tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22865613220498563872024-03-05T13:46:24.805-08:00Faerie Book LoftSunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.comBlogger307125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-78574621849980652522018-08-26T14:13:00.000-07:002018-08-26T14:13:01.208-07:00Books written in first person<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0FrAsQQVGrwvtjcykgHfrEKu-BvNmwzRARJZwsGemIiNWcf99kjNewOQ5Z52LSrPDGh0F6NEd-s5WtMoboU9lD9xXTHJkVmATE3tzBzU_apkk5iV3jZb_ghd2Co_QQfeDXjT5hFYy2-Y/s1600/book12.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="80" data-original-width="105" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0FrAsQQVGrwvtjcykgHfrEKu-BvNmwzRARJZwsGemIiNWcf99kjNewOQ5Z52LSrPDGh0F6NEd-s5WtMoboU9lD9xXTHJkVmATE3tzBzU_apkk5iV3jZb_ghd2Co_QQfeDXjT5hFYy2-Y/s1600/book12.gif" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #76a5af; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<span style="color: #76a5af; font-size: large;">Lately, besides some thrillers by Stephen King, I’ve been
reading some books written in first person point-of-view.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m doing this because my mystery series WIP
is written in first person point-of-view.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’m hoping to get a better understanding so this is going to be a series
worth reading when I eventually get the books published.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m working on rewrites and not satisfied
enough yet to send the first book to the gal who graciously agreed to read it
for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope she’s still up to it when
I get the job finished.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #76a5af; font-size: large;">I’ve learned that it’s okay to have several people’s point-of-view in the books, which is a good thing because I thought I may be
overdoing it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The books by Paula Hawkins
are wonderful and written in first person with multiple narrators.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Has anyone read <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Girl on a Train</i> or <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Into the
Water</i>?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She gets a bit carried away
with all the narrators in the latter book.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I think this is why she includes a directory of characters in the front
of the book.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is something to keep
in mind as I do rewrites.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #76a5af; font-size: large;">Writing in first person point-of-view is way more difficult
than third person, but it can be done.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
books mentioned above are best sellers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #76a5af; font-size: large;">My problem is never my imagination, or simply not wanting to
write.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sadly, its money issues that
plaque me the most, so I find myself constantly working.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve changed jobs and love it where I am now
that I finally have day shift.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Night
shifts were a killer for me due to some health issues.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All the cleaning at night is best left for
the younger generation of workers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #76a5af; font-size: large;">Now due to the fact I live in the desert, which has months
of triple digits in the summer, many of the residents leave town for cooler
places.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This issue has led to a cut in
hours at my present job, so I’m now looking for a second part-time job to fill
the gap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hours will eventually increase
at my first part-time job, but not for a while and, meanwhile, as we all know,
bills still come in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve set goals for
myself to get certain bills paid off by a certain date.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is an absolute must, so I plan on
working two jobs for at least six months.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #76a5af; font-size: large;">I do fully intend to keep rewriting my book during this time
and hope I’ll have some energy left to do so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Thank you all for bearing with me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’ll need beta readers too eventually.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If anyone knows of someone, let me know.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<br />Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-27475025469254359142016-11-02T21:07:00.003-07:002016-11-02T21:07:47.427-07:00Is anyone out there doing NaNo?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAirC8wYP476hxvtsTO7bDvb__eaAevLd1XDkZB6KZAYdxfNw5ePMQDxZip_Bq-wV-Pg2fjGQ0PNuvgD1upJ05qJwXDdn1qrxKLFOKCyOcQMcmH2FDgey3I2drGlBZQlIJlcOWOhzOpt8/s1600/NaNoWriMo_2016_WebBanner_Participant.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="118" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAirC8wYP476hxvtsTO7bDvb__eaAevLd1XDkZB6KZAYdxfNw5ePMQDxZip_Bq-wV-Pg2fjGQ0PNuvgD1upJ05qJwXDdn1qrxKLFOKCyOcQMcmH2FDgey3I2drGlBZQlIJlcOWOhzOpt8/s320/NaNoWriMo_2016_WebBanner_Participant.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">I can’t turn down a challenge, it seems, so I’m doing it
again this year. This is year five for
me. Maybe this will get me back into the
habit and I’ll get back to book one in my mystery series that I still need to
rewrite. I’ve been a naughty girl on
that. I can’t seem to keep my seat in
this chair for long lately.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">I still figure I must be half nuts to take this on with the
holiday season upon us. I also work now
so don’t have a lot of free time. If I
can make it through this month, I’m hoping I’ll be back in the writing daily
habit and can finish book one as mentioned above. I hate to say I started this task at least
two years ago, possibly longer. That’s
terrible, isn’t it?</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">Anyway, I know my posting has been lax here lately. I haven’t had anything to write about writing
that may be useful to any of you. If
anyone is doing NaNo this month, feel free to use this blog as a forum for
NaNo, if you wish.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">You can list word counts, ask questions and give advice. I hope there are still enough people
following this blog that you can get your answers or encouragement from fellow
writers. I welcome all thoughts, advice
and support from any of you who want to take time to give it.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">Thank you and good luck to all. </span> </div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-12386013825566177912016-10-04T13:11:00.002-07:002016-10-04T13:11:38.140-07:00Review for The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins<br />
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<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">A sad tale with a bit of redemption in the end</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">3 stars</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjr-HIgxLpB1DivCCGxNBwJy-cFbINB9wttDT8OoKoT3TbDwPPUY-mogLpgnJfMB495IJbU51Y7hyFHrhThOi-wJopgeP73snk5Hwo1aGzbfuzzTn_7teoUTChFaIqktMY9cSXsbQGWaA/s1600/SCREENSHOT+-+The+Girl+on+the+Train+-+CR+RS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjr-HIgxLpB1DivCCGxNBwJy-cFbINB9wttDT8OoKoT3TbDwPPUY-mogLpgnJfMB495IJbU51Y7hyFHrhThOi-wJopgeP73snk5Hwo1aGzbfuzzTn_7teoUTChFaIqktMY9cSXsbQGWaA/s320/SCREENSHOT+-+The+Girl+on+the+Train+-+CR+RS.jpg" width="205" /></a></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">I read this book because it was a novel written in first
person. The story is narrated by three
women, each with a past and something to hide.
The main narrator is Rachel, an alcoholic who is barren, fat, and feels
very insecure and worthless. Her husband
divorces her and she loses her job, but keeps this job loss a secret for half
of the novel. She’s too ashamed to admit that she was fired for consistently
being drunk on the job, so she takes the train to work everyday as she lives in her dreamworld.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">A lot of “in your head” talking goes on in this story and
especially on the train. Rachel can view
her old house and neighborhood from the window and watch her husband and his
new wife and child on the balcony. She’s
upset that they live in her house and have the family she always wanted. She also watches another house a few doors
away and imagines the happy life that couple have.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">Rachel becomes obsessed with a pile of discarded clothes
next to the railroad tracks and then reads in the paper about a girl who goes
missing off the street of her old neighborhood.
She's lonely and has no life of her own. She drowns all her
pain through various alcoholic beverages daily.
But Rachel's interest is perked when she reads about the disappearance. She emerges herself in this unfolding story as the police investigate
the vanishing of the girl from the happy couple who live a few doors down from her old house. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">Rachel so desperately
wants to fit in and feel needed that she lies to get close to the husband of
the missing girl. As we all know lies eventually
catch up with us. But Rachel isn’t the
only one lying throughout this book.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">There are lots of underlying factors in this story of love,
lies, divorce, jealousy, lust, betrayal and fear. At first I found it a bit hard to get into
this book because of all the internal narration going on in the heads of
Rachel, Anna and Megan. There’s very
little dialogue.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">Rachel finds herself in many wrong places at the wrong time. The fact she doesn’t remember a lot of things because she was drunk eats
away at her as she tries to figure out what really happened.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">In the last seventy five pages, the story really starts
coming together with a lot of the blanks filled in. I enjoyed this part the best. I know this book was made into a movie. Perhaps the movie will be better than the
book this time. Usually books are always
better, but I guess I got the message that Rachel was a lonely drunk trying to
find a way to fit in and be happy early on in the story. </span>Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-82444762883892589922016-09-04T03:30:00.000-07:002016-09-04T03:30:04.630-07:00Teaching myself as I go<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr2cLiqehYqVgXWlP6K9kjlDEoOp1RrluV-RYYHACFFGArZOIwcMSlSFMwWsf0g6q5jsZWetPuvzNNtOujfRI_GCE4GOkpQI3pTRP6SmEJ7WpP7dm7gWoTjMvlymglATmAKTzKcMuKO9Q/s1600/do-it-right.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr2cLiqehYqVgXWlP6K9kjlDEoOp1RrluV-RYYHACFFGArZOIwcMSlSFMwWsf0g6q5jsZWetPuvzNNtOujfRI_GCE4GOkpQI3pTRP6SmEJ7WpP7dm7gWoTjMvlymglATmAKTzKcMuKO9Q/s320/do-it-right.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #674ea7;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;">Lately I’ve been reading a lot of first person novels. I’m writing my mystery series in first person
and think this exercise may be helpful.
