I did not really take today off.  Despite it being Independence Day I had no barbecue, no fireworks, no celebration.  I just never really got started.  I poked at one thing or another, thinking that after I did this, or that, or whatever, I would turn to today’s work.

That is now technically yesterday’s work, and I have to be up in a few hours to start today.  I am thinking that I will tackle today’s work, or yesterday’s, or whatever it is, tomorrow, or tonight, or whenever it will be.

However, my poking and prodding was not unproductive.  I finished at least six scripts and started a seventh for the Quick Word radio show, and got two of them recorded–that is, two weeks worth of programs, four shows.  The ones I recorded I did last night; the other five were done in bits and pieces today.  I haven’t sent them yet (I want to give the snail mail message that the program is being continued time to reach the right department before I start transfering audio files to them), but progress is progress.

I could offer the excuse that I am a bit sore today.  It comes from climbing around in the attic hauling down heavy and bulky audio equipment through a ceiling door down a stepladder.  I did not get it working, but I know the first few diagnostic steps I need to make, and I should find time to make them eventually.

–M. J. Young

I made a decision this week concerning the Quick Word radio show I broadcast every week.  It has been in reruns for several months, and I have been undecided what to do with it as it has not had the level of response for which I had hoped.  However, as of last night I have determined to keep the show going.  I will be starting a new subject next weekend (it is too late to have it on this week) based on the Faith and Gaming book, which I will have to start recording.

For those who do not know, A Quick Word comes on in two segments of one hundred fifty seconds each, on Sunday afternoon between five thirty and six o’clock on Lift FM, which you can hear locally in Bridgeton and Hopewell at 98.5 FM, and on a different frequency I do not remember out at the New Jersey shore southern regions such as Cape May and Wildwood, and over the Internet from their web site at www.LiftFM.com.  It is in a half hour block of music by local artists sandwiched between two local preachers.  I strongly suspect that my dearth of response is because I am in that broadcasting ghetto–I know others who advertise on the station who have gotten good response, but their ads fall during the week when it’s almost all music.

That means I have to write and record a few scripts based on the first chapters of that book, but at least I have an outline of what I plan to do for most of the next year.

I have just sat down with dinner after frantically racing about attempting to set up equipment for a Collision rehearsal which is not going to happen.  It seems that Brittany pinched a nerve trying to lift something and can’t stand, and Baxter couldn’t call me because he is out of minutes on his cell phone but managed to let Brittany know that he was sick.  Adam is, I believe, here, but exhausted.  His girlfriend had minor surgury yesterday, and he spent the night at her grandparents’ house caring for her, came home to shower and change and asked if he could go back, then fell asleep.  I will probably wake him in a bit, insist that he eat some dinner, go over a part or two with him that I think are important, and then let him go back to caring for his girlfriend.  She is important to him, and that makes her important to us, too.

Of course, I have more equipment in the living room than I’ve had yet, and the fact that we did not wind up rehearsing makes it less justifiable–but I will finish setting up what I have, and make certain it is all functional, and that will be good for something.  I am distressed that I cannot find the nice pair of self-powered monitors which I have long known were probably the one solid piece of the sound system on which I could depend.  I have searched the attic (where I put some things) and the basement (where the people who helped my wife clean her kitchen and living room put more things) and am rather concerned that I don’t know where they went.  I might have to give Tyler a shout, to see whether I left them at his place at some point, but I’m pretty certain I didn’t.

Anyway, it gives me more time to work on stuff here, so I’d better use it wisely.

–M. J. Young

Yesterday I mentioned having made a few minor changes to the Temporal Anomalies section of M. J. Young Net.  I did not mention, because I forgot completely until I was answering an e-mail today, that I also updated the Other Films page, where I list movies I have not yet analyzed, and give some idea of whether I am going to and what I think in brief.  It came to me because there was an e-mail awaiting me today asking if I planned to analyze a movie I just added to that page, Premonition, which is sitting on my television awaiting my attention.

I also dropped a note to Grey Vanaman of Audio-Clear, the man and the company who have (has?) helped Collision, and before that 7dB, so much with equipment, about getting an amp for our P.A.  I got his response today, and he’s got just the ticket, so I’ll probably try to pick it up when I go out a bit later.  This will make everyone happy, but particularly our distant drummer John, who has been told repeatedly that I can’t really bring the drums to rehearsal until I can hear the vocals over them.  We just moved a lot closer.

I’ve much to do, so I’d better turn my attention toward doing some of it.

