Author: roncookauthor

On Tuesday, July 16th, my wife and I flew out to spend a week in Binghamton, New York. On Friday was a combined Windsor High School reunion ice breaker for classes of 1964 (60th) and 1965 (59th) at an Elks Club. On Saturday was a five hour bbq and clambake at a mountain events facility close to the Pennsylvania border. The hundreds in attendance were from several years of Windsor graduates. I ate too much…

Flying to the small Binghamton airport took three jets. We flew out of San José to Los Angeles. After a wait, we boarded a larger jet and flew to Detroit where we had around a three hour layover. A much smaller jet took us from there to Binghamton.

Coming back was a @%&**% pain. We flew Delta and they were still in dire straits from that big security software crash that grounded planes all over the world. It also affected hospital computers causing many scheduled operations and procedures to be cancelled.

Our flight home from Binghamton started a few minutes late, but did fly. However, when we got to Detroit again, our flight to Salt Lake City was cancelled. Our first encounter with Delta’s help desk was painful. The attendant said we couldn’t get a flight for two days. A second attendant took over and five hours later we got the last two seats on a non-stop to San Francisco. Hooray! My wife contacted the airporter limosine service and they changed their pickup from San José to San Francisco. We finally walked into our house at 6pm.

Now… all was fine for two days. Then… I got sick. It was probably either from someone on the flights or in the crowded Detroit airport. Fortunately, it was not Covid. Just a super bad cold. Very sore neck, sore throat, then a lot of coughing. After six days, my neck is still a little sore, and my coughing has slowed down. It’s been a bummer week with very little sleep. I haven’t had a cold in over five years.

As for woodworking, I did very little this last month before we went traveling. I did clean up my studio and shop, something I really needed to do. I still have a mini hog-nose psaltery that’s close to being done. I hope to finish it in the next week or so. (God willing and the creek don’t rise…)

For now, I’ve been attempting to write and work on the two novels that are both at 10,000 to 12,000 words. Only 60,000 to 80,000 more to go.

June was a busy month. Most of it was spent writing on the two books I’m working on. One is the fourth in my Charles Blue Paranormal Mystery series called A Warlock in Provence. The other is the first of my Jonas Shaw Mystery series called Strung Up! Jonas Shaw is a retired motorcycle policeman who is a luthier, a stringed instrument builder, who exhibits at art festivals and craft shows. Of course, murder happens.

I also spent quite a bit of time gardening and planting veggies. After a lot of weeding, my wife and I planted pole beans, tomatoes, beets, Persian cucumbers, radishes, and carrots. We’ve already harvested our first cucumbers.

Several days I spent in my studio, working on a few small items to put on my Etsy shop (www.etsy.com/shop/roncook). Check it out to see what I have in there.

Later in July we are flying east to Binghamton, New York, where my wife is attending her 60th high school reunion. (Really? 60th? Whew!) Hopefully, it won’t be too hot… or rainy, while we’re there.

That’s it for now. More writing to do…

I took a few breaks from writing my next book to spend some time in my studio and shop. I’ve been working on several instruments and actually finished one.

My wife recently bought another Ashford ridgid hettle loom. Her original loom was only 12 inches wide and good for making scarves. She always wanted a wider one to make place mats and other wider weavings. Her new one is 20 inches wide and is attached to a floor stand. When we set it up, it wasn’t too stable, so I immediatly added some braceing to stablize it. She then showed me a picture of shuttles that are called ski shuttles.

I made two of the top ski shuttles and one long one like the bottom in the picture. They are 12 inches long. I have one more like the bottom one that is 8 inches long.

As for instruments, the one I completed is a miné Saxon lyre. The body is elm that came from trees removed from San José State College. The top is the remainder of some koa I purchased in Kona, Hawaii, in 1994.

Other instruments I’ve been working on are a mini hog nose psaltery and another psaltery based on the 13th century Cantigas de Santa Maria illuminated manuscript.

Well, time to get back to writing more on my next book. Onward…

Even though I’ve retired from doing art and craft shows and not spending as much time in my studio, I am still maintaining my Etsy shop, and working on a few small pieces to add to my stock. A new mini Saxon Rote (lyre) will be completed mid May, followed by a mini hog-nose psaltery. Both have koa tops from wood I purchased in Kona, Hawaii, back in 1994.

What is newsworthy now, is my writing. I am working on book 4 of my Charles Blue Paranormal Mysteries. Books 1, 2, and 3 are available in bookstores and online through Barnes & Noble and Amazon. (Links are on my Author website here.) All books are in both print and ebook formats.

My new murder mystery, Murder at the Commune, has just been released May 10th. It will soon be available through all the normal sources.

A few weeks ago we were in Bellevue, Washington, for the Left Coast Crime mystery book convention. I attended a lot of panels during the four days of the convention. I was not disappointed in any of them. I also got to get together with old author friends and was able to meet several more. A good time was had by all. Next year the 2025 convention is in Denver. We already have our hotel and flights set up.

So, almost daily I alternate between making a little sawdust and writing… sawdust, writing, etc.

Onward…

It has been a few months since my last newsletter. Because I’ve retired from doing art and craft shows, not too much is going on.

I am still maintaining my Etsy shop, and do have a few small pieces I’m working on to add to the stock. Sales have been good this year with the sale of a few stringed instruments, but the biggest seller, for some reason, is my Mountain Dulcimer book. There have been almost a dozen sales since just before Christmas… most during the first three months of this year.

Not long ago I added some vintage stringed instruments I bought and restored to my Etsy shop. There are currently three autoharps from the 1890s to early 1900s. All were manufactured in Dolgeville, New York. There is also a chord zither available. It is also from the early 1900s.

Not much else happening right now, so time to sign off. Onward…

Happy New Year! It’s time to make some resolutions.

1. Finish the three small instruments I started on early last year.
2. Carve a half dozen dulcimer noters (already roughed out).
3. Carve more spoons.
4. Finish carving and assembling another medieval trestle stool.
5. Put the above items on my Etsy shop.
6. Write (already doing that).
7. Go to Left Coast Crime mystery book conference in Belleview, Washington, in April.

I think that’s enough to keep me busy for now. Other than Left Coast Crime, we haven’t planned any other driving or flying trips for this year yet. Well, it is only the first day of the year. Who knows what lays ahead.

Well, New Years is winding down, and so am I. Even though I’m basically retired from being a full-time crafts person, several of those items above were started before I retired. I’m obligated (to myself) to finish them this year.

So, onward through the fog…

Retirement does not mean that I’ve quit working or creating. It has been said that I’m a Renaissance man, because I have had so many different occupations and interests throughout my life. I do plan to continue to create a few small instruments or sculptures for my Etsy Shop. However, at this point in my life, my aim is to write daily on my novels. Currently I have several books published, and a couple more going through the editing process. I am also attending annual Mystery book conferences that are a lot of fun (and work) to attend. To find out more, go to my Ron Cook Author website.