Victoria Zigler's Blog: Zigler News, page 117

May 2017 #TV Talk And #Movie Mutterings

It's time to take a look at what I watched in May.

As with the previous posts like this one, just click on the titles to go to a page where you can find out more details about the movie or TV show in question; the title links will usually take you to a page on IMDB.

Don't forget: I watch things across multiple genres, as well as for different age ranges, so you should always check before viewing to make certain something is suitable for the intended audience, especially when children are involved. IMDB will usually provide this information for you, but you'll have to look elsewhere if you can't find it on the page I link to.

OK... On to the reviews!

Rogue One (2016 movie):
I really enjoy the Star Wars movies, so was excited to see this one. I wasn't disappointed. I mean, it wasn't a mind-blowingly-amazing movie or anything, but it was really good. Not my favourite of the Star Wars movies, but not my least favourite of them either. Kelly seemed to feel the same way, and I've had similar comments from some friends I know have seen it. Anyway, I give it four out of five stars.

Suicide Squad (2016 movie):
I'm not sure if I would have bothered to watch this one if Kelly hadn't got himself the DVD. I'm glad I watched it though, because it was a very good movie: action-packed, and often quite entertaining. It isn't a new favourite or anything, but I really enjoyed it, and think most people who enjoy superhero movies, or action movies in general, will enjoy this one. Kelly absolutely loved it, and would give it the full five stars, I think. Personally, however, I give this movie four out of five stars.

Captain America: Civil War (2016 movie):
I know I wouldn't have watched this one if Kelly didn't get the DVD. Plus, I thought as I started watching it about the fact I hadn't seen the other Captain America movies. Never mind. Anyway, it wasn't too bad of a movie, but it wasn't great either. I thought at first it was me... Maybe even at least partially because I hadn't seen the previous movies... But Kelly felt the same way. It felt like they just threw all the elements together that they needed in order to move the story from point A to point B, with no consideration for how well it was done. Others may disagree, but that was how we felt about it. Anyway, I give this movie three out of five stars.

It's Me Or The Dog (2005 TV series):
Despite how long this show has apparently been running, it's only recently I discovered it. Regardless, I find it to be an interesting series, and would recommend it to anyone who has a dog, or plans to get one in the future, since you'll get excellent training tips, which really do appear to work very well. I give this series five out of five stars.

I also watched more of the episodes of NCIS I'm trying to catch up on. Of course, Mollie and Maizie are glad I'm doing so, since they're huge NCIS fans, even though I'm told they shouldn't be. I read somewhere recently that chinchillas are meant to prefer quiet and soothing things. I don't have a link to the article, but it said something about how chinchillas needed the kind of thing you could put on for a toddler, and have a good chance the toddler in question would fall asleep to it. Yeah... I think someone forgot to tell Mollie and Maizie about that rule.

May 2017 #Vegetarian Friendly #Food Themed Thoughts (FD)

Earlier this month, Kelly and I went out for a meal with our friends Lorna and Andy (the friends who took us to see and fetch Lilie) to a nearby pub-style restaurant. It's called "The Crown" and is along the seafront near the old part of town. Anyway, it's a really nice place. The staff is friendly, there are several vegetarian friendly options on the menu, and the food is absolutely delicious. Several places around here now have water bowls near their doors for use for dogs, since dogs are allowed to be with you if you're sitting outside. This place goes one step further though, and is one of the few places around here where dogs are actually allowed inside, so it gets bonus points from me for being so animal friendly. Lorna and Andy said they've been there several times now, and I can see why. I'd certainly be happy to go there again, that's for sure!

We started by sharing some fresh bread, as well as some veggies and twice-baked chips (fries) with things to dip them in... In my case tomato ketchup and a humus dip they make themselves. Then it was on to the main course, which I can't remember the full details of. I know mine involved asparagus, kañiwa (which, if you don't know, is a fine grain that's a relative of quinoa) as well as a couple of other bits of chopped veggie, a slice of freshly toasted bread, and eggs though. Plus I had some more of those twice-baked chips to go with it, because I just couldn't resist. My dessert was churros - which, for the benifit of anyone who doesn't know, is a kind of Mexican dessert that I think sort of tastes similar to a sugary doughnut - with rhubarb compot and custard. Like I said, it was very tasty, and I'd happily go there again.

Meanwhile, at home...

