Julia London's Blog, page 2

Whine-ding Down?!??

Gosh — not fair!! I’ve have been ramping up my whining and we’re slowing down here?! For anyone who hasn’t read my FB posts lately, I’ve been out of work/life recuperating from shoulder surgery for the last 5 weeks. . . and going absolutely stir-crazy! Which, I guess, means that I must be getting better? LOL!

My plans to read the ever-growing pile of TBR books has been moving at a slower pace than I’d planned because it’s hard to hold both paperbacks AND my kindle. I did manage to move my research and keeper collections onto my new bookshelves – one book at a time for a couple of days. I have gotten some sleep but I’m still at war with the %#%*&(#$@#!! CPAP machine after 18 months of use.

I’m almost ready to start typing again — well, the doc said I can do ‘light typing’ – you know, like emails… He has no idea how many emails filled my mailbox each day!  But, writing deadlines might be delayed a bit because of surgery but they are still looming and the story is starting to push forward…

So, as we whine-d things down here, I will say that it’s been an honor to be part of the Whine Sisters even for a short time. Some of my own favorite authors have been part of this group and it’s been fun to be here with them….almost as fun as meeting all the readers who enjoy our stories as much as we enjoy writing them…

I know I’ll see Sherri, Dee, Jacquie, Wendy, Molly, Jenni, Julie and Julia around and I hope that all the readers who have visited us here will come on over to my FB pages and chat! Happy Reading (and Writing) everyone!!

 

 

 

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Highlander’s Dangerous Temptation

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Whine-ding Down

 

NO! Viktor and Rolf’s No Coat expresses how I feel (and looks great for fall, I think I need that). But alas, yes. We’re wrapping up our run here at the Whine Sisters. we started in 2004, with Kathleen Givens, Julia London, and me, Sherri Browning Erwin. And we’ve had a great near-decade with you. Adding Jacquie D’Alessandro, Kathleen O’Reilly, Julie Kenner, Dee Davis. And then along came Terri Brisbin, Wendy Etherington, Molly Harper, and Jenni St. Giles. And we’ve all loved our time whining with you.

But… times have changed. Now we’re all on Facebook and Twitter and Tumblr and Pinterest. Keeping up with a group blog and managing to publish our books (and now more than ever, yes, we are actually in charge of our careers and our fates on the shelves and in your e-readers) is demanding and time runs short. We’re not going to quit you cold turkey. We’ll be here for the next week to say goodbye, and then, on October 8th, we’ll be posting our last.

THANK YOU! Thank you all for coming around and coming back and joining in our crazy good times. Please follow us individually at our websites and on social media sites and let us know how to reach you (if we’re not already following each other). Keep in touch! Stick with us for this one last week and see if we go out with a bang, or a whimper. Or a whine. xxxooooxo

Sherri Browning Erwin on Facebook, on Tumblr, on Twitter, on Pinterest, and at her web home, www.sherribrowningerwin.com. Follow me, I’ll follow you.

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Liquid Gold

For a book I wrote, I once researched the most expensive products by ounce. Oddly enough, printer ink won the pricey contest. (Human blood came in fifth, by the way.) I don’t remember my new fixation being in the top ten, but I’m beginning to think it wasn’t much further down.

I’ve recently become enamored with tasting olive oil.

I’ve always loved the stuff, but I was reading one of Ina Garten’s cookbooks recently (I seem to always be able to blame Ina for my latest food obsession), where she explains what she means by “good” olive oil.

She even suggests a brand–Olio Santo. So since Ina has never steered me wrong in the past, I decide I should be using that oil, too. And I found it in the online store of Williams Sonoma. For $29.95. For a mere 750ml. The brand I buy at World Market costs $6.99, and I get a full liter.

I can only imagine the looks on my daughters’ faces if I ask them for a bottle of olive oil for Christmas.

So now that I doubt whether my olive oil is “good”, I’m determined to find one that is, but not thirty bucks. I’ve bought Greek, Italian and Californian oils, and I’m cooking and tasting, staring at the range of colors and trying to decide which one is my favorite. Course each one of my oils cost 7-10 dollars, so by now I could have simply bought the Olio Santo and been done with the whole business. How do I get myself into these things?

Does anybody have a favorite olive oil they want to share? (You can also feel free to tell me I’m nuts.)

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Help a Fellow Out!

