Jill’s Books – Jill Domschot

The Official Back Cover Copy

I originally posted this on Facebook and did not get any non-comedic feedback. The truth is I don’t know how to finish the last line. No, really. It’s sad but true.

Help me finish the last line of my back cover copy:

When overworked PDex driver Hector Ruedas agrees to train his maybe girlfriend Arora’s son to deliver packages to the worst residences in Roswell, New Mexico, he expects a long day, not a murder at the PDex warehouse and a missing delivery driver. The long day turns into a long week of hacked security footage, a haunted meat factory, and a gang of breakdancers in the business of black-market gadgets. With Arora acting as his secretary and an entire team of unqualified detectives from the local Catholic church – including a priest – Hector is pulled into a bizarre investigation in which the clues are heralded by local ghosts and spiritual manifestations. Funny, fast-paced, and delightfully offbeat, Delivering 2nd Chances…

…delivers up a very special workplace comedy?

…will make you sing for joy?

…will love you better than a meth prostitute?

…gives our beloved delivery driver yet another opportunity to fix Roswell’s deep problems, even if he has to get beaten up in the process?

P.S. The book will be published as soon as the book cover is done.

Peace and blessings,

Jill

This Week’s Recap

I made four videos last week and failed to post any of them. Today, I put together clips of my videos and am still debating whether I should upload. My problem — and I am not alone — is that I would prefer to simply live my life without any kind of social media. I like writing books and driving people crazy with my daily accordion practice. Also, let it be said that I may not be a perfectionist, but I should adhere to a basic standard of video lighting and mics and maybe even video editing software before I continue.

I’m going to give a recap of important points I managed to elucidate in my videos, but first I’d Iike to highlight a bit of Roswell news:

For many years, Roswell has had a skating rink. Yes, it’s true. I was surprised, too. When my children were younger, they went with friends to the skating rink for birthday parties, or just fun nights at the rink. Such nostalgia for me! I loved going to my local skate rink when I was a child and teenager. It was one of the most exciting places to be because it was open late, the DJ spun dance tunes, the lights made you glow, and there was delicious concession stand food. Well, I thought it was delicious when I was young. Cotton candy. Nachos. Licorice whips. Chili dogs. Greasy pepperoni pizza. Sodas in those small waxy cups that don’t exist anymore because everything went supersized.

When we first moved to Roswell, the local rink was known as Cheap Skates. It is now known as the Nebula Arcade and Roller Rink. That’s the name they use on Facebook, so I assume the latter is the official name. The BIG news is that they have registered as a nonprofit, and they are looking for sponsors to keep skating free for children. I honestly hope they can make a go of it. For more info, go to their Facebook page.

And back to my regularly scheduled videos:

I have been keeping a “Dearest Diary” of my musical adventures on real paper that rustles when the wind blows. In one video, I read a not very exciting piece about playing polkas and keeping up on daily vocal exercises.

Then, I launched into my difficulty playing the accordion with thumbs, since I do not use thumbs often on my button accordions. I played a few scales using my right thumb as the starting finger and ruminated on how perfectionism will prevent many people from starting on a musical instrument in the first place. If you then stop doing stuff because you can’t live up to your perfectionistic expectations, the only perfect creation you’ll end up with will be the hole you dug for your own grave.

The face I make when I screw up but know there’s a bit of earth out back.

On another video, I discovered something very important:

There are 120 bass buttons. This one with the divot is the C anchor button so that you can find the other notes!

In another video, I discussed needing the kind of map I invented for my MapWriter stories, some of which made it in this book of shorts:

I would like to have a map because I don’t know the best route to reach my goals. How do I become a better accordionist than Frankie Yankovic or Javier Ríos? How do I become a successful author? My books are already amazing, but who will buy them? If only I had an interactive map, I might know if I should continue posting videos, or instead should focus on drinking tea.

Thank you for listening.

Roswell News

Roswell just had its grand ribbon-cutting ceremony for the cultural plaza, which is just behind the county courthouse on Main Street. I was not able to go, due to other obligations, so you will have to settle for an image of the courthouse, which is clearly a sight to behold. I believe the green dome on the top is for astronomical purposes that eventually triggered the alien crash-landing, but it’s just a rumor and I have no scientific proof.

