Victoria Zigler's Blog: Zigler News, page 74

#MondayMotivation, #Inspiration, And #Wisdom - #Quotes About #Love For February 11th 2019 - #ValentinesDay

Some more quotes about love, since Valentine's Day is just a couple of days away.

You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.
~Dr Seuss

Let the soft animal of your body love what it loves.
~Mary Oliver

Never love anyone who treats you like you’re ordinary.
~Oscar Wilde

When you love someone, you love the person as they are, and not as you’d like them to be.
~Leo Tolstoy

It is not a lack of love, but a lack of friendship that makes unhappy marriages.
~Friedrich Nietzsche

Treasure the love you receive above all. It will survive long after your gold and good health have vanished.
~Og Mandino

Love is not measured by how many times you touch each other, but by how many times you reach each other.
~Unknown

The most desired gift of love is not diamonds or roses or chocolate. It is focused attention.
~Richard Warren

Our job is to love others without stopping to inquire whether or not they are worthy.
~Thomas Merton

Friends Of #FurkidFriday: Athena

Hi everyone. This is Lilie the Westie.

When I heard Mummy was going to go for one of those hospital trips again, I thought I'd invite a couple of friends over while she'd be gone. Her being gone would mean it would be just me and Daddy for a while. Well, the squeaky things in cages would be here too, but they won't come out and play with me, so they don't count. I love my Daddy best usually, but he's not the best at playing ball, because he won't play for as long as Mummy does. Anyway, I figured asking some of my friends to come tell you about themselves would pass the time until Mummy can play ball with me properly again.

Except, there were lots of friends I wanted to invite over, and they were all happy to come for a visit. So this is going to be more than just something for while Mummy is going to the hospital place again. In fact, Mummy says we can do it after she's home too, if there are any writers' pets who want to come over for a visit. Although, because we'll need to be able to do our regular "Furkid Friday" posts some weeks too, there will only be one spot a month available as from March.

So, if you're a writer's pet - regardless of species - and you want to come over and talk to me, or one of the squeaky things in cages, you can get in touch with us, and we'll send you the questions you need to answer to do it. Send us an email to keroberous2004@gmail.com with the subject "Friends of Furkid Friday" (you have to do that bit, or Mummy might think it's junk and delete it by accident). Just be patient with Mummy while she deals with the hospital thing, because it's going to make her slow doing things on the computer.

Today though, I would like to introduce you to my friend, Athena.

What a great name you have! Anyway, Athena, for the benifit of anyone who doesn't know you... What species and breed are you?

I am a doggy, and my breed is called Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.

Mummy loves that kind of dog as much as she loves Westies. It's one of her two most favourite dog breeds. For the benifit of those who don't know about one though, describe your appearance. I know you sent a photo (which I'll post in a moment) but please describe yourself too, for the benefit of those who can’t see the photo.

I am a ‘tri-colour’ variety. Mostly I am black, with white tummy (which loves to be rubbed), white and black legs, a bushy black tale, but I also have some tan on my little face and my bottom.

Awww... I bet all the humans always say you're super cute! In fact, here's your photo so they can do so now:


So, what sort of place do you live in? Who do you share it with?

I live in the best place ever! I live with my humans in a place called Bristol. We have a garden I can play in, and lots of squirrels I can chase. My mummy is called Alex and my daddy is called Stephen. There used to be some little guinea pigs here when I was a puppy, but they went over the rainbow bridge and now they are gone. I miss them.

Sounds like you have a great home. Sorry about your guinea pig friends going over the rainbow bridge. On a brighter note, what’s your favourite thing to do?

Belly rubs! And snoozing, and walkies, and toys, and cuddles and more belly rubs!

Sounds like you love life as much as I do. Do you have a favourite toy? If yes, what is it?

Monkey! He is a brown and tan monkey with a squeakie! I do have a lot of toys and Santa brought me a squeakie doggy toy but I always go back to Monkey.

I'm like that with Noodles. What’s your favourite food?

Human food! Hehehe. I like cheese, and the wet food the humans put in the bowl. I have to have special kibbles for my naughty tummy too, but they aren’t as nice.

Human food is always the best, and the only thing better than cheese is chicken! Speaking of human things, what’s the one thing your human does that you love most?

Belly rubs!

I'm getting the feeling you're a big fan of belly rubs. But then, those are nice, so I don't blame you! What’s the one thing your human does that you hate most?

Ignoring me.

I hate when they do that too! By the way, my Mummy says your human is a writer. Has she written anything about you? If yes, can you tell us about it? If no, do you think she will in the future?

I don’t think she has yet. She says she will, but then doesn’t. Maybe she will one day – I hope so. Adventures of Athena the doggy! Yay!

