Here’s this year’s edition.

Happy Halloween!

Yep. It does.

Happy Halloween and weekend!

You know. I just have to complain. I’m sick (heh) of hearing about H1N1. It’s always the leading story on the news every night. And, yeah, okay I get that it’s a serious illness. But so is the regular flu. And did you know that MORE people die of the “regular” flu each year than H1N1?

The news the other night really took the cake for me. One “North Texas mother” wants to cancel Halloween because it’s just “not good” to have all those kids near each other. Outside. Running from door to door. Never mind the fact they’re in classrooms together every single day. Or on the playground. Or whatever. She’s keeping her kids in this Halloween with zero trick-or-treating because it’s “not safe” to go outside.

So…are we going to live in quarantine for the rest of our lives because of … the flu?

And then of course the news has to show the OTHER extreme. The mom who has a dozen kids around her and the house is decorating to the hilt for Halloween. Cobwebs on the trees and shrubs, blinking Halloween lights, you get the picture. She’s all smiles. She’s the “neighborhood Halloween Mom”. You know, sort of like the Kool-Aid Mom but for Halloween. Her house is “the” house on the street that all the kids come to. She doesn’t think we should cancel Halloween.

And you know what? Neither do I. It’s absurd to keep our kids locked up in the house just because it’s just too icky out there. Just because there is the slight chance they “could” get sick. And, really, if the news stations would stop shoving it down our throats that All Mankind is Going to Die of the Swine Flu, we wouldn’t have near the panic.

That’s my rant for the day. And yes, we’re going trick-or-treating. I love Halloween!

Yep. I’m doing it again this year. I think it’s the only way I’m going to get my ass in gear and finish this book. After all, I did finish writing the gladiator book last year via NaNo, then took December off, then edited and polished and was ready by July (Nationals) to submit. I think that can work again for me this year. At least, I’m going to give it a shot. But my stupid hand is hurting a lot. I think it’s because of all the damp weather we’re having. And now it’s cool, so that’s working against me too. It’s like I can’t win or something.

We’re supposed to get more rain Thursday. BOO.

Anyhoot. So I’m doing the NaNo thing this year and we’ll see how it turns out. I hope I don’t crash and burn.

Work is busy. The day is a blur and they go so fast. The evenings go even faster. It’s like I barely have time to sleep before I have to wake up and do it all over again. The office is moving to new space in mid-December and I got to see it yesterday. Not much to see yet. Just a bunch of steel studs and drywall but hey – at least I know where my new space is going to be. And it’s going to be nice. It’s a nice building.

Not much else going on in my world except for working and then trying to keep myself caught up at the house.  Sometimes I feel like I’m on one of those hamster wheels and I can’t get off. I’m going to have to learn some serious time management skills in the coming months.

Okay that’s all for now. Happy Wednesday!

I really have nothing to blog about. Well, I DO but nothing I can put in a blog. Suffice it to say that life is busy and I’m really ready for this year to be over. Sad, I know. But that’s how I feel.

So for now, happy Tuesday. Hopefully all you writers out there are writing more than me. All I can do right now is think about writing and it sucks.

Note 1: Boat shoes and plaid shorts DO NOT look good together. I don’t care how preppy you are.

Note 2: NEVER go to Fry’s and try to browse. You WILL be harrased mercilessly by salesmen who have English as a second language.

Note 3: When going to your son’s soccer game, wear a hat to keep the sun from beating into your skull. And chapstick! Save your lips!

Note 4: Going to the movies with your man is fun. People watching is even more fun.

Note 5: One bowl of chili is really enough. Really.

Note 6: You know you’re getting old when you crash out in front of the UT game at 9:30 pm on a Saturday. Sad.

Note 7: Boys find bathroom humor hilarious whether they’re 8 or 46.

Note 8: October is really too early to have Christmas stuff out in the stores.

Note 9: There are only 60 days until Christmas!

Note 10: The weekend went by WAY too fast.

Happy Monday.

Check out more pix at uberpix.net!

And that is all. Happ weekend everyone!

On the way home yesterday, it poured down rain. (In fact, it poured rain all day yesterday.) So much so it was difficult to see and I had the windshield wipers on high. There was a police car with his lights on parked on the shoulder of the highway. Turns out it wasn’t a wreck but instead two guys changing a tire. Clearly one guy helping the other change the tire in the pouring rain. My first thought was how nice it was for the other guy to stop and help. My second thought was – WOOF! In the rain! Indeed a good samartian.

