Things I Love #6 Hanging Out At the Coffee Shop

Recently I had the opportunity to indulge in one of my favourite pass times, hanging out at the coffee shop with friends. I have always loved this. I could enjoy being a lady of leisure as long as I had company.

A few days ago K and I hopped the boat and headed for the city. We were meeting a new friend at Starbucks. Taking an evening during mid week to goof off is pure luxury, and we meant to enjoy it.

Things I Love #5, My Dogs.

Hi folks, time for another entry in the one hundred things I love. This time I will tell you a bit about my dogs. I love these wonderful beasts more than you might imagine. They are all rescues, cast aside as unwanted by others. Not to worry, it all turned out for the best. Friends say that they want to come back as one of my dogs in the next life.

Making Things, the Studio, Part Two

Hi folks, we’re here to take another look at the evolution of the studio. In part one I spoke of the beginning phases of the construction, setting the foundation, framing and insulating the floor, putting up the walls, etc.

The next step was the upper section, the storage loft, the rafters, sheeting the roof, and last of all the shingles. Today I put up the last of the shingles and the ridge cap. All that ladder climbing has taken a nasty toll on my poor old body. I now ache in places where I didn’t know I had places. On the bright side, I’m in better shape now than I have been in years. A few days rest and I’ll be ready for anything.

That's my beloved up the ladder, isn't she cute, and a fine hand with a hammer too.

I will add a part three once we have the door and windows in, the siding on and painted, etc. Dear gods, there’s no end to it, is there? Tee hee

Book #20

Wow, I can hardly believe this myself. This is book number 20 published. I wanted something a little different for this one, so I have added a twist to the characters. In this story, a hard fisted, homophobic, redneck, is thrown into the company of a timid transsexual woman. What happens next is anyone's guess.

 Without further ado, I present, A Simple Twist of Fate. Cover art by the delightful and talented, Hayley M. Thanks Hayley, this rocks.

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/91159

I hope you enjoy reading Fate as much as I enjoyed writing it.

19th Book Published

Hi folks, here I am again, blowing my own horn. I have just published my 19th book and I am thrilled for several reasons. It is always exciting and gratifying to see your work in print, but this one is special as it took a bit longer to get ready than I originally intended.

The problem was finding a cover photo. I knew what I wanted, but couldn't seem to get the time to go out looking for it. After complaining to a friend, he volunteered to create a cover for me. I am absolutely thrilled with what he has designed for me and I proudly present to you, Fortunate Fire. A tale of love in an unlikely place under strange circumstances.

Cover art by the incredibly gifted Justin. Justin, my friend, I cannot thank you enough for donating your time and skills to help me get this story into publication.

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/90390

Folks, I hope you enjoy this story as much as I have enjoyed it's evolution. Happy reading!

Things I love #4, Walking

I have always been an athlete, as long as I can remember. I grew up in rural Canada, in a small farming/fishing village. Much of my time was spent out of doors, doing chores, hanging out with friends, playing games, etc. In school I was on every team I could get on, soccer, basketball, badminton, and more. Lots of youthful energy.

As a young adult I got into distance running, but an injury sidelined me when the children were small. I turned to bodybuilding to rehab myself. That eventually gave way to powerlifting, combined with mountain biking, and, well, you get the idea.

In recent years, since acquiring four dogs, I have discovered the joys of walking.  I love breathing deeply, the sun on my back, the breeze in my face, moving swiftly with long strides across the face of the earth. Walking allows my body to take over and let my imagination take a stroll of its own. I don’t need to focus on the task, psyche myself up, or anything, just walk and enjoy.

Today for example, I took the boys out as usual. There was a cool breeze off the water, yet the sun was still warm. As we headed down a dirt road I was able to push my pace a bit; they had no problem keeping up. Soon we reached open fields of tall grasses with an ocean view in the distance.  As they raced about, snuffling everything they could find, I climbed a small rise to stop, catch my breath, and enjoy the magnificent view.

After a while I whistled them in and we headed for home. Again I set a strong pace, enjoying the freedom and movement of my body as I swung along, the boys trotting along beside me. When we reached the house I was breathing deeply, sweating, and feeling as alive as I have ever felt. I love it, walking, good for the body, good for the soul.

Celebration Contest

Hi folks, it’s celebration time. I have eighteen books already published, with two more almost ready to go. We’re finished editing and are just waiting for the covers. The first should be ready any day now. So, to celebrate the upcoming event, we’re holding a contest. Leave a comment on this blog, any post you choose, and your name goes into a hat for the draw. 

The prizes? Three names will be drawn, each will win one of my books, winner’s choice. That’s right, you win, you choose which one you want. Remember to leave me a Twitter handle, or some other way to find you. The winners will be announced on this blog as soon as the names are drawn. Draw date is September 21^st, the International Day of Peace.

I thank you all in advance for playing this little game to help me celebrate, and for reading my books. It is truly humbling to know someone has read and enjoyed my writings.  Good luck!

