Kate Collins's Blog, page 50
November 5, 2018
Don't Forget to Vote!
by Maggie SeftonMake sure you cast your ballots for local, state, and national candidates and issues
today. We are so very fortunate to live in a country where we have this right. If you've already voted, Good Job! Celebrate our Democracy, Everyone!
November 4, 2018
WINTERIZE YOUR YARD FOR THE CRITTERS
By Mary Kennedy
If you're like me, you enjoy the parade of "critters" that pass through your backyard during the warm months. (And the Kennedy cats like nothing better than watching their outdoor friends from the sun porch. It provides hours of enjoyment for them.)
But what happens to our furry outdoor friends in the winter? It's getting chilly here in the northeast and evening temperatures are dropping into the thirties.
Here are some quick things you can do to make life easier for the raccoons, possums, feral cats, chipmunks, squirrels and birds who call your backyard "home."
First, keep putting out seeds, raisins, nuts, dried corn and whatever goodies you've been providing during the summer months. The natural food sources (berries, fruits) will be more difficult for the animals to find, so I always add more food to the trays. Don't put the food too close to the house. Bob Giddings reminded me that it's not a good idea! So I set up the feeding stations in the woods behind the house. This visitor came a little too close to the deck and was staring in the glass doors at my cats. Later in the day, she came back with her fawns.
Secondly, if you're pruning back bushes, don't discard the branches. Save them and make a brush pile somewhere in the yard. It will provide instant protection from the rain and the cold for so many little creatures.
And finally, don't forget to save your christmas tree and add it to the pile. A great way to recycle!
Oh, and one more thing. It's really important for your backyard visitors to have water. If you have an outdoor plug, you can use a heated water dish. You can find several online for under twenty dollars.
Hope these tips help! Next week, I'll share some ideas on helping feral cats in your area. Stay warm!
Mary Kennedy
If you're like me, you enjoy the parade of "critters" that pass through your backyard during the warm months. (And the Kennedy cats like nothing better than watching their outdoor friends from the sun porch. It provides hours of enjoyment for them.)
But what happens to our furry outdoor friends in the winter? It's getting chilly here in the northeast and evening temperatures are dropping into the thirties.
Here are some quick things you can do to make life easier for the raccoons, possums, feral cats, chipmunks, squirrels and birds who call your backyard "home."
First, keep putting out seeds, raisins, nuts, dried corn and whatever goodies you've been providing during the summer months. The natural food sources (berries, fruits) will be more difficult for the animals to find, so I always add more food to the trays. Don't put the food too close to the house. Bob Giddings reminded me that it's not a good idea! So I set up the feeding stations in the woods behind the house. This visitor came a little too close to the deck and was staring in the glass doors at my cats. Later in the day, she came back with her fawns.
Secondly, if you're pruning back bushes, don't discard the branches. Save them and make a brush pile somewhere in the yard. It will provide instant protection from the rain and the cold for so many little creatures.
And finally, don't forget to save your christmas tree and add it to the pile. A great way to recycle!
Oh, and one more thing. It's really important for your backyard visitors to have water. If you have an outdoor plug, you can use a heated water dish. You can find several online for under twenty dollars.
Hope these tips help! Next week, I'll share some ideas on helping feral cats in your area. Stay warm!
Mary Kennedy
November 2, 2018
Fiction bears no resemblance to real life
by Lorraine Bartlett / Lorna Barrett / L.L. Bartlett
Halloween is behind us with all its ghoulish motifs. And here I am a mystery author who writes about murders in every book I write. But the sad reality is that murder isn’t fun. It isn’t sanitary. It leaves behind terrible wounds for the survivors.
I know this because … a friend of mine was murdered.
That’s a really chilling thing to have to admit.
My friend was a ci-worker. He was older than me, and single, and back in the day, I’m pretty sure he wanted to seduce me. But…he listened when I said no. He was a man of the world and a lot more worldly than me. But he had daughters, and I was grateful when he didn’t pressure me.
I was married for almost a decade when a mutual friend emailed me and said that our co-worker had died.
Died? My friend was dead?
He had been let go by the company we worked from years before me. (When they finally let me go, I never looked back.)
