This feels like a whirlwind of a week and I can barely remember the beginning. I believe I was going to put these into sections for easier reading too. Well, let’s get this clown car on the road.
Return of the Laptop
The laptop finally came back Monday and I spent most of the afternoon testing it. The speakers had to be replaced and now the sound works. Poor thing kept getting pushed to do updates though. I’d be writing along and suddenly get a message about needing to restart the system. The worst was one that had a timer, which is the easiest way to make a guy panic. Just writing along with nary a care in the world. Suddenly, you have a countdown on the screen and feel like you’re in a James Bond movie. The first few seconds are lost to confusion and then a few more to flapping your arms in a wild panic. That second part might just be me. Either way, the laptop is back and I can get back to writing at my normal pace . . . except:
The HEAT!
It’s been so hot and humid here. I know people live in areas that are worse, but it’s just oppressive here. One reason is because the houses here were designed to retain heat for the New York winters. Back in the day, you didn’t have to worry about this. Now, it’s like Florida weather followed me here. Even worse, I tend to work upstairs and that part of the house becomes a sauna. Not quickly too, so I’ll be toiling away and gradually cook like that frog in boiling water thing. I’ve had to retreat to the dining room and ask for the air conditioning by about noon, which still leaves me drained. Nothing says fun like sweating up a storm and getting a ‘there goes the power bill’ comment when the air conditioner is turned on. Really makes me miss how Florida operated. They knew you needed the AC on all day to keep things cool and avoid mold/mildew. The power company didn’t take advantage of that like the ones here. At the very least, you didn’t have to feel guilty about taking steps to avoid sweating enough to fill a public pool.
Sleep Apnea Appliance Has Arrived
Sleep Apnea Oral Appliance
This is what I have to wear to bed for the rest of my life. Went to pick it up on Tuesday and I have to go back for adjustments in 2 weeks. It’s weird since the upper part feels like it’s yanking my teeth, which hurt for a few minutes after I take it off in the morning. The bottom one is fine, but my tongue managed to pop it out on the first night before I went to sleep. To explain, this pulls my jaw forward, which pulls my tongue away from my throat where it tends to bunch up when I sleep. A big reason for this is because my tongue is too big for my mouth. That’s the gist of it. Maintenance isn’t too bad since I have to brush it with alcohol free mouthwash. Haven’t done the weekly denture tablet cleaning yet, but I’ll do that Sunday.
So far, I can’t tell if it’s helping me sleep. People can’t hear my snoring through the vents and my wife says it’s reduced. Might never be gone completely, but it’s a gradual change of things. Do I feel like I have more energy? Not really. One of the issues is that I’m up at 5:30 AM on the weekdays to get things ready for my son’s summer school and get some work done before everyone wakes up. I don’t set an alarm for this. I just happen to wake up at this time and I can never fall asleep before 11 PM. Weekends will be the main test because I can crawl back into bed after hitting the bathroom. Fingers crossed that it works out.
Bedlam
There aren’t any other projects that I’m working on. I finished a few chapters and only have 9 left of Derailing Bedlam. Reese did get brought up in passing as long as Lloyd doing a ‘that should tide you over’ comment. One thing I’ll always enjoy about this series is reacting to the audience through the characters. Will Reese make another physical appearance? No idea. We’ll have to wait and see.
Another thing I have to figure out is if I put a link to Protecting Bedlam on the next installment. It seems weird to do it with a blog book. I feel like it would be wrong to take it all off the blog and make it a published work too. Does it make sense to list a ‘blog only’ on the list of previous rampages? Not to mention I’m still not sure how I’m going to pull off another release. Doubt and worry is still going strong.
Life in General
Not much going on here. I’ve fallen in love with the pretzel dog at Sonic and their shakes are delicious. Thankfully, it’s not the easiest place to get to and you have to sit and wait for your food even if you’re taking it home. So, I won’t be going too often. This is going to work with me simply not saying no if somebody suggests going.
Next week is going to be a little busy, but not as bad as this one. An event that I’ll mention next Saturday is looming. There might be something else to mention here, but life has basically been covered above. I really should do something about this notepad, brackets, cut out names, and Michael Jackson hat that’s been sitting in the corner all this time. It was going to be a fun project with the kid. Get him to help me choose the characters for each fight and then roll dice to see who will win. Just haven’t gotten the chance because of homework or lack of privacy. Doing stuff like this around people who already look at me strange tends to make the procedure more aggravating than fun. Nothing like doing something quirky for a story and being questioned like you’re an idiot.
So, what’s up for this week?
- Write more Derailing Bedlam.
- Continue getting used to the oral appliance.
- Stop laughing when I write or say ‘oral appliance’.
- Read more Claymore.
- Help prep for next weekend’s big event.
- Try to stay cool.
- Remember what I was going to write about here and forgot. Swear there was something I missed.
Legends of Windemere 
Not sure I could put something like that in my mouth! Global warming is kicking the world’s *ss and taking no prisoners. We don’t have your heat here on the west coast, but half the province is up in flames. Scary times.
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Thankfully, it was molded for my mouth. So it isn’t as cumbersome as it looks. Heard about you guys getting stuck in what’s basically Fire World from Super Mario. I’m just amazed at how people are still determined to save a buck instead of avoiding dehydration and heat stroke.
