Camy Tang's Blog, page 131
May 10, 2012
The Expositor’s Bible Commentary
One great resource my friend Dineen Miller told me about is the Expositor’s Bible Commentary (abridged) that’s available as an e-resource on the Olive Tree Bible software app. It’s originally a hardcover book from Zondervan that’s an abridged version of the 12 volume set.(All I can say is, thank goodness it’s abridged. I could not handle a 12 volume commentary set. I am just not that smart.)
So anyway, when I’m reading my Olive Tree Bible (I’m using TNIV) with a split screen with the Commentary on the other side of the screen, it syncs the verses of the Bible Commentary with the verses I’m reading, which is really cool.
Right now I’m in Jephaniah which has always confused me when I read it before, but this time, thanks to the Commentary, I now understand the historical and political setting of the book of Jephaniah and some of the meanings behind the prophecies. It’s so awesome!
If you are looking for a commentary that won’t feel like slogging through academic pea soup, this is a really great one. I’ve been enjoying using it so far.
If you don’t use the Olive Tree Bible Software app, you can also order the Expositor’s Bible Commentary (abridged version) in a two hardcover volume set at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Christianbook.com. I’m not entirely sure, but I think this is the same as the Zondervan NIV Bible Commentary, which is available (used) in two volumes as Old and New Testament on Amazon, and Old and New Testament on BarnesandNoble.com.
May 9, 2012
Olive Tree Bible software app
I discovered the Olive Tree Bible app for iPad and iPhone thanks to my agent, Wendy Lawton, and ever since I got it, I’ve absolutely LOVED it for my Bible reading. (It’s available for PC and Android, too.)I can take notes and they can be as wordy as I want since it’s electronic and the notes are stored next to the verse as a little icon I can click to read it. I can also highlight in five or six different colors.
It’s especially helpful for church, because when I’m listening to the sermon, if I want to take notes on the pastor’s message, I can take notes directly in my Olive Tree Bible. Whenever I took notes before, there wasn’t space in the margins in my regular Bible, and if I took notes on the worship service program, I would never transfer the notes to my Bible later or do anything with them.
What’s even cooler is that you can have several different translations of the Bible. For example, I have both NIV and TNIV. It’s really fast to switch. I’ll usually use NIV for youth group but I like TNIV for my daily Bible reading.
And here’s something neat: when I take notes in one translation or highlight a verse, and then switch to another, the notes icon and the highlights transfer over to the other translation (as long as I “anchor” the note to an entire verse and not a single word in the text). So no matter which translation I use, I have my notes and highlights already transferred over.
Olive Tree has a very robust search engine that I use whenever I need to search the Bible for a verse. I’ve used it a lot for when I’m writing and need to look up verses for my manuscript.
You can also split the screen and upload other books like commentaries and maps or other translations of the Bible and the app will sync the verses of the two books to each other, so if I’m reading Job 1:1, and I have a commentary open on the other side of the split screen, the commentary will be on Job 1:1.
So anyway, I’ve probably gushed enough about this, but I have to say that this software app has really enhanced my Bible reading and made it absolutely fantastic. I’ve never been so into the Word of God.
A page from Stalker in the Shadows
In case you haven’t read it yet, here’s a page from the book to whet your appetite. I absolutely love Shaun O’Neill--I modeled him after actor Karl Urban except with very blue eyes and blond short hair. (photo from Flixster.com)From the back cover:
"Consider this a warning."
Lately, nurse Monica Grant feels she's being watched. Followed. And then she receives a threatening letter—accompanied by a dead snake. If she doesn't stop her plans to open a free children's clinic, she'll end up dead, too. Terrified, Monica turns to former lawman Shaun O'Neill—who believes the same madman murdered his own sister five years before. She understands how much it means to the handsome, heart-guarding man to save her—and her dream. Even if he has to lure a deadly stalker out of the shadows—straight toward himself.
Excerpt:
Monica nodded, but they were interrupted by a bustling at the front of the restaurant as her aunt, Becca Itoh, hurried into the dining room. Several of the other customers looked up at the disturbance she created in her panic, but Detective Carter rose to his feet and gave Becca a hard, meaningful look and a subtle gesture with his hand. Becca’s gaze flitted around the dining room, then she walked calmly to join them at their table.
