Okay, now I've experienced it all. Yesterday coming over the pass into Oregon, it started snowing! I've driven in snow before, no big terror there. But driving in snow over a mountain pass in a 40-foot RV while towing an explorer, YIKES! Talk about improving one's focus in prayer.

I'll tell you, there's nothing like life's tense moments to remind you in whom you depend for you very life. This is the third time we've been in a position with the RV that required serious prayer. The first time, we were in Arizona and decide to travel over the 89A. If you're in anything longer than a four-door sedan, DON'T DO IT!

Imagine taking this 40-footer around curves and bends, through a tiny arts/crafts tourist town on the side of a mountain. We took up so much space that cars coming in the opposite direction missed our side mirrors by two to three inches.

The second time, we thought it would be fun to take the RV on a ferry across Lake Powell. It was a blast. Saved on the gas mileage going around the lake. All was fine until we got off the ferry. We had a choice of going over one hundred miles out of our way to go around the Navajo Nation. Or, take this other road that just skirted the edge of the reservation.

That was when fuel prices had just increased and we thought we would save a little time and money. At the beginning of the road there was a sign that read 'not recommended' for buses and trucks. Well, we're neither a bus nor a truck so we continued.

The sign should have said 'RV'S DON'T EVEN THINK IT'. There were places that we had to make three-point-turns just to get around a curve. And other places where the front of the motor home hung out in space in the turn.

In the middle of one of those I thought my bladder control would fail me. My husband suggested I move to the rear of the coach to relieve that tension. There was no way I was getting out of my seat. What if that disturbed the delicate balance going around one of those bends. Nothing could have pried me out of that chair.

Now we've survived a snow storm. Shortly after we descended into the valley the news reported a white-out on the highway behind us. There's no mistaking it. God does answer prayer.
J

Well I'm actually on vacation. We attempted to go the the Channel Islands off the coast of California, but rainy weather cancelled the trip. Because you are left alone on the island without a way of leaving, they won't take people there for a day trip in bad weather.

So, instead we took a boat tour around the islands. The boat was a nice one with a snack bar and observation areas. We boarded without problems. As we were leaving the port, the captain announced that we would be out for three hours and that the water would be a little rough because of the weather.

I'm sure those of you who are in my age range know what television theme song popped into my brain. You guessed it, Gilligan's Island. I immediately pulled out my trusty cell phone and called my daughter. I told her the name of the boat, the time we were leaving, the time we were expected back, and that I would call her as soon as we landed. If she didn't hear from me, she was instructed to call the Coast Guard and make them keep looking until they found us.

She laughed at me. Can you believe it and broke into song. You've got it, she sang the theme song all the way through. Kids.

Then we trekked up to Monterey to the jazz festival. It was awesome. To top it off, I ran into an old friend I hadn't seen in years. Today we're in Reno and heading for Boise, Idaho in the morning.

No, before you ask, I haven't gotten any writing done. The plan is that once I finish this post, I'll get some done. I probably should have done that first, but you know how it is when you lack discipline.

J

Hi All. I'm going on vacation this week. I hope to get lots of writing done and maybe get some much needed rest too. I'm not sure if I'll be within wifi reach, so I might not be able to keep you 'posted' on my process and progress.

Today I have got to make a declaration. Nothing new. You probably already know about it. It's just that I hope by putting it in writing it will help me.

I am totally convinced that television is the work of the devil! Whenever I watch it all of my creativity and time get sucked away. My mind doesn't flow into the worlds I have created. My characters become stunted and two dimensional. Everything goes flat.

I have got to get some discipline in my life. I had told myself that I could only watch it at night when I get home from work. That's when I really need my mind to be numb. That way I could write in the morning before work and get this project completed.

I was doing okay for about two weeks. And before I knew it, I was back to my old habits again. I have wasted tons of time with that thing blaring at me. And there isn't even anything worth watching! I spend most of the time searching for something to watch. But if I don't turn it on, somehow I think I'm going to miss something.

I have got to stick to a plan that works. This project needs finishing and it needs to be good. If I don't whip myself into shape who knows what will happen?

I know what will happen. My imagination will be flat. Nothing will get completed. And all of my plans and dreams will be a bust.

So J, turn the bloomin' thing off!!

I'll post soon.
J

Hi all. Sorry for neglecting you. I've been writing and reading. The characters of the current novel I'm writing have moved into my head, and that's a good thing. But it leaves little space for anything else. I'm so busy puzzling over plot twists and characterization that breaking away from it feels like an abandonment of the work. And once I get it figured out, I start rehearsing in my head how it would look and sound.

It occurs to me that much of the writing process takes place in my head. By the time I get to the computer to write it down it just flows from my fingertips. But here's the drawback. If I get interrupted and have to do something else, it is often difficult to remember what was going to happen next. I need to find a way to make notes that will bring me back to where I left off.

There continues to be so much to learn in this process. What amazes me most is that while I am attempting to learn about writing I am actually learning about myself. Some of the things I am learning about me I'd prefer not to know. They are not the most attractive. But at least this way I have the option to change.

Many of the things I'm learning about me are rather pleasant and come through my characters. Pretty cool. The best discovery is that I have a passion for those I care about, even greater that I had already believed.

I am finding that I really enjoy writing. I like the shift that happens in my brain and the creativity that it opens for my life as a whole. The journey is wonderful.
J