That sounds like it could be fun! If she ever does, make sure to come tell me and Mummy about it. We'd love to read those! In the meantime... What do you do while your human writes?

I snooze, I run about and bring her toys. I sit and stare until she stops writing and plays with me. I sit and stare outside. I play with daddy.

I hope she doesn't make you have to play the staring game too long before she stops to play with you. Anyway, before we say, "Goodbye," is there anything else you’d like people to know about you?

Apparently, I am the best doggy ever!

Fair enough. Not sure if it's completely true, since I thought that was me. But maybe we can share the title of best doggy ever? Either way, you've been great to have for a visit. By the way, don't forget to come back and tell us if your human writes those stories about you, OK?

***~~~***

Author bio, links, etc:

British-born A. L. Butcher is an avid reader and creator of worlds, a poet, and a dreamer, a lover of science, natural history, history, and monkeys. Her prose has been described as ‘dark and gritty’ and her poetry as ‘evocative’. She writes with a sure and sometimes erotic sensibility of things that might have been, never were, but could be.

Alex is the author of the Light Beyond the Storm Chronicles and the Tales of Erana lyrical fantasy series. She also has several short stories in the fantasy, fantasy romance genres with occasional forays into gothic style horror, including the Legacy of the Mask series. With a background in politics, classical studies, ancient history and myth, her affinities bring an eclectic and unique flavour in her work, mixing reality and dream in alchemical proportions that bring her characters and worlds to life.
She also curates for speculative fiction themed book bundles on BundleRabbit.

Her short novella Outside the Walls, co-written with Diana L. Wicker received a Chill with a Book Reader’s Award in 2017, and The Kitchen Imps won the NN Light Book of the year2018 for fantasy.

Alex is also proud to be a writer for Perseid Press where her work features in Heroika: Dragon Eaters; and Lovers in Hell – part of the acclaimed Heroes in Hell series. http://www.theperseidpress.com/

Social Media links
Website http://www.libraryoferana.co.uk/books.html
Blog https://libraryoferana.wordpress.com/about-a-l-butcher-fantasy-author-poet-author-promotion/
Amazon Author Page http://amzn.to/2hK33OM
Smashwords Author Page https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/ALB123
Facebook Author Page https://www.facebook.com/LightBeyondtheStorm/
Indiebound Author Page https://www.indiebound.org/search/book?keys=author%3AButcher%2C%20A.%20L
Twitter http://bit.ly/Twi2hJZ3h9
Goodreads http://bit.ly/GR2iqokvK
Library of Erana Blog http://bit.ly/Blog2iAWL3o
Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-butcher-8342ab13b/
Tumblr https://www.tumblr.com/blog/libraryoferana
Pinterest https://www.pinterest.co.uk/abmonkey/
Books2Read newsletter sign up https://books2read.com/author/a-l-butcher/subscribe/1/97541/

Lovers in Hell (Heroes in Hell)

Only fools fall in love, and hell is filled with fools. Our damned lovers include: Christopher Marlowe and Will Shakespeare, Napoleon and Wellington, Orpheus and Eurydice, Hatshepsut and Senenmut, Abelard and Heloise, Helen and Penelope, Saint Teresa and Satan's Reaper, Madge Kendall and the Elephant Man, and more . . . -- all of whom pay a hellish price for indulging their affections.

Universal Link https://books2read.com/LoversinHell
Amazon UK https://amzn.to/2Mlga3e
Amazon.com https://amzn.to/2x4QqlS

***~~~***

I hope you enjoyed meeting Athena, and getting to know about her and her human, Alex.

Lots of licks,
Lilie

#AmReading + #AmWatching - February 7th 2019 #Reviews

It's time to take a look at what I've been reading and watching during this past week.

If you want to know more about the book, or the author, click on whichever it is you want to learn more about, and it will take you to the appropriate page on Goodreads. Clicking on my rating should take you to my actual Goodreads review for the book in question. Please bear in mind that the format I've reviewed on Goodreads may not be the format I actually read.

Alternatively, if it's a movie or TV show you want to know more about, just click on the title 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 read and watch things across multiple genres, as well as for different age ranges, so you should always check before reading or viewing, to make certain something is suitable for the intended audience, especially when children are involved.

OK...

Here's what I read this week:

One Good Knight by Mercedes Lackey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This second book was an improvement on the first in the series. I'm still seeing the same editing and word choice issues, so can't quite bring myself to give it the full five stars, but if it wasn't for those I would have done so. The plot flowed better and was filled with plenty of action and entertainment, I loved the characters, and that ending was just perfect.