My friend had a job at a local indie theater. He'd been a gifted photographer, but was working as a projectionist. Late at night he returned to his home in a part of the city that was slowly becoming gentrified and was met in his driveway by a bunch of rowdy teens. When he asked if they would let him get into his drive, they instead pulled him out of his car and beat him near to death. In fact, he died of his injuries a couple of days later—injuries that were inflicted in front of his own home.
The perpetrators were never brought to justice.
How does that make me, as a murder mystery author feel? Pretty awful.
His death is why I strive to make sure that all the perpetrators in the stories I write are brought to justice. Sadly, that never happened for my friend and co-worker. That’s real life.
Maybe I’m a fool to believe that justice will always prevail. For the sake of my friend, I sure hope so.
Halloween is behind us with all its ghoulish motifs. And here I am a mystery author who writes about murders in every book I write. But the sad reality is that murder isn’t fun. It isn’t sanitary. It leaves behind terrible wounds for the survivors.I know this because … a friend of mine was murdered.
That’s a really chilling thing to have to admit.
My friend was a ci-worker. He was older than me, and single, and back in the day, I’m pretty sure he wanted to seduce me. But…he listened when I said no. He was a man of the world and a lot more worldly than me. But he had daughters, and I was grateful when he didn’t pressure me.
I was married for almost a decade when a mutual friend emailed me and said that our co-worker had died.
Died? My friend was dead?
He had been let go by the company we worked from years before me. (When they finally let me go, I never looked back.)
My friend had a job at a local indie theater. He'd been a gifted photographer, but was working as a projectionist. Late at night he returned to his home in a part of the city that was slowly becoming gentrified and was met in his driveway by a bunch of rowdy teens. When he asked if they would let him get into his drive, they instead pulled him out of his car and beat him near to death. In fact, he died of his injuries a couple of days later—injuries that were inflicted in front of his own home.
The perpetrators were never brought to justice.
How does that make me, as a murder mystery author feel? Pretty awful.
His death is why I strive to make sure that all the perpetrators in the stories I write are brought to justice. Sadly, that never happened for my friend and co-worker. That’s real life.
Maybe I’m a fool to believe that justice will always prevail. For the sake of my friend, I sure hope so.
October 31, 2018
Choosing Paint Samples and Developing Characters
By Karen Rose Smith
We are in the midst of removing wallpaper and preparing the bathroom walls for a coat of paint. While removing the old wallpaper can be tedious and time-consuming, that is a breeze compared to picking the right color of paint. That process is as challenging as developing the right character for one of my mysteries or romances. All the aspects of a character's personality must fit together to maximize the role they play in the story. Similarly, all the tints and tones of a color scheme must work together to present a cohesive and appealing decor.
I thought I had chosen the right color palette which would blend perfectly with the colors in the rest of the house. We went to the paint store with the intention of purchasing a gallon of the lightest shade and one in a darker shade of the same palette. When we saw the price of a gallon of the low-odor brand we always use, we quickly decided to purchase sample quarts of regular paint. Thank goodness, because the palette we chose was more blue than would work with our decor. So we had to return to the paint store for additional sample quarts from a different color palette. We kept adding colors to our sample board until we had the right combination for wall and trim.
In addition to the paint cards and quarts, we also checked out a wallpaper sample book! "Oh, no!" says hubby...because I'm still deciding! We set the bead board in the bathroom and the bedroom to study the sample paint lines. I'm hoping that soon I'll walk into the room and say, "That's the one!"
In my Caprice De Luca Home Staging mysteries, Caprice uses the same process when staging one of her high-end homes for showing. She works tediously with a color scheme, often starting with one piece of furniture or fabric, and develops her whole plan around it. In CUT TO THE CHAISE, the chaise lounge in the winery's tasting room is the focal point of her design. The teal/turquoise color scheme is relaxing, yet eye-catching--the perfect color for the leather chaise lounge and the drop lights over the tasting bar. Other colors in the room are complementary to those focal points.How do you choose your color schemes when redecorating a room?
We are in the midst of removing wallpaper and preparing the bathroom walls for a coat of paint. While removing the old wallpaper can be tedious and time-consuming, that is a breeze compared to picking the right color of paint. That process is as challenging as developing the right character for one of my mysteries or romances. All the aspects of a character's personality must fit together to maximize the role they play in the story. Similarly, all the tints and tones of a color scheme must work together to present a cohesive and appealing decor.
