Good morning, Readers!

I still do not have news. I have been writing again, which is nice. I’m nearly at 80 000 words as of the writing of this post, and I’m really happy to be getting the story out of my head, even if I think it’s nonsense currently.

I’m also still struggling with the story and whether or not I ought to be publishing it. I’m anxious to get it into the hands of sensitivity readers so they can tell me either way. I don’t know what to do with it, and while there isn’t much I can do with it until it’s written, edited and passed to sensitivity readers, it’s still a low-level anxiety that’s always present in the back of my mind.

In gaming news, I will be live-streaming Friday night as usual, unless something happens. It may be a full ASMR episode, as my flat mate is likely to be in bed and I don’t want to disturb her. I haven’t decided if that will be the case yet, but I’m mulling it over.

As a treat to myself, I bought myself a copy of The Ghost of Tsushima for my PS4 — a reward for making it through Covid. It’s a silly reason to treat myself, but I so rarely buy myself anything other than food and shelter, and it was as good an excuse as any. The game looks awesome and I’m keen to get stuck into this story.

But that will be happening after the next game after my current play-through. I’m currently playing Assassin’s Creed Odyssey and will be playing Fenix Rising after that. Then I’ll play Ghost of Tsushima. I fully expect not to get to it for a good long while yet. Following that, I’ll get stuck into Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. I am one of those who is growing a collection of games I haven’t played and it’s not good. I need to get through this list before my next birthday... largely because my brother is the best brother and he usuallly buys me games for my birthday, and I’d like to get on it before the next birthday rolls around, damn it (that’s what happened to AC Odyssey and AC Valhalla...).

Also, while I was in bed sick, I saw the trailer for a new Mortal Kombat movie, and I 👏 am 👏 here 👏 for 👏 it. Does it not look ridiculous and corny as hell? Yes. Will it likely be a bad movie. Yes. Does it look like I will enjoy it all the same? Also yes.

Look, I like bad movies for some inexplicable reason. They make me happy.

Right, that’s all I’ve got. I’m going to go do more work.

​Ciao!

Good morning, Readers!

There really isn’t all that much to report.

I have returned to work. As of the writing of this post, I’ve finished the second day back at work post-Covid. It’s been pretty good, actually. I have my usual energy levels (though I am pretty exhausted when I get home, still), and have almost regained my routine. Hopefully they’ll become habits again in no time.

I have rewarded myself for making it out of quarantine by purchasing The Ghost of Tsushima on the PS4. I didn’t game as much as you might have thought I would’ve when I was home sick. I was too sick to game. I didn’t have the energy to sit on a chair and bash buttons. I do love gaming, and this game had caught my attention when it was released, so I’ll be diving into that one of these days.

I’m also back writing, which is nice. I’m at the stage of the story, though, where I hate it, think it’s stupid, boring, poorly executed etc. I’ll be glad to get it out of my head and onto paper.

Since I’ve become fond of rewarding myself for things, I will reward myself for finishing this rough draft by purchasing a stylus for my iPad so I can do some hardcore marking up of the manuscript during the editing process.

And start doing some digital art.

And that’s it. That’s everything that’s been going on in my life. Dull, is it not?

So dull.

One day I might have some really exciting news to announce here. Or maybe I’ll have the energy to tackle some of the bigger issues happening in the world right now. For now, though, you get updates like this. It’s about all I can manage currently.

Right, I’ve got work to do, so I’ll let you get on with your days.

Ciao!

Good morning, Readers!

I've been away for a while now. My apologies. I had Covid.

I'm still quite angry about it. I don't know where I got it, but I have a vague idea, and I'm not impressed with the whiny, cavalier attitude that got me sick. Lawd. All you have to do is wear a mask and wash your hands. Resistance to doing so made me sick, and I'm not thrilled about it. This is a deliberate understatement to mask how pissed I am.

