Greetings, HaQ readers – this has been a week of excitement.

I returned from travel and picked up my happy dogs at the kennel and it was lovely to stroll our familiar haunts. The desert is beautiful in its own way, and so different. Seeing it opened my eyes to all the beauties right under my nose.

Remember the old saying “Bloom where you’re planted”? There are many blooms where I’m planted right now. Every spring is an invitation to watch the lovely progression of branch to leaf to flower to fruit, a slow wave in a rolling ocean of life. I am blessed to live where spring flowers give rise to summer fruit – the wild roses hold hands with wild blackberries, one giving rise to a soft, sweet scent and the other to treats for the birds and, if I’m quick enough, for me. Butterflies and moths remind me to hold beautiful things lightly, and then my funny little Chiquita reminds me to pay attention to a happy dog, because she’s going to roll in something I don’t want tracked into the house… She is hilarious.

Her Orneriness is also my reminder to tell you my news, dear readers. I’ve been slow to post this week because I have been completing a project of two years. In April 2015, I participated in Camp NaNoWriMo and wrote a collection of short stories. I spent the next 16 months editing them and working on their arrangement. It took a little more time to do a cover and all the front matter – and now it is done. Yesterday was Pub Day; I am thrilled to say “Dog Days” is now available as an ebook and in print. It is wonderful to share this moment with you – if you’d like to take a peek the links are posted below!

Wishing you Dog Days that are Happy Days.

The short story collection is available on Amazon as both a Kindle book (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0716RW4GC/) and in print (https://www.amazon.com/dp/0997944501/). The formats aren’t linked yet; I hope to have that corrected soon!

Stay tuned for more on the Here’s a Quarter blog next week! As always, your thoughts and comments are always welcome – they are moderated (I know – adulting again), so they may take a little while to appear, but I read them all and appreciate that you were here. Thank you!