Annette Mori's Blog, page 25
January 17, 2020
Retirement is Here!
I am now into my first week of retirement and I don’t believe it has hit me yet that I don’t need to get up at the ass crack of dawn. I’m trying to stay up later to enable me to sleep in the next morning. It hasn’t quite worked yet. That will be a work in progress!
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I know it has only been one week, but I have a few lessons learned.
The go go go go has not stopped, it has merely morphed into something new. Admittedly that is the result of my medical scare on the very first official day of retirement. My wife and I had a busy first week traveling to medical appointments and running errands that took us away from home. I suppose it makes sense that if I travel four hours for a hair cut, traveling an hour and a half for a medical appointment is no big deal. Besides that, there are a lot of transitional errands on our list.
It is a little more difficult to keep track of the days of the week. I keep asking my wife, what day is it again?
I still check my e-mail as if I am still employed full-time. I remained per diem to fix any problems that might arise after retirement with the database I set up for the hospital. It is hard to completely disconnect.
The perpetual smile on my face at being able to sleep with my wife every night is still there. I still can’t believe we finally made it.
I pay a lot more attention to those companies offering “Senior” discounts.
I haven’t had a lot of time to write, contrary to what I believed might be the case before retirement. I think that this initial transition period will settle and I will be able to write more, but we’ll see….
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Now for the interesting research on retirement as a concept. I know y’all want to learn about that!
Not much retirement was happening prior to the 18th century because people didn’t live long enough to warrant retirement with the average life expectancy between 26 and 40. Although, it did pay to be in the Military during the height of the Roman Empire because military folk received a pension.
The concept of retirement in the U.S. is believed to have taken root after a valedictory address at Johns Hopkins Hospital by the Canadian physician William Oster who stated anyone over 60 was useless and should be put out to pasture.
It wasn’t until the industrial revolution where the concept of retirement really caught on with aging factory workers. With age came a slow down in the assembly line and that just would not do!
The original concept of social security was born from the Californian, Francis Townsend, who proposed a plan for compulsory retirement at age 60 in exchange for paying $200 per month. Franklin D. Roosevelt offered a different idea and the Social Security Act of 1935 was born.
However, before the Social Security Act, around 1910, Florida was becoming a retirement destination and by the 1920s and 1930s retirement communities were popping up like pesky gophers. This paved the way for an explosion of golf courses.
Finally, in 1999, The American Association of Retired Persons dropped “Retired” from its name and turned into “AARP Inc.” Note: We haven’t joined yet, but we plan to. AARP has been sending me information for years!
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January 3, 2020
Naming and Shaming
Sometimes my curiosity gets me in trouble. This past week I posted a question that inadvertently took the responses in a direction that was unintended. I wanted to know people’s thoughts on body hair and should have asked the question differently. I did attempt to lead the discussion in a positive direction by reframing the question. However, I take full responsibility and was appropriately reminded that anything that might lead to body-shaming is not at all a good thing. Later I will share my research on body hair, but that is not what this blog is about.
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The discussion got me to thinking about all kinds of things, like where do cultural norms come from? Do they change over time? But the real question that stuck out in my mind was this one: Is it ever appropriate to name and shame?
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Before all of you resoundingly say, hell no, wait a moment and consider this culture we are now in and the power of the smartphone. These days, everything gets recorded, including when someone acts like an asshat. Things roll around on twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc. like balls in a wildly spinning chamber. Consider all the efforts to hold Hallmark accountable for their poor decision on the wonderful and tasteful commercial featuring two lesbians. Or, how about all the pressure on Chick-A-Fillet?
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The line gets extremely gray sometimes. I’m guessing most of us would agree that outing someone is not cool. Right? But, would your view change if said person was an outspoken politician against LBGTQ+ rights? The ‘Me Too’ movement was born out of naming and shaming. I say this, again and again, what we permit, we promote. Calling out some things, such as bad or harmful behavior is always appropriate in my humble opinion. I guess I believe motives matter. Shining a light on atrocities is naming and shaming I will always get behind because it can lead to positive change. The key is to not fall into the trap of personal attacks that aren’t at all productive. Hard, I know!
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Now, let’s get into the crux of those gray areas. I am thankful that for the most part, many of us agree that body-shaming is not appropriate. I don’t believe the same is true for intelligence shaming. I don’t see the same defense of people when there are posts about stupid, fill in the blank. Perhaps I am sensitive about this because I often see Americans as the target.
