When I’m writing a book, I often lie awake at night, thinking about the next scene or mentally rewriting the last one. Yesterday I finished the first draft of The Taken Ones. Did I sleep like a baby last night? No, I stayed awake thinking about this week’s blog.
Just before Thanksgiving, I learned that my publisher had decided to move the pub date for the next Ali book to 2027, leaving me without a book for 2026. At that point my other publisher said, “If you can finish the next Beau book by the end of January, we can publish it in September, 2026.”
Guess what? It’s written, but believe me, that’s only because I’ve had my nose to the grindstone. In fact, the only time I’ve left the house in January was to attend a performance of Nine to Five in Issaquah with my daughter. There’s been no time for mani-pedis, so I’m typing this with a broken nail on one hand and a naked one on the other. Thankfully, someone else does our grocery shopping.
But being housebound for the past month has cut back on subject matter for blogging, because my contact with the outside world has been limited to what shows up in my email.
Earlier last year, my older sister, Jay Lane, passed away suddenly. On Sunday night she was participating in a family group-grope email session in her customarily witty way. On Monday morning she was found lying in her downtown Seattle condo having suffered a stroke. When surgery failed to remove the clot, she was hospitalized on hospice care. According to her medical directive she wanted no extraordinary measures, no visitors, and NO FLOWERS! Did I mention that she was somewhat opinionated? To his credit, her son, Dale, abided by all her wishes, and by the following Saturday she was gone.
By the way, shortly after Jay’s passing, Bill and I updated our wills and medical directives. Some of my readers might consider doing likewise.
Of the seven Busk kids and despite the four year age gap, Jay and I were always close and remained so into adulthood. While my first husband and I were working on the reservation and our three dogs perished in a roll-over accident, she was the one who cared enough to show up while I was grieving. When her dog, Smoky Joe, needed to be transported from Phoenix to Eugene, I was the one who handled that.
In the late sixties, we left our husbands at home and teamed up for a Europe on Five Dollars a Day trip to the UK where we did our traveling on a Brit Rail pass and hoofed it the rest of the time. On a Sunday afternoon we hiked a more than nine-mile pilgrimage back and forth between Salisbury to Stonehenge. In London we saw a stage production of The Mousetrap along with a wonderful farce called No Sex, Please,We’re British. The play may have bombed in New York, but we thought it was hilarious.
While we were kids, Jay was known as either Jeannie or Jeannette Beth, if she happened to be in trouble with our mother—which happened on numerous occasions. She dropped out of high school after her sophomore year, married, and had both her sons before she turned seventeen. Headstrong? I’ll say, but also whip smart. She never attended college and she may have obtained her high school diploma via a correspondence school, but she was a lifelong member of Mensa. (I never had the nerve to apply for Mensa. I didn’t think I was smart enough to qualify!) As for Trivial Pursuit? I finally quit playing that with her because I always lost. She knew ALL the answers.
When she landed a job as a service rep for Ma Bell in Eugene, Oregon, in the early seventies, she ended up in an office with a minimum of five co-workers with names that were all variations on a theme of Jeannie—Jeannie, Jeanette, Jean, etc. That’s when she pared her own name down to Jay and stayed that way from then on.
In 1974 when my son was born and I came close to dying in childbirth, she’s the one who came to our rescue, taking care of me, my son, and my fourteen month-old daughter. In the early eighties, as a refugee from a bad marriage and a worse divorce, where did I go looking for help? To Jay, of course. The kids and I came to Seattle and lived her Jay in downtown Seattle condos.
I was still selling life insurance during the week when I started writing, on weekdays working in the early morning hours before the kids went to school. On weekends, when I was whaling away on my dual-floppy Eagle, Jay took the kids to one bargain matinee after another.
The Sunday before last, during a family email session, we went down one of Jay’s favorite rabbit holes by coming up with as many homonyms as we could think of: need/kneed/knead; bite/byte; sink/sync. At some point in the process somebody pointed out that this was a wonderful way to remember Jay, and it was.
