Victoria Zigler's Blog: Zigler News, page 79

#Christmas Themed #MusicMonday: LeAnn Rimes - You and Me and Christmas

This week's song is "You and Me and Christmas" sung by LeAnn Rimes. I don't know that it's my favourite of hers, but I'm not entirely certain which song to pick as my favourite LeAnn Rimes song anyhow, and I did enjoy listening to this one, along with "I Still Believe In Santa Claus" when they were put up on her YouTube channel recently, so... Enjoy!

#Christmas Questions And Bucket Lists

Danielle did these Thanksgiving questions and answers on her blog at the start of last month. I don't celebrate Thanksgiving, but I'm a sucker for these question posts, so I thought I'd play along with a Christmas version. So, here it is. Feel free to play along too, either using Danielle's original questions, or the Christmas version I'm posting today.

1. Do you celebrate at home or away?

It varies. We've had years where we've celebrated the holidays at home, but invited friends or family to celebrate with us. We've had years where we've gone to visit, or stay with, family to celebrate with them. We've also had years where we've celebrated by ourselves at home, and just spoken to family and friends online or on the phone. Mostly it's the latter.

Whatever we decide to do though, and wherever we spend Christmas Day, the furkids are always involved in our celebrations somehow, and the years we've gone visiting when we've had a dog, the dog has gone visiting with us, and even shared some of the holiday meal.

2. When do your festivities kick off?

My thoughts turn to Christmas as soon as Halloween is over, and I'll have most - if not all - of the holiday shopping done by the start of December. But we don't do anything particularly Christmasy until right before the Winter Solstice - which happens any time between December 20th and December 22nd usually, but which we celebrate on December 21st, for consistancy's sake - and will usually continue to celebrate through Boxing Day (December 26th). Not that we do loads of stuff, since we prefer to keep our celebrations low-key. But still.

Our Christmas decorations go up any time between the start of December, and the Winter Solstice. Depending on when I feel like putting them up. It's usually about mid December though.

Having said that, I will sometimes - OK, quite often - start watching holiday movies, reading holiday books, or listening to holiday music, before December. This year, for example, I've been listening to Christmas songs since my birthday, and watching Christmas movies on and off since early November. I blame Sky Cinema Christmas, since it's that channel's fault I've watched "The Muppets' Christmas Carol" half a dozen times this year, and "The Polar Express" and "The Nightmare Before Christmas" a few times each too. But, either way, I always watch "Santa Clause - The Movie" and read "The Bear Father Christmas Forgot" on Christmas Eve, since it's sort of a tradition for me to watch and read those before I go to bed on Christmas Eve, regardless of what holiday books and movies I may or may not have enjoyed before that day, or might be planning to watch or read on Christmas Day itself.

In my opinion though, any time after Halloween is over is fine to start being Christmasy.

3. Any special diets to consider?

Yes. Even when it's just the two of us there are things to consider, since I'm a vegetarian, can only handle so much dairy, and won't eat chocolate cake (even dairy -free versions, since it's not because of my dairy issue). On the other hand, Kelly is a picky eater when it comes to vegetables, and won't touch anything with raisins in it. Plus, neither of us drinks alcahol, and we don't like to include it in our food either. I even leave it out of puddings and sweet mince pies when I make my own (though I believe the recipe for the sweet mince pie filling on my website includes it, and I will eat puddings and pies with it included if I buy them, or it's involved in something I have when we're eating out).

Also, if family or friends are around - which doesn't happen often these days, but can sometimes be the case - there are other things to consider, depending on the family member(s) or friend(s) in question, since there are family members and friends we have with diabetes, who have food allergies, are picky eaters, or are vegetarians. All of which needs to be considered when planning meals, and usually results in several different options being made available.

Actually, more often than not, if it's more than just the two of us, we just go with a buffet option, making sure there are plenty of choices to cater for everyone. That way people can pick and choose from what's available, depending on their preferences or dietary requirements. Buffets are the go to option for gatherings more often than not, because it's just easier, especially when a lot of us get together.

But, for our holiday meals, mostly it's just me and Kelly, so we usually only have to worry about our own preferences. Even so we end up making two different dinners, with only a few ingredients being the same for both of us. But that's what happens most days anyhow, so we're used to doing that.

