few days to relax—for the first time since last year, actually. It was about this time last year that Evan said he'd represent me, and ever since then it's been non-stop writing to complete the first three books in my series. I mean, there were days I wouldn't write, but I was always thinking about it and kind of working in that regard. Now I'm trying to chill and get my mind out of the fantasy world...with very little success. I'm already thinking about the next books. Heh!

But I'm confident that I'll be able to spending time in upstate New York with the Watsons, my in-laws. They have fifty acres with a bunch of stuff just growing wild around their place. It's beautiful here. Because I grew up in the desert and have lived there most of my life, I'm awed by all the green stuff. I took a few snaps today as I walked around a small fraction of the property. I'll take some more and post 'em in another installment later on. ALSO COMING SOON: next Tuesday, my interview with urban fantasy author Nicole Peeler; Thursday or Friday, my trip to the big city; and a trip to either Ommegang or Cooperstown breweries. Heck, maybe both!

These are some "black" raspberries that grow wild all over the property. Like everything else here, it's completely organic and free for the pickin' whenever it's ripe.

This bowl o' berries was picked this morning. We put 'em in pancakes for breakfast. The hand model is my daughter. Isn't she great?

Apple trees abound here. They have Macintosh, Granny Smith, Empire apples, and another kind they're not sure about. The Watsons bought this place from a dude who used to make apple wine out of them. Here you see some wee apples on their way to delicious.

This shot gives you a better idea of what it's like on the place. That's an apple tree in the center, surrounded by wild growth of various flowering doodads. I'm not much of a botanist so that's about as specific as I can get. The dog is a Newfoundland named Norphleet, which is Norwegian for "giant freakin' black dog." He's incredibly sweet and he loves roaming around the property.

I don't know what these furry fuzzy thingies are, except the remnants of a flowering plant that blooms in the fall. They're like woody skeletons standing sentinel in a field of summer bloom.

These are freshly harvested chives, which also grow wild on the property. Back in Arizona I have to pay $2.99 to get a wee package of organic chives and who knows how long ago they were harvested. So this morning I had a cheese and chive omelet (the eggs came from six chickens on the property, completely free range—they have the whole place to themselves) and berry pancakes, all major ingredients as fresh as possible. Life is good.

Like I said, more later. Hope your summer affords you a measure of peace as well.