Monday the Ninth

Posted on December 9, 2019 by Silver James

Argh. I should have stayed in bed but I feel guilty because I didn’t set the blog up yesterday (or last night) like I normally do. It was a crazy weekend and that’s my excuse. Was a crazy week too. Anway, to bring you up-to-date on my world…

Saturday was December 7th. Pearl Harbor Day. We lowered all the flags in remembrance. At the American Legion Post LG is a part of, it was First Saturday–which meant pancake breakfast and with added extras this month! The guys served a full breakfast in addition to pancakes, bacon and sausage. They did biscuits and gravy and scrambled eggs. There was also a very special visitor! Santa came for pictures taken by his Santa Army Elf (my one and Only). Pictures were $5.00, which was a donation to the Childrens’ Center of Bethany, a rehab and long-term care facility for kids. They do amazing work. Donationas came to over $500.00 (there was a bucket in the food line too.) The kids who got their pictures taken got a goodie bag and a beanie-bag elf. I was also an big elf, passing out the goodies and delivering pictures after they were printed. It was a LOOOONG morning but totally worth it. The rest of Saturday was a blur. I put a pot roast in the crock pot and when LG finally got home, he went to the couch and I went to bed and we each ate when we woke up–at different times. Left the dishes, went back to bed. We were TIRED!

Sunday, I made Stormy’s Christmas program costume. Only brought the material because her machine is on the blitz so I “designed” and sewed most of yesterday. Then we met her for dinner at a fav BBQ place because Baseball Boy and Stormy went up the turnpike to see BB’s dad in the hospital. I didn’t get the costume sized just right–dumb me, I forgot to take my tape measure and measure the kid. 🤦‍♀️ Then I dreamed about it last night. I foresee a trip to Hobby Lobby first thing today for a quick fix I should had thought about doing yesterday in the design. Derp!

OU beat Baylor for the Big 12 Championship and got boosted into 4th in the College Bowl poll. They’ll play #1 LSU in the Peach Bowl to see who goes on to play the Ohio State/Clemson winner for the national championship. The “real” OSU plays Texas A&M in the Texas Bowl in Houston. Go Pokes!

I hit the book in the series I’ve been relistening to that always sets me off on a rant but also makes me sad because the darn book would have been at least a 4 if not a 5-star read. I just can’t let go of the glaring factual mistakes. I mean, if the series was set in an alternate dimension or something, fine. Maybe. But it’s not. It’s a contemporary romance set in THIS world and it’s wrong on so many levels I give myself a headache from gritting my teeth. But I love the H/h. So there ya go. Anyway, I hit my GR challenge number with it but have added 10 more books because there are still 22 days left in the month. I’ll read the last book in this series and the first book in the next series because I’d forgotten the “incest/cross-pollination” between the sister of a heroine in book 6 of this series and book 1 of the next. And I like both those characters. Then I’ll be looking for something else to plug in. I do have a library hold close to dropping from JR Ward so there’s that.

TV is pretty much the LIVE PD franchise at the moment. I’ve got some stuff on DVR but haven’t caught up yet. Need to get on that. I’m also behind on decorating for Christmas. I did switch out the Christmas wreath for the T-giving wreath on the door. And I stripped the fall tablecloth in the dining room–but that was because I needed the flat surface for cutting material. I’ll toss the Chritmas cloth on and switch out centerpieces. At least the tree is up. 🤣

There was no writing this weekend. There might not be writing today. Tomorrow, though. At the latest. Gotta get this puppy done! Exhaustion and busy life just isn’t an excuse this close to the deadline.

On that note, it’s just after 7 a.m. HL doesn’t open until 9. If I can ignore my scads of emails, maybe and I can dash off 1K words or more. I should get on that. In the meantime, what’s going on in your world? Are you ready for the holidays?

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Friday Sinema: Drinking Alone

Posted on December 6, 2019 by Silver James

I’ve been a Carrie Underwood fan since she won American Idol. I mean, c’mon. She’s a Checotah girl! And can sing. This is the video of her new song. And I am going to write this book. Holy hotness, am I going to write this book! Don’t know when, but by featuring it here, I can find it again, watch for inspiration, and write. By the way, does the man in the leather jacket remind you of anyone?