Part of the cultural plaza, found on Facebook

The new plaza is a gated venue complete with reatrooms, which means Roswell is really moving up in the world. I suspect they will host events with live music and food trucks, since that is what the ribbon-cutting event boasted. The music was provided by the Gruuv, which is a local band that has an accomplished accordion player, Alex Palomino (who also plays other instruments). I’m in awe of multi-talented people who can pick up new skills with ease.

Antigua’s restaurant is officially gone, and the new restaurant in there will be Geli’s. Geli’s used to be across town on Second Street, and I really enjoy their food. Antigua’s had a different vibe for Roswell, though, with a well-stocked bar and dishes that were a little more upscale than other local restaurants. They also often had live music, and people keep telling me one of the owners, Sal Aguilar, is a very accomplished accordion player, too. Well, it seems all my local news must involve an accordion player or two.

My news: I have none! My book, Delivering 2nd Chances is in limbo, and I haven’t finished the sequel to Order of the PenTriagon. I did play El Chubasco on one of my accordions. I dearly love that song. Just type it in Google, and you will begin to understand. Regarding Roswell, school is at the tail end of its year, summer is almost upon us, and the UFO Fest happens around the 4th of July. The Roswell Astronomy Club will be keeping their eyes peeled. Actually, that’s a real club. Generally, they search the night for comets and other phenomena, but who knows?

At Long Last

When our sacristan and music director was hired on at the church, we promised him the church had a slow season. As time went on, he asked us with desperation filling his eyes, “When???!!!” The truth is, the Catholic church has something for every season, and constants such as baptisms, funerals, and the occasional wedding. There are youth groups and VBS programs and just when you think you’re going to get a break, the new religious education year starts once again.

But still, I’m breathing a big sigh at the moment (while doing my weekly laundry at the relaxing laundromat) because we just made it through the Confirmation Mass, which officially ends much of the stress for everyone in the office — not 100%, as we still have a couple more religious education classes, with an end-of-year Mass, and then will come May crownings. Crowning the Mary statues are happy events because they involve flowers, many pretty, colorful flowers.

Because I was a part-time catechist last year for the adult religious education program, I was invited to the catechist dinner last night. It was peaceful, the relief of the priest evident. We had this dinner at a nearby restaurant, Los Cerritos. Los Cerritos might be the first restaurant I went to in Roswell…unless you count visiting here when my now twenty-two-year-old daughter was a baby. Back then, we went to a local place called Farley’s, and I have zero recollection of the food eaten. Maybe pizza. These were the days before we’d discovered the kids had allergies to wheat — not gluten intolerance or celiac, but actual allergies in the old-fashioned sense. For example, I accidentally ingested a wheat host at the Confirmation Mass the other night and had an instant asthma attack and developed hives on my knees of all the places. It was ridiculous. I was only there to sing, and my priest had prepared a low-gluten host for me. But instead of my priest, the bishop was suddenly in front of me holding out a host– and what was I to do?

Anyway, that diversion aside, Los Cerritos was the first restaurant I experienced of Roswell in the more recent past ten or eleven years instead of twenty-plus. I know what to eat there that doesn’t bother me, and I order it every time, the camarones a la diabla. If you don’t like spicy food, I don’t recommend this dish, especially at this restaurant. I’m addicted to the thrill of endorphins produced by the heat. I also like that it’s served with rice and a simple salad.

Don’t take me wrong; life has a way of throwing multiple stressors your way just when you think you can relax with a cold drink and spicy shrimp. I already know of some of these that are coming my way. Others are unknown, and for good reason. Humans might want to give up if they knew what was headed their way. In fact, Roswell has had a series of deadly car accidents lately. When I was driving to the laundromat, I passed an accident involving a motorcycle that was crushed. That can’t be good. One accident in the past few months was caused by the sheer recklessness of someone I know, and he injured numerous people, killing one. Talk about stress.

God protect us when we drive or consider being aggressive or reckless on the road.

Another diversion aside, this is the post in which I encourage you not to take breaks for granted. Rest and relax when you can because you can’t look forward to a nebulous future that doesn’t exist, in which you will finally be caught up and can enjoy the joyous riot of flowers surrounding Mary. You have to take that moment now. There are no guarantees on life. In fact, evwn though I like to believe I will publish my next book soon, the Amazon empire could come crumbling down, leaving self-publishers lacking a good way to publish and get their works out there without spending even more money than they’ve already spent.

