Is It Fall Yet?

The first hint of fall was in the air this morning. Sure, it's still just mid-August and we can look forward to the better part of another month of hot weather in September, but this morning's weather was the first suggestion that summer is slowly departing us. The sky was overcast, the breeze was cool and the temperature was hovering right around that pleasant zone that makes me want to go lay in a hammock and read a book for a couple of hours. There was even a hint of that crispness in the air whenever the wind stirred up. Yes, give it time, my friends. Fall is coming.

Bethany and I were fortunate enough to find a new used vehicle Saturday, a 2005 Chevrolet Equinox, that we'll be picking up this afternoon if all goes according to plan. We found it at a dealership in Lewisburg and that means, after we sign the paper, we'll be making the inevitable trip to the West Virginia State Fair. I've never been much on the fair, though I've enjoyed many concerts in the grandstand. The food is good, however. The cattleman's association steak sandwiches are the best around.

News in the writing world has been a bit slow lately. I'm still plugging along at The Sixth Sword and the Clifton Forge Public Library has graciously agreed to host a signing for me on August 25 for Blood & Steel. Aside from that, I'm somewhat between projects. The Sixth Sword hasn't captured my full attention, mostly since it's a re-write, and I'm still wondering what project I will start that will fill that fresh, new notebook I purchased a couple of blog posts back.

I'm not really all that worried about it, however. I've learned that my most productive writing time is late winter into spring. September to January 1 is probably my favorite time of year and I much prefer to spend my time enjoying it. The long, dark months of the deep winter seem to provide the most time and best setting for putting pen to paper, so for now I'm somewhat content to mull over a few story ideas and see what happens later.

Speaking of looking forward to events, the big Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds acoustic benefit concert is Saturday evening and I can't wait. I'm hoping we'll get to go early and spend an hour or two enjoying the mall before we settle into the Pavilion for an amazing concert. I'll let you know how it goes.