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Spark

Posted on December 5, 2019 by Silver James

It’s that time of year. I know not everyone celebrates Christmas but we do so bear with me. When I was a kid, I always dreamed big leading up to Christmas. I didn’t want a pony, I wanted a horse. I also dreamed about what I would be when I grew up, where I would go, what I would do, who I would be. Those days are long ago and far away, since I’m older than dirt now. And trust me, it sucks to be old. 🙄 But I still have dreams, even though I’m living one of them–being a writer. I can’t imagine not writing. I look back on all the people living in my head–those whose stories I told and those who have yet to live on the page. See, those characters have dreams too. And the same things that make my dreams come true are the things that make their dreams come true.

There are only 3 things that can make your dreams come true, Silver: your thoughts, your words, and your actions.

Be the spark,
The Universe
© http://www.tut.com ®

They’re all you have, Silver, and they’re all you need.

The Universe is right–and write. It takes 3 things: thoughts (dreaming up the story), words (telling the story), and action (getting the story into the hands of readers). It’s that simple and that difficult. But it’s all I have and all I need and while there’s been a drought this year, I hope to have a bountiful harvest next year. I’m going to be that spark and make not only my dreams come true but all those of all my characters as well.

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Wednesday Words: Black Hats

Posted on December 4, 2019 by Silver James

Did everyone survive BLACK Friday? Have you met Loki, my BLACK cat? Or my BLACK Ops soldiers? Or read THAT OL’ BLACK MAGIC? You’ve guessed it, the THEME for Twitter’s #1lineWed is **BLACK**. While this snippet isn’t the BLACK moment of the story, it does introduce one of my new favorite characters. Jack gets his own book in 2021. And he might wear a BLACK hat, but he’s definitely not a BLACK knight. 😉
****
The man he’d confronted about the girl threw a punch in Pops’s direction, missed, and went down. Both he and the deputy pounced on the guy, holding the asshole down until he was cuffed.

“Drunk and disorderly for sure,” the deputy said.

“And he offered to let the kid use his phone if she gave him a blow job.” Pops ground out the words, watching as the deputy jerked back.

“No shit?”

“No shit.” That’s when Pops realized the girl was fighting to free herself from the DFPS woman while Elena shouted.

“Let me go,” the girl screamed. She jerked and flailed. “Let me go. I can’t go back to them. I can’t!”

Pops understood two things—the girl was beyond panicked at the thought of returning to whatever people she had in San Antonio, yet at the same time, she was trying very hard not to hurt the woman latched onto her. Odd.

“It’s okay, chiquita,” Elena soothed. “I’ve got this. I’ll take care of you.”

“This isn’t your case, Ms. Rodriguez.”

Que? They’d worked together three years and Pamela was getting all proper? Two could play that game, Elena decided.
“She’s not yours either, Ms. Byrd, so let her go.”

“I will do nothing of the sort. She’ll just run again and I do not feel like chasing down the little bi—”

“Yeah, you will, ma’am.”

The females froze at the sound of the gravelly voice. Three pairs of eyes tracked to the man who stepped up beside
Pops. Tall and lanky, his jeans were worn, his boots scuffed, his plaid shirt faded from hundreds of washings, and his black Stetson was a bit dusty. “I’m Jack Riggs. Y’all wanna explain what’s goin’ on here?”

“This is none of your business. Just mosey on down the road, cowboy.” The DFPS woman made a shooing motion with her free hand, while her other continued to grip the girl’s arm.

Pops snorted out a laugh and stared down at his boots. Granted, more than a few women had mistaken Jack for a Hollywood star who made a lot of western movies, and the man could sit a horse with the best of them, but he was most definitely not a cowboy.

Jack whipped out his badge and held it at eye level so the woman could read it. “Let me amend that, ma’am. I’m a Texas Ranger and yeah, I do believe whatever’s goin’ on here is my business.”

The DFPS lady paled a bit but she swallowed, lifted her chin, and launched into a loud explanation. She got maybe a sentence out before Ranger Riggs interrupted. “I do believe I told you to release the girl, ma’am.” There was no coaxing in his voice. Only a complete idiot would fail to recognize the order.

Even so, that Byrd woman was slow and very reluctant to remove her hand. When she did, the girl immediately rubbed at the spot. Yeah, Pops decided, the kid would probably have bruises in the morning and that pissed him right the hell off. The deputy had the male on his feet and after a hurried explanation to his boss, made in a low voice, he hustled the guy away. Pamela Byrd continued to jabber, the girl continued to look freaked out, but she was also moving closer to Elena. That was good. Pops always had a good sense of people and Elena was good people.