Dead Weight by Matt Casamassina
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
The book had a promising start, and was good enough to hold my attention throughout. However, part of what kept me reading was curiosity as to what actually happened. Yet, though we're given a possible reason as to what the deciding factor in who didn't disappear might have been, we still have no idea at all what caused the people who disappeared to do so... Just a bunch of different theories from various characters. Not to mention, the way pretty much everyone had a hidden agenda, or was just a step away from turning in to a psycho killer or something was rather irritating.

As for what I've been watching:

I watched a DVD, and a movie on my Sky box. Both were new to me, so reviews follow.

Sherlock Gnomes (2018 movie):
I spent this movie alternating between being entertained, and rolling my eyes at the puns and cheesy jokes. It was a fun movie over all though, with some amusing scenes, some action-packed scenes, and even a few touching scenes. The ending was really sweet. Although, I think the first movie was better. Anyway, I give this movie four out of five stars.

Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018 movie):
Chewbacca and Han Solo have always been two of my favourite characters from the Star Wars universe, so I was excited to see this movie. It was an action-packed movie, with a plot filled with twists and turns, and I really enjoyed it. I've heard people say it could have been better, but I personally think it's a great addition to the Star Wars universe as it stands. With that in mind, I give this movie five out of five stars.

#WriterWednesday - February 6th 2019

It's a shame I don't have a laptop, and obviously can't just use a pen and paper, or I could take advantage of the fact I'm going in to hospital tomorrow to get some writing time in. I'm likely going to be there for about a week... Possibly a little less, possibly a little more, depending on my recovery... Which would add up to a lot of writing time. I'm not very good at doing writing on my phone, and can't do it on the Kindle at all, so I can't even use those to get some writing done. Well, other than a few short scribbles, maybe, which is the limit of my writing ability with my phone. Never mind. I'll just have to read instead. I can definitely do that, and I have plenty of books on my Kindle waiting to be read. My travel headphones are in my backpack, ready to be used with my Kindle, just in case I get stuck in a shared room. I actually prefer to listen without headphones, but if I'm on a ward with other people, I'll use the headphones. That's the only way I can read privately with others around, after all.

By the way, in case you missed it being mentioned yesterday: I've got posts scheduled for the next two weeks, which will hopefully give me time to recover from surgery and be home before I need to write more. But I won't be sharing them across social media until I'm home, so if you don't want to wait for them, you'll have to come directly to my blog. That or use the "subscribe by eMail" option that's somewhere on my sidebar.

Anyway... Let's see what writerly links I have for you this week, shall we?

First, check out this post about taming wild ideas. Seriously: write all your ideas down, so you have plenty to work with, especially since some of them may not be as co-operative as you might like them to be.

Do you write fantasy? Then check out these tips for writing fantasy. Actually, a lot of the tips could work for other genres too.

Next, in case you need them for whatever you're writing, here are some tips to writing humanoid monster protagonists, because even the undead can have a heart. Well, in some stories anyhow. Of course, if you're going to have your heroes be monsters, you need to consider the limits to using monsters as heroes.

No matter who's in your story though, never forget the importance of listening to your characters.

Regardless of what your characters have to say, check out this advice on writing tight.

Also, here are some suggestions for keeping readers interested during the middle (muddle) of your story. Maybe the tips and prompts in this post about secrets in fiction might also give you some ideas to keep the middle of your story interesting.

By the way, do you love poetry, and wish you could write it yourself? Or, perhaps, you write poetry, but wish you could write other forms of poetry besides those you usually write? If either of those applies to you, you might find this post on how to learn poetry useful and fun. Or, if it's spacifically Haiga poetry you want to learn, here's how to create Haiga poetry.

Whatever you write, if you're struggling to sort out a writing routine that works for you, check out this post about how to create the perfect writing process for you, and use it to create a writing routine that works with the other things going on in your life. I certainly plan to make use of the tips in it once this surgery is over and I'm ready to establish a new writing routine.

Anyway, here's why a writer's path is never a straight line, in case you were wondering why your path as a writer seems to be filled with so many ups and downs. Do you feel like writing isn't worth it? You're wrong! Sometimes though, you have to decide if more writing time right now is worthwhile, or if you should focus on something else in this moment, whether it's staring at the empty coffee cup beside you that puts you on that crossroads, or something else.

You know what? My biggest fear as a writer is that I'm not good at it. Yes, I have that fear too. I've published more than 50 titles, many of which have received some fantastic reviews, and yet I still have that fear. It's part of the package, I guess. So, if you're struggling with the same fear, just write anyway, because if you aren't already an awesome writer, the practice will help you get there one day anyhow.