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Have you seen those shows where people are interviewed and most of them can’t identify a single country? Or when asked civics questions, they have a hard time with what some arbitrary expert considers the most basic question? The shows are designed to name and shame people for their lack of knowledge of a topic an “expert” believes is appropriate to know about. Personally, I hold teaching kindness and respect a lot higher than geography or civics. Do they still teach civics?
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The other thing I believe might be good to remember, is that not everyone has the same opportunities for education. Just a thought, but consider that intelligence comes in many forms, not simply in book learning or knowing geography. A person with a learning disability or a person who might score lower on an IQ test could also have incredible insight that a genius might lack. Gifts come in many forms.
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One last consideration on intelligence naming and shaming. I read a lot in social media on the routine attacks against Trump with his spelling, alternate facts, etc? Don’t get me wrong, I am not a Trump fan at all, but for some reason, it is a little more okay to make fun of someone’s intelligence and laugh at the joke, when we don’t agree with the person’s politics. Do we also cry foul when people body shame Trump? Some of us do, others may be more tolerant. I don’t know, it would be a good question to ask.
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The final thing I have to say about this may also be a little controversial. While I believe strongly in the notion of calling out wrongs, sometimes either the way we do it or when we jump to conclusions before all the facts are in can cause immense damage. There is a lot of power in social media and I can’t claim that I’m immune to the seduction. I ‘m sure I’ve jumped on a random bandwagon in the past with not enough information, so this is also a reminder to me to tread carefully when entering discussions where individuals are called out for their behavior. Facts first.
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It is hard to wade through the information sometimes and determine what is a fact and what is a story we are telling ourselves based on whatever might be a trigger for us. A lot of very damaging labels are tossed around sometimes when incorrect assumptions are made. I’ve certainly been on the pointed end of that sword. I need to continue to remind myself to not make sweeping assumptions and I implore others to do the same. In the iconic words of Aretha…R.E.S.P.E.C.T….find out what that means to me….or rather to the world.
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Shifting gears…I know y’all want to know all about body hair, so here’s what I learned. It was fascinating:
Some evidence suggests that the removal of hair goes as far back as the Stone Age for both men and women. This was done for safety sake. Opponents would not have something to grab onto for one and less chance of frostbite was another reason.
In Egypt and Mesopotamia, both men and women removed all their hair except their eyebrows. For them, it was rooted in their beliefs around cleanliness and a particular beauty standard.
In the Roman Empire, the removal of hair was a standard for higher-class women and once again tied to cleanliness.
Queen Elizabeth set a different standard. Grooming of hair on your face, yes (no mustaches, or unruly eyebrows). However, the removal of hair on your legs, forget about it. Believe it or not, there was also a fashion trend to remove hair at the top of your forehead, so your face appeared longer.
In the 1700s with the invention of the straight razor, originally intended for men, there was no one standard of beauty regarding body hair for women. Some shaved, some did not.
The early 1900s is when the pressure to shave began. The first safety razor specifically for women was born. In 1915, Gillette created the Milady Decollete and the marketing campaign began in full force urging women to remove that “objectionable hair”.
During World War II the campaign extended to a woman’s legs. Some believed this was as a result of the shortage if nylons which made it more evident when a woman’s legs were not shaved.
In the 1950s skirts started getting shorter and the fashion became even more commonplace to shave armpits, legs and tweeze eyebrows. Hollywood starlets modeled this for everyone to see.
The porn industry is responsible for the trend to shave one’s pubis and the Brazilian wax hit the mainstream with the first salon offering a complete wax in 1987.
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Whatever y’all choose, keep challenging each other to be the best person you can be, but be kind about it. Kindness costs nothing. I know I am a better person when people challenge me to see a different perspective or call out something that might go sideways. I’d like to think sometimes my books sneak in a challenge here or there, so I encourage you to peek…
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Locked Inside (Goldie Winner)
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December 27, 2019
Happy Fill in the Blank
I’m a curious person and random questions often pop in my head. Recently our team was delivering Holiday cards and everyone on the team was saying Merry Christmas. I usually default to Happy Holidays. Sure, I’m in Human Resources and people expect me to be ‘politically correct’, but recently I read a great post that was enlightening to me. The real reason to say Happy Holidays versus Merry Christmas is all about respect. There are a lot of holidays that people celebrate in December and January and how can I possibly know who celebrates what. Even if the vast majority celebrate Christmas, there are enough people who prefer to celebrate something else during this time to warrant Happy Holidays versus the more specific Merry Christmas.