I was exhausted when I got home last night. And so glad I made pot roast all day in the crock pot so I didn’t have to cook! That made dinner easy. But the dishes were a pain in the butt. The kid was having one of those evenings where he couldn’t focus (wonder where he gets it?) and getting homework done was a chore. So was bath, brushing teeth, getting into bed. I was ready to rip all my hair out by the time it was over.

Then I treated myself to ice cream and writing on the Mini. The Mini has been awesome this week for writing. I busted the 19K mark finally.

And I can’t believe it’s Thursday already! This week has flown. The school is having it’s book fair so I told the kiddo I’d take him and he could pick out a book or two. I can never say no to books, especially if the funds are going back into the school.

Not much else happening other than that. Happy Thursday, ya’ll!

This month, fellow romance author, Teri Thackston, is stopping by to say hi and answer a few questions about her latest book, THE SALVATION OF CAPTAIN BEN CHANDLER published through Cerridwen Press.

Here’s a quick blurb about the book: Rumors of her death have cost Clarity Breckenridge her home and her precious Arabian stallion Sir Robin. Civil War weary Captain Ben Chandler just wants to deliver the stallion he purchased for his cousin in Texas. Thrown together by fate, held together by mutual attraction, they struggle together to outwit a killer who threatens both their plans.

Thanks for stopping by the blog today, Teri!

1. When did you know you wanted to be a writer? And how did you get your start?

I’ve been writing since I was about eleven years old, inspired by Nancy Drew stories initially and then later by Ian Fleming and Alistair MacLean.

2. Where do you find your inspiration?

Everywhere! People I meet, stories I hear or read—both fictional and real—even the whisper of the wind through high grasses on a mysterious hillside…yikes, I’m getting ideas right now!

3. What is the one writer’s tool you can’t live without?

My initial answer would be my laptop, but I really could write with the ancient tools of pen and paper. It’s my God-given imagination, I guess, that is most important to me.

4. How many words/pages do you do in a day/week/month? And how do you keep yourself motivated to do them?

I’m not very disciplined, so I don’t count words or pages. I write until my brain shuts down—sometimes that’s after a couple of hours, other days it’s only after my stomach or my bladder remind me that it’s time to get out of the chair for a break.

5. Whose work has influenced you the most?

Alistair MacLean—no doubt. He didn’t have a lot of romance in his stories, but he knew how to meld action and plot in a way that simply stunned me. I learned how to tell a story by reading his works. I learned to add romance from writers like Christie Craig, Colleen Thompson, Kim Lenox—there are just too many inspiring writers to name.

6. This month is the release of your western historical, THE SALVATION OF CAPTAIN BEN CHANDLER. Where did you get the idea for that?

I was working on my first western romance for Cerridwen Press THE ABDUCTION OF MISS JENNY CHANDLER, and one of the secondary characters—Jenny’s cousin Ben—kept popping into my mind. I actually wrote a few scenes from his point of view and I liked them so much that I left them in that book. That’s unusual for me. I generally stick to the hero’s or heroine’s POV (okay, not always, but usually). I just liked Ben so much that I had to come up with a story for him.

7. Tell us a little about the book.

It takes place shortly after the Confederacy surrendered to the Union—a highly emotional time for our country. Heading home to Texas, Confederate Captain Ben Chandler catches Clarity Breckenridge stealing the Arabian stallion he bought in Kentucky. Clarity claims to own the horse and is determined to get it back. But everyone she knows claims that she died at the end of the war. When a killer tries to permanently end her attempts to prove her identity, Ben whisks her—and her horse—to Texas.

Ben is emotionally and physically weary. His parents are dead, the woman he loved has left him and he suffered so many near-misses during the war that he just wants to hide himself back home. When Clarity’s joyful outlook threatens to bring him painfully back to life, he resists his growing attraction to her.

Meanwhile Clarity’s vow to return home and prove her identity is strained by her growing attraction to the handsome captain who saved her life. But a near rape years earlier makes her afraid that she could not be a whole woman for him, so she pulls back, too. Fleeing a killer and their own pasts, can they reclaim Clarity’s identity and find love and new lives together?

8. This book is a sequel to THE ABDUCTION OF MISS JENNY CHANDLER. Tell us a little about that. Will there be more books in the series?

