Sat Sitrep

Here are the totals from yesterday....

I only wrote about 500 words, but during the editing phase, I deleted that many, so the new word count was a wash.

I edited 42 pages on paper, and 55 pages on the computer.

Kidlet will be home today and tomorrow, so that presents a challenge. But refuse to be beaten!!! LOL

I hope it's a great Saturday for everyone!!

Peace and love,
Alannah

Sitrep Friday....

I figured I'd give you guys an update on where things stood with my latest WIP, the one I'm finishing up for the Brava contest. Knowing I need to give a situation report, also keeps me motivated to keep plugging along.

I wrote 3400 words yesterday - I have 6K to go.
I edited (on paper) - 52 pages.

Wow, I had no idea I'd edited that many pages. OK...this sitrep is very good for keeping me going. LOL

Today, I'm going to write another 3K, make the paper changes on the computer and edit another 50 pages (on paper).

I hope everyone has a fantastic July 4th weekend!!!!

Peace and love,
Alannah

What I'm Reading....

(added after I posted my blog today) OMG!!!!! I now know that I've completely lost my mind! The glitch with Tues/Wed. posts posting at the same time were something to do with Blogger and I couldn't figure out how to fix that. They even had the right dates at the top. This...is all me!! The good news is...I have an extra day to meet this deadline!!!!! ROTFL...I can't believe I depend on the date at the top of my blogger page to let me know what day it is. I need a nice, days-long nap! But I'm going to leave this blog up for today, and tomorrow, thanks for understanding.

Before I get to what I'm reading, I'll give you a quick update on my son. He had a break from school, and at the last minute decided to come and visit us for a couple of days. It was around 12:30 Monday night/Tuesday morning, and he'd gone downtown to spend some time with his friends. (This usually works out well because we go to be pretty early, and his friends go to bed late, so he usually gets to see everyone in one trip).

He was turning left off of a major road onto a side street. He thought he had the green turn arrow, and he also thought the other car was in the turn lane. That's what he said that night. The next day, he still said the same thing, but he added, "I don't know what the hell I was thinking."

As he approached the intersection, he looked down at his lap, at the Sheetz cookie he'd just gotten. When he looked back up, he realized the other car wasn't in the turn lane, but at that point, it was too late.

To see the car, is sickening. The entire front end is gone, and the policeman kept saying over and over, "I'm just glad you guys are both okay. The way that car looks, you should be in the back of an ambulance. In fact, a guy was killed two weeks ago and his car wasn't nearly as bad as yours."

There were definitely angels watching over him, and the other guy, too. The other guy wasn't wearing a seatbelt!!! He hit his head on the window, but other than that, didn't seem to have any injuries. He went to the hospital and got checked out, but they let him go that night, saying he was fine.

Now, on to what I'm reading. I'm not reading often, just a page here and there, when I can sneak one in. This stuff with Son #1 definitely hasn't helped me in meeting this deadline, so I don't have much time to read. But when I can, it's Make Her Pay, by Roxanne St. Claire. It's one of the Bulletcatcher's books, and features Constantine Xenakis.

Here's the cover and the deets from Simon and Schuster's website:



Bullet Catcher and former Navy SEAL Constantine Xenakis has infiltrated a dive ship to discover who's plundering priceless gems from a legendary sunken Spanish galleon. When he catches Lizzie Dare red-handed in the locked treasure room, her story of a stolen ancestral legacy convinces him to work with the sexy thief instead of turning her in -- and not just because he wants to find the real culprit. Lizzie is willing to risk everything to save the Bombay Blue Diamonds from her sworn enemy, even if that means giving in to an irresistible desire to get closer to her accomplice. But when passion hits them like a rogue wave and danger surrounds them like a school of hungry sharks, their adventure on the high seas turns treacherous...and deadly.


I hope everyone has a great weekend. If you think about it, please send me lots of positive vibes and thoughts, and some virtual drinks. I think I'm going to need all of it to get this story finished and submitted. Especially because I forgot I also to have to write a synopsis!!! *thud*

Peace and love,
Alannah

Hump Day Humor....

There are two statues in a park. One of a nude man and one of a nude woman.

They had been facing each other across a pathway for a hundred years, when one day an angel comes down from the sky and, with a single gesture, brings the two to life.

The angel tells them, "As a reward for being so patient through a hundred blazing summers and dismal winters, you have been given life for thirty minutes to do what you've wished to do the most."

He looks at her, she looks at him, and they go running behind the shrubbery.

The angel waits patiently as the bushes rustle and giggling ensues. After fifteen minutes, the two return, out of breath and laughing.

The angel tells them, "Um, you have fifteen minutes left, would you care to do it again?"

