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Three Adults, Six Cats, One Hotel Room. What Could Go Wrong?

aka Real Ice Storms Are Not Like the Movie

At 11 p.m. Friday night, February 12, we lost power.

In bed, I listened to ice sliding and branches breaking and crashing to the ground. Saturday morning, we discovered our maple tree had split and part of it had fallen over my car—over and around, but not on, so thankfully there was no damage. Ken hacked that part of the tree up so we could get out and made sure nothing else had fallen dangerously.

By midafternoon, we were pretty cold, I was worried about the cats, and PGE’s estimate for power on at that point was Tuesday night (I think). So we packed up three people and six cats into my car and slowly, carefully crawled over the ice- and snow-covered freeway to Vancouver and a hotel. (The rules say two cats, but we decided that meant two cats per person. Sshhh!)

The cats did great, really. I think they liked having us in sight all the time. Clara, Hamish, and Bonny Lass were the bravest; Floyd the most nervous—but he dislikes feet and panics at loud noises, so the fact that he came out on the second day and played zoomies with Hallows at midnight each night was wonderful. (The Lodger did not appreciate it the first night when they were sleeping and Hallows parkoured off their pillow.) Although we panicked one day because we couldn’t find him, until Ken realized there was a sag in the box spring that peeped when he poked it.

There was a second ice storm Monday night and Ken and I went home Tuesday to pick up a few things and make sure nothing else was damaged. Another part of the maple had fallen on the enormous temporary (ha!) ugly yellow storage tent (think pop-up carport, only with walls), denting some of the metal supports inside and punching a small hole in the roof. Now there’s a nice blue tarp over it, just charming.

I was fine staying in the hotel: I had heat, power, Internet, my husband, and my cats, as well as a small fridge and microwave. I could be comfortable and eat warm (although not necessarily healthy) food. But the Lodger was antsy (they’re basically a Hobbit and needed their hole to recharge) and Ken wanted to Solve the Problem, so Wednesday he rented a generator, he and the Lodger set it up, and he came back to the hotel to take me and the cats home.

Not long after I got home that afternoon, the smoke detector in my office began explaining in a calm female voice that she had detected carbon monoxide and mildly suggested I remove myself.

(If you’ve watched Red Dwarf, the announcement was at about the same urgency as Holly announcing an emergency.) Long story short, having the generator in the garage, even with the door open (and a breezeway between the garage and the house), sent carbon monoxide into the house. We opened all the windows (just after the house had finally warmed up!), moved the cats downstairs with us, and the Lodger and Ken moved the generator to the driveway and covered it with our SCA (modern) day shade and then chained the Lodger’s car to it so nobody could steal it.

Then Ken went off to try and buy a generator while the Lodger and I sat bundled up and covered in the garden room until the warnings stopped. Ken failed to find a generator to buy but brought us dinner, so that was a fair trade. The next day, he drove two+ hours north into WA to buy one, brought it back, and swapped the two over. The new one was big enough to also power the hot water heater, hurrah! It’s called the Predator 9000, which I must say in a WWE voice, “PREDatorrr nine thousand…thousand…thousand…”

That afternoon he helped the neighbor’s tree guy with chopping down more of our maple (some of which had ended up on the neighbor’s roof). That evening he and I drove back to WA to return the rented generator (yeah, about a five-hour trip, but I’m always happy to hang out with my beloved, and he’d done the drive enough on his own so this way I could help).

Power came back on Friday night, February 19, a few hours’ shy of a week of it being out. Internet finally came back Sunday night. My heart went out to people with small kids, sick or caring for the sick, and/or didn’t have money for a hotel. Thankfully, our community had members who made extra food, welcomed people to come charge their devices or take showers, took others in, etc., and that makes my heart glad. People also took pizzas and burgers to the line workers (I believe there were about 3000 in the entire Portland area, some of whom came from other states), which was awesome.

So that was our adventure for a bit over a week. There’s more, about downed limbs and several fence sections down, but that’s for another day. I wrote most nights, and was able to start a copyediting job even without Internet (I could double-check things on my phone or iPad). And now we own a generator for the next emergency, may it not be for many years!


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Dayle Loves This: This: Folk of the Air trilogy, Holly Black (novels)

This post was funded by my wonderful supporters at Patreon.
 
