Blog Post #99 is the bonus blog you’ve been dreaming of and hoping for. As promised, here is the big reveal for my debut novel.

The Novel Announcement

I’ve been working on this novel since 2020. Health and life slowed its progress at times but now I’m seeing light at the end of the tunnel. It is finished. However, I’m currently going through the editors’ “suggestions”. They were ruthless and cruel but I’m staying on task.

One editor just sent it back unchanged with a message that said, “You should re-write chapters 1 through 28.”

”No.”

I expect to have it available to the public this fall.

Sew With Our Further a Dude, Here It Is:

Jonah Chooses Amazing

Following tragedy and his own health scare, a self-professed lazy couch potato embarks on a journey of self-improvement and personal betterment. Embracing the power of decisions and the need to take the actions required to improve his lot in life, Jonah Astin faces internal turmoil and external awkwardness while chasing his newfound goals. Weeding his way through gurus, coaches, teachers, friends, nurses, doctors, and his out-there Aunt Mel, he challenges himself to be the man his mom always wished for him to be. Is it possible to find some happiness and still become “amazing” along the way?

Jonah Chooses Amazing is a journey story that explores regret, loss, and hope. It asks questions about what’s possibly possible, how decisive decisions about deciding can be, and the power of will power’s power. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll ask, “Who is this guy?”

I’ve been working with my friend, Sarah on the book’s cover (She’s the editor of my first book, Nursing: The Funny Side of the Bedside, who is now a Graphic Designer). I’m really excited for how this is coming along. Here’s a rough sketch for idea and concept.

So get ready for the greatest novel I’ve ever written becoming available and taking the world by storm. Choose My Novel!!

Words of Wisdom

1. Invest for the future. Make smart financial decisions.

Stocks of RGM Publishing are set to rise with the announcement of the highly anticipated first novel of writer Roy G. Mundheim. Jonah Chooses Amazing is a wild rollercoaster of a ride about a guy who doesn’t do much and then does a whole bunch of stuff. It’s a page turner that you won’t be able to put down. Buy stocks of RGM Publishing and get this exciting growth company into your financial portfolio now. Choose Wealth.

2. Buy Jonah Chooses Amazing this fall. It makes a great Xmas gift. Choose Giving.

3. Nursing: From the Bottom of My Chart. Write what you know. It’s the advice that everyone seems to give. So with that, there is a big element of nursing in this novel. Jonah is a former Nursing student and his long time friend, Ryan is a Registered Nurse. Let the chaos ensue. Choose Nurse Writing.

Thanks for reading this bonus blog. Next month is Blog Post #100. That’s crazy to imagine. If you have questions about Jonah Chooses Amazing and how you can get your copy, email me at roygmundheim@gmail.com. It’s now time for the ending joke. Enjoy.

“Jonah Chooses Amazing? What’s it about?”

“It’s about a guy named Jonah… who chooses amazing.”

“Well… it could have been about a dog or a rabbit, smart guy.”

“That’s dumb. You’re stupid!”

Roy Didn’t Choose Amazing. Roy Chose to be a Jerk.

Good May, Mate. It’s Blog Post #98. Thanks for all the great feedback after last month’s blog and the release of the first episode of the Write or Wroy Podcast. Unfortunately, the second episode will not be available until next April 1st. Stay tuned though. It should be a great one.

The Novel Update

I finished it! Last month, my novel’s second edit was completed. It’s now in the hands of editors. Work on the book’s cover is also progressing as I near the home stretch. Stay tuned for a bonus blog post this month (#99) for a big reveal, including the title, the synopsis, and a sneak peak at some of the concepts being considered for the cover design.

Making the Cut

I will need to do my final draft after editors are finished dissecting and slashing the book’s contents. I had to cut the following excerpt from the book when I found this idea/ joke had already been thought of and used on social media. With almost 8 billion people on this planet, I guess it can’t be surprising that someone had already come up with this:

“ …the last one I went to there was a woman who spent 15 minutes convincing us that Marty McFly was a Mandalorian.”

“Weird… but sounds entertaining.”

”Actually, it was a bit but not until she got to the end. Marty was the original ‘Man-in-the-Delorean’. She should have opened with that.”

May Day

It’s one of my favorite months of the year; in the top twelve for sure. It’s the month where us Norwegians celebrate Independence Day (May 17^th), Mexicans celebrate Cinco de Mayo (May 5^th), and Nerds (like myself) celebrate Star Wars (May 4^th).

