Jennifer Bray-Weber's Blog, page 54
April 28, 2015
Link of the Week – Dining Etiquette
Today’s link could be classified as research, if you like. Table manners may just be a lost art. Though I am conscious about my manners, I have caught myself eating with my elbows on the table and, honestly, I have no idea which fork is which. No telling how I stumbled upon this link, but I thought it was informative and handy. Who knew there was a secret code to dining?
Check out this blog post for dining etiquette.
Just for kicks, below is a formal table setting. Your welcome.
April 24, 2015
Friday Fun Facts- The Great State Of Texas!
As my web site proclaims that even though I consider myself a child of the world, I was born in the great state of Texas! My family goes back generations and I’ve fostered a real love for Texas in my children. My daughter, who has been away at college for the last five years, will be finishing her Masters and coming home. Her comment is-“At last, I’m coming back to the Motherland!”
Here are some things you may NOT know.
– Everything really IS��bigger in Texas! It is 268,596 square miles and is the second largest state behind Alaska. We have the largest capitol building and the highest speed limit (85 mph. in some parts), we are also the biggest cattle, cotton and oil producer.
– The term “maverick” was coined by Samuel A. Maverick back in the 1800s. He was a Texan lawyer and a pioneer back in the day.
– That golden statue named Oscar was named for a Texan. His niece worked in Hollywood for the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. When she saw the golden man, she said, “Why, that looks just like my Uncle Oscar.” �� **I promise, I’m not making this up!
– It is illegal to indecently expose or swear in front of a corpse here. Don’t ask me why.
– In Galveston, it is illegal to have a camel run loose on the beach. Huh? Really, don’t ask me why about that either.
– Texas declares it a hanging offense if you steal a man’s cow or put graffiti on it. OK, fine go ahead and ask me why……………..I don’t have a clue.
– The city of Slaughter, Texas has never had a homicide.
– The largest city in Texas is Houston (Ah, home, sweet home) and it’s the fourth largest in the U.S.
– The deadliest U.S. disaster was the great hurricane that hit Galveston in 1900. It killed between 8,000 to 12,000 people.
– We were an independent nation from 1836 to 1845! We were annexed in 1845, but we have permission to fly our flag at the same height of the national flag.
– A fast way for folks to let their family and friends know where they were headed was to leave a type of short hand back in the 19th century. “G.T.T.” meant “Gone To Texas” and it meant they were off to find a better life and greener pastures. These letters were used so often by people, and even the ones on the run from the law, it eventually meant “on the lam.”
April 22, 2015
Hump Day Kick Start – Trophy, Tux, and Tabloid Edition
Hump Day Kick Start ��� for your muse, a writing picture prompt, or just a visual treat.
Today, I have done something sneaky. Yeah…I really can’t be trusted. Not only do I give you a fun prompt, I’m also blatantly asking for your consideration in voting for my book MUTINY OF THE HEART in the 2015 RONE Awards. See how I did that? The prompt has an award in the photo. Clever, huh? Information about voting is at the end of this post.
Bonus points if you know who this fella is.
So who is our prompt? Why is he wearing a tux? Why is he in the pool? Did his superstar girlfriend push him in after seeing a write-up about his clandestine fling with her rival after an awards ceremony? Could he be the debonnaire gentleman who just fished the gorgeous hostess’s golden statue from the water during a poolside soiree? Is he an Aquaman/007 Bond hybrid who drinks coffee instead of martinis? Was there just a really strong gust of wind?
Love to hear your take or “caption this photo”.
Also, if you feel so inclined, I would��love to have your vote in the 2015 InD’tale RONE awards. MUTINY OF THE HEART was reviewed by InD’tale and given 5 stars. Because of that, the book was entered in the RONE contest.��You do have to register to vote. But it’s super easy to do.
I am in the Historical Post Medieval category. It is a large category, and you can vote for two of your favorite books.
http://indtale.com/2015-rone-awards-week-two
Thanks so much for your consideration! *air kisses*
April 21, 2015
Link Of The Week- Do You Speak The Dialect?
I love trivia! I find I incorporate it in my novels too. Interesting trivia lends an air of authority to your subject matter. I’ve found a number of sites dealing with the lingo of specialized groups and I hope you enjoy the 3 I’m sharing today!