This morning my brother, Gary sent me a much more comprehensive list. I was going to add it to this blog, but it’s way too long. If you’re interested in seeing it, send me a note at jajance@me.com, requesting a copy of the Jay Lane Memorial Homonym List.
This week too, I heard from one of Jay’s friends from back in the 80’s. This was someone I had never met, but she had only recently learned of Jay’s passing and she sent along this photo. That’s how my sister looked when we were living together in the Denny Regrade. (By the way, does anyone still call it that or is it strictly Belltown now?)
If your version of the blog doesn’t include the photo and you want to see it, you can request a copy of that, too. Same address, jajance@me.com
I believe it’s safe to say that Jay was as smart as she was bright, and she always gnu when she was write!
And the beet goes on!
So sorry for your loss. My favorite sister passed last year just before her birthday. She was 101.
Lovely tribute to Jay, she was one dynamic person for sure. I still miss her a great deal. We visited every Sunday morning at exactly 830, usually until nine. Since I’ve known her so much of my life and type to the best family when I was so young. I called myself her sister, not SISTER but SISTA Wanda. I read your blogs every week and this keeps me in touch with a Busk family and all my memories of your family members.
Thanks again for such a beautiful tribute and picture of Jay. I can hear her laughing now.
Wonder.
What a wonderful story about your sister. She was beautiful. As always, I thank you for stirring so many good memories of my own. I will spare you those and just enjoy yours. I will email to request your homonym list. My wife loved those and what she called “spoonerisms” – somewhat because her maiden name was Spooner. Anyway, thank you for starting my Friday out so well.
Love this weeks blog. I only had one sister/sibling and I lost her in 2021. I still think of her every day. Why did I think I had seen your sister before when I saw her picture? She looks so familiar. I understand her paring her name down to Jay. I worked for a company with 8 employees and 3 of us were Diane…I became Dee and for years that is what I answered to.
Blessings to you and Bill.
I am so sorry for your loss on the passing of your sister.
My middle sis passed 10 years ago, we had been close as young adults but she moved several hours away. We kept in touch, saw each other at family gatherings and exchanged notes and cards for years.
Youngest sister and I have been estranged for several years, our thoughts and values don’t align at all. She has always lived far from Washington State so we never developed much of a relationship.
You are so lucky to have had this wonderful bond, lovely memories and what a fun pastime.
So sorry for your loss. I lost my sister in 1979 and still miss her. What a wonderful tribute to your sister. I will email you my request for your homonym list.
You have brought me so much joy with all your books, but my all time favorite is JP Beaumont. Thank you!
I’m so sorry for your loss. It’s hard losing a sister, especially when you were close.
You have given me so much pleasure with all your series, but my all time favorite is JP Beaumont. I am looking forward to reading this September.
A wonderful story about a clearly wonderful sister
What an absolutely wonderful tribute to your sister. I frequently wished I had a sister or brother as I was an only child, yet I was the only survivor of my parents 3 children.
I am a voracious reader of your books and will be purchasing your new ones. Yes, I want the homonym list.
In 1968 I also took a $5 a day trip with BritRail, and visited Stonehenge and Salisbury and many other places in England and Scotland. It also included accommodations. In London the room had a ‘geyser’ on the wall over the sink in which you had to insert a coin to get hot water. I had such a good time I did the same in 1969 when I also visited Wales. From the next year on I travelled all around the world until I married in 1980. I’ve visited every continent except Antarctica.
We, too, saw NO SEX, PLEASE, WE’RE BRITISH and loved it!
wonderful
Condolences on the loss of your sister. I just lost mine this past June. It’s hard losing someone you love. Sending hugs ?
Condolences on the loss of your sister. I just lost mine this past June. It’s hard losing someone you love. Sending hugs ?
lol ? thank you for that. Lovely retrospective on Jay, your Sister. So loving and funny.
