Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Is my muse an old woman?

I hit the American Tobacco Trail yesterday for my morning walk, to plot my book, and think about some financial issues. When I got there, I thought I was alone, but as I entered the trail head, an elderly woman--pink sunglasses, pink skirt, white blouse, and pink walking shoes--greeted me with a chirpy, "Hello." Because I work alone in the house and see few people, anyone who even nods in my direction is libel to end up on the listening end of a ten minute conversation. She recognized that in me and started commenting on the beautiful weather we've been having lately, that she's a second cousin to Will Rogers, about her drive up from Naples, Florida where she's retired, and about someone who just built a $106M estate across the street from her.

"It's some guy name David Levy(?) , she said. "I think he's in the cable industry." She took off her sunglasses. "My family use to own this land." She waved her hand at the trail head grounds. "It was in my family since 1804. I still have the original deed to the first 100 acres. It's just up the road apiece. I come up for the summers. Florida's too warm."


I get along great with women under six and over sixty. She'd seen eighty "...many years ago...", she said and laughed. We talked for twenty minutes about the area. She knew where my house was. She commented on the incredible development going on (6000 housing units on 1400 acres just over the hill--less than two miles--from my house). She dissed the developers who pester her. "They even send me Christmas cards, but they aren't seeing a square inch while I'm alive." She said I was wise to buy my five acres in 1992 at $9K per acre.

"The last lot on my street sold two years ago for $45K per acre," I told her.

She smiled. "What a wonderful bargain," she commented. Her face got serious for a moment. "If those developers offer you $100K per acre, call the sheriff. You're being robbed."

All things financial clarified, my morning walk focused on plotting my current book.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Keep walking. Maybe you'll find someone who looks like Sharon Stone from the movie "The Muse."

Great blog. I've put it on my Fav List.

Rick Bylina said...

Ron...Tell that agent of yours to get on the stick. She's shopping two of your novelsand times awasting. I want to critique your sci-fi, time travel novel before the decade is out.

Rick Bylina said...

Actually, I prefer Selma Hayek from "Dogma". She's hotter "...and responsible for nine out of ten of the highest grossing pictures of all time." ;-)

How many other people have portrayed the muse in movies?

Ruth L.~ said...

Enough of this woman muse thing. Let's get technical. Rick, would you be so kind as to email me the code direct from your edit window that you have used for the American Tobacco Link? I'd like to see it. Thank for the good info on links you sent. But I need to *see.* Consider this as me bestowing upon you the gift of procrastination.

Ruth L.~ said...

I meant to say I loved this post. I'll be an old woman some day, and I only hope I'm as vibrant and intelligent as this woman sounds, and that some nice conversationally deprived writer will be there for me.