* Writerly News *

Have you ever read ReadingWriters or The Verb ezine. I received an e-mail today from them stating that The Verb will come back sometime in 2012, but as Elizabeth Guy put it, it was time to let ReadingWriters go. If you've never read or heard of any of this, just click on the site.

Their contest is still open. It's called The Road of Eerie Writing Contest . Check out the link for that, too. Deadline is September 15th, midnight Pacific Time. Prize is $100.00

There are so many awesome contests right now that I'm trying to write for...and time is running out on some of them. If you haven't tried the The Bartleby Snopes Dialogue Only contest, you really should give it a try. I think it's the most unique and cool contest I've ever entered....mostly because they keep you so informed on your status!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone. I won't be posting until probably Monday, the 12th.

"We are what we believe we are." Benjamin N. Cardozo

* News for Local Friends *

Beautiful Office Furniture For Sale

As I wrote on August 24th, The Ronald and I are going to downsize and move sometime in the near future. 

We'll have quite a few things to sell. A few of those items are in my office. They are gorgeous pieces of furniture (at least I think so!) in the Christopher Lowell Shore Collection, which was exclusive at Office Depot. They're about 5 years old, were professionally assembled, and look practically brand new.

I managed to clean them out sufficiently for "Selling" Photos!

Desk with hutch on top.

Another view of desk and hutch.

Pull-out thingy for key board (and part of chair)

The desk chair. It also has arms, which I had taken off.
We still have them, though.

Another view of desk, hutch, and chair.

Hutch on top of bookcase.
(Only one light bulb in at the moment!)

This is the bookcase under the hutch.

Another view of bookcase and hutch.

All of the furniture is in wonderful shape. Everything is attached (not just a hutch standing on top of the desk or bookcase).

Anyone who is interested, please e-mail me. I'm asking very reasonable prices. Oh, and none of the accessories are included!

"But every house where love abides, and friendship is a guest, is surely home, and home-sweet-home; for there the heart can rest." -- Henry Van Dyke

* Congrats and Give-Away *

First of all, congratulations to everyone who's story or poem was accepted for the Storm Country anthology. That is the book the Missouri Writers Guild put together to donate money to the Joplin, Missouri school libraries.

Now for my contest give-away. As I mentioned in my previous post the only requirement is to leave a comment here! That's it. The one restriction is that only US bloggers can enter. (My apologies to my out-of-country friends!)

Below are the books:

Skipping Christmas: by John Grisham
(hardcover) Cute humorous Holiday book

The Lemon Jelly Cake: by Madeline Babcock Smith
Originally written in 1952. A very charming book!
(paperback)

A Morning Cup of Meditation: by John A. Bright-Fey
Awesome hardcover book for juggling life with meditation!
Also comes with a CD (hardcover)

All three books are in great shape and could even be given as gifts.

Just leave a comment here and I'll choose a winner by random.org on Tuesday, September 13th. **If I receive more than 20 comments, by 20 different people... I know how some of your minds work! ☺I'll choose three winners, and each will receive one book. If I get less than 20 comments, then one person will receive all three books.**



Also, Welcome to my newest follower, Juliann of Daily Snapshot. I hope you'll stop by often and always enjoy what you read and see! Thank you!

"You will recognize your own path when you come upon it, because you will suddenly have all the energy and imagination you will ever need." -- Jerry Gillies

* CONTEST INFORMATION *

Just this morning I submitted a story to Bartleby Snopes for their Dialogue Only Contest. It's the  most interesting writing I've ever done, and hopefully it was really good, too! Find out the rules at the link. Deadline is September 12, 2011.

Speaking of contests....I haven't had one in a while, so in the next few days I'll come up with something. It will be simple to enter. Just leave a comment on that particular post! That's it. You don't have to be a follower or anything fancy!

Have a great rest of the week! Hey all you US friends.....does today feel like Monday to you?

* Saturday Centus *

It's Saturday Centus time with Jenny Matlock. If you've never participated in this before, give it a try. It's really lots of fun!

Here's today's rules & prompt:

WORD COUNT - Up to 100 words AND the 7 words of the prompt (107 total maximum words - For those of you that want more words please feel free to link up multiple stories!)
STYLE OF WRITING - Any

USE A PICTURE IF YOU LIKE

THE PROMPT THIS WEEK IS: "what kind of a pizza is this"
My take on the prompt is below, coming in at 107 words.