Now, here are some reasons why it's important for writers to have blogs.

Finally, here are some tips for generating interest in your book.

Touching Scenes With #Degus And #Chinchillas, Hoovers, Weather Reports, And Preparing For Hospital

Once Lilie settles for the evening, it's so quiet here now Maizie's gone. Maizie was always so full of energy. I used to hear her half running, half hopping, so enthusiastically on her wheel she'd make their cage rattle. Or she'd be playing with their bell. Not to mention her jumping and climbing about energetically. I miss hearing all the sounds from her playing coming from the living room. I can still hear Joshua and Mollie, of course. But Joshua doesn't make as much noise as Maizie, and Mollie's even quieter still. Actually, Mollie has always been quieter and more reserved. Even at her most playful, she's never made even half the noise Maizie did. Maizie was also the one who used to throw things out of the cage at Lilie, and - strange as it might sound - I think Lilie is actually missing that. So we're all missing Maizie. Though Mollie most of all, I expect, since they've been cage mates since Mollie was six months old, and Maizie was three months old. That's almost three years of never being out of sight of one another.

At least Joshua helped Mollie deal with losing Maizie. Yes, really. Nobody will convince me otherwise. Mollie had been calling for Maizie, and generally seeming miserable - understandably. Then I heard Joshua squeaking away in the way he used to with his brothers. We've heard him talk to himself a bit, but never for this long. I didn't interupt though, because he didn't sound distressed. I'm glad I didn't, because it turned out he was on top of his house, in the spot where he could see Mollie in her log house best, and just a squeaking and chittering away to her. He was at it for a good five minutes, and then he scampered off to play on his wheel. Before that, Mollie was calling for Maizie, and only coming out of her log house to eat and drink. Since then Mollie has stopped calling for Maizie, and has even been playing some (as mentioned above, she was never as enthusiastic about playing as Maizie, so a little playing counts for a lot with Mollie). She even watched some TV with us. I don't care what anyone says. Our little degu buddy helped his chinchilla sister. I don't know what he said to her, but I'm glad he did, whatever it was. I mean, she's obviously still missing Maizie, of course. She probably always will. But whatever Joshua said to her seems to have helped, and kept her from spiraling down in to depression. So, Thanks Buddy!

In other news...

There was a marching band outside here on Saturday. I don't know why, and don't have photos or videos to share, but I did enjoy listening to them.

Anyway, we got a new hoover (vaccume cleaner). Our old one was a cheap one that needed bags, which we got because it was all we could get at the price we could afford at the time. Bearing in mind, this was several years ago. We've been meaning to replace it for a while, especially since it started being a bit unreliable as to whether or not it would suck things up a little while ago. Not to mention, getting hold of the right kinds of bags for it was getting to be quite difficult. Plus, we wanted a bagless one in general: les expense, and less waste. So, we finally got a new one. It's a Dyson, and even comes with an extra atatchment for the hose that's especially designed for picking up pet hair and such. Plus, though it's mostly grey, it has some red and purple on it, which I thought was great. Kelly usually does the hoovering, but I got all excited about it having some red and purple on it, so begged to be allowed to try it out first. Probably one of the few times in the history of the universe that anyone has ever been excited about doing the hoovering. Haha! I suppose I don't need to tell you he was happy to let me do so? Yeah... Thought as much. You also probably won't be the least bit surprised to learn the novelty wore off quickly, and I handed the task of hoovering back to Kelly, will you? That's what I thought! *wink*

Also, sticking on the theme of things around the house for a moment: we had the annual check for our boiler and heating system last week. The guy seemed happy with it, and we haven't noticed any problems with it. So, in theory we're good to go for another year, barring any unforseen circumstances. Oh, and we made sure it went back on the right setting afterwards this time, so we didn't end up with the problem we had last year, where we thought it was broken, and had to call someone out, only to find it was just on the wrong setting, and we hadn't realized that. So, we're all good as regards heating and hot water. Just as well really, since it's been pretty cold here. Although, quite warm compared to temperatures many of you have been having. Temperatures you can keep, by the way. -3 degrees C is quite cold enough to be getting on with, thank you very much!

If you're offering it, I'll take your snow though. It did sort of snow here Thursday night in to Friday morning. It tried to anyhow. A lot of the UK got snow, and places not far from us even had a couple of inches. But it turned to rain too quickly here - probably because of the salty sea air - to avoid being slush for long enough for Kelly to even get photos, let alone for me and Lilie to go down and play in it. They do keep saying we might get more snow before long. It's certainly stayed cold enough. We haven't had any more so far though. We've had a couple of awesome rainstorms, but no more snow. You watch it come this weekend, when I'll be stuck in hospital, and unable to go out and play in it. I really hope it doesn't do that.

