Thursday Thoughts: Universal Trick and Treats

Posted on October 31, 2019 by Silver James

Are you ready for the spooky stuff? Yeah…me neither. I can’t believe October is over and NaNoWriMo starts tomorrow. Well…technically, it starts at midnight tonight. I won’t be writing then. It’s freaking cold here–like record-setting cold high temperatures and snow/sleet. I’ll be in bed snuggled under thick covers with a heating pad, a large dog, and maybe a small cat. Loki isn’t all that fond of snuggling, even when it’s cold. I will be writing though, come tomorrow morning. I have a book coming out in February. Gotta get it written!

And since today is Halloween, want to know what I find scary? Boredom. And loneliness. Probably sadness, too. As usual, the Universe has the answers and some tricks!

The real trick, Silver, for confronting boredom is to ask more questions.

For tackling loneliness, it’s to take more action.

And for easing sadness, it’s to think more of others.

Then we dance,
The Universe
© http://www.tut.com ®

Well, yeah, Silver, and then answering the questions… smiling a lot… and maybe making a few phone calls.

So…some good advice from the Universe. I suppose I should pay close attention to said advice. There’s some good tricks here and the treats when done aren’t too shabby. Happy Halloween, Good Samhain, and stay warm!

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Wednesday Words: Monster Mash

Posted on October 30, 2019 by Silver James

It’s the Eve of Halloween, which is All Hallow’s Eve. Time for monsters and ghoulies and things that go bump in the night. It’s also Only’s birthday. She was always our little Halloween witch. Now she’s an amazing and talented woman. As it’s also Wednesday, that means it’s time for #1lineWed and what better theme could there be today than **MONSTER**. Once again, I dug into the archive’s and came across one of those “orphan” snippets. I don’t know about other author’s but I get “drive-by” stories and/or characters. This one is fairly self-explanatory and will get a full treatment someday.
****
My roommate planted her butt on the corner of my grandmother’s dressing table, blocking my reflection in the huge, round mirror. This vanity was the only thing I had from my old life—the one I’d bolted from.

“You look like shit.” Bethie, blunt as always. “Those bags under your eyes are packed for a world cruise.”

“Gee, thanks,” I muttered. I dabbed on concealer, realized that it gave me ghost eyes so I wiped the makeup off. Nothing was going to help. Ignoring Bethie, I grabbed a brush and pulled it through my hair one more time before huffing out a sigh. “Didn’t sleep well last night.”

“Yeah, and?”

Okay, I hadn’t slept well in months. Between my old life and my new life and…well…stuff. I glanced up to find Bethie watching me, worry in her eyes.

“I had that dream again.” I admitted.

Bethie’s eyes now lit with interest. “The one with the sexy guy?”

“No, the one where the guy I’ve never seen before turns into a freaking monster with blood dripping from his teeth and claws.”

She rolled her eyes. “But it starts out with him as a sexy guy. That’s your subconscious telling you that you’re afraid not only of commitment but men as well.” The voice of experience, allegedly. Bethie was a clinical psychologist.

My turn for the eye roll. What I didn’t tell her was that the dream? It felt more like the replay of a memory than some freaky message from my subconscious. Besides, I didn’t need my subconscious to remind me of my stance regarding men.

“A night out will do you good.”

No it wouldn’t. Going would be easier in the long run than arguing with Bethie. I knew she could read my expression and she geared up for a fight.
*
Though I didn’t want to go, Bethie dragged me out to the club anyway. I was two beers down and pretty much ignoring everything but the music. It was a good song. An oldie that made me sway to the music and sing along with the chorus. Dobie Gray’s “Drift Away.” I had the beat, boys. My shoulder bumped something solid. And warm. I looked up. And stopped breathing. He was standing there, right in front of me. The man from my dreams.

“Let’s dance.”

“Are you going to eat me?” I blurted it out.

Something feral flashed in his eyes, something I recognized on a soul-deep level. “Dance now, eat later.”