I was reading on Jezebel about this lonely single man who is having trouble finding his ideal match. His website is Sleepless in Austin. I don’t know why, but I immediately thought of Julia London. Oh, Austin. Of course. He’s in her neck of the woods! Match made in heaven? Let’s check out his list of requirements, shall we?

I am looking for a decent girl that wants to be in a long term monogamus relationship with me. (He had me at “monogamus!” Rhymes with hippopotamus? )

I want the girl to be attractive. (Well of course, wait until you see him!)

I like girls that are thin, or with a toned or athletic build. A average build is fine too, just as long as you are not over weight. I will not date a overweight or fat girl. (Or learn when to use “an” instead of “a”).

I like girls that are 130 pounds or less. Of course weight needs to be in proportion to their height, as long as they aren’t considred overweight, they should be fine. (So 130 pounds and 3 feet tall need not apply? But 180 is okay if you’re seven feet tall.)

Being overweight is a total dealbreaker with me. (In case you didn’t catch that…)

I also like girls with long hair. I like a girl to look like a girl, not a man, I like a feminine, pretty girl. I like hair down to the shoulders at least. Sometimes I can make exceptions if it is shorter depending on how it looks on the girl. But for the most part, I love long hair. (As long as she doesn’t look like Fabio?)

Redheads are my favorite, next is Brunettes, and next is Blondes, in that order. I like all 3, but I’m just saying if I had to choose, that’s my order of preference. (How about all three in one? Like a brunette with red and blond highlights? Score!)

I will not date a Black girl. I don’t care if she looks like Halle Berry, I will not ever date a Black girl. 

However, I will date any other race, Hispanic, Mexican, Spanish, Russian, Italian, French, European, White, whatever, anything except Black.

I do not like glasses on a girl. Although, it’s not a dealbreaker, as long as she can wear contacts at least most of the time.

I do not ever want to have kids, so if a girl is wanting to have babies, I am not her man. (At least, he doesn’t plan to reproduce).

I will not date a girl that does not have a job or career. (Gainfully employed ladies, line starts here).

I am not looking for any type of woman that is materialistic or a gold digger or expects a man to pay for everything. (He needs his money to pay for his extensive wardrobe– see pictures.)

I do not like tattoos on a woman. If a woman already has tattoos, it may not be a deal breaker unless she plans to get more in the future. If a woman has something small and feminine like a butterfly or rose already on her ankle or something then it may not necessacerily be a dealbreaker. And it would also help if she would consider having them laser removed, something I might would even pay to have done for her. (Don’t expect a man to pay for everything, but he will spring for tattoo removal. What a guy!)

To me, tattoos just represent white trash or somone that’s been in prison. I do not care for following trends like mindless sheep and getting tats just because what ever Star on TV got them, they will always be a symbol of White Trash. The Female human body is the most beautiful work of Art God ever created, to tattoo it with ink is the same as vandalising a famous Monet painting with a can of spray paint!

I also do not like piercings on a woman. I do not like a woman to have anything pireced other than her Ears. If she has other piercings it’s not a dealbreaker as long as she removes them and never wears them again. 

I do not like gamblers. I will not be in any relationship with a woman that gambles or wastes money on such things.

I do not like strippers! I will not date any girl that has ever been a stripper. I believe that the only person that should ever see a womans naked body is only her boyfriend or husband.

I will not date any girl that has ever had a threesome, or a large number of past sexual partners. I do not want a promiscuous slut, I want a normal, decent, good hearted girlfriend.

I will not date any girl that can not always be honest & faithful to me. This is very important.

I prefer a girl that does not smoke, but as long as she does not smoke in my house or around me, if she can go outside and smoke, then I can live with that. I lived with my ex girlfriend for Eleven years, and she was a smoker. (Someone stayed with this guy for eleven years? I hope she drank, too. A lot.)

I will not date any girl if she is still friends with any men that she has been intimate with in the past, I believe once a relationship with someone is over, it’s OVER. (Over! No friendships with exes.)

I will not date a selfish woman. I do not like selfish women at all. (Selfish, as in, not sharing blouses?)

I do not like sarcastic or cynical people, I do not like people that always think negatively either, so that type of girl would also not be a good match for me. 

I know sometimes on my website here, I may seem like a negative person because I point out sooooo many things that I dislike, but I assure you I am a very positive person, I am just tring to put out here my likes/dislikes so you can know more about me and what type of girl may get along with me. (Girls with brains need not apply).