A few weeks ago, I tried out a recipe I'd found for asparagus-mushroom melts. It sounded like a perfect recipe for me, because I love mushrooms, think cheese on toast is great, and was looking for some different ways to use asparagus. Well, it was; it was very tasty, and I really enjoyed it. A little tip though: if you're having it for dinner, rather than just as a lunch, you want to have something else with it, because it's perfect for a light lunch, but I don't really feel it's filling enough to be a dinner on its own. I tried the same mixture in a tortilla wrap (instead of on toast) another day though, and found it to be a little more filling that way. Just something to bear in mind.

The veggie quiche I made recently with asparagus as one of the veggies was plenty filling enough. It contained asparagus, spring onions, and mushrooms. I was really glad I'd made enough to freeze some for another time. Actually, I do that a lot with things like quiche. Mind you, since I'm mainly cooking for one, due to me being the only vegetarian in the house, there are several times when I end up with leftovers to freeze for another time. It's easy to just make the amount you need for one person with some things, but other things are just easier to make in bigger batches. It's no big deal though. In fact, I like having leftovers to freeze, because it means a potential quick meal for me in the future, without me needing to resort to grabbing take-away, which is a good thing for many different reasons.

Another quick recipe I tried recently was this one for loaded avocado quesadillas. It was nice, but I still prefer cheese to avocados. Like I said though, it was nice; it was a nice change, and a good quick meal option.

***

Sally has recently been sharing some great cook from scratch recipes on her blog, which you might want to check out.

Also, don't forget: you can find more recipes - most of them vegetarian friendly, and some even vegan friendly - on my website's recipe section, as well as in previous "Food Themed Thoughts" posts.

#Furkid Friday: Maizie The #Chinchilla On Keeping Your #Pets Cool This #Summer

Hi everyone. This is Maizie the chinchilla.

The warmer weather is starting to happen more often, so I wanted to take a moment to remind you that your furry and feathered family members need you to think about them in the heat. Some of the scaled ones do too. At the very least we - and by "we" I mean all animals, be they furry, feathered, or scaled - need a shady spot to rest in, and plenty of water to keep us hydrated, especially in the heat of Summer.

For some animals, however, this is not enough. Chinchillas, for example, have fur that is so thick we can't tolerate higher temperatures at all. For us it's even more important to take steps to make sure to keep us cool.

In short, regardless of the species of your family members, it's important that you do what you can to stop them becoming too hot, and watch for any potential signs that you aren't managing to keep them cool enough. If you don't, you risk them becoming very ill, and possibly even dying, which I'm sure you don't want.

If you're not sure what to look for, or are concerned for any reason, you should contact your vet immediately.

Just bear that in mind, OK?

Squeak soon,
Maizie

#Writing Wednesday - May 24th 2017

I managed to get "How To Trust Your Human" finished and pre-released via Smashwords during this past week. I do have the files to do the paperback version too, but for some reason I can never get CreateSpace to let me pre-release books, even though I'm told it's meant to be possible (it keeps insisting any date more than 24 hours in the future is invalid). Yes, I could use a different release date, I suppose. But I like having the dates match. At least I have the files ready though, so I can "hopefully" get the paperback version sorted quickly after the release date. The official release date is July 3rd 2017, which not only gives plenty of time for it to be available for pre-order via retailers like Barnes & Noble and iBooks, but also gives me plenty of time to organize all the promotional stuff that goes up around the release date, in between my attempts at sorting other projects while training my new puppy, Lilie. Or, perhaps I should say, "being trained by my new puppy, Lilie." *wink*

As I said, I will, of course, be working on other projects while Lilie and I are training each other, like the adventure story I've been slowly working on all year, for example. I'll talk about those more another time though. In the meantime, here are a couple of writing related links for you. I only have a couple this week, but hope you find them interesting.

So...

"Beta readers: who are they and what do they do?" Whether you're a reader or an author, if you've found yourself asking that question, you should read the post I just linked to.

If you're a writer, don't give up hope that someone will choose you. That post is aimed more at those who plan to take the traditional publishing route, I think. But the message about not giving up hope when your dreams take a long time to be realized is an important one for all writers, not to mention everyone who has a dream that has yet to be realized. Also, here's an important message for those of you who are writing to get rich. Remember: Having lots of money isn't the only way to be rich.

14th Wedding Anniversary

Today is my 14th wedding anniversary.

How did that happen?

It doesn't seem like it's been that long. But since it's now 2017, and I got married in 2003, It obviously has been that long.

I say this often, but I'm not sure how Kelly's put up with me for all these years. I'd have gotten sick of me years ago, but he's still here. Not that I'm complaining, of course.

