I actually wore a costume for Halloween since the class was doing a theme.  Minions was chosen, but I knew I wouldn’t reuse anything with a Minion on it.  Instead, I went with my idea for last year, which I couldn’t do because of a court date.  I went as GIR (robot singing up there), but in his ‘dog’ form:

GIR

It was a hoodie, so I brought two taco plushies to keep one in each pocket.  GIR needs tacos or he will explode.  I also wore a sign that said ‘4IN XCHANGE MINYUN’ to fit with the group.  Only one person recognized the character though, so I don’t know if I’ll try to be this creative again.  Doesn’t help that I couldn’t keep the hood up.

That was really the highlight of the week, especially since I went out trick-or-treating with my son.  His costume was a success in that it looked good and didn’t fall apart.  He hated the wig like two years ago, so I suggested his next request should be someone with short or simple hair.  Next year isn’t my time to make or buy a costume though, so I have two years to prepare for the next and possible final challenge.  I mean, he really only has two more Halloweens before he turns 18.  Time is flying.

As far as writing goes, I only managed to get through 2.33 chapters of Darwin & the Demon Game.  It wasn’t even Pokemon Go that caused the delay since I couldn’t play it until 3 PM on Saturday.  You see, I was on my way home from an appointment last Saturday morning and thought I’d swing by the park before grabbing lunch.  Couldn’t find a space and was leaving the lot when my car starts making this loud grinding noise.  The whole thing is shaking as I’m hoping I can reach my usual mechanic on the other side of town.  Sound kept getting worse, so I stopped at the first place I came to, which was down the block from my house.  Turns out, my front passenger side tire blew and I was basically riding the rim.  So, I was stuck home waiting for that call about the bill and then about the repairs.

You would think this would give me plenty of extra writing time and I was trying to get stuff done.  Unfortunately, this threw me off so much that I was having trouble focusing on the story.  I kept thinking about how I thought a month ago that the tire looked weird, but didn’t act on it.  I kept thinking about how the money I put aside for a new laptop was going to the tires.  In the end, I did get a full chapter done before I got to pick up my car and finally hit the park.  Still, it threw me off so much that I wasn’t able to take full advantage of things.

I did try to do more during the week, but work and parenting was crazy busy due to Halloween AND it being the last week of the quarter.  I might get a little more done this week on a few evenings.  Next weekend is a 3-day also, but I have to use most of Saturday to take an online ‘Defensive Driving’ course.  That takes 6 hours, so I might edit while I wait for the timer to let me move on to the next module.  Always read faster than that thing expects me to.  That gives me most of Sunday to use and maybe a little time on Monday before I get my son. I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.

As far as the editing timeline goes, I think my goal is to finish the hand edits before the holiday break in December.  That will allow me to type them all in during the actual break and print out the last of the finished books.  Can’t guarantee that this will happen, but it’s a dream.  No idea when I’ll publish again too.  Feels like it’s been so long that I don’t know what to do.  Keep forgetting to reach out to the woman who did the covers for War of Nytefall too.  We talked in August of 2023 about the Darwin covers to work on in the future, but then . . . My life took a header into a wood chipper.

Nothing else is really going on, especially with the weather refusing to settle on autumn or summer.  Been battering my sinuses, which are already suffering from exhaustion and nocturnal anxiety.  Going to try to get more sleep and relaxation over the weekend.  The only real plans are helping my son study for 2 quarterly tests, play some Pokemon Go, and watch a movie.  The tests are the hardest part because they’re in the subjects that I’ve barely helped him with this quarter.  Just the timing of homework and tests, so I have very little idea on what he’s supposed to do.  Stressing both of us out, which is why Pokemon Go and a movie are going to be essential.

Goals of the week?

1. Study hard this weekend.
2. Catch Pokemon hard this weekend.
3. Rest hard this weekend.
4. Edit more Darwin & the Demon Game throughout week if possible.
5. ‘Defensive Driving’ next Saturday.
6. Avoiding pigging out on Halloween candy.
7. Try to walk every day for 30-60 minutes.
8. Mutter curses about Daylight Savings Time.
9. Work, sleep, etc.