Look, I get you're from a generation that very rarely heard the word 'no.' I get that you're generation is famous for your thoughtless selfishness. You've got yours, what do you care if someone else gets hurt or ill because of you? I get that you're the most coddled generation - you've not experienced any hardship, really (minimum wage when you were a youngin' could support a family with just one person working, university cost a fraction of what it does now, and housing was affordable), and so the wearing of a mask makes you feel really fucking put upon, but grow the fuck up. It's not about you, you selfish prigs.

Anyway.

I got away fairly luckily, despite being trapped in my bedroom for nearly fourteen days. I didn't get a cough. I feel like I'm in good health now. As of the writing of this, I'm now in my first day of freedom. I haven't taken advantage of that and gone outside yet. I'm too anxious at the moment. I'm nervous that I'm somehow still infectious, and that I might get folks ill. Public Health says it's all good, and this is quite a ways into the pandemic, so I guess they know what they're talking about.

But... it still weighs on my mind a lot, and I'm not really keen on being out in the world.

When you're reading this, it'll be four days of freedom. I'm probably at work. Probably quite anxious.

My experience of Covid was quite odd. I did not get a cough. Or even a fever, really. What happened was three or four days of intense lower back pain and an intense headache. This pain was distinct from my usual chronic back pain. It felt much more like the intense nerve pain I had when I had shingles. That is what prompted me to seek a Covid test - it felt viral.

When the back pain and headache left, it was replaced by an intense sore throat. It wasn't so bad that I couldn't swallow. I've had worse sore throats. This lasted for another three days or so. When the sore throat resolved, I was hit by an incredibly itchy rash. It spread quickly - from red, hot-to-the-touch patches on my elbows in the morning to a full body rash (even on my face and the bottoms of my feet) that itched terribly - though mostly on my wrists, as I remember. Luckily, that lasted only just longer than a day, and not three or more days. I've read that some folks ended up with as many as twenty days of this rash.

Oh, and somewhere in there, I lost my sense of smell and taste. As of the writing of this, it hasn't returned, but I am getting flashes of scent every so often. I don't know if it's just because my brain is trying to compensate for the nothingness it's getting and making stuff up or if I'm actually slowly getting my senses back.

It all fucking sucked, but I think I got away quite lightly, all things considered.

And I will miss being able to cuddle my cat all day. That was a pleasant thing to have while I was unwell. He's such a cuddly boy, and I always feel guilty leaving for work.

I spent most of my life these past two weeks in my bed, sleeping and eating and doing little else. I did try to write, but managed only two thousand words in all that time.

For that reason, there's no real writing update. I'm sitting at around 73 000 words currently. I will hopefully, with the return of routine and normalcy in my life, be writing again by the time this post is scheduled. I need to get this story done. I have so many others waiting in the wings...

Right, that's my news. I should be posting more regularly now that I'm better.

For now, just wear your fucking masks when you go out. It's a minor inconvenience that proves you're not a selfish prig (note: this doesn't apply to those who genuinely cannot wear one, but that's not who my ire is directed toward).

Ciao!

Good morning, Readers!

Oooh! Things are getting interesting now... for me. Shut up. I've having fun reliving this series. You're stuck with this being my Monday until the end of the year.

You're welcome.

​Right, episode eight!

We go back in time a bit to see WWX heading over to Wen Ning's room to say goodbye, only to find that Wen Ning and his sister Wen Qing have already gone. Then we jump to the scene with the rabbits again, this time WWX is happened upon by his siblings. Jiang Cheng chides WWX for paling with animals... and then immediately starts playing with animals. I mean... the rabbits are very cute. The siblings sit and chat for a while before heading off, leaving the rabbits behind.

Who should walk by but LWJ. And he bids farewell to the bunnies. Hah! Breaking rules and keeping pets, LWJ?