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That got me to thinking about how in the UK and Ireland, the saying is Happy Christmas. I simply had to research the origin of these differences. I’m gonna share that research with y’all because I know you are on the edge of your seat waiting on the answer!
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As always there were various theories on this and I’m going to share them all:
“Merry Christmas” has been used since at least 1534. The phrase was used in a letter from bishop John Fisher to Henry VIII’s chief minister, Thomas Cromwell. Around the same time, the English carol, “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” was introduced.
Another site noted that in 1699 an English admiral first used the term Merry Christmas (also in a letter). Hmmm…guess they hadn’t heard about the first letter!
In 1843, Charles Dickens used the phrase. Merry Christmas in A Christmas Carol and in that same year the first Christmas Card came out with the same saying!
Regarding the reasons for Happy versus Merry, apparently “happy” was believed to take on a higher class connotation than “merry,” which was associated with those rowdy lower classes. Since the royal family adopted “Happy Christmas” as their preferred greeting, others took note, and it stuck.
You’re going to love this theory….some historians believe it boils down to a simple grammatical lesson. “Happy” is a word that describes an emotion, while “merry” is a behavior descriptor (see above comments regarding the raucous lower classes). For example, “merry-making” versus simply “being happy.”
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I’ve always loved Happy Christmas because it was something different when I first heard that phrase. Regardless of how everyone chooses to wish others good tidings, I believe the most important thing to remember is to embrace diversity. Assume good intentions and don’t presume that there is only one version of wishing someone well during the holiday season or that a particular version the “right” one.
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Regardless of how you choose to celebrate this time of year, I hope the season brings you peace and joy. If you happen to enjoy cozying up with a good book, feel free to check out a few of mine.
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The Combined Series!
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Love Forever Live Forever
Artist Free Zone
The Thanksgiving Baby Caper
The Book Addict
The Book Witch
Compound Interest
On Sale!
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Locked Inside (Goldie Winner)
Out of This World
Asset Management
The Organization
Join Mailing List
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Proud to be an Affinity Rainbow Publications author!
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December 20, 2019
Elf on the Shelf Pets
I am renewing my boycott and general displeasure for Elf on the Shelf. Last year I did a blog about how creepy the Elf on the Shelf was and I could not understand the appeal. It reminded me of clowns and I hate clowns. Or even worse, Chucky, remember him?
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This year, I was willing to give Elf on the Shelf another looksie. Because new this year is Elf on the Shelf pets. Now, a cute little kitten would be right up my alley. I learned about Elf on the Shelf pets from my colleague who has young children.
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Last year, my colleague capitulated to the marketing craze and bought an Elf for her young daughter, along with all the accouterments sold in an effort to eke out more money from parents with children who pestered them endlessly until they gave in. Now, remember, we live in Forks, so there isn’t a Wallmart down the road. At first, she wasn’t going to buy the pet, but, yup, you guessed it…on a daily basis, her daughter was asking about an Elf on the Shelf Pet. Finally, she gave in. Because parents always give in after the daily barrage. She has to make a special trip to try to find the pet that is probably sold out. And, this is why I abhor these marketing scams because they set parents up to disappoint their children. Not to mention that not every parent can afford to satisfy the whims of children who are led by intense marketing during the holiday season.
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I remember when I was very young and my sister’s greatest desire was Tony the Pony. This was an expensive toy that a child could ride. My parents could not afford this gift. We lived in a trailer park and they barely had enough money when they were first married to feed themselves, much less buy an expensive toy. I’m not sure what my father sacrificed to buy the toy, but he did. And…guess what? My sister didn’t even play with it after the first day. But, I did. I rode that toy every single day. Hmmm…something about the vibrations….
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Ah, but I digress. Back to the Elf on the Shelf pet. So, here’s my grievance. The pet choices are: Reindeer, Fox or St. Bernard. Where’s the fluffy kitten? Now, all the dog lovers won’t have an issue with this but dangit what about cat lovers. It’s a conspiracy against lesbians. I know there are a fair number of lesbians who love dogs, but there is also a boatload of cat lovers. Mwah is one of them!
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So, my boycott and displeasure for Elf on the Shelf will continue for another year because you haven’t sucked in this dyke with your clever marketing ploy.
