Musings & Thoughts for Tuesday, September 3, 2024

Late Morning, Tuesday, September 3, 2024, Madison, New Hampshire

Hi, there, Dear Readers.

It’s a sunny but cold early fall day here in my corner of eastern New Hampshire. Currently, the temperature is 64°F (18°C) under sunny conditions. According to my computer’s Weather app, it feels like 75°F (24°C), but that must be outside. Inside the house where I’ll reside till mid-October, it feels colder than that. It is a beautiful day, and the forecast calls for sunny skies and a high of 71°F (22°C).

Eighty-five years ago today, France and Great Britain declared war on Nazi Germany. Two days prior, Adolf Hitler had invaded Poland after falsely claiming that Polish forces attacked German territory on August 31, 1939. Recognizing Hitler’s breach of the Munich agreement and his annexation of Czechoslovakia, the British and French pledged to support Poland against any German aggression. They warned Berlin that if German troops were not withdrawn by September 3, war would follow.

Hitler wanted a war and was not convinced to stop his invasion once it began. He had hoped that the Allies were bluffing and was not happy to face a conflict with two of the world’s largest colonial empires. However, he projected an aura of supreme confidence and invincibility to the public, even though he later believed this illusion was a result of Germany’s early victories on the Continent between 1939 and the spring of 1941.

So, what Germany’s Fuhrer thought would be an easy and fast takeover of a weaker country ended up sparking a bigger European conflict. This eventually drew in other nations like Soviet Russia and the United States, leading to the Second World War.

Yesterday was Labor Day in the U.S., and while many people kicked back to enjoy the long weekend, I kept working. It might’ve been Monday, but I stayed focused because I’m gearing up for a big road trip back to South Florida from the Granite State around October 16. Wanting to knock out as much of the novel as I can before then, I spent the day on the last scene for Chapter 19 of Reunion: Coda.

Since Vignette IV is pretty lengthy and complex, I split it into two parts. Yesterday, I tackled the first half, and today, if all goes well, I’ll dive into the second half.

By the way, if you didn’t catch it, my friend and fellow blogger, Thomas Wikman, posted an interview with me on his blog, Leonberger Life, yesterday. We talked about why I wrote the Reunion Duology, my storytelling methods, how music fits into my stories, and why I made Jim Garraty a historian instead of, say, a journalist. You can read it here.

(By the way, if I’ve still got your attention, I highly suggest reading Thomas’s book, The Life and Times of Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle: Stories and Tips from Thirteen Years with a Leonberger. It’s a delightful and informative read, and you can find it here.)

Well, as the outro segment of Warner Bros. Loony Tunes and Merrie Melodies  cartoons puts it, “That’s all, folks!”