Anyway, we rarely do much to celebrate our anniversary. We do something to acknowledge it, of course, but we don't make the big fuss a lot of people do. We don't feel the need to do so. We show each other in little ways all year that we love each other, so we don't feel the need to do something spectacular to prove it when our anniversary rolls around.

I'm glad to be able to say I'm celebrating being married to Kelly for 14 years though, and hope I get the chance to still be celebrating our life together in another 14 years... At least!

A #Dog Themed Announcement

The title sort of gives it away, but I'll say it anyway: We're getting a puppy!

I'm not sure how we came to start discussing the idea of getting another dog - though I'd wanted another dog for some time when we finally ended up discussing it - but we decided back in November that we wanted another dog. But first we needed to get the work done around here. It's now about as done as it's going to get. I mean, all the stuff is unpacked and organized, and the workmen aren't needing to be in and out of our place all the time. If we wait for there to never be any work to get done, we'll never end up getting a dog though, so we've decided the time is now.

I didn't mention our plans before - though it was one of the things I was thinking about when I said at the start of this year that there were plans for this year that would take up a little more of my time - because I was going to make the announcement as soon as I could give you proper details, and had a date for when we'd be bringing the dog in question home. In a sense, this is what I'm doing now. Although, it's rather closer to the date to bring her home than I expected it to be, since it turned out she became officially mine less than a week before she was ready to leave her Mother and siblings, I'd only spoken to the breeder the day before, and all this was only officially arranged last week (though I've been bringing dog supplies home every so often for months now). But, anyway...

I'm calling her Lilie (pronounced like "Lily" but spelled L-I-L-I-E instead) and she's coming home on Tuesday May 23rd 2017. She's a West Highland White Terrier - like Kero was - and I got to meet and cuddle her this past Tuesday.

Here's a photo of my first cuddle with Lilie:


She appears to be a real cuddler, which is just fine by me! Also, I think she already likes me, since she cuddled with me like that the whole time we were there, and protested to being taken from me when it was time for us to leave. Actually, if I could have done so, I'd have taken her home immediately, but she was a few days away from reaching eight weeks at that point, so it wouldn't have been right to do so.

Anyway, I also briefly cuddled her brother (she has a sister too, but I didn't cuddle her) and met her Mother. The Mama dog (Dixie) is a sweetheart, and the woman we met with when we went to see the pups last week seems to be a very nice woman, who clearly loves Dixie, and obviously cares where the pups end up, since she insisted on seeing us interact with the dogs before she would agree to let us have one of the puppies.

Before anyone says anything: Yes. I considered adopting an older dog instead of getting a puppy. In fact, I almost adopted a three year old that was "some kind of terrier" earlier in the year. I also considered getting a different breed. But I ultimately decided I wanted a Westie puppy. So, that's what I'm getting.

Like I said, we're picking Lilie up on Tuesday. Our friends, Lorna and Andy, are generously providing transport to us. They took us to see Lilie last week, and are taking us to bring her home. I'm really grateful to them, since we don't have a car ourselves, and transporting Lilie by train and taxi would have been quite an ordeal for her. Plus, would have meant I'd have needed to miss out on being with her on the journey home, since guiding me while dealing with a most likely scared and confused puppy would have turned the thing in to quite an ordeal for Kelly too (and it wouldn't have been much fun for me either). This way we get a pleasant car ride, and everyone can focus on being relaxed and happy while we bring our new baby home.

When I came home, smelling of dog, I let Mollie and Maizie (chinchillas) and then Joshua (degu) check out my hands. I wasn't too concerned about Joshua, since he's met dogs before, but I wasn't sure how the girls would react. I was right about Joshua; Joshua didn't seem to notice - or care - that my hands smelled differently (I guess he's learned to trust me enough over these past months that just the fact it was my hand was good enough for him). Mollie and Maizie were a bit more interested, and gave my hands a good sniff, but were ultimately more concerned by the fact the hand initially didn't contain food than what I smelled of. I'm hoping they remain as unconcerned when Lilie comes home.

Anyhow, I'll tell you more about Lilie in a couple of weeks, and should have more photos to show you then too. I certainly plan to have more photos, anyway. I've already warned her she's going to have to get used to the camera. *wink*

Oh, by the way... Kelly saw this interesting-looking house on the way to go see Lilie, so made sure to be ready with the camera on the way back to get a photo for me to show it to anyone who may be interested. So, here it is:

#Furkid Friday: "Wait! Did She Just Say #Dog?"

Hi everyone. This is Mollie the chinchilla.