Well didn’t that sound…enticing. I shivered like a troop of teenagers stomped across my grave. I’d never claimed to be psychic but I knew this man. The sense of “Déjà vu all over again” washed over me. Dancing with him seemed like the best idea ever. Who was I to argue with fate?
****
So that’s my “monster under the bed.” Do you have any monster words to share?

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Tuesday Treats: Frosted Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats

Posted on October 29, 2019 by Silver James

Everybody loves Rice Krispies Treats, right?!?! Absolutely! Easy peasy, ooey gooey, yummy in the tummy good stuffs. I don’t care how old you are! Well, here’s a perfect fall twist to the old standby, perfect for your Halloween party–or just for munching in between the trick-or-treaters coming to your door.

Total Time: 1 Hr. 10 Min.
Prep Time: 10 Min.
Cook Time: 1 Hr.
36 servings

Wow the crowd with Frosted Peanut Butter RICE KRISPIES TREATS®. Frosted Peanut Butter RICE KRISPIES TREATS® are a fantastic upgrade to a timeless treat.

What You Need
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 pkg. (10 oz.) JET-PUFFED Marshmallow s
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
5 cups KELLOGG’S® RICE KRISPIES® cereal
1 cup PLANTERS Salted Peanuts
1-1/2 pkg. (4 oz. each) BAKER’S Semi-Sweet Chocolate (6 oz.), chopped
1 cup butterscotch chips
®, TM, © 2013 Kellogg NA Co.

Let’s Make It
1 – Microwave butter in large microwaveable bowl on HIGH 45 sec. or until melted. Add marshmallows; toss to coat. Microwave 1-1/2 min. or until marshmallows are completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring after 45 sec.
2 – Stir in peanut butter until blended. Add cereal and nuts; mix well. Press onto bottom of 13×9-inch pan sprayed with cooking spray.
3 – Microwave remaining ingredients in small microwaveable bowl 1 to 1-1/2 min. or until chocolate and chips are completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring every 30 sec. Pour over cereal mixture; spread to cover. Refrigerate 1 hour or until chocolate mixture is firm.

Kitchen Tips
Tip 1 – Size Wise: Looking for something sweet? One serving of this crunchy treat will hit the spot.

Tip 2 – Use Your Stove: Melt butter in large saucepan on low heat. Add marshmallows; stir until marshmallows are completely melted and mixture is well blended. Stir in peanut butter; remove from heat. Add cereal and nuts; mix well. Press onto bottom of prepared 13×9-inch pan. Cook remaining ingredients in saucepan on very low heat until chocolate and butterscotch chips are completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring frequently. Pour over cereal mixture; spread to cover. Refrigerate until chocolate mixture is firm.

CLICK AND TREAT for all the nutritional details. I bet you’re thinking that one of the moms in my books uses this recipe. Welp, you would be wrong. 🤣 Believe it or not, a certain dragon shifter who covets emeralds also has a sweet tooth. Nikolas “Nikos” Constantine, Drakon of Clan Kholikikos, will never admit this but he loves Rice Krispie Treats and peanut butter. He’s been known to sneak into a kitchen and make a big ol’ pan of the goodies and being a dragon, you can bet he hoards them all for himself! Though, he might share with Sade. If you haven’t but would like to find out more about Nikos and how he first met FBI Agent Sade Marquis in New Orleans, check out THAT OL’ BLACK MAGIC. It’s available at most on-line books sellers. You know you want to read this because…New Orleans! Dragons! Murder, mayhem, and magicks! And everyone’s favorite FBI MAGICAL Unit Special Agent. 🥰

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Ghost Week Monday

Posted on October 28, 2019 by Silver James

I ❤ this meme. Sadly, the doggos and humans and one cat all look like this today. The other cat? Well, Loki is named Loki for a reason. He's zooming around 90 to nothing. It's cold and dark out there. And Monday. 😬