“There’s an easy way to settle all this, Jack,” Pops interjected when the Bryd woman paused for a breath.
The ranger nodded. “Yup, I think we’re on the same page, Pops.”

He smiled. Jack Riggs was nobody’s fool. He might come across as a good ol’ boy, but more than one city slicker who’d made that assumption discovered that doing so often bit them in the ass.
****
Hope you enjoyed it. Ignore typos and weird stuff because this is still first draft territory. It’ll be all cleaned up and ready to go by February 2020. What about y’all? Writers, any black words to share? Readers, what book has a black moment that stuck with you long after finishing the book?

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Tuesday Treats: Four-Cheese Chicken Alfredo Casserole

Posted on December 3, 2019 by Silver James

Looking for something tasty, ready in under an hour, and festive? This recipe hits all the buttons.

Total Time: 45 Min.
Prep Time: 15 Min.
Cook Time: 30 Min.

Combine creamy Alfredo sauce and grated Parmesan to make a terrific baked chicken alfredo casserole. It only takes 15 minutes to put together Four-Cheese Chicken Alfredo Casserole.

What You Need
1-1/4 cups milk
1 cup CLASSICO Four Cheese Alfredo Pasta Sauce
2 Tbsp. KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese
1 tsp. parsley flakes
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 pkg. (9 oz.) refrigerated fettuccine, uncooked
5 small boneless skinless chicken breasts (1-1/4 lb.)
1 cup KRAFT Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Let’s Make It
1 – Heat oven to 400°F.
2 – Bring milk and Alfredo sauce just to boil in large saucepan on medium heat, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, mix Parmesan, parsley and garlic powder until blended.
3 – Separate fettuccine noodles. Add to sauce; stir to evenly coat. Transfer to 13×9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; top with chicken, Parmesan mixture and mozzarella.
4 – Bake 30 min. or until chicken is done (165ºF).

Kitchen Tips
Tip 1 – Serving Suggestion: Serve with a crisp green vegetable, such as broccoli, and cold glass of fat-free milk.
Tip 2 – Special Extra: Add 1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen peas or chopped broccoli, thawed, with the noodles.
Tip 3 – Substitute: Substitute water for the milk.
Tip 4 – From me: If you can’t find refrigerated fettuccine, fix the dry variety and just add about 15 minutes extra prep/cook time. Also, if you cover the pot you’re boiling water in, it boils faster. Who knew?!?!

CLICK HERE for all the nutritional details. I asked around and discovered that Dr. Liz Graham-Lightfoot makes this for her “boys”–her mate, Michael Lightfoot, and their son, Micah. “Hey,” she told me. “Even a scientist who gets lost in the lab can make this.” You can read how Lightfoot and Liz got together in BAD MOON, or grab the whole story of the beginnings of the Moonstruck Wolves in MOONSTRUCK: SECRETS, which contains BLOOD MOON, BAD MOON, and a special only-published-in-this-version connecting novella “Moon Madness,” even if they aren’t listed separately. Trust me, it’s all there. Just click on any of the titles or the cover for buy links. Or you can read either BLOOD MOON or BAD MOON for free with Kindle Unlimited, but you wouldn’t get the story of Mac and Hannah and her pregnancy.

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23 Shopping Days Until Christmas Monday

Posted on December 2, 2019 by Silver James

How the freak can it already be December?!?!?! 🤯

Okay, not thinking about this. Nope. So, last week was Thanksgiving. And crazy. Wonderful family gathering on Thursday at the in-laws. There was a family emergency going on so Baseball Boy and Only were scrambling. We ended up with Stormaggedon for a couple of days and nights. We also had Dozier, the Kids’ ADHD German Shepherd. He finally settled but Boone and Jake were more than happy to see him go home and Loki came out of hiding for the first time in 2 days. Speaking of furry kids, Jake is doing wonderfully in his service dog training. We hit Wallyworld the day before Thanksgiving for a middling-sized grocery run. I had to stock up so I didn’t have to enter a store until today. That whole Black Friday nonsense? Yeah, not having any of that $#!+. Anyway, lots of people and he ignored them mostly. There was one fellow that he insisted on leaning toward as the man and his wife passed us in the aisle. He stopped and asked if he could pet. Jake leaned in and gave the doggy equivalent of a hug by pressing against his let, nose up for pets. Turns out he’d just had his first chemo treatment for cancer. Tell me that dog isn’t intuitive! They communed for awhile and then his wife moved him along. Jake also got praise from the crew of OCFD Engine 24. He wagged his tail at the “Good boy” praise. He IS a good boy!