Sincere condolences on the loss of your beloved sister. She sounds like a truly beautiful, and original, human.
I had to check the dictionary for “gnu.” Wonderful memories. I still have my sister (we’ve lost our two brothers), she lives close by, and I treasure our times together.
Bummers that we have to wait until September for a new J. A. Jance book.
So sorry for your loss. You are lucky to have had her in your life. She was obviously an interesting and smart woman! Sending lots if love yo you and your sibs.
What a beautiful tribute. I, of course, dud not know your sister, but she very much sounds like someone I could sit and listen to for hours!
I am emailing for the list! As a former educator, I am reminded of the many times I posed this exercise to my students. For them it was a game. For me, it was a sneaky way to broaden their vocabulary.
Thank you for sharing!
This is the kindest, funniest, most loving blog I have ever read.
The photo is beautiful…thank you.
Deepest condolences for your loss. She sounds like a wonderful person.
Lots of love to you and your family.
So Sorry to hear about this. Prayers to you and your family.
Condolences on the loss of your sister.
And I loved the synonyms at the end of the post. Made me laugh.
Blessings
So very sorry for your loss. You don’t mention if you have other siblings yet living.
I’m 92 have read all of your books a minimum of 3 times.
My first husband was “a dry alcoholic, the second one a wet alcoholic.” At that point I decided my judgment was faulty, I remain single. I’m the only one living of my family.
One sister and two brothers remain.
My condolences on your sister‘s passing. It’s such a blessing to have so many great memories of her.
I know all your readers feel the same as we do in wishing you happy thoughts to share with family.
Warm thoughts to you and yours, sincerely, a couple of your devoted readers
So lovely that you shared your love for your sister with us. Thank you
Judy;, what a great picture of your sister. I can definitely see the resemblance. My sincerest condolences to you and your family. I can’t imagine losing a sibling. It has got to be so very hard. But what great memories you have. Your family sounds like a hoot. It sounds like you all communicate and play games via email on a frequent basis. The homonym game is hysterical. Have a great week. I’m loving these sunny days. Go Hawks!
Such a wonderful memory for all of you. It’s very hard losing a sibling. I have lost 3 sisters and 3 brothers. I still have 2 sisters 91 & 93. We all live in different states but try to get together every summer. But when I think of them I have a special memory of each. Thank you for sharing the memory of your sister. I’m the youngest in my family. Have now lost almost all of my cousins also and now many of my nieces and nephews are in their 70s! Unbelievable. Of course there is only 5 years between me and my oldest nephew. My oldest sister was 19 years older than me. Sincere sympathy on the loss of your beautiful sister. It’s a lovely photo.
I’m so sorry for your loss. I lost my big sister January 2018. She was 79 and 9 months. She was 9 years older than me. So in another year, I’ll be the age she was when she died. There were 5 of us so I still have 1 older sister and 2 younger brothers. Now my sister is the only person alive who has known me all of my life.
When you mentioned going to Salisbury it reminded me of this fact. That is where my second favorite author resides. Mark Dawson writes many action series which I enjoy reading. However Beau has been my favorite character for many years and you are certainly my favorite author. So keep Beau working as long as you are able.
Wonderful write up about your sister, Jay. She must’ve been delightful … you were lucky to have each other.
As usual, I enjoyed your blog. I was a little surprised that nobody commented on your use of homonyms at the end of the blog. Or did they not realize? Anyway, grate job!
I am so so sorry to hear about the loss of your sister, Jay. Hugs and love to you and your family.??
Well this was a special read! I enjoy your posts with the reality sandwich that comes, the special humor boost and your grasp of the right seasoning in your books.
Thank you for having an interesting life.
Inez
JA, you are so lucky to have had Jay in your life. What nice memories you share with her!
Thanks in advance for the Jay Lane Homonym List. It’ll be fun to peruse!
Thank you for being such a dependable person. <3
Great picture…so sorry for your loss.
You two look a bit alike!
Sorry for your loss, Judy.