We cut now to LWC meditating. Who shows up but Wen Chao, looking for the Lan Clan's piece of the Yin Iron. LXC does not appear to have his brother's aversion to lying, and slickly notes that the protections around the mountains are to preserve the resting place of the Lan Clan ancestors, lest strangers come along and offend them. He tries to threaten LXC, but that doesn't work, so he threatens LWJ instead, noting that he knows the younger brother is off on his own at this very moment. LXC does not appreciate it.

As he leaves, Wen Chao tells LXC to hand over his piece of the Yin Iron so that the Lan Clan will survive.

Survive what, you ask? The Wen Clan, I imagine.

Anyway, we rejoin the children of the Jiang Clan, when Jiang Cheng finds the note WWX left, stating he's gone off on a night hunt (what they call a monster hunt, near as I can tell). Basically, he ran away. We find him later having caught up to LWJ, getting the cultivator's attention by lobbing a loquat at him. Despite LWJ being less than pleased that WWX has now joined his quest (as WWX promised Lan Yin he would), the pair head off in a boat.

Wen Chao sends off his Dire Owl to spy on them.

Naturally, there are hijinks on the road, with WWX testing out a new talisman he made. On LWJ. Who is just not having it.

Honestly, these little moments are so well done. They make me smile.

The pair end up in town, where WWX tries to scare LWJ with a mask. He succeeds only in getting scared by a person in a mask himself. It's Nice Huaisang!

We cut to Lotus Cove to see Jiang Cheng running away, presumably to find WWX and bring him home.

The three of our adventurous young cultivators head to the town square, where there's some sort of notice causing a hubbub in the centre of town. Turns out, the Lady Florist is inviting all cultivators to her home for a poetry competition. Following the discovery of the announcement, petals start falling from the sky, distracting the three with how pretty it is. Yes, even LWJ, who you'd think wouldn't have time for that nonsense.

It's at this point where Nie Huaisang openly admires LWJ, stating that he "is nothing but an unparalleled, gorgeous and elegant gentleman." I think Nie Huaisang has a crush and, well... I mean...

Okay, I fell slightly gross now. I mean, the actor is probably very young. But yeah, the dude is pretty.

So the trio go off to the Lady Florist's house, and along the way Nie Huaisang learns about the Yin Iron. Impressively, he refuses to even look at it, making me feel like he's basically a good dude, if a little vacuous. They discover the florist's home almost entirely burn down, along with the feather of a Dire Owl. Turns out, Wen Chao was there previously, and from what the three could figure, the Lady Florist was taken captive and the whole competition was a ruse to draw in cultivators so the Wen's could get their hands on a piece of the Yin Iron. Which they do.

Great, now they have two fragments.

We go back to Wen Chao, who has in his company Wen Qing. He warns her that he thinks she's grown fond of WWX and LWJ, and doesn't want him to hurt them, and he mocks her for it. Then he notes that the pair will have to pass through Dafan - Wen Qing's home. She reminds him that Wen Ruohan promised her no more harm would come to her people, making me think that she was only an unwilling participant in this mad power-grab of his.

Wen Chao tells her that as long as she stays in line, nothing bad will happen to them. Then they head off to the temple in Dafan Mountain and unseal the malicious dancing fairy statue. You know the statue that attacked the young cultivators and Jin Ling (WWX's nephew)? Yes, the very same. But this is in the past, so... you know, before it attacked the young cultivators.

​We're back with Jiang Cheng now, and he enters a tavern where Wen Qing and her escort happen to be dining.

He orders food. She orders the same thing.

He orders drink. She orders the same thing.

He puts down money, asking the waiter to serve him first.

She puts down more money, demanding the waiter to serve her first.

Unable to compete with the wealth, Jiang Cheng relents and tells the waiter to go ahead and serve them. Wen Qing then abruptly changes her mind, and tell the waiter she doesn't want it anymore. Not backing down, Jiang Cheng demands to know if Wen Qing is mocking him. She stands to face him and openly says she is. Pissed, Jiang Cheng turns to leave, but Wen Qing stops him and they have a small fight. Wen Qing uses this opportunity to warn Jiang Cheng that WWX is in Dafan Mountain and is in danger. What a clever young woman. Jiang Cheng thanks her and takes off to go after his brother.

