What a Monday

Good evening friends. What a Monday this has been. Monday is usually the start of weekday crazy: re-stock fridge and pantry, school, meetings, homework, dance class and sometimes catechism.

Now that the house is silent and the kiddos are sleeping peacefully, I am satisfying my addition to Cheez-Itz and spicy rum Eggnog. Also, I keep thinking about an article I read this morning in the New York Times. The article discussed the vehement response News Journal reporters and editors are receiving due to a gun owner address list/map it published.

So, before I adjourn, I wanted to pick your brain. Was the News Journal simply reporting information its readers needed to know; or did it overstep its bounds? Also, is it ethical for the reporter, editors and publisher to become the story?

For easy reference, here is a link to the article.

After Pinpointing Gun Owners Journal News Is a Target

I was planning to share my opinion. But, I am more interested in reading your thoughts. Also, my eggnog needs a refresh and I have a date with my DVR.

Goodnight :)

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Favorite Reads from 2012

In follow-up to the post I wrote yesterday, I wanted to note some of the titles and authors I enjoyed reading in 2012. Thanks to a blog network plentiful with self-published authors, ownership of a Kindle Fire and Goodreads.com I have truly broadened my literary world.

Two books I wanted to list, first, are from two fellow bloggers, Kate Policani and Maria Tatham. I believe reading these two authors finally gave me the nudge I needed to explore a more varied library of works.

The Lustre – Kate Policani

Queen and the Handyman – Maria Tatham

Of course, I do have my favorite authors. One is William Kent Krueger. His series featuring Cork O’Connor never disappoints. I read Vermillion Drift (#10) and Northwest Angle (#11), which means I have just two more in the series to catch up.

Two trilogies I could not break away from — even to sleep — were Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins) and Fifty Shades (E.L. James).

A surprising impulse read that went more quickly than expected was The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller. The story synopsis intrigued me. So, I figured, why not?

The Hangman’s Daughter by Oliver Potzsch’s is the first in a series of four novels set in Germany, 1660. This first story is what the synopsis promises: a fast-paced, historical thriller. I look forward to reading more thrillers involving the hangman and his family.

On a dreary weekend back in late September/early October, I took a break from socializing with friends and read The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh and Mr. Darcy Goes Overboard: A Tale of Pride and Prejudice by Belinda Roberts. It was a well-spent social respite.

Then, there is the series I cannot give a decisive opinion on, yet. I read A Game of Thrones: A Song of Fire and Ice (Book One) by George RR Martin Thanksgiving week. While I liked the story, the level of detail used made the pace feel sluggish. Another observation was the bleak and icy cold of the wall mirrored what I saw looking out my own window during the time I was reading.

Finally, four additional 2012 favorites include…

The Book of Blood and Shadow – Robin Wasserman

The Flight of Gemma Hardy: A Novel – Margot Livesey

The House of Tyneford – Natasha Solomons

Mariana – Susanna Kearsley

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My Listening Months

Happy 2013! I hope you enjoyed the holiday season and end-of-year celebrations. My crew is back to the structures of normalcy; or our family’s definition of normal. That normalcy is back to work, school, home work, and waiting for spring.

Another normalcy calling for some attention is blogging. While my brain and fingers collaborated to author a few posts here-and-there, I have strayed from blogging. During my free hours I have opted to read fictional stories from others rather writing. I call this hiatus from writing, my listening months. These months away compare to pauses I take while in the midst of live conversations with family or friends. Instead of talking, I seal my lips and listen.

The pause from writing enabled me to be a better study of writing and storytelling styles. I now have a better foundation for selecting authors and genres to spend free hours with. Further, I believe the authors who encourage me to miss sleep to read their stories also help me in the development of my own writing style.

 

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Introducing the Edu$hysters of the week and they all hail from the great state of Michigan

Reblogged from Seattle Education:

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The Edu$hyster ring in Michigan

Utica Community Schools, as the second largest district in Michigan, has always been a leader in education.  Students have always had a high rate of success.  In comparison to districts across the nation, Utica has always been financially healthy.  Utica has been a wealth of potential for multiple facets of education, art and culture and many of those programs have been decimated to cater to the special interest of profiteers and politicians.

Read more… 764 more words

This share focuses on major revelations about the quality of education in Utica Community School district. Both of my children attend elementary school in this district. For the most part, we have been mostly pleased with the teachers, curriculum and opportunities for enrichment. However, this post brings to light some disappointing news about the district's priorities and how they could undermine academic futures for all UCS students. I'm sure parents in other districts throughout the country are experiencing the same challenges in determining whether public school boards and administrators are advocating in the best interest of students. My apologies for not writing any original posts for so long. The upcoming holidays have inspired me to write for my children, which means less time for blogging. Take care!
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Spinning Toward the Rush

Next week is it folks. The onslaught of holiday fun amps up in a big way. Feasting on turkey at Thanksgiving dinner, holiday parades and tree-lighting ceremonies, parties, family time, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are all advancing toward me at a lightening-speed pace. But, that’s not all. Issa and Riff each have holiday-themed activities and projecting coming up at school. This is all good. It’s what I — and many others call — organized chaos.

In preparation for weeks of indulging, gift, giving, baking, decorating and partying I went for my first spinning class, this morning. Exercise is a regular segment to my daily routine. But, I admit to being a bit lazy through most of this fall. This class is just what my fitness program needed: a challenge.

Let me tell you. A spinning class is not biking the Macomb Orchard Trail or Stony Creek Metro Park. It’s biking, cardio, strength and interval training all mixed up. For weeks, I searched for something to keep me motivated to work out regularly. This class is it. I’ll be back each week for the entire winter.

 

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Opportunities for White Castle Franchisees in Colorado and Washington State

This weekend, I read this nugget on Yahoo.com about expanded tourist opportunities in Colorado and Washington State now that recreational marijuana usage is legal in those states. Toking on the ambiguity this legislation presents got me thinking of  opportunities for White Castle and Taco Bell to open more franchises in these said states. Maybe this impending legislation was the motivator behind Taco Bell’s introduction of its Doritos taco. Cheech and Chong could revisit their glory days with a documentary featuring a road trip to Colorado and Washington State. What do you think?

Marijuana Votes 2 States Raise Spectre Marijuana Tourism

 

 

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Don’t Go So Easy On Them

Love the posts from Limebird Writers. They are always relevant and make me think about how to improve my writing. This one is about character development.

Don’t Go So Easy On Them.

Posted in Writers | 3 Comments