Yes... It's almost time. It's just two days until I go in for surgery. I'll be having surgery Thursday afternoon. All prayers and positive thoughts gratefully received. I hopefully won't need them, but it doesn't hurt. Thanks in advance!

Anyway, tomorrow I get to find out just how bad that special before surgery drink stuff tastes. They didn't have that last time I went in for surgery, so I've never had it before. I hope it's not as bad as I'm dreading it will be. Hopefully my dread of the terrible flavour will mean I get a nice surprise when it's not as bad as I fear it will be. Can but hope, right? *wink*

Speaking of things not being as bad as I feared: my ankle is doing well. I'm still getting nasty twinges of pain in it more than is normal for it, but I've either done a great job of resting it, or didn't hurt it as badly as it felt like I had. Either way, it's mending nicely. At least, as nicely as is possible for that ankle. I'm sure it will be glad of the proper rest while I'm in hospital though. Not that hospital is generally a relaxing place, as those who have spent a lot of time there know. But at least I won't be needing to walk around much.

Anyway, I'll be offline from early Thursday morning through to whenever I'm up for sitting at the computer after I'm home. Can't say exactly how long that will be, since how quickly I get to come home depends on how smoothly surgery and initial recovery goes. I've got posts set up for all the weekdays of the next two weeks, which should be long enough to give you plenty to read while I'm gone. I hope. Those who usually get to my posts via Twitter or Facebook will have to either come to my blog looking for them, or wait until I'm around to share them, since the only online activity there might be from me during that time is if I feel like checking in briefly on Facebook to let people on there know I'm alive, and that's if I even feel up to doing that, which there's a good chance I won't. If you're worried you'll miss a post, you can always subscribe by eMail... There's a thingy for that somewhere on my sidebar. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the posts I've got set up for you, and that I'm not gone too long.

I'll catch up with all your posts and things when I can after I'm home, though I expect that will take some time, since - if my usual list of posts and eMails is anything to go by - I'm sure I'll have quite a stack of stuff waiting for me to deal with.

Before I end this, here's another random photo of Lilie... Just because:

#MondayMotivation, #Inspiration, And #Wisdom - #Quotes About #Love For February 4th 2019 - #ValentinesDay

Some quotes about love, since it's Valentine's Day next week.

Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened.
~Anatole France

Do not be dismayed by the brokenness of the world. All things break. And all things can be mended. Not with time, as they say, but with intention. So go. Love intentionally, extravagantly, unconditionally. The broken world waits in darkness for the light that is you.
~L.R. Knost

It doesn't matter who you are or what you look like, so long as somebody loves you.
~Roald Dahl

If you seek peace, be still.
If you seek wisdom, be silent.
If you seek love, be yourself.
~Becca Lee

The love between humans is the thing that nails us to this earth.
~Ann Patchett

We’ve got the gift of love, but love is like a precious plant. You can’t just accept it and leave it in the cupboard, or just think it’s gonna get on with itself. You gotta keep watering it. You’ve got to really look after it...and nurture it.
~John Lennon

In dreams and in love, there are no impossibilities.
~János Arnay

The best portion of your life will be the small, nameless moments you spend smiling with someone who matters to you.
~Unknown

R.I.P. Maizie

Today shouldn't really be a posting day, but I think the title makes it clear I have some important news to share, and what that news is. So I'm sure you'll understand the reason for an un-planned posting day.

On Thursday afternoon, our youngest chinchilla, Maizie, started seeming unwell. She'd been more cuddly recently, but otherwise seemed fine. I did think the cuddly behaviour was odd, but put it down to her having recently turned three. Mollie didn't change her behaviour on turning three, but the degus all mellowed out some when they turned three, including Joshua, who's almost six now. So, the possibility it was more than that didn't occur to me. In fact, I posted on Facebook only that morning how she was being extra cuddly and sweet, and how I hoped she kept wanting cuddles. However, by late afternoon, we realized there was something wrong, and our little girl needed a vet.

Though we spoke to the vets on the phone right away, we couldn't get her to a vet until Friday morning, partially because our own exotic vet had left the practice, so we had to find a new one on the spot. By the time we'd spoken to a couple of vets, and were able to get her seen, it was too late to do anything more than stop her suffering. Those of you who have owned small animals will know how they are for hiding that they aren't well until the last possible moment. Well, I guess that's what Maizie did.