We're back with WWX, LWJ and Niece Huaisang now. They've arrived in the village beneath Dafan Mountain. It's deserted except for an old woman clearly in shock. WWX asks for a place to stay the night, and she leads them up the mountain to the temple which houses the Dancing Fairy statue. They're told to camp there. And they do.

Problems come in the night - the statues wakes up and attacks the cultivators, attempting, I suppose, to snatch their spirits. A short fight follows, in which Nie Huaisang is perfectly useless, and the WWX and LWJ seal the statue once more. But that's not the end of their woes, oh no! The whole village has been turned into puppets, probably by Wen Chao with the piece of the Yin Iron he took from the Lady Florist. They come after the three young cultivators, who are trapped inside the temple.

The puppets break down the doors and...

The episode ends.

What I Liked

One of the things that stuck out the most is a common theme with what I adore about this series in general, and that is how normal queerness is in this world. Nie Huaisang admitting openly without shame and to entirely no judgement how much he admires LWJ's appearance made me squee. The fact that WWX seemed to notice that about LWJ for the first time immediately after Nie Huaisang says it made me squeal.

Even if he makes a joke about LWJ always wearing white like he's forever at a funeral (weirdly, LWJ was wearing blue at the time).

The whole slow romance thing happening here is impossibly sweet, and it doesn't matter one iota that the romance is between two men. Sweet is sweet. Love is love. And this series is doing queerness right (to my mind).

What Could Have Been Better

The fight between the Dancing Fairy statue and our two heroes could have been so much better. The swordplay was... not great... and the tension was entirely lacking. I know this is a drama, and not an action, but damn, it was pretty silly.

That was really the only thing that I was not great. Everything else was wonderful, especially the character moments.

But hoo boy that fight could have been so much better.

Right, see you next week for episode nine!

Good morning, Readers!

Monday! I love this day now, because I get to recount an awesome show. I fully expect that most of you have stopped reading these a long time ago, so I'm really doing this just for me. Let's get on with it, shall we?... I...?

Whatever. 

​Episode Seven.

Okay, we're in the ice cave still, talking to the Lan Clan ancestor Lan Yin. I'll try and keep it brief, but, we learn some interesting things. First that Bao Shan - you know, Lan Yin's best friend, closest to her heart - is WWX's grandmother (described here as Grandmaster, but disciple and child seem to be used interchangeably one another). With Lan Yin's power fading and her long life coming to an end, LWJ promises to finish what Lan Yin could not - to collect the pieces of the Yin Iron and seal them away in the Cold Pond (where they are now).

WWX promises the same, though LWJ shows his contempt for it. WWX receives Lan Yin's blessing, and the "So there!" face he throws at LWJ made me laugh aloud.

Both LWJ and WWX call Lan Yin "predecessor" so... this means their married right, because if WWX married LWJ, then he could rightly call her that. Head canon accepted. This is where they got married. At thirteen. Shut up. Lan Yin dies, fading away like she's one of the Mystics from The Dark Crystal, leaving her piece of the Yin Iron with LWJ and WWX. The wards that had protected the Cold Pond break.

Wen Qing, who was wandering the back hills of the Cloud Recesses, hears the wards break and goes to investigate, running into Jiang Cheng. He asks if she's out searching for LWJ and WWX, too, which she lies about. And then, WWX and LWJ appear through the side of the mountain, apparently in mid-argument. In true rom-com fashion, WWX falls on top of LWJ.

EVERY SHIPPER:

Here we see some of WWX's wits, as he skirts the truth in order to save LWJ from lying about what it is they've just been through and learnt. I have to praise Wang Yibo's acting here, because he can convey so very much with just the subtlest change in expression. He looks simultaneous irked and relieved at WWX's ability to glibly lie.