He asks her "Shall we?"

She eagerly replies, "Oh, yes, let's! But let's change positions. This time, I 'll hold the pigeon down and you shit on its head."






WHAT WERE YOU THINKING????

OK....obviously, I'm having some technical difficulties. The real inspirational story for today, is one down. I messed up the dates when I set them to post. It's an awesome story, though, so please scroll down and read it if you have time.

AND...Son #1 had a pretty bad accident last night - this morning (12:30 am). He's okay, but we're pretty sure his new car of 3 months is totaled. He'd come to town to visit us during his break, and had gone downtown to see some of his friends.

I'm headed out the door with him now to go back to Raleigh, and to run a bunch of errands today to get as much taken care of as we can. He goes back to class tomorrow.

Anyway, I'm going to have to leave this "as is." Sorry.

Happy hump day!!
Peace and love,
Alannah

What an Inspirational Story!!

Today's post is a little longer than my normal Tuesday Food For Thought, but WOW!! A lot of the quotes that I share come from a daily e-mail that I receive from Peggy McColl, New York Times Best Selling Author.

On Friday's, we get "The Friday Story." They're usually a bit long, and I don't read them because...well, I just don't take the time to read them.

Unless...I have a very strong sense that it has something important to say. Maybe one out of every two or three months will give me that feeling. Last Friday, I had that feeling with this one, and I'm so glad I did.

I've been really struggling with getting this story finished for the writing contest. I've written every single day since the beginning of May. Some days I write just a few hours, most days, I'm sitting at my computer all day. I haven't cleaned my house since this project started (I don't think, and it sure as hell doesn't look like I have). My back hurts all the time, and my wrists are starting to hurt all the time too.

I've not considered giving up, becuase I'd never forgive myself if I missed this opportunity. But I've not been a very pleasant person to be around lately. LOL I'm so grateful I received this story. It's given me the boost I need to get through the next seven to ten days and get this story submitted. I hope you enjoy it too!!!


"Reaching for the Sky"

It was so difficult. We inched our way up, climbing the "Snake Path" of Masada, a fortress in the mountains of ancient Israel where the Jewish people held off the Roman emperor's army for three years.

As in the days of Masada, my "trip" up the "Snake Path" was very difficult. However, I kept reminding myself as I inched up the path with my father, "The easy things in life are usually not worth doing."

I had learned that lesson the hard way. I had been involved in an "accident," that almost ended my life at the young age of 19. However, I did survive with much help and determination. Some say I have "turned surviving into thriving," but I just try. I have disabilities as a result of the injury; however, I believe that all humans have some kind of disabilities.

I kept repeating that statement to myself as I attempted to climb the steep mountain. There were many places on the path where there was not enough room for both my father (who was holding me tightly) and myself to climb side by side. My father, therefore, held me perhaps even tighter as he followed me slowly- -VERY SLOWLY- -up the path.

As we climbed higher and higher, I was also remembering how difficult it had been to train for this climb. Months before, my father and I would climb the stairs of the tallest hospital (25 flights) in Houston, St. Luke's Hospital. At the end of several months of training we had reached the point where we were climbing the hospital stairs 3 times in a row. Because of that exercise routine, I was breathing easily as I climbed much of the mountain, as I was basically in good shape. However, because of the very steep and often narrow paths, there were times when I, as well as my father, was having difficulty breathing because of tension and strained nerves.

However, as we approached the top of the "Snake Path" a broad smile came over my face at that moment. It did not matter how much I was hurting; also, it did not matter that we were thousands of miles away from our home in Houston; actually, for a brief moment in time nothing seemed to matter, except that I was able to accomplish my goal--climbing the steep fortress Masada.

Just then, as I was 20 steps from the top, I heard a group of Israeli soldiers at the top of Masada all applauding my achievement. (OK, I guess they might have also been clapping for my father.) I was so proud, not because I had climbed Masada and not because Israeli soldiers had applauded my achievement, but because I had achieved my goal.

Everyone in life has his own "mountains" to climb, some small, some big--but "mountains" nonetheless. I believe the important thing in a person's life is trying to overcome one's obstacles.

I thought about that as I reached the very top of Masada--and then I collapsed for a few minutes. Lying with my face to the ground I thought: "I did it. I did it." However, I quickly realized that I had many more goals and different goals to still reach. But I smiled and thought, "Which one is next?"

Michael Segal

Michael Jordan Segal, who defied all odds after being shot in the head, is a husband, father, social worker, freelance author (including a CD/Download of 12 stories, read with light backgroud music, entitled POSSIBLE), and inspirational speaker, sharing his recipe for happiness, recovery and success before conferences and businesses. To contact Mike or to order his CD, please visit www.InspirationByMike.com.

