Food For Thought...

"Getting ahead in a difficult profession requires avid faith in yourself. You must be able to sustain yourself against staggering blows. There is no code of conduct to help beginners. That is why some people with mediocre talent, but with great inner drive, go much further than people with vastly superior talent."

Sophia Loren

AMEN!!! LOL

I hope everyone has a great Tuesday. I'm traveling today, a bitter-sweet trip. I'm headed to Ohio to see my uncle. My mom is there, and we always have a great time when we all get together, laughing, joking, telling stories.

But it's very likely this is the last time I'm going to see my uncle and that realization is about to break my heart.

So...if y'all wouldn't mind sending me some good, positive thoughts and virtual hugs while I make this drive, I'd be most appreciative. Once I get there, I'm sure it'll be easier. It's just the drive, and way too much time to think, that's going to be rough on me.

Hugs to all of you!!
Peace and love,
Alannah

What I'm Reading...

This is sort of a repeat from last week. Last week, I was wishing I was reading SIN UNDONE. I went to B&N this week and got it, but I haven't had a chance to read much of it yet. I mean, in 3 or 4 days, I've only read about 20 pages. :(

I got my challenges back from HelenKay today, so I'll be working on those this weekend, getting everything wrapped up and ready to submit by the beginning of next week. Hopefully, I'll be able to sneak in a little reading time betwen rewrites. That'll be my motivation for getting focused and getting them done. LOL

How about you? How many books have you read since last week? LOL

Have a great Labor Day Weekend everyone!!!

Peace and love,
Alannah

So What Happens When...

Thanks again to everyone who came out and helped me celebrate yesterday. I had way too much fun. No, really...I had way too much fun! LOL

I didn't have time to get a blog post together, and this morning I'm feeling the after-effects of all the celebrations. *grins* So, to keep it simple, I'm going to share with you what's on my mind, and what I'll be doing today.

Most of you know that I'm extremely fortunate and live in eastern North Carolina. My permanent home is in inland about 40 miles, but we also have a river cottage on the Pamlico River, about 3 miles inland from the Pamlico Sound. About 30 miles due east of Cape Hatteras - that's the important marker for all this. LOL

If you don't watch the news on a regular basis you might not know about Earl. A powerful Cat 4 hurricane headed in our direction. The official forecast has it staying about 50 miles off-shore, but this storm is so big I don't think the residents of Hatteras are taking much comfort in that 50 mile cushion.

How does this affect me?



See that beautiful pier? In the past, when a storm has approached and been forecast to hit the coast from the south, we've taken that pier up. It's built in 4' sections, so we start at the end by the big deck, unbolt it, load it on a handtruck, wheel it up to the edge of shore where it's loaded onto a trailer and moved to our back lot across the road.

If we don't do that, and we get it with pounding waves, we lose the pier.

But this is Labor Day weekend, and we don't want to have to spend a full day putting the pier back down. So...SIL, FIL and I, are going down this morning to get the boat and jetski out of the water, secure everything outside, then spend the day tracking the storm.

If it shifts to the west, we'll spend the evening taking up the pier. If it maintains its current track, and really does seem like it's going to stay off-shore, we're going to cross our fingers and hope the water rise in the Pamlico is slow and gentle enough that it comes over the pier without beating against it.

I hope everyone all along the eastern seaboard stays safe with this storm. We've been through enough of them (as many as 2-3 in one year!) to know they can be unpredictable and no fun!


On a side note: Some of you know my hubby has been sick for the past week. As a precaution, they did his MRI 3 weeks early, just to check and make sure everything was okay (He's been having some blurry vision, headaches, nausea). The MRI looked great! They now think it could be the new medicine they've put him on that's making him sick. I just wanted to go ahead and give that update while I was thinking about it.

So what does everyone else have going on?

UPDATE: Pier is now coming up. *sigh* I'll check in tonight when I get back.

Have a great Thursday!!

Peace and love,
Alannah

Food For Thought...

"You can conquer almost any fear if you will only make up your mind to do so. For remember, fear doesn't exist anywhere except in the mind."

Dale Carnegie
1888-1955, Speaker and Author


Thanks for all the birthday wishes yesterday. You guys are the best!! And...y'all HAVE to come back here tomorrow! There is going to be a party!! I can't tell you why, not until tomorrow. But I can tell you it's going to be HUGE and you won't want to miss it! :)

Have a great day!
Peace and love,
Alannah

What I WISH I was reading...

Here's the cover and deets from Ione's website:

HER TOUCH IS DEADLY

As the only female Seminus demon ever born, master assassin Sinead Donnelly is used to being treated like an outcast. She spent decades enslaved, and now vows she’ll die before she’ll relinquish her freedom again. Then Sin’s innate ability to kill her enemies goes awry: She creates a lethal new werewolf virus that sparks a firestorm of panic and violence.

HIS HUNGER CAN’T BE DENIED

Half-werewolf, half-vampire Conall Dearghul is charged with bringing in Sin to face punishment for the plague. And she’s no stranger: He’s bound to her by blood, and the one sexual encounter they shared has left him hungering for her raw sensuality. Worse, Sin is the underworld’s most wanted and Con soon learns he’s the only one who can help her . . . and that saving her life might mean sacrificing his own.


Has anyone gotten this yet? A FB friend found it at Wal-mart last week and said it was awesome. Not that I expected anything less. I've been busy working on a few projects and have intentionally not gone to B&N to pick up this book because I KNOW it'll get me into trouble. LOL

If anyone else has read it, please let me know.

Have a great weekend!!
Peace and love,
Alannah

Hump Day Giggle...

Random Thoughts for the Day:

1. I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

2. Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.

3. I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.

4. There is great need for a sarcasm font.

5. How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

6. Was learning cursive really necessary?

7. Map Quest really needs to start their directions on #5. I'm pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

8. Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.

9. I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired.

10. Bad decisions make good stories.

11. You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you know that you just aren't going to do anything productive for the rest of the day.

12. Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after Blue Ray? I don't want to have to restart my collection...again.

13. I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten-page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.

14. "Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this -- ever.

15. I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello? Damn it!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What'd you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and run away?

16. I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

17. I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.

18. My 4-year old son asked me in the car the other day "what would happen if you ran over a ninja?" How the hell do I respond to that?

19. I think the freezer deserves a light as well..

20. I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lites than Kay.

Have a fabulous Hump Day!!!

Peace and love,
Alannah

Food For Thought...

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor, and catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

--Mark Twain

I absolutely love this quote!!

Explore! Dream!! Discover!!!

And have a fantastic Tuesday!
Peace and love,
Alannah