We cut to WWX and LWJ in a meeting with Lan Qiren and LXC. LXC is playing his magical flute to, I don't know, calm the Yin Iron fragment down enough so that it can be put into a bag. Without giving too much away, LWJ and WWX are told the history of the Yin Iron (and that the Lan Clan leader is the only one who knows where the Yin Iron fragment was). What follows is a discussion about what to do next, and lo, LWJ sides with WWX on this one.

Once  the Yin Iron is safely in the care of LWJ, the meeting concludes. As LWJ and WWX leave, they're accosted by Nie Huaisang, who demands to know where they went and what happened. WWX throws him off with talk of devil snakes, and being afraid of snakes, Nie Huaisang demands the story to stop. In the background, Jiang Cheng listens in, then stalks off when WWX sees him. I think he's a little jealous of all the time WWX is spending with LWJ. I mean, they were very close as brothers, and now it looks like LWJ is taking WWX away a little bit.

We cut to the Nightless City, where Wen Chao and that pretty brat from the first time we're in the city are waiting outside the throne room. They're each assigned missions. It's very important to know that the pretty brat's name is Xue Yang. I'll say that again. Xue Yang. You know, the same last name as the guy who first turned the Yin Iron into something terrible. The one the other five families rose up against. I don't think that last name is a coincidence. I just made that realization this watch through. It didn't click last time.

​Also, psychopathy might run in the family. Anyway, Xue Yang is sent off to deal with some clan somewhere, and apparently given free reign to do what he likes. He's excited by this idea. I don't think that's a good sign. Neither does Wen Chao, apparently, but he is tasked with something else and told to only interfere if Xue Yang does something wrong.

We're back to the Cloud Recesses, and the disciples are all making paper lanterns. WWX suggests to LWJ that they make and release a lantern together, since they've been through life-threatening adventures together. LWJ informs him that he's used to being alone. WWX protests, noting that he made his lantern especially for LWJ, and he shows him (he painted a rabbit on there) and...

Literally me:

PS - the She-Ra reboot is fucking awesome and everyone should watch it.

There's a bunch of character stuff in this scene, so I'll try and keep it brief. When it comes time to make wishes for the lanterns to carry into the sky, WWX wishes that he can "always stand with justice, and have no regrets in life." Once again, we see LWJ's expression soften as he overhears WWX's wish. We don't see what LWJ wished for.

Wen Qing thinks only of her brother, and wishes for his well-being forever, which Jiang Cheng overhears. He's clearly falling for her.

Afterwards, the Jin Clan ladies tease Jiang Yanli, saying that she needn't have wished for a good marriage (though we're not sure what she wished for, in fact), because one's already been decided for her - that peacock fellow who's name I've forgotten. The arrogant Jin Clan disciple. That dude. Anyway, he doesn't appreciate the teasing and leaves. His followers and the other Jin Clan disciples follow. So does WWX, who won't be having his sister slighted like this.

FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!

We don't get to see the fight, only WWX and the peacock being restrained. WWX's temper is up, and even LWJ telling him to calm doesn't work. What does work is his sister coming to calm him down. We learn that WWX started the fight to defend his sister, whom Jin Zuxian (peacock) looked down on. The pair of them are punished, of course. Fighting is not allowed in the Cloud Recesses.

​Oh hello, Jiang Fengmian (Jiang Clan leader, father of Jiang Cheng and Jiang Yanli) has arrived on the scene. Apparently Lan Qiren has called him and Jin Guangshan (leader of the Jin Clan, and the peacock's philandering father) for a meeting to discuss the fight, and why it happened. Jin Guangshan is eager to ensure the marriage takes place, despite his son wanting nothing to do with it. It's Jiang Fengmian who remarks that it is the children who will have to live with their marriage, and so they should not be forced into it if they do not want it. And BAM! Betrothment broken. Poor Jiang Yanli.

