Stylish Blogger Award!

~~Thanks to Deniz for my Stylish Blogger Award!



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~~Things about me you might not know:
     1. I'm named for my daddy's fifth grade girlfriend.

     2. After being Momma to seven cats for over forty-three years, I'm now the momma of two toy poodles.

     3. My picture is in the newspaper for the third time in a month.

     4. I've been married for thirty-three years and John, my love, is a six foot four inch blond with Jamie Fraser blue eyes.

     5. In the last three months I've added 33,372 words to my official rough draft file for FRIENDLY FIRE.

     6. I've written new words for five different works in progress in the last three months.

     7. I no longer drink Diet Coke--Don't you dare touch my hot tea!

     8. There is an actual cherry tree in my yard.

~~Try these great blogs--all of them are Stylish!

     L'Aussie Writing

     All the World's Our Page

     A Day in the Life of Me

     Feel of Something New

     Nietzsche I'm Not

     San Diego Writing Women

     My Outlander Purgatory

A Whole New Look

~~I know. It's different than it was this morning. The blog needed a new look and I was ready to ditch the Pepto-Bismol pink. There were so many different possiblities and I looked at them again and again. I could have black and dramatic, simple and understated, photo window with a beach house, but in the end, the birds did it. I needed that one more image to really sell the cherry tree shade theme.

~~So welcome to the new Cherry Tree for the new year.

Enough!

~~Okay. Enough is enough! Even though the snow and ice melts a bit every day, the water freezes back and the ice gets thicker every night. Now it's all John and I can do to crunch through the top layer. Casey and Max have no hope of denting it and have been skating a time or two. The glare off the slick surface is like a mirror. John did slip down a time or two trying to get to the back for a shovel to use on his mother's walk. I keep asking everyone if they can ever remember it been this bad before. Finally someone older than I am said 1960. Though I really don't remember my first snow, I do have evidence that it wasn't anywhere near as deep.  And yes, that's little old me. ; )

~~The birds are just as tired of it as we are. We can't hope to get to the feeders, so we have been carefully stepping out on the deck that's just as covered as the ground and throwing seeds at the feeders. The birds are thrilled since all their usual feeding sites are under nearly six inches of snow and ice. It's a strange sensation when the seeds go sliding down the slope and a leaf follows sliding thirty to forty feet. And the birds are skiing too. I can't begin to count how many have been dining with us, but we've seen all of the following types: chickadees, titmice, cardinals, mocking birds, thrashers, rose breasted grosbeaks, blue gray gnat catchers, gold finch, purple finch, pine siskins, Carolina wrens, and sparrows of all types. I'm glad we can help out our fine feathered friends.

No, Mommy, Don't Make Me!

~~Too be fair to the pups, when there is four and a quarter inches of snow on the ground and it's topped by a half inch of ice, and you have 4 inch long legs, it's hard to get around. Even if you need to pee and poo. At least, that's what Max was saying as he clung to the garage wall today. Casey was a little bit more adventurous. He did go out a bit with his daddy.

~~Travel around here is very treacherous and yet there are people trying it. I'm hoping no one slides off the street and into our house here in the curve on Carrollton Street. As slick as it is, it's more than possible. Charlotte, Miss Helen's help for today, hasn't been able to come and John has walked and slid across the yard a few times to care for her.

~~Now I know, teachers are the world's biggest weather watchers, but this is the third frozen precipitation event already this winter and it's only January 10. That doesn't bode well for the rest of the season at all. We have the rest of January and all of February, and part of March to go when possible snow events have happened in our neck of the woods. Thank goodness, I'm retired. In fact, we have had snow in April before. I'm not looking forward to such an eventful winter. Just let me stay in doors and have power. That's all I want.

~~So, take care, walk carefully, and don't get too cold.

A Well-Watered Brain...Or Where Do the Words Come From

~~Many writers swear that their best ideas come right before they go to sleep or when they are in the shower. Whatever the reason is, it seems that we find words when we quit looking too hard. Sometimes I get out of the shower with entire scenes playing out in the most amazing and perfect words. In fact, if I get into my shower after looking over the scene I'm working on, I usually get out with a great idea for carrying the story forward.

