Happy 4th of July & Happy Birthday(s)
A FEW SHOUT OUTS
Happy Birthday next week to Liz Wolfe and Heather Rae Scott (who I believe share the same birth date). ***
pic snagged (looked like free to me - hey, I'm cheap but not totally insensitive, gotta have a greeting) from:
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www.illpic.com/Birthday.html***
Hope both of you have a marvelous day. I'm chiming in early because I know I'll most likely forget to blog about it on the 10th - lol. Forget the two of you? Never. Forget to blog...uh, yeah.
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I'm spending the weekend with writer friend Carol Lynne. Our kids have plans elsewhere, so the two of us, like the diligent writers we are, plan on working to justify our expenditures next year - lol.
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Hugs to Alexis who is house-sitting and providing nursing care to family members having surgery.
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MAJOR HUGS to Kelly Ethan, who is having the damned surgery.
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Happy 4th of July/Independence Day to all the North Americans.
Labels: birhtdays
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Strange Things
Alexis and I walked from our hotel in Orlando over to the Ripley's Believe It Or Not! museum while we were at the RT convention in April, and we got some interesting photos of the building from the outside. I'd been thinking of this earlier when Gretchen sent me a link to the Ripley's wedding dresses - made from toilet paper.
Little guy in the water has nothing to do with this conversation - I just liked him. I'll try to find my photos of Ripley's building and post them later.
http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/880000288/post/700046270.htmlAnyway, I couldn't imagine making a dress of any sorts out of toilet paper, much less a wedding gown, but I applaud the creativity it took for these ladies to make those dresses. Thanks, Gretchen. :)
And before I leave, a joke Heather sent me - LOVED IT!!!
CURTAIN RODS --- Should they stay?
On the first day, she sadly packed her belongings into boxes, crates and
suitcases.
On the second day, she had the movers come and collect her things.
On the third day, she sat down for the last time at their beautiful
dining-room table, by candle-light; she put on some soft background
music, and feasted on a pound of shrimp, a jar of caviar,and a bottle of
spring-water.
When she'd finished, she went into each and every room and deposited a
few half-eaten shrimps dipped in caviar into the hollow centre of the
curtain rods.
She then cleaned up the kitchen and left.
On the fourth day, the husband came back with his new girlfriend, and at first it all was bliss.
Then, slowly, the house began to smell.
They tried everything; cleaning, mopping, and airing-out the place.
Vents were checked for dead rodents, and carpets were steam cleaned.
Air fresheners were hung everywhere. Exterminators were brought in to
set off gas canisters, during which time the two had to move out for a
few days, and in the end they even paid to replace the expensive wool
carpeting. Nothing worked!
People stopped coming over to visit.
Repairmen refused to work in the house. The maid quit.
Finally, they couldn't take the stench any longer, and decided they had
to move, but a month later - even though they'd cut their price in half
- they couldn't find a buyer for such a stinky house.
Word got out, and eventually even the local realtors refused to return
their calls.
Finally, unable to wait any longer for a purchaser, they had to borrow a
huge sum of money from the bank to purchase a new place.
Then the ex-wife called the man and asked how things were going. He told
her the saga of the rotting house. She listened politely and said that
she missed her old home terribly and would be willing to reduce her
divorce settlement in exchange for having the house.
Knowing she could have no idea how bad the smell really was, he agreed
on a price that was only 1/10 th of what the house had been worth ...
but only if she would sign the papers that very day.
She agreed, and within two hours his lawyers delivered the completed
paperwork.
A week later the man and his girlfriend stood smiling as they watched
the moving company pack everything to take to their new home ......
.... and to spite the ex-wife, they even took the the curtain rods!
I LOVE A HAPPY ENDING, DON'T YOU?
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Determination
Aunt Nora married young, raised a family, buried a husband, sold a farm, and in her twilight years wanted to acquire something she'd missed...her education. When she announced she was going back for her GED, friends and family generally heard this with hidden smiles or raised eyebrows. The way Nora looked at it, she would be 76 years old anyway, might as well arrive at that birthday milestone a little smarter.
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I was never extremely close to her - liked her, don't get me wrong, but she was one of several much older Indian females in the family who bossed or babysat me, and while I enjoyed her company, I wasn't fond of feeding the chickens or gathering eggs. Chickens pooped too much and were insidious peckers, and once I had seen one of them drop an egg out of its butt, I'd refused to eat hen fruit for some time.