Jiang Cheng runs to tell WWX, who should still be in punishment. Upon learning the news, though, WWX breaks from his punishment and runs to his sister. He spies her packing through a window and tries to cheer her up with an animated paper doll. What follows is a sweet moment between WWX and Jiang Yanli, in which she tells him that they're all going to go home, now that the lectures are done. Despite all the punishments and the three thousand rules, WWX doesn't seem to want to go. Cute.

Jiang Fengmian has tea with Lan Qiren and LXC, in which he is asked about strange occurrences involving cultivators. It appears his province of Yunmeng has been largely untouched, but rumours of strange things have reached his ears. He also reports that Xue Yang has obliterated some small clans - murdered them to the last. LXC notes that the Wen's have revealed their ambitions, and that they must hurry.

The meeting is interrupted by the three siblings, who have come to say their goodbyes to Lan Qiren and LXC. WWX looks particularly depressed to be leaving. Cute.

The goodbyes are interrupted by LWJ, who has come to bid his brother and uncle farewell. Despite being shepherded out the door by their father, WWX overhears LWJ's goodbye. He tries to approach LWJ to talk about the Yin Iron, but is dragged away by his brother.

Cute sibling moment between WWX and Jiang Cheng, and Jiang Fengmian, who would probably discipline the pair were he anyone else, simply laughs at the antics.

Cute sibling moment between LXC and LWJ, as they discuss WWX. I've already mentioned it, but damn I love these brothers.

We cut to WWX sitting in a bamboo forest surrounded by white rabbits; the rabbits that Lan Yin was looking after before she died. Pets are not allowed in the Cloud Recesses, for the record. He's saying goodbye to them, and wonders if he should take them home with him. He decides against it, because, LWJ might come here when he's lonely and there would be no rabbits to cheer him up.

​Me, again:

As he's talking to the rabbits, WWX makes the realization that LWJ was saying goodbye because he was heading off to find the other pieces of the Yin Iron by himself.

And that's the end of the episode (a much better, more natural feeling end, to my mind).

What I Liked
 
Uh, like, all of it. Again, this series is dominated by character moments and character interactions. I'm really enjoying how we're seeing the seeds of WWX and LWJ's powerful bond and how LWJ is very slowly, very, very slowly starting to soften around WWX. I'm also enjoying how we're seeing the slow breaking of the brotherly bond between Jiang Cheng and WWX. The small jealousies playing out don't seem like much now, but with the benefit of having seen it all before, it actually means something and gah! They just did it all so well!

They're also starting to layer in the darkness now (and it gets very dark), with talk of entire clans being murdered. They don't show it yet, but a sense of foreboding is starting to creep in. Something wicked this way comes, and we're just barely aware of just how wicked it is at this stage.

*happy sigh*

What Could Have Been Better

I mean, there are a few things here and there that were a little exaggerated, but nothing so egregious that it sticks out in my mind. There aren't any fights in this episode, so I can't break down the choreography or comment on its realness. It was all character moments, and I love the main characters so much (and a large number of supporting characters), and I'm too enamoured of the story as a whole to be able to come up with anything that impacted my enjoyment of the episode in any way.

Don't worry, there's some stuff in later episodes that I'll get to comment on. For now, though, it's only love.

Good morning, Readers!

It is absolutely no secret to anyone who knows me that I detest Valentine's Day with the same white-hot passion I usually reserve for unrepentant hypocrites and cowards.

It's a fucking stupid day, and you'll never change my mind about it.

I mean, if you need a arbitrary, socially-agreed upon day to tell those you love that you love them, maybe you should bail on those relationships, because you're doing it wrong.

Right, enough of that. This post is not going to be a screed against the stupidest fucking day of the year, no matter how much I detest it.

For the record, I'm not against love or the profession of love. In fact, I think that love - true, genuine love - is extraordinarily admirable. Hints at this can be seen all through my writing. Love is everywhere. It's not usually front and centre of a story, but it is there, in all its various forms.

