She's Got Legs (Sort Of)

Anyone remember "Legs" by ZZ Top? I've had it stuck in my head since my knee surgery post-op day 8 on knee #2 — here's a picture to prove it. After years of my legs being canted inward, seeing them straight now feels almost foreign. I keep wondering if, once I'm fully healed, I'll be able to wear heels again like the woman in that video. I don't actually own a pair of heels to test the theory, but hey, it's a great song to recover to.

My straight post surgery legs

My knock knees before surgery using a leg press at the gym

Recovery itself has gone smoothly in almost every way — except for sitting at my desk (and sleeping, but that's a story for another day). I'll be battling swelling for several more weeks, which means knee #2 has to stay propped up whenever I'm in my desk chair. That leaves me hunched sideways over one bent leg and one straight one just to reach my keyboard — not exactly a productivity pose. And sadly, lap-typing has never sparked a single creative thought in me.

Counting Down to the Retreat

In two weeks, I'm off to a pre-scheduled writing retreat — three-plus days where I'm hoping to reunite with my imagination and my momentum. I'll admit my writing output has slowed way down lately, mostly because I've been busy managing physical recovery instead of plotlines. Here's hoping the retreat delivers a little "creative mindset surgery" of its own.

Reading Outside My Lane

The upside of forced rest? Lots of reading time. A friend recommended a couple of bestsellers well outside my usual urban fantasy and mystery diet, and I learned something about myself: when I stray from my genres, I turn into a relentless book critic, quietly asking "Where is this story going?" and "What's the point of this character?" on every other page.

I enjoyed Theo of Golden, even while wrestling with those questions the whole way through. I also read The Eight, which bounces between the late 1970s and the French Revolution — and pulled me so deep in that I found myself googling French Revolution history just to sort fact from fiction. Turns out I'm a fairly distractible reader once I leave my comfort zone.

Happy Holidays, Wherever You Are

Belated happy Canada Day, and happy 250th birthday to the USA! Back when I lived in California, I used to serve as a safety marshal at my town's big parade — something these new knees definitely wouldn't allow this year, even if I still lived there. Instead, I'll be spending a quiet holiday hosting two online writer sprints for Sisters in Crime, the international crime-writing organization. We're running five sprints a day throughout July, so there's plenty of company if you want to write alongside us.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/59001e_ecbcea00649d4ab49f93666fe4fff9bb/1080p/mp4/file.mp4

A delightful woodchuck getting their greens.

Wishing you a safe and happy holiday, wherever you're celebrating from.