This is just a quick post to wish everyone a Happy New Year and if...IF you are the type to make New Year Resolutions, then please comment on what those will be.
I'm making a few changes, namely with my writing. I'm not going to use a non de plume until I get this manuscript off my table and on an editors desk. I'm not going to limit myself with the genre of writing; romance is my passion, but adventure and mayhem are my specialty. I'm not going to shy away from criticism (ahem, that means I'm taking you up on your offer, Kristen!). Best of all, I haven't had a cigarette since Christmas Eve--I'm not going to make smoking a part of my writing.
Those are my resolutions. Nothing fancy, just keeping it simple and seeing where it takes me. I'm also anxiously awaiting my new toy that will keep my writing mobile--everywhere I go--my hubster bought me the new Dell Mini 9. I'm as much a tech geek as I am a hopeless romantic. He had me at Dell :o)
Monday, December 29, 2008
Monday, December 22, 2008
Sunday Synopsis-12/21/09
This weekend wrap up was just that--wrapping! It was a hectic Saturday with the hubster at work leaving me to take our 1 year old to his first birthday party for another 1 year old at 10:00. Four hours and no nap (since he woke up at 7:30) later we made it home. Bam crashed for a two and half hour nap--yay! For those two hours I wrote. I wrote, rewrote, and edited five chapters. It was the only time I wrote for the rest of the weekend!
Saturday night we had an adult birthday party to attend. With only an hour to get ready anything and everything that could go bizarre in our house did! First, the garage door wouldn't open--the bolt that holds the pulley piece on the door flew out and ricocheted off of my Jeep. Then, while I was drying my hair, the breaker flipped and we lost power in our Master suite, bathroom, closet, and front living room where our Christmas tree was plugged in. Not knowing where the GFI for that section of the house was-flipping the breaker did nothing! I repositioned myself to finish getting ready in my son's bathroom--not Mom friendly territory!
We were able to leave thirty minutes late, still needing to stop and get drinks/food. My hubster, wearing his coiled Santa hat that looked like a Tigger reject, pranced through our neighborhood market to get the items we needed. Twenty minutes after that we were on our way to the party.
Arriving fashionlessly late, we proceeded to eat, drink, and be merry. The party was a lot of fun. We sang karaoke on the Play Station 3--definitely picking this up for a gift! We lit a fire in their outdoor pit. Best of all we took some great pictures of everyone while we had the chance. Leaving by 1:00 a.m.--we have a little one at home which means a curfew--we slept for a few hours then headed out again.
Our Sunday was non stop. With so much to do before Christmas and not enough time to do it, we spent yesterday shopping, wrapping, and hiding gifts. There's a few stocking stuff left to get, a few orders waiting to arrive, and one or two more parties to attend before the big day.
We're so blessed to have the good karma that hit us this past week, good friends to celebrate with, a fantastic family, and best of all each other. God bless, and Merry Christmas to all.
Saturday night we had an adult birthday party to attend. With only an hour to get ready anything and everything that could go bizarre in our house did! First, the garage door wouldn't open--the bolt that holds the pulley piece on the door flew out and ricocheted off of my Jeep. Then, while I was drying my hair, the breaker flipped and we lost power in our Master suite, bathroom, closet, and front living room where our Christmas tree was plugged in. Not knowing where the GFI for that section of the house was-flipping the breaker did nothing! I repositioned myself to finish getting ready in my son's bathroom--not Mom friendly territory!
We were able to leave thirty minutes late, still needing to stop and get drinks/food. My hubster, wearing his coiled Santa hat that looked like a Tigger reject, pranced through our neighborhood market to get the items we needed. Twenty minutes after that we were on our way to the party.
Arriving fashionlessly late, we proceeded to eat, drink, and be merry. The party was a lot of fun. We sang karaoke on the Play Station 3--definitely picking this up for a gift! We lit a fire in their outdoor pit. Best of all we took some great pictures of everyone while we had the chance. Leaving by 1:00 a.m.--we have a little one at home which means a curfew--we slept for a few hours then headed out again.
