#berkshire-gas — Public Fediverse posts

Wed. May 20, 2026: A Jumbled Day

Wednesday, May 20, 2026

Waxing Moon

Pluto Retrograde

Cloudy and warm

Happy mid-week! Hope yours is going well.

The first obstacle of the day was that I couldn’t set the Alice scene from I WILL BE DIFFERENT at the Barbizon Hotel because it hadn’t yet opened in the year I need the scene to be set in. Nor had the Allerton, another choice. So I set it at Hotel Martha Washington instead.

It’s a really fun scene between Alice, her sister Lizzie, and the practical Shirley, talking about everything from marriage to Alice’s estrangement from her father to abortion (in the 1920’s).

I have a feeling I will add several scenes in the second draft, and then do a lot of cutting, once I decide if this will be one play or two. Once I’ve done an assembly and smoothed a few things out in the second draft, I am sending it to a couple of readers for their opinions. But that’s a few months down the line. I need to stitch together the Josephine, Alice, Milly, Amanda, and Joy sections, smooth a few things over, add years as touchstones, and see where we are. I know I will have to cut characters at some point, even with double casting. But we’re not at practical, production aspects yet. We’re at character arcs and story.

I have several possibilities for what to work on during End of Play:

–a comedy set in the Barbizon hotel;

–the one-act where the first female Pinkerton, Kate Warne, helps foil an assassination attempt on Abraham Lincoln;

–“Boom Boom Boom” a one-act I envision as running about 40 minutes for 3 characters;

–finish LAUGHTER & TURPENTINE (the Playland Painters play);

–finish CONSEQUENCES (the three-hander about emotional labor).

The parameters of E-of-P is to start a play June 1 (“pens up”) and finish it by June 30 (“pens down”). So I’d rather start fresh than work on something that’s been lurching for a bit. But I also don’t like leaving work unfinished. So we will see.

But the first draft of I WILL BE DIFFERENT is officially done! After two damn years. But every project has its own rhythm, and fortunately, I didn’t have to push this one.

Now I have to do a rough assembly and start making sense of it.

My favorite town councilor got on the ballot to run for regional rep in the state government (yes, I am one of those signatures). A neighbor stopped by last week to give me information on a Democrat who’s running to represent this region in Congress, also replacing that incumbent. While I respect the work both incumbents have done over the years, those incumbents are too entrenched, and we need more fire in those jobs.

Another aside: Mark Cuban has always been exactly what he showed by appearing with That Thing. He just fooled some people with his smoke and mirrors for a little longer, that’s all.

On a happier note, I heard from my Monthology editor that she received the edits I turned around. I will know more about the schedule sometime in July.

I got off a project proposal. It was due mid-June, but I’m happy I could get it out the door now. I also finished, polished, and sent off the LOI I hemmed and hawed about, because why not be bold? Nothing ventured, and all that. The tone is definitely bolder than I usually use. It will either intrigue them, or it won’t. But if I don’t try, I can’t achieve, so it’s worth the try.

And there was the morning, because proposals and LOIs take time.

I got my ticket sorted out for WAM’s reading of AMANI in mid-June, and accepted the invitation to the Clark opening a few days before the reading.

I got tangled in details working on the ghostwriting, and then got a panicked message from them about something that needed sorting in an earlier book. So I took care of that, and I have to look at something in the next book to make sure the same issue isn’t there.

I also heard sad news that a colleague unexpectedly died about a week ago. This is someone from the theatre world, a close friend of one of my closest friends. He’s also a good deal younger than I am. It’s completely shocking.

Of course, all of that came in right before the end of the workday, which normally wouldn’t be an issue, but I had to get out the door to yoga. I was a little scattered by the time I got to the studio.

It had rained hard earlier in the afternoon, and the walk up was muggy and buggy, not my favorite. But yoga was terrific, and I trotted back home in the cooling evening.

When I got home, I found yet another bill from Berkshire Gas that makes absolutely no sense. Why have I been kicked off balanced billing when I paid their unbalanced bills supposedly on that program on time every damn month all year? Including the outrageous “settle up” bill two months ago? Why is EVERYTHING a fight with them? Why does Berkshire Gas just throw darts at numbers scrawled on the wall every month, instead of sticking to agreements? Why are the customers expected to stick to agreements, but the company can do whatever they want? Why isn’t the DPU, whose JOB it is to keep them in line, doing something? It’s not like they don’t know, I’ve been filing the paperwork with them, and I’m sure this is partially BG’s retaliation. BG also wants me to be on autopay, but I am not giving them access to my bank account so that they can pull random amounts out anytime they want. For five years, they’ve regularly proven they can’t be trusted.

I’m losing billable hours dealing with their crap, and I’m going to start invoicing both companies for it.

And why am I getting an “invitation to apply” for a job as a biohazard technician? I hardly think that my profession as a copywriter makes me qualified. Besides, I’ve made it clear to this agency that “invitation to apply” is a load of crap. Either they contact me with an offer or they leave me alone.

Managed to get some sleep. It was warm, but not too humid. Tessa got me up at 5 this morning, and I got started on the day.

On today’s agenda: writing, ghostwriting, grocery shopping, library, errands. Since I’m at the Small Business Expo all day tomorrow and at a farewell luncheon down in Lenox on Friday, I’m doing the Thursday/Friday errands today, along with everything else that needs to get done.

It’s supposed to cool down over the next few days, and I am glad of it. I have to dig out our small cooling units this weekend, so we are ready for the incoming summer.

Back to the page. I have a lot to get done today so I can enjoy tomorrow. That includes printing up some more business cards.