Welcome to Dayle Loves This, wherein I recommend books, TV, and movies (and maybe other things) that rocked my world.
 
If they don’t rock your world, that’s okay. We all have reader/watcher cookies as well as triggers. If you have questions, ask. And please make your own suggestions, and discuss!

 
Holly Black has that rare ability to write characters and worlds in such a way that they’re real. As in, I believe they’re real. I’m not reading a story; I’m immersed in this place and…well, maybe not friends with the people, but experiencing things with them, rather than about them. I can believe they exist.
 
It’s hard to describe.
 
I read The Cruel Prince, the first book in the trilogy, and loved it. When the second book came out, I reread the first book. When the third book came out, I reread the first two. Just talking about them here makes me want to go back and read them again, dammit.
 
The premise—which is made clear in the first chapter and is basically in the blurb, so it’s not really a spoiler—is that our heroine, Jude, was a normal seven-year-old until a general from Faerie murders her parents to get to his daughter, Jude’s older sister (half-sister, it turns out; Mom was intimate with the general before she turned her back on Faerie and married her human husband.
 
The general sweeps Jude and her twin up, too, in some weird sense of honor.
 
Faeries don’t have the same concept of honor as we do. Black makes that very clear; they are an alien species in many ways. Being immortal apparently does that to a person.
 
Of course I want to be like them. They’re beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will live forever.
 
And Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. I hate him more than all the others. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe.
 
Cardan is wicked and cruel (hence the title of the first book, The Cruel Prince), and Jude wants to belong to Faerie even though she’s mortal. She’ll stand up to the mean pranks that almost kill her, pretend they don’t affect her. She’ll align herself with horrible creatures. And that makes her…fascinating.
 
I could go on, but I won’t, because I don’t want to give too much away. If you want to be sucked into another world that’s magical and dangerous and so blindingly beautiful you almost can’t look at it, read these books.
 

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I’m able to continue writing and publishing thanks to my wonderful supporters on Patreon.
 

Dayle Loves This: Ted Lasso (TV show)

This post was funded by my wonderful supporters at Patreon.
 
Welcome to Dayle Loves This, wherein I recommend books, TV, and movies (and maybe other things) that rocked my world.
 
If they don’t rock your world, that’s okay. We all have reader/watcher cookies as well as triggers. If you have questions, ask. And please make your own suggestions, and discuss!

 
Ted Lasso is the show we need right now. It’s on Apple TV, which I know makes it unavailable to some of you, and I’m sorry for that. I wish I could shove it into all of my friends’ faces.
 
Ted Lasso, our main character, is a successful football coach who takes a job coaching a failing soccer—i.e. football—team in the UK.  Now, this description would not interest me at all. Thank goodness for my husband for saying the show was getting good buzz and let’s check it out.
 
Ted is kind of a good ol’ boy from the Midwest. He’s ridiculously positive—but it’s genuine. He learns everyone’s names, and gets a sense of who they are. It becomes clear over time that he’s an expert at reading people. Still, his good-naturedness is genuine; he’s not using it as a weapon (okay, kind of maybe once, but it was deserved, and he did it in a way that made my heart sing). He sincerely wants to make people happy, and show them how they can be better than they are.
 
Fact is, I aspire to be like Ted. To bring positivity and joy wherever I go. Watching the show—which is more complex and hard-hitting that I’m describing here—leaves me deliriously happy. If you can find a way to watch it, do. It’s the kind of positive shit we need right now.

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I’m able to continue writing and publishing thanks to my wonderful supporters on Patreon.
 

The Real Housewitches of Calafia County: A Desperate Housewitches Short Story

When the head of their local HoA tries to impose new rules on the annual Winter Solstice ritual, the four reigning witches of the gated community resolve to fight back.

A war consisting of both paperwork and magic.

All without breaking a fingernail.

Don’t mess with this coven!

Buy “The Real Housewitches of Calafia County”


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I’m able to continue writing and publishing thanks to my wonderful supporters on Patreon.

Dayle Love This: Sawkill Girls (novel)

This post was funded by my wonderful supporters at Patreon.
 
Welcome to Dayle Loves This, wherein I recommend books, TV, and movies (and maybe other things) that rocked my world.
 