Sometimes I second guess myself though and think I should change it all
to third person, although I like getting into one person’s head and going with
it. I don’t know if this will be a smart
move or not.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;">It seems every first person novel I read is entirely
different from the last one. I wonder if
this is right or not. I have come to the
realization that having more then four-five viewpoints are too many for a first
person story. So now it’s back to the
drawing board for those extra people’s roles in the story. I need to work that in some other way,
perhaps though dialogue with a more major character.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQsjPh7drWmpXpmONxS3cPxlGkURVtE4MwcqRfeBDNztfQ1V_-EzX8Hoih8F5Tj9yX9XQrlB-oPXY3slqCn6r6v7To_NfVEVniI15YLwn_pK26sE-ACKc5aatdUCkfaAncoVslaMn4ye4/s1600/passive.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQsjPh7drWmpXpmONxS3cPxlGkURVtE4MwcqRfeBDNztfQ1V_-EzX8Hoih8F5Tj9yX9XQrlB-oPXY3slqCn6r6v7To_NfVEVniI15YLwn_pK26sE-ACKc5aatdUCkfaAncoVslaMn4ye4/s1600/passive.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;">I’m a very long winded person, come story or real life, so
this is very hard for me to do – cut things back to the bare minimum. I’m working on it and sometimes this entails
beating my head on the wall. Eventually,
I’ll come up with a story worth reading, I hope.</span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-21963395340883372972016-08-31T15:18:00.004-07:002016-08-31T15:18:56.238-07:00Here’s something different<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #e06666; font-size: large;">Recently, I ran across some nice photo writing prompts, so I
thought I’d share one of those today.
Yes, I know I should be working on my novel rewrite, but I’ve been
working so many hours for a part-time job that’s its unbelievable. I think things will be slowing down soon, for
a while, and I’ll get back to it.
Meanwhile, if you’d like something fun to play with see the prompt
below.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvIIx4ispKM-Xv4cI-W8Z2gJVSAt6TTMeERH2xa5hIQOHMahdg73068ciBSrIH5RziMAdXgka0anIBa4eHcgqyJjAWNoHOD1QrIeoAMiodNNL7JtGPaNRXGF-iOF7YpThHVzAFPD6oCjE/s1600/Writing+Prompt+-+house-001.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvIIx4ispKM-Xv4cI-W8Z2gJVSAt6TTMeERH2xa5hIQOHMahdg73068ciBSrIH5RziMAdXgka0anIBa4eHcgqyJjAWNoHOD1QrIeoAMiodNNL7JtGPaNRXGF-iOF7YpThHVzAFPD6oCjE/s400/Writing+Prompt+-+house-001.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-38568577871612086962016-08-06T16:18:00.000-07:002016-08-06T16:18:37.959-07:00Readers Live Longer??<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoDmV2Nh46LK9Vx6sjItzWFKV9KgeH1-ZoC4tik8Xgp2jItU_3_qUoILw4_M87uN5PnCPaILVBmXdLyuBqAUFrnlu6RDmohyHeV5oNVyhzL8CSyfs0d4srzEtf1PZEgYA26gGtUT93cxc/s1600/wellbook-tmagArticle+-+by+Bryan+Thomas+for+the+New+York+Times.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoDmV2Nh46LK9Vx6sjItzWFKV9KgeH1-ZoC4tik8Xgp2jItU_3_qUoILw4_M87uN5PnCPaILVBmXdLyuBqAUFrnlu6RDmohyHeV5oNVyhzL8CSyfs0d4srzEtf1PZEgYA26gGtUT93cxc/s320/wellbook-tmagArticle+-+by+Bryan+Thomas+for+the+New+York+Times.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Photo by Bryan Thomas for the New York Times</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">This is a fascinating study about readers versus
non-readers. This appeared in the New
York Times on August 3<sup>rd</sup>. You
can read their article by <a href="http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/08/03/read-books-live-longer/?_r=1" target="_blank">clicking here</a>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Over 3,650 people over age fifty participated in this study
done by <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Yale</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">University</st1:placetype></st1:place>. This group was split into three groups, those
that didn’t read books at all, those who read three-and-a-half hours a week and
those that read more than that.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">The study was adjusted to include factors such as age, race,
self-reported health, employment, marital status, etc. Age for the three-and-a-half hour a week
group increased lifespan by 17 percent while those that read more than that
increased by 23 percent. Book readers
live an average of about two years longer than non-readers.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><st1:city w:st="on">Reading</st1:city>
through newspapers and magazines also saw some benefit, but not as much as book
readers. Maybe one uses more cognitive
ability while reading books, which, of course, helps your brain stay younger
longer. This study was published in
<a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953616303689" target="_blank">Social Science and Medicine</a>. If you’d
like to read the article about the study, click the link above.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Now drag out those books and start reading.</span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-28998105266232636332016-07-09T21:47:00.001-07:002016-07-09T21:47:27.632-07:00Taking a short break<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-size: large;">I’ll be having cataract surgery on both eyes and will be
taking a break until the end of July.
Please bear with me. I’ll try to
get back to regular posting after that.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
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<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-size: large;">Thanks for reading. I
hope your summer is going great!</span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-39856147196171097912016-07-03T03:30:00.000-07:002016-07-03T03:30:19.527-07:00Happy July Fourth<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirM3nP16a20UR3NTnfQraiPjc9ilgk4cNNSmGgfX0Sc_-qKafi7Nqy3RLlw3-C_c0fRvRdZ4tsqh0fDg605Wwlatmf_gba9ObXnAnonx0Wq8hLeMdQpiSXBluBRMX59PvDqBe8ovoiISo/s1600/351+-+Statue+of+Liberty+-+Fireworks+-+Isis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="249" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirM3nP16a20UR3NTnfQraiPjc9ilgk4cNNSmGgfX0Sc_-qKafi7Nqy3RLlw3-C_c0fRvRdZ4tsqh0fDg605Wwlatmf_gba9ObXnAnonx0Wq8hLeMdQpiSXBluBRMX59PvDqBe8ovoiISo/s320/351+-+Statue+of+Liberty+-+Fireworks+-+Isis.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">I know I’ve been bad about posting here lately. Hopefully, I can change all that soon. The problem is many things, but mostly a lack
of time to research and post anything worthwhile to read.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">I wanted to wish all of you a Happy July Fourth. It’s bittersweet here with that being the
death dates of my father in 1980 and my husband’s father last year. It’s way to hot to even enjoy a barbecue
outside in the desert. Because of that,
we’ll be cooking indoors as usual.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Everyone be safe out there and have a happy day with
family and friends.</span>Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-21258787842205352332016-03-06T03:30:00.000-08:002016-03-06T03:30:00.284-08:00Another writer gone, but not forgotten<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNCPcU-AKwiOLPZwxl7xBRZabfH1N6-JGHz0uDrkrBMPn8RYMXGLMWa6V-TnYGvACBEseLgroyBA-ZMBVS2DEx7g96QHSvYXc2jMuXf3eVRKgbXvb9Czt0vCABAleGF5Atc4fTjdUZjC4/s1600/0305%252520pat%252520conroy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNCPcU-AKwiOLPZwxl7xBRZabfH1N6-JGHz0uDrkrBMPn8RYMXGLMWa6V-TnYGvACBEseLgroyBA-ZMBVS2DEx7g96QHSvYXc2jMuXf3eVRKgbXvb9Czt0vCABAleGF5Atc4fTjdUZjC4/s320/0305%252520pat%252520conroy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #8e7cc3;">Pat Conroy</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #8e7cc3;">10-26-1945 - 3-4-2016</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #8e7cc3;">RIP</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="color: #8e7cc3; font-size: large;">We lost another author and a good one, Pat Conroy. He was the author of the <i>Prince of Tides</i> and other books that were made into movies. I’m sure some of you saw some of his films, <i>The Great Santini</i> and <i>Conrack</i>,<i> </i>or perhaps read his books.
