Sunday Sundries--Sickey Edition Redux

So, instead of a nice, relaxing, productive weekend, I ended up spending most of it in the bathroom with the nasty stomach flu my husband had last week. Hellva way to lose ten pounds, huh? Yeah, it's the I'm going to wear Depends because I'm not quite sure I'll be able to make it to the bathroom and while I'm at it, I'm keeping the bathroom trashcan by where I sit for the same reason. Awesome.

But, even though it is literally a pain in the ass, I can honestly sit here and say it could be worse. I do have sick time I could take at work. I do have a job with insurance if I need to go to the doctor.

I know it would have been worse if I hadn't gotten a flu shot and if I hadn't been taking anti-viral medicine. Everyone was sneezing at work, so I should have figured it was going to happen.

After all:

So, while I'm doing my impression of Grumpy Cat,

Please forgive me. I have to make sure I drink enough water.

 I did get out for a get-together of friends to celebrate out friends' birthdays. I didn't eat very much, but we had a good time.

I've been sleeping a lot. I know it's the only way I'll get better.

One thing I really try to do is portray my characters during their trials and not finest moments. It makes your fiction more important, more real. My character Lizzy/Elizabeth jokes to herself that she does some of her best thinking in the bathroom. Don't worry--I'm not going to have anything graphic like what was happening to me for the past forty-eight hours, but it's part of life. Poor Mary Margaret runs out of tampons and just started her period. She met the man of her dreams and he buys them for her, much to her embarrassment. In the second series of books, Rob falls ill with a bad case of strep throat and in a moment of weakness, confesses to his new sister-in-law why he had a falling out with his brother.

So, yes, I need to use all my life's experiences to contribute to my fiction. But, tomorrow, I go back to work in "The Real World" and I promise I won't be like this fellow:

Promise. Take care and see you next week!

Sunday Sundries--Bling Edition

Okay, so I wasted a bunch more time this week. I think God was on to me, because he kept crashing my Jewel Quest III program on the desktop. So, I decided I'd better get to work.

Another time suck today has been Pinterest. I have a board under my "real name" and one under Julee J. Adams [http://pinterest.com/juleejadams/] and spend entirely too much time goofing on both boards. I've been obsessed with jewelry lately. It's my birthday month and I've been wearing amethyst earrings most all the time. I broke down a "Jewelry I love" board into five boards, because I had over 800 pins.

So, I thought I'd talk about some jewelry for my characters. In the first part of the first novel, Mary Margaret lends her hematite band to her sister Lizzy to keep losers away at the bar. It's one of those cheap, magnetic ones like this:

Mary Margaret got it in a gift shop on a family trip. Will jokes with Lizzy that, "It didn't work, did it?" He tosses it out the car window and offers to replace it with a wedding ring. When reminded it wasn't hers, he later buys a little diamond and emerald band for Mary Margaret to wear, "...until my brother replaces it with something more substantial." Like this:

Lizzy's engagement ring is an oval solitaire that's quite substantial. Will jokes about how she should pick out "...something that would be good in a bar fight." I got to go to the Tiffany's in The Forum Shoppes, in Las Vegas (right by the VIP entrance) where Will purchased it for her:

I found this reference online that was helpful:

At the top is a one carat diamond, the second is a two carat and the bottom is a three carat. Lizzy, who starts to go by Elizabeth, is overwhelmed by the selection, but picks what she thinks would be the simplest and thus less expensive ring. Here's a one carat oval in platinum from the Tiffany's "build your ring" site:

Here's one I found on Pinterest that is about right:

Not too shabby for someone who usually wore plain gold ball earrings before.

When her sister, Mary Margaret falls in love and gets engaged in the second series of books, her fiance', Rob (Will's brother), takes the diamond from the earring he used to wear, which was one of his mother's. Here's her ring:

On what is to be her wedding day, Mary Margaret gets another ring to wear that looks something like this:

Mary Margaret gardens and I knew this pendant was something Rob would buy for her at the first opportunity:

She also gets as gifts, later in the series, many flower brooches. Here's an example:

Let's not forget the men. Here is Rob's ruby cufflinks he inherited from his father:

And here is something his brother, Will, who is seriously geeky, would wear:

"Star Trek" delta shield cufflinks.
So, have some fun and think about what type of jewelry your characters would wear! Love to all, see you next week!

Sunday Sundries--Let's Try Again, Shall We?

Wow, where did January go, huh? I will promise to be a little more disciplined on posting here. Thanks to all, I'm getting close to 16,000 page views! I've allowed myself to get distracted, though and please accept my humble apologies.

On a Facebook group page (5 a.m. Writers), I posted about having ADHD for writing.

Yes, it should have an apostrophe in there.

I obsessed over a post-Civil War story, novella-length, for about a week and didn't do anything more on my two works in progress that I've almost finished. While I needed to get the notes down, one of the originators of the board, Pam Mason, was absolutely correct. I need to get more disciplined and finish.

Thus, Friday, I focused on combining two short scenes from my hero's point of view. I also added a bridge scene that sets up some action the next morning. It solves a problem (how did something get there?) that would bother some readers, as it bothered me. I'm not finished, but I'm pleased, because it should provide amusement and gives insight into a character while moving action forward.

