Friday – JohnKu – TGIF

December 22, 2017December 21, 2017 ~ John W. Howell ~ 64 Comments

We are getting close to Christmas, and it looks like I have everything under control. All my shopping is done, packages wrapped, and chores finished. (There are always chores) The fact that Christmas Eve is on a Sunday has me a little confused. As you may know, I do a Views of the neighborhood on Sunday and a Top Ten Things Not to Do on Mondays. In the spirit of the Holiday, I will not be doing a classic Views or Top Ten. It is my intent to take the two days to remember the spirit of the season.

I hope your holiday will be filled with the joy intended. This week’s JohnKu talks about the holiday wish.

So this is Christmas,

Time to reflect true meaning. . .

A meaningful peace.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

December 15, 2017December 14, 2017 ~ John W. Howell ~ 61 Comments

I Always like Fridays. It is almost a signal to do something fun. People keep asking me why I like Fridays if in fact I am retired. The answer is pretty straightforward. Friday is still the golden standard to measure the week. I don’t know about you, but I tend to write more during the week than on Saturday and Sunday. The week seems like it has been set aside for work and the weekend for play. I suppose Friday represents the cut off between feeling accomplished and being given permission to be lazy. So why not celebrate its arrival retired or not?

This week was good in that our roof was completed. I don’t know what it is about a metal roof, but there is an enormous amount of pounding that goes with the installation. All is quiet now. We also have the contractor who is repairing our sun deck, railings, and garage actually working. YAY. He is doing all kinds of demolition. (which contractors love to do) Always have to hope he’ll come back and put everything back together. This brings up today’s JohnKu. It is about the ease of dismantling. I hope you have a super weekend.

The dismantling,

Of buildings and or people. . .

Easy. Rebuild tough.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

December 8, 2017April 23, 2022 ~ John W. Howell ~ 72 Comments

This week had its challenges for sure. Stepping away from the personal, the week saw a couple of good things as well. Gwen Plano and I finished the draft of The Contract. By a draft, I am referring to the manuscript that is ready for a Beta read. We will be giving it over to our editor after the beta readers provide their input. We received a super response to our call for Beta readers. My thanks to everyone who volunteered. There will be more to say about the book as we get closer to the publication which looks like may or June.

Here is South Texas we are under a winter storm warning. A WINTER STORM WARNING????? WTH. Yes, they are calling for snow here. It’s not going to stick but could be up to an inch in some places. Come on, folks. This is the South. I hope I can get a couple of pictures cause it will make an interesting Views of the Neighborhood. Today’s JohnKu talks about the weather. I hope you have a great weekend.

The sun feels real warm,

I will lay and rest my bones. . .

Whoops, where’s my snowsuit?

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

December 1, 2017November 30, 2017 ~ John W. Howell ~ 51 Comments

Another Friday is upon us and also the last month of 2017. I guess the all-time cliché would be the question, “Where did the time go?” Seriously though. It seems like well, yesterday that it was the new year. Here we are, now on the cusp of 2018. I’m telling you this ski ride downhill has got to be slowed down.

Spent the week in final edits on The Contract which is a collaboration with Gwen Plano.

We will be entering the beta reader stage but more about that early next week.

Today’s JohnKu talks to the fact that time seems to fly. I hope you have a great weekend.

Time flies so they say,

When you’re having fun, they say. . .

Time flies fun or not.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

November 24, 2017November 23, 2017 ~ John W. Howell ~ 44 Comments

Since most have the Friday after Thanksgiving off, we need to change the meaning of TGIF. My idea here is to slow down the passing of Friday and the rest of the weekend. So for this week only let’s just say TGIF means Thursday’s Gift Is Friday. So we have the whole day, and the next two before reality comes knocking at our door.

I hope you all had a good Thanksgiving and are not going to be mauled too much taking advantage of the Black Friday deals. Today’s JohnKu raises a question about Black Friday. Hope you have a good weekend.

Get up before dawn,

Freeze until the doors open. . .

Or order online.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

November 17, 2017November 16, 2017 ~ John W. Howell ~ 55 Comments

Spent another week editing and in erudite discussions with the insurance company. We all know about editing, so I will concentrate on the insurance company discussions. I was in Lowe’s picking up drywall screws on Wednesday when my phone rang. I was all excited because my caller id told me it was my adjuster. I had left a message on Monday to the effect of wondering the status of an additional claim I had submitted four weeks earlier. To my surprise, it was not my adjuster at all. It was my new adjuster. NEW ADJUSTER????? What happened to the other guy who never returned my calls, texts, or emails and who I have spoken to only twice in two and a half months of trying to get my home repaired? Oh, he has been transferred to another department. Sure he has. Okay, what about my additional claims? The answer, “What additional claims?”