Mollie is fine, by the way. Upset at being unable to locate her friend, of course. But otherwise fine. Let's hope she stays that way for a long time yet. Like Maizie, she only recently turned three. Although, in Mollie's case it was October she celebrated her third birthday, rather than just last month. Chinchillas can live a long time sometimes, assuming their health co-operates. Opinions differ as to exactly how long, though everyone gives numbers between 10 and 25 years, with most people saying about 15 years or so.

I'm sure you can imagine that it breaks my heart to lose Maizie so soon, though I'm glad it happened when it did, and not a week later, when I would have been in hospital. At least my being home still meant I could be with her at the end, and I could take her in to the vet myself, while Kelly stayed home with Lilie. He would have come too, but Lilie would have needed to come if Kelly did, and we didn't think it was fair on either of the girls to have us all go. Maizie more than anything, since Lilie adores vet trips so probably would have loved it, and it was Maizie's stress level we were really thinking of. Kelly going instead of me wasn't an option. We know rodents are tricky, and I wanted to be there with her if it was time to say, "Goodbye," and send her on that journey across the rainbow bridge. So I went on my own.

The vet practice was new to us. As I said, our usual one doesn't have an exotic pet vet at the moment, so we had to go elsewhere. They were great though... Both when it came to dealing with me, and - most importantly - with Maizie. So we've held on to their number in case we need them for Mollie (our remaining chinchilla) or Joshua (our remaining degu) at any point in the future. Mind you, it never hurts to have a second vet option for emergencies in general. As a rule though, we'll keep Lilie to her usual vet, since there's no reason to change her, what with her being a dog, and not an exotic pet. After all, the vets we'd been using are great too. Bearing in mind, we've been using our usual vet practice since we were using them for Kero when we first moved down here. That's close to seven and a half years ago now. Other than them suddenly not having an exotic vet, we've never had a problem with them in all that time, and the exotic pet vet thing isn't really a problem with them as such. A lot of vets don't train in exotic pets, and when they did have one who could deal with exotic pets, they were great with those too. Plus, when they realized we needed an exotic pet vet, they did give us a list of vets to try. Two of them were too far for us to get her to them, though one of them did try to help as much as was possible without seeing Maizie. One was extremely rude to me on the phone, and hung up on me, so they'd have to be the last vet option available for me to ever consider using them, since I'm not about to trust my furry babies to people who can't even be civil to other humans (our vet only gave us that number as an afterthought, in case we couldn't get her seen in the other three, since at least they do have an exotic pet vet there, and it was only their proximity to us that made us call them at all). The other vet our usual one told us to contact was the one we went to, and would willingly go to again, should we need to. Although, I'm hoping we won't need to any time soon, of course.

Anyway, I have some photos of Maizie, taken about a week ago, which I'd posted in the chinchillas' album on Facebook, but hadn't had a chance to post on here yet. So, I'm going to post them here.

Here she is perched on the edge of the sand bath:


Here she is coming out of the cage for a cuddle:


The chinchillas didn't chew on the purple bowl, but they kept tipping it over, and then getting upset because they didn't have any food. So, we got them a ceramic one. Here's Maizie trying it out:


"Do you mind? I'm eating!"


Rest in peace, Maizie Girl... We miss you already!

January 13th 2016 - February 1st 2019

Friends Of #FurkidFriday: Trigger

Hi everyone. This is Lilie the Westie.

When I heard Mummy was going to go for one of those hospital trips again, I thought I'd invite a couple of friends over while she'd be gone. Her being gone would mean it would be just me and Daddy for a while. Well, the squeaky things in cages would be here too, but they won't come out and play with me, so they don't count. I love my Daddy best usually, but he's not the best at playing ball, because he won't play for as long as Mummy does. Anyway, I figured asking some of my friends to come tell you about themselves would pass the time until Mummy can play ball with me properly again.

Except, there were lots of friends I wanted to invite over, and they were all happy to come for a visit. So this is going to be more than just something for while Mummy is going to the hospital place again. In fact, Mummy says we can do it after she's home too, if there are any writers' pets who want to come over for a visit. Although, because we'll need to be able to do our regular "Furkid Friday" posts some weeks too, there will only be one spot a month available as from March (February is already all filled up).

So, if you're a writer's pet - regardless of species - and you want to come over and talk to me, or one of the squeaky things in cages, you can get in touch with us, and we'll send you the questions you need to answer to do it. Send us an email to keroberous2004@gmail.com with the subject "Friends of Furkid Friday" (you have to do that bit, or Mummy might think it's junk and delete it by accident). Just be patient with Mummy while she deals with the hospital thing, because it's going to make her slow doing things on the computer.

Today though, I would like to introduce you to my friend, Trigger.

Hello Trigger. For the benifit of anyone who doesn't know you... What species and breed are you?

I am a brindle Labrador/retriever.