My husband agreed I need to focus and get this one book done. He often jokes I'm the Stanley Kubrick of romance novels, in that I've been writing and editing for over six years. He makes me laugh. He's offered to do my covers for me, which is a thrill. He works at a TV station and designs graphics for use on air when he directs the newscasts. The first book will have this sign on the cover:

Probably a different angle. It's important, because my heroine will have to move and make a life for herself with her new husband there. I'll take a couple more pictures of it when we go out there at the beginning of April for our 25th wedding anniversary (and for him to play in a poker tournament!). He was worried that the Photoshop program was very expensive. Actually, it's about the cost of what it would be to have two covers made by one service, so there you go. I've discussed the cover of my second book, which would have a spring nosegay on it with a rose color background, with a friend who will help me with the flowers. I'm excited. Here's one I love:

 Thanks to Pinterest for being one of my greatest time sucks. I do want to do boards for my main characters and for each title, though. I'll post links here when I get to it.

I was speaking of heroes and Friday was my dear father-in-law's eightieth birthday. My husband is over visiting with him and some of his brothers and sisters right now. Dad T. is a veteran, a businessman and a fine father. While we often don't agree politically, I'm grateful for him and Mom T. and love them very much. Here's a picture of them at a birthday party a few years ago:

A true love story inspiration.

It is also Super Bowl Sunday, but I have to head off to work here in a bit. It's either going to be incredibly slow or crazy busy (I work in a call center doing tech support). I am going back to spending my lunch hours transcribing notebooks. I will spend down time on my netbook labeling and sorting pictures. Or playing solitaire...

My husband will be watching because it is, well, football. Some friends will be over to watch the commercials.

I was excited to see the movie "Lincoln" last night. It tied into my obsession with my one story, giving me a great sense of place and time.

I truly recommend it. Another thing I want to do is watch more movies with my honey. He's reading a biography of Teddy Roosevelt now and I'm learning a lot of history talking to him.

So, here's promising a little more discipline, a little more productivity, a little less Jewel Quest. Here's hoping I'll keep better on track. Love to all--see you next week, promise.

Sunday Sundries--New Year $#!% I Need to Get Done

So, Julee, why do you wait until after the middle of January to talk about the concept of a New Year’s Resolution? Simple—I see what’s working in the changes I wanted to make and what isn’t. I thought you might be interested/amused/horrified at what this writer with a full-time job, husband and house has written on little scraps of paper in her pockets and on lists in her notebooks. Understand, some of this stuff won’t get done, but that’s okay. I just need to remember things in a more organized manner. 

 And do a little more organizing and cleaning. Not too much more, but more. 

So, what did I do most of this evening? Goofed on Facebook and Pinterest.  

 And we all know I'm just a couple of storage bins away from being on "Hoarders." This is just too true:

I did organize almost two hundred pages of my notes into my One Note data base and Word files earlier in the week. I've sorted several hundred .jpegs and family pictures, labeling them and getting them in my flash drive files. I ordered new glasses, as my optical insurance kicked in at the first of the year. I got a bunch of clothes put away and wrote some more notes on scenes for four books.

I got to go out with two of my buddies for dinner Friday night.

We made a semi-weekly pilgrimage to a crafts store for me to get some special beads for a commission to make a bracelet for a co-worker and I have to repair a key chain for another co-worker. It's good to get back and do some beading again.

I did a bunch of grocery shopping and survived the flu last week. Hope you all are fighting it okay.

No, really. I hope you don't have to deal with any of it. It's not pretty.

I also have on my list to update my address book. I got in contact with a second cousin and got a bunch of addresses and emails to add and share. At my uncle's funeral, several of us talked about trying to organize a get together this summer. I hope it happens.

 But, in the meantime, I really love that I keep in touch with so many friends and family on Facebook. 

This was cute. I really liked this one, too:

I haven't learned how to Skype yet, but I have the software ready to go, if I do.

Had to have another kitty one:

The cats have been tolerant of my attempt to be more productive so far this year. They still would be more appreciative if I cleaned the litter a bit more often. 

So, here's hoping you have a productive week too! Take care and see you back here next week, promise.

Dealing with Grief and Loss in Fiction and Life

So, as I was considering the finer points of a scene where I had to kill off one of my secondary characters, I got a call from a cousin in my hometown. My last remaining uncle passed away and the funeral would be in two days.

While I was so grateful we were able to visit with the family recently last at a happy occasion, it's always tough to go through those sad occasions. I found this on a Pinterest posting a while back:

 I don't know why, but I always seem to fight the blues a bit more in January. I tend to obsess about those who have passed more often this month. The aforementioned character passes in January, right before his little sister's birthday. Yes, I'm writing what I know. I also usually consider my mortality more frequently during winter. Pardon me for being a bit preoccupied.