The movie for <i>Conrack</i> was
titled <i>The</i> <i>Water is Wide</i> and was about teaching poor children on the isolated <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Daufiskie</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Island</st1:placetype></st1:place>, not far from the resort of Hilton
Head where the rich lived. Mr. Conroy
won a National Endowment for the Arts award for this book in 1972.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #8e7cc3; font-size: large;">The movie, <i>Prince of
Tides,</i> also won him an Academy Award nomination in 1991.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #8e7cc3; font-size: large;">Conroy lived many places during his life, but called <st1:state w:st="on">South Carolina</st1:state> home
where he was born on October 26, 1945, the oldest of seven children. The family moved extensively during his
childhood because his dad was an aviator in the military. He flew fighter planes and was very hard on
Pat while he was growing up. He made him
attend the Citadel, which was the last thing he wanted to do, but he avoided
the draft and wrote a blog at that time about being an anti-war activist. He saw eight of his Citadel friends killed in
the Vietnam War. He said “they walked
off the stage and directly into the Vietnam War.”</span></div>
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<span style="color: #8e7cc3; font-size: large;">Pat Conroy’s memoir, <i>The
Death of Santini</i>, reflects on the struggles between him and his father. After the movie, <i>The Great Santini</i>, came out his father claimed responsibility for
boosting the career of Robert Duvall, the main character. Duvall had already starred in the “Godfather”
movies so this wasn’t entirely true, but gives one a sense of what a
controlling man his father was. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #8e7cc3; font-size: large;">Later the book did help to achieve peace between father and
son.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #8e7cc3; font-size: large;">The author was married three times and leaves behind two
daughters. He battled a number of health
problems including diabetes, high blood pressure and a failing liver. During his life, he suffered from depression, divorce, back
surgery and the suicide of a younger brother.
But he succumbed to pancreatic cancer on Friday, March 4 2016. He will be missed.</span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-29750751338805249052016-03-02T14:47:00.002-08:002016-03-02T15:36:06.758-08:00Read Across America<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #741b47; font-size: large;">It’s Read Across America day and also the birthday of Dr.
Seuss, children’s writer and illustrator.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOGuLeg6fTpFa1ldE8zLNdI3UgxzaaLlZPSPTWbSw2sSoWlsuipu07TQrvyl3k-zJON5TjhB7FxtGHv9_ZiPl2jkVzZxRwXWx59VX3tSrI8pPKFW3JvvqC_SLRobCMrto6hgfyT2khfmo/s1600/Dr+Suess+BD.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOGuLeg6fTpFa1ldE8zLNdI3UgxzaaLlZPSPTWbSw2sSoWlsuipu07TQrvyl3k-zJON5TjhB7FxtGHv9_ZiPl2jkVzZxRwXWx59VX3tSrI8pPKFW3JvvqC_SLRobCMrto6hgfyT2khfmo/s320/Dr+Suess+BD.png" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-size: large;">It’s nice to have a day devoted to reading, but we should
all read something everyday. You’re
never too old to read, whether it’s for fun or research. I’m thankful I learned to read because there
are many people in the world who’ve never had the chance to learn to read, or
to write.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9dBc65bUddYnBivKTUB0hY5VBSrK_34rLzFdtBAPCLqRO4C9TW6BeQBiDrTobPfmPAuaGYCMXV3f-5ylTdLILtg80r-HSSE5NtX6cKjiHiWtHkzUdiwE_NP4C6a2FpBMJDmthnXssAfI/s1600/23-motivational-quotes-for-authors-by-authors-14-638.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9dBc65bUddYnBivKTUB0hY5VBSrK_34rLzFdtBAPCLqRO4C9TW6BeQBiDrTobPfmPAuaGYCMXV3f-5ylTdLILtg80r-HSSE5NtX6cKjiHiWtHkzUdiwE_NP4C6a2FpBMJDmthnXssAfI/s320/23-motivational-quotes-for-authors-by-authors-14-638.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-size: large;">Dr Seuss left us with many great quotes that are good for
all ages.</span><span style="color: #741b47; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="color: #741b47; font-size: large;">Below are some of my
favorites.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG66nXEZKqKEe5a7KUY-olatKf_FRXcBr_UFWN01sOLqaKhWBsdYd3-qPIRFJXUJw7aoDVuiGie_fk8DT0fOMAaV8omH8a1AdzAgMKw8t7n6mnVG7YLKALGTGnlMPCUN1QrarZsCNdbUE/s1600/4bce1f36f76bccf8f768aa233c499753.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG66nXEZKqKEe5a7KUY-olatKf_FRXcBr_UFWN01sOLqaKhWBsdYd3-qPIRFJXUJw7aoDVuiGie_fk8DT0fOMAaV8omH8a1AdzAgMKw8t7n6mnVG7YLKALGTGnlMPCUN1QrarZsCNdbUE/s200/4bce1f36f76bccf8f768aa233c499753.