Peace out. Currently, I’m enjoying one of my favorite songs by one of my favorite singers: Concédeme by El Coyote. By the way, I’m pretty sure all my playlists on Spotify are public and accessible if you’re interested: My liked songs. Spotify called my list Banda as a default (which I did not change), but it is equal parts Norteño.

Help Me Write a Book Blurb

So, I’m lazy when it comes to the banal parts of life. I prefer the mysteries of the world. Uncharted territory — books yet to be written. Summaries of written books? Yikes!

On the About page, I posted a short blurb AI had come up with for my book (yes, dreaded AI; this is what AI is actually good at, not writing new creative works!) Here is the shorter one:

Hector Ruedas is a delivery driver, not a detective. Unfortunately, the universe in Roswell disagrees.

Between a trainee with illegal gadgets, a boss who may or may not be a witch, a murdered coworker, and a warehouse that keeps producing ghosts instead of answers, Hector finds himself piecing together a conspiracy that spans black‑market tech, street gangs, and the afterlife itself.

Delivering 2nd Chances is a paranormal mystery packed with sharp dialogue, chaotic investigations, and a reluctant hero who just wanted to finish his route—before the dead started asking for help.

A longer AI version, which I find intriguing and might be able to work with is this:

Delivering goods is supposed to be simple. Hector Ruedas’ job never is.

Hector is a middle‑aged PDex delivery driver with a short fuse, a soft heart, and a bad habit of stumbling into trouble. On what should have been a routine training day with nineteen‑year‑old Kevin Smart—a gadget‑obsessed trainee with secrets of his own—Hector instead finds himself navigating vicious dogs, hostile customers, breakdancing gangs, and a warehouse that just became a crime scene.

When a coworker is murdered, another vanishes, and security footage is mysteriously erased, Hector’s unofficial detective instincts kick in. As the investigation widens, so do the questions: Why are delivery trucks linked to black‑market tech and performance‑enhancing drugs? Who is hacking surveillance systems across town? And why do ghosts—very specific, very persistent ghosts—keep pointing at cameras and demanding justice?

With the help of a sharp‑witted church secretary, a reluctant trainee, an exorcist priest, and a growing cast of unlikely allies, Hector is pulled into a case that blurs the line between the supernatural and the criminal, the sacred and the absurd.

Part mystery, part paranormal noir, and part workplace comedy, Delivering 2nd Chances is a fast‑paced, character‑driven story about grief, loyalty, and what happens when the truth refuses to stay buried—even if it has to haunt you to be heard.

What do you think? Which do you prefer? I might try my hand at writing my own now. In the past, I’ve had input from others when it came to writing my blurbs. Now that I’ve lost contact with many of writing friends, at least to the extent that I would ask them for help, I’m finding myself clutching at straws. That is what I think of AI help. Clutching at straws. It seems like a lot of fun, but it loses fascination in short order when you can see its cracks. Do you remember Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? They had specific tests they ran to detect whether a “human” was not. There are definitely tells with our AI programs.

This is a little off the subject, but I’ve been obsessively watching AI created Studio Ghibli inspired videos on YouTube. They are clearly human directed videos that people are putting together using AI software. In other words, there is human creativity involved, just as in the character images I created here. But there are weird little tells that they are AI (just look at the numbering on Wilford’s measuring tape). Sometimes, you can’t force AI to replicate a room you just dictated in detail that it would create, and sometimes, it does wonky things like adding extra stoves or moving around objects in the room. I like these videos because they are soothing and have backgrounds with lo-fi piano music and sounds of rain and food boiling and sizzling. Also, the details are very exact and use intense color and focus. Some of the creators seem to be newer at it than others, with weird jumps to new scenes when one scene has gone awry. Some are seamless.

Anyway, I thought it would be fun to make videos like that, but also very frustrating, knowing how hard it is for AI programs to fully comply with instructions. Of course, humans have difficulty with this, too, but a human will fail in human ways. E.g., a human might animate a character putting food in a grocery cart and forget something from the grocery list. AI will put anomalies in the cart, like a carton of McDonald’s French fries. Who knew you could pick up such items off the grocery store shelf (British English was probably the default language choice)?

