Keep Your Promises to God !

 OK, so this is one of those churchy blogs, one of the ones that gives you a message, then an example, and explains what it is that I'm trying to convey without being too preachy or too hard on you. Believe me when I say that I am speaking from first-hand experience. I have screwed up! I have really stepped into it in the past, and because of it, I have learned. I have not only learned, but I have become compassionate and passionate about helping others not make the same mistake(s) I have made. I've probably done it more than once, if I'm honest with myself.

    Let's first talk about what it is that I'm talking about. There is a verse (and maybe more than one) that goes over the fact that if you tell God you're going to do something and then you don't do it, you will be taken out back and punished. The Bible uses other terminology, but you get the picture. Think of it this way; God let you make a promise, and then when you didn't keep it, He may have let you off the hook, but if you tell the people around you or the angels who are given to you as messengers that your promise was a mistake, or that you really didn't mean it, well - - you've just put yourself above God! You've literally said to them that you don't mean what you say to God, and you shouldn't be held responsible. God doesn't see it that way.

    When you tell God that you will do something, and then you don't do it, you are the one to blame. Let's say He gave you an opportunity; He didn't ask you to do something, but presented something to you to accept and you said you would. You told Him through your prayers or actions (or words) that you would fulfil the obligation; but you then decided not to do it. I'll give you another example; one my friend went through. Maybe it will make more sense. I'll give you one of my own flub-ups, too. 

    My friend John was shown a vision, a dream-like thing, where he knew he was awake, not asleep, and he was ministering for God. He was shown the work, shown the results, and he was pretty excited about it. He told God he would fully commit to it and couldn't wait to get started. Well, after he got home and discussed the situation with his wife, she put the kibosh on it without even discussing the fact that John had made a commitment to God. She said, and I can't quote, as I wasn't there, that John could take it up with God because she wasn't going to fund the mission work. She wasn't going to "let" him be gone when he could be working and bringing money in for the new car they just bought, and she said that next time he decided to commit them both to something maybe he should have run it past her first.

    Can you think of the same 11 reasons I came up with why John should never have married the woman in the first place? John is the husband (was, they've since divorced) and as the husband he is the head of the house, but he never felt that he was. She would not submit to him even if she knew she was supposed to, even if it was a part of their marriage vows. That word "obey" was just a formality; she wasn't going to let John run them into the ground financially while he went out galavanting around as a missionary while she worked two jobs. It did not matter to her that this was his divine mission from Almighty God. She was the keeper of the purse, and in some ways, probably most ways, John knew this when they married. He should have prayed on the matter to ask God to soften the wife first; then, he could have made the commitment.

    Well, almost immediately after making the promise, John began telling himself and God that he spoke too soon, he wasn't able to do it, and it was probably just him getting excited over a message the pastor gave anyway. He really didn't mean it; it was a mistake. What does the Bible say about that? Here you go, from the New King James:  Ecclesiastes 5:1-6

6: "Do not let your mouth cause your flesh to sin, nor say before the messenger of God that it was an error. Why should God be angry at your excuse and destroy the work of your hands?"

    John was the lead singer of a band; they played at youth concerts and church events mostly. He started having gigs that fell apart; weather interrupts, car issues. He became ill and couldn't play. He broke his thumb and couldn't play. Soon after that, COVID hit the world, and BAM...no one was working. For over a year, the man was forced to live secluded with a wife who abused him mentally, emotionally, and fundamentally as she took on the role of the breadwinner as well as the disciplinarian for the kids. She would literally tell the kids they didn't have to listen to their dad; he was stupid and he was incompetent. He couldn't work, and therefore, he didn't have a say in any of the family matters. THIS IS NOT BIBLICAL - - but it is. 

    

    God tells us to pray about who we should marry. John didn't do that. He grabbed the first woman who seemed interested in him after he had given his life to Christ. New Christian, new wife, new life - - great, right? No! He didn't marry the woman God had prepared for him, and she all but destroyed who he was trying to become. God destroyed the work of John's hands; God kept John from creating more work, and it all ended up in a deadly spin of depression, anxiety, anger, and rage.  After the lockdowns were over, the two split up. They had been living separately in the same house for over nine months before that.

