Last time Sam had met his new mistress for the first time at three weeks old and had his first experience of the vet… not without blood being drawn!
Chapter Two – My New Home.
That was to be the last time I would be with my mother and sisters as the next day my new mistress arrived to take me away. I was too excited at seeing and smelling her again to notice that we were leaving my family behind. I was a little afraid when I found myself on her lap in one of those large smelly boxes again, but this one seemed to be not quite so odorous or noisy and I found that if I tucked my nose up under my mistress’s chin I felt safer.
It was a longer trip this time and I dropped off contentedly after a little while. I woke when I felt a strange vibration under the box as if we were travelling across a very rough surface. We stopped and the man I now knew to be my new master got out of the box and came around to open the door for us.
Welcome to the round up of the week’s posts. It only seems a couple of days since I posted the last one! However, we have had a busy week with plenty going on off screen including the renovation of the front garden. All the tree stumps are now all dug up and David survived the process. I have been supervising…. and providing sustenance of course in a timely fashion. He has also dug over all the ground, removed smaller roots and raked it over.
Hopefully the lawn man who promised to come in a couple of weeks a month ago will appreciate that 75% of the job he quoted for is now done and he only has to lay the lawn.
We are also waiting on the guy to come and fix our electronic gate.. He said Wednesday but neglected to tell us which Wednesday. It is frustrating when people say that they will turn up and then do not bother. We have stayed in three times now in the last couple of weeks in anticipation and it is disappointing and frankly unprofessional. The papers are full of how business is not as good as it should be…. I wonder why!
Anyway.. sorry for the little rant! One thing I can never complain about, is the consistency and commitment by those who contribute to the blog each week with columns and to those of you who tune in regularly to like, comment and share. I really am very grateful.
Time to share the posts from the week that you might have missed…..
The Music Column with William Price King – Josh Groban Part Four.
More hits from this exceptional artist with some of his most recognisable hits that William has provided background to.
No post from Paul this week but I always like to reblog from his own site as it is always interesting.. this week.. Nessie… the Loch Ness Monster has been the subject of many scientific studies.. but it is it a myth or a reality?
From the film ‘The Water Horse- Legend of the Deep’
Getting to Know You Sunday Interview with Annette Rochelle Aben
Welcome to Getting to Know You where guests pick five questions that reveal a little more about their personality and background. This week my guest is Miss Personality as far as I am concerned. You don’t have to be in the same room with Annette Rochelle Aben to know that she is funny, compassionate, empathetic and generous. That all shines through in her blog posts, social media comments and radio podcasts. And as you will find out… it also shines bright as day in her interview.
I leave my job as housekeeper/cook of the boarding school and hop a train all the way to North Wales where I start a new position at a swanky hotel. Arriving late at night at this gothic mansion was not the best start to a new job I have had!
A new story written as a guest post for Noelle Granger’s blog – Charlie the Junkyard Dog.
Charlie was a junkyard dog and had the scars to prove it. He was head of security of this fenced off mass of scrap metal, dotted with mounds of old tyres he called home, and he took his job very seriously. During the day, he was chained up next to the beat-up old trailer, where his human would shout loudly at other humans; sometimes throwing things at the thin metal walls. In bad weather Charlie would retreat into a rough scrap wood shelter; resting his bony body on a ragged old corn sack on the hard concrete floor as the water dripped in through the roof.
Do you write in different genres… Janice Spina does with her award winning children’s books and her adult thrillers. What are your views… please head over and read the post and let Janice know.
How important is it for authors to be able to write across genres?
First of all, not everyone cares to write in multi-genres. There are some who choose to write in one genre and for select readers. There is nothing wrong with writing in one or multi-genres. Who am I to tell anyone what is the right thing to do?
If you look at J K Rowling, for instance, she has excelled in writing for YA, PT, MG groups (young adult, preteen, middle-grade). She has also written for 18+. I am one of her biggest fans for the first group but I did not enjoy the 18+ mysteries as much as the Harry Potter series. That does not mean that her books didn’t sell well! On the contrary, once she became established as a successful author anything she wrote (even under a pen name) sold off…
In August of 2014 I was still in the first few months of my blogging life. One of the early supporters of my efforts, as I am sure he was for most of you, was Chris, The Story Reading Ape. This was my first guest post ever, which he kindly hosted. I hope you will head over and read and also if you have not availed yourself of this wonderful opportunity to promote your work to a massive new audience, that you will accept The Story Reading Ape’s open invitation to do so.
Here is a snippet from the interview and I hope you enjoy.
Hi my name is Sally Cronin and I am writing this from my home in Madrid where I live with my husband. Before I was a writer, I was many other things to many other people . Now into my 60’s I am enjoying converting a lifetime of travel and meeting fascinating people into words in books, short stories and by blogging.
My relationship with books by other authors.
We moved around a great deal when I was a child with my father’s naval career and lived in some amazing countries such as Sri Lanka, Malta and South Africa. Luckily for me, my two elder sisters who were ten and eleven years older, let me trail behind them from the age of 18 months and when possible do whatever they did. Something that sometimes did not end well! However they were both avid readers and apart from wonderful bedtime stories they taught me my letters and by the time I went to school at age four I was hooked and raring to go.
Obviously my first books were the standard fare for that age group in the late 1950’s but I soon progressed to more advanced reading. I was eleven when I caught chicken pox and was confined to bed for ten days which gave me the opportunity to read War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. I will admit to not understanding large portions of the book but armed with a dictionary ,by the time my spots had disappeared ,my love of epic books and drama was intensified.
Congratulations to Tina Frisco for winning the Authorsdb 2018 First Lines Competition… fantastic news and if you have not read Vampyrie then I do recommend.. it will change your views on Vampires for life….