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Speaking of marketing ploys, I’ll admit my weekly blogs shamelessly contain a final paragraph that markets my books. So…you know the drill, click one of the links below and you are sure to find your way to my books!
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The Combined Series!
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Love Forever Live Forever
Artist Free Zone
The Thanksgiving Baby Caper
The Book Addict
The Book Witch
Compound Interest
On Sale!
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December 13, 2019
Dyke Tape
I’ve decided to rename duct tape to dyke tape. Because I don’t know about you, but it is my go to fix it tool. I suppose I use the word “tool” liberally. I’ve talked before about embracing the word, Dyke. I’ve also talked about my love affair with duct tape. It seemed natural to bring the two together. However, as much as I love dyke tape, it has not served me well over the last couple of weeks!
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As I start wrapping everything up here in Forks in anticipation of retirement, I tried to expand the use of my beloved dyke tape. Packing up and taking care of everything presents numerous opportunities. Last weekend I had two epic fails and went out to the internet to seek sage advice from my Facebook peeps who are so helpful.
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First, my bathtub plug was not working to be able to fill my tub with bleach so I could make a dent in the stain I never found a way to get rid of in two years. I decided to wrap my tub screen in dyke tape. I need the screen to trap all the hair I shed. I figured with just a little extra assistance maybe I could prevent the tub from draining. Nope. It did not work. I know, I know, y’all are questioning my level of intelligence right about now. Using dyke tape for anything related to plumbing is a bit fat no.
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Then I started feeling my air mattress drain more quickly than usual and listened for the telltale noise I was dreading….psshhhhh. Not one, but two holes made themselves known. I have no friggin idea where they came from because my cat, Nico, had traveled back to Moses Lake with my wife the weekend prior to my mad dash at fixing everything. Honestly, I didn’t really think the dyke tape would work, but it was what I had and I was too lazy to make the trek outside in the pouring rain. Which, for the record is not an excuse because the hardware store is literally less than two blocks away. Digging inside my closet, I found the patch kits that came with the mattress and after two tries, holes were sufficiently patched.
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So…what have I found as the most important use for my beloved dyke tape as I make my final preparations? Securing the corners of those lidded paper boxes I’ve gathered from work. On occasion, the glue on the edges comes apart and creates a very flimsy box. My dyke tape works perfectly to create a very sturdy box!
I’m on a serious countdown. Twenty-eight days, but who’s counting? Oh, right, I am! Over the next few weeks, I’m sure I’ll find other uses for my beloved dyke tape. Because with a name like that, I must make it the most valuable tool in my dyke toolbox!
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I don’t think I’ll bundle any of my books with dyke tape because that would ruin their beautiful covers. If you want to check any of them out, especially Compound Interest the latest in the Asset Management/Book Addict double series, click the links below. And…please don’t forget that by purchasing Compound Interest every dime goes to these two charities: It Gets Better and The Trevor Project. Please consider getting a great book and contributing to charities that support LGBTQ+ youth.
Buy On Amazon
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Buy On Amazon Australia
The Combined Series!
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Love Forever Live Forever
Artist Free Zone
The Thanksgiving Baby Caper
The Book Addict
The Book Witch
Compound Interest
On Sale!
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Locked Inside (Goldie Winner)
Out of This World
Asset Management
The Organization
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December 6, 2019
Lesbian Communes for Mature Adults
The other day I was talking with my brother in law and sister on how best to help my father who is starting to need a lot more support to live independently. Of course, for us, the logical conclusion is for him to sell his home and move into an assisted living facility. He does not share our conclusion. It’s perplexing to me why someone would not want to live in a place where there is a lot more social interaction and people help you out with tasks that are frankly less important as one gets older, like cleaning!
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I must be missing something because when I told my wife I’d love to find a lesbian or women only assisted living facility for when we need a bit of assistance, her reaction was not what I expected. Like my father, she was not amenable to that plan. Her exact words were: “Thow me off a cliff.”
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Let me be clear, I was not suggesting a depressing, unpleasant aroma nursing home. I was talking about hanging out with friends in my old age, ogling hot women on TV, starting a book club for lesbian or WLW erotica, drinking bloody marys and acting out (because at that age people don’t expect you to be tactful).
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Here’s the thing…I’ve discovered there is a stigma attached to not only long term care facilities, but to assisted living as well. I believe the message is that life is coming to a close more quickly than we might be ready for. Obviously, I don’t share that perspective. I can’t wait to evolve to that stage where I can legitimately pay for someone to take care of shit I don’t want to take care of!
