Tuesday

Due to COVID we hadn't seen the grands since February. When my son sent me the grand girl's softball schedule, I took  it as a hint to come in:)  

Above. The boy and grand girl.

They got two new dogs. One weighs eighty-seven pounds and the other is seven months old. Throw in three kids and their household is always hopping.

The day after we got home, we picked up Callie Rose. She's a year old and had already had a litter of kittens. So far none of the critters are particularly pleased with the arrangement. Penny and Frank are in one section of the house. Callie is in another. Luckily, Faux has no opinion one way or another.

Same flowers. Different view.

The little memorial rose bush.

What about you? Have you ventured out since COVID?  How's your critters? Your garden? How are you?

Bye-bye June.

Friday's Great Read

Our Friday great read is:

Lost Helix
By Scott Coon

Lost Helix is the key…

Stuck on an asteroid mining facility, DJ dreams of writing music. His dad is a corporate hacker and his best friend Paul intends to escape to become a settler in a planet-wide land rush, but neither interests DJ.

When his dad goes missing, DJ finds a file containing evidence of a secret war of industrial sabotage, a file encrypted by his dad using DJ's song Lost Helix. Caught in a crossfire of lies, DJ must find his father and the mother he never knew.

When the mining company sends Agent Coreman after DJ and his guitar, DJ and Paul escape the facility and make a run for civilization. Will DJ discover the truth before Coreman catches him?

Release date – June 2, 2020
$17.95, 6x9 trade paperback, 268 pages
Print ISBN 9781939844682 / EBook ISBN 9781939844699
Science Fiction – Action & Adventure / Crime & Mystery / YA Science Fiction

Scott Coon has enjoyed success as a science fiction short story writer, winning accolades and publishing over a dozen works in various magazines. Formally a U.S. Army Intelligence Analyst and currently a software developer, Scott brings his technical experience into his work, along with a sense of spectacle.
http://www.scottcoonscifi.com/
http://www.losthelix.com/

Links:
Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/Lost-Helix-Scott-Coon/dp/1939844681
Barnes & Noble - https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lost-helix-scott-coon/1135144023?ean=9781939844682
iTunes - https://books.apple.com/ca/book/lost-helix/id1490128516
Kobo - https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/lost-helix
Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/50386208-lost-helix

Did You Know

Did you know that the marshmallow dates back to ancient Egypt where the marsh mallow's root sap was mixed with honey to produce this sweet treat?

AND....

BELATED

Tuesday

Greetings Blogger Buds. Hope all the dad's out there had a wonderful Father's Day.

Has anyone tried this yet? It's a hoot. You turn in a paragraph of your writing, the software analyzes the paragraph and determines which famous author your writing most closely aligns with. Mine was Ian Fleming. 😂 You can use journal entries, etc.  Give it a go and let us know which famous writer your writing aligns with:)

https://iwl.me/

AND...Does your swing sing? For three summers now, Carolina Wren's have nested in the swing frame. The current youngsters are twittering up a storm. I love hearing them.

AND...

The War of the Weeds is in progress at the Cox household.  Over the years, the meandering path that follows the garden has grown to several hundred pavers. When I laid them I never thought about laying anything underneath them.  Drr to me. So now I'm pulling them up and laying plastic under them. The weeds I chuck, the grass I plug into bare spots. Surprisingly the plugs take. And the violets I'm adding to the edge of the fencing hoping they'll grow enough to choke out the weeds.

AND...Speaking of violets...The violet leaves near the hostas are the size of my palm.  Elsewhere they are normal size.  Anyone else have giant violets?

AND....The eternal garden pics.

Whoops. That's no flower.

What about you. Got birds? Flowers? Weeds? Cats?

Friday's Great Read

Title: Bad Fairy

Series: A Bad Fairy Adventure (Book One)

Author: Elaine Kaye

Publisher: The Wild Rose Press

Genre: Fantasy Middle Grade

Length: 66 pages

Age Range: 8-12

BLURB: Thistle Greenbud is not a bad fairy. She simply doesn't like rules, and it's just her luck that her homework is to create a new rule for the fairy handbook. But first, she has more important things to do. Like figure out how to get back at Dusty and Moss for playing tricks on her.

Before she can carry out her plan, though, disaster strikes and she finds herself working alongside the very fairies she wanted revenge on. Can they work together and trust each other, or will things go from bad to worse?