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4vSk5SVwxqI6eqBBh89oFw4c5WNhl2emgPB73Bl6QwDOkK6ina1VekxEP7liAJ2hVCry8KEFDaigRph5A17tQQHbeudHXHhGp8Z852DtxwQQ5yXfviemu6Ry-nHT3zoMkZfVokcvpx-A/s1600/40a2b912af3d78f445ddc69dd8acd7e4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4vSk5SVwxqI6eqBBh89oFw4c5WNhl2emgPB73Bl6QwDOkK6ina1VekxEP7liAJ2hVCry8KEFDaigRph5A17tQQHbeudHXHhGp8Z852DtxwQQ5yXfviemu6Ry-nHT3zoMkZfVokcvpx-A/s200/40a2b912af3d78f445ddc69dd8acd7e4.jpg" width="166" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj1YmzP0RrAVXiLf_DnU1p2U3D6QJyTKQB4KYsZTj891i4lJOIhGBScfF3MT1zmIQNp1QEh-duTsCs25NOSAIvSDXZTeYkdj8BOAzSTSaWw9imXFrgaLSlQ7IVPw9sxMBT1rNpNN5WIVs/s1600/5512dc2d0fd176be6848369c1c89968b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj1YmzP0RrAVXiLf_DnU1p2U3D6QJyTKQB4KYsZTj891i4lJOIhGBScfF3MT1zmIQNp1QEh-duTsCs25NOSAIvSDXZTeYkdj8BOAzSTSaWw9imXFrgaLSlQ7IVPw9sxMBT1rNpNN5WIVs/s320/5512dc2d0fd176be6848369c1c89968b.jpg" width="243" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1ElGABkSrfQN-LK1i0v79jqSxwiENRsbbdGbDrHwpgl0CPLhKiuBpUnPyLHbmyb9A54k3IUSa7Vg1sHf85cGjuyytrztVzHB9S9iWz-WD6XCkTESyrNXdn4Oz-jUqFUaFZ3aktPgvmrg/s1600/Amazing-Dr-Seuss-quotes-photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1ElGABkSrfQN-LK1i0v79jqSxwiENRsbbdGbDrHwpgl0CPLhKiuBpUnPyLHbmyb9A54k3IUSa7Vg1sHf85cGjuyytrztVzHB9S9iWz-WD6XCkTESyrNXdn4Oz-jUqFUaFZ3aktPgvmrg/s320/Amazing-Dr-Seuss-quotes-photo.jpg" width="236" /></a></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwlpSUy0PQqwuDIwTMNfeogH6mqT31VhE7XYnxvAzCDTIdDoUa9gDJkT_k9Hgym3XOLzVpqF18MkyWAsj6teY-uEZ02bFf5zUOmBMZxfsnWkyldEU17kovNIBiJNc_Z8Jju0EKQPHFo3s/s1600/Awesome-house-quote-Dr-Seuss.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwlpSUy0PQqwuDIwTMNfeogH6mqT31VhE7XYnxvAzCDTIdDoUa9gDJkT_k9Hgym3XOLzVpqF18MkyWAsj6teY-uEZ02bFf5zUOmBMZxfsnWkyldEU17kovNIBiJNc_Z8Jju0EKQPHFo3s/s320/Awesome-house-quote-Dr-Seuss.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu9L8smA8VqBGbBV6Tyoe2h5gIoA-eEICvhhqDHoRfON0J1sJBVEeZK72mIw-kwrN39et2gl5LIm5NUjZOKeNmj0dRvVJT_Q9MKAVihgXJ3LZvqfQ4cgcR9zkyJ2478tsq5e4ylHuDPbQ/s1600/2129563831-__35+Dr+Suess.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu9L8smA8VqBGbBV6Tyoe2h5gIoA-eEICvhhqDHoRfON0J1sJBVEeZK72mIw-kwrN39et2gl5LIm5NUjZOKeNmj0dRvVJT_Q9MKAVihgXJ3LZvqfQ4cgcR9zkyJ2478tsq5e4ylHuDPbQ/s320/2129563831-__35+Dr+Suess.jpg" width="320" /></a> <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuoa9k5jcJ3YvEl2vaQPelTmjgxHllZsSx6XZ_NAWu9Z-CvKjXY-yrx_zkI0Ty2VZej9K3Fly-k9m5-PL-4Isv3fQ4sUDc1tnpPZ2OP9OmODr88ZmmQjs6D1pmb6RXq22oMz8ofBc9liE/s1600/dr-seuss-quotes.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuoa9k5jcJ3YvEl2vaQPelTmjgxHllZsSx6XZ_NAWu9Z-CvKjXY-yrx_zkI0Ty2VZej9K3Fly-k9m5-PL-4Isv3fQ4sUDc1tnpPZ2OP9OmODr88ZmmQjs6D1pmb6RXq22oMz8ofBc9liE/s320/dr-seuss-quotes.png" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_zhQ9-5B01Yizh-_Ltuawm3qLGXCpWS2Mviai2Dat4fjmv7_J5xslaUHrB04npHafmuFAOKspquxPb-VlEKQQHf5lfra0z8dThJhK79BILB_6Urt_G-rPFlCtob0gyYXmEyNJylt2FOo/s1600/Quote-of-the-day-Dr-Seuss.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_zhQ9-5B01Yizh-_Ltuawm3qLGXCpWS2Mviai2Dat4fjmv7_J5xslaUHrB04npHafmuFAOKspquxPb-VlEKQQHf5lfra0z8dThJhK79BILB_6Urt_G-rPFlCtob0gyYXmEyNJylt2FOo/s320/Quote-of-the-day-Dr-Seuss.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHH3skMmoCvWBDCkwzvqJSZNG-lrPxOjopiZAbRfgP7hHj3fenYuyoGYd5wkeHY_7lAWZk54a6SVzuw4pYoGUHKsIh8-e0daS_XWAd1n0xFfNJVDF27B5rO0rKWNgD-v1WpB-nWfd9P-A/s1600/drseuss597899.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHH3skMmoCvWBDCkwzvqJSZNG-lrPxOjopiZAbRfgP7hHj3fenYuyoGYd5wkeHY_7lAWZk54a6SVzuw4pYoGUHKsIh8-e0daS_XWAd1n0xFfNJVDF27B5rO0rKWNgD-v1WpB-nWfd9P-A/s320/drseuss597899.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHw9jr-rmrr138I0fmXH_58EYpCX6xKKvJ92zz1Oi1gUu9egmgpXJ2nU29nZgGl1JBr22wAb58lJi4NPHKu4-gmTrdHyZfmzuJxTo4iTkH4aUbQOZfRQqUeyH2Pnu-r69yz2TBJ6eqZbA/s1600/only-you-can-control-your-future-403x403-nk7fbc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-size: large;"> </span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-35553230609855517062016-02-21T03:30:00.000-08:002016-02-21T03:30:06.563-08:00A tribute to Harper Lee<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtu4VIkZL2JPmXlDpEZN-zw8Pi7yK0EV6S-UK1EEnnZy6wgPQUxwJqIy1vYzSngc3VBKpzan4SEftBJCDkkK9bNbm-llar6lriSxTN0JWmf-90UDrkMGBxoEbYImPDRKsFuiZv2pgT91E/s1600/SCREENSHOT+-+Harper+Lee+Photo+-+CR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtu4VIkZL2JPmXlDpEZN-zw8Pi7yK0EV6S-UK1EEnnZy6wgPQUxwJqIy1vYzSngc3VBKpzan4SEftBJCDkkK9bNbm-llar6lriSxTN0JWmf-90UDrkMGBxoEbYImPDRKsFuiZv2pgT91E/s320/SCREENSHOT+-+Harper+Lee+Photo+-+CR.jpg" width="217" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6;">April 28, 2926 – February 19, 2016</span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6;">RIP </span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Not everyone can write a classic piece of literature, but
this lady did it and did it well with <i>To
Kill a Mockingbird</i>. I read this book
in high school, but that was many years ago.
I want to read it again now. How
many of you have read this classic book?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">She had the guts to write a book about race when racial
tension was high, especially in the south.
And even though the book was controversial and perhaps not about a
pleasant subject, she won a Pulitzer Prize.
You can’t get much better than that.
I’m sure many people will read this book in the years to come.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">We lost a great lady, but she lived a nice long life and still
had her wits about her. That’s more than
some of us can say, or hope for. I’m
glad she lived long enough to see her second book <i>Go Set a</i> <i>Watchman</i> published
in July 2015. This book is supposedly
the precursor to 'Mockingbird.' I haven’t
read it yet, but I doubt it will be half the book as the first one. We’ll see.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Most of her life was lived in seclusion in the southern town
of <st1:city w:st="on">Monroeville</st1:city>, <st1:state w:st="on">Alabama</st1:state>.
