K.B. Pellegrino's Blog, page 15
January 31, 2020
Diversity...Ugh!
Tomorrow I visit Worcester Polytechnic Institute as the site for my in-class, biannual educational requirement for my MA Construction Supervisor's license. Today I finished part two of the at-home computer portion. Add to this the 37 hours of CE credits I've completed for my bi-annual 80 hours for renewal of my CPA license and you wonder why I am tired.
Not just tired but confused as my brain adjusts from technical requirements to the free flow of imagination as I write my murder mysteries and imagine my characters' lives and plot and plot and plot.
Add to this my family life which includes many, oh so many and my recreational life with friends and you won't have to wonder why diversity in thought and action may create some stress; why I am tired sometimes.
My life is not unlike many of yours as you wonder, "How did I get wrapped up in so much work and required action? When am I to experience more periods of rest and recuperation?"
If I were to face the truth, I did this all to myself. I have made choices and there are ramifications for every choice made; often the results extend throughout our lives. I do not regret my choices. I wish life were longer and I could make more choices. I live the life I chose and hope you were able to make some good choices too.
K. B. Pellegrino
Not just tired but confused as my brain adjusts from technical requirements to the free flow of imagination as I write my murder mysteries and imagine my characters' lives and plot and plot and plot.
Add to this my family life which includes many, oh so many and my recreational life with friends and you won't have to wonder why diversity in thought and action may create some stress; why I am tired sometimes.
My life is not unlike many of yours as you wonder, "How did I get wrapped up in so much work and required action? When am I to experience more periods of rest and recuperation?"
If I were to face the truth, I did this all to myself. I have made choices and there are ramifications for every choice made; often the results extend throughout our lives. I do not regret my choices. I wish life were longer and I could make more choices. I live the life I chose and hope you were able to make some good choices too.
K. B. Pellegrino
January 7, 2020
Announcing the Winners of my Holiday Giveaway!
I would like to send a big thank you to everyone who participated in my 2019 Holiday Giveaway contest and helped make it a success!
And a special congratulations to the winners of an autographed copy of my new book
Him, Me, and Paulie: Murder, Drugs and Undercover.
Our winners have been notified by email.
Congratulations Robert, Debi, Vicki, Annmarie, and Elizabeth!
The post Announcing...
January 4, 2020
Weddings
I am an author, an engineer, a professor, a CPA, a licensed construction supervisor in MA, a MA Justice of the Peace, a wife, mother, grandmother, sister, sister-in-law, and friend. In addition to these titles, I observe nature and culture; in fact, I live for the opportunity to observe. Today, I'll talk about culture.
In my living room an hour ago, I married a young couple in an intimate but loving ceremony. Their trust in each other inspired me to think about weddings I have attended, officiated, or read about. What makes a wedding beautiful? Is it size, venue with a gorgeous setting, great food and drink, number of guests, importance of the family? No. Not for me. What makes a wedding truly special is the relationship between the bride and groom. Do they trust each other? Are they able to handle the conflicts of the emotions of the wedding day such as those presented by family, friends, and vendors related to the production of the event? Have they looked beyond the magic moment to consider the long days after when they will need to show kindness, consideration. and love despite being faced with the stresses of everyday life.
I have been reading stories from diaries about wartime marriages. Revealing in them is the couple's acceptance of limited resources for the celebration; their understanding their lives may be limited by death of one of them going to battle; and their insisting on chancing the unknown future. How I wish to discover the end story. The diaries don't tell.
It's like in all our lives, judgments are made and fate takes us on a trip. One thing I do know is that marriage is successful when two people respect each other and their desires and needs over time and against cultural pushes and drags. It seems to me trust in another is the essential I like to see operational by a couple on their wedding day; nothing else is as important.
K. B. Pellegrino, author
In my living room an hour ago, I married a young couple in an intimate but loving ceremony. Their trust in each other inspired me to think about weddings I have attended, officiated, or read about. What makes a wedding beautiful? Is it size, venue with a gorgeous setting, great food and drink, number of guests, importance of the family? No. Not for me. What makes a wedding truly special is the relationship between the bride and groom. Do they trust each other? Are they able to handle the conflicts of the emotions of the wedding day such as those presented by family, friends, and vendors related to the production of the event? Have they looked beyond the magic moment to consider the long days after when they will need to show kindness, consideration. and love despite being faced with the stresses of everyday life.
I have been reading stories from diaries about wartime marriages. Revealing in them is the couple's acceptance of limited resources for the celebration; their understanding their lives may be limited by death of one of them going to battle; and their insisting on chancing the unknown future. How I wish to discover the end story. The diaries don't tell.
It's like in all our lives, judgments are made and fate takes us on a trip. One thing I do know is that marriage is successful when two people respect each other and their desires and needs over time and against cultural pushes and drags. It seems to me trust in another is the essential I like to see operational by a couple on their wedding day; nothing else is as important.