I do not expect a girl to agree with all of my beliefs or opinions etc, but I do not like to argue, and it’s very important that we can live in peace together if at some point the girl & I live together. I like to live in a quiet & peaceful environment. That is extremely important to me.

I like a girl that dresses on the conservative side. Not like a slut, and not anything weird. Just normal is fine. T-Shirt & Jeans are OK. But a girl in a dress really gets my heart racing! I also love it when a girl wears a mini skirt with boots, not cowboy boots, but sexy boots. Or high heels, I love spiked high heels! (Conservative short skirts and sexy boots, high heeled spiky sexy boots).

I like a girl that takes care of herself and keeps herself clean of course. (No dirty girls).

I love it when a girl wears sexy lingerie in the bedroom! Especially thigh highs! 

I need a girl that can be very warm & affectionate and loving.

It’s also nice if the girl has a big heart and appreciates simples things, and understands the value of sentimental things etc. (Translation: Doesn’t laugh at his ambition to write Hallmark cards).

I like a girl that appreciates romance and the art of courtship.

Kissing is one of my most favorite things to do with a girl, it’s very important. I also love to hold a girls hand when I am walking with her. And I love sleeping beside a girl and holding her close to me, and spooning with her. In fact THAT is the reason I named this website “Sleepless In Austin” because I haven’t had a single good nights sleep in years, ever since my relationship ended with my ex-girlfriend.

And yes, I also liked the movie Sleepless in Seattle, haha (Clever, you see what he did there?)

It dosen’t matter at all to me how big or small a girls breasts are. I prefer them to be real & natural though. I am against breast implants, I see that as unnecessery self mutilation, and I would not want a girlfriend that has breast implants. (Deal-breaker, or will he pay for removal, like with the tats?)

I prefer a woman that has never had children, because having kids does ruin a womans body often times. They end up with stretch marks. And also sometimes it makes their vagina looser, and I don’t care how many kegel exercises a woman does, after she has 2 or 3 eight to ten pound babies, you can’t tell me it’s going to be 100% as tight as it ever was! Plus, what’s even worse than all of that, is sometimes during childbirth the lips/vulva of a woman get torn and they never look the same as the did originally even after they heal, that’s why some women even get cosmetic reconstructive surgery to their vulvas after childbirth to try and regain their original appearance. (Oh, that’s why! I always wondered. Thanks, Dr. Sleepless).

Now I’m not saying having had a kid or two is a for sure dealbreaker for me, but it’s a case by case basis, and I prefer a woman that’s never had kids if possible. My ex-girlfriend that I was with for Eleven years never had kids, she couldn’t because of a hysterectomy at a young age. (Hysterectomy a plus).

I like to get a lot of attention in a relationship, and I like to give it as well.

I also have a very high sex drive. (Rev up your engines and get ready to meet Mr. Sleepless!)

Ready? Here he is! 

I hope you weren’t drinking when you read this, because it might be all over your keyboard now and I have to deny all responsibility. So, know anyone for him?

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Emmy Awards 2013

Okay Fashionistas, what did we think of last night’s Emmy looks? 

You can check out more and larger images at E!, or on your fashion/gossip site of choice.

My favorites? Julia Louis Dreyfus, Christina Hendricks, Michelle Dockery. My least favorites, Lena Dunham, Heidi Klum, and Claire Danes.

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Weekend Reads: To Hell with Love/Naughty or Nice

I happened to notice that the Kindle pricing on my paranormal romances were down a bit, so I figured it was time I recommended that you pick them up. 

To Hell with Love was meant to be a paranormal woman’s fiction, but it went out as romance and some readers expected a different ending (as one would from romance), thus influencing some reviews and the sequel, Naughty or Nice.

Naughty or Nice wraps up the story started in To Hell with Love with an ending more suitable for romance readers. Best read together, in order, but definitely safe to read apart or in reverse order.

I really enjoyed writing To Hell with Love, because it was a change of pace from my historical romances and it came at a time when I was questioning life and death issues and my own philosophies, following my dad’s near-fatal motorcycle crash of 200o. Not to say that the content is heavy. I needed a break. I needed a laugh. I needed to write something with a little more edge than my usual historical romance fare.

And then I went on to Jane Slayre and Grave Expectations, and finally, full circle, back to my first love, historical romance with the upcoming Thornbrook Park series (June 2014).