“Are you all right?” She gave Monica a hug.
Monica’s hand grasping her aunt’s shoulder clenched once, then relaxed. “I’m fine.”
While she explained what had happened, it gave Shaun an opportunity to study her. She tucked her long, wavy hair behind her ear when she concentrated on something, and her clear eyes seemed to glitter like golden gemstones, framed by her dark lashes.
He could tell that she was aware he was staring at her, but her gaze didn’t waver from her aunt’s face even an inch.
When their gazes had met earlier, his attraction for her had hit him like a train wreck. It was still the same today as it was when they’d first met years ago. Then, there had been an ardent fire in her eyes which she hid behind a cool demeanor. Holding him at arm’s length, like he had Ebola or something.
Today, she’d again tried to be cool when he first came up to her, but for a moment during their brief conversation, before he’d angered her, he’d seen a flash of warmth in her amber eyes, a softening of her mouth. It somehow soothed him in a deep place inside.
He had been confused, so of course he opened his big, fat mouth and ruined everything by getting into an argument with her about Phillip Bromley.
It was for the best. He would be stupid to get involved with a woman like Monica Grant. Any woman, actually. All the women in his life ended up dead.
He hadn’t taken care of Clare well enough. He hadn’t been able to save those illegal immigrants who had been killed by the coyote at the border.
He felt like he’d failed all the people in his life he was supposed to protect, and he wasn’t about to let another one in.
She might end up dead, too.
But sitting here, looking at her, it was hard for him to remind himself that she was better off without him. As he studied the curves of her face, the color of her lips, he had to admit that she was even more magnetic than when he’d last seen her.
“Clare never found out who the stalker was?” Becca asked Shaun, drawing his attention from the glossy dark waves of Monica’s hair.
“He never met her face to face. She kept trying to find out who he was so she could issue a restraining order on him. She tried backtracking the packages he sent her, but couldn’t come up with any proof of who it was.”
He glanced at Monica and resolved to speak privately to the detective about his suspicions. No need to alarm her, but he had to give the police everything he knew so this guy wouldn’t slip away between their fingers. That frustration nagged and ate at him like an ulcer.
Before, after his sister’s death, he’d done too little, too late. Clare was already gone, but he’d been driven to find her killer. And then what would he do when he found him? Shaun had never had to answer that question.
Until now. Because if this were the same man, here was a chance for Shaun to catch him.He hadn’t yet turned in his application for the Sonoma police department. He hadn’t quite understood why he’d been dragging his heels, but now he was glad because it gave him time to investigate Monica’s letter-writer—assuming the stalker followed the same pattern as he did before.
The man had already taken his sister’s life, and maybe others in the years since her death. He had to stop him from terrorizing any more young women.
He knew who it was. And this time, he wouldn’t let him get away with it.
Buying books online late at night
I just noticed this last week when I splurged and bought a bunch of Elizabeth Ford novels: most of the time, my book buying is online late at night. Literally in the early morning hours, after Captain Caffeine has already gone to bed.
Why is that?
Is there something in the night air that induces a book-buying sickness of the mind? Are my money-spending inhibitions down when I’m tired? Is there something about Captain Caffeine’s snoring that helps me remember the books I want to buy?
I know it has nothing to do with my husband not knowing what I’m doing because I could easily buy those books while he’s at work and he’d still be uninformed. :) Although, in the interests of full disclosure, I do tell him if I’ve spent more than $50 on books.
When do you tend to buy your books?
Why is that?
Is there something in the night air that induces a book-buying sickness of the mind? Are my money-spending inhibitions down when I’m tired? Is there something about Captain Caffeine’s snoring that helps me remember the books I want to buy?
I know it has nothing to do with my husband not knowing what I’m doing because I could easily buy those books while he’s at work and he’d still be uninformed. :) Although, in the interests of full disclosure, I do tell him if I’ve spent more than $50 on books.
When do you tend to buy your books?
May 8, 2012
Go green: 25 spring cleaning tips
Two years ago, I was inspired by this article on earth-friendly (and wallet friendly) spring cleaning tips. (Update: I fixed the link)
One thing I hadn’t thought of before is that we have tons of hand towels and small square kitchen towels that never get used. So I put them in a little basket on the kitchen counter and we use them in place of paper towels--to cover food in the microwave, wiping down the counter or floors, etc. When they’re dirty, we put them in a laundry basket out in the garage near the washing machine, and when the basket is full, we wash all the cloths.