TV/ Movies In the News

How disappointing was Season 3 of the Mandalorian anyway? It was so bad that Disney are in consultation with Quentin Tarantino to take over for Season 4.

“I ain’t through with you by a damn sight. I’m gonna get Mandalorian on your ass.”

When asked when he would start working on the script for Season 4, Quentin replied. “In two shakes of a Wombat’s tail.”

In similar news, it was recently revealed that Kevin Smith was being considered to write and direct a sequel to Tombstone. He replied, “I’ll be your dingleberry.”

**I was asked to explain this. In Tombstone, Val Kilmer’s Doc Holiday has a line where he says, “I’ll be your huckleberry.” In Kevin Smith’s movie, Clerks, Jay responds to Dante by saying, “ About the biggest pair you’ve ever seen, Dingleberry!” *What the blogger has done here is combined the two movies and had them intersect, creating a clever and hilarious cross-over that works on so many levels.

In very similar news, Steven Spielberg turned down directing the sequel to Snakes on a Plane saying, “Snakes. Why did have to be snakes? I hate snakes.”

Subtle Details

I’m enjoying watching Season 2 of Yellow Jackets. Did anyone notice that Shauna talked Jackie’s ear off?

I took this photo in downtown Vancouver that reminded me to finish that novel.

Words of Wisdom 

1. Try different foods. It’s one of the joys of life. Llama tongue is trending right now. I wonder what that tastes like… and can it taste you back?

2. From the Bottom of My Chart. I was looking through my surgical text book for information on appendectomies. I couldn’t find it. The Appendix had been removed.

3. Don’t be afraid to explain things more than once, especially if it’s a complex topic.

In Tombstone, Val Kilmer’s Doc Holiday has a line where he says, “I’ll be your huckleberry.” In Kevin Smith’s movie, Clerks, Jay responds to Dante by saying, “ About the biggest pair you’ve ever seen, Dingleberry!” **What the blogger has done here is combined the two and had them intersect creating a clever and hilarious cross-over that works on so many levels.

In Steven Spielberg’s Indian Jones…

Thank you to everyone who continues to read this blog and support my efforts. I’m looking forward to sharing all the details of my upcoming novel in Blog Post #99. It’s now time for the ending jokes. In celebration of both Norway’s upcoming independence day and the downfall of Twitter, I give you the following jokes. Enjoy.

“Which country is better, Sweden or Denmark?

“Norway”

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I follow writers on Twitter and responded to a Tweet last week:

“If you were going to write and self-publish a book in 2024, what would the title and idea be?”

”How Not to Give Away Your Book Idea: A Guide to Writing Jokes on Twitter.”

Happy April. A new month means a new blog post. It’s number 97. Thanks for all the great feedback from post # 96. Who knew balloons were so popular? It’s hard not to write great prose when you have such amazing material.

It’s Here!!

I’m excited to soon share more information about my upcoming novel. However, this month there’s bigger news. After a lot of work, discussion and debate, I’ve decided to start a podcast. The first episode of the Write or Wroy Podcast is here! Of course, the blog will continue unchanged… still great as usual. Now though, I will be sharing my insights on life, writing, health, travel, and news in another platform. The WOW Podcast will have the same comedic slant of irony and sarcasm that you’ve grown to love and expect from the blog… even if you don’t and/ or can’t quite get it all. Click the icon below to listen to the first hilarious episode.

It’s not quite the same as the written word, but still quite funny. Words case scenario, I will release the podcast episodes and the blog posts at the same time each month. If words comes to words, I may put out a podcast every second month instead.

Language Lessons

You heard a bit of my Spanish there. It still needs work but it is progressing. My wife and I were talking about it last month.

She asked, “How’s your Spanish coming?”

“Let’s put it this way: I couldn’t write a novel in Spanish but I think I could run a medium sized drug cartel in the middle of Caracas or San Salvador without much problemas.”

“Ha ha ha.”

”No te rias de mi!!”

– Translation

Words of Wisdom

1. From the Bottom of My Chart. Always look to make progress and increase your knowledge. Nursing is about ongoing education. I had a dream last week that I was at a nursing conference and started choking on an hors d’oeuvre. I immediately ran to the bathroom. Thirty nurses followed me in there.

2. You can’t solve every problem. Last month I called Tech Support because my password had expired. They told me they couldn’t help. Their password had also expired and they were waiting to hear back from Tech Support Tech Support.