The human caretakers are up to no good again. I should have known! I mean, things had calmed down around here. Sure, there are still plenty of noises from humans working outside. But things have been quiet inside, and the human caretakers had been behaving themselves. Like I said, I should have known that meant they were up to something.

They've brought some new stuff lately. We stopped paying much attention, since they weren't even willing to share the wood they brought... They just stacked stuff on it. It's like they don't even know how good wood is to chew! Humans!

Anyway, as I said, we stopped paying proper attention. Or, my chinchilla sister, Maizie, and I did. Our degu brother, Joshua, on the other hand, seemed more interested. He especially seemed interested in certain items, which he told us afterwards looked suspiciously like the kinds of things human caretakers provide for dogs.

If that wasn't enough, we heard the human caretakers talking about dogs a lot recently. I mean, we thought we'd heard the human caretakers say something about a dog a few times over the past couple of months. But nothing seemed to be happening, so we thought we'd imagined it. But now we know they're talking about a dog. Plus, as I said, Joshua is pretty convinced they've brought some dog stuff.

We think they might be planning to get one. Either that, or one is coming for a visit. We aren't too sure which.

Joshua, who says he's met several dogs in the past, doesn't seem concerned either way. Maizie and I, on the other hand, aren't sure how we feel about this. We don't know much about dogs, and haven't actually met any, so we don't know if Joshua's right not to be bothered, or if we should be worried.

Is there a dog coming? Is Joshua just acting tough, or does he really know enough about dogs that we can trust him on this?

I just don't know!

Squeak soon,
Mollie

#Writing Wednesday - May 17th 2017

Great news! The paperback version of "Catching Snowflakes And Other Poems" is now available from CreateSpace and Amazon, and will soon be available from a couple of other retailers too, such as Barnes & Noble, for example. Click on the book's title to go to the book's page on CreateSpace.

Plus, I now have a cover for the story that was inspired by my degu, Joshua, and the story itself is now in the editing phase, so I "should" be announcing a release date for that one in the near future. The title for it is "How To Trust Your Human" and I'm hoping for a late June or early July release.

After that I'm planning to go back to working on my pirate adventure story, which I had planned to be releasing this Summer, but know I won't be releasing then after all, since it's nowhere near ready at the moment. I'm hoping to have it done in time to release it towards the end of this year instead, but not making any promises at this point, just in case. I mean, it shouldn't be a problem to have it done by the end of the year, but... Well, you never know, do you?

Anyway...

If you write too, how's it going? Are you making good progress with your current writing project? Or, have you been sitting there, trying - and failing - to get words down on paper (or screen) for who knows how long? If it's the latter, try these ways to warm up the writing muscles, or these ways to recover from writing burnout, or these key strategies on pushing back your mental brick wall, and hopefully one of the tips in those posts will soon have those words flowing properly again. Also, don't forget this belief, that might also be a writing trick: "All stories are about people, even if they aren't people."

#Fantasy #Book - Legends of Windemere: Ritual of the Lost Lamb by @cyallowitz

Dark times are waiting for the champions in
RITUAL OF THE LOST LAMB![caption id="attachment_19966" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Cover Art by Jason Pedersen[/caption]

Death is a blessing that the Baron is not ready to bestow upon his new toy.

In the chaos surrounding the Spirit Well, Luke Callindor has disappeared and the only clue the psychic scream of agony that Dariana cannot ignore. Knowing that a journey to Shayd will result in their ultimate battle, the champions have devised another way to rescue their friend. With permission from the gods, Nyx has begun the Ritual of the Lost Lamb. It is a long and exhausting spell, which is made even more difficult by a new threat that is out to make all of the Baron’s enemies suffer.

It is a race against time where every minute lost brings Luke Callindor one step closer to a fate worse than oblivion.
Grab it on Amazon!Add it to your Goodreads ‘To Read’ List!

Excerpt: Audience Granted

Having said her piece, Nyx gnaws on a hunk of jerky and sips at a waterskin while the others discuss her idea. She refuses to admit that she is having second thoughts about breaking a god seal even with permission. The last time she accomplished such a feat was by accident and resulted in her magic being sealed for days. Nyx shudders at the memory of feeling so many lives ending at her hands and takes a sloppy drink of leathery water to steady her nerves. The result is a full body convulsion of disgust and a hacking cough as the liquid goes down her windpipe. Flicking a green beetle off her shoulder, the channeler impatiently paces in a circle and wonders why the others are taking so long.

