October 29, 2007
Woke up to the swami lifestyle, or, more specifically I woke up to attempt the Swami Lifestyle. Got up at five and washed my face (part of the dicipline is to start "clean"), went into the kichen, poured a cup of coffee and ate part of a banana (neither of which are part of the practice) and reflected on the saying that "courage is the ability to face your fears." So, what are mine?

Things I Fear
• I fear the blank page

• I fear failure

• I fear pain

• I fear the cold

• I fear the unknown

• I fear I will die and not finish anything worthwhile.

Went back to bed.

Just kidding.

Kept going. Turned on the computer and walked out to the end of the driveway in the dark. Heard a truck coming. Stood there and waited. The truck pulled up, I held out my hand and my newspaper carrier rolled down her window and handed me the paper. "Good morning," she said, half surprised. "Thanks for delivering my paper," I told her, like a swami would. "Do you fear you'll die and not finish anything worthwhile?" She sped off into the night. Hope I get a paper tomorrow.

Worked on more waterfalls:



Although it feels excessive, I know that Maynard Dixon often did 85 sketeches of a scene before he felt it was right. I'm not even to a dozen, but the more I work, the more ideas come. Worry about going sideways, but that's the anti-swami talking (regret for the past, fear of the future).

Went for a bike ride in the twilight. Temperature just right. Basked in that blessing. I hate being cold. Makes me want to go back to bed. Saw a rattlesnake and a king snake over the weekend. Saw a bobcat last week. Must mean something.

Came back, switched gears and wrote part of a scene on the Mickey Free project and emailed it to the Top Secret Writer. Went into the office an hour earlier than usual. So far, so good. I like the Swami lifestyle. Now we'll see how I feel tonight at 9:30 when I'm still at it.

The Lone Book Signing Attendee Weighs In
"Seeing your blog of Oct 26, I had to write and make a brief comment concerning your book signing. I greatly enjoyed being there and talking with you. It's a pleasure to listen to someone as enthusiastic about 'The Old West' as you are. Also, the books I picked up are terrific, of course!

"I didn't expect neon lights or giant banners when I entered the store, but I did expect to see something telling me you were going to be there that night. After a couple of trips around the store, I discovered the display stuck way over against the west wall. The effort, or lack thereof, that B&N put into promoting your appearance seemed rather anemic. I had no idea Hampton Sides was there Sunday. If I had, I probably would have gone to see him too.

"Just wanted to write and tell you I appreciated your coming down to Tempe."
—Jerry Prather

"That man is the richest whose pleasures are the cheapest."
—Henry David Thoreau