In other news, the real OSU lost to OU, but that’s okay. The Pokes weren’t totally embarrassed and this helps OU move up in the college bowl rankings. There’s a chance the Sooners could make the top 4. Outside, but a chance. There were some crazy upsets over the weekend so rankings should be interesting.

Writing occurred last week. In fact, it occurred the whole month of November! Yay for #NaNoWriMo. Even with the T-giving and emergency babysitting stuffs, I still managed to crank out 50,242 words–enough for a “win” even though I didn’t finish FIGHTING FOR ELENA. I should have it done in the next few days. I’ll admit I took yesterday off. I don’t think it will stop my momentum but my brain was fried Sunday afternoon by the time the Kids arrived to pick up Stormy. I do have to go back in and sex it up a bit but that’s okay. More words! I’m shooting for 40K and I’m a little over 34K at the moment. It’s fun to touch base with Mac, Nate, and Sean/Boomer, plus there’s a new character who will get his own book in 2021 in Susan’s world, FTW!

I started in on Lani Lynn Vale’s Freebirds series. I’d already listened to the first two when they first became available in audio. The others finally hit so I started at the beginning. I started LAST DAY OF MY LIFE yesterday, which is #4. I also read a short story by Dennis Danvers that was a free read on Tor.com that can be bought for .99, “All the Snake Handlers I Know Are Dead.” It’s magic realism at its most lyrical and intriguing. I flat out loved it and will check out the author’s other works.

Let’s see, what else happened…well, not much. Writing. Listening ot audio books. Grandson time. Family time with good food. Errands. Didn’t leave much time for TV, except whatever was on as I fell into exhausted sleep. 😂 I need to catch up on LIVE PD again. And whatever else the DVR captured.

Hope all is well in your worlds. Anything of import happening?

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Friday Sinema: Why Turkey?

Posted on November 29, 2019 by Silver James

Okay. I’m warped. I freely admit it. I’ll also admit that I splorted so much coffee out my nose I had to change my shirt. Did you ever wonder why turkey became the traditional Thanksgiving main course? Here’s Red Bull’s answer to that pressing question. Happy Leftovers Day! And if you’re out doing the Black Friday shopping thing, more power to you! Have a great weekend!

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Thursday Thoughts: Thanksgiving

Posted on November 28, 2019 by Silver James

Thank you for being friends who became readers. Thank you for readers who became friends. I’m thankful for family. I’m thankful for creativity. I’m especially thankful for furry critters who make me smile. And coffee. Seriously, lots of coffee. Most of all, I’m thankful when I wake up each day. Totally beats the alternative. Have a wonderful day if you celebrate. If not, it never hurts to be thankful every day.

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Wednesday Words: Home for the Holidays

Posted on November 27, 2019 by Silver James

Who’s going HOME for the holidays? We all know HOME is where the heart is. Will you be eating HOME-cooked goodies tomorrow? Okay, even I know my HOMEmade humor is whacked. 😉 In case you haven’t figured it out, today’s #1lineWed THEME over on Twitter is **HOME**. Since my current WIP, FIGHTING FOR ELENA is about home and heart and finding that HEA, I hope you enjoy this sneak peek. (It comes out in February 2020 FYI). This snippet is from a secondary character’s POV. She might not be one of the main characters, but she has a very important role to play. Do y’all remember the little girl Nate Connor rescued in BLUE MOON? Well, Hope’s a little older now and in serious trouble. I think you can figure things out.

Living on the street leaves scars. Hope carried more than a few now. Still, it was better than being held by the Hell Dogs. Her brain told her to phone home but her heart believed what that scary guy told her. If she contacted her family or had contact with anyone who was a Wolf, her life and theirs would be over like that. He’d snapped his fingers to emphasize his point. He’d kill everyone she loved in a nanosecond. She couldn’t risk it.

A police car drove slowly down the street and she ducked behind a stack of wooden pallets. She shrank lower to the ground as a spotlight swept both sides of the road. She caught the words spray-painted on a concrete barrier.

One day you’ll die.

The message was enough to suck the life right out of her. Shaking, she forced memories away—memories of a concrete and iron cell, of machines and men in white coats, of pain and terror. But then Nate came. Dad. That’s what she called him now. The big Wolf who’d rescued her, gave her a home, him and and his mate, Jacey. Mom. She’d do whatever it took to keep them safe.