He prepared a surprise, romantic dinner for me. Hmmm, my boyfriend wasn't much of a cook, at least that I knew of. Maybe he thought after an evening like this, I'd fall into his arms and do the thing he so wanted me to do.


As I stepped into his apartment, he steered me toward the table and pulled out a chair. I knew immediately what dinner was by the mouthwatering aroma rising from my plate to my nostrils.


"What kind of a pizza is this?", I uttered, breathlessly.


"It's your favorite, darling. Now, will you do that favor for me?"


"Oh, you bet I will ."

* I WONDER *

It's been three weeks since my last I Wonder post. I don't remember why I missed the one on August 19th, but I really remember why I missed last week's.

One reason: I was busy getting things ready for the Saturday Writers meeting which was the next day. My scheduled speaker had to cancel and I scrambled for someone to take her place. Many thanks to Debbie Marshall, president of Missouri Writers Guild (MWG), who came to our rescue.

Second reason: I was dealing with what I thought was a very painful toothache. After a visit to my dentist on the 25th, and then an oral surgeon on the 26th.....neither could figure out what was wrong. I told both of them, "What can I say? I'm weird!" So, on Monday, the 29th, I saw my primary doctor and was diagnosed with Trigeminal Neuralgia. I won't go into details because I don't want to come across as whiny, but I had some really awful pain, for quite a few days. (I knew it wasn't a sinus infection, either, because I had none of the usual symptoms. I get them often enough to know!)

My I Wonder for this Friday is: I wonder how many of you have any special plans for this 3-Day Weekend?

Me? I have no special plans.

 I just want to relax and write, and write and relax, etc.

Also, Welcome to my newest follower, Maryann Miller. I hope you'll stop by often and always enjoy what you read and see! Thank you!

 

"If all the cars in the United States were placed end to end, it would probably be Labor Day Weekend." ~Doug Larson

Let's all go to the beach!

I'd never been a guest blogger before, until just a couple of days ago over at WOW - Women on Writing, The Muffin. And now, I have another guest post to announce.

(courtesy: Buzzle.com)

I'll be on Under The Tiki Hut tomorrow, Wednesday, August 31st beginning at 7:15am Central Time.

Carol has been hosting guest bloggers on Wednesdays, all summer long. Thanks again, Carol, for inviting me to visit your fabulous, "Blissful" paradise!

Please stop by and leave a comment, and see what happens as I sit on the beach and enjoy the view!

** Note added August 31st, 2:15pm Central Time: So far everyone who has commented on Under the Tiki Hut, either likes or loves my newest idea for my memoir title: Blame it on the Crowbar! **
I'm batting 1,000!!

"Summer afternoon - summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language." ~Henry James

A Birthday Party for Vern!

During my time away from blogging, our awesome dog Vern celebrated a birthday. He is now 10 years old! We had a small party for him, which I'd never even thought to do for our previous canine family members! And by small party, I mean The Ronald, our son Mark, his girlfriend Jenni and me.

Vern didn't know WHAT was going on. That's Mark holding him.

We got him to stand still long enough for this picture! He doesn't look very happy, does he?!

Oooh, a present! And it's a beefy smelling rawhide bone!

Yum...Loving this other chewy thing, too.



And you're saying, "Where's the birthday cake??"

Well, we didn't have a "real" one, but we used this cool cake candle for photos!

Those of you who don't know the story about Vern, here's a condensed version: Three months after we had to say goodbye to our beloved Tiger, I was ready to look for another dog. Wanted an "older" dog....a companion, and not a frisky puppy. Found Vern, a lab mix, online at a shelter. His age was listed as eight, but found out he was really nine and a half.....big difference in dog years! But, we brought him home with us (in March) and have been in love with this fabulous dog ever since! He is sweet, loving, smart, funny and just plain perfect. Happy Birthday, Vern! May you live MANY more years.

Also, Welcome to my newest follower, Christine. I hope you'll stop by often and always enjoy what you read and see! Thank you!

"Dogs are our link to paradise. They don't know evil or jealousy or discontent. To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring--it was peace."
Milan Kundera