Friends. What would we do without them.

Ah yes, today I write about friends. A friend will always be there for you.


A friend doesn't care what you look like.

Friends make you laugh.



Friends mean everything.


AR&T love you.
My best friend died recently of brain cancer and my heart broke. All I have now is memories and thoughts of what might be, that never will.
She was proud. I wonder if it had to do with her Indian heritage. She was strong and she was weak too. Gosh I miss her.

Peggy and me. But I have made a lot of friends through writing. Publishing a book gave me so much more than a book. It gave me a new outlook on life. Because now I have so many new friends my heart is overwhelmed. And I thank the powers that are every day for this new gift. Love you guys. Each and every one of you.

Public Speaking

I have been working on my second book feverishly. I still have a ways to go. I'm not yet happy.


This one is so different than the first, even though it's one of a series. Here's a slight clue. It's called Burned Into Time. That's a biggie right there! My heroine gets burned into time!

But I am taking a break to talk about speaking in public.
Yes, this is a big problem for me, and it might be one for many of you. My fear of being in front of people has put a damper on a lot of things. I freeze and have to plug myself back in for a few seconds. Deep inside the words are trying to emerge.


I have great fear that something like this will happen!



Shell shocked I will sit there and try to read the words or even remember what I am doing there! The anti nerve pills ain't working and your stomach has a fire breathing dragon in it.
With a force that comes from who knows where takes over, like an alien, I push myself to say the words. Bluemberglst? Yeah that makes sense. And I remember what one of my FRW friends said to me. Picture them naked. Ha! that just might work.



One thing I can be sure of is that no matter how badly I do, Traci will tell me I did great!
Friends well



Yeah, that's exactly what I need to say!

So Much Fun

Well I gotta tell you, the High Tea was wonderful. The place was full of laughing, talking, and eating women. I was afraid that they might not have enough to eat. But the food was plentiful and it tastes and looked fantastic.

They brought a service tray that had three tiers. After a delicate and tasty soup with tiny bits of chicken, celery, carrots and scallions in a flavorful base. And a crusty warm loaf of bread with butter. On the bottom tier was a warm cranberry orange scone, served with clotted cream, lemon curd and raspberry curd. Yummy. Then the middle tier had plenty of nicely presented finger sandwiches on delicious fresh breads, cut into special shapes. There was tuna, chicken salad, (it had very, very thin slices of apple, and mmmmmm), egg salad, tomato and a cream cheese herb spread, and of course the crisp cucumber sandwich with another tasty spread on it. The tray overflowed with the delicate sandwiches and if you wanted more, all you had to do was ask. The lip smacking said it all. On the top tier was desert; Petit fours, small chocolate brownie type cakes, little coconut soft cookies, the best tiny eclairs and cream puffs, those dainty meringue cookies, and a whole bunch of other things. The desert tray was so full, there was a lot leftover. And tea, whatever kind you wanted, they couldn't bring it out fast enough.

The talking, the laughter, the smiles and spring dresses, the hat,(Joanne, I wish I'd thought of that), and the genuine pleasure on everyone's faces, thrilled me. I felt a great sense of accomplishment and happiness to have pleased so many people. In these times, events like this help us to forget our problems and get away from it all. At our table we had a group pinkie's up toast!

Just having the opportunity to make that many people happy that they came, was worth every minute of worry and all the time it took to arrange it. I am so glad that everyone had a great time. That is the best part of it all for me. Everyone had fun!!
And that, makes me happy.