3. Always have a backup plan in case what you first try doesn’t work.

My wife asked, “How’s your Spanish coming?”

“Let’s put it this way. I couldn’t do a podcast in Spanish but I could run an AirBnB for American tourists in the middle of Acapulco or Puerta Vallarta without much problemas.”

Thanks for reading April’s post. As usual, it’s been a fun ride full of news, jokes, and intellectual tidbits that expand the human race. That’s what my Blog Robot told me to write anyway. I hope you enjoyed the first podcast episode. More big announcements are coming over the next couple months. Stay tuned. It’s now that time; ending jokes. Enjoy.

Inflation is crazy right now. Prices are rising.:

My wife and I purchased tickets for Matchbox Twenty in 2019 but the concert kept getting postponed. Finally, the show is a go next month. The tickets cost $23.99 when we bought them. They’re now $485.00…

…And I’m a little bit angry…

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If you had difficulty getting to the podcast with the link above, here’s another link (Backup Plan):

Roy’s well-read. Violets are blue. Time Marches On. It’s Blog Post 96. Everyone loves rhymes… and poems. A new month means a new blog post. Thanks for all the messages of encouragement and support after Blog Post 95. Much appreciated.

Health Update

I’ve seen some more progress over the last month. I had a bit of a downturn due to a new medication in what my doctor called a ‘Herxheimer reaction’. I would have preferred more of a Mundheimer reaction. It’s just like a Herxheimer reaction except it feels good… really really good. In all seriousness, I seem to be on an upward trend. KOW! (Knock on Wood).

Sharing the Good Stuff

Netflix have been cracking down on password sharing. Who do they think they are? It’s not like they’re the streaming service offering The Mandalorian. In protest, I am sharing my Netflix password. My password is the same as your credit card number. Enter it here. NETFLIX Account.

Go Grogu Go

Season 3 of The Mandalorian dropped this month. My wife asked if I was going to watch it.

“Does a Rancor sh*t Gamorrean guts?

“I don’t know.”

“ExactaMando”

Novel Ideas

Progress continues. It’s a time consuming battle at times but with each page written, I get closer to The End. Here is a little glimpse of some of my recent work:

“It’s been a good week, my best week, ever maybe.”

“Wow. That’s great. I’m also glad you’re ok to continue with a flexible meal on Sundays.”

“Well, actually, I’m still looking at eliminating those. I’m planning to get hardcore.”

“I’m not going to make calorie counted bland meals.”

“No, no. I can cook.”

“I’m not eating chicken and broccoli for every meal. That’s a you-thing. Hell, I’d be drinking wine if I didn’t have the long drive home.”

“Ok fine. What if I made broccoli and chicken instead?”

Clear Skies

Balloons have taken over the news. There are so many balloon jokes trending right now. I’m not going to add to them. I took this photo of the sky over North America. No balloons.

Then I found this. Where it came from and its surveillance capabilities are unknown.

Balloons at the Potty

Hopefully, the whole balloon joke thing loses POPularity.

There’s been a lot of damage to the balloons they’ve found but with time, they’ll healium.

North Korea fired two missiles last month due to threats to their benevolent leader. A North Korean spokesperson stated that when they heard buffoons were getting shot down, they had to respond. They later learned that it was in fact balloons, not buffoons. North Korea are expected to fire more missiles this month.

In other news: There were rumors that Russia were behind all the balloon activity over North America. These rumors turned out to be false. It was just a bunch of hot error.

With balloons being shot down regularly, Carl Fredrickson’s house has unfortunately been grounded.

Five balloons were shot down last month. Nena encouraged North Americans not to panic stating, “There’s 94 more.” She was then asked if she had seen any balloons over Germany. She replied, “Nine.”

In other news, a nanny with an umbrella was shot in Montana.

I was very angry to hear that baboons were getting shot. Then I heard it was balloons, not baboons. I thought about the clowns, all the birthday parties, all those children. Yeah, I’m ok with that.

Did Pennywise not teach us about the dangers of balloons?

I don’t get ‘It’.

Words of Wisdom

1. Don’t overdo jokes. A joke can be funny but not if you just keep it going and going and going and going and going. You just shouldn’t overdo it. The joke won’t be as funny after a while. It’s funny the first time and when not overdone. You can’t just keep going with it over and over and over and over. Don’t overdo jokes.