4. What’s your favorite holiday recipe?

I can't say I really have one particular favourite holiday recipe. Although, I have a selection of holiday recipes among those on my website's recipe section, if you haven't seen those, and are looking for some new recipes to try.

5. What’s your family’s consensus pick recipe?

To be honest, I don't think there is one.

Everything we have there's one person who either can't or won't eat it. Even when it's just me and hubby, our different diets mean we don't completely agree on everything that needs to be included in a holiday meal. About the only thing everyone agrees on is the roast potatoes. At least, that's how it seems.

6. Will you be trying any new recipes this year?

Not this year. In past years I have, since it's only us to worry about if it doesn't work out. Well, just myself really, since the new recipes I try are usually my vegetarian Christmas dinners. I've made different versions of nut roasts, a pie involving chestnuts, and a few other things. But this year I'm not planning on experimenting with a new recipe.

Although, we are technically doing something new this year, since we aren't cooking our Christmas dinner ourselves. Usually we cook our own Christmas dinner. Sometimes on the Solstice, other times on Christmas Day, other times on Boxing Day - most often the latter. But this year we aren't bothering. This year we're letting someone else cook it for us. We're planning on going out for a Christmas dinner around the Winter Solstice.

7. What’s your holiday dessert preference?

Mince pies. I'm quite fond of gingerbread too, but there have to be sweet mince pies. Well, OK. I can cope without them. But I prefer not to have to do without those at Christmas. They just feel like they belong, you know? Although, Kelly disagrees, because he won't eat them. He prefers biscuits (cookies) or a chocolate log cake. We make sure to have all those things. Mince pies for me, chocolate log cake for him, and some biscuits or something we'll both eat.

One of the benifits of this way of doing things is, we also then automatically have a variety of options to offer any family or friends who visit around the holidays, even if we weren't expecting them.

Now it’s your turn.  Feel free to answer as many of mine or Danielle's questions as you'd like. I'd love to hear about your celebrations. You can post your answers in the comments, or on your own blog. Either works.

Also, Deanna posted a holiday bucket list, and I created one too. So, here it is:

Watch holiday movies.Read Christmasy themed books.Go out for Christmas dinner.Do Christmas crafts.
What's on your holiday bucket list this year?

#Christmas Themed #FurkidFriday: Mollie The #Chinchilla's Letter To #SantaPaws

Dear Santa Paws,

I've been a very good chinchilla this year. I've tried real hard anyhow. I know I sometimes get cranky, but I can't help it. Besides, sometimes it's because Maizie jumps on my head, and I think even you'd get cranky if someone did that to you.

Anyway, the human caretakers say you're coming to visit again soon, so I was wondering if you could bring me some nibbles and toys? Oatmeal and raisins are my favourite nibbles, and I love any toy I can get my teeth in to. If you could bring me those things, that would be great! Don't forget to bring extra so I can share them with Maizie.

Squeak soon,
Mollie

#Christmas Themed #FurkidFursday Special: A Festive #Photo Of Lilie The #Westie

Hi everyone.

It's Lilie the Westie here with a Christmasy Fursday special, because I have a photo of me in a cute Christmas bandanna to show you. So, here it is:



Lots of licks,
Lilie

#WriterWednesday - December 5th 2018

Perhaps I write for no one. Perhaps for the same person children are writing for when they scrawl their names in the snow.
~Margaret Atwood

I love that quote, and this one too:

Remember: Plot is no more than footprints left in the snow after your characters have run by on their way to incredible destinations.
~Ray Bradbury

Anyway...

If you participated in NaNoWriMo this year, how did you do?

I'm lucky I wasn't participating, since I maybe wrote 1000 words all month... If that. Well, there were blog posts too, but they don't count. That's better than I've done some months, but nowhere near what I'd have needed for NaNoWriMo... That's not even a daily word goal for NaNoWriMo. Still, any progress is good progress, and at least this time I know it was because I was putting other things higher on my priority list. But, the end of the year is approaching fast, so I know for sure I won't be finishing writing that adventure story this year. There have just been too many other things happening this year, and now I have a couple of things I want to get done before the end of the year, so am making those things my priority right now.