This was her choice. I’m all for
people living by their own rules. She
was the youngest of four children and never married. To read more of her life story, <a href="http://www.aol.com/article/2016/02/19/harper-lee-author-of-to-kill-a-mockingbird-dies-at-89/21315364/?icid=maing-grid7%7Chtmlws-main-bb%7Cdl35%7Csec1_lnk3%26pLid%3D136021371" target="_blank">click here.</a></span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-65784401316723243322016-02-14T03:30:00.000-08:002016-02-14T03:30:17.520-08:00Happy Valentines's Day Dear Friends<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFESZ0fdWeyjwRjBTMVOfpWjtwApF9iqzd7S4w4mTsiGmKXBXDTSR6YAyXmDltKEltLx5DG8hzlCLMhvIzSKVsAgC_qMDV6ySaoLUlOJSt5g7gkz0jI0rcKmCNlPDm8qwSYob0r2Y3qnQ/s1600/image001.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFESZ0fdWeyjwRjBTMVOfpWjtwApF9iqzd7S4w4mTsiGmKXBXDTSR6YAyXmDltKEltLx5DG8hzlCLMhvIzSKVsAgC_qMDV6ySaoLUlOJSt5g7gkz0jI0rcKmCNlPDm8qwSYob0r2Y3qnQ/s1600/image001.png" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<span style="color: magenta;"><span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Let's make this a special day to be kinder to everyone we meet, not just our loved ones. Everyone is probably fighting some kind of battle in his/her life. Think how nice it would be just to make one day a little better.</span></span>Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-48845135166505568052016-01-24T03:30:00.000-08:002016-01-24T03:30:00.853-08:00What does this mean for people with degrees?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-Efk05ntEhJ5gR1ZRw5C2FOixe4wLzeb1Ccazd-PdaBAEFJZFA-icFkrj2QLxE6jY90skHNeoLGKNoImtehuXTPG2aoywHWE-LhKP1BWDMOT6HcI1PwVivygxnnud5FPnb06gtjBcDMA/s1600/img_0105-33percent-cropped-q75-500x375.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-Efk05ntEhJ5gR1ZRw5C2FOixe4wLzeb1Ccazd-PdaBAEFJZFA-icFkrj2QLxE6jY90skHNeoLGKNoImtehuXTPG2aoywHWE-LhKP1BWDMOT6HcI1PwVivygxnnud5FPnb06gtjBcDMA/s1600/img_0105-33percent-cropped-q75-500x375.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;">When this came across my news pages, I wondered if this is
only the beginning of a new trend in the writing and publishing world. It only takes one to break the ice and move
in a new direction and others will follow.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;">It looks to me like all the money and time put in for a
degree and other credentials won’t hold the weight it once did and the playing
field may be leveled to include people with life experience and not necessarily
a degree. This is an interesting turn of
events. If you’re interested, you can
read the whole article <a href="http://www.aol.com/article/2016/01/20/penguin-random-house-takes-degree-requirements-off-job-applicati/21299932/?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl15%7Csec1_lnk3%26pLid%3D-434851157_htmlws-main-bb" target="_blank">here</a>. All
comments are welcome.</span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-71972373060196562142016-01-16T20:01:00.001-08:002016-01-16T20:01:23.809-08:00Who doesn’t like FREE books?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyNj7C8MTZwQJ3coc1o19vPzN1Yh3le29uWE9SNKM-uLSxwTcpuSfuk5NALQig2sWW4v2sYo_LyrgWlxEKP212zS2ScVbN3n-aIcb-F-UipRdrAkaRJcA7C5j0fHCwB6oZpR-3C3MWRcY/s1600/k7790049.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyNj7C8MTZwQJ3coc1o19vPzN1Yh3le29uWE9SNKM-uLSxwTcpuSfuk5NALQig2sWW4v2sYo_LyrgWlxEKP212zS2ScVbN3n-aIcb-F-UipRdrAkaRJcA7C5j0fHCwB6oZpR-3C3MWRcY/s1600/k7790049.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Books are always high on my list. I don’t think you can ever have too
many. Books are expensive so it’s great
to find a big variety free of charge.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Here are twenty sites on the web to download free
books. You’ll be able to find any genre
you’re looking for on this list. Most of
these places are easy to search using the book name or author name. Some of them require you to sign up first. I guarantee you won’t run out of reading
material any time soon.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://websearch.about.com/od/booksandprintedmaterials/p/readprint.htm" target="_blank">ReadPrint</a> – this one has anything from classics to sci-fi to
Shakespeare and more. This site requires
you to register but it’s free.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://websearch.about.com/od/booksandprintedmaterials/p/manybooks.htm" target="_blank">ManyBooks.net</a> – over 20,000 books are available at this site</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.online-literature.com/author_index.php" target="_blank">The Literature Network</a> –most books on this one are free, but
some require a small fee. Authors are
listed alphabetically by last name.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://freecomputerbooks.com/">FreeComputerBooks.com</a> – you’ll find everything to do with
computers on this one, as well as some textbooks.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://librivox.org/">Librivox.org</a> – this one has free audio books and gives you a
choice whether to listen on your device or to download to CD. You can also volunteer to be a reader for an
audio book.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://authorama.com/">Authorama.com</a> – find current and classic authors here in
English as well as some German texts.
You can read these on your computer or print out pages to read later.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page" target="_blank">Project Gutenberg</a> – most books are in English but there are
some other languages available. This
site contains over 50,000 books in various formats.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.scribd.com/" target="_blank">Scribd</a> – This site gives you a fourteen-day free trial and
then it’s $8.99 a month. They have ebooks,
audio books, sheet music and comics.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://en.childrenslibrary.org/" target="_blank">International Digital Children’s Library</a> – This site is
organized by age, reading level, book length and genre. English and other languages are available.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="https://archive.org/details/texts" target="_blank">Ebooks and Text Archives </a>– This one includes popular books,
children’s books, historical and academic books.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://worldpubliclibrary.org/" target="_blank">World Public Library</a> – This one is $8.95 a year for access
to thousands of books in 100 different languages. However, there are over 200 titles on a Give
Away Page. You also have to sign up to
use this one.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.questia.com/library/free-books" target="_blank">Questia Public Library</a> – this one contains classics,
rarities and textbooks.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Main_Page" target="_blank">Wikisource </a>– the works on this site are submitted and
maintained by its users.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Main_Page" target="_blank">Wikibooks</a> – most of the books on this one are textbooks and
some cookbooks.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.bibliomania.com/" target="_blank">Bibliomania</a> – this one has 200 classics, plus author notes,
biographies, summaries and study guides.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="https://openlibrary.org/" target="_blank">The Open Library</a> – over a million books in a variety of
formats.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.sacred-texts.com/" target="_blank">Sacred Texts</a> – this one contains books on religion,
mythology and folklore.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.slideshare.net/" target="_blank">SlideShare</a> – this one is for digital presentations on any
subject. Anyone can share ideas, or
learn about new technology, by uploading or downloading presentations. The sign up is free.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.free-ebooks.net/" target="_blank">Free eBooks</a> – this one has a wide variety of genres but
there’s a limit on books per month unless you sign up for a VIP membership.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><a href="http://digital.library.upenn.edu/books/" target="_blank">The Online Books Page</a> – this one has over a million books to
read and is maintained by the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">University</st1:placetype>
of <st1:placename w:st="on">Pennsylvania</st1:placename></st1:place>.</span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-43791578405400440762016-01-01T21:28:00.002-08:002016-01-01T21:28:21.883-08:00Resolution time<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">From my house to yours...Happy New Year
everyone. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsxmylXWMTTjKmWstHzTLn9FnPznFAk7Vc8fJU1I_7tLj_IbTgjesgdZm-wrXsdAI0dxxTji5Ipk2h1midtz7Kk-D8kskyisVGfHJUXb8rn9hVSQYSNQlfu8G5EkWxfJCeI-XMcJFUc-I/s1600/Raven+in+New+Years+hat+2+Dec+31+2015+008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsxmylXWMTTjKmWstHzTLn9FnPznFAk7Vc8fJU1I_7tLj_IbTgjesgdZm-wrXsdAI0dxxTji5Ipk2h1midtz7Kk-D8kskyisVGfHJUXb8rn9hVSQYSNQlfu8G5EkWxfJCeI-XMcJFUc-I/s320/Raven+in+New+Years+hat+2+Dec+31+2015+008.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666;">Raven</span></div>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">We have a blank page again to start new
adventures. What fun. I haven't
made any resolutions yet. I just hope this will be a better year than
2015, although last year did have some nice moments in it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Let’s face it, most of the resolutions we make
are broken before the month of January is over. What is called for is being
more thoughtful and realistic about the goals we set for ourselves. As we
all know, life gets in the way of many things as the days go by. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This year, I'm taking my time to think this
over. I think the usual items on the list, losing weight, eating
healthier and exercising more are hard to keep because we need to be resolved
to change our habits. That isn't an easy thing to do, but it can be done.
I'm happy with myself in those areas anyway because I changed my habits
long time ago where weight, diet and exercise are concerned. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This year I think my goals will be smaller and
more attainable. When I reach them I can make more, even if it isn't New Years.