A Glossary of American Mountain Men �� �� http://user.xmission.com/~drudy/amm/gloss.html
Australian Slang Dictionary �� �� �� http://www.koalanet.com.au/australian-slang.html
United States Army Airforce Glossary �� �� http://www.warbirdsresourcegroup.org/URG/glossary.html
April 17, 2015
Friday Fun Facts- Trivia On Presidents!
Since politicians are beginning to throw their hat into the ring for the next election, I thought you might enjoy some facts about past presidents. There’s a couple of doozies!
Enjoy-
– George Washington refused his salary while President for awhile, but eventually agreed to take it. He made $25,000 per year. That was a ton of money back then!
– John Adams and Thomas Jefferson were friends, but were very competitive with each other. The story goes that John Adams’ last words were “Thomas Jefferson survives”. What he didn’t know was that Thomas Jefferson died earlier on the same day! (Independence Day 1826)
– Speaking of Thomas Jefferson, he believed that you could prevent coming down with ‘catarrhs’ by soaking your feet in a bucket of cold water. This sickness is also known as the common cold.
– Many of our presidents are fairly tall and rather statuesque. Not so for for James Madison, who only stood 5’4″. He is the shortest president on record.
– To honor James Monroe, a city in Africa took his name. Monrovia is the capital of Liberia.
– SCANDAL ALERT! John Quincy Adams had a fondness for skinny dipping. In the Potomac. In the mornings. (I feel the vapors coming on.)
– Andrew Jackson had a sense of humor. He taught his parrot to cuss and a popular story has said parrot cussing at Jackson’s funeral!
– Who was the first full American president? Martin Van Buren- all the presidents before him were born as British subjects.
– I knew I liked this guy. Abraham Lincoln was a licensed bartender. He was part owner of a saloon in Illinois called Berry and Lincoln.
– Andrew Johnson was a trained tailor. He even made his own suits while in the White House.
– This ranks under the heading- You’ve got to be kidding me! Ulysses S. Grant was given a speeding ticket while riding his horse in Washington D.C. It was for $20.
– William Taft got stuck in his bathtub! He had to call staffers to come help him get out. (I would have died of embarrassment!)
– William Harding had a fondness for gambling. So much so, he lost an expensive set of White House china in a poker game. Hmmmmmmmm
– John F. Kennedy’s own father wrote in a college application to Harvard that his son was careless and lacked application. He still got in.
April 15, 2015
Hump Day Kick Start – Mop Me Up Edition
Hump Day Kick Start ��� for your muse, a writing picture prompt, or just a visual treat.
Suddenly, I have the urge to clean. Or maybe dance. Or whatever it is this yummy treat is doing.
So, tell me about Mr. Clean. Who is he? Who or what is he looking at? Is he a Broadway actor ditching an after-hours��party when he spies the incredibly sexy, down-on-her-luck cleaning girl? Maybe he is practicing a lover’s dance to impress a woman, but all he had at his disposal was a mop. That is, until she walked in. Perhaps he committed a terrible crime��and��he is cleaning up evidence. You tell me.
What���s your take? Or ���caption this photo���.
April 14, 2015
Link Of The Week- Improve Your Writing!
I love poking around the internet to find good places for writers to get valuable, mostly free, stuff. I found this little jewel and plan on working through every article she wrote. The one on deep POV is particularly good and I believe, if you master that tidbit, your writing will shoot through the roof! Hope you enjoy going back to school. :-)
http://jordanmccollum.com/free-writing-guides/
April 10, 2015
Friday Fun Facts- Klu Klux Klan
I’m not sure I would classify these facts as “fun”, but they were interesting to learn. Since I grew up overseas, I had a limited knowledge of this group. My research for this blog post has led me to some interesting places with even more interesting people. Unfortunately, this is not just a historical lesson because the KKK is still alive and well in 41 states and has between 5-8000 members. They call themselves the “Invisible Empire” and are still intolerant of many things. Articles I read state that some of the groups shy away from cross burnings and violence these days, but that element is still evident in many of the chapters. Sigh.
While it’s not a happy topic, it may be a great topic to add to a book. These facts could apply to historicals as well as contemporary novels.