In many cases it's not a concious decission though. It is in my case right now, but it hasn't been most of the year. Mostly it's been because of other things going on, and because writing is tiring too sometimes, which is the hardest thing about writing a book. Then there's the whole shiny new ideas causing distractions thing, which is how I came to write "Where's Noodles?" when I was meant to have been working on the other story...

Sometimes I get frustrated when I'm trying to write and my mind keeps flying off on tangents. Then I realize if my mind didn't fly off on tangents, I probably wouldn't be a writer.
~Rick Riordan

Here are some of the top excuses for not writing, and how to get over them.

Of course, as I already hinted at, part of the battle is getting to have that writing time. So, here's how to guard your writing time. The tips are aimed at people who also have full time jobs, but can just as easily apply to full time writers (especially given the tendancy of most people to assume that home all day equals available all day, which it totally doesn't, and I wish people would learn that, since it would make things easier for all people who work from home, not just writers).

I don't know about you, but sometimes I wish I could go away somewhere and write without all those things that happen every day to worry about, distract me, etc. Doesn't it sound lovely? And it would be, I'm sure. But a writing retreat won't help you write better. Not in the long term anyhow. So I have to learn to write among all those other things that happen every day. So do you, if you want to get anywhere with your writing. Of course, a trip to a writing retreat, or somewhere I could have some quiet time where writing was the only thing on my to-do list, would be nice sometimes too.

By the way, speaking of lists... Is there a writer on your Christmas list? Do you need some inspiration for what to buy them? Then check out this holiday gift guide for writers. As it says in that article, books make great gifts. But books make great gifts for the non-writers on your list too. With that in mind, check out the 2018 Christmas promotions from Sally's cafe and bookstore, because there are some fantastic books being featured among those posts, so you may find the perfect bookish gift among them.

Speaking of which: I've got several titles available, which you might want to consider for the book-lovers on your list. Especially if those book lovers are children, or fans of poetry. Though my children's stories have been enjoyed by plenty of older readers too, judging by the reviews. Just saying. You can find my books on Amazon, as well as a variety of other retailers.

Rough #Ocean #Photos, The Ball, #HarryPotter Boxes, and Medical Mutterings

The weather and the ocean have both been pretty rough. You may be able to get some idea from the photos at the top of this post, which are photos of the ocean as seen from our window on November 28th (last Wednesday). And these from December 1st (this past Saturday):



The ocean's been so rough it's throwing stones from the beach up on to the promonade. They're going clear across it to the foot of the steps up to the street. There's so many that, in places, walking along the promonade is almost like walking on the beach itself, and we had to go walk up on the street the other day on the way home from Oscars.

***~~~***

Lilie's favourite "fetch" ball disappeared.

I threw it, and it seemed to literally vanish in to thin air.

Kelly and I searched and searched for that ball. But we just couldn't find it.

We also tried asking Lilie where it was. But all she did was go stand by the shelves in the room we were in, and bark.

It did sort of seem like she might be trying to tell us something. So we did look where she kept standing and barking. But we still couldn't find the ball, no matter how many times I felt among the things on the shelves, and Kelly looked among them. So, since Lilie's known for getting in to stuff, we sort of thought she might just be trying to get at something else on the shelves.

Although, we knew the ball had to have gone somewhere. Rubber balls aren't known for vanishing in to thin air with no explanation.

Finally, after we'd failed for three days to find the ball, during which time Lilie had returned to the same spot every time she was asked to fetch the ball, I decided to give Lilie the benifit of the doubt. So, I asked her again to, "Fetch the ball," and when she barked near that same area again, I picked her up, and repeated the fetch command.

I figured, since she was returning to the same spot, there was a chance she really was showing me the ball. Besides, I had hold of her, so at least I'd have time to grab whatever it was she wanted from her before she could chew it, if it turned out she was after something she wasn't supposed to have. Plus, I was getting frustrated and desperate.

But she really did know where the ball was.

She immediately grabbed the ball from a spot on the shelves where we'd somehow missed seeing it, and she hadn't been able to reach it from the floor. Then proudly dropped it in my hand when I checked to see what she'd grabbed.

It turned out it had gotten itself wedged between some stuff on the shelf, in a spot I'm not sure how it even fitted in. Maybe the fact it's a little chewed up helped it fit in a place a ball of that size wouldn't normally fit?