I thought I had chosen the right color palette which would blend perfectly with the colors in the rest of the house. We went to the paint store with the intention of purchasing a gallon of the lightest shade and one in a darker shade of the same palette. When we saw the price of a gallon of the low-odor brand we always use, we quickly decided to purchase sample quarts of regular paint. Thank goodness, because the palette we chose was more blue than would work with our decor. So we had to return to the paint store for additional sample quarts from a different color palette. We kept adding colors to our sample board until we had the right combination for wall and trim. 
In addition to the paint cards and quarts, we also checked out a wallpaper sample book! "Oh, no!" says hubby...because I'm still deciding! We set the bead board in the bathroom and the bedroom to study the sample paint lines. I'm hoping that soon I'll walk into the room and say, "That's the one!"
In my Caprice De Luca Home Staging mysteries, Caprice uses the same process when staging one of her high-end homes for showing. She works tediously with a color scheme, often starting with one piece of furniture or fabric, and develops her whole plan around it. In CUT TO THE CHAISE, the chaise lounge in the winery's tasting room is the focal point of her design. The teal/turquoise color scheme is relaxing, yet eye-catching--the perfect color for the leather chaise lounge and the drop lights over the tasting bar. Other colors in the room are complementary to those focal points.How do you choose your color schemes when redecorating a room? October 30, 2018
New Release
Tandem Demise is out this week for $2.99. get Tandem Demise
Hi, everyone and welcome back to Mackinac Island and life with no cars and only horses, bikes and foot-power to get around. Fall is in full swing with the leaves changing colors, a chill in the air and gardens ablaze with mums of every hue.
I love this island that is part of Michigan and located where Lake Michigan meets Lake Huron. Life on Mackinac moves a bit slower with cell phone service not all that reliable and internet not all that important. Why look at a screen when you can a take bike ride to the Grand Hotel for high tea or visit Fort Mackinac for a musket drill or firing a cannon.
The only way to get to Mackinac is by ferry. Taxis here are horse drawn affairs moving at about five miles an hour and riding bikes is a breeze with no horns honking or traffic to maneuver around. This is an island for getting away, for relaxing, for enjoying life with friends and family. It’s life the way it used to be. Once you visit Mackinac Island a piece of you will forever stay there and you will long to return.
I visited the island with my daughter from NCY. She went from Times Square and a hectic design job to no cars or cell service within twenty-four hours. When we got off the ferry she said, “Do you think we died and went to heaven?”
I‘ve used all the real streets, restaurants, bars, hotels, piers, and ferry lines. I’ve included names of proprietors of the bookstore, bars, inns and markets. My characters order off the actual menu in the restaurants, drink at the watering hole where the locals meet and have the same problems with tourists...called fudgies…that the islanders have. I made the Cycle Path mysteries real so when you visit the island you will feel as if you’ve already been there. That you are coming home.
Happy reading and I hope you fall in love with Mackinac Island and that you have as much fun with Tandem Demiseas I did writing it. Hugs, Duffy
October 29, 2018
Also Ran. . . .
by Maggie SeftonI thought that post title was a good match for some of my "other books" that I've written over the years since I've been writing the Kelly Flynn Knitting Mysteries. Like the rest of the Cozy Chicks, I have written and continue to write other fiction stories and separate books that are not associated with the Kelly Flynn cast of characters.
My Halloween-based short, short story---"Halloween Scare" ---does feature the Kelly Flynn characters in a no-dead body tale.
My very first mystery novel DYING TO SELL has a real estate agent sleuth who walks into a client's home one evening to bring a contract offer only to find the client dead. Stabbed in the throat. Needless to say, there was no sale on that property.
And most of you Cozy Chicks Readers and Friends/Fans have read my posts about my Washington, DC---based suspense trilogy----DEADLY POLITICS, POISONED POLITICS, and BLOODY POLITICS. I really should change the name of that third one because there's certainly no gruesome scenes in that book. Simply suspense. And NO real politicians of any party. We get enough of that every day in the news. And there's my historical novel, ABILENE GAMBLER, which is available as an E-book on Amazon.com. It takes place in 1871 Abilene, Kansas, and has a large cast of heroes and villains, including a Confederate widow named Samantha Winchester who's taking her little rag-tag family from Savannah, Georgia (after selling her family home to earn the money for train fare) to Abilene to start a new life. The hero is a former Union officer named Jack Barnett, so you can tell these two characters have a lot going on between the two of them. There's also a cowardly deputy sheriff named Clyde and a handsome young Texan named Cody Barnes, as well as Samantha's younger sister, Becky. And two older maiden aunts who like to boss people around. And, Maysie, who bosses everyone around. You can tell I enjoyed writing these characters.
