Eleven Questions

Just when I was needing some inspiration for getting back into my blog, I was tagged by the talented Rachel Funk Heller for the Eleven Questions Game.  You will definitely want to check out her blog and read the answers to her eleven questions.  Here’s her answer to number 4; I want to be at this dinner:

“4. You can invite any three people in the world for a dinner–anyone alive. Who are your guests?
Bill Moyers, Rachel Maddow, and Sting”

Here’s how the game is played:

1.    You must post the rules. 
2.    Answer the questions on your blog. Create eleven new questions to ask the people you’ve tagged.
3.    Tag eleven people and link to them.
4.    Let them know you’ve tagged them

So, here’s what you’ve all been wanting to know about me:

What is your favorite cruciferous vegetable?  None.  Really, I am not a fan of broccoli, cauliflower, etc. and so don’t eat them.  I even tried broccoli sprouts once, thinking to get the health advantages, and had to feed the bitter things to my hens.  And they weren’t thrilled with them either.

At what age did you realize Santa Claus, might not be real?  I was under the age of 10 because by then I was desperately in love with Han Solo and Santa was definitely a kid thing.  I don’t remember though if I was 8 or 9 when I realized that Santa used the same wrapping paper as Mom.  Hmmmmm.

Where is the worst place you have ever made whoopee?  In a very prickly thicket, with only a thin blanket on the ground.  Ex-boyfriend thought it was ‘romantic’ to do it outdoors.  Sure, fine, but fewer sticks underneath would’ve made it a lot more comfortable.

What is your favorite rodent?  Rats.  Really, I’ve had multiple pet rats.  They are very affectionate if raised right, and highly trainable.  Pet rats come in lots of varieties and color schemes.  I mean come on…isn’t that cute?

 

List your five favorite letters of the alphabet.  In no particular order:  H, I, J, K, and L.

If you could be a Spice Girl, which one would you be?  Probably Sporty Spice, I would love to be able to do backflips.

If you were a super hero, what is your super hero name and your special power?  My special power would be talking to animals, and my name would be Chatterbox.  I would wander the streets chatting up the pets of your favorite celebrities and then blog about all their deepest and darkest secrets.

What is your Drag Queen name? Take the name of your first pet, and the name of the first street you lived on.  Inky Regatta, which conjures up all sorts of images.  Hmm, I feel a new character coming on…

Boxers or Briefs?  Boxers all the way.

You’ve just made an embarrassing fast dash into an elevator car, after you make it and the door closes, you are panting and out of breath, you look up and there is your favorite celebrity of all time: what do you say?  “Quick Han Solo, tell me again what a scoundrel you are!”  You notice that’s the second time I’ve mentioned him?

What is your favorite Halloween costume of all time?  The chain mail bikini a very old friend made for me one year, worn over my leather bikini, with a swirling cape and trusty sword at my side.  Then I wore it to a Renaissance Faire the next year.  Oh, what fun that weekend was!

So now it’s my turn!  I get to ask the questions, here’s what I want to know about all of you!

Dream vacation anywhere, and I mean anywhere; here on earth, out in the cosmos, favorite fantasy realm or time period, and why?

When did you first realize you were a writer?

How would you like to reach bestselling author status:  traditional publishing, with agent, editor and one of the big 6?  Or go it alone, a-la Amanda Hocking style, self-published all the way?  (If you are already there, which route did you take, and how’d that go for you?)

Last movie you saw, and what’d you think?

You can no longer write!  Gasp!  How do you express your creativity now?

If you could wave a magic wand and fix just one thing, anything you like, be it pollution, politics, or maybe just the way your hair frizzes when there’s too much humidity, what would it be and why?

Is there life after death?  Do you want there to be?

Favorite ice cream flavor?

Who’s on your list?  You know, the exception list, as in:  “Honey, yeah, Han Solo just called and he’s good to go.  You know he’s on my list.”  (Ok, so he’s my favorite example)

You can take a trip, and find out 100% absolutely without a doubt that there is a God, but the process of finding out takes a couple weeks, and involves some risk and personal physical sacrifice and pain.  Would you take the trip?

What was your favorite Saturday morning cartoon as a kid?

Inquiring minds want to know:

Emma Burcart 

Pat O’Dea Rosen

Coleen Patrick

Alica McKenna Johnson

Louise Behiel

Jansen Schmidt

Kara P. Flathouse

Jessica O’Neal

August McLaughlin

Diana Murdock

Deborah J. Hughes  

I look forward to reading all of your answers!  Happy Easter to all, may your day be filled with love, joy and the blessings of your family.

