Winter Winds

January 4, 2015

Right on schedule the winter wind has arrived. From now until mid-April, the wind will be a constant companion here on the mountain, giving weather clues to those of us who would listen. Today it's gusting and that means rain or sleet. A constant strong wind brings sunshine. If I wake in the night and the wind has stilled, I won't need to look out the window to know it's snowing. 

I left the wind chimes hang on the patio this past autumn for no particular reason other than, well, no reason. I woke this morning to sound of the wind blowing through the trees and loud chimes. Now it occurs to me if I don't take the chimes down and put them in the shed, the wind might just beat them apart. 

The winter wind brings work, too. Looking out the window I see several tree branches on the ground. The first sunny Saturday, we'll venture out and start the never-ending task of clearing deadwood. The larger branches we cut for the wood stove, but most of what falls is small and we add that to the brush pile for burning. Sometimes the wind will bring down an entire tree. It's nature at work, culling the weak. 

I need to get to work, too. Just a few days ago I turned in a manuscript which has a tentative March 1 release date. I have March 1 and June 1 deadlines for a couple of stories. There's another Sundown story on the back burner, and I'd like to find another case for Amethyst Cove.

Maybe I should see if the wind will push me along. 

KC Kendricks
http://www.kckendricks.com
http://www.twitter.com/kckendricks

Kicking it old school

May 26, 2014

I enjoy my little corner of the world. Living "rural" isn't just where I live, it's a way of life. With that said I also enjoy all the modern electronic gadgets I can get my paws on. Computers, smart phone, Kindles, iPods, Bluetooth, laptops... Well, I used to have a laptop.

Sure, it was a dinosaur. It didn't even have an internal wireless card. I had to stick a "card" in the slot to go Wi-fi. It was my patio companion. It was my picnic table companion. I took it outside and did the digital version of scribbling down ideas.

A list here. A partial scene there. Some eye candy that I swear I don't know HOW it could have gotten there....

Do you know what happens when you drop an eleven year old laptop on a concrete patio?

You go back to kicking out the ideas old school with pad and pen.

KC Kendricks
http://www.kckendricks.com
http://www.twitter.com/kckendricks

R is for Rain

April 21, 2014

2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge

A Rural Life

Day 18

R is for Rain

We’ve reached the last full week of this year’s blogging challenge and as much as I enjoy this yearly test of personal resolve, I confess I’m looking forward to Z so I can get back to work on a story I want to finish. I like blogging but that story is screaming to be completed. Thanks for visiting my corner of the 2014 A to Z Blogging  2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge.

_*_*_*_*_

“Listen to the rhythm of the falling rain…pitter patter pitter patter…”

Generally speaking, I like rain. There’s something about waking up in the middle of the night to the sound of rain on the roof that is pleasing. It’s the sound, of course, but it’s also a primitive reaction to being warm and sheltered.

My home is quite modest, as the photo attests, and if we get heavy rains the water puddles in spots. Being on the side of very big hill, which is a small mountain, rain can be a tricky thing. There’s several hundred feet of elevation above me and it all drains my way. You wouldn’t think flooding would be a problem on the side of a mountain, would you? Surprise!  The good news is it continues to drain straight through my property and on down a few more hundred feet to the bottom of the hill and into the creeks.

I welcome the rain that nourishes the ground. I watch the deer graze in the back yard seemingly oblivious to their wet coats. They shake every now and again, but it’s the youngsters who give them away. They prance and dance in the rain, kicking up their little hooves, hopping along, looking joyous. If being wet truly bothered them, why do they look so happy?

In the spring, I’ve been known to throw on an old raincoat, grab an umbrella, and head out for a walk through the wet woods. (If the deer can take it, so can I.) The woods take on a different life in the rain. It may look gray and brown but you can almost see and smell the abundant life that surrounds you, poised for action. It’s like the trees are in communion with the earth and for those few moments as you walk by, they include you in their ancient ritual of yearly rebirth.

And just as wonderful as a walk in the rain is arriving home and warming up with a cup of coffee in the small sunroom at the far end of my house - and watching the rain.

 _*_*_*_*_

You didn’t really think you’d get away 

 without a brief book promo, did you?

R is also for RIVER WALK.  

For more information please visit my website at 
www.kckendricks.com/RiverWalk.html

Amazon

https://www.amazon.com/River-Walk-Sundown-Saga-Book-ebook/dp/B01F7LMN8S

iTunes

itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1098576743

Barnes and Noble/Nook

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/river-walk-kc-kendricks/1113758621?ean=2940153172361

Kobo

www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/river-walk-1

KC Kendricks
website
blog
twitter
pinterest
facebook

A is for the Apple Tree Story- 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge

April 1, 2014

2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge

A Rural Life

Day 1

A is for the Apple Tree Story

Welcome to the 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge! This is the fourth year I've participated in the challenge, and I’m all set to go. It’s time to reconnect with bloggers from past challenges and to meet new people and make new friends.

This year, 2014, is all about my rural life. It’s sort of like Walton’s Mountain meets the big city meets middle America. It’s my life and the forces that come together to make my unique world. 

Will I do a little promo along the way? Sure! Writing is a huge part of who I am. I can’t blog if I cut out part of my life, now can I? So just like life this year will be a mix-up - a wonderful combination of this and that all rolled into one that may seem chaotic on the surface but blends together to create the whole package that is A Rural Life.

So thanks for coming along for the ride in the 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge.

_*_*_*_*_*_

My grandmother had an apple tree that she greatly favored for the quality of apples it produced. The tree was on a sight line from my grandmother’s kitchen window and she kept an eye on it throughout each summer to determine how much applesauce and apple butter she would be making in the fall.

One year, the old tree was so full of apples the branches bowed toward the ground. Anticipation ran high. Everyone counted their pies before they were baked until the day IT happened.

As dawn broke, the heinous crime was revealed. Every apple as far up as a person could reach was gone. My grandmother was livid.

Someone had crept in under cover of darkness and stolen the apples from her best tree. She was ready to shoot first and forget about asking any questions at all. You've heard the saying, “dig the hole, hire the hearse.” She was there and, let's face it, we have enough property we could sing along with Vicki Lawrence ("and that's one body that'll never be found....").

My grandfather went outside to investigate the crime in more depth and discovered the truth. No human hand had wrought such mischief. The local deer had come in for a midnight feast. It wasn't long until instead of rows of canned applesauce lining her shelves, venison filled my grandmother’s freezer. 

The tree is gone now, as is my grandparent's house, but the story remains part of my family’s dialogue. A cousin owns the old home place and has planted new trees in line from where the old one stood. We laughed about that old story as we stood and admired his new little saplings, counting the years until they produce. And I gave him fair warning - he shouldn't question where the apples came from if someday I give him a fresh-baked apple crisp.

_*_*_*_*_

You didn’t really think you’d get away without a brief book promo, did you?

A is also for A Hard Habit to Break. For more information, please visit my website at https://kckendricks.blogspot.com/p/a-hard-habit-to-break-book-of-men-of.html .  

 KC Kendricks

My home on the web- Between the Keys: 

http://kckendricks.blogspot.com

Visit my bookshelf at: 

https://kckendricks.blogspot.com/p/the-bookshelf-of-kc-kendricks-and-rayne.html

Social media links:

twitter.com/kckendricks

facebook.com/kckendricks

pinterest.com/kckendricks/boards

instagram.com/kc_kendricks

My country life at Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com

Life through the eyes of Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com