Category Archives: Uncategorized

The Galaxy Trees

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Zenarra was homesick for the home world. She loved her new home in the  beautiful Valley of the Moon but she missed the Galaxy trees that bloomed at night on the full moon rising of Lunaris. There was nothing like it here. It was strange that she, a princess, was a fugitive from her world. She fled to escape an arranged marriage to Tomar. It had been arranged at birth between their parents, the leaders of the two most powerful clans. Her flight has caused a great outcry and accusations of fraud by the Clan Dorcha.  Minat sent Zenarra a message from her mother, the queen, begging her to return. The queen feared a war could erupt at any time and asked her to fulfill her duty. The prospective groom was a degenerate whose cruelty was legend. Zenarra would return not to become a bride, but to lead an army.

moon-625450_640 Moon Warrior via Pixabay

 

Flash Fiction for Aspiring Writers is hosted by Priceless Joy. Images provided by Pixabay.com

The Stuffing Recipe

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Thanksgiving Day is past and many of us are resting on our laurels for another delicious Thanksgiving dinner. My family prefers the traditional roast turkey with stuffing inside the bird, and the extra that does not fit in the bird in a casserole. I have cooked Thanksgiving dinner almost every year of my marriage and I even made it a few times before I was married. I remember, when I was in Nursing school, I made Thanksgiving for my family at the house I shared with fellow students in San Francisco. I stayed up practically all night trying to make the pie crust for the Pumpkin pie from scratch like my mother did. I threw out so much flour and shortening because I couldn’t get it to the right consistency. If you handle it too much the dough becomes stiff and will not be flakey when baked. My mother came over that day and I told her I was having problems with the pie crust. She whipped it together in a flash. She said you have to get a feel for it. My mother’s pie crust was wonderful. I have never been a pie maker and usually buy the pies from a good bakery.

The stuffing was another skill my mother had mastered and my recipe comes from my memory of how she made it. I have made it so many times and sometimes the ingredients have changed very slightly over the years. Thankfully I get the turkey and stuffing right according to my family. In earlier years, I prepared the entire meal by myself. Anyone who has made a big family dinner like this knows how much work it is.

In recent years, it has become a group effort with my daughter and husband pitching in with some of the preparation and cooking. My daughter is a very good cook and will come up with delicious dishes to add to the feast. She is usually in charge of the fresh mashed potatoes. This year she made roasted garlic mashed potatoes and a delicious mixed green salad with persimmons, pomegranate, and toasted walnuts. My husband makes the cranberry sauce and does some of the prep work by chopping vegetables for the stuffing.

We were away from home this time, at the in-laws house in Palm Desert, with one of our brother in laws. It is always a bit strange working in someone else’s kitchen but we managed to pull it off just fine. And according to my family the stuffing was great.

 

Stream of Consciousness Saturday hosted by LindaGHill

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The Beacon

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The little lighthouse was now the refuge for tired sea birds on their long journeys across the ocean. It’s light is dimmed as it’s candle has fallen into disrepair. Once it’s beacon had shown brightly and was a welcome sight to lonely ships navigating the rocky coast. It had prevented many disasters and saved many lives. Let our lives be a refuge and friendly beacon to others traveling on the stormy sea.

This post is in memory of Barbara Beacham in collaboration with Flash Fiction for Aspiring Writers.

The Germ Gang Takes a Vacation

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The Germ Gang decided they needed a break from the Anti-bacterial War. They were not feeling the love. They realized that some of their kind were pretty dangerous but they were just the easy going ones. They were getting a bad rep. So they decided to visit their cousins who lived in the forest and snack on some dead plants and insects and maybe a few mushrooms. They hitched a ride on a raccoon who was raiding a garbage can. The Germs really enjoyed the change of scene and visiting with their distant cousins. They took a quick photo before heading back to the city on the backpacks of some hikers.

Flash Fiction for Aspiring Writers hosted by Priceless Joy. The image is provided by Etol Bagam.

 

TODAY BE THE DAY

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Dave Barry reminds us that today is International Talk Like a Pirate Day. If you talk like a pirate, besides having fun, you can get free Krispy Krème doughnuts and Long John Silver fish sticks. (*offer may not be available outside the continental United States due to the fact you may not have Krispy Krème or Long John Silver, the restaurant not the pirate, in your country).

Source: TODAY BE THE DAY

Denver Art Museum Announces Major Show of Female Abstract Expressionists | ARTnews

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From ART News  Interesting show of women artists to start at Denver Art Museum in the Summer of 2016. Titled “Women of Abstract Expressionism,” the show will feature more than 50 works by 12 artists. Following its run at the DAM, the show will travel to the Mint Museum in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the Palm Springs Art Museum in California.”

Mountains and Sea by Helen Frankenthaler
No Birds by Joan Mitchell

The escape from Boko Haram #bringbackourgirls

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The American University of Nigeria is offering full scholarships to some of the girls who escaped from the Boko Haram. This is a very inspiring article from Smithsonian. Margee Ensign is the President of the university and a very courageous woman and native of my state of California. My heart breaks and I am sickened reading about the suffering of these women.  I am in awe of their spirit. We can not forget them.