And because I just couldn’t resist:

 

 

Beauty of a Woman Blogfest

The beautiful and talented August McLaughlin is hosting the very first Beauty of a Woman Blogfest.  Her posts never fail to delight, but August has created something very special with this collection of authors.  You will definitely want to check out her website tomorrow, February 10th and tour through the blogs of the gifted writers participating.  In addition to the lure of the posts there are prizes to be won, including a Kindle and a $99 Amazon gift card.

I’m almost 45 years old, and it took me a little while to stop mourning the loss of my 20-something body.  You see, I used to be a gym rat, lifting weights, cardio, swimming; I worked out almost every day to keep my body looking like the girls in the magazines.  It helped that I had a very physically demanding job that kept me moving and on my feet most of the day, working as animal trainer.

But somewhere betwixt there and here, I picked up a few extra pounds year after year.  I was curvier, and not entirely sure I wanted to be; I was used to thinking of 125 pounds as the end of the world, and now I was a bit beyond that.  Hub was happy with me, but was I happy with me?

No mystery in the why.  In the ten years between leaving the animal field and now I had moved to another state, changed careers, got married, and worked long hours on the night shift.  I had spent my days off doing nothing but eating McDonalds and chocolate comfort food, reading, and sleeping, too exhausted to exercise, then too broke to keep the gym membership.  Excuse after excuse.  I spent a fair amount of time trying this fad pill or that exercise gimmick to try and lose the weight quickly.  You know how well those work, right?  Even though I left the night shift and joined the ranks of the daytime, Monday through Friday workers, I’d lost the habit of exercise, and picked up the habit of picking on myself, and spent a lot of time not feeling very pretty at all.  Yeah, that’s also a big help isn’t it?  I had a bunch of family drama in my life, and I pretty much turned into a hermit.  Yes, the stretchy pants are my best friend.

I wanted to exercise more and eat better, but I was never very good at sticking with it.  It took me months of self-castigation before I realized I was working against myself with the negative talk.  I gave myself a stern reality check.  Why would I avoid working out because I couldn’t go lift or run for an hour and half every day?  Because I would hear:  What’s the use?  Anything less won’t do you any good.  Oh that little voice in my head!  I was trying regain the body I had 20 years ago, and I was using phrases like, you’re so ugly and fat, and you are such an idiot to try and get myself off the couch.  For all my time spent meditating and working on my spiritual self and trying to practice love and compassion for my fellow beings, I had precious little to give to myself.  Why is it that we are always hardest on ourselves, using words we would never dream of repeating out loud to another person, to bully and browbeat our inner self?  I forgot that our strongest power comes from accenting the positive, not the negative.  Instead of berating, I turned to offering myself love, and support.

Then came the real shocker.  A friend recently posted a picture from that time, and I didn’t even recognize my own form at first.  Seriously, the first thing that flashed across my brain was, sheesh, why doesn’t she eat a cheeseburger?  With extra bacon?  Although I didn’t consider myself unhealthy at the time, I remember a co-worker telling me that when I first started at the zoo, she didn’t think I’d be able to handle very physical quality of the work, that I looked so frail.

I was trying to squish myself back into a square hole when I’d become a round peg.  My mental image of the younger me didn’t match the reality of who I was now, not just physically but mentally

Seeing that picture was a turning point.  That ultra skinny and well-nigh unobtainable magazine body was not what I thought of as attractive or healthy now.  I’d been beating myself up for not having something I didn’t really want anyway.  I stopped thinking of the former me as something to be longed for, punishing myself because I was no longer that shape.

When I next looked in the mirror I saw my curves as beautiful, not ungainly.  I wasn’t a stick skinny girl; I was woman in her prime.  In that moment I was gorgeous in my eyes, and I learned to love my body all over again, when I’d been a fair way to hating it.  I stopped whispering hateful messages in my ear, and instead switched to empowering phrases, and looked for ways to adapt my lifestyle to incorporate healthier eating and multiple, shorter bouts of exercise.  I realized I was comfortable with who I am now, and while I saw room for improvement, now it was for me.  I would define my body as beautiful, not give that power away to the media or the magazines!  I can’t tell you I’m perfect at eating right all the time, and sometimes I get so lost in my story I completely lose track of time, but I am consistent about getting back on track, because now I am comfortable in my skin.

Every woman should be able to look herself in the eye, say I love you, and truly mean it.  Don’t try and conform to the media’s narrow definition of what looks good, the beauty of a woman lies in her soul.  Learn to love yourself and see yourself as a true child of the Spirit, and you will see the beauty we all carry within.  Then will shine it for all to see.

How do you find your beauty within?

I Won’t See You Tomorrow

Because I won’t be online.  You may not be aware of this, but there are currently two bills in Congress; PIPA in the House, and SOPA in the Senate, which severely curtail freedom of speech.  Even if you’ve never been involved in politics you may want to pay attention to this one.

