Great morning at the beach after wild weather earlier in the week.

Saw Samsara last night while D went off to watch flamenco with the girls.
Nearly went to sleep in the first segment but woke up when the movie moved into a series of confronting images. Powerful stuff - a strong message but I came away wondering whether it achieved much.

Preferred The Life of Pi. Ang Lee has done a good job, bringing the book to the screen.

Finished reading Elliot Perlman's The Streetsweeper. He paints on an international canvas this time (after Three Dollars and Seven Degrees of Ambiguity, both of which are set in Australia.) It took a while but I really got into The Streetsweeper. If I have one criticism it's that the historical narrative at times overloads and obscures the personal. Otherwise, an impressive attempt to highlight the issues that continue to swirl around Jews and blacks in America, and cleverly link their stories.

Have reached a hiatus with my novels. Renamed both of them. The first is finished and the second is at first draft stage. Exploring self-publication. Many options; as many pitfalls. Indecision. Wait and see.

The photo above is taken from the Dalkeith foreshore, just below the Sunset Hospital site. I toured the site last Tuesday, as background for the novel.

Survived a hot water  and gas leak, thanks to a friendly plumber. Cold showers for a week. Meanwhile, saw Starbucks at the Somerville. French-Canadian. A few laughs.

Started Eliot Perlman's The Street Sweeper. Not yet really into it. Gloomy stuff, for the most part.

Yesterday, completed first draft of TSBTS - the sequel to APBTR. Happy with the effort and now for revision.

Have a quote re self-publishing APBR, and waiting for a second. Still uncertain which way to go. T says self-pub has drawbacks. i agree - and yet.....

Heatwave in abeyance, to relief all round.