Wed. May 20, 2026: A Jumbled Day

Wednesday, May 20, 2026

Waxing Moon

Pluto Retrograde

Cloudy and warm

Happy mid-week! Hope yours is going well.

The first obstacle of the day was that I couldn’t set the Alice scene from I WILL BE DIFFERENT at the Barbizon Hotel because it hadn’t yet opened in the year I need the scene to be set in. Nor had the Allerton, another choice. So I set it at Hotel Martha Washington instead.

It’s a really fun scene between Alice, her sister Lizzie, and the practical Shirley, talking about everything from marriage to Alice’s estrangement from her father to abortion (in the 1920’s).

I have a feeling I will add several scenes in the second draft, and then do a lot of cutting, once I decide if this will be one play or two. Once I’ve done an assembly and smoothed a few things out in the second draft, I am sending it to a couple of readers for their opinions. But that’s a few months down the line. I need to stitch together the Josephine, Alice, Milly, Amanda, and Joy sections, smooth a few things over, add years as touchstones, and see where we are. I know I will have to cut characters at some point, even with double casting. But we’re not at practical, production aspects yet. We’re at character arcs and story.

I have several possibilities for what to work on during End of Play:

–a comedy set in the Barbizon hotel;

–the one-act where the first female Pinkerton, Kate Warne, helps foil an assassination attempt on Abraham Lincoln;

–“Boom Boom Boom” a one-act I envision as running about 40 minutes for 3 characters;

–finish LAUGHTER & TURPENTINE (the Playland Painters play);

–finish CONSEQUENCES (the three-hander about emotional labor).

The parameters of E-of-P is to start a play June 1 (“pens up”) and finish it by June 30 (“pens down”). So I’d rather start fresh than work on something that’s been lurching for a bit. But I also don’t like leaving work unfinished. So we will see.

But the first draft of I WILL BE DIFFERENT is officially done! After two damn years. But every project has its own rhythm, and fortunately, I didn’t have to push this one.

Now I have to do a rough assembly and start making sense of it.

My favorite town councilor got on the ballot to run for regional rep in the state government (yes, I am one of those signatures). A neighbor stopped by last week to give me information on a Democrat who’s running to represent this region in Congress, also replacing that incumbent. While I respect the work both incumbents have done over the years, those incumbents are too entrenched, and we need more fire in those jobs.

Another aside: Mark Cuban has always been exactly what he showed by appearing with That Thing. He just fooled some people with his smoke and mirrors for a little longer, that’s all.

On a happier note, I heard from my Monthology editor that she received the edits I turned around. I will know more about the schedule sometime in July.

I got off a project proposal. It was due mid-June, but I’m happy I could get it out the door now. I also finished, polished, and sent off the LOI I hemmed and hawed about, because why not be bold? Nothing ventured, and all that. The tone is definitely bolder than I usually use. It will either intrigue them, or it won’t. But if I don’t try, I can’t achieve, so it’s worth the try.

And there was the morning, because proposals and LOIs take time.

I got my ticket sorted out for WAM’s reading of AMANI in mid-June, and accepted the invitation to the Clark opening a few days before the reading.

I got tangled in details working on the ghostwriting, and then got a panicked message from them about something that needed sorting in an earlier book. So I took care of that, and I have to look at something in the next book to make sure the same issue isn’t there.

I also heard sad news that a colleague unexpectedly died about a week ago. This is someone from the theatre world, a close friend of one of my closest friends. He’s also a good deal younger than I am. It’s completely shocking.

Of course, all of that came in right before the end of the workday, which normally wouldn’t be an issue, but I had to get out the door to yoga. I was a little scattered by the time I got to the studio.

It had rained hard earlier in the afternoon, and the walk up was muggy and buggy, not my favorite. But yoga was terrific, and I trotted back home in the cooling evening.

When I got home, I found yet another bill from Berkshire Gas that makes absolutely no sense. Why have I been kicked off balanced billing when I paid their unbalanced bills supposedly on that program on time every damn month all year? Including the outrageous “settle up” bill two months ago? Why is EVERYTHING a fight with them? Why does Berkshire Gas just throw darts at numbers scrawled on the wall every month, instead of sticking to agreements? Why are the customers expected to stick to agreements, but the company can do whatever they want? Why isn’t the DPU, whose JOB it is to keep them in line, doing something? It’s not like they don’t know, I’ve been filing the paperwork with them, and I’m sure this is partially BG’s retaliation. BG also wants me to be on autopay, but I am not giving them access to my bank account so that they can pull random amounts out anytime they want. For five years, they’ve regularly proven they can’t be trusted.

I’m losing billable hours dealing with their crap, and I’m going to start invoicing both companies for it.

And why am I getting an “invitation to apply” for a job as a biohazard technician? I hardly think that my profession as a copywriter makes me qualified. Besides, I’ve made it clear to this agency that “invitation to apply” is a load of crap. Either they contact me with an offer or they leave me alone.

Managed to get some sleep. It was warm, but not too humid. Tessa got me up at 5 this morning, and I got started on the day.

On today’s agenda: writing, ghostwriting, grocery shopping, library, errands. Since I’m at the Small Business Expo all day tomorrow and at a farewell luncheon down in Lenox on Friday, I’m doing the Thursday/Friday errands today, along with everything else that needs to get done.

It’s supposed to cool down over the next few days, and I am glad of it. I have to dig out our small cooling units this weekend, so we are ready for the incoming summer.

Back to the page. I have a lot to get done today so I can enjoy tomorrow. That includes printing up some more business cards.