This is not true of Daughters of Britain. In this novel, love takes a a far more central role in the story than in most of my other ones. Thought the tale is not about the love between the two protagonists - it's more about surviving in a world determined to exterminate them - that love does play a fairly central role in the story. In particular, it is the determining factor in how the protagonists interact with one another. And, in a rare play for me, in the end, the love is realized and the two live as happily ever after as one can under constant persecution.

Daughters of Britain has two settings. The middle of the story is largely set in Gaul (modern-day France). But what bookends the tale is the landscape of what would become modern day region of Scotland. When we think of Scotland, we imagine long lakes, rocky crags and grassy mountains. But at the time that Daughters of Britain takes place, the region was covered in vast, ancient forests. The long lakes were still there, of course, but the slopes of those mountains were covered in trees; filled with wild boar, beaver, lynx, wolf and brown bears.

That's all gone now. People hunted the boars, beavers, lynxes, wolves and bears to extinction. They cut down the forests, creating the landscape we see today.

Knowing this makes me rather sad. I would have loved to see the Highlands of the Iron Age, to walk in the ancient forests of Caledonia...

Turns out, I'm not the only one.

There's a whole charity revolved around regrowing the Caledonian Forest. They've already reintroduced beavers into Scotland. There's talk of also reintroducing the lynx. One person wants wolves and brown bears also brought back, but admits that would be a very difficult sell. All of this activity is part of a world-wide movement called re-wilding; the effort to return destroyed ecosystems to their pre-humans-wrecked-everything status.

You wouldn't think that the Highlands was something that needed this intervention. But they do. While we've never known it to be the case, almost all of Britain was heavily forested.

I was really excited to discover that there were people in the world working to re-wild parts of Scotland. I wanted in. So I did some research about this re-wilding project, and discovered that it was possible not only to purchase individual trees to plant to re-create the Caledonian Forest, but to sponsor an entire grove.

So, sponsor an entire grove I did.

I talked about doing it previously, but never really had the funds to do it. Now I have a little spare change, so I went ahead and did the thing.

I chose the re-wilding of Caledonia precisely because of Daughters of Britain, because it was set in the heavily forested region currently the focus of the re-wilding project. And, because I created this grove in February, the month of Valentine's Day, I decided to dedicate it to Mederei and Adalbern; the protagonists of the novel, whose love is, even if I do say so myself, profound.

When you sponsor a grove, you get to name it. So I named it Gàrradg nan Leannan - The Garden of the Lovers.

(At least, I really hope that's the proper translation. Scots Gaelic is not my language, and I had to rely on translators)

I was going to name it in Welsh, since it is the direct linguist descendent of the language spoken all throughout Britain at the time of the original Calendonian Forest, but I decided to use Scots Gaelic instead. I figured they'd probably use a translation of the original name (or would have renamed it in honour of the tale) if the events of Daughters of Britain were real, instead of fictitious.

This is what I received via email when I created this grove:

For the record, I was told that my grove will be in Dundreggan.

The plan is to donate half of all the royalties from Daughters of Britain to buy trees and fill this grove.

"But, Sonia," I hear no one ask. "Don't you want to have your royalties support you? How on earth do you ever expect to have that happen if you're giving half of them away like this?"

To answer, yes. The dream is to have my books support me, that I might become a full time writer. However, I also want to leave this world a little better than it was when I arrived. I might never make it as a full time writer, and if I waited until I got 'big' to start improving the world, I may never do anything at all. It's not much, I admit. I'm not selling well. I imagine few trees will get planted.

But it's something. It's a start. It's what I can do at the moment.

Besides, it's only half of the royalties for one book. I have eight published. Hopefully I'll have more in the near future. And if I do make it big, well then Gàrradh nan Leannan will be a big, beautiful grove, and that would make me very happy indeed.

So, if you feel like it, you can make my Valentine's Day a day I hate less by heading over to my grove's donation page here and buy a tree to plant. It's £6.00 to plant a tree. That'll be less than $11.00 in Canadian dollars.