Remember, you can do this too and may be happier with yourself if you
take baby steps. There's nothing at all wrong with that. As we look to the future, it’s time to get
serious with ourselves about the things important to us. What do we really want to accomplish? If you’re yearning for it, the resolution
will be easier to keep.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Think
about that as you make your list. Until next time...</span><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-73181670668864049952015-12-24T21:41:00.000-08:002015-12-24T21:41:01.850-08:00Merry Christmas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEBQR_3Zm8tMMEXWJTqkqlulGrGNk8dWf6Zwy7yBxlGJlL0NFC4jdsSH4ynOexCrZA3wk7UuRlGR4IwzgI8UyUiSznW0xpQaBoLEEADjaBm-A0y9xiBq08udrnn3ukOPX7L1ynmsBKw00/s1600/animated-candle-pine-cones.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEBQR_3Zm8tMMEXWJTqkqlulGrGNk8dWf6Zwy7yBxlGJlL0NFC4jdsSH4ynOexCrZA3wk7UuRlGR4IwzgI8UyUiSznW0xpQaBoLEEADjaBm-A0y9xiBq08udrnn3ukOPX7L1ynmsBKw00/s1600/animated-candle-pine-cones.gif" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy New
Year. If Happy Holidays works better for you,
that’s fine too. However you celebrate, enjoy
family, friends and loved ones. Time
flies by so fast.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">I’ll be back next year with something constructive to share about
writing, I hope. I haven’t gotten to do
as much of that as I would like since I started working again. There was never ever enough hours in a day
for me before and now it’s almost impossible to get to my computer. But it’s easier to pay bills, so I guess some
sacrifice has to be made somewhere. I’ll
still be back at it though, just moving slower toward my goal most likely.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Thanks to you all for reading what I write and leaving your
comments. It means a lot to me and makes
blogging worth it when there’s not enough time to post as much as I would
like.</span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-7317155536846482222015-11-29T03:30:00.000-08:002015-11-29T03:30:00.475-08:00Time to gear up and get back to editing my book<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqh91_2GNKwaMIVe_TpI-2BHtB2IwemTWW6FSq_37WhYcYyRrodDmyfTBkXXyKZjDgzfRdAuRDCNXG_636OypwNMolif5GtPdD9SNvXOgLPnYtN3IstiqDMnXzhryqGMqGCPaluFyepOA/s1600/thumbnail+-+Woman+at+Computer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqh91_2GNKwaMIVe_TpI-2BHtB2IwemTWW6FSq_37WhYcYyRrodDmyfTBkXXyKZjDgzfRdAuRDCNXG_636OypwNMolif5GtPdD9SNvXOgLPnYtN3IstiqDMnXzhryqGMqGCPaluFyepOA/s1600/thumbnail+-+Woman+at+Computer.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #8e7cc3; font-size: large;">Now that NaNo is about over this year and Thanksgiving has passed, it’s time to dig in and get serious about the editing of my previous
writing. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #8e7cc3; font-size: large;">At least that’s what I think I intend to do between getting
ready for Christmas, working, and all the other things life demands of us. Will I be successful at this? Time will tell.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #8e7cc3; font-size: large;">Happy writing to all of you and kuddos for not letting the
distractions in life block your path.</span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-2734186657426256072015-11-25T21:57:00.000-08:002015-11-25T21:57:07.945-08:00Happy Thanksgiving<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCoHeC_MDFGqj-nvEys7g2-RZZlaAHy37NEFvpTSkZszMZpSykvbb5YU-mEpFu9dvjn8o9L2jVSvFqaz4nzzg0iuPuOMtx0dB9yzUYOEaziuoqN_XXlSrHb4pXBWLMrYiDV7UMwXbcRZCO/s1600/imagesCAFY722F+-+Happy+thanksgiving+-+Free+CA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCoHeC_MDFGqj-nvEys7g2-RZZlaAHy37NEFvpTSkZszMZpSykvbb5YU-mEpFu9dvjn8o9L2jVSvFqaz4nzzg0iuPuOMtx0dB9yzUYOEaziuoqN_XXlSrHb4pXBWLMrYiDV7UMwXbcRZCO/s1600/imagesCAFY722F+-+Happy+thanksgiving+-+Free+CA.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: red;"><b>Be safe and healthy everyone!</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-73736588749037529282015-11-11T21:54:00.004-08:002015-11-11T21:54:59.123-08:00Winter’s coming<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMeBUHJfMyN2I7AseGKbKhOlcx-VlH4TBTEOJtqDghWCqTmFJIRS8JxgohNSfsW-0WSqk0y2g1AX0_-_jpAsEc9L4W0HzXSzatEkjS0iWq9RXGfsubBAdZKYORxtt1rj4z9tDiyQvj3vc/s1600/Always+something+to+be+thankful+for-+CR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMeBUHJfMyN2I7AseGKbKhOlcx-VlH4TBTEOJtqDghWCqTmFJIRS8JxgohNSfsW-0WSqk0y2g1AX0_-_jpAsEc9L4W0HzXSzatEkjS0iWq9RXGfsubBAdZKYORxtt1rj4z9tDiyQvj3vc/s320/Always+something+to+be+thankful+for-+CR.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #3d85c6;">Even if winter isn't your favorite season</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Summer tourists have long gone home</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">The swimming pool sits quiet and alone</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Autumn colors adorn the trees</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">They scatter in a chilly breeze</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Time for plants to take a rest</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">So summer blooms can be their best</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Drag out the coats and bundle up for the cold winter nights</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Out my window, the Earth is silent and quite a sight</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">The cold winds blow to sculpt the rocks</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Better grab an extra spare of socks</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Snows will come soon to cover the land</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Wrapping up the red desert sand</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Animals hibernate in their burrows ‘till spring</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">When again the birds will come to sing</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">I’m counting the days until the Earth warms again</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">And animals emerge once more from their den</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">The search for food will be on</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">As grass springs forth from winter’s lawn</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">My heart rejoices as warmer, longer days come</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Thawing out, I’m no longer numb</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">With a spring in my step, the winter clothes can go</span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">It’s sandals, tank tops and shorts, you can’t say no</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">New life has come to me along with the land</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Time to wiggle my toes in the sand</span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-70476695292195836822015-10-31T21:25:00.000-07:002015-10-31T21:25:22.216-07:00HAPPY HALLOWEEN!<span style="font-size: large;">Be safe in your celebrations and keep your black cats safe. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhikVYfy7Wk7VqvSzlGwyZyUc9jiXO8Wm2CFoY3rSz9pCkGukNCapxPB1qGrTWWL7PGai4JKq8KA6zAe2ZEM2qdZw1zMID202jnA2OKK0ebKRGoH5ThGTFTE7KVsCRUSuMipchs7T45lMM/s1600/SCREENSHOT+-+Halloween+2+-+CR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhikVYfy7Wk7VqvSzlGwyZyUc9jiXO8Wm2CFoY3rSz9pCkGukNCapxPB1qGrTWWL7PGai4JKq8KA6zAe2ZEM2qdZw1zMID202jnA2OKK0ebKRGoH5ThGTFTE7KVsCRUSuMipchs7T45lMM/s1600/SCREENSHOT+-+Halloween+2+-+CR.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<br />Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-61142914843936221352015-10-19T16:38:00.001-07:002015-10-19T16:38:31.059-07:00Entering NaNo -- insane or an exercise in discipline<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4vFeiEHWZkEEP39BqjOdleSC1VXHzzSOM2e7nlvct4v6mQLfcQ8SebOVFunzGD91JMYjk2JysDuLSOTvAsWjfrF_V00uDph6S_2C45gOCh32PCRZY6KVEF8AQq_Rccjkwps57zWHCUGA/s1600/crest-bda7b7a6e1b57bb9fb8ce9772b8faafb-NANO.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4vFeiEHWZkEEP39BqjOdleSC1VXHzzSOM2e7nlvct4v6mQLfcQ8SebOVFunzGD91JMYjk2JysDuLSOTvAsWjfrF_V00uDph6S_2C45gOCh32PCRZY6KVEF8AQq_Rccjkwps57zWHCUGA/s1600/crest-bda7b7a6e1b57bb9fb8ce9772b8faafb-NANO.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;">I’m asking myself this very question as November approaches
and another National Novel Writing Month comes along with it. I’ve done this three times and I’m thinking
about doing it again this year. Why
would I subject myself to this torture for thirty days?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: x-large;"><b>The pros:</b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b>For one, it keeps me writing so it’s very good for
discipline.</b> I won’t sign up at all
unless I’m committed to finishing by the deadline. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;">However, I think insanity also plays a part in this because
I have too much on my plate this year to give this a second thought. I have a PT job, the holidays are coming, and
we all know what that means when you work in a retail environment. The only redeeming feature here is that hubby
will be out of state for part of the month.