All of us have different story "ideas" that flash unbidden across our Storyteller's mind's eye. Some of them are mysteries, some are romance, some take place in different historical time periods, some of them have Science Fiction elements or have a Futuristic setting. Why don't you check out the Cozy Chicks "other stories" ? You might be surprised by the variety. :)
October 28, 2018
Time Traveler for a Day
By Mary Kennedy
If you could go back in time, just for a day, where would you go? I did a quick survey of some friends, and here's what I found.
An 8 year old neighbor told me he'd like to go back in time and see the dinosaurs. I tried to convince him that humans and dinosaurs didn't exist at the same time, but he was undaunted. He also told me that most of the dinos were vegetarians, so he didn't have too much fear of being eaten. I think T Rex was a carnivore, but I that's a minor point!
A fellow mystery writer told me she'd like to go back in time and have tea with Agatha Christie. She'd like to talk about her 66 novels (my friend has read them all!) and her 14 short story collections. She wanted some tips on plots, characterizations, and she wanted to know the "inside story" of why Agatha disappeared for a few days. Hmm. Sounds like a fun discussion.
Another pal who writes Victorian mysteries with feisty heroines said she'd like to meet a woman from that era and get the inside scoop on how women really felt about their lives, their hopes and dreams. A tall order, but it would certainly be an interesting conversation.
Another friend writes turn-of-the-century romance novels set in the US and would like to visit a Charleston Victorian house and talk to the folks who lived there. She'd like to sit on their front porch and chat about what they cooked, how they entertained, how they dressed, what it was like having servants, etc.
Another friend wanted to meet Abraham Lincoln, (would she warn him not to go to the theater that night?)
And a history buff wanted to visit Egypt in the time of the Pharoahs.
How about you? If you could go back in time, just for a day, where would you choose?
Mary Kennedy
If you could go back in time, just for a day, where would you go? I did a quick survey of some friends, and here's what I found.
An 8 year old neighbor told me he'd like to go back in time and see the dinosaurs. I tried to convince him that humans and dinosaurs didn't exist at the same time, but he was undaunted. He also told me that most of the dinos were vegetarians, so he didn't have too much fear of being eaten. I think T Rex was a carnivore, but I that's a minor point!
A fellow mystery writer told me she'd like to go back in time and have tea with Agatha Christie. She'd like to talk about her 66 novels (my friend has read them all!) and her 14 short story collections. She wanted some tips on plots, characterizations, and she wanted to know the "inside story" of why Agatha disappeared for a few days. Hmm. Sounds like a fun discussion.
Another pal who writes Victorian mysteries with feisty heroines said she'd like to meet a woman from that era and get the inside scoop on how women really felt about their lives, their hopes and dreams. A tall order, but it would certainly be an interesting conversation.
Another friend writes turn-of-the-century romance novels set in the US and would like to visit a Charleston Victorian house and talk to the folks who lived there. She'd like to sit on their front porch and chat about what they cooked, how they entertained, how they dressed, what it was like having servants, etc. Another friend wanted to meet Abraham Lincoln, (would she warn him not to go to the theater that night?)
And a history buff wanted to visit Egypt in the time of the Pharoahs.
How about you? If you could go back in time, just for a day, where would you choose?
Mary Kennedy
October 26, 2018
A little bit of light
by Lorraine Bartlett / Lorna Barrett / L.L. Bartlett
One of the first things my mother taught me was a healthy fear of fire. When she grew up in England, they didn't have central heat. They heated by coal. When you heat your house with an open fire, you live with the fear of your home burning down. Therefore, we never burned candles (unless there was a blackout--which I can only remember happening twice).
A lot of people burn candles for ambiance. I don't.