Here goes:
– Dan Burros who was a member of both the American Nazi Party and the KKK committed suicide after he learned his Jewish background was made public. A New York Times article lambasted him as a hypocrite since his heritage was not pure and he spouted such hate. The dilemma then was whether to classify it as suicide or a hate crime.
– Timing is everything. In 1957, a college in Alabama had recently integrated and was in the middle of finals week. The KKK set up a cross burning on campus but didn’t take into account all the students would be in the dorms studying. The kids took up bats, golf clubs and whatever else they had on hand as a makeshift weapon and forced the KKK to retreat!
– The KKK hates Westboro Baptist Church. What?? Don’t they have similar hate points? Why yes they do, except for how they feel about the military. On Memorial Day 2011, members of the Westboro church showed up at a military funeral spouting “Thank God for Dead Soldiers” and members of the KKK showed up handing out American flags. Westboro denounced them for having no moral authority because they were racist and the KKK denounced the church group by saying many soldiers had died for their right to protest. Another big sigh.
– KKK members claim that cross burnings are symbols of their “Christian” faith. How did it get started? Believe it, or not, Sir Walter Scott began the tradition with his poem��The Lady of the Lake��which refers to an old Scottish tradition of burning a cross to call a meeting of the clans. This was most popular in the South probably because there was such a large number of people of Scotch- Irish descent. Sir Walter Scott’s vivid imagery was especially appealing to the novelist Thomas Dixon, who was an avid supporter of the KKK. He added a cross burning scene in his pro-Klan novel,��The Clansman, even though that had never been done. In 1905, the novel was turned into the movie,��The Birth of a Nation, and it inspired the founder of the second Klan to kick off the 1915 revival with the first cross burning service in KKK history.
– Unity barbecues and some casual gatherings are called Klonvocations.
– Literary figures played into creating a part of the Klan’s history with cross burnings, it also had a hand in humiliating it. Superman often fought villains such as Lex Luther, Brainiac and Doomsday. Did you know he also fought the KKK in a serial called��Clan of the Fiery Cross? Instead of the typical bad guys as the enemy of the Man of Steel, this time he battled racism in 1946. The real-life man behind the story infiltrated the KKK and tried to take all he learned to the cops. Either they were too afraid or were a part of the KKK, but nothing was done with his information. So he took it to the producers of the radio show. When the facts of this particular group kept getting played on national radio, the group switched codes etc., but to no avail. They never did figure out how the show knew their secrets!
– We cherish our rights here in America, but those rights extend to people we disagree with as well. The KKK applied, in 1994, to adopt a section of highway in Missouri. The state didn’t want the KKK’s sign on their highways so they turned them down. The KKK sued and won. After the large sign announcing the KKK adopted that stretch of highway went up, the state congress renamed that highway as “Rosa Parks Highway” after the famous civil rights activist. The KKK eventually lost interest in keeping that stretch of road clean and stopped picking up the trash. This allowed the state to take down the sign.
.
April 8, 2015
Hump Day King Start – All Hail the King Edition
Hump Day Kick Start ��� for your muse, a writing picture prompt, or just a visual treat.
I crown thee King of Smolder. All hail King Smolder!
Just so you know, I ��had to crop this pic.
Let’s have some fun with today’s prompt. Step out of the box a wee bit. Who are they? Is he the new king of a dystopian world? Maybe he is the ruler��of a medieval empire. Is she his faithful queen, or toxic mistress? Does she plan to seduce and overthrow him? Could��she whispering in his ear who betrayed him and he is contemplating revenge?
What’s your take? Or “caption this photo”.
April 7, 2015
Link of the Week – Unitag QR – QR Code Generator
Create a custom QR code for your books, website, sales, blog, you name it with Unitag QR! For FREE! Customize it the way you want, too. It’s super easy!
This is a QR code to my swashbuckling romantic adventure MUTINY OF THE HEART on Amazon.
This QR code is to my website.
This QR code is to my website as well, but I’ve added the Jolly Roger.
This one is to my Facebook. So much fun!
And this is to my FREE novella BRING ME THE HORIZON on Barnes & Noble.
Go on…
Play with it. https://www.unitag.io/qrcode