    

    When he could, when he realized what had happened (literally 3 years later) he found himself living with friends and family, on the street at times, and even at a church in the back rooms where he was working as a janitor and assisting in youth ministry to pay for room and board, but nothing else. About a month ago we talked and I shared with him the verse I just shared -- it hit him like a brick between the eyes. He asked, "Have you ever done something this stupid?" to which I could only say yes, I have. 

    

    I'm not sure exactly what I had promised God, and that's a problem too. I told God I would do something and not only did I not do it, I can't remember what it was that I told Him I would do. I spent over twenty years trying to recover from my error. I went through divorce, a five-year custody battle, raising three kids without a single penny of support, all the while I went to school full time and worked full time to make ends come as close as they could - - not always meeting. I remember falling on my face before God and saying I knew I made a mistake, but I couldn't put my finger on it. I begged Him for His divine forgiveness, and guess what  -- He forgave me.

    Then about four years ago He gave me an opportunity; one I could have said no to, but I knew I was supposed to say yes. I said yes. I have been commissioned, assigned if you will, the duty to pray for one man. That's it. Just one guy; he's not famous; he's just God's work in progress. The thing is, there isn't anyone else in this man's life who is praying for him on a daily basis. His grandmother would, but she passed. His wife never did; his mother is really busy and hasn't made it her priority. He has friends, of course, but they don't keep him lifted on a regular basis. God asked me if I would -- I said yes.

    Let me tell you, there are times when this man makes my promise to God seem as if it was a huge mistake. He's not "high maintenance" like he may think that he is, he's just really stubborn, obstitnate even, and he's skeptical, and untrusting. He's a good man. He's a Believer, but he's been angry with himself, his wife, his family, his choices, his life, and even with God. He's on the mend now, but these past four years have been a roller coaster from the get-go.  I wanted to kick him in the teeth a few times myself, but then I remembered that my promise to God more than outweighed my emotional connection to the man. He's the one God asked me to pray for. There had to be a reason, and there was.  

    The reason I'm praying for this guy (as it was revealed to me recently) was that he made a promise to God and didn't keep it. He thought he would, but he didn't. He tried, but he wasn't able to pull it off -- could be another John thing; a wife who refused to support him but had only disdain and ugly words for him. I can't know for sure; he's too embarrassed to share much. Whatever the reason, he's on his own now but he's not alone. He has Jesus. I'm there, of course, still praying, and I know God is faithful. He always keeps His promises to us -- God can't lie. The other really cool thing about God is that He's literally NEVER WRONG, so if He asked me to do this, He wants me to do it. It's part of His plan.

    There's another reason I pray for this guy; it's simple. I've grown to understand him since I've been praying for him. I've grown to love him in a familial way -- he's part of my heart now. I consider him part of my family, though we've never met. We'll meet in Heaven as we are both Believers. It's cool; I don't have to be his buddy here; we have eternity to talk and to praise our God, the One we know has only His best for us. When I think about it, I'm so very blessed for this opportunity. It means I'm both pleasing God and delighting in Him. The Bible tell me in Psalms 37:4 that if I delight myself in the Lord, He will give me the desires of my heart -- I guess then, maybe I'm a little selfish; I want my desires so yeah, I'll delight in Him.

    One more verse for you. John 3:16: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life."  I believe.

Photo Credit: Christianity.com

    

Pouf!

No doubt the world will look at me and say, "She had her act together!" They will say this because I am going to do what I should have done 20+ years ago. I'm going to buy 3 unstuffed pouf covers and stuff them full of my t-shirts and sweatshirts so that when I move, I can just pick up my poufs and go. I can have my old clothes at my fingertips in case I want them. I can throw the pouf at my dog and not fear that I hurt her. Don't email me, I won't throw anything at my precious mutt...she would laugh, but I still won't do it.