We also switched to cloth napkins--we had a few and I bought a set from TJ Maxx for super cheap, and then we happened to get some when Captain Caffeine’s grandmother died and we were cleaning out her house. She happened to have a ton that had never been used, so we took them and use them now. When they’re dirty, they get put in the laundry basket in the garage.
I also found a pattern and knitted a few Swiffer pads from leftover yarn, which I wash and reuse. They’ve actually been better than regular Swiffer pads because they’re textured and scrub better.
I reread the article yesterday and realized that a better way to clean the floor would be to use our own mopping solution, so I’ll write the recipe down so I’ll have it handy next time we clean the floors. We’ve been using a “lavender” scented PineSol solution that smells horribly strong and nothing like lavender.
What are some “green” cleaning tips that you have?
One thing I hadn’t thought of before is that we have tons of hand towels and small square kitchen towels that never get used. So I put them in a little basket on the kitchen counter and we use them in place of paper towels--to cover food in the microwave, wiping down the counter or floors, etc. When they’re dirty, we put them in a laundry basket out in the garage near the washing machine, and when the basket is full, we wash all the cloths.
We also switched to cloth napkins--we had a few and I bought a set from TJ Maxx for super cheap, and then we happened to get some when Captain Caffeine’s grandmother died and we were cleaning out her house. She happened to have a ton that had never been used, so we took them and use them now. When they’re dirty, they get put in the laundry basket in the garage.
I also found a pattern and knitted a few Swiffer pads from leftover yarn, which I wash and reuse. They’ve actually been better than regular Swiffer pads because they’re textured and scrub better.
I reread the article yesterday and realized that a better way to clean the floor would be to use our own mopping solution, so I’ll write the recipe down so I’ll have it handy next time we clean the floors. We’ve been using a “lavender” scented PineSol solution that smells horribly strong and nothing like lavender.
What are some “green” cleaning tips that you have?
T.L. Higley's Great Book Giveaway
Check out this cool offer from author T.L. Higley! She has a goal to give away 5000 of her backlist books!
An arrangement with her publisher has allowed her to acquire a number of her past titles to give away to Book Bloggers, Homeschoolers, Church Libraries and other organizations. If you’re interested, check out her page here: The Great Book Giveaway
Thrift store junkie
My To Be Read pile is as mountainous as it is mostly because of thrift stores.I haven’t had as much time to do this lately, but I love going into thrift stores like Goodwill and Salvation Army and perusing their book section, looking for Regency romances.
I especially look for the mass market paperback novels of the category Regency romances that used to be printed years ago by Harlequin, Zebra, Fawcett, and Signet. They typically have pretty recognizable spines.
I can spend a good hour looking for Regencies at a thrift store if they have a good book section. After a while, I had to take with me a list of the books I already have (titles and authors) so that I don’t get duplicates.
I have not had as much luck at garage sales. Whenever I did the round of sales in my area, there weren’t many boxes of Regency romances--there were usually other genres instead. :(
I also did buy some boxes of books on eBay where the sellers would auction off a huge box of Regencies, but after a while I didn’t like that too much because there were usually books in the box that I already had.
My TBR pile of print books (let’s not even go into my TBR list of ebooks!) is almost entirely Regency romances I bought from thrift stores. I’m slowly going through them and donating back any book that I don’t want to keep, but I’m thoroughly enjoying having such a huge pool of titles to choose from whenever I’m hankering after a Regency!
I know some of you do the same thing, right??? Confess! And, er, give me any tips you might have. :)
Thrift store junkies unite!
May 7, 2012
The complicated relationship between me and sugar
Okay, so it’s not really complicated, it’s quite straightforward. I love sugar. My bum does not.
Since I got back on SparkPeople.com I’ve been watching my carb and sugar intake more. I’m not depriving myself, but I’m trying to stay near the low end of the range that SparkPeople has given to me.
One thing I’m really striving to do is be more mindful of my food as I eat it, taking the time to taste and enjoy my food as described in the book French Women Don’t Get Fat , and that has made my carb intake very deliberate. When I eat a biscuit with my tea, I’m taking the time to taste it and enjoy it more.