If they don’t rock your world, that’s okay. We all have reader/watcher cookies as well as triggers. If you have questions, ask. And please make your own suggestions, and discuss!

 
First of all, just read this blurb:
 
Who are the Sawkill Girls?
 
Marion: the new girl. Awkward and plain, steady and dependable. Weighed down by tragedy and hungry for love she’s sure she’ll never find.
 
Zoey: the pariah. Luckless and lonely, hurting but hiding it. Aching with grief and dreaming of vanished girls. Maybe she’s broken—or maybe everyone else is.
 
Val: the queen bee. Gorgeous and privileged, ruthless and regal. Words like silk and eyes like knives, a heart made of secrets and a mouth full of lies.
 
Their stories come together on the island of Sawkill Rock, where gleaming horses graze in rolling pastures and cold waves crash against black cliffs. Where kids whisper the legend of an insidious monster at parties and around campfires.
 
Where girls have been disappearing for decades, stolen away by a ravenous evil no one has dared to fight…until now.
 
It’s perfect. If you’re an author, study this. There are almost no “to be” verbs. It’s all active. And it grabs you by your booboo.
 
I thought this was going to be Gothic-y, and I was mostly wrong: it was more dark fantasy. But that was okay. It was a breathtaking journey through three girls’ lives, and none of them are what they seem. Especially Val—being the queen bee doesn’t mean one’s life is silk and roses.
 
This book surprised me and moved me with every page I turned. I need to read more of Legrand’s books.
 
(Since I wrote this, I read one of her middle grade books, Some Kind of Happiness, and while it’s not a genre I normally read in, I quite liked it. I’ll be checking out more of her YA stuff soon.)
 
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I’m able to continue writing and publishing thanks to my wonderful supporters on Patreon.
 

Stupid Games: A Brittani Menchin Justice Short Story

Brittani Menchin, decidedly not popular high school student, stumbles across her former BFF, Charlotte, in the girls’ bathroom.

Cutting herself.

Despite Brittani’s pain over Char’s defection, she can’t not help someone in need.

It will take all her geeky knowledge and wit to sabotage the idiotic game Char’s new popular friends have roped her into.

Fans of Veronica Mars will love this first story featuring justice-seeking Brittani Menchin, a not-quite-six-feet-tall math nerd and high school Fixer.

Buy “Stupid Games”


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I’m able to continue writing and publishing thanks to my wonderful supporters on Patreon.

Orycon 2020

Ack! Orycon is this weekend and I’m on several panels and I’ve forgotten to post about them! The con is virtual and free, so you just need sign up to get the Zoom info. My panels:

Self-Publishing 101 Fri Nov 13 1:00pm – 1:50pm
It looks so easy! Just write a book, find a friendly editor, and then publish! Right? Maybe not! Talk to our experienced writers, editors, and publishers about the art of self-publishing. Find out what you need to know to make it successful for you.
April Aasheim, Leah Cutter, Dayle A. Dermatis, Zoom Monitor – Phoenix Turley

Tropes, Memes, and literary devices Sat Nov 14 12:00pm – 12:50pm
Why do we use them? Lazy writing, or a good start to something better? Let’s discuss how tropes, memes and literary devices hurt us, or help us!
A. Lee Martinez, Dayle A. Dermatis, Jackson Dean Chase, USA TODAY bestselling author, Sanan Kolva, Zoom Monitor – Robert Gallup

Sex and the modern market Sat Nov 14 8:00pm – 8:50pm
Your characters don’t just sit around and talk or stare into each other’s eyes. They get down and dirty. How do you sell the stuff? How do you stay out of the Amazon Adult jungle? There is so much bad stuff out there, how do you get noticed? What about audio? Come listen to us talk about the naughty bits. 18 and over only, please.
Dayle A. Dermatis, Matt Haynes, Theresa Reed, Gibbitt Rhys-Jones, Zoom Monitor – Chris Ballowe      


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Ooops. (What have we done?)

The evening before Halloween, I was standing in the kitchen with the Lodger when I heard a cat peep.

Now, three of our cats peep, one screams (she’s deaf), and one doesn’t make a noise (she tries to miaow and makes a sibilant hiss—it’s very adorable).

This peep, however, sounded as if it was coming from outside. The Lodger said they had been hearing a similar noise throughout the day. So we called Ken from his office in the basement and went outside to see what was going on. The peeps were coming from my car, and when we opened the hood, we saw a tiny gray kitten sitting on top of the engine.