A lot of people burn candles for the scent. I don't. (
But I can't deny the allure of candles. They're cute. I have a candle in my living room that I've had for about ten years. (I got it at an estate sale.) It has an interesting scent, but you don't smell it all all the time. I'll be sitting there, reading, and all of a sudden I'll get a brief scent. There's that candle again! A lot of women use them in their decor, and I'm getting into that myself. So I did buy a vanilla scented candle, but it's just for show--I will not burn it. And I hope occasionally, when I walk by, I'll get the scent. (Because I LOVE vanilla.)
But during my last trip to The Dollar Tree, I checked out their LED candles. They are supposed to work for 120 hours. Not bad for a buck ... if they work.
With the holidays coming up, I thought it might be nice to have some flickering light for ambiance. Therefore, I stocked up on a number of different LED candles.
I lit my first 4" pillar candle on Wednesday. Aha! success. It was dark and cold and miserable out and the flickering light made the rooom feel that much cozier.
So yesterday, I showed Mr. L the other decorative LED candles I bought for the holidays in silver. (Most people decorate with gold, but I'm a silver kinda gal.) So I took them out of the packaging, flipped the switch ... and nothing happened. Okay, I got a dud. So I took the next one out and turned it on. Another dud. I'd also bought four tealight LED candles and each and every one of them were duds, too.
Grrrrrrr.
So I'm going back to the Dollar Tree to see if I can return them. Maybe I'll just stick with those nice 4" pillars (I know they make different heights, but they only had the 4" ones at this store).
So -- candles in your home or not?
One of the first things my mother taught me was a healthy fear of fire. When she grew up in England, they didn't have central heat. They heated by coal. When you heat your house with an open fire, you live with the fear of your home burning down. Therefore, we never burned candles (unless there was a blackout--which I can only remember happening twice).
A lot of people burn candles for ambiance. I don't.
A lot of people burn candles for the scent. I don't. (
But I can't deny the allure of candles. They're cute. I have a candle in my living room that I've had for about ten years. (I got it at an estate sale.) It has an interesting scent, but you don't smell it all all the time. I'll be sitting there, reading, and all of a sudden I'll get a brief scent. There's that candle again! A lot of women use them in their decor, and I'm getting into that myself. So I did buy a vanilla scented candle, but it's just for show--I will not burn it. And I hope occasionally, when I walk by, I'll get the scent. (Because I LOVE vanilla.)
But during my last trip to The Dollar Tree, I checked out their LED candles. They are supposed to work for 120 hours. Not bad for a buck ... if they work.With the holidays coming up, I thought it might be nice to have some flickering light for ambiance. Therefore, I stocked up on a number of different LED candles.
I lit my first 4" pillar candle on Wednesday. Aha! success. It was dark and cold and miserable out and the flickering light made the rooom feel that much cozier.
So yesterday, I showed Mr. L the other decorative LED candles I bought for the holidays in silver. (Most people decorate with gold, but I'm a silver kinda gal.) So I took them out of the packaging, flipped the switch ... and nothing happened. Okay, I got a dud. So I took the next one out and turned it on. Another dud. I'd also bought four tealight LED candles and each and every one of them were duds, too.Grrrrrrr.
So I'm going back to the Dollar Tree to see if I can return them. Maybe I'll just stick with those nice 4" pillars (I know they make different heights, but they only had the 4" ones at this store).
So -- candles in your home or not?
October 24, 2018
Soup Time!
by Karen Rose Smith
When the seasons changed in September, the weather didn't seem to agree with the timing. But now we are beginning to see cooler days and have even had a touch of frost several nights in Pennsylvania. My thoughts have turned from light fare and grilled foods to heartier meals and bowls of stew or steaming soup.
One of my favorite soups for a chilly autumn day is featured in my first Daisy's Tea Garden mystery--MURDER WITH LEMON TEA CAKES. Daisy serves Potato and Leek Soup in the tea garden and I would like to share the recipe I developed with you.
Daisy's Potato and Leek Soup
3 tablespoons high heat sunflower oil1 cup onion3 leeks, diced (about 2 cups)1 cup celery chopped1 clove of garlic3 tablespoons flour1 quart chicken broth (I use Swanson 100% Chicken Broth/99% fat free)2 1/2 to 3 cups potatoes in small chunks
2 cups carrots, sliced
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 cup milk
Trim the top and bottom of leeks. Cut them longwise and soak in water for ten minutes.
