Well, Quinne arrived on time on Wednesday afternoon and the roads were clear. She was very excited about being in Texas for the first time and commented frequently about how flat it was. As we were driving south toward Littlefield, I pointed out my window and said, "See that?" She looked a little puzzled. "What?" "Oklahoma. About 200 miles from here."
Well, it was more important that in the snow fields surrounding us, she got to see working oil wells and huge bales of cotton. We even drove through Hereford, TX, The Beef Capital of the World! We got into Littlefield right on time at about 4:30 and met the rest of the family. My next older sister Sharon played hostess to us. My younger sister, Kim, had flown in on Monday to Lubbock. My eldest sister Lael and her grandson Wayne flew to Lubbock at the same time Quinne was arriving in Amarillo. It was the first time my sisters and I had all been together since Mom died in '99. Sadly, my second oldest sister passed away last spring and we missed her.
Thanksgiving Dinner was held at my great-niece (or is that grand-niece?) Destiny's home and there were about thirty of us gathered in Lubbock. Niece Julia and both her daughters, Destiny and Angel, were with us. It was the first time I'd seen Destiny and Angel in 22 years. What beautiful young ladies they've become. Angel's little girl, Katie, who adopted Quinne as soon as she walked in the door, took advantage of the last remaining snow to build a snowman on the front steps.
Kim decided to have her hair cut and give it to Locks of Love while we were all together. She did it in memory of our parents and sister and she held pictures of them while we gathered around the barber chair.
Of course, the time came for everyone to head back on Monday and I drove Quinne up to Amarillo. We got there early enough to have breakfast at the Big Texan. She found that the 72oz steak wasn't the only thing that was big. Neither of us could finish the quantity of food they served us for breakfast!
I was slated to fly back to Seattle today to spend the holiday and get some work done on the house. I had my boarding pass printed yesterday when I found out my flight had been cancelled. We got a bit of snow and ice, but DFW is totally iced-in. After an hour on the phone with American Airlines last night, I got rebooked for Sunday morning at 6:50 a.m. This morning at 8:00 they called to tell me that flight has also been cancelled. DFW is still iced-in and not expected to open before tomorrow evening. At least this time, they called me with the info and a new reservation. Now I'm scheduled to fly in on Monday 12/9, assuming that winter storm Dion (following winter storm Cleon) continues to swing north of us.
I've been using the time productively. This week, I've put out seven new books and editions. These include the new book/eBook by Mark Sawyer, "Master, Swami, Nun, Sinner, Swinger, ONE," and the eBook version of his previous paperback, "A Nickel's Worth." I put out my new adult eBook under the name of Devon Layne, "The Props Master 1: Ritual Reality." I put out the eBook version of Jason Black's middle grade historical adventure, "Bread for the Pharaoh" that is available for free on Kindle on Saturday and Sunday. Finally, I've released both the paper and eBook of my newest literary fiction, "The Volunteer." I still have a backlog of books to get out and am expecting more next week. I guess as long as I'm snowed in, I might as well stay productive!
With luck, the next post will be from Seattle!
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