Jenny’s story takes place in Texas and Mexico a few years before the Civil War. Jenny is a young lady from Louisiana visiting family in Texas. She enjoys a life with no more pressing problem than what to wear to the next cotillion, and she’s content to remain “Daddy’s little girl”. Then she meets Texas Ranger John Grayling and realizes that growing up might not be so bad. Unfortunately Gray’s latest love has just announced she’s marrying someone else. Deeply hurt, Gray swears off women and vows to devote himself to his job. But when Jenny is kidnapped by bandits and Gray is captured trying to rescue her, the young woman’s spirit and sensuality test his vow.

Renegade Comanche and Army gold figure in the couple’s escape, adding to the action and emotion. Gray falls for Jenny, but can he trust her when every other woman in his life has failed him? Jenny loves Gray, but can she break through the barrier around his heart? Can passion’s fire ignite lasting love before evil plays its smoldering hand?

I do have ideas for a couple of more books featuring the Chandlers, but those ideas are still percolating in my imagination.

9. What are you working on now?

I’m working on another romantic suspense, set along the Texas Gulf Coast.

10. If you weren’t a writer, what would you be?

When I was young, I wanted to be a world-famous novelist and a spy but I realized that those two occupations wouldn’t go together very well. Today, I think I’d be a sculptor. I find writing is similar to sculpting in that the story is revealed by removing unnecessary layers. I’m not sure I’d be very good at it—my Playdough sculptures seemed limited to snakes and balls!

11. What’s your favorite genre to read? What’s your favorite genre to write?

Oh, that depends on what day of the week it is. I’ve written western, suspense and paranormal and I love all three. If I could write only one…well today I would say westerns. But a few weeks ago, my answer was paranormal. I guess I’ll just keep writing all three.

You can find out more about me and my books on my author page at Cerridwen Press: http://www.jasminejade.com/m-225-teri-thackston.aspx?skinid=13

Or my website: http://www.terithackston.com or my blog http://www.terithackston.blogspot.com. I also hang out on Facebook and MySpace and a lot of reader/writer loops and I love to hear from readers and other writers.

So the first day was good. I had a mountain of paperwork to fill out. Got that all done. I have my work cut out for me but I’m really looking forward to it. Not much other to report than that. Just gotta roll up the sleeves and get ‘er done.

I did write some on Sunday night. Only about 500 words but it’s better than nothing. Trying to retrain the brain and the writing habits. I didn’t think this story would be easy to write but it’s harder than I expected. In some ways, I feel rusty at writing. I think I’m going to use November as a sort-of NaNo for me. Sort of in that I’m not going to start from scratch but I *am* going to push myself to write 2000 words a day and try to add an additional 50,000 to my current WIP. If I can do that, then I’ll have a complete first draft.

I have no more excuses for not writing. The OTFS contest is done except for sending out the entries to the final judges and the non-finalists their stuff back. But then the Winter Rose starts up in December. I’m a glutton for punishment I guess! The nice thing is, I will only be sitting on one board next year instead of two. I’m really trying hard to scale back my volunteerism. Not because I don’t want to do it anymore – that’s certainly not the case. But because I foresee less free time in the evenings. Which is fine by me.

Not much else going on other than that. Man and I went to Fuzzy’s Taco Shop for dinner last night. Oh! And I bought tickets for the Nutcracker in December at Bass Hall. I can’t wait! And yes, the Man is going with me.

Happy Tuesday, ya’ll.

Today is the first day on the new job. I hope I don’t screw up. It’s going to be a bit strange not to drive to the old company for the first time in a long time. I will have to make a conscious effort NOT to drive to the building.

Friday some of the folks from the office took me to lunch. I got a nice gift from the receptionist. Even my Starbucks in downtown gave me a giant Fort Worth mug as a farewell present. I won’t get to visit my downtown Starbucks every day and I’m going to miss them. They make the BEST vanilla lattes and the manager is a doll. BUT the mug is great. I’ll be toting it with me tomorrow. Man also gave me one of those new Via mugs with the storage for the new instant Via coffee (which, by the way, is delish). Just in case I get stranded at the new place without coffee.

We had a really nice weekend. Busy, but nice! Saturday the kiddo had a hair cut, which he desperately needed. No soccer game this weekend! But we did have a birthday party that night at a place called Pump It Up. It’s a giant bounce house place. There were a few soccer friends there and the kiddo had a blast. He was worn out by the time we got home, which was nice! Made him go right to sleep.