2. Nursing Tip From the Bottom of My Chart: Choose your career wisely. Some careers are becoming obsolete. Truck driving, cashiers, nursing. What do you mean nursing? Nurse Droids… they’re coming.

In other news: The hiring of more nurses was approved by city council last week. Phew… all those out of work nurses just sitting on their couches at home looking for jobs are relieved.

3. Don’t overdo jokes.

Thanks for reading this month’s post which just keeps Marching and Marching and Marching and Marching on. It’s now time for the ending jokes done just right. Enjoy.

Here is a joke from the novel that I’ve been working on.

“Life opens up opportunities to you and you either take them or stay afraid.”

“Is that from The Secret?”

“No. Jim Carrey actually.”

“Alrighty then.”

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Speaking of overdoing jokes, I have improved on a joke from Blog Post 49. Here it is, done just right.

My sister in law asked on Facebook for recommendations. She wanted to know what people’s favorite cruise line was. As any good brother in law should do, I sprung into action to help.

My favorites Cruise lines are:

“I feel the need. The need for speed.”

“Show me the money!”

That’s it? That ended badly.

“Everything ends badly, otherwise it wouldn’t end.”

It’s February and it’s Blog Post 95. I’m not going to make comments about being grateful to be alive or that I’m going to thrive or that this blog is live. I’m not going to say it’s time to deep dive or that the moment has come to join my hive, for we will survive. I didn’t even say that February has arrived. Rhymes are good and sometimes they jive but not this time with blog 95. I may be a poet who doesn’t actually have the knowledge that I am one but that’s not all this blog is about. It’s about substance…that is out there. You’re welcome.

Hell: The Update

Thank you for all the messages of encouragement. My health is doing better. Recent treatments have had a positive affect and we feel closer to figuring things out. I am hopeful to share more good news going forward. Stay tuned.

Roy-man-tic

It’s Valentine’s Day this month. You should almost be finished with the monthly payments on chocolate and flowers from last Valentine’s Day. Did you know that I’m a sucker for rom-coms? My wife hates that and will often refer to the movies I want to watch as ‘Hallmark Movies’. Now, I don’t consider the movies I like, ‘Hallmark Movies’ as they’re too fairy tale but I do like a good ‘happily ever after’. Some of my current favorites are Stuck in Love, Wedding Season, and Always Be My Maybe. I really enjoyed Spontaneous but didn’t like the ending. I’m also a big fan of the Modern Love series.

Ongoing Novelling

With the above knowledge, you would think that I’d write a romance novel or at least have a love story in it. I didn’t and it doesn’t. That’s just not what the story is about. There is only this brief moment of love interest:

She is belle, he thought. Dark hair, nearly as tall as him, he was indeed ‘enchanted’. Her Quebecoise accent caused the hair on his arms to dance as his heart kicked inside his chest to get out. He hung on her every word, even providing an occasional smile to the conversation. He longed for his French to be fluent enough to be witty, charming, funny. Unfortunately, he had just ‘umms’, and ‘uhhhs’.

Roy-bot Blog

As Meta targets my interests with ads for Spanish lessons, book writing tips, and the latest in nervous system lab studies, it also advises me on how to write blogs. I know how to write blogs and they’re amazing. The latest ad on my timeline said, “Write blog posts 10x faster with robots.” What a great idea! I ordered a robot but it didn’t work out. He said it was against his programming to impersonate. The R2 unit it came with had no such issues and tried to blog for me. Here’s an excerpt: “Beep boop beep beep… “ So you can see why the robot experience didn’t work.

I think they’ve been using robots at one of the local news agencies here in Vancouver. They posted the following headline:

“He had tested positive for Covid test in a post mortem.”

They should test the testers who test the testers who test the writers who write the tests that tests their ability to use words.

Words of Wisdom.

1. Make your own protein shake. Then at least you can say, “I did it my whey.”

2. Read signs. Here’s the photo my robot wanted to use.

3. Nursing Tip. From the Bottom of My Chart: If someone is choking, do The Mundheimleich Maneuver. It’s just like the Heimleich maneuver except the rescuer is insanely gorgeous.  

Thanks for reading this month’s blog. The journey towards releasing my first novel continues. Stay tuned for more excerpts and updates. It’s now time for the ending joke but after WoW #3, it almost doesn’t need one…Yes it does! Enjoy.

The charging station doesn’t work for that phone.