    A pouf is a crazy little piece of "furniture," technically, but it's really just a square or round covering for a pillow or pillow-like stuffing. You use it to prop your feet up mainly, and you tend to have a Boho sort of feel to your place when people see it in your apartment or living space. Believe me, when I say that some poufs are so expensive, it makes me laugh - - then cry. Most of the covers are only a few dollars; you'll pay a premium for better-made materials such as leather or handwoven cloth. 

    I am going to buy 3 of these unstuffed covers and then stuff them myself with my old t-shirts, sweatshirts, and hoodies. One of them will be used for stuffing my bed linen; I'll just rotate it out every week when I change the linen. I'll pull one out of the pouf, dress the bed, wash the others, and stuff them into the pouf for their rotation. I can't think of a better way to store old clothes and bed linen.  Heck darn, and shoot, I may get a couple more and put my couch pillows into them because I rotate those out as well and never know where to put the seasonal pillows!!

    I can't tell you how very happy this makes me. I'm doing the dance right now, and it's a little difficult because I'm also trying to type.  Who knew that a simple design could make my day? I'm thrilled.  I remember seeing these types of ottomons when I was a kid, you know, back in the Flower Power days. They're a bit hippie-ish in some ways. Depending on the materials they are made from, they could be very hippie-ish. I tend to like the earthy tones and the handwoven materials. There are colorful ones too; some are made from reeds, leather, etc., but I like the clothes poufs with zippers.

    There will be a day when I have to move from this place to my new place, and when I do, I'll have something like four or five different poufs, all stuffed with clothes, linens, even soft jackets, and I can just store them in the closet, leaving room for more...you know, stuff. Americans have too much stuff!! This should have been my rant, to begin with, but now I'm just happy I have a place to store my stuff. If I never see those particular garments again, I can at least rest knowing they were useful in another way. 

Photo Credit: Amazon

Jude's Almost Daily Blog Book 3 (Done)

 See!! I snuck one in on ya, and you didn't even know I was doing it. I wrote my 3rd Blog Book over the course of time like I do all of my blog books - - literally, these blogs can be used to squeeze out a book when I get about 90-100 new blogs that I like and don't mind sharing.

    The 3rd book was going to be my last in the series, but people said they wanted to see more, so there you go - - you go where the people need you to go. You help when you can; I don't mind.  Writing has never been an issue for me, and Jesus is my witness on that one; He knows. There are times when I think I keep Him up at night with my writings. He loves me; we're good.

    So, this book was pretty easy. I sat down on Monday of this week, four days ago, and decided to write the book. I had all the blogs written, so it was just a matter of putting them in order and slapping them into the book format. I use Word, so I just opened a new document and started adding blogs.  I decided to add photos when I could, and I took out about 30 "damn" and a few other words I didn't need to say. I'm trying hard not to cuss as much. I can say fudge! I can say dagnabit! I can say phooey! My mom always said that one.

    By Tuesday, I had the book loaded. Wednesday and Thursday, I ran it through Grammarly, but I will be 99% honest with you, I didn't change too much. I find that using Grammarly often takes the essence of my writing style for granted. I lose some of me, so I didn't push it too hard. There still will be some mistakes. I did look for spelling errors. I did intentionally misspell words, too, so Grammarly had a fit with that.

    Today is Friday. I did all the spacing today. I went through the book to be sure I separated the paragraphs. This a blog book, not a novel. I separate my blog books -- I said that now I have to go look at my other ones to see if I did. OOPS...no, I didn't, OK...well, there's that! I will leave it. I don't care. It's not meant to be a journalist whitepaper. It's a blog book. I don't know why I would not separate the paragraphs in the books. I did in the blogs!! I'm so weird sometimes.

