Yes. I’m late. I won’t EVEN get into all the forgetfulness from yesterday. That said, it was a wonderful day with family and friends. Today, sharing one of my favorite types of Christmas videos–first responder light shows. I have no clue how they do it, I’m just glad they do. Hope your Christmas was as deLIGHTful as this video. ❤️
Christmas Eve Gift! And here’s my gift to all of you. Normally, I write a brief Christmas story set in one of my worlds, giving us a peek at some favorite characters. This year, due to circumstances and on account of because, I’m reposting a story I shared several years ago. I’ve gained some new readers since then so I thought I’d revisit this short story. Especially since I’m in the middle of Ariel’s book. May your holiday be filled with joy, love, and peace.
HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Penumbra Papers #5.25
Prologue
It’s Beginning to Look…
Stars glittered like snowflakes in a snow globe. The moon, looking slightly smushed, decorated the horizon as the sleek private jet banked for landing at the New Orleans Lakefront Airport. The dark waters of Lake Ponchartrain rippled below. Sinjen reached over and took Sade’s hand, giving it a little squeeze. For a woman so fearless in every area of her life, it amused him that she was always tense on landings and take-offs. Still, it was a good excuse to be a little romantic.
A red fireball flashed by the window and the jet suddenly nosedived. Curses spilled from Sade in a torrent so rapid every cuss word ran together in a long string that lasted as long as she had breath. The plane righted, banked slightly in the opposite directly and leveled out.
The pilot’s apologetic voice came over the loudspeaker a few moments later. “Sorry about that, boss. Whatever the hell that thing was, it took the tower, us—” He broke off as radio traffic chattered in the background. He returned to his announcement a couple of minutes later. “That sucker took regional air traffic control by surprise too. General consensus is that it was a real UFO. Welcome to the weird that is New Orleans.”
Only then did Sade breathe again. “Damn fuckin’ lucky that he’s a werewolf.”
Sinjen smiled. “True dat,” he agreed, getting into the NOLA spirit. Most magicks had better reflexes than humans and werewolves had excellent ones.
“And so much for a week of rest and relaxation. It’s going to take me that long to get my heart rate back to normal.”
He squeezed her hand. “I’ll see what I can do to distract you.” He leaned in, captured her mouth and continued to kiss her through the pilot’s announcement that they were making the runway approach a second time, followed shortly by “We’re on the ground.” Sinjen broke the kiss as the engines whined down to nothing and the flight crew opened the hatch for them to descend into the balmier temperatures of December in New Orleans.
The historic art deco terminal was festooned with Christmas lights as they walked down the steps to the tarmac. A black Suburban, with a big red nose on the hood and reindeer antlers attached to the roof, idled close by. Luggage was transferred quickly and they were soon ensconced in the back seat.
The drive to the French Quarter was uneventful though colorful. New Orleans was always up for a party and Christmas was a big one. White light glowed around the main entrance to their hotel. The doorman, spiffy and matching the season in his tailored green coat, opened the back door with white-gloved hands.
“Welcome to the Hotel Monteleone.” Continue reading
Today you get a real treat in this title. It’s free! And B.E. Sanderson has created an interesting world full of djinn, wishes, immortals and….maybe some mystery and murder mixed in with the magic. As hinted, I’m cutting back on the blogging this week but I wanted to share this title. Not only is she a friend, she is an underappreciated author and that’s just wrong! B.E. writes awesome stories. Give yourself an early Christmas present and download this book. Did I mention it’s free? Yes. Free! Just click on pic and you’ll be magically transported to the ‘Zon where you can get the book. Did I mention that it is FREE?!?!?!!!
When Jo Mayweather made it her mission to save her fellow djinn from slavery, she never dreamed she’d have to save them from a killer. FREE until Friday, WISH IN ONE HAND! (It’s always free with KU. This is for everyone else.) Pick up your copy of this snarky and fun paranormal mystery today!