Ye gods, do something to stop me from getting in my car with a very large baseball bat, driving to Austin, and causing a hurricane on the insurance company headquarters.

I explained the deal. The insurance company had appraised the damage at one price. The contractor bids are coming in at two to three times that price. Wow, was he surprised? I had to ask the question, “If you had 3000 jobs waiting for you would you really do one at a discount?”

He said understood. I sent the paperwork again and just between you and me, I’ll bet I’ll be doing a JohnKu one month from now with the same theme. Speaking of JohnKu, this week’s talks about available resources. Hope you have a great weekend.

Repairs on one house,

Can be negotiated. . .

Not on one thousand.

Friday John Ku – AKA TGIF

November 10, 2017November 9, 2017 ~ John W. Howell ~ 68 Comments

A cold day here on Mustang Island.The high only fifty-three degrees. Come on you guys. To us fifty-three is a very cold number. Had to put on a long-sleeved polo shirt and denim pants. Been thinking about the Ugg slippers but want to hold off until the highs are in the forties. You know how it is with Uggs. You start wearing those things, and folks take you for an eccentric. Of course, I think people believe me to be pretty unconventional as it is. Okay, out come the Uggs but only until tomorrow. It is supposed to be back to eighty degrees. I think I’ll build a fire in the fireplace and get out some hot toddy makings. Could be time to put on the Christmas music too. Then again it’s going to be eighty degrees tomorrow. I guess I’ll hold off. Today’s John Ku talks about being impetuous. I hope you have a grand weekend.

One minute it’s black,

The next you’ve decided white. . .

How about some thought.

Friday John Ku – AKA – TGIF

November 3, 2017November 2, 2017 ~ John W. Howell ~ 56 Comments

Friday is here and it sure feels good. I’m sure we all could use a little break from the work week. Of course, for those of you who tend to write on the weekends there isn’t a break in work but hopefully a break in routine.

I tend to keep going on the weekends as if there is no day off. I do manage to take a few liberties like a nice IPA on Saturday and some cooking time which I love. For the most part, though, I stick to my 1000 words a day writing schedule.

I still like to see Friday arrive. It has a psychological benefit that may mean reaching the finish line for the week. This week’s John Ku explores this concept a little further. I hope you all have a super weekend.

The beginning step,

Has importance at the front. . .

The finish is sweet.

Friday John Ku – AKA – TGIF

October 27, 2017October 26, 2017 ~ John W. Howell ~ 41 Comments

Friday is here and time to look forward to the weekend. The week has been busy with the editing of the latest book titled The Contract. A story of two souls who must venture to Earth to stop a catastrophic event that is threatening the viability of the planet. They will have no memory of their eternal life once they occupy the bodies chosen for them. The two must deal with the situation using only the temporal skills of their host beings. They sign a contract before leaving their celestial home that stipulates what is required. They commit even though they have no guarantee of success but cannot resist the ultimate reward which is a personal anointing by the Creator. There is no room for failure. This book is a collaboration with Gwen Plano, the author of Letting Go Into Perfect Love, a 2017 KCT Int’l Literary Awards winner.

It has been an interesting engagement writing a book with another author. Gwen is a memoirist and of course, I write thrillers. Our writing styles and experience are quite different so bringing these differences together to produce a cogent story has been a lot of fun.

We are now in the editing stage and hope to be in a position to publish the book in February. There will be an opportunity for a beta read. The call will go out when the editing is done.

Today’s John Ku talks about working with others. I hope you have a great weekend.

To work by one’s self,

Is comfortable and safe. . .

But doesn’t teach much.

Friday – JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

October 20, 2017October 19, 2017 ~ John W. Howell ~ 34 Comments

Sorry about the early publish yesterday. Here is the real thing.

It is Friday again, and we can see the gateway to the weekend from here. This has been a busy week spent in meetings with contractors. The home repair situation is going to take a long time. We have adopted what we call the New Normal. It is the belief that all will get done but will take a long time to do it. We just heard the flooring people are so far behind that it might take six months to have the floors replaced. So, the New Normal is not to care if the floors ever get replaced. Then when they do it will be a bonus. The New Normal also dictates that those without a roof should be fixed first then replace ours. Today’s JohnKu talks about the New Normal reality.

I need it fixed now,

Was the old expectation. . .

Now, whenever works.

Have a great weekend.