    The cover is adorable. I love it. I had another one in my head, but it didn't work when I put it on Canva. It was too colory and off-beat. I can be both, but I wanted the book to be fun, open, and honest, you know -- like me. I could say blunt; I'm pretty blunt. The book has a lot of blogs about my other books because that's what I did last year, but I found a lot of other blogs, too, and mixed it up. I think it's a bit churchy at times, but hey, I love Jesus, and you should, too.

    So, there you go -- I sent it up today, but they may send it back if I forgot to "flatten" the fonts on the cover. I can't remember if I did. I usually do. They'll kick it back to me by Monday if it's not flattened. I just don't want to have to redo the cover -- geez, it's detailed and took a while. It was fun, though. I will say that.  If it's up for sale on Feb. 29 it will be $18.00 (and again, I have no control over that). Soon, I'll be able to put all my books in EPUB so they can be digital!! Woot.

THE NEW BOOK (For Now)

 ...and here we are. I'm listening to SYR in my ears through really good and very crisp earphones. I would say they are state of the art, but if you know me, you know I don't have that type of need or taste. They're good. I'm very satisfied. Great band, great music, and if you haven't done so - - please, find them. They're quite literally the best Celtic band I've ever  heard - - and they're from South Carolina. DANG good.

    We're not here today to talk about Syr, but listen, once I turned the music on my head, my mind, my spirit, and my being simply stopped and had to sway into it for at least long enough to tell you about them. I'm here today, to talk to you about the new book. I won't tell you the title. I've told a select few so I could run it by them to see what they thought. My three children know, and my best friend knows. I received the same, the exact same reaction from each.

    The new book will be called "The New Book" until I actually publish it, and then I'll be very happy to share the actual title with you and everyone else on the planet. This is going to be a dramatic book; but not the same as "Bay Sorrel Ranch" in that there will not be a romance of any type, and there won't be a single story to follow. Instead, there will be several stories, all experienced by one person in one way or the other. She stumbles onto one; she's involved in two, and she's observing another. It's something she can't avoid. None of us can.

    OH MY GOSH, this music. It's hard to concentrate even long enough to write. I want to jump into the video and just breathe it in.  I'll use several lines from their songs in my book; I know I will. I will glance and skim across Perry Mason books for insight. I'll watch shows, investigate on my own, interview people, and observe. I'll volunteer so I can get first-hand experience about a particular thing I want to write about. I don't want to just talk about it; I want to know it. 

    This book, "The New Book" will expose, it will dig, it will hurt, it will lay raw a few things that need to be seen, heard, and known. It will be an eye-opening book, one that slaps us all upside the head with reality. It's all around us; we just either choose not to see it or we purposely don't look. That's one of the differences in our characters; some choose to ignore while others choose to rush by not noticing. There is a vast difference there, and therein lies some of the problems we have in our world. 

    "The New Book" will be written next, and I'll try to get it done before the end of March. That's my goal. I want to start on the next installment for Nick Posh, which is "Mesa."  Nick will take off for the South Southwest and find himself entangled with not only a nomadic circus, but he'll literally join it in order to solve a murder. Too much fun!! Can't wait, and I have to wait...hate and love that. I'm really looking forward to writing "The New Book" because I believe it needs to be written. I hate that I need to. I'll start on it in a couple of days.

    I'll leave you with what Syr asks.

"If you don't know who you are, who is it you hate? All the lies that swallow you whole don't even know your name." 

Photo Credit: Reader's Digest

    

Sausage Hash Brown Casserole - The Recipe.

 OK, so I made an amazing casserole, and now everyone wants the recipe. Can you say no when they ask? I can't. Here you go, but you have to follow it, OK, and don't complain to me if you don't do it the same way I did. Here we go.  By the way, Happy 120th birthday to my Granny Edwards. 

    First,  start the oven at 375.  You have to spray the 9" x 9" glass pan with spray oil so the hash browns don't stick. I use olive oil and try to find it cholesterol-free because I don't like adding cholesterol (she says that but uses pure butter).  Then you dump 1/2 a bag of frozen hash browns into it. Don't buy the small bag and then tell me there weren't enough. Get a good-sized bag, something like 20 ounces. I didn't look when I bought it. It's a store brand, nothing fancy.