What I’ve discovered is that I’ve been eating less carbs and not really noticing the change in my diet or feeling deprived. Instead of eating 2-3 biscuits with tea, I eat one or maybe one and a half, slowly in smaller pieces, enjoying the taste as I eat it, and I honestly don’t feel disgruntled at all that it’s less than I typically ate only 3 weeks ago.
One thing I did last night that surprised me:
I got a new cookie, Cinnamon Sugar Spice made by LU Biscuits, and while it’s good, it’s much sweeter than the McVitie’s Rich Tea biscuits and Digestive biscuits I’ve been eating with my tea. So instead of adding honey to my tea like I usually do, I drank my tea without sweetener and ate my cinnamon cookie. The extra sweetness of the cookie made up for the lack of honey in the tea and I was perfectly happy about it.
I think that a few weeks ago, I would have added honey to my tea and eaten the cinnamon cookie, and I wouldn’t have thought that the combo was too sweet. But now that I’ve been decreasing my carb intake each day and being more mindful of what I’m eating as I eat it, I was able to adjust my teatime snack because I could tell that the extra sugar was too much.
I know this might sound kind of stupid, but I really feel proud of myself for doing the adjustment. I don’t know if this will help anyone else trying to eat healthily, but I’m going to continue to try to monitor what I’m eating so I can make these small adjustments and learn to eat healthier. Every little bit counts, right?
Since I got back on SparkPeople.com I’ve been watching my carb and sugar intake more. I’m not depriving myself, but I’m trying to stay near the low end of the range that SparkPeople has given to me.
One thing I’m really striving to do is be more mindful of my food as I eat it, taking the time to taste and enjoy my food as described in the book French Women Don’t Get Fat , and that has made my carb intake very deliberate. When I eat a biscuit with my tea, I’m taking the time to taste it and enjoy it more.
What I’ve discovered is that I’ve been eating less carbs and not really noticing the change in my diet or feeling deprived. Instead of eating 2-3 biscuits with tea, I eat one or maybe one and a half, slowly in smaller pieces, enjoying the taste as I eat it, and I honestly don’t feel disgruntled at all that it’s less than I typically ate only 3 weeks ago.
One thing I did last night that surprised me:
I got a new cookie, Cinnamon Sugar Spice made by LU Biscuits, and while it’s good, it’s much sweeter than the McVitie’s Rich Tea biscuits and Digestive biscuits I’ve been eating with my tea. So instead of adding honey to my tea like I usually do, I drank my tea without sweetener and ate my cinnamon cookie. The extra sweetness of the cookie made up for the lack of honey in the tea and I was perfectly happy about it.
I think that a few weeks ago, I would have added honey to my tea and eaten the cinnamon cookie, and I wouldn’t have thought that the combo was too sweet. But now that I’ve been decreasing my carb intake each day and being more mindful of what I’m eating as I eat it, I was able to adjust my teatime snack because I could tell that the extra sugar was too much.
I know this might sound kind of stupid, but I really feel proud of myself for doing the adjustment. I don’t know if this will help anyone else trying to eat healthily, but I’m going to continue to try to monitor what I’m eating so I can make these small adjustments and learn to eat healthier. Every little bit counts, right?
Author Lacy Williams’ birthday bash and bonus extras from Stalker in the Shadows
Author Lacy Williams is celebrating her birthday and the release of a new book this month, and she is giving away birthday gifts to readers, including free ebooks, bonus scenes, extended excerpts and free books from some of your favorite authors!I’m giving away the ORIGINAL first chapters of my Love Inspired Suspense, Stalker in the Shadows! These are the chapters I first submitted to my editor, but she asked me to nix them and start the story with a bit more suspense. So while these original chapters aren’t as creepy as the published chapters, they’re the original first sizzling meeting between my hero and heroine. Those of you who have read Stalker in the Shadows will get an especially neat kick out of these chapters, but I won’t say why. :)
Participating authors include:
Regina Jennings
Camy Tang
Jordyn Redwood
Angela Breidenbach
Margaret Daley
Lena Nelson Dooley
Myra Johnson
MaryLu Tyndall
Vickie McDonough
Visit www.megamaybirthdaybash.com for details and to get your gifts now!
Avengers movie
Who’s seen it? I totally want to goooooo!!!!!!!!!!
