As part of my intentional new year, I plan to be more mindful in my reading. I have fallen into the habit of reading what hits the top of my TBR (To Be Read) pile. These aren't necessarily books I've deliberately chosen. Maybe I pull something off a shelf at home because I forgot to go to the library or load a new book to the Kindle.

Here's what I'm finishing from 2019:
Dead Men's Morris by Gladys Mitchell - a classic in the style of Agatha Christie, but edgier

Top of the 2020 TBR pile:
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens - a gift from my father, but I am interested in reading the book
This Tender Land - William Kent Krueger - I loved his novel Ordinary Grace
Chronicles of Crime by R. T. Lawton - short story collection
I would like to read at least one American history book, keep up with my subscription to Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, and read more classic mysteries.

How do you decide what to read? What's on your TBR list for 2020?

The New Year is a convenient illusion millions choose to adopt. There are other traditions for measuring the earth's passage around the sun. For example, Chinese New Year (January 25) and Rosh Hashana (September 18).

​There are benefits to observing hitting the cosmic reset button. New Year Resolutions encourage people to cast off bad habits, and to adopt a healthier more prosperous lifestyle.

Sometimes life gets off track due to outside circumstances, not our own laziness.

A word keeps popping into my mind. Intentional. I don't want to look back on another year where I have been dragged from activity to appointment to obligation as an unwilling participant. I want to live mindfully and deliberately. What do you do when life refuses to cooperate with your careful plans, and comes at you like a freight train in a narrow tunnel?

As if in response to my intention, this is how our New Year began:
Neither I nor my husband was interested in staying up until midnight. We watched a Russian science fiction movie, then retired early. We wanted to start the year fresh and rested. In that light state of having just fallen asleep, both of us awakened abruptly to loud noise. Banging and yelling.

A glowing orb floated by our window. We peeked out the curtain, but it was gone. We ran out on the deck in our pajamas. I wondered whether I was seeing a UFO - proof of alien visitation. But no.

Our neighbor and his teen daughter were hastily hooking up a watering hose. The noises were the sounds of city-wide celebration, and of our neighbors trying to prevent a fire. The orb was a paper lantern with a votive candle. It had escaped. The lantern had drifted past our window, then into another neighbor's tree. 

It was now midnight, so we watched the fireworks on top of Pikes Peak. The votive slowly extinguished. No fire started. That's good, because there was no way water from that hose could reach that glowing orb. 

Our New Year did not begin the way we planned. Here we are, a week into the year, and I am still struggling to make life go the direction I want. The day job and family keep interfering. Yet I need both in my life.

There are things I can control: my exercise program, my free time activities, and my writing. I'm marking a calendar when I accomplish my personal goals. Even if it's only 15 minutes a day, I am finding time to do the things I need to do for me. The calendar helps reinforce my progress.

I wish you a New Year in which you fulfill your intentionally crafted plans for a healthier future.

How will my short story characters survive a night trapped in a factory without coffee? Certainly, there may be marauding coworkers and the threat of freezing when the power goes out. But we all know the real issue is the lack of electricity for brewing coffee.

I found an article: Ten Ways to Brew Coffee Without Electricity. Most presume having some way to boil water, although one method does involve soaking grounds in cold water for several hours. Still, I came up with the solution for my characters. 

And for myself. The photo shows fall snow. We haven't received this much precipitation in several weeks. However, we expect this and more in the coming months. In snow country, you have to be prepared.

I wish all the best to my readers for the new year. 2019 was a rough one for many of us. Some folks bid good riddance to the old year. Mine had the usual mix of highs and lows, but I didn't seem to handle the stress as gracefully as I'd like. I'll talk next week about my hope for 2020.

This is the second installment in a series by a gal working in my career field. Lucy Servidio reminds us of the music that inspired the early environmental movement. http://www.capaccio.com/post/throwbackthursday-songs-of-the-environmental-movement-mercy-mercy-me

I was excited to speak to the Guffey Library book group. What a warm and welcoming group! The readers  pointed out locations they recognized in my books. They knew the donkeys that inspired Houdini and Adelaide in my Rock Shop Mystery series. 

I hope I get to visit the book group again. To my author friends, don't overlook the small town library. You might have to drive a distance, but an in-person visit is worth the trip. And bring a bag of books. Not just your own, to donate. Small town libraries have tight budgets. They can use books you recently cleared off your shelves, either for their collection, or to sell to raise needed funds. 

Doing research for a short story, I ran across this article. Workplace Warfare and Office Supply Weaponry. Written very much tongue-in-cheek, it gave me plenty of ideas for my story.

DIY Office Weaponry was particularly useful, along with this advice
 
"Tip: if corporate civil war breaks out, choose your alliances wisely. We suggest joining forces with the battalion that has ultimate control over the storage room or ordering supplies."

Whether your coworker goes postal, or you face alien abduction, it is advisable to be prepared in the workplace.

I discuss the why and how of juggling multiple writing projects. My article appears on the Pikes Peak Writers blog here.

My day job is environmental compliance. It's a desk job, compiling test data and certifications to ensure my company's products comply with environmental regulations. I ran across a fun article related to my job. 

Lucy Servidio, who also works in the field of environmental compliance, wrote a series of articles on the music of the environmental movement. You can read her article here: 
http://www.capaccio.com/post/music-of-the-environmental-movement-jonimitchell

Several months ago, I got bogged down and stopped my short story reviews. I'm not ready to begin reviewing yet, but I will mention some good reading available now.

Mysterical-E is an e-zine featuring mystery short stories. http://mystericale.com/current-issue/ Also included in this free magazine are interviews and articles.

The current issue of Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine is packed with great stories. I'm halfway through the September - October issue. http://mystericale.com/current-issue/ 

​Happy reading!

I'm sharing an article by debut author Jason Henry Evans. His experiences mirror my own, although I'm small press published while he is going Indy. The point is, don't give up. https://pikespeakwriters.com/2019/08/my-journey-to-publication/