~~So how do we not lose all these great ideas and words down the drain? I've always hurried to dry off, running to my nightstand, and grabbing up the notepad and pen that I keep there for the night time ideas and scribble away--in the nude! ; ) But there's a new way to keep from washing the words away with the soap suds--AquaNotes. Yes, it's really a product that is available now. "AquaNotes® is a waterproof notepad that allows you to record your great ideas while you're in the shower. It's so durable you can even write underwater. They're recyclable, environmentally friendly, and the notepad is printed with soy-based ink." If you don't believe me, go HERE to see for yourself.

~~However the words come, I have to say, my word production has really increased in the last 3 or so months. Since the last week of October, I've written, edited and saved over 32,000 words into my Rough Draft file for FRIENDLY FIRE. I've made completing the Rough Draft by the end of March a resolution for my new year. This week, I've gone back into my outline and notes in color what stage each scene is in. It was eye opening and far better than I thought it would be. Here's the stats:
***Scenes that are typed and in the Rough Draft file--26% of the work in progress
***Scenes that are typed and waiting for editing--18%
***Scenes that are still in long hand--36%
***Scenes that are still just a title or possibly a jot list of notes--19%
The last category was the one that pleasantly surprised me. I thought there were far more than there are. So back to the shower for me. Let's get this Rough Draft done! ; )

All Sold Out!

~~Imagine my surprise this morning when Diane Quimby, the owner of Wiley's Book Exchange and a local author, called to tell me that the store had sold out of both A Christmas Walk and An Easter Walk, and people were asking for them by name. Needless to say, I quickly went to Carrollton to take more of both for the shelves. The article in the Times-Georgian is working wonders. If you haven't read it yet, HERE it is. People are buying last minute Christmas gifts and my books are finishing their lists. If you can't get to the store, you can buy my books online at my website HERE.
~~I'm walking on air as you can imagine. This is so exciting. Next time, I won't be as shocked when the store calls and says, "We need more copies, please." ; )

Christmas Sweaters and A Christmas Book

~~Merry Christmas! The big day is nearly here and everyone is planning gifts for those around them. John and I have pared down our shopping over the years. We really don't need anything and our wants run more along the lines of having each other and love, peace, and calm. But we did go shopping for the puppies. ; ) Their winter sweaters from last year were woefully small, of course. They are now nearly two years old. The weather has been a bear and they needed sweaters for their walks. We found lovely ones in a catalog and are proud to say the boys look smashing. Don't you agree?

~~I received a great gift this morning as well. Spencer Crawford of the Times-Georgian and The Villa Rican asked to interview me about my new book, A Christmas Walk. The article is wonderful! Spencer is a great friend to all the local writers and this is one example. Go HERE to read the article if you don't get the Times-Georgian.

~~And have a wonderful, peaceful Christmas.

December? Are You Sure?

~~The calendar says December. The thermometer says it's too cold for January or February. Brrr! Monday and Tuesday will be the coldest yet with lows in the low teens and highs maybe at freezing. Add our colds and sinus infections and you have a horrible mix.
~~Sunday is the day our Angel Tree Gifts are due at church and we are the organizers of this ministry. John suggested it over twenty-five years ago. We get names of needy children from the Carrollton Schools Christmas Sponsorship Program. This year the church is providing gifts for seventy-five children and five adults. The mothers' requests were poignant--flatware, cook books, baking tools, pots and pans. They want to be able to feed their children. John and I are honored and blessed to work with this project every year.
~~On the writing front, I'm doing well. In December I have written 5289 new and reworked words. This includes a comprehensive look at the overarching theme and controlling image of Friendly Fire. To say this is good is an understatement.
~~Book sales have been good. In December, I've been to a family Christmas Party, spoke at Bethel Baptist Church, FBC's Current Events class, and will speak at the Adult I department tomorrow. Add an interview with Spencer Crawford of the Times-Georgian on this coming Wednesday and you have a great sales month. Look for the interview in the "Sunday Living" section of the Times-Georgian on Sunday, December 19.
~~So, enjoy December, freezing temps, snow flurries, gifts, books, good food and family. John and I wish you a very Merry Christmas.