Our Sunday was non stop. With so much to do before Christmas and not enough time to do it, we spent yesterday shopping, wrapping, and hiding gifts. There's a few stocking stuff left to get, a few orders waiting to arrive, and one or two more parties to attend before the big day.
We're so blessed to have the good karma that hit us this past week, good friends to celebrate with, a fantastic family, and best of all each other. God bless, and Merry Christmas to all.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Tidings of Comfort and...Toys?
Christmas is about so much more than gifts and decorating; it's about the birth of Jesus, the kindness of strangers, and the celebration of life. Ha! Tell that to a kid whose Christmas list amounts to the same cost as the national debt!
Trying to save money? Trying to keep it simple this year? Trying to preserve the last bit of sanity as you stand in line with the must have toy of the year for your 10, 11, 12, etc. year old? Good luck.
This year the hubster and I are having to buy at two different ends of the age scale for our kids. Our 10 year old boy wants BMX gear, clothes (yeah, boys like clothes too if you buy the right kind), an Ipod, dirt bike, gold chain, XBox 360 (as if the regular XBox, PS 1-2-3-PSP aren't enough!) and cold hard cash. He did say he wanted samurai swords and an air soft gun (cheaper than the rest of the stuff he wants), but we're holding them in reserve pending his midterms.
Our 1 year old son doesn't have a clue what the decorations are for (besides the joy he gets out of knocking them over or pulling them off the tree), so our list for him is what we make it. Not to mention he just had his first birthday barely a week ago so the presents he got are still fun. Keeping the two celebrations (his birthday and Christmas) separate are going to be much harder as he gets older.
So here's good tidings to all. May we keep our sanity, patience, and road rage under control as we all try to survive the Christmas rush and New Year.
Trying to save money? Trying to keep it simple this year? Trying to preserve the last bit of sanity as you stand in line with the must have toy of the year for your 10, 11, 12, etc. year old? Good luck.
This year the hubster and I are having to buy at two different ends of the age scale for our kids. Our 10 year old boy wants BMX gear, clothes (yeah, boys like clothes too if you buy the right kind), an Ipod, dirt bike, gold chain, XBox 360 (as if the regular XBox, PS 1-2-3-PSP aren't enough!) and cold hard cash. He did say he wanted samurai swords and an air soft gun (cheaper than the rest of the stuff he wants), but we're holding them in reserve pending his midterms.
Our 1 year old son doesn't have a clue what the decorations are for (besides the joy he gets out of knocking them over or pulling them off the tree), so our list for him is what we make it. Not to mention he just had his first birthday barely a week ago so the presents he got are still fun. Keeping the two celebrations (his birthday and Christmas) separate are going to be much harder as he gets older.
So here's good tidings to all. May we keep our sanity, patience, and road rage under control as we all try to survive the Christmas rush and New Year.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Staple Whore Strikes Again
Just to give an example of what I deal with...on a daily basis!
The picture doesn't do it justice; the papers behind this, that are not finished, ARE ALL STAPLED! She's such a good sport, but has yet to go to her staple anonymous meetings.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Underdressed...Under Duress
This past Saturday night I atteneded a Christmas party with one of my girlfriends while the hubster hung out with her's and the all the kids. Mind you, we were only going out for a couple of hours to show face and say grace. We' were dressed somewhat nice as dark jeans, a nice shirt, and a snazzy scarf did it for me. I even wore 3" heel boots to make it a bit fancy. My friend wore black jeans, a frilly turquoise shirt, and black heels. Perfect outfits for going out.
Or so we thought! Arriving at the party we (1) almost knocked on the wrong door, (2) are carrying in a six pack each of berry flavored Smirnoff Ice and Hard Lemonade (real classy), and (3) were severely under dressed!
The hostess greeted us at the door wearing a floor length red sequined ball gown. We walked further into the home where everyone gathered around hor devours and wine...dressed in gowns! The men wore slacks, button downs with argyle sweaters or blazers, and ties!
The snazziest thing I wore was my purse that ended up in the spare bedroom with everyone else's coats and purses. The food was catered, the music was a DJ, and the atmosphere was high class. Short of running out of the house we ended up by the pool, I smoked a few, we downed a few drinks, and had a few Jello shots to shake off the embarrassment, no, anxiety perhaps.