A kitten that was very, very speedy.

Long story short, we chased the kitten up and down the neighborhood on and off throughout the night, pausing to drive 20 minutes to pick up a kitten trap offered by a stranger on Facebook. We eventually trapped the kitten and put it in our upstairs bathroom.

Before we even got it, I said that its name should be Hallows. Well, you know what happens when you name a stray. You kinda already have decided to keep it.

We didn’t make a final decision until Nov 5 when we took it to the vet. We wanted to make sure it didn’t have anything communicable to our other cats (that was a deal-breaker). By that time, though, it was purring and yelling for more food and willing to be cuddled.

Turned out we had misgendered it and lo, we had a bouncing baby boy! Relatively healthy, with ear mites and worms (not surprising), and a healed evulsion on his mouth that we still need to have checked out at a feline dentist.

I will note that I wore my Totally Sane Cat Lady shirt to the vet. It didn’t help.

Hallows chose to sit on the engine of my car and yell at us, and Ken and I already know we have a big S for Sucker on our foreheads written in a font only cats can read.

Everybody, meet Hallows.
Six cats. What have we done?


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I’m able to continue writing and publishing thanks to my wonderful supporters on Patreon.

Dayle Loves This: Derry Girls

This post was funded by my wonderful supporters at Patreon.

Welcome to Dayle Loves This, wherein I recommend books, TV, and movies (and maybe other things) that rocked my world.

(If they don’t rock your world, that’s okay. We all have reader/watcher cookies as well as triggers. No pressure here!) I have watched the first season of Derry Girls (all of six episodes) a ridiculous number of times. I watched it on my own, had to show it to Ken, then our Lodger, then again when the second season came out. And then the second season at least once more.

Derry Girls is about a group of high school students in Northern Ireland in the 1990s—during the Troubles. But it’s not about the Troubles. For the average citizen, the Troubles were more a nuisance. In the first episode, there’s a bomb threat that closes a major bridge, and one of the character laments that it’ll affect getting to her tanning appointment.

Derry Girls is about friendship, and loyalty, and being true to who you are and what you believe. The characters are all clearly and delightful individuals, but in the end, they have each others’ backs. The final episode of Season 1 is tear-worthy, and there’s several other bits in Season 2….

The creator and writer of the show, Lisa McGee, lived in Derry in the 1990s and some of the storylines come from her life, which I think adds to the authentic emotion.

The actors have done some funny bits in character online, once you’ve watched the two seasons obsessively (why have you not?). And I’ve heard Season 3 is filmed and will come out in mid-2021, plus there may be a tie-in book!


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Magic, Monsters, and Myth Storybundle

The Magic, Monsters, and Myth Storybundle has a wonderful variety of work, and as curator Kristine Kathryn Rusch says, “…this bundle is all about the sparkle. Sometimes the sparkle is magic. Sometimes it’s a made-up world. Sometimes it’s love.”

When she first approached me about putting Beautiful Beast in this bundle, I warned her that there was no fantasy in it. It’s inspired by a fairy tale, but it’s contemporary YA. She didn’t care, and ended up renaming the bundle because of the variety of subgenres she was including.

I then asked her (and Jason, who runs Storybundle) if they’d like an issue of Uncollected Anthology, and they said yes. The UA cooperative agreed that our latest issue, Deities, would be perfect. So you’ll find a story from me in there as well: “Shattered, Scattered, and Saved.”

Additionally, WMG Publishing included Fiction River: Tavern Tales, which I also have a story in: “Girls That Glitter,” a Nikki Ashburne story.

If you pay $5 or more, you get five books, and if you pay $15 or more, you get twelve. A pretty damn good deal! This will be going on for only three weeks, so don’t miss out.

Once again, the charity you can donate to when you buy the bundle, is AbleGamers. As I said about the most recent Storybundle I was in, gamers with disabilities already need equipment tailored to their needs, and now, those that weren’t already housebound are stuck at home. We read for escape, and we also game for escape. Let’s let everyone have their chance!

For more information, go to Storybundle.com. You probably know the drill by now.  😉


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I’m able to continue writing and publishing thanks to my wonderful supporters on Patreon.