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A Rare #ThursThoughts Post

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2018, 1-16 Meteorite over SE Michigan Well, it's been an Up/Down start to my 2018, let me tell you. While I felt that 2017 was probably one of my better years, a lot of people claim otherwise. 2018, for me, is starting out on a pretty rocky road, and I'm not comfortable with it, either. For starters, my birthday falls on the 1st of January, so every year I get to celebrate the notion of getting older, which comes with its share of fear, dread, and "This can't be happening to me!" thoughts. I was alone on New Year's Eve and forgot to buy a bottle of champagne, so to have to believe that I'll be lonely and bored for the rest of the year is a bit daunting (if you or I believe in such nonsense, that is). But, then my eldest and his girlfriend announced their engagement just a week later, and it was happy time for a while. Selfishly, the joy ended when I realized it meant that when their wedding rolls around, I am going to be forced to have t...

A #review of When I Fall in Love by Wendy Lindstrom

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Today, I review When I Fall in Love , by Wendy Lindstrom, Book Seven in the Grayson Brothers series. Pages -  286 Publisher -  Rustic Studio Publishing Published -  January 3, 2016 Sold by -  Amazon Digital Services LLC Genre -  Historical Romance, Victorian Western Series -  Grayson Brothers, Book Seven Language -  1/5 Sexual Content -  1/5 Narrative -  3rd P The problem is that Nancy Mitchell can’t marry the man her father chose for her. Her only escape from the arrangement is to find another husband quick, so she concocts a desperate plan and agrees to become a mail order bride. When a drastic change in circumstances dumps her into the arms of Hal Grayson, a handsome grieving man who hates her family, she is forced to rethink her hastily made plan. Hal Grayson has just buried his brother. He doesn’t need any more surprises — especially a mail order bride that he didn’t order. But the beautiful and stron...

My Favorite Indulgence #MFRWauthor #Bloghop

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Favorite Indulgence Hello, everyone, and welcome back for Week 26 of the MFRW Author Blog's 52-Week Blog Challenge . Today's topic of discussion is: My Favorite Indulgence Like me eating potato chips, I can't give you just one, so in no particular order... BATHING I have been known to check myself in to a hotel that offers quality bath works just so I can fill up their big, jet-pulsing tub, sprinkle the steaming water with my favorite oil or scented salt, and slowly submerge for a glorious soak. And, I mean not caring that my skin is pruning by adding more hot water when necessary, because I'm gonna be in there for a while. Expensive? Yep. Worth the price? Oh, yep! MASSAGE This is a risky prospect because in all the years I've been aware of the benefits of a great massage, I've only ever received ONE that was worth the $$ (and, it was free!) I've tried Asian places that specialize in the treatment, and a few salon's that of...

Do You Keep a Journal or Diary? #MFRWauthor #bloghop

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Late Entry! No Internet meant No Submission... but, better late than never? Whatever, this is now Week 25 of the MFRW Author Blog's 52-Week Blog Challenge , and this week's topic of discussion is: Do You Keep a Journal or Diary ? Quick Answer:  NO But, I used to! I also used to horde the cute, colorful, and sometimes stylish Journal and Diary lined notebooks. Every time I went to Waldenbooks, it was to seek out and obtain the latest Johanna Lindsey romance novel and then browse the wide assortment of Journals. The more colorful, the better. Like anything, and with time, these things went from $2.99 or $5 to $7.99 and up to $12.00 Funny thing is, when I stopped hording them like I did legal pads, gel pens, and bargain bin romance novels, AND over time, the prices for these same cool journals started a slight decrease in price. Now, you'll find them in the same bargain bins as the paperback romance novels used to reside. And, the last time I we...

The One Thing I Can't Live Without #MFRWauthor #bloghop

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Hello, there! I missed last week's Hop, so this is now Week 24 of the MFRW Author Blog's 52-Week Blog Challenge , and the topic is: Item I Can't Live Without . If you had asked me just two years ago if I could live without music, I'd have emphatically told you N.O. Nearly my entire life was spent listening to, enjoying, recording, dancing to, and driving wherever with some type of music blaring back at me. Especially when I was writing. I honestly never believed it would be possible to write without ambient background filler to urge me on. Any time I hopped in my car, or even as a kid hopping into mom or pop's car, the 'radio' was always on as soon as the engine turned over. Elevators, fancy anchor stores at the mall, concerts, and even movies include some form of music. But, lo and behold, people... I have not been inclined to listen to music for more than a year. I just stopped turning on the car radio, tuning in to my favorite int...

The Best Gift I Ever Gave #MFRWauthor #Bloghop

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HAPPY FIRST DAY OF JUNE! Not sure about the rest of the USA or around the globe, but in my neck of the woods, we've been in a heatwave, with temps in the low 90s (Fahrenheit) and with the muggies as well. I love it! And, it's not even officially Summertime yet, so that is pretty cool. Except when I'm working inside a sweat box known as elementary school, then it isn't as 'cool' as I'd like it to be. Today's topic hits on the fact that I, for the first time ever, went to work in a sleeveless dress AND flip flops! It is part of the new-me Gift I'm giving to myself, to let go of the past, that way of thinking and feeling, and discovering someone new, someone alive, and someone I've never met before but wouldn't mind getting to know better. So, without further ado, here is this week's response! Hello, everyone, and welcome back for Week 22 of the MFRW Author Blog 's 52-Week Blog Challenge. This week, the to...

Highlander's Castle (Highlander Heat Book 1) by Joanne Wadsworth #review

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Today I review Highlander's Castle, Book One in the Highlander Heat series, by Joanne Wadsworth. Pages -  152 Published -  February 16, 2014 Sold by -  Amazon Digital Services LLC Series -  Highlander Heat Book 1 of 7 Genre -  Historical Romance, Scottish, Time Travel Language -  2/5 Sexual Content -  5/5 Narrative -  3rd P Traveling through time...for a Highlander. Anne MacLeod's identical ancestor has made a wish on the Fairy Flag at Dunvegan Castle, one which sees the two young women swapping places in time and leaving Anne set to handfast with the very man her ancestor wished to escape. Only Anne sees the possibilities, because now she could change the future and ensure her parents never perished in the inferno which took their lives. Highland warrior Alex MacDonald has made an agreement to handfast with Anne in order to bring a halt to the feud raging between their clans. The last thing he expects though ...

Favorite Social Media Platforms, and Why #MFRWauthor #Bloghop

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Hello, everyone! Welcome to Week 20 of the MFRW Author Blog's 52-Week Blog Challenge . This week, our topic is: My Favorite Social Media Platforms, and Why . *sigh... The most fun I tend to derive from these posts is creating the Banners for them. LOL IF Social Media worked the way I think that it should, I would be enamored of them all. However, all social media networks cater to the wealthy, the affluent, the successful, and the almighty popular people. Just like it works with people in real life. If Social Media sites worked in an inclusive manner FOR ALL, I would choose them all, but they don't and do not work for me. Goal-setters probably love Social Media and strive to gain recognition there, so I commend those types, believe me. For me, it is like whipping a dead horse, but that is because I am (currently) a nobody without a following. My content is seen by no one and easily lost among the more prominent, popular, and successful among us, so ...