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That drives home the importance of a countdown clock in fiction. Ten seconds before the world ends… I think the oral appliance should be more fun. Some shark teeth or vampire fangs could be molded onto it pretty easily I think. Maybe glow in the dark for those midnight potty breaks.
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It does feel like that at times. Ten seconds until your world is rolled back an hour. Can just imagine my computer laughing at me.
The shark or vampire teeth would get in the way of it doing its work. It looks like the parts need to come together and the structure of the backs prevent the jaw from going into its usual position. I wouldn’t mind there being something you can put on it that makes it taste good. Just imagine sleeping with the taste of ice cream or whiskey on your tongue.
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That’s a good idea too. Sweet dreams because of the taste and smell.
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Soothing smells could help. Not sure if taste has a sleepy effect.
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I like the title ‘Back to normal.” Always a good thing. I hope your Oral Appliance (Ha ha ha) gets you the sleep you need.
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It’ll be a process for a bit. Betting I’ll need some adjustments.
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I’m sure. 🙂
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Hey, at least you get the countdown warning. My screen reader keeps forgetting to let me know that warning exists, so the first I know that updates need my computer to restart is when I stop hearing it speaking, and suddenly hear the telltale sounds of a restarting computer. This is usually followed by me uttering a few words that make me glad the only kind of kids around to hear them have fur and won’t repeat them, since it has a nasty habit of happening at the most inconvenient times.
Anyway, I’m glad your laptop is back and functioning so you can get back to normal as regards writing. Shame about the heat though. Hope it cools off soon.
Good luck getting used to the oral thing. I hope you find out over the weekend that it is helping you get more sleep.
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Ouch. I hope that doesn’t cost you any work. There was one time, the countdown showed up behind the Word file I was working on. Didn’t notice it until I spotted the icon on the taskbar. Only had enough time to save and close mid-sentence before the computer restarted.
Doesn’t look like it will cool off soon. The mouthpiece is weird right now. I wake up feeling a little tired, but I recover faster than before. Might need some adjustments.
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I lost a lot of work at first. After that I figured out what was going on and became obsessive about saving constantly. I still lose a little from time to time, but not big chunks of work any more, and the little I do lose is a small enough amount that I can remember what I’ve written well enough to quickly add something almost identical when the computer is back on. Still frustrating though.
I’m glad there’s some improvement. Hopefully you can get that adjustment and it will lead to you getting the rest you need.
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Too bad you can’t set it to auto-save every 10 seconds. That would probably slow things down too much. The adjustment appointment is in two weeks. That way I know what’s me getting used to it and what’s something that requires alterations.
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I hope you have the auto save function turned on, at least you wouldn’t lose much if you missed a restart warning.
That oral appliance looks like it would make a nice torture device in your Bedlam world.
The heat has been crazy this year, but I guess it’s actually a bit cooler than last year, so that’s something at least.
Next time someone complains about the power bill, tell them that you did a cost comparison and it’s cheaper and healthier than the three boxes of ice cream you’d have to eat to keep cool.
Maybe you could consider putting Derailing Bedlam into a book in an abridged form and leave the unabridged version on your blog? I don’t know if that would work or not.
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It should be on, but it looks like the back up isn’t very reliable. I’ll have to check it next time I’m on the computer. I tend to hit save whenever I stop for more than 10 seconds.
A lot of people think the thing looks horrible. It’s not that bad. Like the big brother of a standard retainer. There’s another kind with springs in the back too. Glad I didn’t get that one.
Been kind of the same here, but the real heat hit in August. Feels like the last year has been mostly brutal heat and frigid winter. Missing two other seasons around here. I’ll try that ice cream thing. Though it might just get people to call me fat.
Derailing Bedlam will be fully published. It’s Protecting that’s on the blog. I’ve considered a double feature book, but maybe not. Seems silly to publish and charge for a book I just put out for free. Even a shortened version could cause friction.
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Whoops, I got those two reversed, I don’t know what I was thinking, guess I need to stop commenting on blogs when I’m distracted, lol.
Hopefully it’ll be a cool August this year. If ice cream is too fattening, try frozen yogurt or sorbet.
That’s a good habit to be into to save so often, I’ve often wished I had saved my documents more often.
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It happens. Series with two word titles can trick you if one word is always the same.
The frozen yogurt place closes up just before the summer. So my choices are ice cream, slurpees, and more ice cream. August is going to be a big surprise.
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That’s odd that a frozen yogurt place wouldn’t be open during the summer.
You know, if you let ice cream melt and drink it through a straw, it slurps too, lol.
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My son learned that lesson, but prefers to simply drink from the bowl like it’s a cup. The frozen yogurt place has new owners about 2 years back. Quality went down with the stuff always being icy and crunchy.
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That’s a shame, but it always seems to happen when there’s a change in ownership.
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Yeah. Doesn’t always go in the right direction. Shame too because there’s nothing else in the area. Except for one that supposedly tastes like Robitussin.
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Hi Charles! Interesting device 😛 Hope it works
Ellespeth
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Thanks. Hope it helps too.
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That Sleep Apnea Appliance looks like designed by a Dawn Fang!
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Or a very drunk gnome. Getting used to it though.
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