Compass Roses

There’s something beautiful and mysterious about compass roses. They play a significant role in the upcoming book, Delivering 2nd Chances. However, they are used as a crude graffiti tag, thereby reducing their beauty and overall significance. That’s what happens when an unruly breakdancer named Zed gets a hold of someone else’s design and a few cans of spraypaint.

Maps also hold a fascination, at least for me, that is no doubt lost to the current generation that has never been made to search through atlases for specific geographic highlights. Or maybe they did have to. My children did in their homeschool; there was an entire subject and books of maps devoted to the study. Still, I believe my original assertion that most of the joy has been lost due to GPS telling us where to go so that we may arrive at our destination in good time.

I appreciate GPS. It does reduce a certain kind of stress that we all used to have when given verbal or written instructions on how to arrive at a house, business, or landmark. Within an advanced metropolis, you might have been given directions involving merging into a lane in order to make a right and cross a bridge because if you didn’t do so, you would remain on the wrong side of the river. These instructions might have also involved cardinal directions, which meant you had to have visual landmarks to orient yourself by. The mountains or the ocean or the river might have been your orientation point–mountains naturally being the most visible of these at any given time.

In less advanced metropolises, such as Socorro, New Mexico, directions became a bit more bizarre. In the early days of living there, there were few street signs to go by, although M Mountain was to the west and the Rio Grande valley to the east. The freeway ran north to south parallel to the main drag of town, California Street. These were important directions to know. My directions for one house I lived in was to drive west toward M Mountain. When the paved road ends, take a right hand turn three dirt roads down. There is a large, ugly pine tree in my front yard, just past the empty lot.

Now that I live in Roswell, there isn’t a prominent mountain or interstate to orient oneself by. Instead, one tends to consider the Walmart being on the far north side of town, while the airport is on the far south of town. The airport is not actually in Roswell proper, but it feels like it is because of its location near the community college. Main Street runs north to south, while Walmart is to the west of Main and the mall, across from Walmart, is to the east. I’ve described Roswell before as being one long alien landing pad because it’s a long town in the middle of grasslands. If you fly out of Roswell, you can see this visually. It can also be seen from a tall building, of which, there only a few.

The Petroleum Building is one such that pretends to be tall. When they were renovating, I walked in and climbed the stairs and looked down at the green swath in the middle of bare yellow grasslands that is Roswell. It helped me appreciate this little town. I know I’ve written about this before, maybe even in my “I ❤ Roswell” post. I don’t know; I just know it was a turning point for viewing this once hated place in a new light. I wanted my beautiful mesas and mountains and desert scape with jackrabbits and marigolds and cactus blooms back.

This post was brought to you by my recent editing changes in my book. I hope you have enjoyed this little talk about directions. If you need directions somewhere, I’m more likely these days to give you cardinal directions rather than tell you to take a left at the large stump by the chicken coop where Our Lady graces one corner and holds birds in her arms. That last was a real physical detail of Socorro; it still is. Drive past Our Lady of the Chickens, I used to say. Eventually, you will find my house. Or not. Once upon a time, I didn’t have a cellphone and neither did many other people. Calling and asking for help was not an option. Find a burned-out trailer, knock on the door, and hope it’s a meth-head instead of a zombie who answers. That was your best bet for finding your way. In those days.

Roswell in the Rain

It’s been cloudy all day, and everyone seems to be in a hostile mood. That’s what happens when New Mexicans are starved of the sun. They also use it as an excuse to skip work or school if that’s an option. Let’s be honest: I call this a Roswell journal, but I have lost the plot on what is going on around town. I got nothing.

Actually, I do: the Community Little Theater is running Jeeves in Bloom on the ~~11th~~, ~~12th~~,* 17th, 18th and 19th of April at 7:30 PM. I will probably go. Not only do I love theater, but I love Wodehouse’s comedy. He is one of my comic inspirations. Just wait until my next book if you want to experience all the bizarre hijinx my characters will become involved in. Meanwhile, read Jeeves and Wooster stories. I’m not really aligning myself with the master comedy author. Yes, I am, because I’m full of contradictions today. Yes. No. Okay, whatever. I’m hostile because it’s cloudy and I’m tired, and even being at the laundromat isn’t fixing my mood.

*Yes, I started this post at around 2 PM yesterday but had evening plans and was not able to finish it…until late Sunday evening. That is, I simply chopped the unfinished last two paragraphs of the post and decided to leave it here. Finis.