It is almost Christmas! Only three more sleeps before we wake up to presents and good times. And at least that’s what I hope and wish for all of us. And despite today’s meme, I am almost ready…the operative word being almost. I’m off to people today–hopefully for the last time this week. And I’m out and about early in hopes of missing the crowds. LG was out among ’em on Saturday and, at one store, stood in line to pay out for over an hour. He made life-long friends while waiting, including a family who left joking about being in a Progressive commercial. You know the ones–where you’re turning into your parents? That’s LG. Well, me too. 🙄
I gave blood on Saturday. The drive was held in an empty store front at the outlet shoppes near our house. Parking was a bear but Jake and managed to get fairly close (there’s never enough handicapped parking) and only had to walk about half a block more than usual. The folks there were awesome as always. I came away with a new long-sleeved T-shirt and a $15.00 “check” from Butterball. Long story on how I can use it but it will be used sooner or later.
All the gifts but one are here in time for Christmas. We’re sort of hoping for the one that’s outstanding but it’s not a big deal if it doesn’t. It’s for an adult so and IOU will work. All the fun gifts are in hand, and some are wrapped even! Yes, we cheated a bit. We opted for the gift bag option from the ‘Zon and truthfully? It’s well worth the cost! The bags are made from recycled materials so they’re heavy and feel woven. They even have tissue paper. Too cute! And should be kept for years of reuse!
All that’s left is hanging the stockings, finding stuff to stuff them with, and some minor baking–dough for cinnamon rolls, pies, and the turkey. We’ll be doing the whole turkey sandwich thing again on Christmas Day. Why mess with an easy tradition, right? Oh, and wrapping the gifts that came from 3rd-party venders. And figuring out what I’m going to do about a tree to put the gifts under come Christmas morning like 5 minutes before the Kids get here because…PITA Pup!
I’m not sure if I’ll be posting tomorrow or Wednesday. I may just take the time away, but for maybe some funny memes and of course, Christmas greetings on Thursday. We’ll see. Anyway, hope everyone is ready for the holidays!
Tis the season and as a fan of Hallmark Christmas movies, this video, when I tumbled across it, made me laugh out loud even as I was nodding along and counting off the tropes. Happy Friday before Christmas. Will you be scurrying around this weekend taking care of last minute shopping or are you the organized type and now you’re relaxing, going to parties, or simply snuggled in with a hot drink and a good book…or a Hallmark Movie?!! Whatever you’re doing, stay warm, stay safe, and have fun.
There are so many internet acronyms out there. I ususally have to look them up to figure out exactly what is meant. Sometimes not even a “definition” really explains the reason. 🙄 Yeah. I’m Old Skool. In fact, I took shorthand and was quite proficient in the skill at one point so I totally get the need to shorten stuff when taking notes. That said, I do have some favorites: WTF (with either a ? or a ! or sometimes multiples of both); FTW (usually with a !); FAFO (needs no punctuation and is a relatively new addition. Thanks, SecWar Pete Hegseth. And then, of course, there’s the one I used in this post’s title. I think you’ll understand as you peruse today’s thoughts from the Universe.
Some things, Silver, you’ll know when you need to know and not a moment earlier.
That’s how it works when the answer you’re looking for depends on other events that must first settle, new players that need to be gathered, and serendipities that are still being calculated.
Silver, sometimes, not even I know until I know.
But you will,
The Universe ©www.tut.comP.S. In the meantime, Silver, flow.
If anyone has ever explained what it is like to be a Pantser any better than the Universe just did, I’ve not seen it. For you readers, the writing community tends to divide itself into writing style niches. There are Plotters. There are Pantsers. There are Plantsers and Potters–which are a combo of both styles. Me? I’m a Puzzler but I’m weird. Anyway, writers will get this. I figure the Big U’s message is meant for all of us–writers and readers alike because writing a book is really rather like living life. There are strong parallels that if I waxed philosophically on, this post would totally hit tl;dr territory. FWIW, take today’s message and apply it to yourself. During this busy season, follow the U’s advice–just go with the flow.