 

BUY LINKS:

Amazon / Barnes & Noble

 

EXCERPT:

As we watch the boys, the wind picks up, making the fern lay flat, exposing us. We gasp and make a dash for the closest tree. Behind it, we huddle together.

“Boogles! A branch just hit me,” Weedy says.

The sky turns black. Wind swirls dust and leaves, and spits pebbles at us. This is not good. We have to get going now or else our payback will get blown away.

“Let’s go!” I scream and lead the group from behind the tree, but the wind makes it hard for us to move forward.

Rose and Lilly grab hands as they run, screaming, toward the creek. Lacey stumbles over a fallen twig, landing flat and hitting her face hard on the ground. When she doesn’t move, I race to her as sand and pine needles prick my skin.

I help Lacey to her feet. Luckily, she only has a few cuts on her face. A tiny bit of blood streaks down her forehead. She looks at me. Fear is bright in her eyes. She needs help. We all need help. I peer toward the creek. The boys are still there, frantically trying to lift the bag full of stones.

Shouting a warning and waving my arms, I hurry to the creek, trying to get their attention. Finally, Dusty sees me. He looks as if he’s been caught with his hand in the pixie jar.

I point to the sky and wave them to come our way. Rain starts to fall. Dusty pulls Moss from the creek. Fat drops of water pelt my head and wings as I wait for the boys to reach me.

“It must be a twisty!” Dusty screams. “We better find shelter.”

 

GIVEAWAY:

3 Signed Paperback Picture Books –

Pea Soup Disaster, Doctor Mom, The Missing Alphabet

 

 

Eligibility: International

Number of Winners: One

Giveaway Ends: July 1, 2020 12:00am Eastern Standard Time

LINK: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/76132e0220/?

 

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Elaine Kaye is the author of A Gregory Green Adventure series. She first created Gregory Green after her son, who loved her homemade pea soup, thus inspiring the story Pea Soup Disaster. Bad Fairy is her middle grade debut and the first of A Bad Fairy Adventure series.

Kaye has worked as a library assistant and teacher’s assistant in elementary schools in the Sunshine State. She currently lives in Florida, but she has called Michigan; Honolulu, Hawaii; and Okinawa, Japan home. She is a grandmother of three boys.

Amazon / Goodreads / BookBub / Instagram / Facebook Twitter / LinkedIn / Blog

 

 AND....

Happy Birthday Weekend, Christine.

AND....

Did You Know

Did you know,  that legend has it amber contains the souls of tigers?

Amber is a fossilized resin that's usually a translucent yellow or brown, but can also be red, green or blue and is warm to the touch.

Tuesday

Greetings Blogger Buds, I trust you all are staying safe and healthy. Did you have a good weekend? A good Monday?

As I'm sure you've figured out, my days are repetitive. Writing and gardening:) We've thrown kitten/cat hunting into the mix. I'm looking for a Belle replacement. Another kitty with her sweet personality. 

Garden shots:

After the rain:

The little grand girl was included in a local sports news article.

https://www.reflector.com/sports/local/fields-filling-up-energy-being-burned/article_60bb6d2b-b055-5e1d-bcd8-970f688b9022.html

AND...

I'm planning on making some veggie chili.  My daughter recommended adding vinegar and dark chocolate. Anyone tried it?

This is it for me.  I've got next to nothing this week. What's happening on your end?

Weekend Wishes

Did You Know

Did  you know that the poet Percy Shelley was a vegan?

Wacky Writerly Wednesday

Tuesday

Did you have a good weekend and Monday, blogger buds?

Have you seen this story? If not, it's worth a quick look. After all the darkness that we've seen in our country, I found it beyond moving.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/saved-protesters-protected-lone-cop-231203138.html

AND...

Garden and flowers pics.

I love daylilies. I didn't used to be a fan, but now they are one of my favorite flowers. What's yours? Read any uplifting articles lately?

Weekend Wishes

Did You Know

More about beans. Some of you love 'em. Some of you hate 'em. But did you know, a can or kettle of soup costs two to four dollars and contains two to four servings. A small package of navy beans costs a dollar and change, and contains thirteen servings. They are a good source of calcium, fiber, protein, iron and potassium. 

IWSG Wednesday

The first Wednesday of every month is officially IWSG day. Members post about their doubts and fears, discuss struggles and triumphs, and offer words of encouragement to others who are struggling.

Thanks, as always, to Alex Cavanaugh, founder and Ninja Captain extraordinaire and our awesome co-hosts.

The IWSG monthly question can be found under the IWSG Sign-up tab on the Insecure Writer's Support Group Blog.