I haven't met many of those. Describe your appearance.

I am a large, brindle Labrador/retriever. My father was a black Labrador while my mother was a golden retriever, which accounts for my brindle colour. The brindle is present on my legs and tummy, while the rest of my body is black.

You sound like a nice looking dog. What sort of place do you live in? Who do you share it with?

I live in a 2-bedroom flat with a hall and a large living room. My bed is in the living room. There is a large garden and a park just 2 minutes walk from my home.
I share my home with Kevin Morris, a poet and author who is originally from the city of Liverpool but has lived and worked in London since 1994. Kevin is registered blind and I am his guide dog.

Sounds like a nice place. My Mummy is blind too, but I'm not her guide dog. What’s your favourite thing to do?

I enjoy going for walks especially in the park or woods where there are lots of interesting smells for me to investigate.

Oh, I love walks! Most of mine happen by the big water the humans call the ocean though. Do you have a favourite toy? If yes, what is it?

I have a squeaky bear which I love to squeak as it drives Kevin mad! Kevin once found a “squeaky dog toy sound” on something called Youtube, which really confused me as I spent ages trying to find that toy!

It would have confused me too! Also, your bear sounds like a great toy. What’s your favourite food?

I eat a complete dry food. However, I love to vacuum up tasty morsels on the street (although Kevin does his best to prevent me from doing this)!

That must be frustrating. I hope Kevin doesn't always manage to stop you... Humans drop some great stuff! Speaking of Kevin, what’s the one thing your human does that you love most?

That is a hard question to answer. I love it when Kevin scratches my belly or behind my ears, but my greatest love is (apart from eating) going for walks in the park and its almost always Kevin who takes me there.

Those things all sound really nice. What’s the one thing your human does that you hate most?

Sometimes he puts anti-flea spray on me and I shake vigorously to get it off me. I hate that flea spray!

I don't blame you! By the way, you mentioned that your human is a poet and author. Has he written anything about you? If yes, can you tell us about it? If no, do you think he will in the future?

Kevin has written several poems about me, including the below piece entitled “The Hungry Hound”:

“I am Trigger.
My stomach is bigger
Than you think.
Your lunch will be gone in the blink
Of an Eye.
Then away I fly.
Should you ask “who stole my lunch?” I reply
“Nnot I
But, dear reader, I lie …!..
I have been known to eat plastic.
My reach is elastic.
You think your food Safe?
My friend brace
Yourself for a shock
For I will gobble the lot!
Be it ever so hot!”.

Nice poem. Thanks for sharing it with us. So, what do you do while your human writes?

I sleep or (just for fun and to break his concentration) I come into his study, wagging my tail and push my cold wet nose against his hand. Sometimes I present him with one of my toys just as he is deep in thought!

Well, you have to make sure he takes breaks, don't you? It's not good for humans to stay sitting at their computers for too long without breaks, after all. Before we say goodbye, is there anything else you’d like people to know about you?

I think eating, walks in the woods and playing with my toys are far more interesting than poetry!

You and me both! Don't tell Mummy though... She writes poems too, and might get upset if she learns I'm really not interested when she reads them to me, but only pretending in hopes she'll give me a treat, or play ball with me for a long time, to reward me for being a good dog and listening.

***~~~***

Author bio, links, etc:

Kevin Morris was born in the city of Liverpool on 6 January 1969. Having lost the majority of his eyesight at 18-months-old, Kevin attended Wavertree School for the Blind and Saint Vincents School for the Blind, both of which are located in Liverpool.
Kevin went on to study history and politics at University College of Swansea. Being a glutton for punishment he stayed on at Swansea and completed a Master of Arts (MA) in political theory. In between his studies Kevin enjoyed sailing in Swansea’s Oyster Mouth Bay and falling in the water …!
Kevin moved to London in 1994 to live and work. His fulltime job is as a civil servant and in his free hours he writes poetry, which he began writing in 2011.
Being visually impaired Kevin uses Job Access with Speech (JAWS) software which converts text into speech and braille enabling him to use a standard Windows laptop/computer.

Author’s website - https://newauthoronline.com
Author’s Twitter - https://twitter.com/drewdog2060_
Author’s Goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/newauthoronline

“The Writer’s Pen and Other Poems”, https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07GD1LBMV/, is A collection of 44 poems encompassing the passing of the years, nature, man's place in the world and politics. “The Writer’s Pen” is available in multiple formats at the above link and you can find “Summer”, one of the poems in the collection, reproduced below:

“Summer unlocks
Youthful passion.
Now ‘tis the fashion
For short frocks
And tiny socks.