**SFW version
SFW: Safe For Work as opposed to NSFW, ie. Not Safe For Work, ie. the graphic version which would be what Sade and/or Hannah would say.
WTF: What The F*ck
FTW: For The Win
FAFO: F*ck Around, Find Out
IYKYK: If You Know, You Know
tl;dr: Too long, didn’t read (which means someone is commenting without actually reading the long version of something
FWIW: For What It’s Worth
Ah, mid-week once again. And once again, I have new words to share. I also have an announcemnet: I won the Thursday Threads challenge last week. Yippee. The judge likes my dialogue and the way I capture personalities in both what they say and their expression. I have to admit, I get a boost whenever I win or get an honorable mention. The judges are other writers and we’re pretty tough on each other. Anyway, the prompt is/was: *“You look a bit suspicious there.”* This scene is approximately the middle of the book. Or thereabouts. Sort of. Maybe. The way things are going, the only I’m sure of is it’s not near the beginning. 🙄
****
Sade eyed Caleb. “What are you doing?”
Her werewolf partner offered a smile she automatically cataloged as his nothing to see here, just move along expression.
She knew that look. “You look a bit suspicious there, cowboy.”
“Just reading the file.”
“You’ve already read the file.”
“I’m refreshing my memory.”
She leveled her patented you are so full of shit look on him.
“No, really. There’s something about this case and I’m looking for what we might have missed.”
“Five women have been murdered. We’ve picked the files apart. I don’t think we’ve missed anything.” She narrowed her eyes. “I’ve heard of looking at the facts from all angles but since when did you start reading upside down?”
Caleb turned shifty eyed and he wouldn’t quite meet her gaze. Before she could press him harder, the clearing of a very familiar throat had her whirling.
“Am I interrupting anything important?”
Tall, dark and vampire smiled at her and she barely resisted the urge to punch him in the nose.
She glowered at him before turning her ire on her partner. “Really? You called Sinjen?”
Caleb opened his mouth to speak but Sinjen beat him to a response. “Actually, love, I called Caleb. Since you were dodging my calls, I became concerned.”
“I wasn’t dodging.” That was only a little lie. “Not exactly. We’ve got five dead girls, Sinjen.”
“Yes. Seems we’ve come full circle since we met under similar circumstances.”
“Yeah, but you weren’t guilty. Ariel might be.”
****
Sinjen starts out not with Sade on scene in this one and yet he’s there in later scenes. I had no clue how I was going to get him to Rochester. And then, 💡! Sometimes my brain is working even when that’s not apparent to me. Which is a good thing. Anyway. Writers, take the prompt and write. Readers, what guilty pleasure have you indulged in lately?
Are you looking for something a little different but soooo easy and full of down-home yummy goodness for this holiday season? Or for any time during the year when you want something sweet and mouth-watering with a bit of crunch? Only tagged me on FB with this recipe 10 YEARS AGO! Wowser, time flies. It popped up in a “memories reminder” last week and bingo! I knew I had to share with y’all. Also, bonus video to help you make this treat. And you can read while it’s baking. Just sayin’…
Pecan Pie Bread Pudding
Ingredients:
1 (16 oz) loaf day old crusty bread, cubed (alternatively, if your bread is fresh, cube it and lightly toast in a 350 F oven for 15-20 minutes- this helps the bread cubes absorb more of the custard mixture without getting too soggy)
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups half & half
½ cup salted butter
1 ½ cups packed brown sugar
¼ cup corn syrup
2 cups pecans halves
1 Tablespoon vanilla
⅛ teaspoon table salt
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Put the bread cubes in a large bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, beat eggs, milk and half & half together. Pour over the bread and allow to soak 5 to 10 minutes. Pour bread pudding into a 9×13 greased pan.
4. In a small saucepan, melt the butter and mix with the brown sugar, corn syrup and pecans. Stir in the vanilla and salt. When the sugar has all melted and the mixture is syrupy, about five minutes, pour it into the pan of bread pudding and mix.
