Food For Thought...

"The forces you are struggling with, that you feel are holding you back - are illusions. They are not real - they never have been. See only the good that you desire in your mind."

Bob Proctor

Have a fantastic day!
Peace and Love,
Alannah

What I'm Reading...

Force of Nature by Suzanne Brockmann


Being the huge JR Ward fan that I am, I know that JR is a Suzanne Brockmann fan. I hadn't read anything of Suzanne Brockmann's but I figured if JR Ward liked it then I probably would too. I wanted to get the first book in her Troubleshooter series but wasn't able to find it. And, being the lover of instant gratification that I am, I didn't want to wait for it to come in. So I grabbed the one that B&N had on the shelf and dove in.

I love it!

I also went to her website and...wow!!! There's an insider's guide available online - which covers the characters and books in the Troubleshooter series. And she also has other PDF files available for the books that have come after the insider's guide was available.

Have you guys read any of the books in this series? What are you guys reading now? Paula, did you get through that HUGE pile you were reading last weekend? LOL

Have a fantastic weekend, everyone!!
Peace and love,
Alannah

Einstein the Talking Parrot

I know, it's supposed to be recipe day...but I'm on the road and this is probably better than anything I'd come up with, anyway. I got this video the other day and was completely fascinated by this little guy. Hope you enjoy!



Have a fantastic day!
Peace and love,
Alannah

Hump Day Humor...

My mother loves this Pepsi commercial. She keeps it in her inbox so she can play it whenever she needs a chuckle. Hope you enjoy it also!



I'm headed to Ohio to see my family and work on plotting a series *gasp* with my uncle. Wish me lotsa luck!!

Peace and love,
Alannah

Slice of life and food for thought....

We were at the river yesterday with lots of hubby's family: His uncle (from Birmingham), his cousin (and his wife and two kids from Houston), his parents and our nephew.

When we woke up yesterday morning, the wind was calm and so was the water. I guess I should explain that the river is 3 miles wide where our cottage is - we're close to the Pamlico Sound so the river widens drastically.

Anyway, my kidlet wanted to wake board while the water was smooth. Next thing we know, everyone is in the water. My hubby and Kidlet are wake boarding, cousin Jamie from Houston wake boards. Not to be outdone by his wife - and despite his back surgery - cousin Marc goes wake boarding and shows them all how its done. Big time!!!

Then little cousin Parker (4 years old) tries to learn to water ski and is able to get up on them with just a few tries.

And in between all these people, nephew Andrew (15 years old) tries and tries and tries and then, tries some more, to get up on the wake board. I was so impressed with his tenacity and his willingness to just keep trying. And there were even jelly fish in that water!! My kidlet fell on one and got stung right on the face. And yet, Andrew kept trying. He never did get up on the board.

On the way home I started thinking about his tenacity and I told him how impressed I was with him and willingness to just keep at it. He said, "It's kind of sad, considering how many times I tried, that I never got up."

"No, it's awesome that you were willing to keep at it." And then I told him the following saying.

"Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try one more time."

Thomas Edison
1847-1931, Inventor and Entrepreneur

It's kind of like writing. And next time I'm tempted to quit, or question whether or not it's really worth it. Or wonder if I'll ever "make it" I'm going to remind myself of Andrew trying to get up on that wake board.

I hope it's a fantastic day for everyone!!!
Peace and love,
Alannah

Corn on the Cob

This is one of my very favorite times of the year - when the sweet corn is ready. But I have one problem...I don't really know how to fix it. Well, not consistently, anyway. Sometimes it comes out perfect. Sometimes it comes out nice and chewy - not the way I prefer it! LOL

My mother-in-law says that she brings a pan of water to a boil, then drops the corn in, puts on a lid and removes the pan from heat and just lets the corn cook in the water until the rest of the meal is ready. I've tried this, it doesn't really work well for me.

I've also been told to bring the water to a boil, drop in the corn and let boil for 6 minutes. Sometimes this works, sometimes it doesn't.

One way I've tried to cook it the last couple of years is to cut the corn off the cob and saute it in butter. When this works, it is wonderful!! When it doesn't, we're back to the nice and chewy.

I know we have some great cooks here. Tell me, how do you fix your corn on the cob?

Peace and Love,
Alannah

Hump Day Humor...

9 Months Later...


Jack decided to go skiing with his buddy, Bob. So they loaded up Jack's minivan and headed north. After driving for a few hours, they got caught in a terrible blizzard.

They pulled into a nearby farm and asked the attractive lady who answered the door if they could spend the night.

"I realize its terrible weather out there and I have this huge house all to myself, but I'm recently widowed," she explained. "I'm afraid the neighbors will talk if I let you stay in my house."

"Don't worry," Jack said. "We'll be happy to sleep in the barn, and if the weather breaks, we'll be gone at first light."

The lady agreed, and the two men found their way to the barn and settled in for the night.

Come morning, the weather had cleared, and they got on their way.

They enjoyed a great weekend of skiing.


But about nine months later, Jack got an unexpected letter from an attorney.

It took him a few minutes to figure it out, but he finally determined that it was from the attorney of that attractive widow he had met on the ski weekend.

He dropped in on his friend Bob and asked, "Bob, do you remember that good-looking widow from the farm we stayed at on our ski holiday up north about 9 months ago?"

"Yes, I do." said Bob

"Did you, er, happen to get up in the middle of the night, go up to the house and pay her a visit?"

"Well, um, yes," Bob said, a little embarrassed about being found out. "I have to admit that I did."

"And did you happen to give her my name instead of telling her your name?"

Bob's face turned beet red and he said, "Yeah, look, I'm sorry, buddy, I'm afraid I did. Why do you ask?"

"She just died and left me everything"


And you thought the ending would be different, didn't you? ...you know you smiled .... now keep that smile for the rest of the day!

Peace and Love,
Alannah