Update time. There was a weekend. There was World "Serious" baseball and college football. (…Ahahahha. 🤣 Uopon edit, I'd typed bootball! Very apropos.) I’ll come back to this. There was listening to books, TV viewing, and general laziness. There was no writing, socialness, or anything else that might redeem my general malaise. I love that word. We don’t use it enough, unless one happens to write historical romance, which I don’t. Anyway…

Okay. Sports. The Astros were down 2-0 at home before the Series moved to the Nationals’ home turf. Houston swept Washington 3-0 so the series returns to Houston Tuesday with the ‘Stros up 1 game, with 2 games to go in the best of 7 series. That means they could win it tomorrow night, or it could stretch to 7 games. Against all odds, OSU won and OU lost. Go figure! The Cowboy defense woke up and were instrumental in the 34-27 win over 23-ranked Iowa State. On the other hand, OU’s defense couldn’t seem to get it together and a bad call on a last ditch on-side kick left the #5 Sooners at a 48-41 loss to unranked Kansas State (hence my Bootball Freudian typo). Yeah, that’ll burn as OU drops in the rankings. Ah well. It’s a crazy year in the college ranks. Oh, and the STL Blues beat the Red Wings, not that I’m a huge NHL fan, but I do enjoy the occasional hockey game and the Blues are my team. Moving on…

Daylight Savings time arrives this coming weekend. *FLAIL* I hate DST with eye-stabby, red-hot, drink-vinegar passion.

Cats. We have a new black feral kitten and possible a second charcoal gray one. I’ve only gotten a good look at the black and he was out of sight when I glimpsed the gray under the holly bushes. I’d love to catch them and get them to my vet. He has a lady who loves black cats and would take the whole colony if I could catch them. Sadly, while they are less skittish, I still can’t get close enough to catch and they won’t even use the cat house with the warm bed despite the almost freezing temps. No way I could entice them to a cattrap. Loki has a new/old trick. He used to “spidercat” up the side of the bed under the chenille bedspread. With fall, out came the much heavier microsqede comforter. It confounded him for a time. This week, he’s discovered he can still “hide.” Only he waits until Jake is on the bed getting pets then he sneaks up under the covers. Poor Jake.

Cleaned out some of the DVR stash. We’re doing ghost shows because…Halloween week! I don’t think we’re giving out candy though. It’s going to be cold and we’re old and grumpy. I’ll leave the LED lights that line the porch off and we won’t answer the door. We’ve had fewer and fewer kids each year and 95% of them are from out-of-neighborhood. Plus, Lawyer Guy and I don’t need the temptation.

Speaking of, I hit a weight this weekend that I haven’t seen in at least 10 years. I’ve lost almost 20 pounds in the past year and my knees are thanking me! I’d love to lose another 20 this year. Being old is one thing. Being old and fat totally sucks.

I’m doing a relisten to Kristen Ashley’s Rock Chick series. I swear I get so mad and eye-rolly at the characters and in the back of my mind, I’m thinking, “WHY?!?!?! Why am I reading this!?!?!” But I keep reading because it’s totally guilty-pleasure reading crack. Y’all know what this means, right? Yeah…I’ll probably roll over into her Mystery Man series, followed by Choas, followed by the Honey Club. Unless something new from another favorite series comes out, necessitating a reread of that series. Yeah, I’m weird like that. Reading 250 books a year with a brain that resembles Swiss cheese, I forget plots so its almost like reading a book for the first time.

Okay, the sky is turning gray now. That means the sun is out there somewhere. Time to truly face Monday. Right after another cup of coffee. How was your weekend and how much caffeine will you need to get through today?