Her head insisted she call home, knowing everyone would be worried but her heart only wanted to keep them safe. The red taillights blinked out in the distance. She pushed to her feet and head down, she kept walking.

“Please don’t run again,” a woman’s voice whispered.

Warm fingers gripped her arm and she recognized the face belonging to the woman. She’d approached Hope on the River Walk and Hope had seen Hell Dogs coming. She’d taken off in a panic. She didn’t know this woman and couldn’t give her trust to that lady or anyone.

“Please.” The woman spoke again. “My name is Elena.” Her voice was nice and had a very slight Mexican accent, like she’d grown up about Spanish speakers but spoke English first. “I work for DFPS.”

Hope blinked, her brow crinkling as she tried to work out what the initials stood for. She was from West Virginia. Or was before the Hell Dogs. That’s where everyone settled after Louisiana and Virginia. Bad people had been chasing them forever. Mac and Hannah, the leaders finally settled them in a little town in the mountains of West Virginia where the men didn’t have to hide what they were, where everybody knew the secrets and kept them.

As if reading her confusion, Elena explained. “The Department of Family and Protective Services. I work with kids, with runaways like you.”

“I’m not a runaway.” She wasn’t. Those men had scooped her up during a shopping trip to the mall in Raleigh.

“Do you have a home to go to?”
****
And there it is. Hope will bring Elena and Pops, the hero, together, and boy, do they have a lot to overcome! Yay! Writers, any HOME grown words to share? Readers, where’s your favorite place to read at HOME? Now, I’ll leave you now to go about your previously scheduled day. Hope yours is a good one!

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Tuesday Treats: Pumpkin Pie Bars

Posted on November 26, 2019 by Silver James

I love traditional Thanksgiving food — roasted turkey, mashed potatoes and giblet gravy, dressing, and all the other trimmings. Most especially, though, the desserts. Pumpkin pie, pecan pie, rhubarb pie, chocolate pie, apple pie. Any and all. But not everyone is a pie person so here’s a traditional flavor that’s not a pie.

Total Time: 55 Min.
Prep Time: 15 Min.
Cook Time: 40 Min.
24 servings

Combine a crunchy oat-nut crust, cream cheese in the filling and sweet crumbs for Pumpkin Pie Bars on a new level. Pumpkin Pie Bars are great for potlucks.

What You Need
1-1/3 cups flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup cold butter or margarine, cut up
1 cup old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats, uncooked
1/2 cup chopped PLANTERS Pecans
1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
3 eggs
1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin
1 Tbsp. pumpkin pie spice

Reynolds® is a registered trademark of Reynolds Consumer Products LLC

Let’s Make It
1 – Heat oven to 350°F.
2 – Line 13×9-inch pan with Reynolds Wrap® Aluminum Foil, with ends of foil extending over sides; spray with cooking spray. Mix flour, 1/4 cup granulated sugar and brown sugar in medium bowl until blended; cut in butter with pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in oats and nuts.
3 – Reserve 1 cup oat mixture; press remaining onto bottom of prepared pan. Bake 15 min. Beat cream cheese, remaining sugar, eggs, pumpkin and spice with mixer until blended; pour over crust. Sprinkle with reserved oat mixture.
4 – Bake 25 min.; cool 10 min. Use foil to transfer dessert from pan to wire rack; cool completely.

Kitchen Tips
Tip 1 – Substitute: Prepare using PHILADELPHIA Neufchatel Cheese.

Tip 2 – Substitute: Can’t find pumpkin pie spice? Simply mix 1 tsp. each ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg and allspice, then use as directed.

Tip 3 – How to Store: Store in tightly covered container in refrigerator.

CLICKETY-CLICK for all the nutritional details. Adele McCoy, CSI extraordinaire, has a sexy werewolf in FBI Agent Caleb Jones. I forget Adele can cook because the other woman in Caleb’s life? Yeah, Sade Marquise could compete with Hannah McIntire in a team version of the Worst Cooks In America show. Adele is the one who reminded me that not everyone likes pie. How she and Caleb met and teamed up to defeat an ancient evil is chronicled in THE DEVIL’S CUT. If you’d like to read their story, which is mostly a stand-alone but hey, cool characters so you might want to try the whole Penumbra Papers series, click on the cover or the title for a linky-dink that takes you to Books2Read where you can find links to all the stores where the book is sold. Also, it’s available in digital and print.

What about y’all? Traditional or something different? Happy Thanksgiving!

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