Delighted to add Extra Innings: Can You Go Home Again! by Don Massenzio to his other books on the shelves of the Cafe and Bookstore. Joe McLean hates his life. A lonely, divorced, middle-aged man, stuck in a cramped apartment, the only bright spot in Joe’s life is cheering on his hometown baseball team. Now, the local stadium, the place of many childhood and adult memories is being replaced. Joe desperately wants a piece of this iconic venue to preserve his memories and have some memorabilia from his happier past. That’s when unusual things begin to happen, and Joe begins to rethink the direction his life has taken. Can Joe take a different path in life? Can he use the special ability that he has acquired to change the course of his life? Will he realize the truth about old adage, you can never go home again? Follow the twists and turns in this supernatural story, Extra Innings, to find out.
Hot off the press and released yesterday… the new book from Don Massenzio – Extra Innings: Can You Go Home Again?
About the book
Joe McLean hates his life. A lonely, divorced, middle-aged man, stuck in a cramped apartment, the only bright spot in Joe’s life is cheering on his hometown baseball team. Now, the local stadium, the place of many childhood and adult memories is being replaced. Joe desperately wants a piece of this iconic venue to preserve his memories and have some memorabilia from his happier past. That’s when unusual things begin to happen, and Joe begins to rethink the direction his life has taken. Can Joe take a different path in life? Can he use the special ability that he has acquired to change the course of his life? Will he realize the truth about old adage, you can never go home again? Follow the twists and…
The Literary Column by Jessica Norrie, explores the importance of first lines of books. Some are memorable and engage with you as soon as you read them. Can you remember your favourite first line of a book? Why not let us know.
At choir last week, rehearsing Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle, there was a massive crescendo and the pianist stopped accompanying to announce: “That’s known as a Rossini Rocket.” It really is, apparently. Respect.
It set me wondering about Rossini Rockets in literature. Huge, telling moments when everything catches fire and the reader can hardly hear herself think. Battle scenes in War and Peace. Anything involving Bill Sykes or Becky Sharpe. The fire in the picture gallery at Soames Forsyte’s house. Fires anywhere – think of Jane Eyre and Miss Havisham. The 19th century may have been better at this. Presumably, something sparks somewhere in Fifty Shades of Grey, although I only got to around page 53 when I found it in my cousin’s guest bedroom. Nothing much was even smouldering by then, so I went to sleep.
A fantastic interview with author R.L. Andrews who has overcome her chronic and debilitating disease psoriatic arthritis, to write and publish her books. It puts our own writerly moans and groans into perspective and you will be inspired and motivated by her view on life. Please head over to Frank Parker’s to read the rest of the post.
My ‘date’ this week is a truly inspiring woman. R.L. (Robyn) Andrew suffers from the debilitating condition Psoriatic arthritis. This is similar to the condition which afflicted the English television playwright Dennis Potter. Being from Australia I wasn’t sure if she was aware of the English writer who I would imagine would be an inspiration. I sent her a link to Mark Lawson’ s tribute to him.
“I did not know that, Frank, and I truly appreciate the thought you’ve put into this question. He truly is an inspiration and proof of determination. I believe the man who wrote Simply Alice suffered from ALS. While not the same disease he achieved incredible things with basically no ability to physically move. I hope to inspire others in kind.
While I’m chronically ill I am still able to achieve many things albeit mentally and via technology. It’s only my physical self…
A date to put in your diary.. and a cover reveal for the new release from Colleen Chesebro on June 21st. Fairies, Myths and Magic.. poetry and short stories.. and it is a perfect time to celebrate the Summer Solstice
I’ve stretched the limits of my Weekly Tanka Tuesday Poetry Challenge this week, but I have a good reason as you will see below. In my Tanka poem, I used “cheer,” for praise, and “feed the fires,” for excite.
This is also a book cover reveal!
Please join me on Thursday, June 21st, to help me celebrate the release of my first book of poetry and short stories called, “Fairies, Myths, & Magic ~ A Summer Celebration.” This book is written as a tribute to the Summer Solstice.
Three amazing authors in the Cafe and Bookstore with recent reviews Karen Ingalls, Deborah Jay and Alethea Kehas… if you are looking for a good book to read.. pop in.
Welcome to the Friday edition of the Cafe and Bookstore Update and the first author today celebrating a recent review is Karen Ingalls who has received another wonderful review for her memoir Outshine: An Ovarian Cancer Memoir
About the book
When Karen Ingalls was diagnosed with Stage IIC ovarian cancer, she realized how little she knew about what is called “the silent killer.” As Ingalls began to educate herself she felt overwhelmed by the prevalent negativity of cancer. Lost in the information about drugs, side effects, and statistics, she redirected her energy to focus on the equally overwhelming blessings of life, learning to rejoice in each day and find peace in spirituality.
In this memoir, Karen is a calming presence and positive companion, offering a refreshing perspective of hope with the knowledge that “the beauty of the soul, the real me and the real you, outshines the effects of cancer…
Welcome to Getting to Know You where guests pick five questions that reveal a little more about their personality and background. This week my guest is Miss Personality as far as I am concerned. You don’t have to be in the same room with Annette Rochelle Aben to know that she is funny, compassionate, empathetic and generous. That all shines through in her blog posts, social media comments and radio podcasts. And as you will find out… it also shines bright as day in her interview.
We moved around a great deal when I was a child with my father’s naval career and lived in some amazing countries such as Sri Lanka, Malta and South Africa. Luckily for me, my two elder sisters who were ten and eleven years older, let me trail behind them from the age of 18 months and when possible do whatever they did. Something that sometimes did not end well! However they were both avid readers and apart from wonderful bedtime stories they taught me my letters and by the time I went to school at age four I was hooked and raring to go.