 I know there are--but my husband and I don't have children. We will have to appoint friends and/or relatives to make sure our arrangements are carried out. I will be checking off my list of family to contact to help and ordering flowers tomorrow. I have to request time off work, figure out what to wear, get gas, make sure my husband has a ride to work and about a dozen other things. That's okay. We'll get it done. Because:

Here's a picture of me with Uncle Jim from a few years ago:

He and Aunt Shirley lived down the street from us. Their kids, my cousins, often traveled with us and we grew up together. Two of them work at my old high school. I feel their pain and I'm so sad, because I had to go through what they're going through when my parents passed several years back. But I am grateful we had Uncle Jim for as long as we did.

Truth. One of the first people I met when I went back to work after Mom passed was a woman who lost her mother when she was only fourteen. But, it's tough to go through what we have to to come out the other side. And for a while, we have to remember:

We need the peace of that boat on a lake, because when we lose our loved ones, life goes too fast, too frantic and too crazy.

My cousin was focusing in on what everyone was going to wear, what flowers to order, etc., much like what I was, because those are things we can control, things we have power over. We cannot stop the march of aging or the loss of death. We can only adjust our reactions, our behaviors, as we continue on without those we love.

 This was a tough lesson:

Then, since grief and loss is such an important part in our lives, since we're at the point in our lives where we lose people and need help in how to deal with those difficult aspects, we look to others with experience and knowledge for advice.

Doesn't it, though? As writers, it's important to share real life. It makes our fiction (and non-fiction) into an experience that will move our readers and make our work memorable. Remember:

Thanks for your kind thoughts. Put those experiences into your work and you may help yourself and others. Love ya!

New Year's Sundries

I really don't have a clue how 2012 went by so fast. I do know this last week was spent in a haze of cough syrup and asthma steroids. There are two trash cans full of used tissues and a ton of undone projects, but you know, that's okay.

Yes, we're fabulous. And we're going to continue it into the new year. It is not lowered expectations, it is simply accepting that I will never be able to get everything I want to do done in the usually unreasonable time frame I tend to set. That's okay. I will do my best.

This is a picture out our front door the day after Christmas. It still hasn't all melted, which has caused some more delays in getting things done. No excuses, just a realization that we may have to adjust expectations. And that's okay.

I did do some Christmas decorating.

This was a wreath I made with some friends (including one who passed in 2004) that hadn't seen the light of day in many a year. I was pleased I got it up on the inside of the front door, so at least I would be able to smile and enjoy it. That's another thing I want to do this year--enjoy the lovely things I have. I have dishes that haven't been used, art and needlework that's never been displayed and clothes that still have tags on them. What I don't want or need will be sold or donated. I already have a big box of needlework patterns I will never do ready to go to a place that sells for you on eBay. My friends and I have agreed to work on getting an Etsy store up and going and I'll pass the links on to you as soon as we do. This will help fund my covers and promotional expenses.

 BTW, I'm totally in love with Grumpy Cat. I feel like her sometimes and I'm very proud of her owners for making her into the latest thing. Would that I would have the foresight and ambition to capitalize on talent or product.


One of the things I will continue to do in 2013 is transcribe my notebooks. I still have over twenty five blank books that hold scenes, notes from magazines/documentaries/books/etc. and quotes. I've been transcribing them during my lunch hour at work, sending them in emails. The notes are spread over about a dozen flash drives.

At Wal-mart, Big Lots and Best Buy, you can get a 16 GB flash drive for around $10. This is an amazing deal. Just last year, a 32 GB flash was over $300. You can find one for less than $40 now. I ask everyone to BACK UP YOUR WORK! I know of several people who lost whole chunks of work or whole documents when a hard drive crashed or a computer was stolen. Of course, now you can back your work up "in the Cloud." I'm not there yet, but I'm sure I will be soon. Not only will I continue to transcribe my notes, I am determined to figure out the best way to organize them. I've made a start to getting things into OneNote, but I still have a long way to go.

Another step I've made to get organized is this:

A Gateway "netbook" that is my Christmas present. It is a third smaller than my current laptop and a lot lighter. More importantly, it's easier to carry, travel with and bring into work. Before I can use it though, I have to find the information about the security software we purchased before Christmas. So, I have to get organized to get organized. Stop me if you've heard this before....

I think of how many people have never accomplished half of what I have. I have to get my act together and finish the first two of my books.

Another thing I promise to do that's not a New Year's resolution per se, but a necessity, is to eat better and continue to be aware of my food allergies. Eating what I shouldn't ought to has contributed to my recent asthma flare-up (why I didn't have a post on Sunday). This little froggie reminds me of myself a couple days this past week:

I will accept life gifts--like taking it as a sign that the "House Hunters" episode is set in New York City, where one of my characters lives. Here's the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center:

I've been working on a scene in the second series of books of my characters' first Christmas together. Also, one of the people I spoke with at work is a police officer and said, "Copy that" when I asked him to do something. Another character is a state trooper, so I'll work a couple of those into my dialog. Every day, I am given little gifts, coincidences and thoughts, to put into my fiction, enriching it. I just have to remember to listen.

So, please allow me to send to all of you:

Please join me on Pinterest, where I found this vintage card--I've tried to put the link in my layout, but Blogger isn't accepting it. I will try to post more regularly, but my concentration this year has to be on writing. Love to all and please have a happy and safe 2013!