Whatever the case, next time, I'm going to save us three days of searching, and listen to Lilie to start with.

Oh, and... Yes. Lilie did get loads of praise. Just in case you were wondering. I think she more than deserved it.

***~~~***

My November Harry Potter box arrived.

Here are my goodies for this month, in no particular order...

A magical creature egg:


A Ravenclaw picture:


A Hogwarts themed keychain:


A Ravenclaw coin:


A potions master pin badge:


A Ravenclaw t-shirt, modelled by me:

(Excuse the Harry Potter hair).


Two recipe cards. One for gingerbread wizards, and one for Kretcher's French onion soup:


A couple of Harry Potter themed Christmas cards. One with Santa and Hogwarts on it, and the other with a Bowtruckle on it:


And aRavenclaw Christmas stocking:


I've already got a Christmas stocking, which my Nan (Dad's Mother) made for me when I was a baby, and I've used every year since. So this one will be hung as a decoration only. I'd totally use it if I didn't already have one though!

***~~~***

I had another shot this past Friday. The next one is scheduled for December 28th at 1:30pm. I'm sort of relieved that the date it's due means the days they're closed for Christmas and the New Year won't cause a problem with it being done on the right day. I was a bit worried about that being a problem.

I think I've gone too often. I walked in there and the security desk guy who usually takes me to the right floor knew where I wanted to go, and then the receptionist greeted me by name, and signed me in without even needing to ask my date of birth or anything. Yeah... You know you go there too regularly when that kind of thing happens.

Anyway, I had them weigh me again while I was there, though I didn't hold out much hope for any weight loss. I just figured I might as well have them do it, for consistancy's sake. Turns out I got a bit of the weight back off. Shame I'm still heavier than when I originally went to the gynecologists. But at least the scales have started going down again. Wish I knew what I did right, so I could do it again. But I actually can't think of anything different I did during the past month. In fact, if anything I did less to try and lose weight than I had the month before, so... Yeah. Either way, I somehow lost a whole kilo (about 2.2 lbs). Just in case you're wondering.

I also had them make me an appointment to have a blood test, since it's meant to get checked again in December. My appointment for that is December 13th at 10:20am. So a week on Thursday.

Nope. There's still no surgery date. I'm planning to call and chase that up this week, since the six months of the "three to six months" timeframe they gave me is up next week (on the day I'm going for my blood test, as it happens). With how close the holidays are now, I very much doubt anything will be done this side of Christmas. Although, if they give me a date and it happens to be right on top of Christmas, you can bet I'll take it. I'd rather spend Christmas in hospital than miss my chance to finally get it done. I kind of hope I don't end up in on top of Christmas though. I'm hoping I can either have it done quickly enough to be home for Christmas, or first thing in the new year. Can but hope, right?

#Christmas Themed #MusicMonday: Tchaikovsky -Dance Of The Sugarplum Fairy

Christmas is coming up fast. So, let's kick off the festive season with Tchaikovsky's "Dance Of The Sugarplum Fairy" shall we? Here you go... Enjoy!

Tori's November 2018 #Book #Reviews - #AmReading

It's time to take a look at what I read in November.

This month I had a couple more books for group reads and reading challenges, as well as the book I started reading on Halloween, but didn't have a chance to finish until a few days in to November. Hey, in my defence, it was only released on Halloween, and is a short story anthology.

Oh, and speaking of reading challenges: I'd hoped to be completely caught up with my 2018 reading goal by the end of November. I wasn't. One of the books I read took a lot longer to finish than planned, so I'm still several books behind schedule. Looks like I might not make my reading goal this year. Never mind. I'll try and get as close as I can. But if I don't make it... Well, I'll still have read a lot of books, most of which were pretty good. At the end of the day, the fact I've enjoyed most of what I've read is what matters most.

Oh, and... Speaking of reading goals: here are five simple rules for finding time to read. I don't think you need to read several books at once though. You can use the same sort of tips and read one book at a time. I usually have two on the go at once, but only because I have one in the CD player for bed time, and one on the go on my Kindle. The one in the CD player is often a re-read though, so I don't count it in the number of books I read. My point is though, if you want to use the "rules" in the post I just linked to, but can only read one book at a time, that's totally fine. Don't let that fact bother you. Any reading is better than no reading. The point is to set yourself a reading schedule, stick to it, and snatch any extra reading time you can. That's the simple answer to how you find time to read a lot.

