Arizona really is full of life. I'm not sure why, but people think the state is a desert wasteland of sand and rattlesnakes. I see something new every day, like this praying mantis outside my door.

Actually, all cats are the best cats, but desk cats add a fun extra challenge to writing. Cap'n Hammy Pants loves to hang out with me while I'm writing. She sometimes takes naps on the desk, and, like most cats, she loves to lie on the keyboard.

We're in the middle of monsoon season in Arizona, and most of the wildlife is taking shelter anywhere it can.

I bought a super loud whistle, 120 decibels. It's part of my kit that I take with me for nighttime walks around the neighborhood here in the desert.

You know when you move, and you get unpacked, then realize there are little things here and there that you haven't found a home for, and while you're putting those up, you find a few moving boxes you still haven't opened?

New installation of Absolution: Behind the Scenes, a haunted theatre coming up next week, and a desert tarantula.

Covid has cleared out of my system, and I'm doing a bit of writing catch-up.

A few months ago, I was interviewed for a magazine.

Two and a half years, and it finally happened. Covid found me.

You know what I like? Art.

It's an odd thing to move to a different landscape. Moving within a local area, you get pretty much the same, just slightly different views. Moving from Colorado to the Arizona desert, though, everything is different.

Moving 900 miles (1,400 km) sounds pretty straightforward, right? You just box up your stuff, hop in a vehicle, and make the drive.

I'm probably driving or last-minute packing when this goes out.

One week to go, and I'll officially be a desert dweller. I can't wait to get to the new place, get settled in, and get back to editing the novel.

Really, I can't wait.

I like to move quickly. Not just with actual, physical moves, but with many things in life.

Selling a house takes time, energy, and hard work. My spouse and I have been at it for three weeks straight. It's like having another full-time and part-time job on top of regular work.

Still working on the whole move across the country thing. This is the second time in my life I've done it.

Moving across the country is a lot of work.

I publish my newsletter via email. I post archives on my website, and I select a few from the archives to post on Reddit, Medium, and Vocal. No matter how often I look at an article, check the links, re-read it, etc. I always find something that needs a slight adjustment.

What kind of crazy world are we living in? Tae and I were trying to remember the name of the psychic phone networks advertised on TV back in the '90s, and as we were Googling, my browser autocompleted to "Dionne Warwick vs. Oreo."

I was typing up part of Absolution: Behind the Scenes and ranted a little bit, and thought I'd place it here in a blog, as it was a bit of a tangent away from the main topic. So, here's some context for you: You know those TV shows, films, and even books that tell you a writer banged out a new great novel over a weekend of booze and sex with strangers?

I keep seeing news about the shelling in Ukraine by Russia and can't help but think of how much life and legacy are being destroyed. Everything that people worked so hard to create, accomplish, and put into the world—gone in an instant.

An expert has comprehensive and authoritative knowledge on a subject or skill, but how do you know a person is an expert? I don't have a good answer for this. Often, it seems that there's a college degree plus years of experience, but what about things where such schooling doesn't exist?