Posting "Waiting"

Monday morning - while we were waiting for Hurricane Ophelia to arrive (hopefully just as a storm) - I got the first copies of "Waiting for Gordo" posted.  One to each aunt - Bea and Jo - one to the Oz Branch of the family - one to Julia who, many years ago, helped me with the first chapter (she advised me to ditch it, I did), one to Lilian whose lovely and unusual (and unused by her) first name I have borrowed for a character (one I get safely off the island), and one to young Amy, who did such a positive and intelligent review of "Till".

I have asked David in Oz to let me know his new address if he wants a copy too.  And I must also get a copy despatched to the Bavarian branch of the family.  I ran out of envelopes.

Jackie has her copy and says she has already started and has four chapters under her belt. And Jean has her copy too - she said she loved the cover - "a work of art".  I can take no credit for it, as the publisher decides, but it was based on a photo that Col took on one of our dive trips. so it conveys the tropical paradise well.

I can only hope people will find it a good read - and both scary and funny.  I have one review on my Amazon page, a positive one.  Hurrah.

At 2.30 in the afternoon the sky was full of darkness and there was a wonderfully ominous light from the West. The wind was starting to blow and there were white horses on a previously calm Channel. It was very dark to the back of the flat, inland.

However, the storm blew away quickly without really touching down here. It has caused some devastation elsewhere though.

Monday night the talk season at the Arundel Westland started.  The first was about birds - their feeding habits.    We - the Captain, Terry and me - went.  Terry bought us all a tea, and he won a nice sturdy shopping bag in the raffle, which he gave me - and I am grateful for the addition to my shopping bag hoard - valuable things nowadays.  Jacks, sadly, was not well enough to come.  Jean and I went out yesterday morning, but not to the Field Service group. We did calls - a cluster of Jean's calls and four of mine too. I am getting further and further behind, so that was a help.

Now Captain B is off for his hairdressing appointment, so he will take a copy of "Waiting" to Malcolm, who said he would like one when I told him about it.

I just hope people will enjoy reading it. I have lost all confidence in it now. But I have to agree that the cover is a work of art.