The people were very kind, and not too many looks and whispers were directed our way. The time of night came when everyone headed indoors for the gift exchange...damn! We didn't bring gifts either. Our exit was only a screen door away. My girlfriend gathered the last couple of drinks as I tried to distract the stragglers and the DJ. They knew something was up, but at the first opportunity we bolted out the side door and ran to her car.
After a run in with the Sheriff, a few missed turns, and a few 80's songs, we made it back to her house. We ended up playing the Wii (bowling) and finishing off the beers with cookie dough and baked cookies. As for the under dressed part...well, there's always next year. We're already planning on buying our gowns when prom rolls around!
Or so we thought! Arriving at the party we (1) almost knocked on the wrong door, (2) are carrying in a six pack each of berry flavored Smirnoff Ice and Hard Lemonade (real classy), and (3) were severely under dressed!
The hostess greeted us at the door wearing a floor length red sequined ball gown. We walked further into the home where everyone gathered around hor devours and wine...dressed in gowns! The men wore slacks, button downs with argyle sweaters or blazers, and ties!
The snazziest thing I wore was my purse that ended up in the spare bedroom with everyone else's coats and purses. The food was catered, the music was a DJ, and the atmosphere was high class. Short of running out of the house we ended up by the pool, I smoked a few, we downed a few drinks, and had a few Jello shots to shake off the embarrassment, no, anxiety perhaps.
The people were very kind, and not too many looks and whispers were directed our way. The time of night came when everyone headed indoors for the gift exchange...damn! We didn't bring gifts either. Our exit was only a screen door away. My girlfriend gathered the last couple of drinks as I tried to distract the stragglers and the DJ. They knew something was up, but at the first opportunity we bolted out the side door and ran to her car.
After a run in with the Sheriff, a few missed turns, and a few 80's songs, we made it back to her house. We ended up playing the Wii (bowling) and finishing off the beers with cookie dough and baked cookies. As for the under dressed part...well, there's always next year. We're already planning on buying our gowns when prom rolls around!
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Book Review
I had the opportunity to finally finish the book Verbal Judo by George J. Thompson (Dr., PhD). The premise of the book is to learn a different way of speaking to people, but meaning the same thing. Confused? Let me give an example. If you are having a conversation with someone that you do not agree with, instead of saying "You're wrong" you say "I hear you, but..."; the words seem kind and as if you are agreeing, but in reality you are not agreeing you just hear what they are saying. It's all about mannerism. You can hear what someone is saying then go on to express your own opinion without being aggressive or belittling.
Without going into too much detail, I have had the opportunity to use Verbal Judo at work, at home, and even in my writing as I introduce a new kind of character. I also use it when I get the urge to hurl my laptop or computer through the nearest window because of something that doesn't work, or if I loose a file or connection. There are tons of examples in the book, and though the writing itself could use some work, the idea is very layman's and logical. To give this book a rating of 1 to 5 stars, I give it a 4. If anyone wants to borrow a copy let me know or you can go here to buy it.
Without going into too much detail, I have had the opportunity to use Verbal Judo at work, at home, and even in my writing as I introduce a new kind of character. I also use it when I get the urge to hurl my laptop or computer through the nearest window because of something that doesn't work, or if I loose a file or connection. There are tons of examples in the book, and though the writing itself could use some work, the idea is very layman's and logical. To give this book a rating of 1 to 5 stars, I give it a 4. If anyone wants to borrow a copy let me know or you can go here to buy it.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Do or Diet
I can't believe I'm posting this after I just posted the infamous banana pudding recipe! I'm going on a diet. It's the craziest time of year to do so, but I need to drop two sizes (20 lbs) and fast. I know what it takes to do it, I just haven't done it. So...my new motto is DO OR DIET! I'm doing both, the DO being getting off my buttocks and creating my daily 7 (Marine talk for warm-up exercises) and getting my run time back to a 22 minute 3 mile; the DIET means no more Diet Dr. Peppers and pounds of chocolate every week. I eat fairly healthy, but at odd times so I'm setting my phone to beep every couple of hours as a reminder to eat something. My replacement for diet soda is water, my replacement for chocolate is writing (GOOD ONE!), and I'm going to stop smoking. I'm not a quitter, so stopping makes it sound more feasible. I'm going out on a limb here and posting my current specs. No flak from any of you!