*******
Little did I know that decades later I would discover something else about Nora - years after she'd passed away, I found out she loved writing and researching family history. She kept in touch with a cousin near her age who'd been adopted and moved to the east coast. Somehow, thanks to the internet and inquisitive minds, I connected with that older woman's daughter, and we've shared photos and information. Annmarie sent me the pic above of Aunt Nora with my great-great grandmother, Alice (Nora's mom), who used to make me drink the most godawful herbal teas whenever I was sick. Indian medicine, don't ya know?
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It's strange, the things we remember from childhood. Stranger still are speculations as to what my descendants will say about me - lol. They won't have to point to my kids and say that I carried them across state lines - literally - walking with a covered wagon, surviving yellow fever, a husband drowning in his twenties, leaving me with three babies, which is what happened to Grandmother Margaret, to the left. They won't be able to bring up the American Civil War, or even Viet Nam, other than to mention I was drafted (Uncle Sam thought I was male, not female, until I showed up in a mini skirt for the physical).
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On days that I whine about how bad I feel or that I have a case of writer's block, during nights when I can't seem to stop writing on what promises to be utter crap that nobody will buy, occasionally I think of the women who walked different paths but had similar dreams of success, ones who loved the written word.
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And I know that while I wouldn't trade places with any of them for all the book contracts in the world, I envy them the raw determination that must've fed their souls, the sheer will power to get up every morning to do what had to be done....
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...without benefit of Starbucks, Sara Lee, Microsoft, Polaroid, or Vera Wang flip flops, which feel great, by the way.
*******
Here's hoping you all have a good week and find strength you didn't realize (or forgot) you had. Happy writing,
~Sunny Lyn
Labels: family
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People I Love
Friend and fellow author Liz Wolfe just made my day sending me this (says she got it off of Google, so there's your credit if it's needed). It reminded her (and me) of a marvelous Romantic Times Booklovers Convention in Houston, summer of 2007, I believe. The Women of Wit were there with exception of ONE out of six...and we all initially met at eharlequin.com in "The Bat Cave", so...appropriate, n'est pa?
I don't think I have enjoyed a conference so much, other than maybe RWA Reno of 2005. I ADORE my critique partners, and there we were - Liz, T, Lex, Me, and Ann. There were paper peckers, lots of wine, a few cigarettes, and more than one sleepless night involved...for about a week. And OMG what fun.
Anyway - THANK YOU, LIZ.
Here's a cover of one of her books, by the way. She's a hoot to read - love her.
I also want to draw your attention to a loved one who writes better than his mother. Ya can't tell we're cut from close to the same cloth, can ya? - lol - This young man won his first major writer's award when he was 16 yrs old and had a senior editor from Bantam, no less, asking him for books. Did he ever submit? Hell, no. But he got asked, and he held his own at the conferences where he attend with his mom.
He was my traveling buddy, and we had a blast every time. He doesn't have traffic to his blog because he doesn't go blogging much, he doesn't advertise, and few people know he's even a writer, but I'm "outting him" so to speak if you'd just like to go say hello to the guy you've heard about from me for so many years. He's at amamankhet.blogspot.com and if you see this strange drawing he did of himself a few years ago, you'll know you've arrived. Some artists go through a Monet phase - mine went through a Kevorkian one (hey, ole Jack wasn't bad if you're into modern).
I'm sorry to see the passing of Michael Jackson (okay, he was weird, but he was talented, OMG), Farrah Fawcett, and Ed McMahon. And now there are conflicting reports as to whether or not Jeff Goldblum has fallen to his demise in New Zealand, and I HOPE TO GOD that that one is just a false rumor.
Anyway - I'm in a hearts and flowers kinda mood end of this week, for some reason. I'm not drunk, so I won't be disrobing, and not everyone will become my friend, but I am definitely going through some sort of warm and runny affliction that maybe will end soon, so I'll be back to my old acerbic self.
Till then...loves you...
~ Sunny Lyn
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friends & early summer funnies
CJ sent me something that made me smile today. It's been "one of those weeks" for a couple of my friends. I mean, I grouch about having to eat spicy food, but some of these gals are really having problems, so...here's a heart for CJ and the other two and anyone else who just wants one. You know who you are.
