Welcome, I’m Mary Louisa Locke, the author of the USA Today best-selling Victorian San Francisco Mystery series and the Caelestis Science Fiction series. In this daily newsletter, I reflect on my life as an indie author trying to age gracefully. Occasionally, I will also publish some of my shorter fiction in this newsletter to read for free.
Daily Diary, Day 1723:
I’ve been enjoying everyone’s responses to my anniversary post. Yesterday, I also did a good job of getting my first walk in very early, and did 40 minutes, so my second walk before lunch, when it was hot, I only had to do 20 minutes. The peak temperature in our neighborhood was 81 degrees, right around noon, but it started to drop in the afternoon, and today and for the next week, at least as forecasted, is in low seventies and high sixties.
I also got my 500 + words written during the zoom co-writing session yesterday, and then spent the afternoon reading Gibson’s first book in his second series Virtual Light…the Bridge series. I then had a long phone date with old friend from back east in the evening, so a full balanced day.
Today is my usual Thursday noon zoom meeting, followed by a phone meeting. After writing and posting this I will try to take another 40 minute walk, because I probably won’t get time to take a second until before dinner. I have my new replacement shoes, (identical to current pair), but I think I won’t put them on until the second, shorter walk, just in case they need some breaking in.
News on the Edgar the Daddy Long Legs front! Two smaller daddy long legs showed a day after Edgar, in another corner. Then first one of the small ones disappeared, then two days ago both Edgar and the remaining small spiders disappeared. I looked in all the corners and didn’t see them. Last time I had Edgar visiting he did disappear and reappear several times, so I hoped this was just one of those time. Then this morning, when I turned the light on in that downstairs bathroom, I found Edgar on the edge of the sink, and what looked like a smaller daddy long legs all crumpled under him. Seems Edgar is eating (or absorbing) the smaller spider—which the internet says is common if food is scarce. Anyway, Edgar just sat all day its meal. Then as I checked on him right before going to bed last night I discovered him climbing the back wall over the sink, and this morning he (and another tiny daddy long legs were back up in his original corner. After breakfast as I went into the bathroom to dust mop, lo and behold small spider was no were to be found, and Edgar was hot footing it along the ceiling from what I see as his corner towards the corner next to the toilet. I just went in to check, and he was now hanging down closer to the back of the toilet, so I banged on the wall, sending him scurrying back up to the ceiling, then brushed the wall, evidently hitting some line he had sent down because he shook abit where he was. My hope is that he will decide to go back to one of the corners near the ceiling, because I don’t want to have to check the toilet every time I need to go to the bath room.
But, hey, more excitement in the house than we’ve had in years (smile.)
Keeping in line with noticing living beings, here is a lizard I saw on yesterday’s walk.
Very tiny, (he froze when he saw me, giving me a great chance to photograph him. Then he finally scurried into the underbrush. And some more roses.



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Soooo, what are you going to feed Edgar so he doesn't eat the babies?
I am enjoying your account of the daddy long legs behavior!