Maybe it’s because of the cover?

I tried without. It’s not the case.

Wait no more. It’s Blog Post 94. Happy New Year! I’m excited for a new year, a fresh start. I’m hopeful for some great blog posts, the release of a best-selling novel, and a return to health in 2023.

Health update

Unfortunately I have continued to struggle with my health. Working with two doctors, waiting on specialist referrals, and trying several medications has yet to turn the tide on my declining health. Without going into too much detail, I am having a problem with my nervous system and still have yet to find a cause. Theories range from a viral infection to a parasite picked up in my world travels to an environmental toxin exposure. My MRI has shown an abnormality but the cause is still a mystery.

Illness can hit anyone at anytime. I’m someone and now’s the time. I am still hopeful of finding answers that involve recovery but it’s not something I can count on. Write the book. Enjoy the special moments. Live life with passion as long and as well as possible. What else is there?

Dinner With Friends

My wife and I had a great Xmas dinner with friends. Enjoying stories, perspectives and jokes with friends is a pretty great way to spend time. Every time I say something funny (it’s actually quite often), my friends tell me that it has to go into the blog. I know that. Why do you think I’m here? It’s for material.

Selling Material

Segwaying is hard. After a few months of little to no sales, my book Nursing: The Funny Side of the Bedside, had a spike in purchases for December. It makes a great holiday present for the nurse in your life. I even gave a copy to a co-worker for the Secret Santa at the staff holiday party. I wonder if they know it was from me.

Novelling

I promised I would reveal more regarding my upcoming novel and here it is: I had a few different working titles when I started. ‘The World’s Greatest Novel’ seemed like a good title. I decided that was too controversial. Then I thought ‘2024’ was a good one as that’s basically when the story happens but it was too much like ‘1984’ (I hated that novel). ‘Sunday Dinners with Aunt Mel’ was very much considered but then I decided to go with the title I have now instead…

Dialogue

Here’s a couple different excerpts I’ve recently been working on:

“Don’t you realize that while you’re standing here in your own house complaining, there are people who have no where to live, have no food, or are laying in a hospital bed wishing they had the kind of opportunities you have?”

“Yeah, well, do you realize while you’re sitting here talking, there’s a guy from India trapped on a boat with no one to talk to but a man-eating tiger?”

“Funny, but not really.”

“Or right now there’s a guy from UPS stranded on an island with only a volleyball to talk to?”

“You. Are. Exhausting.”

These are always works-in-progress and aren’t necessarily the final product. The novel takes place in Espen Falls, a fictional community/ suburb outside of Vancouver. One of the main characters is Mel. She loves to talk, always talks, never stops talking. Mel is the extrovert to the lead introvert. It works quite well.

Dinner was pleasant enough. Aunt Mel talked about going back to work at the bakery, offered again to help him get a job, and thoroughly reviewed the current state of Espen Fall’s local political infighting. “There hasn’t been a controversy this big since the chess world had to deal with vibrating anal beads!”

It’s real. Google it.

New Year-New Perspective

For those who commented that they liked last months photo, I give you a similar one taken this month. Steps away at a different time yet so similar.

Words of Wisdom

1. Save more money this year. My debut novel is set to be released before next Xmas and you don’t want to have to take out a bank loan to purchase your copy.

2. From the Bottom of My Chart: Keep your sennas close…and your enemas even closer.

3. Know your words. Did you know that ‘Goblin Mode’ is Oxford Dictionary’s 2022 Word of the Year? Does Oxford know that ‘Goblin Mode’ is not a word but is, in fact, two words. ‘Gobbling Mode’ has been around for a long time. Isn’t that when Pacman eats the yellow pellet and then turns the tide on the gggghosts? I thought ‘Gobbling Mode’ was when you sit down at Xmas for turkey dinner.

Thanks for reading the first blog post of the year. Keep swimming. Keep going. There are better days ahead. It’s time for the ending jokes. If laughter is the best medicine, this blog requires a prescription. Enjoy.

Work From Home

We recently had a snow day here in Vancouver. Nearly everyone worked from home instead of coming into the office except for me as I live a short walk away. A few days later, everyone was commenting on how great they did working from home and how much better it was. I disagreed.  “I told them, I’m way better at the office. I just need everyone else working from home.“

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Xmas Dinner Conversations

Our friends had just come back from a scuba diving vacation and were getting ready for another one in the new year.  “We’ve seen whale sharks, tiger sharks and hammerheads. We still haven’t seen a great white yet.”