Why Men Shouldn't Take MessagesGotta have something funny today, though - just gotta. Michael in NY sent this one, and I've been cracking up ever since.
Mary Ellen sent me some funnies, but I can't copy and paste them in blogger...again. So I'll just wave HI to her and send a raspberry to Blogger.
---addendum---Just because I'm too lazy to create a newer blog post. Storms raged through here last night, and we were without electricity for about 8 hours or so. Winds took off the top of a tree across the street, and #1 Son went over in the rain to help move the sucker. Fire truck showed up - 4 beefy firemen. Landlord's handyman drove up to help. Of course, he never says thanks, and the whole time this guy is just bitching about how he'd be going 'round and round' with the landlord if that tree had hit his car. Car was fine. I don't believe there's an "act of God" clause in his renter's contract, though, and his "round and round" would have lasted maybe one round - lol - but oh, well. Just wanted friends who lurk to know that we're okay. No damage here, thank goodness, but a lot of smaller tree limbs and leaves were sacrificed during the course of an hour and a half.**********Hugs, everybody.
~ Sunny Lyn
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It Ain't Easy Bein' Me
I love my kids - let's get that out there. Today, I'd like to whack them upside the head. Temps are supposed to hit 100 without the heat index, and I have 4 loads of whites to do (HOT water - bleach type stuff). 13 total loads. I was up until 4 am doing laundry so The Girl would have her new clothes for work. Went into their bedroom to see why she was so desperate for clothing and hauled out enough for 4 trips. So my day started off staring at...
2 loads of jeans
2 loads of whites
4 loads of colors
2 loads of towels
2 loads of sheets (white)
1 load of dog bedding
Then there's the food issue. I'm trying to lose weight (yah, who isn't, right), and I'd like nothing but a greasy cheeseburger if I can't eat a salad, but I'm flexible. #1 DIL cooks spaghetti, egg rolls, and chocolate chip cookies...all marvelous, but that's it. #1 Son is a terrific cook, but I can't convince him we're Creek & Cherokee...feather Indian, not dot. If I have to eat lamb with masalas, curries, or black cumin more than once a week, I'm gonna shove a zucchini up someone's ass.
I love doing laundry - I'm just weird like that, but 13 friggin' loads ain't my idea of a great day. I'm also trying to get The Kids into the kitchen more often. Trouble is, nobody seems to know how to load and unload the dishwasher, and then there's the food issue. Cook me a goddamned taco or burger once or twice a week if you're not into chicken salad or shrimp fettucine Alfredo. Take me to Long John Silver's or Captain D's. Arby's will do. Give me a SALAD of ANY kind. Just don't approach a semi-vegetarian with lamb very often, and lay off the friggin' spices. (We won't discuss how Mama feels about Roti or Paratha. I'd rather eat chalk.)
Ya know, what goes in must come out, and it seeps through our pores. A guy passed me on the street last week and said hello in Hindi without even looking up.
Rant over. I'm gonna make a salad with garlic bread and bone up on Italian. Isn't variety the cumin of life?
Okay, rant over. It's time to add bleach to the current wash.
See you 'round the writers' block.
~ Sunny Lyn
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Upcoming contest and opportunities for writers:
Anyone besides me having trouble copying and pasting stuff into their blog on Blogger? This is driving me NUTS.
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Had a couple of contests to share for whoever is interested. These were in Cindi Myers's newsletter last week. Dorchester is having one - info can be found at
http://www.dorchester.com/contests/html*********
Torquere Press is launching a new penny-dreadful type line of pulp fiction, and you can check them out under submissions at
http://www.torquerepress.com/*********
Veteran editor and author Leslie Wainger is teaching a class for the Kiss of Death Chapter of RWA in July. Info can be found at
http://www.rwamysterysuspense.org/*********
Thanks to Janet for today's cartoon. *ggg*
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See ya'll around the writers' block,
~ Sunny Lyn
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A FEW SHOUT OUTS
4 Comments:
Hope you're having a good one. I'm getting ready to hit the road for a whirlwind tour of Kansas and three parties. Hope you, Carole and the femme pooch have a good weekend!
aaw - thanks - hope you have a marvelous holiday!
Thanks for not actually mentioning my age. Yikes! How did I get this OLD?
Didn't know that Rae and I shared a birthday. Happy Birthday, Rae!
think you both share that date, Liz, and you are quite welcome - hope the day is fantastic for both of you.
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