AND…

The first Wednesday of every month is officially IWSG day. Members post about their doubts and fears, discuss struggles and triumphs, and offer words of encouragement to others who are struggling.

Thanks, as always, to Alex Cavanaugh, founder and Ninja Captain extraordinaire and our awesome co-hosts.

The IWSG monthly question can be found under the IWSG Sign-up tab on the Insecure Writer's Support Group Blog.

June 3 question- Writers have secrets! What are one or two of yours, something readers would never know from your work?

Hmm. Well all that I can say to that question is that if I did have secrets mind you, they would no longer be secrets if they were shared😊 

I can tell you my routine. I try to keep three works in the hopper. I work on one story for a month then switch to another.  I try, and I emphasize try, to write every day, so by the second or third week, I’m starting to get ansy, my mind  and muse both wandering. By the end of the month I’m ready for a break and switch to another story. The following month I switch to the third story, then the next month come back to story number one.

AND…May’s reviews.

HOWLING AT THE MOON by Wolf Pack Authors

A diverse group of short stories from sci-fi to mystery to fantasy to children's stories. This anthology is packed with fascinating reads. Best of all:  the proceeds go to the relief efforts in Australia for the floods and fires.

THIS LAST CHANCE By D. L. Finn

A suspenseful paranormal about the fight of good and evil.

This story takes place on two levels, human and paranormal and makes for an intriguing subplot. Reporter Amber Dodges is determined to get to the bottom of her twin sister’s murder, unaware she is about to play a role in the survival of the country. Nor does she know that the death of her sister was caused by powerful evildwels, evil beings that use humans for hosts. As the story builds, it also chills and will have the reader looking over his/her shoulder. A suspenseful paranormal about the fight of good and evil.

THE THIRD FACTOR: THESTONEHENGE CHRONICLES By S.P. Brown

This is the second book in the Stonehenge Chronicles. Reading the books in order is recommended. The story centers on a woman who can decipher a set of special runes and her triplet teenage daughters who possess magical powers. The girls are on a quest to find their mother who appears to have been captured by enemies. Their mode of transportation: tunnels they create with their mind.

Definitely a magical read.

AND...

The Poem We Have Not Written

Michael Cox

 

It’s out there somewhere.

Hints of it are everywhere:

The mysterious eye

Glimpsed through a thicket,

A gaunt child turning a corner

And disappearing,

A seductive cord heard briefly,

Triggering an incomplete memory.

 

It’s out there wanting to live,

To mirror the heat of the sun,

Gather the cool of the evening,

To dance in glorious colors,

Matchless tempo,

Sublime footwork.

 

Come muse,

Call us out

From the darkness.

 AND...A writer bud has published her first audible, a romantic suspense, and is looking for reviews. If you listen to audibles and are interested in a freebie in exchange for a review, please shoot me an email.

Tuesday

In the backyard:

Wild strawberries are interspersed in the grass.

The daylilies are blooming.

And the brown-eyed Susans

The monarda (bad hair day flowers:)

 The Asiatic jasmine

And the sedum.

This little hydrangea is having a problem deciding what color he prefers his blooms to be.

Unfortunately, Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal were quite insistent on building in the butterfly bush. Can you see the nest?

I'm afraid Frank will have to be under house arrest in a few weeks, for a few weeks:)

Addendum: Since I wrote this post, Cool Hand Frank turned his attention from outsmarting the warden (the HH) and making a break for it to the bird's nest, which he's effectively destroyed. I'm both saddened and relieved. Relieved that cat insurance was not necessary and no lives were lost. Mr. Cardinal is not taking it at all well. Hanging on the fence above his nest and complaining. I suspect that the Mrs. left him for (in her mind) a better provider and that this is the source of his complaints. Fickle, I know, but Mrs. Cardinal had to do, what Mrs. Cardinal had to do. Hopefully, Mr. Cardinal will find a better and safer neighborhood. 

Addendum to the Addendum: The little guy hung around all day and into the evening. He looked pretty lost. I've heard they mate for life or until something happens to their mate.  I haven't seen him today so I'm going on the assumption he found the missus or is online (phone line perhaps) looking for a new mate.

My Mother's Day gifts from my son and his family arrived last week. A coffee cup with a picture of my sweet Belle on it, which I treasure.

AND...While I loved getting this, I did get a chuckle out of it. Just what every mom needs during COVID-19.

AND

How was your weekend and your Monday? What's growing in your garden? Got birds nests? Got toilet paper?