One Over X News

A Few (More) Thoughts

It occurred to me the other day, somewhere in the midst of writing the last few posts that I have evolved enough as a writer that I can nearly compose a novel as a series of blog posts. Granted there needs to be a great deal of fine tuning, editing and spell checking to the raw material but it could be done. Maybe I'll attempt it.

Today, a very good friend of mine stopped by the store to give me some information that he had told me about and to tell me that he and his wife were heading to Toledo for a convention. I have known him for a couple of years, having met him in the store when he was looking for some software to ease his life as the self-publisher of a guide to model airplane engines. I subsequently have met his wife and have worked with them on a couple of small details to make their combined efforts easier. The latest edition of the guide is very well done and looks very professional.

Anyway the reason that he stopped by was that he had printed out an article from Reader's Digest regarding blogs and how someone is actually making decent money through donations. I read it earlier today. He presented it to me as a means of perhaps making some money on what I am doing here. I have not considered it before and I do not think that I would incorporate it into this medium of offering of my work. I have always intended this to be an open and free-of-charge presentation of writing samples, along with news and commentaries on One Over X and my life in general. The published things that I present and the copyrighted material are presented as examples of larger works that are available for purchase or may soon be available. I wish to point one and all toward http://www.acbooks.com and http://www.amazon.com - search for "One Over X". That is where you can support the author, at least for now.

I may put a link up on this blog to a personal web page in the future. I do not have one at this point and although I have considered it in the past there has always been the same excuse - no money.

I suppose I started this blog back in January with the intention of leaving it free form and wide open. I have posted a few things here that sort of pertain to my series and many others that do not - at least not directly. I have afforded glimpses into my personal life, and posted pictures of my family. I have mentioned friends and some annecdotes. I have posted observations that I have made of the ironies in the world. Sometimes I have discussed some things that I would not normally tell a stranger. In that most of you are friends that I had before writing or friends that I have made through my writing, somehow I do not have issue with posting a few private thoughts. I think I have been pretty good about not venting in general and particularly not much regarding Jina. Volumes could be written about her both positive and negative - to be sure. I am not ready to do that. There is probably at least a book in me about our relationship assuming that enough of it has not already creapt into the other books already.

Here it is, plain and simple: once and for all for the world to see and as a lasting written record posted in cyberspace. I am in love with Jina, still. I always have been; probably always will be. I do not think that anyone ever falls out of love with someone, only out of his or her favor. Sometimes things get in the way and come between people. Sometimes other people get in the way. Still once you love someone you continue to love.

In the past she made me laugh a lot. We had some very good times together. What we did not agree upon wedged between us along with some meddling here and there from friends and family members. Moreover our problems came down to financial issues and that she could never really deal with the amount of time I was spending writing. In general I do not blame her. I even understand what happened and why.

At present we argue a lot. It is not always a good thing when we are around one another. We have great kids and we each love them beyond anything that is self. She is and has always been a great mother and the kids appreciate her even if sometimes she thinks that they do not. I appreciate her too, even if she would be surprised to read that. She is a good person and a great and beautiful woman. Sometimes in the course of how things play out in life, people grow apart. I was not there for her when she needed me. In turn when I needed her she was not always there for me. Each of us could debate that at some length, I'm sure but that is why people that still love with one another cannot seem to get along. Yes, I know she loves me still. She told me so. It was not that long ago. It was the last time that she was hurt and I helped her. I replied to her that I love her too. She does not care to believe it.

So be it. That is more than I probably should have said but at least you have some idea of the complexity of my personal life. I'll venture that my life is not all that different than anyone else. It may be that I perceive things differently. I am a writer type of person after all.

Sandy, a close friend from work is in the hospital. I wish her a speedy recovery and hope that it was nothing too serious. She had some issues with chest pains as I understand it and was admitted for some tests and things, fearing the worst as medical people are prone to do but erring on the side of safety which is always the best thing.

Her husband is in the medical field so I am not worried. She had prompt and first rate attention. Get well quick! It has nothing to do with everyone else having to pick up the considerable slack or the inefficiency in store operations that has occurred in her absense. Okay, well maybe a little bit.

We all miss you Sandy!

I received an email this evening from someone that reads the blog. Apparently the postings of the past few days have created something of a serial soap opera. She was particularly pissed at me when it ended.

Did I ever tell you that I suck at ending stories?

Anyway, you know who you are and I will respect your privacy here. I will look at it. I agree that the things relating to the football players was a good feature of the story. There was some engaging dialogue there. It also developed some characters that I subsequently did not even bother to do much of anything with except establishign some realism through a back story. The trouble is that I am telling a story that sort of parallels reality and as best I can determine reality does not play with the rules or obey the conventions of story construction.

So, yes I completely agree with you that I probably should write more. Even so I don't think I could turn it into an ongoing serial. All I need is to begin another series! I never intended to create a serial thing in this blog but maybe I should consider it. It is an interesting idea. And yes, as I just hinted the story is autobiographical but only to an extent. If I were writing a book this one would have had the first person changed to third person and probably I would have become Brent or perhaps Noh Bahdi. I have some other characters that could have done these deeds. Aaron for example. Oh but I don't thinkl any of you have met him, yet. Sorry, he is in the second series. You'll like him. He is a lot like me and then again not quite.

Anyway, I'll consider doing more with the story. There is more to tell. What there is in that story is embellished and distorted, mind you. You might even say that it is presented as the way that I would have wanted it to be. Annie is real enough, except for a name change. The relationship between us never happened in the way it is presented mainly because at the time I was really shy. Sorry to disillusion you.

In the real summer of 1972 I was infatuated with a lady named Marie (funny how that name managed to get into the series One Over X) and even though she spoke to me and we joked a bit I meant next to nothing to her. Was Marie the goddess that her namesake in One Over X becomes, no not at all. She was cute, though. At least I thought that she was cute. I was going through my senior yearbook. I found it at my big sister's house when I was staying there with the klids for the Hurrcane Frances evacuation.

My daughter Sarah has a passing interest in seeing what I looked like during high school. I was interested in appraising the quality of my memory of how some people looked. I saw a few picture of Marie. Like I say, she was cute.

The Marie in the series is a composite of many ladies I have known, encompassing the best physical features and personality characteristics of each. So in a very essential way she is everywoman but no one woman.

One of the last ladies to enter into the matrix of her character was someone named Minerva, Minnie or Min for short. I actually opted for Min verses Minnie because of the Minnie Mouse confusion. I also has a friend named Steve who called his wife Min. They were quality people.

In the world of a writer, things like character names can be decided on a whim or after a lengthy process of complicated decisions, merging composites into one profile that has attributes of many but yet serves the function of each to advance the plot. Who is ever going to know? Me? I might never even tell.

So there!

Or my may tell in this blog. So at least that is an reason to come back again.

E

posted by Unknown @ 8:59 PM