    After the hash browns, you add sprinkle (generously) about 1/3 cup of Parmesan cheese. I'd tell you exactly how much, but I don't usually measure anything. You can grate it if you like. Add about 3 tablespoons or so of Ranch dressing. Again, I don't measure it, so just squirt it out and drizzle it all over the entire mess.  Then add 2 whisked or beaten eggs with 1/4 cup of melted butter. I don't measure the butter, but I know a 1/2 a stick is 1/4 a cup if you buy the type that has 4 sticks in a box. I microwave the butter by itself for about 40 seconds.

    After the egg/butter thing you grate or add shredded cheddar. This time I used white cheddar. You can do whatever your heart desires. I grate enough to cover the top lightly. Then I add the sausage. Sometimes, I tear it up, and other times, I don't. The one in the picture only has 8 patties, so if I was serving 9 people that would be a problem, but this only served four since we like to eat it, and 8 can be divided by 4 pretty good.

    Pop that puppy into the oven (no, you don't get to email me and say I was being cruel to animals; I'm from the South. We say that sort of thing. It's not going to change just because you're offended. You're allowed to be offended.) You cook it for 45 minutes at 375, and depending on your oven, it will be ready around that time. I think I cooked mine for 47-48 minutes today. Then I took it out and let it set for 10 minutes before I dug into it. 

    The recipe is one I've used for a long time. Some people add half and half, and some people use sour cream instead of Ranch dressing. you can do it with ham, you can do it with chicken or turkey too. You can do it with fish, but I don't think I'd eat it if you did. I'm not going to do that to myself.  The famously wonderful Southern restaurant Cracker Barrel has a hash brown casserole, and they do it well; this one is sort of like that one, probably. There's just so much you can do with certain food items. No one holds the patent on how to cook this sort of thing, and if they did, our grannies wouldn't give them the time of day they were asking for. Then again, my granny didn't use frozen hash browns.

    There you go, that's it. That's the big ol' secret to what I had for breakfast today. I started posting what I was eating, and so many wanted to talk about it. I'm sure they can do the same thing(s) I'm doing. Some folks just need a nudge, and others need a push. Pinterest is a great place to get recipes and ideas if you're thinking you want to do something special for someone or for yourself, but you just can't figure out what it is that you want to do. Try that!

    Hope you have a good one! I have been thinking of ways to revamp my pulled pork, too; thinking of adding peppers and green onion and serving it on a big fat 1/2 a bagel.

Photo Credit: Me.

"1211" IN PUBLICATION! (Woot)

 I just now sent the book up for publication with Ingram Spark, so in 3-5 days, usually 3, I'll have it back and can go over it to be sure I didn't miss anything big. I'm usually afraid of the smaller things that I miss, to be honest. I do miss quite a few small things.

    I did use Grammarly this time, and that's cool. I hope I can subliminally learn from the program and get all the rules embedded into my head so I can use it less and less in the future. I don't mind using it to be honest. It's a great safety net, to be sure. 

    So, what you do is you write your book, you go over it 10x, and you make a bunch of your own corrections. Then you run it chapter by chapter (I did 3 at a time) through Grammarly, and you pay attention to all the suggestions because you want your book to be your book, not the AI's book. Grammarly asks you if you want their AI to correct for informal or formal issues; it also asks you if you are educating or telling a story. There is a huge difference in the way the AI suggests corrections.

    After you do that, you go through the book and separate the paragraphs. I decided to use James Patterson and John Grisham as examples. They have differences between them as well, but it's always good to use the best when you're trying to mimic greatness. I read the way I did the other books, where I separated all the dialogue,  is also acceptable. The book was closer to 400 pages before I chose to consolidate. It's 372 pages now.