My current:
Height 5' 10"
Weight 163
Age 30
BMI 23.4-ish
My goal is:
Height 5' 10" (already there!)
Weight 140-145
Age 25, okay fine I'll stay at 30!
BMI Below 21
This isn't outrageous. It's exactly where I should be, and where I use to be pre-pregnancy. Friends and family say it's baby weight. Yeah, when I had a baby. I have a one year old and a 10 year old now, that excuse reached it's statute of limitations 9 months ago! The only excuse I have is laziness. This is the last I will post on the subject until I reach my goal.
DO OR DIET!
My current:
Height 5' 10"
Weight 163
Age 30
BMI 23.4-ish
My goal is:
Height 5' 10" (already there!)
Weight 140-145
Age 25, okay fine I'll stay at 30!
BMI Below 21
This isn't outrageous. It's exactly where I should be, and where I use to be pre-pregnancy. Friends and family say it's baby weight. Yeah, when I had a baby. I have a one year old and a 10 year old now, that excuse reached it's statute of limitations 9 months ago! The only excuse I have is laziness. This is the last I will post on the subject until I reach my goal.
DO OR DIET!
Thursday, December 4, 2008
To write, or not to write...
From November 1st to November 30th I have written a total of 11,672 words. My goal was 5oK for the novel in a month challenge (which I failed miserably). However, since that time I have added another 11K (+/-) to the SAME novel! I've been on a streak these past couple of weeks with adrenaline induced scenes, passionate frustration between the main characters, and two deaths in the last chapter. I have a myspace account for friends and family that I posted a portion of the story to read and they want more. I'm going to give them more. I just don't know when!
How do I juggle the holiday chaos, the two birthdays I have to throw/attend, the shopping I haven't begun, the Christmas parties that start tomorrow night through the next three weeks, not to mention my day job?
So my question is, write or not? Wait for the chaos to disappear and start fresh in January? I want to be done by mid-January so I can submit and get a response before my birthday. It's a big deal for me this time as I'm reaaaaaalllly excited about this book and think with the right editing and strong ending it will be great.
I think I'll drink, I mean THINK on it this weekend and see what I come up with!
How do I juggle the holiday chaos, the two birthdays I have to throw/attend, the shopping I haven't begun, the Christmas parties that start tomorrow night through the next three weeks, not to mention my day job?
So my question is, write or not? Wait for the chaos to disappear and start fresh in January? I want to be done by mid-January so I can submit and get a response before my birthday. It's a big deal for me this time as I'm reaaaaaalllly excited about this book and think with the right editing and strong ending it will be great.
I think I'll drink, I mean THINK on it this weekend and see what I come up with!
Monday, December 1, 2008
December 1, 2008
It's Monday, December 1, 2008. I've purchased one Christmas gift. I have two boys, a hubster, and numerous family and friends that still need gifts under the tree. Maybe I shouldn't put up a tree and pretend Christmas has already passed.
Then again, I have a few items I want for Christmas so maybe I'll suck it up and go shopping. Number one on my list is the safety fence for our pool. Our little guy started walking much sooner than we anticipated and after the unfortunate accident last year with Lou...well, we really need the fence. Number two is a jewelry box. I have a jewelry box, but the knobs keep falling off and my little one takes them! Number three on my list is a new cell phone. I'm a geek when it comes to gadgets. The new Blackberry looks heavenly, and though it's worth more than my total list combined I still want one.
What's your Christmas list look like?
Then again, I have a few items I want for Christmas so maybe I'll suck it up and go shopping. Number one on my list is the safety fence for our pool. Our little guy started walking much sooner than we anticipated and after the unfortunate accident last year with Lou...well, we really need the fence. Number two is a jewelry box. I have a jewelry box, but the knobs keep falling off and my little one takes them! Number three on my list is a new cell phone. I'm a geek when it comes to gadgets. The new Blackberry looks heavenly, and though it's worth more than my total list combined I still want one.
What's your Christmas list look like?
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