 

The escape from Boko Haram #bringbackourgirls.

Part II for Which Witch Blog Hop: The Druids

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untitled An Arch Druid in His Judicial Habit

I have learned a lot about the Druids since I began researching for my first post, Samhain. I have read some the other posts on the Which Witch Blog Hop and Hocus Pocus and in other sources.

Some information I have learned is that the Druids history was an oral one and that anything we know about them was written by the Romans or Christian monks or pieced together from artifacts found in archeological digs.

Their history could have been distorted or edited as a result of cultural bias. Many of their stories are part of Celtic myths that were passed down orally as well.

My knowledge is limited in that I am a new to the subject. But what I have learned has enabled me to use my imagination in writing about Aine. I took what information I have read to inspire my story.

I was surprised to find that there are people today who call themselves Druids and practice some of the old traditions. It has been fun to learn about this topic and it has really inspired my writing lately.

I wrote another blog about Aine.

It has been fun to participate in this blog hop at The Way of the Wytch and nice to meet the other bloggers through their posts and comments.

This is the season of the witch by sammydavisdog

    Season Of The Witch

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My First Liebster Award

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liebster21

I am honored  to be nominated for the Liebster Award and want to thank Lucile de Godoy, on life for nominating me. It is heartening to have other writers give me recognition for my posts.

The Liebster Award has German origins. The word “liebster” has several definitions: dearest, sweetest, kindest, nicest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing, welcome, sweetheart and boyfriend.

It aims to discover new bloggers and welcome them to the blogosphere. Bloggers award other bloggers. Here are the rules for accepting the Liebster award:

  • Post the award on your blog.
  • Thank the blogger who presented this award and link back to their blog.
  • Write 11 random facts about yourself.
  • Nominate 11 bloggers who you feel deserve this award and who have less than 200 followers.
  • Answer 11 questions posted by the presenter and ask your nominees 11 questions.

11 Random Facts About Me:

  1. I love good strong coffee and usually have some every morning
  2. I enjoy good food and wine including San Francisco sour dough bread with the hard, dark crust
  3. I love to read books, the paper and cloth cover ones more than electronic
  4. I love films old and new
  5. I love nature and all the beautiful scenery in California
  6. I love opera and especially anything Puccini
  7. I love Rock n Roll like the song says
  8. I like things that are quirky and funny, good jokes and comedy
  9. I like some of the old comedians like Laurel and Hardy and WC Fields
  10. I like road trip up the coast of California with my husband
  11. I like dancing and may take up tap one of these days

My 11 Nominations ( I did not want to duplicate Lucile’s list but I still love you all and you know who you are 🙂  )

  1. Behind the White Coat
  2. Angiezingcupid
  3. From Egg Hill
  4. Far Out in Africa
  5. Inspiring Max
  6. Rachel Being Chatty
  7. The Crafty Lady in Combat Boots
  8. Sonadora
  9. Out of My Mind
  10.  El Amarillo Camino
  11. Wtf Am I On About Now?

My 11 Answers:

  1. Are you afraid of the dark? Sometimes if I have just finished watching a scary movie especially about hauntings or ghosts and such things and if I hear strange noises at night
  2. Do you care about recycling garbage? Yes but I am not always good about doing it. We do recycle plastic bottles.
  3. Are you happy? Depends on what mood I am in. 🙂 Generally yes, resilient.
  4. If you had to say the truth or protect a friend, which one would you choose? Lean toward protecting the friend unless they were guilty of a heinous crime.
  5. Are you addicted to social media? Right now almost addicted to WordPress blogging but trying to resist. Probably losing the battle. Don’t have time for other social media due to first part of answer.
  6. Do you have a dream? More than one. Travel. Write a book. Get published.
  7. Have you ever been in love with a friend and never told her/him? No
  8. Tell us the funniest thing that has happened to you.  I think I need to have more fun because I can’t think of anything right now 😦
  9. If you could choose another place, where would you live? Sonoma, Carmel or Santa Ynez Valley
  10. Don’t you like gossiping? Not too much.
  11. Would you let me know if you rather not be awarded and why? I can see how the awards can be more of a popularity contest and can be seductive. On the other hand I do appreciate getting the feedback as a new blogger. So Thank You!

My 11 questions for you:

  1. If you wrote a book what genre would it be?
  2. Is WordPress you whole life right now?
  3. What current issue in the news are you passionate about?
  4. Do you like to get together with a small group of friends or do you like big parties?
  5. Do you prefer cities, small towns or being in a more remote area?
  6. When you travel do you like to rough it or do you prefer a hotel with all the amenities?
  7. Do you feel you really need to be in constant communication with friends on Facebook, text, twitter or other social media?
  8. Do you enjoy time to yourself, solitude?
  9. Do you need to have a special place in your home or elsewhere where it is quiet to write?
  10. Are you a romantic?
  11. What type of music do you enjoy?