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Penny Has Arrived

Rose has a new sister, Penny. She’s a Labrador – Shiba Inu mix. Not sure if that makes her a Shibador or a Labranu. Either way, she’s adorable.

Sunny Disposition

A cloudy day is no match for a sunny disposition. ~William Arthur Ward

There’s an adjustment period underway.

Rose has a little sister who’s currently twice her size and likely to get even bigger.

Job #1 is getting Penny housebroken. She knows where the puppy pads are, kind of.

Also need to get her to realize that going outside is a good thing, too.

Unfortunately, it’s a sheet of ice out there, so it’s kind of confusing to her.

She’s a good sweet puppy and she’s going to fit right in.

60 Guilders

Dutch New York

Yes, I’m back in research mode again. I need to figure out what motivates Seventeenth Century Dutch settlers these days.

Not all of the Conclave members have survived from the Seventeenth Century and not all of them are Dutch.

Various members come from different centuries and decades. Their personal perspectives, goals and flaws would reflect the times in which they came of age and came to power, not to mention the dark rites that lead to full membership in this secret cabal.

Climb Back Again

It is easy to go down into Hell; night and day, the gates of dark Death stand wide; but to climb back again, to retrace one’s steps to the upper air – there’s the rub, the task. ~Virgil

Mary Christmas will seem to be a whimsical character at first, but even her first appearance in A Misfit Christmas clearly indicates that she’s not exactly merry.

At the beginning of The Sentinels series, she doesn’t realize she has a terrible secret, but she’s miserable.

She suffered at the hands of The Conclave. The abuse was so severe that she suppressed the memories to protect herself from the horror of what she was subjected to. This has the tendency to make her prickly and ornery.

At the beginning of the series, her membership in the group is a condition of her probation for events that took place over a decade before. She sees herself as a prisoner rather than a friend to the others.

Even among those who consider themselves to be her friends, she’s in a state of dread and turmoil. Having to play the superhero only aggravates her misery.

Her character arc will feature her struggle to face her terrible secret and to climb back from the depths of despair.

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I hope you’re having a lovely weekend. Certainly, ours is more joyous for the arrival of this silly puppy.