K. B. Pellegrino, author
December 27, 2019
Castles in the Air
I write fiction. I write murder mystery fiction. I draw on the world around me to write fiction. A very small part of that world began when I, as a child, read "Grimms'' Fairy Tales.' I so dreamed dreams. I believed in Castles in the Air. I believed in Princes and Princesses who were good and destined to be saved by fairies and godmothers. These stories allowed me to fantasize. The settings of these stories were other worldly to me although in reality, their settings were only a continent away.
Slowly, I entered the reality of everyday living with responsibilities which included rising early in the day; studying or working; offering to help before being required to assist; noticing how some others struggled; realizing I was luckier than many in my life; and understanding fairy tales are fiction.
Simultaneous to reading fairy tales, I read murder mysteries called then, 'Who dunnits.'
My new heroes were not princes or godmothers or fairies. They were rough detectives or pretty detectives or police captains. I've read over two thousand murder mystery novels over the years; some bordered on non-fiction while others bordered on fantasy. I most loved the ones with serious plotting involving clues to build on in order to discover the culprit or Perp or murderer.
Reading these 'Who dunnits' allow my brain to rest from my real life. They allow me to plot with no risk. They allow me to discover aspects of character without any requirement for me to accept or reject a person. They are my mental R & R. I read. I read every day. I need the balance.
K. B. Pellegrino
Slowly, I entered the reality of everyday living with responsibilities which included rising early in the day; studying or working; offering to help before being required to assist; noticing how some others struggled; realizing I was luckier than many in my life; and understanding fairy tales are fiction.
Simultaneous to reading fairy tales, I read murder mysteries called then, 'Who dunnits.'
My new heroes were not princes or godmothers or fairies. They were rough detectives or pretty detectives or police captains. I've read over two thousand murder mystery novels over the years; some bordered on non-fiction while others bordered on fantasy. I most loved the ones with serious plotting involving clues to build on in order to discover the culprit or Perp or murderer.
Reading these 'Who dunnits' allow my brain to rest from my real life. They allow me to plot with no risk. They allow me to discover aspects of character without any requirement for me to accept or reject a person. They are my mental R & R. I read. I read every day. I need the balance.
K. B. Pellegrino
December 20, 2019
Almost There!
I've been reading the intro to many books this week as I make some final selections. for presents. I have looked beyond my genre of mystery and crime; in fact the season moves me to examine lives of the saints, Christmas traditions around the world, culinary specialties of the seasons and on and on. So little time! So much to read! So many choices!
But when I sit for a few minutes to catch my breath I tend to look for crime plots and the good people whose role is to solve them.
I went to a stellar Irish traditional pairing of food last night with accompanying beverages at the Irish Cultural Center of Western MA. The taste of the oyster stew was particularly satisfying as all four dishes were. Today I will join in the Christmas party at the Line Pub for a construction company. The food there this year will be traditional Italian-American. Each setting in my western Massachusetts area triggers my love of observing people, customs, and celebrations. On Monday, I am invited to a Hanukkah luncheon where I will enjoy one of my favorite dishes, kugel. To recover from all the rich dietary aberrations, tomorrow, I'll chase some soup at Pho Saigon's Vietnamese Restaurant.
All of this is in preparation for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. On Christmas day, my hosts, Joey and Janet, are having a traditional English dinner of roast beef with all the sides for 54 guests comprised of family and friends.
I have not forgotten the focus of the day; Bethlehem in an impoverished setting where my King was born. How do we fit all the pieces of our living puzzle together with the historic setting of our faith? It is a mystery we must solve and I do: Faith.
My love to you all.
K. B. Pellegrino, Author
But when I sit for a few minutes to catch my breath I tend to look for crime plots and the good people whose role is to solve them.
I went to a stellar Irish traditional pairing of food last night with accompanying beverages at the Irish Cultural Center of Western MA. The taste of the oyster stew was particularly satisfying as all four dishes were. Today I will join in the Christmas party at the Line Pub for a construction company. The food there this year will be traditional Italian-American. Each setting in my western Massachusetts area triggers my love of observing people, customs, and celebrations. On Monday, I am invited to a Hanukkah luncheon where I will enjoy one of my favorite dishes, kugel. To recover from all the rich dietary aberrations, tomorrow, I'll chase some soup at Pho Saigon's Vietnamese Restaurant.
All of this is in preparation for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. On Christmas day, my hosts, Joey and Janet, are having a traditional English dinner of roast beef with all the sides for 54 guests comprised of family and friends.
I have not forgotten the focus of the day; Bethlehem in an impoverished setting where my King was born. How do we fit all the pieces of our living puzzle together with the historic setting of our faith? It is a mystery we must solve and I do: Faith.
My love to you all.
K. B. Pellegrino, Author
A Holiday Message to All!
I write all year about sociopaths, psychopaths, normal folks, suburban neighborhoods, cities, murders, police procedures and much more; all in the hope my readers will be entertained by viewing the abnormal, but in fiction, witnessed and solved by the normal. Much like in real life but it, instead, allows the reader the safety of knowing it is not real.