5. Cover the pan with foil and bake at 350 F 45 to 55 minutes, uncovering the pan after 30 minutes so the top will brown.
I should admint that two of my favorite desserts are bread pudding and pecan pie so this one is a complete no-brainer for me. When I make bread pudding, I use my grandmother’s recipe. We’re talking antique heirloom recipe here. But add in the pecans and pie flavorings? Yum! I chose to feature the PENUMBRA PAPERS series because bread pudding seems like a Southern thing and New Orleans has fabulous bread pudding in its restaurants. Like me, Sade is drawn to NOLA. Plus, being stuck in the Penumbra world at the moment… Anyway, go buy a book for someone for Christmas. Mine, or someone elses. Click on the pic with the covers or the series link above. A new tab will magically open, you can find your book of choice and then your on-line bookstore of choice.
And FYI, it’s pah-CAHN not PEE-can. 😉
Hello, Monday. Only one more of you before Christmas. I don’t waznt to think about it. I haven’t been this far behind on the holidays since…well…it’s either been awhile or it’s been never. Oh, I’ve pushed things off to the last minute for reasons but I’ve never just thrown up my hands and said, “Uncle!” And yes, I will put down my coffee mug before doing so. I’m not total idiot.
I did stuff last week. It involved peopling. And lots of coffee once I got home. The good news is, the vampire at my doc’s practice was all kinds of awesome. Jake and I went while LG and Toby stayed home. Jake was, of course, a perfect gentlman and enjoyed his pets. Blood draw was quick and painless. My results all came back either good or excellent but for a couple of things. I figure Dr. Y and I will be discussing them tomorrow during my check up.
I’m trying to cook more these days rather than relying on quick, microwave-ready meals. It’s hard being creative and the same ol’ standbys get boring. I tried a Reuben casserole that was pretty tasty–toashed rye bread cubes, Swiss cheese, thin sliced corned beef from the deli, sauerkraut and 1000 Island dressing. I made chili. We had the leftover on tamales–bought not made. I can’t make tamales for love nor money, but many locals can do and sell them. Yay. Spaghetti. Yes. Cold weather food. I made beef stew yesterday, with cornbread. It was good.
I wrote a little. I fiddled a little. I found a chapter title and a song for it. I rearranged some scenes. I feel bad for Ariel. My total heart isn’t in this book and it’s not like any other character is screaming for me to write their book. I’m over 30K words into this one so I’ll keep chugging along. Hopefully, something witll happen that either inspires me or gives me a boot up my arse.
I listened to an anthology of shorts stories and novellas written by Anne Bishop across all of her worlds and some standalones. It’s an adventure. And not for the faint of heart. There are some very dark tales in the colleciton. A little humor. Odd bits and pieces. I would not necessarily recommend it as an introduction to Bishop’s works. I have no clue what I’ll listen to next. I have a Kristen Painter book queued. up and while I love Kristen’s whimsey, I’m not sure the headspace is in the right place. I’ll stare at my wish list and library and find something to occupy me.
Didn’t make soccer this weekend. Too cold for old bones and LG was under the weather. His team won their first game then lost to the #1 team in the league 0-1. Sunday’s game was thankfully canceled because the temps nver got above freezing. Brrrr. We did attend Stormy’s Christmas program at his school. Both dogs accompanied us and they were good. Well, Toby was mostly good. Jake kept a little-bitty entertained so her mom could watch her big brother’s part in the musical. Stormy was in the chorus. It was a cute show. The best part was the littles. They opened the show with some Christmas songs and the highlight was them singing and signing in ASL, “Silent Night.” I wish schools would teach all kids some ASL. Anyway…
I’ve sold FOUR books this month. That’s almost $10.00. Yippee.
And on that note, I need to start laundry and refill coffee. I have to people again this week–doctor tomorrow.
NEW RELEASE
NEW RELEASE
NOW AVAILABLE
Silver James 