Christmas Mischief

One of my favorite short stories…

Christmas Mischief

and A Night Owl Review Top Pick. 

What could be worse than driving down a county road on a cold, snowy December afternoon and getting a flat tire... Being locked out of your car by your exuberant dog, acting like a fool trying to get back in when a tall dark handsome stranger stops and then the man doesn't ask for your phone number.

And my favorite recipe for Gluehwein

Gluehwein, 

1 (750 milliliter) of an inexpensive bottle red wine - 

3/4 cup water

3/4 cup sugar

A package of mulling spices (3 ounces)*

Cheesecloth

Cinnamon Sticks

In a saucepan, add water, sugar, and bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer.

Place mulling spices in a cheesecloth. Drop into the pan and simmer for 30 minutes or until thick and syrupy.

Turn off the heat and pour in wine until steaming. Remove cheesecloth with spices. (Some people will also add 1/2 cup of Brandy)

Pour hot water into mugs/cups to preheat them, dump the water out and add wine and garnish with cinnamon stick.

*Or to make you own Mulling Spices, place 8 black peppercorns, 6 whole allspice, 6 whole cloves, 2 cinnamon sticks, 3 orange rind strips and 2 pieces crystalized ginger on a 5-inch square of cheesecloth. Gather the edges, and tie securely with string.

http://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Mischief-Christine-Columbus-ebook/dp/B0054K8PSK

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http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=243_86_65&products_id=651

Good News...

 I spotted Rudolph on my evening walk...and the difficulty of my morning hike has increased

 

Good News...Bad News...

Good News, I found my favorite beer in Eugene.

Bad News, my manuscript was rejected. I received great feedback from the editor at The Wild Rose Press and she gave me the opportunity to resubmit...And I have beer.

Seeing Green

I feel like I'm in the wrong season. It's Thanksgiving week and I'm seeing green instead of white on my afternoon hike.

This is my first autumn living someplace other than MN, WI or IA and even though it's not exactly warm in Eugene, it's doable.

The Right Perspective...

 It seems to me the leaves in Eugene, OR are much bigger then I remember.

If Stella could talk she'd say, "Something tells me we're not in Iowa anymore."

Handicap yes, Accessible ?

If you are traveling in July without reservations don't worry there is always Makoshika, MT state park.

Dry camping in Makoshika MT state park - doesn't mean you can't bring in a beer or two...it means absolutely no water is available at the campsites.

The place was beautiful, it looked like we were at the South Dakota Badlands, lots of hiking, rattle snake warnings, very little shade, lots of wind at night and Handicap Pit Toilets, but not necessarily Handicap Accessible Pit Toilets.

Time Travel On Sale

We went shopping to Costco on Monday - and for $11.99 you could go back to 2014. 

A picture is worth 1000 words...

Or sometimes two words...What? Why? 
This is one of those pictures from out trip out west. Have you ever take a photo and later wondered why?

Driving down the interstate - going through North Dakota - there wasn't much to catch our attention - "Oh look a hill." 

but I zoomed in and on the only hill visible for many, many mile we spotted Salem Sue, the World's Largest Cow...and no we didn't pull off the interstate to go take a look  

Buyer's Remorse

I consider myself the Queen of Downsizing... we have gone from combining two households into a two bedroom apartment and from there we eliminated anything that would not fit into the back of a F150 truck - luckily for me I am married to the Master Packer.

And then we made our first mistake... we went into Wal Mart - of course we couldn't find what we wanted but ended up purchasing a rechargeable lateen - (and if you're curious - no we didn't use it on our two month  camping journey.) It's hard to believe after giving away so much...we would buy one more thing...

Backstory to a romance writer's journey

The Journey to Writing: 

Downtown Minneapolis

For 27 years I worked for a utility company... until the day my boss said, "if you're not happy here, quit."

So, I jumped ship and went to work for the City of Golden Valley... until my daughter said, "you'd make a great COTA."

So, I moved to La Crosse WI to get an associates degree as an Occupational Therapy Assistant.   

I spent almost 1 year working with children on the Autism Spectrum.

Before we relocated to Iowa where I spent 1 year working in a skilled nursing facility.

Which brings me to now…We are living in someone’s basement in Eugene, OR and I am pursuing my dream of writing. 

And we are living our dream....

My writing journey...

After spending May giving away our furniture to family, donating to Goodwill and selling items on Craig's list we 

squeezed our household into a F150.

And left Waukee, Iowa at the end of June.

Casting Off....

It has been a long time since I have written or published, but the tide has change. My ship has come in and I plan to sail off... Figuratively.

The Perfect Country and Western Story - The title was tongue in cheek.

Steve Goodman and John Prine wrote the country song, "You Never Even Called Me by My Name' and David Allan Coe recorded it.  I always love the part of the song where Coe talks about why the song isn't The Perfect Country and Western Song because there was no mention of Mama, Trains, Trucks, Prison or Getting Drunk.

When I writing the novel I would tell everyone I was writing The Perfect Country and Western Story - because I had Mama, Trains, Trucks, Prison, and Getting Drunk.

And the title stuck...

RT Book Reviews states: Want a fun beach read this summer? Look no further. With a heroine bravely battling back from a tragic loss and a hero you want to bed one minute and smack the next, you’ll be hoping for these two to find their happily ever after. Strong secondary characters round out this story of a love that seems doomed by misconceptions. - See more at: http://www.rtbookreviews.com/book-review/perfect-country-and-western-story#sthash.IMyorRXu.dpuf

The best hour of today was...

Was coming home after work and enjoying a great dinner and a glass of wine.  

What makes you cynical?

Cynical...sounds like political ads

bitterly or sneeringly distrustful, contemptuous, or pessimistic.

I certainly grow tired of hearing people trash talk - it's a great message to show our children. The way to get people to like (vote) for you is to make others dislike/distrust the other person... Sounds a lot like bullying to me.

Something that made you worry...

Today is Friday, June 13 and tonight there will be a full moon. I am not the least bit worried about this because I have never experienced any bad luck on a Friday the 13th or on a full moon. The full moon on a Friday the 13th is a rare occurance and it is not expected to occur again until I am 90. Now the thought of turning 90 does scare me a bit.

Is There Something in Your Way...Can You Move It?

Fear is always in my way...sometimes if I'm lucky I can rush past my fears, but fear always catches up to me.  I will try and be brave and not be afraid to be the best writer I can possible be... i will not be afraid to travel.

Favorite thing to do on a Friday night...

Perfect Friday night has the following ingredients: margaritas, chips, and salsa.

Coffee

Coffee is a great way to start the day... one or two cups every morning. There was a time when I also enjoyed an afternoon cup of coffee, sometimes from a vending machine while take an afternoon break with a co-worker. Sometimes the cup of coffee was at my Mom's house, I'd drop off the daily newspaper after I got off work and she'd always have a pot of fresh brewed strong coffee and a desert. Sometimes a large slice of pie or cake - other times it was a cookie or a bismark or long john.  

What makes a good friend...

A good friend is a time traveler...it could be days, months or years since you've last talked to them - and the moment you say, Hello. It's like distance and time never happened. You are both in the same moment and it feels like you last talk only minutes ago.

What make you miserable?

When it comes to misery, I am my own worse enemy.  I want to write, but I busy myself with distractions. I want to be healthy and I put junk food in my shopping cart. I want to exercise and I pull the covers up over my head. I want to work part-time and accept full-time positions.

Now, of course if I turn it around, I could also be my own best friend.