Moths, Weeds and the Red Pen

I have been waging war on the kitchen ceiling, polyfiller and spatula at the ready. The job would be so much easier if I could levitate. This would save having to climb up a stepladder and twist half-upside down so I can smooth away miniature potholes which bring something of a lunar texture to our temple of culinary experimentation.

The house acts like a magnet for moths. There was a large, fat orange-brown one flitting round earlier, and snoozing on the ceiling is a particularly beautiful moth which looks like a Spanish lace fan. No wonder so many have been hanging out in our house--the bats are out in full force tonight.

I've been photographing a few things in the garden, and have also begun weeding around the grove--which is badly overgrown with mare's tail. I've yet to find anything which can kill off mare's tail without destroying the soil for years to come. Anyway, the good news is that my Lady's Mantle has re-established itself under the contorted hazel--which I've given a sensitive prune so now its branches form a 'natural' arch over the entrance to the grove.

Writing: This month's project for Riverside Writers was to produce a poem of short story on the theme of "one more day". I didn't fancy doing a mopey tale (along the lines of having one more day to live, for eg.) and so I ended up with a very short tale--Party Time, 1,250 words--about a retiring Special Ops agent's last day of work. He has a surprise up his sleeve, but I won't give away more than that.

Bethany Rose currently stands at 56,300 words. Progress has slowed while I've been promoting the Parallel Dimensions event which takes place on July 11th. Oodles of press releases have been sent out for that. Also, I've been editing Rowan and have cut a couple of conversations completely. If dialogue doesn't contribute to the plot then it doesn't need to be there.

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