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Friday Sinema: Meet First

Posted on October 25, 2019 by Silver James

I get more confused this time of year than usual. Y’all know I hate time changes, expecially when it’s dark and rainy. Two days in a row, I’m up at 8 instead of 6. Crazy. Anyway, I alwso forget to set up the blog yesterday so here. Have a bit of country inspiration and a little early “shirts off Saturday” to boot. I’ve never heard this singer but he’s going on my list for sure. Have a good weekend. And yes, there’s a book in this idea. Eventually. 😏

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Footprints

Posted on October 24, 2019 by Silver James

Sometimes, I get an idea for a book, one that is straight. Straight mystery. Straight thriller. Straight science fiction. Straight fantasy. I’ve even had ideas for westerns, historical fiction, and horror. But when I start to write something “straight,” I always get sidetracked. Maybe, this message from the Universer is why…

Do you know why, Silver, it’s so easy for us in the unseen to quickly pinpoint your whereabouts?

You leave behind footprints of love.

Aw-w-w-w,
The Universe
© http://www.tut.com ®

“The expedition’s last confirmed sighting was in Oklahoma, the legend of BIGFOOT continues.”

Even Louis L’Armour wrote romance into his books. As did Ian Fleming. Tony Hillerman. Andre Norton. Those are the authors I read as a kid/young adult. So…yeah. The Universe is right. I guess I do leave footprints of love with each book I write. Not a bad thing. Not a bad thing at all. And no, I will NOT write a Bigfoot romance. Unless y’all want one… 😏

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Wednesday Words: Gone Hunting

Posted on October 23, 2019 by Silver James

It’s that time of year on #1lineWed on Twitter. Witch HUNT. Man HUNT. HUNTer’s moon. Scavenger HUNT. Treasure HUNT. HUNT down. HUNT and peck. HUNT club. The WILD Hunt. Good Will HUNTing. HUNT for Red October. In case you haven’t figured it out, the THEME for the day is **HUNT**. This is a snippet about an unnamed character who will likely make an appearance in a Moonstruck Wolf book. All I know is that he’s a bounty hunter. And he has a thing for cute. 😊
****
“Puck!”

I halted. Had I heard right?

“Puck, come!”

A teenager trotted through the park, yelling the word I’d misunderstood. Her hoodie fell back. She wasn’t a youngster after all, just short. Even in the boots she wore, she’d barely come to my chest.

A bark floated on the breeze. The woman whirled, listening. Figuring out the general direction, she jogged off. I followed, way too curious for my own good. I was here on business. Still, I couldn’t resist.

“Where are you, Puck?” she yelled and then muttered, “Stupid dog.” If I hadn’t been a Wolf, I’d never have heard that last bit.

Standing downwind, I caught the scent of a burning match—acrid and sulfurous. She was frustrated. Hands on hips, she surveyed the area. She stiffened, as if sensing my presence, then turned to face me. I stood loose, hands at my side, totally nonthreatening—well as nonthreatening as a 6’4” bounty hunter could look.

“Puck?” I didn’t hide my grin.

“My dog. He got loose.” She wasn’t intimidated. That boded well for future interactions and now that I got a decent look at her, there would be plenty of those.

“I can help you hunt for him.” I’d barely made the offer when a heat-seeking missile hit me from the side. I went down like an NFL lineman had targeted me—and got a face full of black fur, tongue and drool. I griped the sides of his face and pushed.

“Get off!”

Was she yelling at me or the damn dog? And why did everything that came out of her mouth make me think of sex?
“Puck this,” I growled, showing my wolf. The dog growled back.

“Don’t hurt him!”

I didn’t take my eyes off the slobberbeast. Evidently, he was too dumb to be afraid of a predator. “You talking to him or me?”

That got me a giggle and I glanced up at her and I got my first close-up look. Her heart-shaped face was the perfect frame for a little turned-up nose, the full lips of her mouth, and blue eyes that crinkled at the corners when she smiled. Fuck me but she was cute.

“Since you’re acting like my dog is going for your throat, you.”

“Me?” I fought back a grin. “He’s the one with teeth and eying my throat.”

“You outweigh him by a hundred pounds, are twice his size, and he’s a Newfie. They don’t do throats. They beat people to death wagging their tails.”