    The book does have a memorial to Toby Keith; it seemed fitting to do so. He was a great Oklahoman, and this book primarily takes place in Oklahoma. I decided to dedicate the book to my good friend Karen Treadwell, so that should make a few people laugh -- if you know, you know.  I have the standard "Thank You" page, my fabulously famous "Disclaimer" page, and I think you, the reader, will find the book lighter, fun, weird, and interesting.

    I wanted to add so many more stories from the days I lived at 1211 N.W. 30th, but decided I really had to stop and draw the line at some point. I only mentioned a handful, to be honest, leaving out the stranger smaller events, but it will be fun for the readers to know that some (most) of the antics in the book actually did take place in some manner or the other. Life, they say, can be stranger than fiction. This is true about 1211, for sure.

    It will be about $19 (paperback) on Amazon until I can get the books I've written in EPub format. I can't do that until I'm hired and making good money. I tell people I may be an author, but I'm not yet a successful one. When I can, I'll bring the price way way down since a download to Kindle or Nook will be around $2.99, and I'll make more, too! Win!

Photo Credit:  Mindstir.com

1211 New Cover (Almost Ready for Production)

    So, here I am writing about how I loved using Grammarly for the editing of my book, and I do, but when I just now asked it to rewrite what I had written for the blog it all but completely changed what I said. Yeah, you really have to watch the program to make sure it is writing what you want it to. You could end up with someone else's words other than your own.

    I am 99% finished with "1211". I have to go through it one more time and put all the indentions that Grammarly took out. They want the book to be more "traditional," and I still want my indentions. I've looked it up, and both are acceptable. If it's good enough for James Patterson, it's good enough for me. 

    The heavy hitters tend to use only 3 spaces for an indention, they publish their books in size 11 font, and they have different preferences for their numbers. To each their own. I still can't figure out how to start the numbers in the first chapter, but if that's my biggest problem, I think I'll survive.  I like size 12 points. I'm not saying it's a deal breaker, but it is sort of a deal breaker for me. I like my Kindle because I can change the font. I can't hardly read books these days, even with my readers. I know I'm getting older, but I pay for a book, so I want to be able to read it. 

    I went through the book chapter by chapter today and uploaded it through Grammarly to do the editing. I really had to watch the program, like I said, because the AI wants to write in a much more "white paper" style even when you set the settings to casual speech and general wording for an informal audience. I really am trying (purposely) to be relaxed. It's a novel, not a journal article. 

    Then, after I did that, I had to put it down for the day. I'll go through it tomorrow to do the spacing. Because I took out the spaces between dialogue, I lost about 11-14 pages. I reduced the book from 390 to about 365 because I pulled the margins out to the same degree that the professionals (heavy hitters) do as well. I am trying to mimic them as closely as possible so my books won't be made fun of on the literary school yards.

    I am glad I redid the cover because there was a HUGE mistake on the back cover. I had two words reversed; instead of saying "his own neighborhood" it read, "own his neighborhood". Yeah, I'm the dork who didn't see it for three weeks. I have been staring at that cover for that long. Geez!! So the new cover is much like the other, but I did add the words "A Nick Posh Thriller" on the front of it. I didn't do that on the first cover, and I forgot it on "Pinball" as well. I may redo it, but I don't think I will. I can live with it.

    My book should be out on Tuesday, 2/20/24, at Amazon, and anyone can order them online at Barnes & Noble as soon as I fill out the forms to have that a reality. I'm doing that tomorrow, as a matter of fact. Fun times. So, when you get my books, and you love them, please, please give me a good review on Amazon, EVEN if you find errors, please. Even the Perry Mason books I'm reading have errors, so yeah, I'm in GREAT company!

    Have fun reading!

Photo Credit: Me

Grammarly is a Thing.

     After not doing such a great job of editing my works from the past three or four (OK, nine) books, I decided to bite the bullet and buy a monthly subscription to Grammarly. Remember, I'm only doing this for the month, and then I'll likely buy a year's subscription because it is so worth the money. (They can pay me to say that so that I get it for free if they want to.) Grammarly is kicking my butt, but I am loving it.