Me: “That’ll probably be the last one you see.”

Christmas tree. Oh Christmas tree. It’s time for blog post 93. December’s post is really just gonna be the usual, more of the same, standard writing from me. In other words, fantastically awe-inspiring. It is Amazing how time moves so quickly. It seems like just last year, we were celebrating the upcoming Xmas holidays and talking about the year to come. Here we are again.

Upcoming Celebrations

If you follow this blog regularly, you know. We are getting ready to celebrate Father Figure, Praying for Time, and Faith. That’s right. George Michael Memorial Day. It’s hard to even believe that not that long ago, people used to celebrate another historical figure on December 25^th… Sir Isaac Newton. That’s only for those who believe…in gravity.

Upcoming Fictional Greatness

I’m pleased to share that my novel has been flying… just like time. I’ve been regularly writing, editing, and scrutinizing (to almost paralyzing degree) to get my novel ready for release next year. It is coming:

He had more of a shuffle on “jog” number three. His feet barely came off the dirt. Wishing for death, he kept the pace. He was sure Erin was saying something encouraging and coachy but the hell if he could hear her over his respiratory distress.

Upcoming Cheers

Cheers! Xmas is a time to cheers to things that don’t actually exist. Santa Claus, flying reindeer, The Ghost of Christmas Future, and California champagne.

Overheard conversation:

“My wife only drinks champagne from France.”

“That’s good. All champagne comes from France.”

“That’s not true. I’m from California and we make lots of champagne.”

“No, you don’t.”

Upcoming Goodbye to 2022

I am not sad to say goodbye to 2022. While it may not have been as bad as 2020 in a historical context, it’s been an incredibly challenging year for me personally. I am happy to move on and look ahead to 2023.

Words of Wisdom

1. Cheer for the underdogs. Budweiser announced that they would send all the beer that they were not allowed to sell in Qatar to the country that wins the World Cup.

My wife asked what would happen if Qatar won?

Answer: An investigation into bribing, cheating, and corruption.

2. Support small businesses. Drink beer from small local craft breweries. Budweiser isn’t that bad as long as it’s not draft…or canned… or in a bottle.

3. Nursing Tip: From the Bottom of My Chart:

PEG, Senna, Magnesium, Enemas… these are all good things to have in your stoolbox.

*Why are outhouses not called stoolsheds?

Thanks for reading this post and for following along in the year 2022. This coming year should see Blog Post #100 happen, a pretty crazy achievement that I never would have expected when I started this literary masterpiece. I am also optimistic for the release of my first ever novel. Stay tuned. It’s now time for the ending jokes. Happy George Michael Memorial Day. Happy Holidays. Happy Reading. Enjoy.

Attending the Joan Jett show, it was a bit disconcerting to have someone behind me yelling, “C’mon! Middle of the Road!!”, “Play I’ll Stand By You!!”, “Where’s Back on the Chain Gang?”

Someone finally turned around and said it.

”Don’t Get Me Wrong, I like those songs too but… .”

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My wife said she had to sweep the floor.

I said, “No, you don’t sweep the floor. You sand the floor…. You sweep the leg.

It’s too good to be true. It’s Blog Post #92. Thank you to everyone who sent me birthday wishes following last month’s birthday blog post. I had a great day and a great month of celebrating another spin around the sun. Hopefully, I have many more.

The Fall

The weather has changed. Autumn has arrived. I took this photo in early November at the park near my home.

My wife took this photo nearby that I just had to share.

It may be colder these days but there’s beauty to be found.

More Celebrations

Although sales have slowed, it’s the three year anniversary of the release of Nursing: The Funny Side of the Bedside. It’s the best book I’ve ever written and it’s still the number one selling book at RGM Publishing.

In more good news worth celebrating, I have really gotten into a daily routine of working on my novel. It is progressing nicely and I can finally see the light at the end of this long wrote. A quote from the book:

“I’m going to have a routine that makes The Rock look lazier than Homer Simpson on a Sunday.”

Nurses Wanted

Movie theatres across the country are hiring nurses. Avatar 2 has a runtime over 3 hours and nurses are needed to insert catheters in movie goers who don’t want to miss a moment. The difficulty is that this movie is so long that the nurses they hire will retire by the time the first showing is over.