She had a point. Bending only slightly—she was short and the dog was big, she clipped a leash to his collar and hauled him off me. I shoved off the ground and brushed away the dried grass and leaves that my jeans had collected when I hit the ground.

“I apologize,” she said. “What can I do to make up for Puck’s bad behavior?”

Mesmerized by her mouth, I said what was rattling around in my head. “Kiss me.”

I wasn’t sure who was more surprised when she did.
****
So that’s my hunting story. Do you have any hunt words to share?

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Tuesday Treats: Bite-Size Salted Caramel Cheesecakes

Posted on October 22, 2019 by Silver James

Salted caramel is a favorite flavor, especially this time of year. These seem like they’re complicated to make but in actuality, it’s a fairly easy receipe. I betcha can’t eat just one! 😊

Total Time: 3 Hr. 5 Min.
Prep Time: 20 Min.
Cook Time: 2 Hr. 45 Min.
24 servings
Prepare these Bite-Size Salted Caramel Cheesecakes for some teeny, tiny and tasty treats. Find out more about these delicious cheesecake bites today!

What You Need
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
3/4 tsp. kosher salt, divided
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
1-1/2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese (12 oz.), softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
12 KRAFT Caramels
1 Tbsp. milk

Let’s Make It
1 – Heat oven to 325°F.
2 = Combine graham crumbs, brown sugar, 1/4 tsp. salt and butter; press onto bottoms of 24 paper-lined mini muffin cups.
3 – Beat cream cheese and granulated sugar in medium bowl with mixer until blended. Add egg; beat just until blended. Spoon into muffin cups, adding about 1 Tbsp. cream cheese batter to each.
4 – Bake 15 min. or until centers of cheesecakes are almost set. Cool completely. Refrigerate 1 hour.
5 = Place caramels in small heatproof bowl. Add milk and 1/4 tsp. of the remaining salt. Place over pan of boiling water, making sure boiling water does not touch bottom of bowl. Cook until caramels are completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring frequently.
6 – Drizzle about 1 tsp. caramel sauce over each cheesecake; sprinkle with remaining salt. Refrigerate 1 hour.

Kitchen Tips
Tip 1 – Size Wise: Balance out your food choices throughout the day so you can enjoy a taste of cheesecake in one of these portion-controlled desserts.

Tip 2 – Note: These creamy cheesecakes can be refrigerated up to 24 hours before drizzling with caramel sauce and sprinkling with remaining salt. Refrigerate 1 hour as directed.

Tip 3 – How to Customize the Caramel Sauce: Spicy Caramel Sauce: Stir 1/4 tsp. ground red pepper (cayenne) into the prepared sauce before drizzling over cheesecakes. Pumpkin Spice Caramel Sauce: Stir 1/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice into the prepared sauce before drizzling over cheesecakes. Smoky Sweet Caramel Sauce: Stir 1/4 tsp. smoked chili powder into the prepared sauce before drizzling over cheesecakes. Chocolate-Caramel Sauce: Add 2 Tbsp. milk chocolate chips to the caramels and milk before microwaving as directed. White Chocolate-Caramel Sauce: Add 2 Tbsp. white chocolate chips to the caramels and milk before microwaving as directed.

Tip 4 – Substitute: Prepare using coarse sea salt. (I’m all about the sea salt! Just sayin’…)

Y’all know the drill. CLICK HERE for all the nutrional details over at My Food & Family. Amy Rouse-Harjo is a good friend, a herder of cats (and alpha men), lover of cheese cake–AND salted caramel. She makes these treats whenever there’s a boys’ night out and the Moonstruck wives get together for RomCom movies and gabbing. Married to Colonel Joshua Harjo, she’s still something of a den mother. First introduced in HUNTER’S MOON, you can read Amy and Harjo’s love story in BRIDE’S MOON. Just click on the title or the cover to head over to Amazon. You can read for free with a Kindle Unlimited subscription.