Alternatively, you can buy Daughters of Britain for everyone in your life, knowing you're helping the environment, or promote the hell out of the book or the grove.

Make Valentine's Day a little less fucking stupid (couldn't resist), and you can even do it while still celebrating the spirit of the day; celebrating love, even if it's fictional love. Hell, buy your loved one a tree to prove your love. Everybody wins!

Okay, this was a very long post, so I'm going to leave it here. Thanks for reading this far if you made it.

Have yourselves a lovely weekend, despite it being Valentine's Day weekend.

​Ciao!

Good morning, Readers!

So... I’ve been trying something for the past few days. The thing I’m trying is to try drinking a gallon of water a day. I’ve watched a few videos on it on YouTube, and I got curious about it, so I’m giving it a try. For the record, I’m starting out this thing very sceptical. A gallon seems like a stupid amount of water to be drinking in a day.

However, I also don’t trust myself when I say that I think it’s a stupid amount, because I’m pretty sure that I’m chronically dehydrated, so a gallon might be a perfectly reasonable amount and it just seems extreme to me because I’ve never had that much water in a day in my life. Which is why I’m trying this in the first place. Also, I’ve heard doctors talk about it not being that much water.

For the next month or so, I’m going to give this a shot. I will force myself for a month. If it turns out that it’s not a good idea for me, I’ll stop. But I will need at least a month to be able to make that determination.

Like I mentioned, I’m pretty sure that I’m chronically dehydrated. I have been since I can remember. I think this might be the case because I couldn’t really tell the difference between being hungry (genuinely hungry) and thirsty; and if I’m always thirsty, this becomes a problem. I would always choose food. It might be why I’m still a little on the chubby side.

With the steps I’ve been taking to ensure I eat well, I’ve been able to tell the difference between hunger and thirst, finally. What I’ve found out is that I’m always thirsty. And it doesn’t really seem like it matters how much water I drink. I just get thirstier.

So what happens if I drink a lot of water? Like, a lot a lot? Will the thirst go away? Or will I get thirstier and thirstier until I give myself water poisoning trying the assuage the thirst?

I’m going to find out.

To that end, I bought myself a one gallon water bottle. They exist. It’s insane.

That’s huge, right? I mean, that’s a lotta watta.

What I like about this particular bottle, is that it’s timed. It’s literally telling me, “You have to drink this much every two hours,” basically. I thrive under structure like this.

Also, no, I will not be carrying a gallon drum of water to work with me every day. I will be bringing the empty bottle with me to work and filling it there. This may seem like it presents a problem, as I will be in transit when I’m supposed to be drinking water, but I’ve fixed that.

I’ve measured, and the amount of water I need to get to the 7am line is the equivalent of two very large mugs, so I will drink those in the morning before I go to work.

These are the rules that I’m going by:

• Cups of herbal tea count towards the water goal. I will use the bottle to make my hot water for tea.
• Any diuretics do not count towards my water goal. Coffee and alcohol will be in addition to whatever is in this bottle.
• Technically, water in food ought to count towards the water goal, but I have no real way to measure that, so I’m also discounting water in the food I eat.
• I must do this for at least one month.

As of the posting of this blog entry, this will be the fourth day. I’m not going to go into what’s happening with me just yet, mostly because I am writing this post the day before I start this new thing I’m doing (yay for planning ahead, right?). I do expect that I will be spending my life in the loo to begin with. I’m really hoping, though, that particular effect will diminish as my body adapts to the new reality of not living in a desert of my own making.

I will be keeping notes in my pretty little planner about what’s going on with me, though, so I can make a full report in a month’s time.

I’m really interested about 1) whether or not I can actually do this. It still feels like an obscene amount of water to me, and 2) what’ll happen to me if I start hydrating so much more than I already am.

So... here goes nothing!

​Ciao!