NOW is the time, HERE is the place!

First off: my apologies for Friday, as the Casa del Pino Blanco took a break from the writing game, a brief pause in the world of spilling my mind's contents.

I attempted to search all over Internet-dom for the past hour, trying to discover that one fantastic thing to write about, to interest readers, to spark creativity, and alas, here's what I found:

• Video game programmers creating micro-games (one was 16X16 pixels, another, tinier one was a version of Defender played in the 8X8 pixel icon that appears in web browser URL windows, called a favricon. Which I also didn't know- the icon that appears next to your web addresses, it's called a 'favricon.')
• A performance artist hugged his father for 24 hours inside a boxing ring for Father's Day.
• A blogger thinks Star Wars' original appeal was that the universe originally felt 'dirty and lived in for a millennium,' therefore we were fascinated.
• An Australian comic has created a new alternative to the YouTube phenomenon of planking, called 'cone-ing,' which people can perform by driving up to a drive-thru window, and upon ordering an ice cream cone, attempting to take the cone from the employee in the most awkward way possible. (*I must admit, I watched the video, and while the third, fourth, and fifth cone-ings weren't AS hilarious, the first was a tremendous win...I LOLed, for realz, but wasn't moved to ROFL, or LMAO, or any other types of internet acronym inspired laughter. Therefore: look it up on YouTube, as it wasn't THAT funny as to post a link.)

So, that brings us to this point, when I follow Hemingway, King, and countless others' writing advice: put your butt in the seat and write.

Two things are circling my mind:

ONE: Books are not selling, period. I believe we've sold a grand total of 32 eBooks, and about 20 or so paperbacks. After a great conversation with a friend of my PR whiz cousin, a fellow author named Dick, who inspired me to keep moving forward, I found quickly that social media kind of...petered out. (Like Weiner-gate news after his resignation! Hoo-ray! No more mainstream media penis jokes!)

My aforementioned PR whiz cuz spoke with me last night, and gave me some tips about 'tagging' and such, but me and Facebook haven't always been the best of friends, nor Twitter, as most of the time I can't find the point of knowing what someone had for lunch, or when they woke up or went to bed, or whatever other nonsense people post...which probably speaks more about me than about social media.

WAR, by Sebastian Junger.

TWO: This weekend, the wifey and I finished watching Restrepo (a film by Sebastian Junger and Tim Hetherington, recently killed covering events in Libya) finally, after having it on the DVR for months. As soon as Sebastian Junger's WONDERFUL book, WAR, came out, I bought in hardcover and read it frantically.


Junger was imbedded with Battle Company in Afghanistan at Outpost Restrepo for a year, and his book chronicles the building and fortification of the outpost. Restrepo was named for 'Doc' Juan Restrepo, Battle Company's beloved charismatic medic, who died in battle upon Battle Company's taking of the much-contested hill.

One platoon, one valley, one year. Do yourself a favor: check this movie out.

Seeing the battles and strife unfold on screen after having read the first-hand account gave me a renewed sense of love and appreciation for the mission of our military. It also made me realize this caveat, 'They're out there busting their tails so I can wake up at ten, watch some movies, fart around all day, and post "Going to bed" on Facebook.'



I decided Saturday night to get back on track, back on schedule, stop whining and bemoaning myself and put my butt in the seat. If for no other reason than I have lots of stories in my head, which people cannot read until I type them all out, since the might of the entire U.S. military force has my back, at home and abroad. God bless them all, always and forever.

So...off I go to continue the chronicles of Carter Jones, the number four gunslinger in the Official Duelist Series, though the wifey REALLY wants me to write the second and third books of the Oathtaker Series...So we'll see which one wins out! :)

Until that fantastic day when I can write for a living rather than teach, my butt is planted back in the seat, raring to go! Oo-rah!

Enjoy the ride!