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That got me to thinking, where would we go? Because the last thing I want to do is live amongst smelly old men. I want to hang out with my buds. So…if I can’t find a place for me and my wife when the times comes, I think I might have to rope a bunch of friends into creating a place for us to retire to. I’d call it the Mature Ladies Lesbian Commune. And…anything goes because we earned the right to do whatever the hell we please. Run around naked. Sure. Make raucous jokes. You bet. Ogle those who help us out and happen to be young and beautiful. Respectfully, sure! Drink like alcoholics. Why not. Eat til I pop. Yup.
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In preparation, I’ve done some research and there is even a place in Washington state! It’s called Discovery Bay Resort. It’s not too far from where I currently live, but it is not assisted living and kind of defeats the purpose of finding a place where assistance is available. I sent the link to my wife and her response was, didn’t I want to live somewhere warm. Well, that was a good point. There are many places in the warmer climates, but those states are not as liberal as Washington. Maybe by the time we’re ready to move there, they’ll move in a more liberal direction. I found this great article on the top 15 places to be old and gay: https://www.senioradvice.com/articles/Top-15-LGBT-Friendly-Senior-Living-Communities-in-the-US
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No matter where we land when the times comes for us to get a little more help to care for ourselves, I’ll be sure to continue writing! Ironically, the choices I’ve made regarding the charities I choose to support are those that help LGBTQ+ youth. As a reminder, my second book published by Stone Soup Community Press, Compound Interest, supports: The Trevor Project and It Gets Better. Since 100% of the proceeds go to those reputable charities, I sincerely hope you choose to buy the book and help out. If you want to check out any of my books, you know the drill….click the links below.
Buy On Amazon
Buy On Amazon UK
Buy On Amazon Australia
The Combined Series!
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Love Forever Live Forever
Artist Free Zone
The Thanksgiving Baby Caper
The Book Addict
The Book Witch
Compound Interest
On Sale!
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November 29, 2019
Giving Tuesday
I’m embarrassed to admit that until Darla, the Executive Director of Stone Soup Community Press mentioned Compound Interest would be released on Giving Tuesday, I’d never heard of it. Sure, I knew about the commercial days, Black Friday and Cyber Monday. I’ve even provided a bit of history in a previous blog on Black Friday. There might have been a bit of derision in my blog because, to be honest, I stay well clear of the stores on that day. I don’t shop on Cyber Monday either. There is something a little wrong to me about all the commercial hype around Christmas. I admit I don’t like it one bit.
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So why wouldn’t I know about a day that I can totally get behind? I wanted to know the answer to that question and of course, I did a little research. Giving Tuesday is a relatively new phenomenon, started in 2012. It began small and simple. The intent was to declare a day for people to do good and has evolved into a global movement. New York’s 92nd Street Y partnership with the United Nations Foundation started this wonderful day and it has the support of some heavyweights such as The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Microsoft, Ford Foundation, PayPal, The Rockefeller Foundation, and a few others. Last year 400+ million was raised with 3.6 Million in online gifts and 14.2 Billion Social Media Impressions. That’s impressive.
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I’m not sure if my little book will contribute a great deal to the global effort, but every little bit helps. As I’ve shared before, I am very proud of the final chapter in the combined Asset Management, Book Addict double series. I can’t think of a better book to have 100% of the proceeds go to charity. Once again, the charities I’ve chosen will help the two charities supporting LGBTQ+ youth: The Trevor Project and It Gets Better.
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I read an article recently that life expectancy in the U.S. has gone down for the third year in a row and some of the startling reasons include suicide, depression and drug abuse. When we look at the statistic for LBGTQ+ youth, they are especially hard hit in these areas and the tragedy of losing our youth at an early age is only getting worse, not better. I’ve shared some of the statistics in previous blogs about the greater risks to LGBTQ+ youth. As a reminder, the stats indicate suicide risk anywhere from 3-6 times more likely, depending on the category of LBGTQ youth.
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I do hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday and in closing, I hope you will consider doing something for Giving Tuesday. It certainly does not have to be purchasing my book, but I must admit I would love that. Regardless, think of contributing to something you have a passion for. For anyone who wants a small amount to go to one of the two charities that I’ve chosen, but cannot afford to purchase the book, send me an e-mail or private message and I will purchase the book for you and send it along. I am that committed to doing my small part. Speaking of budgets, today brings some huge sales and great deals on books in the series to help y’all prepare for Compound Interest. Check the links below!