–M. J. Young

I am very happy with how much I accomplished on Saturday.

I set up enough of our new web site, Multiverser.org, that people will be able to find it and still find M. J. Young Net without too much inconvenience. There a few apologetic placeholder pages, a few dead links, and a few existing pages that need attention, but there is something there on which to build.

I also organized my notes for today’s directors meeting–a task which turned out to be of less importance than anticipated. One of our directors had informed me over a week ago that he was going to be out of town this weekend; one had a death in the family midweek and between the funeral and the visiting relatives anticipated being otherwise occupied; one did not make it for reasons that are as yet unclear to me. Two directors is not sufficient for a quorum, so our meeting notes were more a mental exercise for me to work through what I needed to remember.

I made an appearance at the funeral Saturday morning before church, and connected with the couple who were interested in the audiobook version of What Does God Expect? at the fellowship meal following Sabbath school to deliver the two-disk set for their perusal.

The meeting was not a loss, however, as the two directors present happened to be the vice president for development–me–responsible for product and product support, and the vice president for public relations–not me–responsible for publicity and promotions. As you probably can deduce, between us we split responsibility for website design and content, and this gave us an opportunity to talk about what steps to take next.

I also managed to pick up the 7dB equipment. I still have to decide where it will live for the present now that it’s here, but at least it’s not there anymore. Late in the evening I remembered to send the other four Quick Word radio show recordings, and even managed to listen this week, to hear the show myself.

Of course, not everyone was happy with what I accomplished on Saturday, and I got reprimanded for failing to do a few important errands, which I did this afternoon instead, so I’m not too terribly unhappy. I also remembered to update the autoresponder letter on the e-mail account for the radio show, so that people who write for information will get information immediately, and I can answer their letters leisurely.

So I’m headed into the week with a good feeling about the accomplishments of the weekend, despite the amount on my plate in the days ahead.

–M. J. Young

I am like way behind today, and it’s really my own fault.

I knew quite well that on Thursday I was going to have to launch the new book, About the Fruit, and that having launched it I would have to update my own website to announce this. I also knew that once I was certain of its availability I would have to send a special program to the radio station for my Quick Word radio show to announce the book, followed by the new programs that have been sitting on my drive for the past couple of weeks. I knew this would all be a frustrating process of jumping through hoops. Even so, for some insane reason on Tuesday night I decided to start recording an audiobook version of What Does God Expect?, which I continued to do on Wednesday night, giving me a nearly finished project this morning.

Then I got a request to drive someone to work unexpectedly; then by the time I’d finished my morning study I was being asked to go on a couple of quick errands which turned into a three hour tour, making dinner (still not served) rather late, and later because no one did the dishes as instructed.

However, About the Fruit is now available, and in fact is for a limited time on special at a twenty-five percent discount from my intended price. The paperback does not yet bear the ISBN, which is being processed, but you can get copies without it if you’re interested.

I have uploaded the new pages to the web site; I hope I caught all the incomplete bits. I’ve also sent the announcement program to the radio station, but still have to send the four new shows to follow it.

I also have a rather important major undertaking that I should be doing tonight, as instructed by our company president; but I’ve been advised to discuss it with our vice president for public relations before I proceed, which makes sense, since it’s as much his area as mine (development). It just means that in addition to getting everyone fed, I’ve got to make a visit to Delaware tonight to catch him at his day–er, night–job. It should be good to get together with him outside of meetings and pressures, but I’m going to be beat tomorrow.

This is not to mention that my mother-in-law needs to get her social security check to the bank; my sympathy for her is low, because she insists that she needs the assurance of actually taking the check to the bank herself, but doesn’t understand the inconveniece to me of two hours of driving just for that purpose. I also promised my pastor’s wife that I’d have the remaining 7dB audio equipment out of their basement this week so they can get the rugs cleaned, and it has just been a crazy week for transportation anyway. The engine of the new car is currently disassembled to fix a broken rocker arm and a bad engine mount, and one of those parts won’t be in until maybe Monday, so I’m still dealing with the one car problem.

I’ve also had to delete a few comments whose sole purpose for their vapid remarks was to add a link to a commercial interest that has nothing to do with our purpose.  That’s not a problem, really, except that the upload of the radio program files was tying up my bandwidth and making the process run like molasses, which increases the frustration level a bit.

You didn’t come here to read me complaining, though, so let me let you go while I find out what else I have to do tonight.

–M. J. Young