If you have an extra 8 minutes, you might want to watch this video. It's very compelling.




Go out there and reach for those goals! Make yourself proud!!!

Peace and love,
Alannah

Sizzline Sixteen is here!!!

Here's the deets from her website:

Trenton, New Jersey, bounty hunter Stephanie Plum has inherited a “lucky” bottle from her Uncle Pip. Problem is, Uncle Pip didn’t specify if the bottle brought good luck or bad luck....

BAD LUCK:
Vinnie, of Vincent Plum Bail Bonds, has run up a gambling debt of $786,000 with mobster
Bobby Sunflower and is being held until the cash can be produced. Nobody else will pay to get Vinnie back, leaving it up to Stephanie, office manager Connie, and file clerk Lula to raise the money if they want to save their jobs.

GOOD LUCK:
Being in the business of tracking down people, Stephanie, Lula, and Connie have an advantage in finding Vinnie. If they can rescue him, it will buy them some time to raise the cash.

BAD LUCK:
Finding a safe place to hide Vinnie turns out to be harder than raising $786,000. Vinnie’s messing up local stoner Walter “Moon Man” Dunphy's vibe and making Stephanie question genetics.

GOOD LUCK:
Between a bonds office yard sale that has the entire Burg turning out, a plan that makes Mooner’s Hobbit-Con look sane, and Uncle Pip’s mysterious bottle, they just might raise enough money to save Vinnie and the business from ruin.

BAD LUCK:
Saving Vincent Plum Bail Bonds means Stephanie can keep being a bounty hunter. In Trenton, this involves hunting down a man wanted for polygamy, a Turnpike toilet paper bandit, and a drug dealer with a pet alligator named Mr. Jingles.

GOOD LUCK:
The job of bounty hunter comes with perks in the guise of Trenton’s hottest cop, Joe Morelli, and the dark and dangerous, Ranger. With any luck at all, Uncle Pip’s lucky bottle will have Stephanie getting lucky---the only question is . . . with whom?

Sizzling Sixteen . . . so hot, the pages might spontaneously combust!

I had to stick with tradition and buy this on release day. Even though I'm only allowing myself to read it while I eat breakfast. LOL Otherwise, I'll sit here all day and read, and won't write.

Anyone else started on it?

I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend! Stay cool and have fun!!
Peace and love,
Alannah

What's Happening?

Once again, I got nothing. So, I thought I'd do a "this is what's going on with me, how about you" type of thing.

First - as I was getting ready to type this, a bald eagle flew over my house. We see them several times a year, but I never tire of it. Hubby was mowing one day and saw one swoop down into the pond and snatch up a fish. That would have been cool!!






LOL...change of blog topic. I'm so ADD. As I was beginning to type, he came back. Apparently, he had food on the side of the pond (On my in in-laws side, so my pics are taken from almost 1/4 mile away). He was there about 10-15 minutes, until the stupid geese ganged up on him and scared him away.











While I was trying to get really good pics of him, one of my beloved fox squirrels strolled past. We've always had a few, but last year, the neighbors dog got hold of one and killed her. We could tell she had babies, and when we found the nest we were crushed to realize there was nothing we could do to help them. It was 60' in the air!!!





Fortunately, the they were old enough to survive, and a few weeks later we started seeing a black one with a white nose and a very small white tip on it's tail. He even climbed up on my window sill one morning and looked in the window at me. The one in this picture, is one of his siblings that survived. And now, we have more small ones that we've seen running along the edge of the woods.


And, last but not least, we had more baby ducks. I haven't seen them since I snapped this picture, and I hope it's because the mama kept them at another pond, not because something happened to them.

Watching her move them across our property, to the pond on the adjoining piece of property was very enlightening. It also explains why we have a bazillion geese, and very few ducks. When the geese have gosslings, both parents raise them (geese mate for life). When the move from one pond to another, they move in groups, so there will be three or four sets of parents with all the babies. AND, there are two other geese that guard the back of the flock.


This poor mama duck was all on her own.

I also saw two hummingbirds collide - they crack me up. And, as soon as I walked out to the kitchen this morning, Hoover (my baby bunny) ran past my door. Hubby thought it would be fun to get a rise out of me and ask me if I thought the eagle was eating the bunny. I emphatically informed him the eagle was eating a fish!

On the writing front, I'm just a little behind schedule on the story I've been writing to enter the Brava Writing with the Stars contest. I should finish my paper edits tomorrow, and then I can retype the edits in and finish writing the story. I have six days until the contest opens, and I think I can make it.

I think I can. I think I can. I...will!!!!!

So what's going on with you?

Sending tons of peace and love on this Thursday!!
Alannah