Rather than repeat what others have already so eloquently stated, I will direct you to two wonderful ladies who will provide you with details, and how to get involved.

 

Emma Burcart – No Soup For You!

Ginger Calem – Stop Censorship!

Ginger also provided this bit of info from WordPress on the SOPA Strike.

 

So, will you take action? If you can’t do without the Internet for one day, what will you do if it goes away?

 

My regular Wednesday Dog Training post will be delayed until Thursday.

Versatile Blogger Award!

Prudence McLeod kindly bestowed this award on me.  Thank you Prudence!  You really should check out her blog, she’s a prolific writer, a dog trainer and a Reiki Master-Teacher.  Novan Witch is on my Kindle, next on my reading list, waiting for me to finish Atlantis.

The Versatile Blogger Award has a few requirements.  You must thank and link back to the person who bestowed it.  You must tell the world seven things about yourself, and you must pass it on.  I went visiting some blogs that I have not been to before, or only a few times, and let me tell you, I have been missing out!  So check out these talented writers:

Thea Atkinson  http://theaatkinson.wordpress.com/

Sadie Hart  http://sadiehart.com/

Jennette Marie Powell  http://www.jenpowell.com/blog/

Kristy K James   http://kristykjames.wordpress.com/

Barry Crowther    http://barrycrowther.com/category/blog/

Rachel Firasek    http://www.rachelfirasek.com/

Susan Bischoff   http://susan-bischoff.com/blog/

Mhairi Simpson   http://www.annemhairisimpson.com/

Chicki Brown   http://sisterscribbler.blogspot.com/

Jillian Dodd   http://jilliandodd.wordpress.com/

Seven things about me…

I hate housework.  Really.  I’ll do it under duress, but otherwise, I’m content to have a few dust bunnies populate my corners.  I am a lucky woman in that Hub shares my distaste equally, and when we do kick into cleaning mode he shares in the work.

I don’t mind washing dishes.  I know, totally contradictory.  Goes back to washing fish buckets on cold winter days.  Warm water, just my thoughts, ahhh, a mini-meditation session.

I believe you can create your own reality.  So many people poo-poo this.  “I wished for a million bucks, and that never happened” is usually what their complaint is.  Well, the universe isn’t going to just drop it in your lap because you wished for it once or twice.  It takes dedication, it takes moving, working toward what you want, and holding that reality firmly in your thoughts; it takes passion.  I am creating my reality as a best-selling author right now!

I love being surrounded by animals.  I can’t imagine a life without at least one animal companion.  Current count: A Belgian Sheepdog, 12 years, a yellow Labrador retriever, 5 years, one 16 year old cat and two 12 years old kitties, 4 chickens and 1 betta.

I’m not much of a girly-girl.  Don’t get me wrong; I like getting dressed to kill, going out and looking good, but it’s not an every day thing for me.  I can happily spend most days sans makeup and in casual, comfy clothes.  Comes from being in profession that essentially dresses in pajamas.

I’ve killed my own animals for food.  Chickens.  And, yes, they were delicious!  Going to do it again this year, too.

I dream of opening up a small farm.  I spent so many years teaching people about animals and the environment, and I would love to do it again!  Holding educational programs for city kids to learn where food comes from, animals and how we are connected to our environment.  Adults too!

I love to bake.  Just for the sheer pleasure of watching people’s faces light up when they taste real food made with love.

Congratulations to all Versatile Bloggers out there!  More blogger love to pass around!

Happy New Year!

What direction do you want travel in 2012?

 

Welcome to 2012!  We’ve survived another lap around the sun!

This time of year brings out the best and the worst in people; we had people getting stabbed over shoes, and lay-away gifts paid off in full by generous strangers.  Some stress out because they can’t find the perfect gift (an elusive creature), or get their decorations just right.  Others take time to reflect on the past year, some make resolutions they don’t intend to keep.  Many (myself included) just kick back, relax, enjoy the good feelings and fellowship that come with the holiday season, and try to spread some of it around.  Let me share some terrific bloggers with you:

Resolutions, what to do?

Louise Behiel gives you a step-by-step method for setting goals and resolutions.

Hayley E. Lavik tells you what she has no intention of changing.

Did you have a good year?

Lynette M. Burrows gives you some of the best of 2011.

Ginger Calem tells you about her five favorite things of 2011.

I want to send out a huge thank you to everyone who has helped me through this year, I never could have done it without you!  I made huge strides in my writing in 2011 and 2012 looks to be even more awesome.  Thank you for reading this blog, thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences with me!  I wish for all of you the very best the New Year has to offer.

Enjoy some spectacular fireworks from Australia’s New Year’s Eve 2012 celebration!

