Completely selfish post again

A good friend gave me a story idea for the Fort Worth Weekly, for whom I wrote for 18 years. Was let go when the pandemic hit and the paper was downsized. This is what I wrote to him to explain my circumstances:

Do not have an outlet for journalism and an too old to send queries about. I have a million ideas but I cannot work for the money offered, and the Fort Worth Weekly let me go more than a year ago. So I've just been in and out of hospital, had several small surgeries and a couple of huge issues where I was in ICU for several days at a time. I am nearly finished a musical -- my first theatrical piece in 52 years  -- which I hope will provide for my kids when I'm gone, have a new small book of stories coming out before October, a cookbook nearly done and a 40 day boat trip in the Amazon scheduled for Jan/Feb. Boat deposit paid. Have $15 grand for it, need $30 grand more, so it is not a guaranteed thing.

    So I am staying busy with good work. Just wish this freaking sickness in me and in society and in our cumulative souls would evaporate overnight.

    To use Tom Waits: Working hard, hardly working, if you know what I mean...

Gor