Happy Birthday, Nashville, Michigan!

You did it, Nashville! You made it 150 years! And to celebrate, some of the locals made birthday cake to be passed out via local restaurants and the Putnam District Library. My hometown turns 150 today; here's to 150 more! And from August 2-4, the village will have its celebration with all sorts of events and dedications and a parade and fireworks and things going on. It'll be the most exciting thing to happen in this village since it broke the Guinness World Record for world's longest ice cream sundae in 2016 (and got beaten a couple of years later--we'll be back!).

Have souvenir spoon, will eat ice cream.

And guess what? I'm nearing the end of writing the first draft of Lake One. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm still working on it. 5 1/2 years later. BUT! I am on the last chapter, with an epilogue and some bits and pieces I skipped left to write. For much of the last year I didn't write squat, but the start of this year I've really been hustling to get to the end. I gave myself the goal to finish before spring, or really before the weather became nice and I would turn my energies to outdoor stuff. I'm aiming to be done by the end of this month, which is coming soon. Then I can finally go through and edit. Interesting fact I discovered today, the last 1/3 of this book was written during these last couple and a half months. The muse returned with a vengeance, or really, the depression I've been going through seems to have lifted and I finally knew where to go with the rest of the story and also the deadline I gave myself were really what's pushing me.

I also got some drawing in. I drew a picture of the very handsome (drool drool) Rudolph Valentino, and started but have yet to finish Josephine Baker, who was known as the Black Pearl. I told myself, when I finish this first draft I will go back to Baker and finish drawing her. I have to. She demands it! I've drawn a couple of other things since my last visit a while ago, Theda Bara and an old mill that used to be here in Nashville but no longer exists. That one sold at a fundraiser art auction the historical society here, of which I'm still a board member of, for a nice amount. The owner of that drawing was very happy with it.

Valentino, from Blood and Sand.

So, enough rambling, I should get back to work. Jennie has some vampires to light up.