Rise of the Geeks

I am a geek, and I’m proud of the label.  I own it, I flaunt it, and my husband calls it ‘flying my geek flag.’  I love science fiction and fantasy, and still read more of those genres than any other.  When I was growing up, I think I spent more time mentally on Barsoom, or Pern, or travelling the stars with Lazarus Long, than I ever did in school.  I played Dungeons and Dragons well through my twenties, and I am tickled to say, my character is still technically ‘alive’ and run as an NPC (that’s Non-Player Character for you non-gamer types) by my even geekier friends who still play on occasion.  I spent a lot of time painting miniatures for Warhammer 40K, although I enjoyed the painting more than the gaming.  I always got my ass kicked; guess I’m a better artist than strategist.  Anyone want to buy a couple Tyranid armies?  They’re classics, out of print…anyone?

I’ve always known I was a geek, and valued my individuality, but it wasn’t always easy.  Growing up, I was happier with my nose in a book, and my circle of friends was small.  I didn’t do much to try and fit in and I was an easy target for bullies.  As for my dating life, let’s just say it was really pathetic.  However, all the teasing and missing my prom solidified my determination to be, just me.  Boy, has it paid off!

The older I got, the less I cared what people thought of my eccentricities.  I look back on the bullying and teasing I went through and think, yeah it sucked then, but it was worth it.  Because it helped shape me; the me that I love being, the me that is comfortable in my own skin.

Now, geek is the new cool.  Case in point; Big Bang Theory.  I love, love, love how they will throw in the most obscure D&D, LOTR, Star Trek or Star Wars trivia.  Many times I’ve been doubled over, howling with laughter, while my husband pauses and rewinds the DVR, then waits for me to calm down enough to explain what’s so funny.  What do you mean you’ve never watched?  You are missing out!  Be sure to check out the art decorating Leonard and Sheldon’s apartment.  I’m sure the show’s creator and I read many of the same books, and saw the same movies.  So, I guess the geek have inherited the earth, or at least come to dominate the entertainment and technology field.  Anyone else work somewhere that the IT guys have named their computer Gandalf or Bilbo?

Are you a geek?  Did you suffer through teasing or bullying during your childhood because you were ‘weird’ or a ‘bookworm’?  Were you practically ignored by the opposite sex?  How has your life been shaped by your geekdom?

Who Am I Following?

In honor of Twitter’s #Follow Friday, I would like to introduce you to some of the bloggers I follow.  These  writers  are worth more than a cursory glance at just their homepage; they will draw you in and you will want to read more.  I’ll bet you’ll want to follow some too!

I invite you dive in and enjoy!

Kristen Lamb – This is the woman who helped me get started in the whole social media, blogging, author branding and platform thingy.  Before I read her book, We Are Not Alone, I had no idea what to do about my fear of social media, or how to make it work for me.  I knew it was possible, I was just clueless.  Then I took her class, Blog To Build Your Brand.  In the few short months since I’ve been following Kristen’s advice, my posts have been getting more comments and my overall visits went from less than 250 to 979!

Piper Bayard – Funny, topical, and always worth your time.  Piper often turns the posting over Holmes, who provides commentary on current events.  A diverse blog that will keep you coming back.

Jenny Hansen – How can you not love a blog that plays off of Will Farrell’s famous Cowbell skit from SNL?

Marcy Kennedy & Lisa Hall-Wilson – These ladies write pieces to make you think,  give great writing advice, and will show you real mermaids and unicorns! Bring on the glitter!

Rachel Funk Heller – She writes about her life; it’s real, it’s honest.   She tells you about making the decision to move her mother into a nursing home, why we all need to think about death, about human connections.  You’ll find you understand her, and yourself, just a little better.

August McLaughlin – She writes about books, she talks about writing, she gives great interview.  An excellent resource for the writer.

Karen Crumley – A sister psychic, she describes for you the indescribable so that you can see it and feel it as she does.

Janelle Madigan – On writing and creativity with some killer guest posts too!  And she writes about the paranormal, all things I love!

Myndi Shafer -  Oh so funny, she hosts great guests, and you definitely want to read about how she loves to mildly irritate her husband.  You’ll come back to her Leave A Caption posts again and again.

Kait Nolan – At this, her Pots and Plots blog she provides awesome recipes, and features gluten-free on Friday.  She is also writes paranormal romance, so be sure to check out her author website.

No list of mine would be complete without mentioning three very special ladies.  You know how it is, when you walk into a room of strangers?  A whole lot of them?  You might not get to meet everyone; so you circulate and mingle, you get to know some, but you really click with a few?  Maybe it’s because we all have seen, and talked to dead people.  You’ll get that and then some when you read these ladies’ postings.

Diana Murdock

Debra Kristi

Deborah J. Hughes

Have a great weekend and a full #Follow Friday!