Tuesday, September 3, 2024

 Tuesday, September 3, 2024

     I just discovered I wrote nothing for September 3.  Either that or Microsoft

 deleted my file. That happens. Microsoft is maddening.  Bailey, my go-to tech, says everyone complains about it. How is it Microsoft can’t fix the problem? I hate to think of authors who lost months of work, if not all of their work, due to such a glitch.

    I write to soothe my soul.  I enjoy figuring out how to put my thoughts into words.  It’s fun and occupies my mind, distracting me from unpleasant thoughts. I get to write in Hawaii with a view of the Pacific. It’s a great combination.

    Current updates are sent by email to about 40 people. I know some read it; I am also sure some have added my email address to their spam list. Some have asked me to remove their names from the list. I am delighted and amazed that some continue to read it regularly. Some make comments on what I write. I’m always surprised.

   When I write, I assume at some level that someone is reading it. I wouldn’t be so happy writing it if I thought no one did. It’s nice to contemplate an audience. 

     I post entries a year later to the public blog I maintain. When I first started, I would get daily numbers like zero, one, and two. Then, it shifted into the low double digits.  Then, some English teacher got hold of it and assigned it to their class. The daily count ran in the hundreds. The final count to date is 102,636, with hits from 19 countries with counts of over 200 and another 4,000 hits from unidentified counties.  It was quite a surprise.  For the last two months, my daily count has been zero. It fell off when I stopped making entries last year because of my fall, resulting in a shattered elbow and shoulder, leaving me unable to use my arm for much of anything for months on end. I wonder if it will ever pick up again.

   Besides the creative pleasure of formulating sentences, writing assuages my loneliness and fills my time.  I am blessed to have it in my life.