FDR Quotations

“The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little.”

“Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The real safeguard of democracy, therefore, is education.”

“Repetition does not transform a lie into a truth.”

Happy National Book Lovers Day!

Today is a wonderful day–National Book Lovers Day!

Let us all embrace the joy of books!

Celebrate by reading a  book today!

A Few Quotations on First Drafts

Here are a few quotations about creating first drafts to inspire all of us to keep writing:

(https://pixabay.com)

“The secret of getting ahead is getting started.”

                                                               Mark Twain

(https://en.wikipedia.org)

“You might not write well every day,

   but you can always edit a bad page.

   You can’t edit a blank page.”

                                                                 Jodi Picoult

(https://en.wikipedia.org)

“Get it down. Take chances. It may be bad, but it’s the only way you can do anything really good.”

                                                                      William Faulkner.

“If you want to be a writer, then write, every day, and do not revise. Simply create the first draft.”

                                                                        Charles F. French

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A Cardinal Achievement~

Please enjoy these beautiful photographs from Cindy Knoke!

Some of you may remember that I have only seen and photographed cardinals twice in my life, once in Buenos Aires, and recently in The Superstition Mountains in Arizona. (Tap to enlarge).

Meet Hawaiian Red Crested cardinals number 3 & 4 who have now become my very good friends!

Yep, we are in Hawaii and these guys hang out constantly in our backyard.

I am in cardinal heaven!

They are not afraid of us and especially,

enjoy joining us on the patio table for lunch!

After years of searching,

I have finally made some cardinal friends!

I hope word spreads and they bring over their buddies. We are hosting a variety of exotic and beautiful Hawaiian birds.

I will share more with you soon,

Until then, Aloha to you from Maui~

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CFFC: Reminders of Nature’s Beauty

Please enjoy these lovely photos from Yinglan!

This is Another Story

There are many things that reminds me of nature’s beauty. One of which is the mountains. They give me a place to go when it gets boring and hot.

Another one is sunrises and sunsets. I think these are the most beautiful parts of the day – one marks the beginning and the other marks the end.

And let’s not forget the plants and flowers, I think they are nature’s way of adding beauty to the greenery.

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge

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At The Writers Digest 2022 Conference

I spent the weekend at the 2022 Writers Digest Conference in New York City, one of my favorite places in the world, and I had a wonderful time! Not only did I learn a great deal about the world of writing and publishing at numerous excellent sessions, but I also attended the Pitch Slam session.  I like to refer to this event as speed dating with literary agents! For one hour, many writers attempt to find and speak with agents, whom they think will fit their projects well. I was fortunate and was able to meet with six agents, and I had requests from 4, ranging from a full manuscript to 10 pages. I will certainly get that work to them this week, and we will see what will happen.

I also have to thank my wonderful father-in-law for his kindness and hospitality in allowing me to spend the weekend at his house in Staten Island. 

One of the benefits of this trip for me was taking the Staten Island Ferry to Manhattan and back every day. This may seem small, but I love boats and ships, and I am like a little kid in enjoying the ride!

 

 

Also, it may seem ordinary to those who make this trip on the Ferry often, but I was able to see Lady Liberty!

 

If you are a writer and have the opportunity to attend this yearly conference, I recommend it!

Robbie’s Inspiration – Recipes from Around the World: Beef stout stew

Please enjoy these delicious recipes from Robbie Cheadle! And I am so excited that she included one of the recipes from my characters in the little cookbook–The Investigative Paranormal Society Cookbook!

Robbie's inspiration

Yesterday, we celebrated Christmas in July. It was also a farewell for Sister #2 who is moving to Cape Town. Sure, its in South Africa, but Cape Town is a 14 hour drive from Johannesburg and the flights are so expensive now, it’s cheaper to fly internationally than locally. It is rather sad as my dad won’t travel, he health isn’t very good, so I don’t think my parents will see much of them. My family will only see them once a year, if that. Anyhow, that is life and it is full of partings.

Anyhow, moves aside, the lunch was a great success. I spent a lot of time on Saturday preparing food for the lunch. Terence was working and went to the office so I had to do everything myself. It’s a jolly good thing I enjoy cooking.

The menu

Beef and Stout stew

Savoury rice

American baked…

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