The Combined Series!
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Love Forever Live Forever
Artist Free Zone
The Thanksgiving Baby Caper
The Book Addict
The Book Witch
Compound Interest
On Sale!
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November 22, 2019
Butches in Toolbelts
I like to think I’m handy with a tool. I love fixing things. I was the “fix it” person in our family for as long as I can remember. My father was useless in this realm. Minor repairs were either farmed out to the professionals, or I would notice something amiss and fix it.
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That’s not to say I never barreled ahead and tried to fix something I had no business sticking my impulsive hands into. Clear evidence of this continues as on occasion I feel the spark when I don’t turn off the electric before meddling. Or, when I put a chair on a counter while trying to attach a new ceiling fan. I tend to involve myself in definite catastrophes that risk the lesbian Goddesses yanking my butch card. I posted about the minor shock I was on the receiving end of last weekend. I do get in trouble when my wife is not around to temper my impulsiveness.
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That got me to thinking about the thousands of books I’ve read over the years, and except for a handful of novels, women in what might be considered “blue-collar” occupations are rare. Arguably, there are a lot of police or firefighters in lesbian romance. Some might argue that police or firefighters aren’t high powered occupations, but those dangerous professions are considered sexy and appealing. I’ve been binge-watching Nancy Drew and the sexy little car mechanic was so yummy. I thought, now that’s a character I’d like to see a whole lot more of. But, of course, she’s a side character and Nancy Drew is not lesfic/WLW.
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When there is that sexy butch construction worker, mechanic, bartender, cook, etc., they usually own the business or are the crew chief. Another favorite trope is to connect that sexy butch in a blue color occupation with a rich and powerful woman—the whole Cinderella theme. Honestly, I’ve fallen into that same trap. I made Alex, the sexy butch in Pleasure Workers an undocumented “fix it” person who meets the middle-aged Atlanta socialite and then I had to further uplift her.
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I’ve realized I don’t like this one bit. Where would we be without all those factory workers, housekeepers, cooks, maintenance workers, car mechanics, truckers etc.? Those professions are important and dammit we should be highlighting them in our books. I can absolutely see a sexy butch in any and all those occupations (or someone more feminine). I’m not picky. I simply would like to see more variety in the occupations we choose to highlight in our stories.
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This reminds me of a story I sometimes share to highlight the pride that a person can have in any occupation. The parable of the bricklayers building a cathedral: https://sacredstructures.org/mission/the-story-of-three-bricklayers-a-parable-about-the-power-of-purpose/
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I’m going to make you go to the link above and read the story yourself. Suffice to say, this is about pride in one’s work, no matter what the occupation. Purpose, worthwhile work and making a difference. There is not one single occupation that cannot find all three. Hint: I usually take this story a bit further at the end and add something like: the people will come from far and wide to worship in the most beautiful cathedral ever built. Now that is aligning what the bricklayer does with purpose.
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In the third book in The Trophy Wives Club, one of the main characters is a young bartender. While we did allow one trope to sneak in (age-gap romance with a rich socialite), I would like to ensure this character not fall into the other trap of changing her occupation too drastically and reveling in the pride of being a mixologist who delights her customers.
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There is not one occupation more important than another. I believe this with all my heart. Let’s make those sparse occupations in lesfic/WLW more prevalent and turn them into something sexy. I triple dog dare you. Maybe I will shake things up with a kind and loving hospital environmental services aide who meets a sexy car mechanic. If you want to see the many and varied occupations of my leads, you know the drill click on the links below.
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November 15, 2019
Exploding Eggs Standard
Last weekend I finally had the whole weekend to kick back and tuck into a good book (or rather four). I wasn’t writing anything because I am protesting NANO. Every November I push back against the pressure of having to write an entire book in a month. Sure, I’ve done that before, but I don’t do well with outside expectations or pressures. I am hard enough on myself without a well-known event to live up to. But, this blog is not about my infantile campaign against something that the writing community generally embraces.
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Instead, I wanted to talk a little more about my new rating system for books. You see, my wife left a carton of eggs when she was up visiting the prior weekend and I decided I’d boil a few for deviled eggs. I was so engrossed in Carrie Carr’s re-release of Destiny’s Bridge (a re-read for me), that when the first loud pop occurred, I didn’t know what the hell was happening. At first, I thought somebody was outside doing God knows what and then I heard the next loud pop and the lightbulb went off. Oh shit, the boiled eggs.