If I were writing to Hell with Love over again, it would be more like Fifty Shades of Gray or J. Kenner’s Release Me. Alas… but can you find a sexier, more powerful billionaire lover than the Devil himself?

To Hell with Love at Amazon/Print and Kindle: Click here.  Naughty or Nice at Amazon/Print and Kindle: Click here.

To Hell with Love at Barnes and Noble/Print: Click here. Naughty or Nice at Barnes and Noble/Print and Nook: Click here.

 

 

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Sharing Secrets

I don’t watch The Talk, but last week I wished I did. All of the anchors shared deep secrets with the viewers, and the articles about it afterwards made for intriguing reading. I’m sure it made for even better TV, but… missed it.

Sheryl Underwood revealed that she had a secret twin sister. She died shortly after birth, but Sheryl keeps her birth certificate and thinks of her often.

Sara Gilbert revealed that she realized she was a lesbian when she was dating Roseanne costar Johnny Galecki (now on Big Bang Theory), who was “super supportive” and kept her secret.

Aisha Taylor revealed a struggle with fertility issues.

Perhaps most controversial, Julie Chen revealed that she had plastic surgery at the urging of a former boss and agent who refused to represent her because her eyes were not “expressive enough,” or her Chinese ancestry was too apparent, read it any way you choose. She had the surgery and went on to big things (or marrying the head of CBS probably didn’t hurt either) but she still wonders if she did the right thing or caved to pressure.

I think she looks great either way but I can’t fault her for making a choice she felt would help her career, especially since it did. It says more about us as a society perhaps than it does about her.

But scariest of all? Sharon Osborne revealed that she hooked up with Jay Leno when they were both young singles in LA. Acckkkkkk! I don’t even want to think about it. 

Deep, dark secrets. Do I have any? I married my first and only boyfriend, my college sweetheart, the only man I’ve ever loved. Is that a secret? I’m not sure. We’ve been married for 23 years, so I guess it’s working out for me. But sometimes, I ogle pictures of Tom Hardy. I’m only human.

Do you have any secrets to share? 

 

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We Bought A Farm!

Life here at Casa D’Alessandro has recently changed a lot. Remember that Matt Damon flick We Bought a Zoo? Well, that’s us–except we bought a farm! It’s about ten miles from our house and is already fully operational and has been in business for fifteen years. The gentleman who owned it is turning 80 and decided he’s ready to retire and move closer to his grandkids. So the farm went up for sale, and along we came. The place is really amazing–six acres with a huge garden and orchard that has peach, plum, fig and pear trees. The produce includes tomatoes, blueberries, blackberries, peppers, okra, cucumbers, squash, muscadine and scuppernongs (grapes), and sweet persimmons. There are also over 100,000 honey bees that produce some of the best honey I’ve ever tasted. Our son, who has long been passionate about conservation, organics, and self-sustainable living, will live on the property and manage it. He plans to turn the operation fully organic. We’re really excited for him and for this new adventure. Yes–I’m a farmer. And that’s not a sentence I ever thought I’d write, LOL! I’ll post pictures as soon as I have some–I’m having camera issues–but in the meanwhile, here’s a pic of my new garden boots. I call them Farm Chic

It's what all the stylish farmers are wearing!

 

Do you eat organic foods? Do you like to go to local farmers’ market to buy produce? What’s your favorite vegetable/fruit? Any farming/gardening tips/stories you’d like to share?

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Weekend Reads: The Silent Wife

A.S.A. Harrison’s debut novel, The Silent Wife. “This summer’s Gone Girl,” according to reviews… (and yet, I hadn’t heard about it until today, where have I been?).

A chilling psychological thriller about a marriage, a way of life, and how far one woman will go to keep what is rightfully hers.

Jodi and Todd are at a bad place in their marriage. Much is at stake, including the affluent life they lead in their beautiful waterfront condo in Chicago, as she, the killer, and he, the victim, rush haplessly toward the main event. He is a committed cheater. She lives and breathes denial. He exists in dual worlds. She likes to settle scores. He decides to play for keeps. She has nothing left to lose. Told in alternating voices, The Silent Wife is about a marriage in the throes of dissolution, a couple headed for catastrophe, concessions that can’t be made, and promises that won’t be kept. Expertly plotted and reminiscent of Gone Girl and These Things Hidden, The Silent Wife ensnares the reader from page one and does not let go.

 

 

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