Right now, it is early Saturday morning, dark and raining. Daylight is very slow in coming and it is, indeed, a good day to write. So, with coffee in hand, I compose this post.

November was a very interesting month for me and, lucky for you, I feel like telling you all about it!

First, about NaNoWriMo. I did not write the required number of 50,000 words and did not win the coveted prize – the NaNo tee shirt. Believe it or not, I’m okay with that. Without having more than a vague notion on Day 1 of what I wanted to write, I really didn’t expect to accomplish such a lofty goal. As the days progressed and my ideas stagnated, I began to write pure garbage to try to maintain a decent word count. Then, it occurred to me that I was wasting valuable time for nothing. Don’t get me wrong. Out of the 23,706 words I have written, I might could use four or five thousand as a beginning draft to my story. And, that is good! It is a beginning. It is more than I had on October 31. Next, I begin the task of writing each of my possible three plots to see which one works.

Second, I recently received a renewal notice from my web host regarding cindyscountrycorner.com. Wow. That means I’ve been doing this blogging thing for a year now. The notice made me think about my site and how it first got started. In the beginning, I had no idea where it was headed. I thought I’d write more entries than I actually did. I thought I’d write more about aging, and books, and recipes. I thought I’d write more about the lowcountry and events going on in my neck of the woods. Turns out, this blog is not any of those things. It is really just my journal of life. It means that this blog will never get famous or that strangers from the world over will hang on every word I write or that advertisers will clamor for a spot on my site. And, I’m okay with that, too. That one renenwal notice solidified for me what this blog is about.  

But, that revelation made me realize that I want to start another website. My OTHER website. The one where I actually DO write about the people and events in the lowcountry. It will be an on-line magazine. And, it will be the definitive site to visit if you are a local or a visitor to my neck of the woods! And, of course, it will attract both local and web advertisers. Well, that’s my dream, anyway! I have a domain name picked out, but cannot reveal it yet. I wouldn’t want someone else to buy it first!

A third thing that happened to me in November is meeting a writer, Amy Oscar, who is in the process of writing a book about angels. She is looking for angel stories to include in her project and I directed her to two of my stories – “Millie’s Angel” and “Thinking in Threes.”  The exciting news is that she likes one of these stories (“Thinking in Threes”) and is including it in her work! Oh, I don’t get paid for the story or anything like that. Heck, I’m not even sure I will be given credit. She might only use bits and pieces of the story for all I know. But, the thing that is important is that I wrote something that someone else can use. Writing doesn’t get any better than that, me thinks! (I’ve added her personal website, Story, Spirit, Seed to my Sites I Like list located on the left sidebar of this page)

A fourth thing that happened last month is that one of my blog pictures was used on another website and it links to my website!  The picture is one I took this past summer during sister vacation. It is a shot of the front of Phipp’s Conservatory in Pittsburgh, PA. Go here to see it! http://www.nextstop.com/guide/Y4WaPVDKSI4/go-pittsburgh/

A fifth thing is that I joined Facebook. If any of you would like to friend me there, you can find me by clicking anywhere on my Facebook Profile Badge which is located on the left sidebar of this page (near the very bottom of the page).

Oh, and one other thing that I should have mentioned earlier is that I am going to start writing my cookbook. I had forgotten about my desire to do that until a few days before Thanksgiving. My friend at work, Pat, had found a macaroni and cheese recipe on All Recipes she wanted to use for her big family Thanksgiving reunion. I remembered one that I make that is super easy and super good. It is from “Mrs. Whaley’s Charleston Kitchen.” This is a wonderful little cookbook that is also filled with pearls of wit and wisdom from a very charming and witty Charleston grand dame. I hadn’t had this book out in a while and immediately fell in love with Emily Whaley all over again. Since I am full of advice and opinions and love to cook, I thought that I, too, could become a cookbook author! Maybe I’ll call my cookbook “Chewing the Fat with a Country Girl.” Haha!