What about y’all? Are you a fan of salted caramel? Cheesecake? This time of year? My Moonstruck books? 😉

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Falling into Monday

Posted on October 21, 2019 by Silver James

There was a weekend. The problem with ignoring the weekend is that when I wake up Monday morning feeling guilty about all the stuff I needed to do and didn’t, I feel quilty. Which sort of negates the whole “take the weekend off” thing. Anyway, there was a weekend. I ignored things–mostly–and now I’m getting a late start on Monday. I do have reasons though.

Friday afternoon, Stormageddon arrived. We hit baseballs. We watched cartoons. We hit baseballs. We had dinner. We watched cartoons (Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego). Only and Baseball Boy got caught up in the stuff they were doing and Only didn’t arrive until almost 11:00 p.m. Lawyer Guy had to be up early Saturday for a day trip for the American Legion. I had OKRWA.

My RWA chapter meeting was Saturday. After a bit of a SNAFU at the Legion Post where we normally meet (it got double-booked with a wedding and the wedding party needed the whole place for two days), we ended up meeting in a nearby church fellowship hall. We held our annual monster story contest, which I managed to enter this year. I didn’t win but I thought it was a cute story, it might evolve into at least a novella, and it meant I actually wrote something. That was followed by our program–appropriately on haunted places and legends in Oklahoma. It was fun.

Then I met Only halfway between her house and ours because BB was still doing his tourguide thing with a group of Catholic educators (he teaches at a private Catholic high school) and Only had her girl posse birthday party planned. I’d been notified that LG was back early and he’d relieved her of Stormy duty. Which was probably a good thing. The kid was on a tear. I got home. We hit baseballs to give Big Daddy a rest. Then we read for 35 minutes. He has to read X number of hours a week. Even in kindergarden. I think this is awesome! Then we decided on a dinner, and we watched baseball until time for bed. He was up and dressed by 7:30 on Sunday morning. He dug a fire pit in the back yard and lined it with old brick so the fire couldn’t get out. Then he used a stick and a pit of clay pot as his iron and flint to “start” the fire. The kid definitely has an imagination. His parents finally arrived around 11:30, admired the fire pit, listened to the funny stories, and skedaddled. LG and I napped. All that excitement wore us out! 🤣

iPhone updated. It now has “Memojis”–emojis that can be customized to look like “me.” I did that because…procrastination. I’ve since discovered that I can use my memoji as an emoji. Me with my head exploding is a favorite!!!!

NaNoWriMo is about 2 weeks away. I have the book I’m going to write–HAVE to write–more or less ready to start. It releases in February as part of a six-book miniseries set in one of Susan Stoker’s worlds. It HAS to get written no, ifs, ands or buts because it’s the first book in the series. Yikes! My brain has to get in gear. Speaking of, that’s a big mental push this week. To get unstuck.

I’m not talking about my OSU Cowboys. It’s too sad. OU is doin’ good though so there’s that. Scary moment, though, when the Sooner Schooner overturned on the field after a touchdown! Ponies and people are all fine. I will watch the World Series. Nationals and Astros. While I’m a National League girl, I gotta root for the Astros.

I finished my re-listen of Kristen Ashley’s Colorado Mountain series. KA is one of my catnip authors. I think I’ll jump ino her Rock Chicks next.

And that’s my life. Time for more coffee. A whole pot of it! What’s up in your life?

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Friday Sinema: Bell, Book & Candle

Posted on October 18, 2019 by Silver James

Halloween is coming. And Lawyer Guy noticed that one of my all-time favorite movies was on so he DVRd it for me. When I was searching for something to post today, I decided to plug the title into Youtube search bar and this is one of the videos that popped up. Not only are these some great scenes, but they’re set to a favorite Sinatra song, and the title of the first book in my Penumbra Papers series. So settle in for some of THAT OL’ BLACK MAGIC and enjoy. Do you have a favorite classic movie? Share! And have a great weekend.

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