    So, there I was, here I am, thinking I know what the heck I'm doing when it comes to writing and applying the correct punctuation, but no, I suck. I suck so badly that even when I'm typing this, there are red lines under the words. You can't see them; they are there. I'm making corrections, and you'll never even realize I did. This is the power and the magic of Grammarly.

    I told myself over the past 9 books I wrote that I don't need it; I can do my own editing. I lied to myself. I didn't lie to the audience; I lied to myself. If and when I have the money and time, I'll pull all the other books and run each chapter at a time through Grammarly's AI and make changes before uploading them again. It should have been done before, but to be honest with you, when I uploaded the chapters in the past, I didn't realize that Grammarly was a paid subscription. I thought it only lets you make 100 corrections, and then you make your own. It was a tutor of sorts. (It's not; it's a flat fixer, and you should buy it.)

    I'm doing the one-month thing now as it is $30 a month, which, for me, is expensive. I'll do the yearly subscription soon. It's only $12 a month, but you do have to pay for it one year at a time, so $144. But...and this is huge, it is worth it. It is worth every penny of it. I'm finding so many tiny and more significant mistakes. I'm correcting about 87% of them because I want some of the things I said to remain as they are to reflect a character's voice or attitude. I intentionally misspelled some things when I wrote.

    For example, I'll say "gonna" or "hangin' around." Those are not really supposed to be written out that way, and they would not be used in a white paper, but they can be used in an informal novel. I'm seriously going to write a white paper, though, just to add the genre to the mix of things I've written. I'm that way.   Getting back to the Grammarly thing, I'm on Chapter 4 of "1211" right now, pushing it through the AI, and it shows a potential 122 mistakes! WHAT? In one chapter? Well, let's be fair; much of it was spacing because I do the two spaces after a sentence, and apparently, you don't have to do that now. I do that.

    I overuse the semi-colon, and the AI tells me so. I underuse the comma, and the AI tells me so. I have run-on sentences, which I KNOW I do, so the AI helps me write to clarify. I appreciate that. I also drop letters off of words because I'm typing and not thinking. I'll say "his" for "this" or "as" for "has" or "was," and the AI will find my errors. I love this thing. I really do love it. Feel free to get it or to use it. It has been so enjoyable to find out exactly how wrong I have been and am currently. I don't mind changing my ways; it's hard sometimes.

    I've got to get back to it. Have a great Valentine's DAY!! I hope you have the best of times and get as much chocolate as you expected.

Photo Credit: Grammarly.com 

1211 (Last Efforts) I'll Publish 2/18/24

 February 18, 1894, is my grandmother's birthday. She will celebrate her 120th birthday in Heaven, and I'll have the book published on that day so that I can remember when it was published. She lived just about a mile or so from the location, so that's fitting.

    Today, I am reading the book "1211" through from top to bottom. I'm trying to find mistakes, and I'm looking for ways to edit it so that I can eliminate any mistakes and/or errors. I have taken a view of being good but not perfect after I have spent time reading several of Erle Stanley Gardner's books. He wrote all the Perry Mason books. His books are full of errors! I laugh when I see them, thinking this guy had editors!!

    Well, I am my own editor. What I did in the past was to go through the book twice and send it up. Then, I'd order a book and go through it in book form, find more mistakes, go back to the file, correct it, and send it back up. The problem with that was, that Ingram Spark sold books that were not corrected before I could get them 100% sound. It's my fault. I'm not blaming them. I did ask them not to, but they are a business, and I am just an author - - one book out of thousands to think about at any given time.

    So, I'm reading it today, and I'm reading it tomorrow and will make as many corrections and changes as I can. Then, I'll set the book down for a few days and read it Friday and Saturday of this week to find even more mistakes, but then I'll send it up on Feb. 18 to be published so that I can remember when I did and so that it will be a gift to my granny who I know would never read my books. LOL. She didn't have much time for nonsense.

