I’ve discovered something recently. Today actually. I thought my fatigue was just a recurring thing that happens, and that may still be the case. But I’ve finally figured out that the recent fatigue was actually a mildly toxic reaction to one of my medications (there are lots of other symptoms, as well, including a mild fever). I will be calling my doctor first thing in the morning to see if I can move my appointment to this week, preferably in the next day or so.
Obviously, this means I haven’t written as much as I’d like in the last couple of days. I only managed about 2,000 words yesterday (if that). Today, I’ve written nothing at all but this blog post.
If my symptoms worsen, I don’t know what I can do. I don’t have insurance or a job (not yet anyway). Hopefully, it won’t come to that. I’m taking Benadryl and I’m stopping the medication immediately.
In the meantime, I just wanted to post a short update. I have a short (bad) reading from The House of Wynne Lift on my YouTube page, but I’ll post an excerpt below. Enjoy!
(Excerpt from The House of Wynne Lift)
The journey had been long and arduous for the researcher and his companion, a
reporter he had met in New York. The long plane ride had seemed bad enough, but the
trip through the rough land and eerie mountains drained them. They came around
through what they deduced was a dried river bed and clambered up the bank to stand
by a scraggly-looking tree in the midst of a desolate area.
“There it is,” the researcher announced. “The Castle Tower.”
He pointed to the top of an outcropping on a mountain that seemed to have
battlements surrounding the blunted peak and spires collected at the foot of the hill. It
appeared strangely bizarre against the graying sky, and the reporter sensed that
something was about to happen besides the imminent rain.
“The house of Wynne Lift,” the researcher finished after a pause.
“Who is this mysterious Wynne Lift?” the reporter asked.
“Ah, Mr. Wylie! What we know is that he was a wealthy recluse living in
London, but he left society to live here. No one has ever been inside, and it has been
nearly twenty years.”
Wylie let out his breath in exhaustion and perhaps a little from frustration at not
getting his question answered completely. Silence was around them, but he sensed the
drama of the moment as his eyes focused on the top of the tower. It was amazing. He
couldn’t imagine a person wanting to live in a cave for twenty years.
“How do we know anyone is still up there? No one has ever seen him. How do
we know he’s not dead?”
“Oh, no. Wynne Lift is alive. These are not rumors. This is not folklore. We know
he was a very wealthy, private man, but it shocked the city to learn of his plan to leave
civilization. ‘Why would a man of his stature want to live like a savage?’ was the
question everyone asked. But travelers in this area all claim to hear violins play when
they pass the mountains…and Wynne Lift was an exceptional violinist. Do not tell me
you think he is dead.”
“These are stories…people who have been trekking for days in the wilderness.
They’re weary…they’re hearing things. It could all be just overactive imaginations.”
The researcher was perturbed by Wylie’s skepticism. “I’ve heard them. Don’t tell
me I have an overactive imagination. I know what I heard is real. Believe me, you have
not wasted your trip. We will meet Wynne Lift.”
The very name sent shivers over Wylie’s body as he looked up at the sky and
then at their destination: The Castle Tower.
Cheryl Peña 
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