Some girls barefoot go,
For of a summer’s day,
They little know
That Winter snow
Is on its way”.

***~~~***

I hope you enjoyed meeting Trigger, and getting to know about him and his human, Kevin.

Lots of licks,
Lilie

#AmReading + #AmWatching - January 31st 2019 #Reviews

It's time to take a look at what I've been reading and watching during the past week.

If you want to know more about the book, or the author, click on whichever it is you want to learn more about, and it will take you to the appropriate page on Goodreads. Clicking on my rating should take you to my actual Goodreads review for the book in question. Please bear in mind that the format I've reviewed on Goodreads may not be the format I actually read.

Alternatively, if it's a movie or TV show you want to know more about, just click on the title 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 read and watch things across multiple genres, as well as for different age ranges, so you should always check before reading or viewing, to make certain something is suitable for the intended audience, especially when children are involved.

OK...

Here's what I read this week:

Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This was a great read; I can see why this is a classic. I thought it was a bit of a slow starter. However, once I got in to the book, I found it exciting and enthralling.

The Fairy Godmother by Mercedes Lackey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I officially give this book 3.5 stars, but I'm rounding up, because I always do. Anyway, this was a good read, though it wasn't amazing. The first chapter hooked me in nicely, though there were several chapters that dragged in the first half during the Fairy Godmother training. I mean, did we really need that many detailed chapters about it? Still, it picked back up after a while, especially once the prince showed up, and the ending was fantastic. The characters were interesting, and the worldbuilding was imaginative. A bit more editing might have been an idea though, in order to catch those places where things like poor word choice jarred you out of the story. So, as I said, a good read over all, but not an amazing one.

As for what I've been watching:

Apart from bits and pieces of movies and shows I caught in between doing other things, which don't count, I didn't watch any movies or TV shows again this week - new to me or otherwise. I used the free time I could have used to do so for writing - and a few other authorly tasks I wanted to get to - instead. Well, and catching up on some stuff people I follow on YouTube had posted, which I hadn't had a chance to watch before. No. I don't even feel the slightest bit guilty for it.

#WriterWednesday - January 30th 2019

Up until this past weekend, I'd only managed to write two poems all month. However, I was able to take advantage of a bit of free time this weekend to get a few hundred words written - some on a short poem, the rest on a story. It's not much, but it's better than I had been managing. I've not been making my writing the priority it should be lately, mainly because it's the thing most people seem to want me to let slide whenever I just can't do it all, so it's just easier to let it be the thing I don't get to. But also a little because I've been procrastinating. Mainly the former, but I'll admit I'm guilty of the latter sometimes too. I'm hoping, after I've had surgery and recovered from it, I can change that. I could have started trying now, but decided to let things remain as they are for the time being. I will fix things though, because I have to write, and I'm missing it.

Sticking with the theme of the above paragraph: this is why it's so hard to sit down and get your writing done. Also, procrastination is a self-perpetuating cycle, so if you're as guilty of it as I have been over the past couple of weeks, check out the tips in the post I just linked to. Maybe they can help you make your writing the priority it should be. After all, there are reasons why your writing matters - even if you aren't making any money from it. So, how do you keep the passion for writing going?

However you do it, here's a reminder to always write down your 'shower thoughts' and those random thoughts and ideas from other times and places too. After all, one of those ideas might have the potential to be something great one day, and it would be a shame if they were lost forever.

Struggling with writers' block? Here are some more tips for where to find ideas for writing a story. Just don't wait around for ideas.

Remember: when you have your list of ideas, or random thoughts and observations, you can always recycle them when you're ready to write your next story or poem. Or, if you're not sure which to work with, you can go on a speed date with your stories.

OK, let's assume you're managing to avoid procrastinating, have your ideas, know which you're ready to work with right now, and are writing away. With that being the case, you might want to think about how you can write large.

Do you have any geologists in your story? Then you might like to take a look at this guide to being a geologist, so you can make sure you're making your geologist character believable.

Are you writing flash fiction? Is it set in a world you created yourself? Then read this post for some tips on how to build a fantasy world in flash fiction.

Now you have a first draft, it's time to do some revising, and tackle those plot holes.

Rewrites and edits are important. However, you need to avoid getting up in that vicious cycle of rewrites and edits, where your book is never quite finished in your opinion, even if it really is. With that in mind, here are some signs you're afraid of finishing your manuscript.

So... Here's how to write better: a quick guide.

Finally, if you're a writer too, how's your writing going? If you're doing any kind of writing challenge - like STORYSTORM or the 85k90 Challenge, just to give two examples of writing challenges I know have been going on during January - how are you doing with it? I'd love to know, so tell me in the comments.