The hairs on the back of Nyx’s neck rise and her arms become covered in goosebumps as a pulse of energy ripples through the clearing. She is about to ask her friends if they feel anything, but stops when she sees that they are frozen in time. The half-elf’s heart pounds in her chest as she fears that the Baron is about to attack. More terror seeps into her mind when she expects to turn around and find Luke’s tortured body dangling before her eyes. Not wanting to be caught by surprise, a flaming disc appears in her palm and hums as she searches for the source of the powerful spell. The snap of a twig to her left causes Nyx to hurl the fiery circle, which splits into a swarm of deadly copies that would destroy any normal enemy. Against the ebony platemail of Gabriel, the discs puff into balls of harmless smoke that remain hovering in place.

“Your friends have agreed to your idea,” the Destiny God states, ignoring the mortal’s amusing attack. He removes his black cape, which becomes a vague chair for the nervously bowing channeler. “Now, this is unique. In fact, it is quite unheard of, which is why I am granting you an audience. The Law of Influence says I cannot get involved, but nobody has ever asked for permission to do something like this. Needless to say, all of us are very curious to see how all of this plays out.”

“I want to unseal the Ritual of the Lost Lamb,” Nyx politely requests while she takes a seat on the cape. An enchanting warmth rises from the cloth and she nearly falls asleep from the blissful energy that infects her body. “This is the only way to save Luke without marching into the Baron’s territory. We both know that is what he wants. With the forbidden ritual, I can gather my little brother’s residual energy and bring him home. None of us will be at risk since it’s a combination of a summoning and teleportation spell.”

“Strange that you know about a spell designed by channelers. Especially since it has not been used since the ancient Race War,” Gabriel says with a nod of his head. Urging voices in the back of his head causes the god to hum with his mouth closed, the spell jolting the sources of his rising irritation. “The Ritual of the Lost Lamb was taken from mortals before my time, but I understand the reason it made the gods worry. Such a thing could be the first step into summoning a deity against his or her will. Possibly even stealing immortality. Though I believe times have changed and we should reconsider the sealing.”

“Time is also running out,” the channeler replies, shying away when the powerful deity stares at her. A flickering realization that the Baron’s power might be on the same level of Gabriel gives her the courage to meet the man’s piercing eyes. “I apologize for sounding like I’m rushing you. Yet, it has been said that the gods and goddesses have no concept of time since you exist forever. That means I have to push even though I want to speak with respect.”

“In other words, you want a decision now.”

“That would be best, sir.”

“Sadly, I cannot agree to your terms.”

“I haven’t made any terms.”

“Exactly.”

Need to catch Legends of Windemere from the beginning? Then click on the covers below!You can start for FREE . . .[caption id="attachment_17422" align="aligncenter" width="202"] Cover art by Jason Pedersen[/caption]
Or grab the $4.99 ‘3 in 1’ bundles!

Cover Art by Jason Pedersen
3D Conversion by Bestt_graphics

Cover Art by Jason Pedersen

 
Also Available in Single eBooks:

Cover Art by Jason Pedersen

Cover Art by Jason Pedersen

Cover Art by Jason Pedersen

Cover art by Jason Pedersen

[caption id="attachment_16988" align="alignleft" width="200"] Cover Art by Jason Pedersen[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_18052" align="alignright" width="200"] Cover Art by Jason Pedersen[/caption]
Interested in a new adventure? Then grab your Kindle & dive back into the world of Windemere! Don’t forget an apple for Fizzle. About the Author:Charles Yallowitz was born and raised on Long Island, NY, but he has spent most of his life wandering his own imagination in a blissful haze. Occasionally, he would return from this world for the necessities such as food, showers, and Saturday morning cartoons. One day he returned from his imagination and decided he would share his stories with the world. After his wife decided that she was tired of hearing the same stories repeatedly, she convinced him that it would make more sense to follow his dream of being a fantasy author. So, locked within the house under orders to shut up and get to work, Charles brings you Legends of Windemere. He looks forward to sharing all of his stories with you, and his wife is happy he finally has someone else to play with.

Blog: www.legendsofwindemere.com
Twitter: @cyallowitz
Facebook: Charles Yallowitz
Website: www.charleseyallowitz.com

A Late Birthday Post For My Hubby (FD)

I forgot to mention the other day that it was Kelly's birthday at the start of May. So, a belated happy birthday to him.

Also, a belated happy birthday to anyone else who I didn't say it to.

Back to Kelly's birthday though, since I have some photos of his birthday cards to show you. Here they are:


We didn't do much to celebrate, because he didn't want to. We just ordered pizza (because that was what he wanted) and had some cake (because you have to have cake). He seems to have enjoyed his birthday though, which is all that matters.