and uninspired.

I've discovered something horrible. The reason I feel so bad is because of work. I've only been back for two days and I feel like shit. It'll get better eventually – it HAS been two weeks of me not doing ANYTHING as far as physical labor. I'm sore and cranky and extremely tired.

On the other hand, my original concerns about the progression of my rheumatoid arthritis seem to be for naught. Being in constant pain for months on end, I was beginning to wonder if perhaps it was getting worse or my medication was becoming ineffective. Two weeks vacation showed me everything's working fine and dandy.

As far as the editing I had planned on the trip, it sorta fell through despite the fact I had five or six days of train rides to fill. After we left LA, I dragged out my stuff – to include my Palm and keyboard – to begin edits on On Azrael’s Wings. It seems the digital camera in my bag was pressed too tightly against my Palm’s soft cover . . . I was completely drained of juice. Which meant I was also completely without all my notes and digital documents. (And I had a LOT of notes, dammit! Three whole NoteTaker files for Azrael, Iditarod, and Sanguire!)

Thank gods I had brought the hard copy of Azrael. I at least was able to read through it, make notes, and actually edit about six chapters. That’s a far cry from getting the entire thing finished, however.

That also meant, though, that I didn’t get anything else written on my two current projects. sigh

With the help of Shawn, Raven and my wife I think I’ve worked through some of the issues I have with the Sanguire series. I’m ending it too soon. The book I’m working on has too many climaxes. I need to focus on one. And leave the other for the next book. So instead of a trilogy, it’ll be a quad-something-or-other I guess.

So here I sit with plenty of time to get writing on the Iditarod . . . I even know what scene is next. Can almost see it in my mind's eye. But keeping my eyes open is a problem. And my head hurts. And my body aches. Napping's not an option because I'm too stiff to relax. Major Catch 22!

Hopefully by next week I'll have reaclimated myself to the physical labor.

As I stated earlier, my wife and I went of vacation. Had a blast. Here's a short update.

Flew out to Orange County on a Friday. Got there to discover the wife's suitcase was hanging open because of a 'faulty zipper.' Doesn't matter that security left their card inside to say they'd gone through it. Doesn't matter that the EXTERIOR zipper mechanism was missing altogether. Doesn't matter that one of the feet on the base was hanging by a half of a rivet. No. The entire thing was 'a faulty zipper.'

Saturday we surprised the hel out of my friend, Shawn. Told her we were going to Mexico, but went to Sea World instead. (She's a not-so-closeted seal freak.) Fed seals, watched some shows and got drowned by Shamu. Sunday we were at Disneyland where our friends bought us REALLY appropriate gifts . . . baseball caps. Mine has Grumpy on it. My wife's has Stitch and the words 'Here Comes Trouble.' (And, man, did THAT one turn a lot of heads on the train!)

Sunday night we hit Amtrak in LA. Didn't leave the station until 12:30am – 2 hours late. Went through Arizona, New Mexico, a whole day's worth of Texas (Yes, Jean! I waved!) and then into Louisiana. We were due in New Orleans at 8:30pm on Tuesday, but we got our very first lesson on what to expect from Amtrak . . . We arrived at 4:30am on Wednesday. sigh

Got a nap before breakfast (thank the gods we paid for the hotel in full through Priceline! They couldn't sell our room even though we officially arrived a day late!) and went to our first tour. Oak Alley and River Road Plantations. Really cool stuff, especially the Laura Plantation, which is Creole. I've now got story fodder for a rich young Creole plantation owner and her slave . . . wiggles eyebrows

The next day we did two more tours – Cemetery #1 just outside the French Quarter, and the Southern Comfort tour. Both were really informative for various reasons. Got lots of pics, too! On the last day, we had the worst food we'd had the entire time we were in New Orleans on the Natchez Riverboat tour. Seeing the Mississippi was fun, but I won't eat there again. Blech. That evening we went on a haunted history walking tour.

(FEATH! I got pictures of ORBS!!) Got two pics of orbs which may or may not be ghosts. And there's one pic that might be an ghostly image forming, but I could be biased.

Caught Amtrak for a trip up to DC. Expected to be late, but actually arrived on time on Sunday morning! We had a six hour layover before our next train out, so we stepped outside with the intent of taking a walk. Lo and Behold! There's an Old Trolley Tour bus that stops at Union Station! So we paid our fee and went for a ride! Got to see a lot of DC, stopped at the Lincoln Memorial for lunch, hit the Smithsonian Air & Space museum for a piddly hour, and got back in time for the next leg of our journey.

Needless to say, being on time to DC was a fluke. Our four hour layover in Chicago was lost, and we spent an hour in the Chicago train yard before finally pulling to the platform so we could disembark. They held our connection, which officially started an hour late. Fortunately, we didn't add much time to that delay. We got home to Portland about an hour and a half behind schedule.

After getting home and reminding the cats who actually pays the bills here . . . my wife called Amtrak the following day to complain about the delays. (Which isn't to say the trip sucked. The people we dealt with on the trains were fantastic!) In next to no time, we had a $400 credit that we can use within the year. We're thinking about the Grand Canyon during spring break next year.

Such is how Redhawk Rail Trip 2004 went.

Now I return to work tomorrow. sigh

More to come on the Redhawk Land Cruise in the next couple of days. But first, an announcement from my publisher!
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We’re also pleased to offer Jordan Redhawk’s new, thoroughly revised edition of Tiopa Ki Lakota. Staying true to the original story of Anpo and Kathleen, the revised edition also explores the unique culture and customs of the Lakota people.

And an old favorite is now back in print! The first book in the hysterical, acerbic Devils series from K. Simpson: Several Devils. See where it all began for Devlin and Cassandra and their personal demons.

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I'm posting this from Anaheim! (Thanks, Shawn!) We're off and running. I don't expect to be back online until we return in two weeks!

Aloha!

. . . YIKES! Almost a week!

Busy, busy at work. Busy, busy at home. The Memorial Day holiday was good in that I got a couple of chapters of Iditarod finished.

My wife's birthday was a couple of weeks ago, and I spent a lot of time planning that. She got a dozen roses delivered, went to see 'The Day After Tomorrow' on opening day, had lunch at Rock Bottom Brewery (her favorite,) and dinner delivered. She also got all the Sims expansion packs she hadn't had before. All in all, it was a VERY good year for her. (We can't often afford such extravagance, so we splurge on those years that are good.)

I've spent the week printing 4 novels, updating my NoteTaker notebooks, locating my handwritten notes on the Iditarod and On Azrael’s Wings, and making lists. We leave on Friday morning for our vacation and won't be back for two weeks.

Spending a couple of days in Anaheim with my best friend, then on to New Orleans for three or four days. After that, a long, boring train ride around the country until we arrive outside our back door. I hope to have Azrael edited and ready to be submitted to my publisher. Wish me luck.

Glad to hear that some of you had a good time at Orlando Bardcon. I really wish I had been there. It looks like I'll be able to make DC Bardcon in October.

Take care!