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A Long, Hot Day

It's been very warm in Ottawa this week. It was +40 yesterday because of the humidity levels. What was I doing? I was performing Iaido setei gata as part of a demonstration my dojo did for the Japanese Festival (Natsumatsuri), which is organized annually by JETAA Ottawa. I chose to do the standing version of Mae following by Kesa Giri, Morote Tsuki, San Po Giri, and Shiho Giri. My etiquette could have been better, but we don't do standing etiquette often. After the demo I watched some Taiko drummers and joined an interactive geisha dance. I probably should have drank more water. I didn't feel great by the end of the day. Supper at an air-conditioned restaurant helped.

When I got home I was treated to about 4 hours of very loud Latin music. There was a soccer game going on at the high school nearby. Normally sports teams go there and don't play music at all; the only thing heard is the odd whistle. This was so loud that despite closed windows and doors, it sounded like it was on my own sound equipment and the speaker right next to me. Thankfully it ended and I got some sleep. I still feel a little off, like I'm fevered but my temperature is low.

As far as editing goes, I'm on chapter 17. I feel like I'll need to edit it again before sending it to beta readers. I think I'll print it out for the next pass. I feel close and yet far. One of my writing friends was at the festival and we talked about how each stage that is ahead of where you are is scary. It's a lot of shooting a foot out into the dark and trying to put it down. You might fall, but then you just pick yourself back up and go in a different direction. He gave me some advice for my next stage of selecting beta readers.

It was National Ice Cream Day. I partook in that also.

Ciao,
R~

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