    Some day I'll write a book and tell the world exactly how I feel about my life, my family, my friends, and my animals. It may shock a few, but it may not. Let's just say I don't feel cheated, but I wouldn't have picked the slot in life I was given. That being said, I would have to have been born in or near Bethany, Oklahoma so I could still be Jeannie's best friend. That would never change. I'd have to have my three kids too, but yeah, no, I would not have picked the girl's father. Those kids may end up looking differently I suppose, but it is what it is.

    As far as animals? Well, I'm smarter now, I would not have wasted so much time and money on as many horses as I did. I would have been a lot smarter about money if I had the chance to do it all again - - wouldn't we all? I'd have kept Faithy that's for sure; and Rover, Doni, Chrissy, Matrix, George, Ginger...and yeah you know, all the dogs, and all the cats I've ever kissed.  If I had to pick one horse to keep it would be Norman, and then Hero. I'd keep two...OK, I get two. 

    "1211" will be up and for sale in about a week or so, please feel free to buy it, tell the world about it, and then you can buy the others too, since "1211" is the third in the Nick Posh thriller series. You need to read them all.

Photo Credit: Me. (This is me with Chrissy in 1983...look, I was pretty!!) Christmas, or Chrissy, was 16 when she passed. I got her on Christmas afternoon 1977. She was a neighbor's puppy and wandered up on my doorstep (of course). She is part Chow and German Shepherd. She had TINY feet, and a purple tongue.

Mentally Speaking.

 I am about to write a book (I will not reveal the title until it is produced) wherein I will discuss mentality, mental illness, mental awareness, and the invisible wounds, scars, and disabilities that rise up and hold people hostage from life. Whether it is because they don't or can't see their worth, or because others can't see or refuse to see their worth, the fact is some are in fact essentially invisible, ignored, overlooked, and even (sadly) dismissed.

    The book will reveal industries, entire industries that choose to ignore people; and even those people they have sworn oaths to assist and protect. The book will shed light, shine exposure, and peel back the corners to blatantly put the blame where it should be put; and in some cases, surprise the world with what I can show so boldly.

    Some have told me not to write the book. I've been told I'll be threatened if I do. I'm writing it as a fiction novel, there will be no real names, real corporations, or real attachments to what I suppose or suggest. I'm holding out a light and lifting it up so that you, the reader can see for yourself what is literally all around you. You're in your car, you're next to them. You're shopping at the store, you're next to them? Who? Who are you next to, you ask.  You're next to the invisible people, and you're next to those who purposely don't see them. My desire for my audience is that they LOOK.

    When you look, when you see, when you hear, when you listen, and when you understand, you'll be in a better position hopefully, to either lend a hand, say a prayer, or make small changes that can affect everyone. We're here at this time for a reason; not one of us knows how long we're allowed to remain here. There will be a judgment for all of us; not for punishment necessity, but for blessings poured upon us for having made the right choices to be there for someone else without expecting anything in return. We are to love, and this book is about that, about love. 

    I think it was Albert Einstein who said that if we "... judge fish by their abilities to climb a tree, it will believe its entire life that it is stupid." If you take me, a woman with a Ph.D. and the ability to write a 390-page book in under two weeks, and you put me in a room with an orchestra on the stage, you can't compare my worth or my experiences. I would be lost. I have no talents that could compare or be useful in that room. I am only as worthy as I see or know myself to be, and if I allowed myself to think I was worthless because I couldn't play an instrument, read music, or make extraordinary sounds, I would be depressed and anxious wondering why I was so damaged.

    We, all of us, are wonderful. We are all genuinely genuine, and creatively creative. We are bountiful with our own us-ness, we are unique and singular. This book, I pray, will allow someone (even if it's only one person) to know that you are not alone, you are not unseen, you are not worthless, you are not invisible. You are not less, you are not reduced or void. You have everything you need to be the one thing you were created to be, and that is YOU. I'm the only me that I could ever be, and that's a damn good thing - - there should not be two of me out there.

    Stay tuned. I'll keep you posted.

Photo Credit: L.A. Times.