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That got me to thinking. What if we discarded the whole star system and instead went to a new rating system for books. Perhaps it would go something like this:
Phone rings, see it’s a telemarketer, eagerly takes the call.
The wife asks a question and I actually lift my eyes from my book and answer. Continuing to have an in-depth conversation about planning our RV trip.
The bar patrons start cheering as the Seahawks make a touchdown and I cheer with them before returning to my book.
I grab my iPad and run to the bathroom barely making it to the toilet to pee as I continue to read my book.
Let the water boil completely out of the pot, burn my eggs, ruin my pot and feel intense irritation that I have to deal with the mess. It does not stop me from reading while cleaning up the mess.
Now, of course, the above ratings are quite verbose, so let’s shorten them to:
Telemarketer distraction
Question from wife
Football game
Read and pee
Burnt eggs
Personally, I think my rating system has more flair. Do you think Amazon would want to adopt this new rating system? How about Goodreads? What is your rating system?
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I can only hope that people who read my books are burning their eggs or reading and peeing. That would certainly send my heart soaring. If you dare to risk setting your residence on fire, you know the drill, click on the links below to get a few of my books. I hear they can be page-turners!
[image error]Pre-order Compound Interest
[image error] Read 1st Chapter Here
Pleasure Workers – Affinity Site
Pleasure Workers – Amazon Australia
Pleasure Workers – Amazon Canada
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A Window to Love on Amazon Australia
A Window to Love through Affinity Rainbow Publications
Join Mailing List
Amazon Author Page
Proud to be an Affinity Rainbow Publications author!
On Kindle Unlimited
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Artist Free Zone (All Proceeds go to charities)
On Sale
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November 8, 2019
Me Too…
The other day I was commenting on a lesfic book that I very much enjoyed. I added to the conversation by agreeing with the person who originally posted how much they liked the book. My response was, “me too”. That got me to thinking about the “Me Too” movement. I thought about not wanting to take anything away from the historic times we live in and the achievement of a strong voice for women (finally) and I wondered what this meant for all those times when a “me too” affirmation was directed at something positive?
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I distinctly remember as a kid often using those exact words when I wanted to join in the fun. I can envision Horshack from that TV show, Welcome Back Kotter, thrusting his hand in the air and saying, “ooh, ooh, ooh.” This was a different version of me as a child thrusting my hand in the air and saying, “me too.” Yup, I was a total nerd. A female Horshack, same gesture, different words.
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Perhaps I need to change my affirmations to something like, “what she said” or “yup”. How about, “mmhmm a big heaping spoon of give me some of that?” At least one or two of them seem popular today and won’t in any way water down the words adopted by the “Me Too” movement.
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Adopting those two words was very powerful and caught on faster than a brush fire. I do worry that continuing to use those words in a positive manner will somehow be seen as insensitive or inappropriate. Do I get a pass because I’m a woman? How about if I could legitimately say, “me too” in reference to feeling harassment in the past? Would this be considered some kind of cultural appropriation?
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Everything is so political these days I often wonder about how easy it is for people to step into a big pile of poop and not even know they’ve done it? I’m not joking, I honestly think about these things because my questions, jokes, and observations are not meant to offend. They are meant to make people reflect on various issues, political and cultural.
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Apparently, I love this short phrase because I found it in every single book I’ve written, but two. One of those books, Free to Love, was set in the 1790s, so no big surprise there because I doubt that phrase was popular back then. I’m sure it is simply dumb luck that I didn’t use the phrase in Captivated. This tells me if I need to lose this phrase for exclaiming that I agree, would love to participate in a fun event, or consume a certain food or beverage being offered, it’s going to be a challenge for me.
Ah, the written or spoken word is such a conundrum sometimes. What do y’all think? If you want to see all the uses for the, “me too” phrase in my books, you know the drill.
[image error]Pre-order Compound Interest
[image error] Read 1st Chapter Here
Pleasure Workers – Affinity Site
Pleasure Workers – Amazon Australia
Pleasure Workers – Amazon Canada
[image error]
A Window to Love on Amazon Australia
A Window to Love through Affinity Rainbow Publications
Join Mailing List
Amazon Author Page
Proud to be an Affinity Rainbow Publications author!
On Kindle Unlimited
[image error] [image error]
Artist Free Zone (All Proceeds go to charities)
On Sale
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