Problem solved!

I developed a sciatica problem in October, and have been fighting it ever since. My GP gave me pain meds, and after 4 visits I managed to twist his arm enough to get an X-ray. The bones in my back were severely compressed. Too many car accidents? Maybe.

At any rate, I gave up on physiotherapy and chiropractic treatments after 15 such sessions. Now I’ve got acupuncture, craniosacral therapy, and an inversion table. Have you ever seen one?

I hadn’t either until we did some research. Here’s what mine looks like. You just strap yourself in and turn the table upside down!

🙂 Not really. You put your feet on the bottom bar, so your ankles are locked in when you pull the lever toward yourself. Then you press the button to start a low-level vibration against your back, and turn the table so it is leaning slightly back, with your feet a bit higher than your head.

Yes, you can use a higher gear and go back farther, but I was reluctant to go to that extreme. I use it three times a day and things are improving dramatically.

I realize it isn’t a pretty addition to my bedroom furniture, but it’s helping tremendously. Now I can get back to writing Book Eight, of The Last War series. Yay!!

My Gratitude for 2023

  1. I am grateful for all the members of my family near and far. We had fourteen wonderful people at the Christmas dinner table this year. They fill my heart with joy.
  2. I give thanks for my two little grandsons who live next door. They often run down the hill when they arrive home from school to tell us a joke. They either made it up on the way home or heard it from a friend at school. So funny.
  3. I am so grateful that I live in the calm country of Canada. When other countries are in the midst of turmoil and war, we get to enjoy the peace of our land.
  4. I enjoy the reviews of my books that my readers leave on so many online sites. It warms my heart that people are enjoying my work.
  5. I give thanks for my critique group, a wonderful band of supporters and readers who give great feedback to help me sort out problems in the current book’s plot, and point out typos and the misuse of words. Their support is what keeps me writing in many ways.

As we approach the New Year (can you believe it?) I’m looking forward with excitement and gratitude to what it might bring.

I wish you all great things in 2024.

Following the Colours

We took a short trip through the province of Quebec to follow the colours. We started in Montreal, drove to Quebec City, over to the Eastern Townships, then west to Ottawa. In some areas the leaves hadn’t changed much, and a few areas had already passed their brightest colour.

We were following the trail of old memories, from Montreal, to Quebec City, North Hatley, ending in Ottawa. Here’s a cow staring at me from the nearby field. I stared back.

I started the trip with a sore back, and ended it with severe bronchitis and sciatica pain down my leg enough to disable me. I’m hoping for some answers soon, after multiple trips to the physiotherapist and chiropractor. Fingers crossed.

Woodland Pursuit

My latest book is live.

Kitty is an environmental blogger. She writes about the reduction of salmon spawn, the depletion of the numbers of whales, the loss of old growth forests. Then she decides to go undercover to work for a logging company and discover what she can about illegally cutting the old growth trees. Kitty knows there are secrets, and she plans to find them.

Family tradition is important to Mack. Like his father, he’s worked in the bush and now he’s become a logging surveyor. When he meets Kitty in the Island office of Rushbrook Timber, he is immediately attracted to her, even after he discovers she’s an environmentalist.

Amazingly, Mack and Kitty begin working together toward a common goal. But soon the tough guys are following them, and now they are running for their lives, unsure who is chasing them, or why.

A thrilling fast-paced novel from bestselling author Sylvie Grayson

Buy it here