In a 4 1/2 quart pot, heat sunflower oil and saute onion, leeks and celery for about three minutes. After the mixture starts to sizzle, add garlic. Add flour and stir well. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add potatoes, carrots, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil again, then simmer until potatoes are tender (about 20 minutes). Add milk and simmer 5 more minutes.
Makes six servings.
What is your favorite soup for a chilly fall day?
When the seasons changed in September, the weather didn't seem to agree with the timing. But now we are beginning to see cooler days and have even had a touch of frost several nights in Pennsylvania. My thoughts have turned from light fare and grilled foods to heartier meals and bowls of stew or steaming soup.
One of my favorite soups for a chilly autumn day is featured in my first Daisy's Tea Garden mystery--MURDER WITH LEMON TEA CAKES. Daisy serves Potato and Leek Soup in the tea garden and I would like to share the recipe I developed with you.
Daisy's Potato and Leek Soup
3 tablespoons high heat sunflower oil1 cup onion3 leeks, diced (about 2 cups)1 cup celery chopped1 clove of garlic3 tablespoons flour1 quart chicken broth (I use Swanson 100% Chicken Broth/99% fat free)2 1/2 to 3 cups potatoes in small chunks
2 cups carrots, sliced
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 cup milk
Trim the top and bottom of leeks. Cut them longwise and soak in water for ten minutes.
In a 4 1/2 quart pot, heat sunflower oil and saute onion, leeks and celery for about three minutes. After the mixture starts to sizzle, add garlic. Add flour and stir well. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add potatoes, carrots, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil again, then simmer until potatoes are tender (about 20 minutes). Add milk and simmer 5 more minutes.
Makes six servings.
What is your favorite soup for a chilly fall day?
Time for the Cozy!
Hi, Duffy Brown here.
I do a lot of National Days on FB. What is this? Well, it seems that every day celebrates something. There’s a National Nut Day that I just talked about, National Candy Day, National Strawberry Shortcake Day...you get the picture.And I love these days. Makes me think about stuff I love and take a second or two to truly appreciate them. I mean how many times to you really say you appreciate a nut that is not a family member or neighbor.So today I’ve decided to make up my own National Day. I’m not sure if it already exists or not but I’m doing it anyway.I’m declaring today National Cozy Mystery Day!
Obviously I love cozy mysteries since I write them but I think it’s time to give the cozy the respect and love it deserves. I know you all feel the love for the cozy but IMHO there are many booksellers and publishers who do not.What has brought this on is my latest book fair event. Not for the first time has this particular bookstore who hosted the event stuck the cozy people out of the way and in the back. I’ve contacted them about doing an event with other cozy authors and got nothing but crickets...meaning no response at all.And then there’s the look from other authors when you say you write cozies. Oh good grief.Anyway, with all these snubs I’m declaring today National Cozy Mystery Day. If it’s already out there well now we have two! I just thought it was time for cozy loves to celebrate Nationally.So my question to you is... What National Day would you create! Something you love and want to honor.Have a happy Cozy Mystery Day.Hugs, Duffy
I do a lot of National Days on FB. What is this? Well, it seems that every day celebrates something. There’s a National Nut Day that I just talked about, National Candy Day, National Strawberry Shortcake Day...you get the picture.And I love these days. Makes me think about stuff I love and take a second or two to truly appreciate them. I mean how many times to you really say you appreciate a nut that is not a family member or neighbor.So today I’ve decided to make up my own National Day. I’m not sure if it already exists or not but I’m doing it anyway.I’m declaring today National Cozy Mystery Day!
Obviously I love cozy mysteries since I write them but I think it’s time to give the cozy the respect and love it deserves. I know you all feel the love for the cozy but IMHO there are many booksellers and publishers who do not.What has brought this on is my latest book fair event. Not for the first time has this particular bookstore who hosted the event stuck the cozy people out of the way and in the back. I’ve contacted them about doing an event with other cozy authors and got nothing but crickets...meaning no response at all.And then there’s the look from other authors when you say you write cozies. Oh good grief.Anyway, with all these snubs I’m declaring today National Cozy Mystery Day. If it’s already out there well now we have two! I just thought it was time for cozy loves to celebrate Nationally.So my question to you is... What National Day would you create! Something you love and want to honor.Have a happy Cozy Mystery Day.Hugs, Duffy