Review and Response: three star review

The following is a new review of my book, Deliberate Love. It is an honest review, but one which I would like to respond to.  First the review, then the response.

“This book is well written and edited. I liked the setting in Edinburgh / Canada and the characters. Two things I didn't like: first the implication that if you set your mind to it you can change being gay/straight. I am sure that there is much more fluidity between the two extremes than most are prepared to admit (although the McKinsey studies were quite clear about it), but since fundamentalists esp. in the US go to extreme lengths on this position and hurt people I would have liked a bit more complexity on this question. Secondly, this was all sweet, easy romance without any hassle and tension. I get the point that the author wants to promote but still life happens and it is not always only sweet and easy. Esp. in a novel I would like to see some "dramatic" development - it doesn't need to be drama.
And BTW this novel takes the lesbian u-haul-joke to a new level.”

Ok, now to respond to the critique.  “This book is well written and edited. I liked the setting in Edinburgh / Canada and the characters.”  Thank you for that.  I am pleased with this.

Now to address the two areas of disappointment for you. #1. “the implication that if you set your mind to it you can change being gay/straight.”  Obviously, I did not make the point clear in the book.  At no time did I say any such thing, nor did I ever intend to. I tried to make the point that one can overcome, if one so desires, the natural inclination one way or the other.  Colleen knows Brianna is heterosexual, and always will be. Brianna will always be attracted to men, but she loves Colleen, and so must focus her attention there. I know this can be done because the woman I have been married to for fifteen years is actually heterosexual.

You cannot change what you are. If you are gay, that’s what you are, but you can be whoever you choose to be. I believe this because I live this, my life is good and sweet and K says the same. 

More tension, fair to say.  I wrote this at a time of great tension in my personal life, so I guess I wanted to create a place of peace. Bad idea for a writer, duly noted.  I will try harder, I promise.

#2 Dramatic development.  Ok, it didn’t work for you, I accept this.  It didn’t make it for you.  I promise to try harder next time.  Thanks for the critique.

Now, the lesbian U-Haul joke?  I don’t understand, what joke?

Another great review.

Hi folks, time to toot my own horn again, or, perhaps allow this happy customer to toot it for me.  Here is a review of my latest book, Mildred and Cecile.  I hope you all enjoy it as much as Justin did.

"I was so excited to see a new story after I finished the last of your other novels. I was definitely not disappointed. This book was so wonderfully written, I felt like I was actually part of the story. Grandma Elsie was absolutely perfect. She is the icon everyone wishes for a grandmother, who accepts who you are even when she strongly disagrees with your decisions. I really got a good laugh when reading about gap-toothed Bob, as I think he moved over to our neck of the woods. I wish I would have broken the reading up a bit so I still had more to read, but you have a habit of making that very hard. Thank you so very much for another amazing story!

Justin

PS. Now hurry and crank out another one!"

You can find the book here:

 https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/85675

Stuff I love #3 Making things

Making things, the studio.

I have always enjoyed making things with my hands. I knit, mostly socks and sweaters, I bake my own bread, I have made a few pieces of furniture, lots of handicrafts, but this time we took on a big one. K and I decided to build her studio ourselves, completely from scratch. So, armed with a few books on the subject of construction, a few tools, some borrowed, and a determination to succeed, we began.

First we decided to build it on blocks as the ground here is too hard to dig through. Island of stone and all that. We removed the sod and set the blocks then proceeded to build up the floor. That took two days of work and we were so stiff and sore, it was a struggle just to get socks on in the morning, but we did it.

The next item of business was the walls. We build the first three lying down, put on the sheathing and house wrap, then stood them up. Our neighbors came over to see how we were doing. He was a carpenter, but lost his sight. The man is amazing, he knew every measurement before I even put the measuring tape down to check. He was always right.  He helped us stand the walls up and fasten them in place. All the while his wife was helping, holding things, passing things, and cracking jokes. She and K had more than one fit of the giggles. They blamed it on the heat.

The last wall was build standing and that took a bit longer, but now there were four walls where none had stood before.

Isn't this a great picture of me?  Sexy!

Yesterday we set the beams in place for the storage attic, laid the floor on them, then covered it all with tarps as a storm was approaching.  It has been years since I have been this stiff and sore, but I am thrilled.  There is a deep sense of accomplishment when you create something lasting with your hands.  K will surely enjoy her studio, as will I, but all the more so because we because we built it with our own hands.

This post is only the first part of the whole, for I will continue to chronicle the evolution of the studio as it matures.  Stay tuned.

Stuff I love #2 Lonely Beaches

Lonely beaches is the next thing I’d like to share my love of.  As a child, I spent a lot of time alone on the beach. It wasn’t a beach like you imagine, made of silky sand and lined with girls in bikinis. No, this was a beach of gravel and heavy rocks, all worn smooth by the endless tides. The plaintive call of the sea birds and the ceaseless caress of the waves on the stones were, and still are, hypnotic.