Anyway, as with the previous posts like this one, 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.

Don't forget: the format I've reviewed may not be the format I read. Also, please remember that I read across multiple genres and age ranges, so you should always check if a book is suitable for the intended reader, especially when children are involved. Sometimes reading the book's description on its Goodreads page will be enough for this, but other times you may need to check elsewhere to figure out the genre and/or recommended reading level.

OK... On to the reviews!

Ghostly Writes Anthology 2018 by Ghostly Writers
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Collections like this are always difficult to rate and review, since there will always be stories you prefer over others. Naturally, this is the case this time too. This was a nice collection, and the stories were well-written (though the writing style of some appealed to me more than that of others). But there were stories I really enjoyed, and stories I just thought were "OK" but didn't really enjoy. My rating is based on averaging things out. I'd have given some of the individual stories a higher rating, while others would have had a lower one. Over all, a nice read for Halloween, or any time you want a horror or paranormal theme to your reading. But not quite as enjoyable as their previous collections, in my opinion.

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I really enjoyed this book, but didn't love it. It had a plot that was at times fascinating, but other times seemed to drag a bit. It was only really those parts where the plot dragged a bit that spoiled it for me. I can see why it's a classic.

An Angel Among Us: by J.E. Spina
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is a wonderful and well-written collection of stories. Most of the stories are beautiful and heartwarming, and those that aren't are enjoyable in other ways. The only thing stopping me from giving this book the full five stars is that some of the stories felt like they should have been the start of something longer, so their endings didn't leave me feeling entirely satisfied.

Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I remember watching the movie for this one in the past, and loving it. I also vaguely remember having these stories read to me when I was younger, but didn't remember much about them, except that I loved them. Now I'm reading them as an adult, and I still love them. Pippi is a great character, and the plot is fun and action-packed.

Pippi Goes on Board by Astrid Lindgren
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
It was great to read more of Pippi's adventures. Also, the ending almost had me in tears.

Pippi in the South Seas by Astrid Lindgren
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This was a fun and entertaining read, but not as good as the first two books, in my opinion.

Spellcaster by Claudia Gray
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I really enjoyed this book. It has great characters, who are believable as real people. It also has a plot that grabbed my attention quickly, and then held it until the end. Plus, I think it's interesting how the magic works, and fantastic how well the author has combined those elements with the everyday so well that it feels like it could really work like that. There are some story threads left looser than I would have liked, which stops this book from being totally amazing to me, but the ending was mostly satisfactory, and I consider the book to be a great read.

Steadfast by Claudia Gray
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
WOW! What an excellent second book in this series! I think it was even better than the first. Can't wait to find out what happens in the third book!

Sorceress by Claudia Gray
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I loved this third and final installment. It was an awesome ending.

#Christmas Themed #FurkidFriday: Joshua The #Degu's Letter To #SantaPaws

Dear Santa Paws,

I'm a very good degu. The human caretakers say so. I've even got braver, and let them pet me lots now. It makes them happy when I do that. I like when the human caretakers are happy. Not just because it often gets me extra nibbles either. Although, I do like that part, I have to admit.

Anyway, the human caretakers say you're coming for a visit again soon. I never see you when you do, but I always love the toys and nibbles you leave for me. I like nibbles, especially Shreddies, Cheerios, oatmeal, and chinchilla cookies. Also, wooden toys are great to gnaw on. You're usually pretty good about figuring out what I'd like best though, even though I don't know how you do it, so I'll let you decide which ones to bring me.

Squeak soon,
Joshua

#FurkidFursday Special: A Joshua The #Degu #Photo

Hi everyone.

This is Joshua the degu with a Fursday special for you.

The human caretakers took this photo of me yesterday (November 28th). I already have something I'm going to share with you tomorrow, so - since the Lilie dog hadn't claimed this Fursday for herself - I thought I'd come on here and give you a degu themed Fursday special. Anyway, here's my photo:



Squeak soon,
Joshua