Kate Collins's Blog, page 332

Help! I Need Pet Health Insurance!

by Leann

As some of you may have heard, my little kitty Agatha Christie was diagnosed with heart disease last year and now we've learned she has diabetes. The vet tried an oral medicine because she has lost so much weight--she only weighs 4lb and 5 oz at the last visit. She feared insulin would be too strong and she might pass out if I wasn't there to drip some Karo syrup into her mouth. But the oral medicine didn't work and her blood sugar doubled. So now she takes 1 little unit of long-actin...

Out To Lunch!

By Lorna

Hubby is taking me out to lunch today.  Someplace cute and cheap.  (No, not McDonalds.)

I've said it before, lunch is my favorite meal of the day, even if I'm at home.  You never know what you're going to have.  Will it be leftovers?  Ham and cheese on a delightful "bulkie" roll?  Homemade chicken soup from the depths of the freezer?  (Seven minutes in the microwave gets you from frozen to the table.)  Will it be aloo matar?  (Peas and potatoes in curry sauce over rice--yum yum!) Or t...

What's in a Name?

By Heather

I've had names on my mind lately. I'm working on three proposals (cross your fingers, okay?), and of course I have lots of characters. I can't help myself. All my books have tons of characters—and those people need names. Two, really. First and last.

This isn't an easy process, coming up with a name. The name needs to match the personality. It needs to roll off my tongue. It needs to fit. Oftentimes, there's something that clicks within me when a name is perfect. But where do I turn ...

Mama's Comin To Visit

I just got home from Utah and my house is a mess.
Two kittens have filled the litter box to capacity, strewn their kibble across the floor, and shredded every roll of toilet paper they could get their claws on!
The pantry and refrigerator are bare.
My plants are dead in their pots.
Does this happen to you? A special house guest is on the way and suddenly you realize your windows are dirty, the tile grout has taken on a yellow tinge, and your carpets could do with a serious steam clean.
My mom...

Take A Chance On Me!

"Gonna do my very best and it ain't no lie
If you put me to the test, if you let me try

Take a chance on me
(That's all I ask of you honey)
Take a chance on me" ~ Abba

I really have no idea why the lyrics to "Take a Chance On Me" is running through my head and out my fingertips. Maybe it's because I feel a little like Sophie's author friend Rosie in Mama Mia. Taking my own chance, reaching out to you.
So here's what started it. I've been waiting for the September 7th launch of Buzz Off every since ...

Barnes & Noble Gift Card Winner!

Congratulations to VICKIE, this month's B&N gift card winner(for your comment left on 8/29)!

Please send an email to heather@heatherwebber.com with your email address to claim your electronic gift card from B&N.com.
 
Thanks so much for your comments and for supporting all of us here at the Cozy Chicks blog!
 
(Unfortunately, if I don't hear from you within a week, another winner will be chosen.)

Back East in the Big Cities

What fun! I got to spend my birthday (August 27) weekend in Manhattan with two of my daughters, Melissa & Maria. Believe me, whenever I have a chance to spend time with any of my daughters, I jump on it. I adjust my writing schedule (which lends itself to flexibility) if it allows me to schedule a quick visit. So, this weekend was a special treat. Pictured at right is just a photo shot of a typical NYC cafe w/outside tables. Since the weather was great all weekend, Melissa, Maria & I had...

Stop Smoking by....Shooting Yourself?

by Kate

We all laugh at those drug commercials that show happy, frolicking people who have subdued the symptoms caused by an ailment (but not the ailment itself) by taking a magic pill, while in the background, a quietly somber voice lists the possible horrendous side effects of the drug.

We make fun of the pharmaceutical companies for producing ads that are shorter than their lists of side effects, and we mock the actors in the commercials who dance, shop, and smooch, oblivious of the voice of...

The "Kids" Are Coming!

by Leann

For the first time in I don't know when, my grown children are both coming without their spouses or children. It will be like stepping back in time for a few days.

There are passages in everyone's life, but since I was estranged from my own parents, the transitions were different, fractured, dysfunctional. What that led to, for me, was a long bout of depression when my own kids left home. I'd worked hard to create a family environment where everything was different than when I grew up....

Who stole my summer, dude?

After a long cold miserable winter, I so look forward to a long, WARM summer.  Well, we got warm this year.  Very warm.  Very, VERY warm.  And muggy.  And those hot muggy days went on week after week, month after month. 

I hate that.  If you're lucky (?) you have central air conditioning, which makes you a virtual prisoner in your house, because if you dare step outside your hair instantly frizzes and you break into a sweat, and those wet moons under your armpits just aren't that attractive....