When it’s only me, I can eat anything at any time and not make a fuss
with dinner or clean up. I can also
adjust my sleeping schedule to a certain point, having to consider the job as
well. I’m thankful I can function on two
hours of sleep. Sometimes that comes in
handy.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b>Two, they have great discussion boards to take advantage of
if you’re stumped with your writing endeavor.</b>
All you have to do is post a question and some brilliant person will
come along to answer. You’ll find a
discussion boards for almost every topic you can imagine. I have to admit I rarely take advantage of
this discussion feature because, as we all know, it’s easy to be caught up
socializing and not working on your word count.
</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;">NaNo requires you to write 50,000 words in a month. If you make it, you “win” and different
things are available to you, such as writing software and books at
discounts. There are also helpers for
editing and if you get your book finished in six months, there’s a discount on
self-publishing. At least there was last
year. This never happens for me. I’m still working on my last three NaNo
projects. Someday I’ll have a series
worth publishing.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b>The team at NaNoWriMo sends emails and pep talks to your
inbox.</b> Some brilliant people write
these, designing them to keep you motivated, your butt in the chair, and your
hands on your keyboard.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b>There’s a great community of other writers at NaNo</b> and if
you’re lucky enough to live in a bigger city, there will probably be organized write-ins
with others that live there. This helps to
keep you going too, although my town is too small to take advantage of this.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;">If you make your 50,000 words by November 30, you’ll feel so
great and have such a sense of accomplishment.
Your story may not be finished, or ready to edit, but you’ll have a great
start to a book.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;">Everything has a downside and NaNo does too. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: x-large;"><b>The cons:</b></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b>You must write 1667 words a day to finish by November
30.</b> This is a huge commitment. It takes time away from your family and
holiday activities.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b>You need to prepare yourself for writing your brains out and
let nothing hold you back.</b> You have to
stay disciplined and committed. There’s
no penalty if you don’t “win,” but you’ll feel better about yourself if you do
and also know you can do it.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b>Don’t get distracted by anything unless your house is
burning down.</b> This means avoid FB and
any other social platforms. Don’t spend
hours on email during your writing time, if you want to finish. Save this for after you make your daily word
count.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b>Do not watch TV or anything else until you’ve reached your
daily goal.</b> If you can do more words,
then you can take a day off during the month, which is the way I do it. That way you don’t feel totally left out of
things going on in your daily life and your husband and kids won’t want to kill
you.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b>Brew lots of coffee and stock up on snack food,</b> which is bad
thing to say, but sometimes that’s all you can do if you want to keep
going. You don’t want your hunger to sidetrack
you. If you leave your chair, there’s a
good chance you won’t be back in it later in the day. I’m only speaking from experience here. When you’re in the zone, stay put.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: x-large;"><b>Some last thoughts:</b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b>If you intend to participate, do your character sketches now
and write down plot points for your story.</b>
You are allowed to do this beforehand.
You just can’t start writing your story until November 1. I usually make a few notes, even being the
pantster I am. That way you aren’t
totally lost and know what you want to cover in the story, and you don’t get
your characters mixed up that way, which helps later during the edit
process. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b>Resist the urge to edit as you go.</b> I can’t stress this enough. You don’t want to spend any time on anything
except writing. Editing can wait.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b>Back up your work daily.</b>
Don’t turn the computer off until you do. Writing is too hard to risk losing
everything. I back up everything twice,
once to my external drive and once to <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/downloading?oref=e" target="_blank">Dropbox</a>, which is a great cloud storage
place and is free, up to 2 GB of space.
If you need this program, you can get it by clicking on Dropbox
above. THIS IS A CLEAN LINK. I downloaded one last year that had viruses
attached, so be careful. Now, or any
time, you don’t want to deal with that.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;">Sign yourself up here for <a href="http://nanowrimo.org/" target="_blank">NaNo</a>, so that’s done when the
first rolls around. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: large;"><b>Above all, have fun
and good luck.</b></span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-53117349490661240192015-10-11T03:30:00.000-07:002015-10-11T03:30:01.108-07:00Enjoy a laugh about writing<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8AP1f7WL0uCRiceJBSKOwpwCdsDm_SKYsnw-6QWcjNNPZau1a0NUcPzjYsvvekB78gbgLrwVrJUwhHnKrlZBTYYNHHrO5lFjxKwWNMbre4advr9D0O8ETlODQ95Wf0OSjGIoMkoEhQ5Y/s1600/k7600612.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8AP1f7WL0uCRiceJBSKOwpwCdsDm_SKYsnw-6QWcjNNPZau1a0NUcPzjYsvvekB78gbgLrwVrJUwhHnKrlZBTYYNHHrO5lFjxKwWNMbre4advr9D0O8ETlODQ95Wf0OSjGIoMkoEhQ5Y/s1600/k7600612.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">A writer died and was given the opportunity of going to
heaven or hell.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">She decided to check out each place first. As the writer descended into the fiery pits,
she saw row upon row of writers chained to their desks in a steaming
sweatshop. As they worked, they were
repeatedly whipped with thorny lashes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">“Oh my,” said the writer.
“Let me see heaven now.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">A few moments later, as she ascended into heaven, she saw
rows of writers chained to their desks in a steaming sweatshop. As they worked, they, too, were whipped with
thorny lashes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">“Wait a minute,” said the writer. “This is just as bad as hell!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">“Oh no, it’s not,” replied an unseen voice. “Here, your work gets published.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-size: large;">This is part of a blog post on the <i>Writer’s Relief</i>
website. They stumbled across some
laughs for writers from <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Villanova</st1:placename>
<st1:placetype w:st="on">University</st1:placetype></st1:place> and this was
one of their favorites.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-size: large;">This article has been reprinted with permission of <i>Writer’s
Relief</i>, an author submission service that has been helping creative writers
make submissions since 1994. Their work
is highly recommended in the writing community, and there are TONS of freebies,
publishing leads, and writer’s resources on their website. Check it out <a href="http://writersrelief.com/about-our-writers-services/" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-90944016123146818742015-10-04T03:30:00.000-07:002015-10-04T03:30:00.126-07:00Review for Life - it’s a Trip by Rasheed Hooda<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3LqlcdqS7YaoyrL5Vt0uXYs-PxbXQK0WMaALsoZfAvoZ7oFTyLqKLhHM192Df9-6lIcOKIjF8isBiJMN_Qzx_jpTe4eYAsGumB0b6wVU7oBK0LaqcRDJrUvjsyo8_X2zJtBIT-TpDKRU/s1600/rasheedhooda_life-313x500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3LqlcdqS7YaoyrL5Vt0uXYs-PxbXQK0WMaALsoZfAvoZ7oFTyLqKLhHM192Df9-6lIcOKIjF8isBiJMN_Qzx_jpTe4eYAsGumB0b6wVU7oBK0LaqcRDJrUvjsyo8_X2zJtBIT-TpDKRU/s320/rasheedhooda_life-313x500.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #b45f06; font-size: large;">I received this book as a PDF file from Rasheed. I was surprised to find it in my email box on
September 22. I’ve been reading his blog
posts since the A to Z challenge last April and really like his voice. Thanks so much, Rasheed, for your book of
life’s adventures so far.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #b45f06; font-size: large;">This book is a quick read and very interesting. Most areas are two or three pages long. I found it well written and filled with
things Mr. Hooda has learned in his life through the people he’s met during his
working life and in his travels across the <st1:place w:st="on">US</st1:place>.
This man has big goals for scaling mountains and has lots of
energy. What a great thing. He also has a positive attitude about life
even when things aren’t going their best.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #b45f06; font-size: large;">Rasheed has chosen the nomadic lifestyle for himself, not
wanting to be a “slave to wages”. The
nomadic lifestyle isn’t for me. This
clearly won’t work for everyone, but we each have to choose our own path and
the author makes that clear. He’s having
a blast sharing his travels and thoughts about life on his journey through the
states.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #b45f06; font-size: large;">I think you’ll find this an enjoyable book to read. Rasheed shares his thoughts on intuition,
money, mentors, family and friends, finding your right place in the world and
living your dream as you touch other lives with every action you make whether
you know this or not. This book will
make you think and is written in a down-to-earth fashion. As I read the short stories, I felt as if I
was sitting in the room with this author and listening to his tales.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #b45f06; font-size: large;">Life is full of difficulties and Rasheed shares some of his,
along with some tragic happenings, as well.