Things That Make Me Smile

Little old ladies who smile. They are very special.
Little old men who hold the hands of their long time spouse the little old lady.
Hyacinths and Lilac bushes, blooming in the spring. The feeling you get when you
watch the spring thaw. Huge mountains in the distance. Clear lakes, and bubbling brooks are so cool. Puppies and kittens, such sweet love. Fresh cut roses fill the air with perfume.
People who take the time to say kind words. Sappy love tale movies, old ones and new ones.
Soft baby bunny rabbits are sweet.
Honest people, people who are not self centered, they think of others.
I love people who make an effort to make someone else feel comfortable, welcome or loved.
Friends, old friends, new friends all types of friends.
Gentle people, people who smile and share smiles with others.
Babies, other peoples sweet babies, they smell so fresh and alive.
I like when someone lets me in front when I am trying to change car lanes. I like when a man opens my door, (yeah, I know, I still do). i like movies like Braveheart. Hugs and more hugs.
Lobster, lots of lobster. A good book review, even just one, gosh I'd like that, (yup). Reading, I love to read. I like Lost and Heroes and I have no idea why I like heroes, I like Lost because I like Sawyer, the brooding bad boy at his best. I love my mom, she is a good person. I love my brothers and sisters, so I like that. My dog, my big black baby boy doggie. People who ask how I am and then wait for the answer, that's really great, and really rarely done. People who keep their promises are very special.

So what are a few the things that make you smile?

Happy Holidays!

So it's that time of year again. The time when we scrape and charge to buy gifts. We push our way through the crowds at the stores, hoping to find that special gift. That gift that will please the recipient and make all your efforts worthwhile.
So I'm gonna tell you a funny story, and it still makes me laugh till this day.
We all know that there are those relatives through marriage who we are not very close too. I have a sister in law that's like the ice queen.
Anyways, it was Christmas day at my in laws. They were strange people as it was, at least to me. We were discussing the worst gifts that you had ever received. I mentioned how I think that the worst give you could give to a woman is Jean Nate, and a man, old spice. It shows how little you care for them. How you only bought the gift because you had to, buying those cheap perfumes was an insult! My husband agreed with me, and so did most of the room.
Guess what we both opened from the ice queen? Yep! Well I thought it was so funny I couldn't stop laughing. And to this day, I will never forget the look on her face.

Now we'll talk about the opposite kind of gift. When the giver has taken the time to look for that special gift. Or maybe they made you a gift that took time and effort because they couldn't afford to buy something. Well there was this one Christmas that I got a gift I will never forget. My friend was having marital problems and was separated from her husband. She was lucky if she could afford the mortgage. Not a lot of people know my birthday is on Christmas day. But this was my best friend and she would never forget. I told her we shouldn't exchange gifts, neither of us could afford to. But that wouldn't stop her.
She could sing, I mean like really well. It was 12:01am in the morning on Christmas eve, (we lived next door to each other then), and I heard music, soft pretty music, coming in my open window. In Florida we open windows in the winter. So anyways I get up and go to the front door, open it a crack and peak outside. There she was dressed in her nightgown and robe on my front lawn. She was holding a cassette tape recorder from which came my favorite song at the time, Our Prayer. She began to softly sing the words and as the tears came down my face I noticed my other neighbors. One by one the doors opened and people stood there listening. By this time I'm blubbering for all I'm worth. And when she finished and stood there it was quiet for a moment. Then one by one at each door the applause began. There were a few whistles along with the clapping. And she whispered just loud enough for me to hear, "Happy Birthday and Merry Christmas my friend."
Now if that isn't the best present ever, I don't know what is.
Have a great holiday, and may you hear music on your birthday too, just like I did.

Giving Advice

My husband and I are both very sympathetic people. We've had a lot of hurdles to cross and we are both aware how hard life can be. I feel like a phone psychiatrist, however.
I listen to people say the same things over and over, and I try to offer advice.

Chris' friend who lives in Texas just bought a house. Later on he learned that the house had a huge fire and a lot of damage was just covered up and not fixed. Well his $200,000 home is now worth $50,0000. Chris has talked to him on Skype dozens of times. He offers advice, his friend does not listen. He meets a stranger who he discusses his problem with, and that person gives him the same advice. And now he listens. What's up with that?
I think that friends don't want your advice. They just want a shoulder to cry on. Trouble is that when you know what they are doing wrong and they won't listen, it drives you crazy. So what does a good friend do.

I think you have to swallow your comments and listen. And let me tell you, listening, just plain listening, is an art. It can be a pain, but it's an art. It hopefully pays you back, when that friend listens to you.