The Benchmarks of August

 

August always reminds me of my drum corps days because that's the month when all the national competitions took place. 

48 years ago, I stood on a practice field in Marion, Ohio, rehearsing for the U.S. Open when a friend walked up to me with a stunned look on his face. He said, "Nixon resigned." 

I let out a cheer. I'd been demonstrating against the war in Vietnam and against Nixon since 1970. When Watergate exploded, I was outraged that Nixon was getting away with such criminal activity (a piker in comparison to Trump, I realize now). 

Outrage resumed when Ford immediately pardoned Nixon "in order for the country to heal." Pfft. 48 years later, and we still have an ex-President who demands to be allowed to get away with his crimes. Yesterday, the FBI raided Trump's bunker. I'm hoping that I will soon see the justice I was denied with Nixon.

50 years ago, the drum corps I marched with, Blue Rock, became a founding member of a breakaway circuit of corps called Drum Corps International. Member corps were not subject to the military restrictions of the American Legion or Veterans of Foreign Wars, who had traditionally sponsored drum corps.

As a founding member, our corps was required to attend the DCI national competitions. Unfortunately, our corps couldn't afford such trips, and we ended up folding. However, this year, local drum corps  Jersey Surf sponsored a DCI show in Glassboro, NJ, and alumni members of Blue Rock were asked to present the national anthem as a celebration of the 50 years of DCI. It was a lot of fun, and honestly, there needs to be a word in English (I'll bet the Japanese have one) to describe the visceral, spiritual transportation back to a moment in one's past that captures all the emotion and self-perceptions of that past. A fancy way of saying, "We all felt like we were 18 again." I always called it a Proustian moment; if you've had to read the chapter on madeleines in French III, you know what I'm talking about.

                       

Meanwhile, the writing life is continuing. August is a "lull" month usually; no cons for me. But September will have the Creatures, Crime, and Creativity con, November will have Philcon and my book launch, and somewhere in there the Conspiracies and Cryptids anthology will be released, featuring my story "Passing Thoughts." I begin work on edits for the novel next week, and I can't help it, but I've started Book 5 Esprit d'Escalier. 

Strong Women ~ Strange Worlds has been hard at work posting all the videos of our Quick Reads, held twice a month on the first Friday and third Thursday. Go check them out! You may just find your next favorite author. (After me, of course 😁)