He’s trying to live by the law of attraction (like attracts like) and mindfulness. Good for him.
We should all be aware of these things in our journey on Earth. By focusing on positive or negative thoughts, a person will bring positive or negative things into their lives.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #b45f06; font-size: large;">The book is filled with lovely quotes too. And I love this one from the author: “Dreams do come true. But first, you must have a dream. So dream on and dream big.”</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #b45f06; font-size: large;">You can buy Rasheed’s book from his site here: <a href="http://rasheedhooda.com/">http://rasheedhooda.com/</a></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #b45f06; font-size: large;">Or you can purchase his book at Amazon by <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01600NIIO" target="_blank">clicking here</a>.</span><br />
<span style="color: #b45f06; font-size: large;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #b45f06; font-size: large;">Please leave him a review on his site, your blog, or on Amazon.</span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-22135056451577216572015-10-02T03:30:00.000-07:002015-10-02T03:30:01.040-07:00Awesome Writer’s Tool and Give Away!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRNe_YKwJrKIX7byBjpN5DyukglnTLP5BB_ZFKKKCtt3H5Ci7XbMCzvpP2lJ3gbKVqm7X2mfbL9j6qMsOSjcdrOfune7F7KD-yVUGc3FTdhmq0CTYPy7EKRJSWruxzmcNpikvuPdeDTXQ/s1600/SCREENSHOT+GRAMMARLY+ICON+-+CR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRNe_YKwJrKIX7byBjpN5DyukglnTLP5BB_ZFKKKCtt3H5Ci7XbMCzvpP2lJ3gbKVqm7X2mfbL9j6qMsOSjcdrOfune7F7KD-yVUGc3FTdhmq0CTYPy7EKRJSWruxzmcNpikvuPdeDTXQ/s1600/SCREENSHOT+GRAMMARLY+ICON+-+CR.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Reblogged from <a href="https://jenowenby.wordpress.com/2015/10/01/draft-awesome-writers-tool-and-give-away/" target="_blank">Jen’s Thoughts</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">I love
writing tools, and when I find a good one, I have to share. Anyone who has
followed my blog has heard me mention Grammarly. I use Grammarly for every word
I write whether it’s for an email, cover letter, resume, short story, or my new
novel. I have the ability to use it directly on their website or while I’m
typing in Word (they offer a word plug-in).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt; margin-bottom: 8.4pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 8.4pt;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Recently,
Grammarly became available for Google Chrome as an add-on which means that it
will assist you while you write emails, blog posts, and even Facebook posts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt; margin-bottom: 8.4pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 8.4pt;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">With each
error correction and suggestion, I’m able to improve my writing on a consistent
basis. Grammarly also emails a report concerning your usage and where your
problem areas are. Since grammar isn’t my strong suit, I’m now able to identify
my mistake while writing. It helps me become more aware especially since I’m a
visual learner. I traditionally suck at commas! :)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt; margin-bottom: 8.4pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 8.4pt;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">So if
there is one tool I would recommend its Grammarly. And, here’s the really
exciting part. I’m offering a free 3-month premium trial to a lucky winner! You
can try it out for yourself and watch your writing improve.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Here’s the inside scoop about Grammarly from Wikipedia:<br />
Grammarly carries out more than 250 grammar checks; it proofreads and detects
plagiarism in the process and finally provides users with a list of possible
errors for correction.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt; margin-bottom: 8.4pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 8.4pt;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Grammarly
also provides citations when it detects plagiarism. Users can click on a
“thumbs up” or “thumbs down” icon to let Grammarly know whether the result was
helpful.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Other
features include:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->A grammar checker
that can analyze general, business, academic, technical, creative and casual
writings.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 12.0pt; margin-right: 12.0pt; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: 9.75pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->A contextual spell
checker that determines the appropriate spelling of a word as it is used in a
sentence; thus, it finds misspelled words and also identifies correctly spelled
yet incorrectly used words.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 12.0pt; margin-right: 12.0pt; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: 9.75pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Grammarly Plug-in
for Microsoft Office, which adds Grammarly to Microsoft Word and Outlook.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 12.0pt; margin-right: 12.0pt; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: 9.75pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->An online Grammarly
Handbook resource covering what the Grammarly platform does in checking grammar
and syntax.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">To enter
you need to:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Follow my blog<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Share this post on
Facebook and Twitter<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 12.0pt; margin-right: 12.0pt; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: 9.75pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Comment below WHY
you would like to win and also leave the Facebook post or Twitter link that you
shared<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">I’ll have
the drawing next Tuesday, October 6th, and will announce the lucky winner!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Until Next
Time…</span><span style="color: #333333;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2286561322049856387.post-50999141678478303192015-09-27T03:30:00.000-07:002015-09-27T03:30:01.207-07:00Celebrate the Freedom to Read<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3W1JHLZnSC_hYh1p5Vg5Htd664D4kpj5Ylcs9sAduM7cd_3u8sSnUUGMiIipylhNz7mKqHXXQFobFR_vO7ImKLPgBY5C90hvZHPXgi8NMFhIAOpUWdJoJldCcUEaM1slxLszLLqB-rlU/s1600/bbtall_lg.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3W1JHLZnSC_hYh1p5Vg5Htd664D4kpj5Ylcs9sAduM7cd_3u8sSnUUGMiIipylhNz7mKqHXXQFobFR_vO7ImKLPgBY5C90hvZHPXgi8NMFhIAOpUWdJoJldCcUEaM1slxLszLLqB-rlU/s320/bbtall_lg.JPG" width="212" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">So far, we still have that freedom in <st1:place w:st="on">America</st1:place>. Banned Books week is coming up and this year it
runs from September 27 to October 3 2015 in the <st1:country-region w:st="on">United States</st1:country-region>. This is about the freedom to express ideas,
even the unpopular ones. Where would we,
as writers, be without that? No one
should be censored because, just like the TV with its off switch, you don’t
have to open a book’s cover.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Thanks to librarians, publishers, teachers, readers and a
group of others that come together in support of our freedoms to make the
choice of what to read, Banned Books week is brought to the publics attention
every year. If you want to get involved,
you can contact the office of intellectual freedom at 1-800-545-2433 ext 4220
or by email at bbw@ala.org.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">For a list of banned books <a href="http://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks" target="_blank">click here</a>. Follow the links on the page for several
articles and lists.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Most of the reasons books are banned is because they contain
one of the following: an unconventional viewpoint, drugs, smoking, alcohol,
offensive language, too much sex and nudity, rape, homosexuality, gambling,
controversial political or religious views, occultism, political correctness,
bullying, etc.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">I think, as adults, we can make up our minds about what we
want to read and what’s appropriate for our children to read. I wouldn’t want to leave this decision to
anyone else to make for me.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">There are some great classics on this partial list. How many of you have read some of these books
and how did they influence you, other than being a good story? For the life of me, I have no idea why some
of these are banned. There are so many
books all over the bookshelves in stores or online today with similar scenes in
them, so why pick these?</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">The Great Gatsby</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">The Catcher in the <st1:city w:st="on">Rye</st1:city></span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">The Grapes of Wrath</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">To Kill a Mockingbird</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">The Color Purple</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Ulysses</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Beloved</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">The Lord of the Flies</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">1984</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Lolita</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Of Mice and Men</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Catch 22</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Animal Farm</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">A Farewell to Arms</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">As I Lay Dying</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">The Sun Also Rises</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Invisible Man</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Gone with the Wind</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">One Flew over the Cuckoos Nest</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">The Call of the Wild</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">A Clockwork <st1:city w:st="on">Orange</st1:city></span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">The Lord of the Rings</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Lady Chatterley’s Lover</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">In Cold Blood</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Rabbit, Run</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Sons and Lovers</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Uncle Tom’s Cabin</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Even Harry Potter was on this list for a while and so was The
Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Amazing isn’t
it, the way some people try to save us from ourselves. The best thing we can do is to read these
books and help to educate those who haven’t read them. They’re missing out on some great literature.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">To read this article and for more resources, <a href="http://www.ala.org/bbooks/bannedbooksweek" target="_blank">click here.</a></span></div>
Sunnihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12671891696662548892noreply@blogger.com0