Watch Out For The Raiders

[madwriter]

PROGRESS REPORT FOR 10/21/11

New Words: 1550 on Chapter 1 ("Those Who Came First") Section 2 ("The Dancing Spirits") of Arizona. The Nahua-in-exile make ends meet by turning mercenary, but their raids result in an unexpected retaliation.

Total Words: 20250.

Reason For Stopping: I'd actually left some story and research notes where I couldn't get to them, and had to stop until they were reacquired.

Book Year: 941 B.C.

Historical Stretching: This is only Maybe A Stretch in that I place the Yaqui and Opata in their traditional Sonoran homeland, just 3,000 years ago. This is possible, but so far I haven't run across any sources--either archaeological or from Yaqui or Opata lore--to confirm or deny my literary assertion.

Mammalian Assistance: Vegas manned catted his usual guard post.

Exercise: A total of two-plus miles of walking: Home to local post office, post office to a half-walk around campus, and then from campus to home.

Stimulants: Dr. Pepper.

Today's Opening Passage: Winter was nearly upon them; even Yiska’s his own family had barely eaten in recent memory. These people, the Yoreme hunters of Sonora, were offering food and shelter for the winter in exchange for helping to defend their villages—and more immediately, pursue eastern raiders to their hidden enclaves scattered through the high walls and thick pine-oak forests of the Sierra Madres. The raids had been quick and killed only a few of the Yoreme, but a couple dozen of their women and girls had already been kidnapped. The Yoreme could track as well as Yiska, but were too few. With Yiska’s numbers they would have enough to settle the raiders once and for all.

Darling Du Jour: Nothing springs out at me.

Non-Research / Review Books In Progress: Michener.