Went to the grocery store Sunday, which I detest. However, I saved over $10 just by clipping coupons. Yes, I am the coupon lady. But I was proud of myself. And it was well worth take the extra time to clip them and take them along. I’m entirely anal about that lately, too. And the fridge and pantry are STUFFED to the gills. We are officially out of space.

Now that I’m not lunching with Man every day, I have to start thinking about taking my lunch again. I stocked up on a lot of Healthy Choice things at the store. Things I can heat up quickly in the microwave. Soups and frozen dinners and stuff like that.

Man grilled steak and chicken and hot dogs last night, too. You’d think he was cooking for an army, he made so much food. But, wow, it was good. We had a feast. We watched football all day. I downloaded more apps for the iPhone. I love Sundays.

And the weather was GREAT. It finally stopped raining and Man was able to get the yard mowed. The sky was gorgeous blue yesterday and the temp was in the lower 70s. I love this weather!

I missed the State Fair again this year. Yesterday was the last day. The end of September and early October are just busy on the weekends for us. So it’s hard to get out to the Fair. I’m determined to get to downtown Dallas, though, in the near future. The new opera house just opened and it is lovely. Supposed to be awesome inside. Man said if I get tickets, he’ll go. Madam Butterfly will be here in May 2010, so I might look into tickets to that.

Okay that’s it for me. I’m off to the new job. And hoping all goes well.

Whoever said, “Change is good,” never left a job after eight years.

Oh, sure, change may be good but change is also scary. And exciting. And awesome. And terrifying.

There comes a time in everyone’s life where you have to step back, take a good look around and make a decision about the rest of your life. Or at least the next ten years. (I use the world “you” collectively of course.) I’m not a proponent of change, by no means. Ask my mother and she’ll tell you I hate change. I resist change. I was a big pain in the ass about change when I was a kid. Now that I’m older, I can deal with a little better.

I digress… Recently I took a step back and decided things needed to change.

It wasn’t easy to make the decision it was time to seek other employment. It wasn’t easy to tell the current place of business that I was leaving. But I knew it was the right thing to do. I gave my notice last Monday and have never felt better about my decision. Aside from a few, “what do I think I’m doing” moments, that is.

It was a great place for me to work for just over eight years. I learned a lot and had some great opportunities. I met some fantastic people and made long-term friendships and found someone I can’t live without. It’s a great company but I think I outgrew it. I felt stagnant and unchallenged. And I was bored. I needed some sort of brain stimulation. And I wasn’t getting it 40-hours a week.

I will miss so many of the people I worked with every day. They were funny and fun. And they laughed at my stupid jokes. It was a great ride while it lasted. It’s actually kind of sad cleaning out my cubicle. It’s kind of sad cleaning out the entire department (I was the last one standing in that office–now everything is being shipped to the corporate office). I moved boxes, threw away old stuff, and cleaned up for the last two weeks. The department is looking rather barren. It’s kind of sad, actually. Looking around and seeing everything being boxed up and shipped out. Hard to believe I’m leaving after all this time and it feels sort of surreal.  

Today I close one chapter of my life and open a new one on Monday. I’m very excited about the new opportunity to learn and grow and make something better of myself. I’m looking forward to going to work again, to having that much-needed brain stimulus again. I’m hoping the new day job will help surge my creativity again. It seems to me when I’m busy during the day, I relax at night by puking out a new story.

This is one change I’m actually embracing.

I was exhausted last night so I crashed early. I’m still somewhat brain dead today. Mostly because there is a lot of Stuff going on. I will talk about said Stuff later.

Got my kiddo last night and we had a good evening. Did homework, cooked dinner, did the dishes, cleaned the litter box. And while I did that Man vacuumed. Ah… chores.

At least it’s stopped raining and we got the sun for about 2.3 seconds yesterday. Okay, really long than that but not much longer. And this morning it’s overcast again. Boo. I think I’ve forgotten what the sun felt like and looked like.

And that’s about it for today. OH – I did write 1500 words the other day. Yesterday it just wasn’t going to happen. I’m going to try and get back to it today.

Happy Thursday!

Got the iPhone last night and it’s fantastic. I’m in serious love with it. I got the 8G because I already have an iPod and I don’t need it for that. But WOW. I love being connected to my email and all those other social networks. It’s fantastic. Maybe I’ll actually starting Tweeting again! haha

And that’s it for today. I did nothing but play with the new phone for three hours last night. Man told me I was not allowed to bring it to bed.

Have a smashing Wednesday!