The Rising Cost of Living

With increasing prices, Michelin star restaurants have had difficulty maintaining a profitable business model. In contrast, Michelin Tires have found inflation to have really helped with theirs.

The Big Event

The World Cup of Soccer begins this month. Yes, in November. Although I would have preferred the tournament be hosted by Drums, Violin, or Saxaphone, it is being hosted by Qatar. Qatar is a dry country which does not allow alcohol. However, they have needed to make compromises to host this worldwide event because the world drinks and there’s money to be made. To accommodate, Qatar will have designated drinking zones and sobering-up zones. The service will rum from 1-9 but they will only let you gin if you don’t wine. Ale be interested to see how it goes. Public drunkenness is a crime in Qatar with stiff penalties. They are compromising on that as well. If you’re highly intoxicated, you may be jailed but at least they won’t want tequilia.

Words Of Wisdom

1. Nursing Tips: From the Bottom of My Chart: “Assess the need for other needs as needed.”

2. If you haven’t yet, buy and read the best book on nursing since Nightingale’s Notes on Nursing: What It Is and What It Is Not.

3. Don’t leave fruit on the counter. My wife arrived home from the store with a whole pineapple. My only question: “Why have you brought fruit fly food into our home?”

Thanks for reading this month’s blog post. It’s great to be writing regularly again. It’s now time for the ending joke. Enjoy.

I asked my wife to read a chapter from my upcoming novel. Halfway through she had to go get a Kleenex and said, “That made me cry.”

I said, “What part?”

“The part with the letter to her son.”

“Yeah, but was it a particular word or phrase?”

“No. Why?”

“I’m wanting to know the Wife-Cry password.”

It’s my birthday and I’ll blog if I want to. You would blog too if it happened to you. It’s October. It’s Blog Post # 91. It’s great to be alive. Let’s hope it continues… for a while anyway.

Happy Birthday

Yes, today is my birthday. No, I can’t think of anything I’d rather do to celebrate than write this amazing blog. Do what you love, ‘they’ say.

In my circle of friends, there seems to be an over representation of October birthdays. Why is that? That’s because our parents celebrated Valentine’s Day as it was meant to be celebrated. There was no Match.com. No Tinder… and no condoms.

October Celebrations

My wife and I have a couple of trips planned; Vancouver Island, to celebrate a number of birthdays and Seattle to watch my favorite, but terrible, hockey team play. Go Canucks Go!

There are so many celebrations this month. Here in Canada, we celebrate Thanksgiving and Hallowe’en. In one, we eat way too much junk and in the other we give thanks… to the rebel who defied authority, was banished from the kingdom, and now encourages us to cut the heads off live turkeys. God bless him! This is the same thanks we all give on my birthday; celebrating this rebel, who defied authority. Odin bless me!

Novel

My novel is moving forward but slowly. I’m revamping and re-reading sections on a semi regular basis with a mix of effort and procrastination. Here’s a bit of dialogue from the chapter I’m currently working on. No context, no spoilers… quite yet:

“Africa could be great. Just know that you can do something to be proud of every day, right here and now, many times a day. You don’t need to travel halfway around the world to live your best life.”

“Yeah, that’s what my aunt said too.”

“Smart lady.”

City Living

My wife and I have spent a lot of time discussing, reflecting, and planning our life goals and ambitions. My recent health challenges have made it difficult to know what we’ll be able and not able to do. For now, we’re still loving and enjoying city living. Will the wonder and excitement wear off?

Words Of Wisdom

1. Be grateful and appreciative for every day.

2. Don’t be a perfictionist.

3. Don’t wait for a ‘special’ day or an occasion in order to celebrate. Celebrate every day. Celebrate life. Celebrate me. It’s my birthday!

Thanks for celebrating my birthday by reading my blog. It’s now time for the ending jokes. I’ve been a bit short on jokes lately, so I’ve stolen one. My dad used to tell this first joke but I’m pretty sure he got it from somewhere else. A joke is a joke though so enjoy.

I renewed my driver’s license this month. The conversation at the licensing office went like this:

“Name?”

“Roy”

“Last name?”

“Mundheim”

“Birthday?”

“October 18^th“

“What year?”

“Every year”

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Countries are changing names.

Turkey changed their name to Türkiye’ because they did not want to be associated with the bird.

Russia have requested to change their name to Terrorbull to better reflect their political policies.

America have been debating changing their name to Turkey because they don’t want to be associated with America.