Today I write from reality. Today I wish you and yours a most wondrous holiday season. I also hope you will join my family of readers and...
December 14, 2019
Bart, A Holiday Sage
A Christmas Story by K. B. Pellegrino
Delia stood crying at the transition door from the kitchen to the family room in her home. Her three children were in the next room discussing the truth behind the existence of Santa Claus. She was remembering how she hated when her older boy Jake returned home one day from fourth-grade years ago and announced he no longer believed in the Santa myth. She tried then not to show her distress while wondering how she could change Jake’s mind. It was not to be...
December 12, 2019
Gifting
I have just reread, "The Gift of the Magi" by O'Henry for the second time this season. The beauty of this short story's plot is in the human lesson: giving the best you have to another is the real gift you get while giving. The husband and wife in the story give the best they have resulting in their losing the best they had. Did they lose really? No! They both knew the other's gift was given with great love.
What is the lesson here. I think it is simply, gift with love. I don't want to hear, "She wants this for Christmas and I'm looking for it." I don't mean we should ignore what a person needs or wants. I do think when we are giving gifts, we should give out of love and not out of the material aspects of the gift. Certainly it is not important to give someone what has been explicitly requested. A gift is given with no expectation of return or of its particular value. If it's expected or its material value is expected; I ask you is this really a gift? I think not. Gift with love. Gift with thoughts of the giftee. Do not gift from a sense of obligation. If you do, it's not a gift but fulfillment of some duty.
I ask you to lighten the weight you carry concerning the obligations of the season. This season, of all seasons, asks you to love and value others. Do that and all other gifts pale by comparison. Happy Gifting Season.
K. B. Pellegrino, Author
What is the lesson here. I think it is simply, gift with love. I don't want to hear, "She wants this for Christmas and I'm looking for it." I don't mean we should ignore what a person needs or wants. I do think when we are giving gifts, we should give out of love and not out of the material aspects of the gift. Certainly it is not important to give someone what has been explicitly requested. A gift is given with no expectation of return or of its particular value. If it's expected or its material value is expected; I ask you is this really a gift? I think not. Gift with love. Gift with thoughts of the giftee. Do not gift from a sense of obligation. If you do, it's not a gift but fulfillment of some duty.
I ask you to lighten the weight you carry concerning the obligations of the season. This season, of all seasons, asks you to love and value others. Do that and all other gifts pale by comparison. Happy Gifting Season.
K. B. Pellegrino, Author
December 5, 2019
Reading vs Shopping
Twenty days before Christmas. Twenty days to shop for gifts, write cards, plan menus, deliver gifts, attend holiday parties, do kind deeds. Just twenty days! And no time to read! NOW HEED THIS: “ No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance. ” - Confucius
How can I solve this dilemma? I read the cards for their joyous messages for the season. I buy books for gifts more than I used to and every time I buy a book, I sample at least two chapters, I scour cooking tomes for the simplest recipes while observing complex French dish recipes. I research inspirational holiday messages for cocktail patter for my parties. I listen to books on tape as I deliver my gifts. I read to children when I can capture their attention. I want to ward off the concept of self-chosen ignorance mentioned by Confucius. In other words, I make an additional effort to read. I'm a writer, an author, and in order to continue to write, I must read.
K. B. Pellegrino
How can I solve this dilemma? I read the cards for their joyous messages for the season. I buy books for gifts more than I used to and every time I buy a book, I sample at least two chapters, I scour cooking tomes for the simplest recipes while observing complex French dish recipes. I research inspirational holiday messages for cocktail patter for my parties. I listen to books on tape as I deliver my gifts. I read to children when I can capture their attention. I want to ward off the concept of self-chosen ignorance mentioned by Confucius. In other words, I make an additional effort to read. I'm a writer, an author, and in order to continue to write, I must read.
K. B. Pellegrino
November 29, 2019
Value Added
If we were a product and used the value added concept, does this mean we become more valuable by branding ourselves in a manner of the Kadashians? If we become billionaires, do we have more value? If we are famous as opera singers or movie stars, does our value as humans increase?
What about the unknowns who add value to others lives by volunteering to care for those who can't care for themselves; does that then make them more valuable?
I believe we have reached a point in time when humans are looked on as products and marketing them makes them more or less valuable.
It is a frightening concept. We must argue against it. We may do wonderful things in life, accomplish greatly, become sages for our era, but...but...we have intrinsic value as a human being with no one person more valuable than the other. Do not mix goods and services with human dignity. I give thanks today for all of you and your gifts to the universe.
K. B. Pellegrino
What about the unknowns who add value to others lives by volunteering to care for those who can't care for themselves; does that then make them more valuable?
I believe we have reached a point in time when humans are looked on as products and marketing them makes them more or less valuable.
It is a frightening concept. We must argue against it. We may do wonderful things in life, accomplish greatly, become sages for our era, but...but...we have intrinsic value as a human being with no one person more valuable than the other. Do not mix goods and services with human dignity. I give thanks today for all of you and your gifts to the universe.
K. B. Pellegrino
